First time I became a millionaire. But only for a day or two.
I spent my millions through:
- accommodation
- massage
- travel and tours around hcmc
- vietnamese cuisine
- some souviners
- entrance fee to various museum and historic landmarks
- lots and lots of vietnamese coffee
- and other small stuff i cant remember
not too bad really. you get good value for your money.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
KL in a nutshell
I have to make this as concise as possible cos still have to take a nap. I'm currently at Plaza Premier Lounge and the clock ticks.
Equator hotel...
is amazing. Err... AMAZING!! thanks, users of hostelworld.com for a good rating.
+ Its clean clean.
+ Very organised.
+ Lots of amenities (food, dvds, internet, drinks). The last 2 aren't free though.
+ Friendly staff.
+ Poo poo water blast spray.
+ Working shower heater.
+ Nice ambience. Green and Blue - my favourite colours.
+ Good location. Near Imbi Monorail. Few stops to KL Tower and Petronas. Time Square within reach.
- Mossies.
- Weak airconditioning.
Some of my travel trivias and random experiences:
*I realised that Bahasa Malaysia sounded a lot like Filipino. Really!! I somehow understood what the locals were talking about.
*10 out 10 people talk to me in the local native tongue.
*One word I learned: Keluar. Its not translated and my curiousity has led me to learn what it meant.
*Premium toilets cost 2 ringgit. Only to find out that the toilet seat is strangely flat and digusting to poo.
*I have poo'ed like >5 times today. Most embarrasing was that Premier toilet (mentioned above). So many blast farts. And the attendant was listening!!
*I haven't eaten any Malaysian food during my KL visit. Got a bad impression with the restaurant I should have eaten. Maybe cos I look poor. But literally I am. My budget was only USD 100 for everything, including accommodation.
*Didn't ride any cabbie.
*Walked and walked and walked. First day I covered the muslim mosques. china town. KL tower and Petronas. Not to mention I walked all the way home. Imagine - KL Towers to Petronas and to my Backpacker home at Imbi.
*Have so many iterations of KL tower just because there's no one to take pictures of me. Its even raining for crying out loud.
*Wasn't able to do my three options for the last day. namely: Batu Cave, Flying Fox, Lake Garden. Just because my time was exhausted queueng up for the bridge ticket all morning. and going back there by mid-afternoon.
*Never did I realise that the budget terminal is more than an hour away from the city. I was so conservative that I ended up waiting for 5 hours in the airport.
*Exceeded my budget cos I toured so many shopping malls. Used up my AUD and PHP reserves cos I ended up shopping!
Have heaps of stories to tell but rather keep it in a format of my cool experience rather than narrative timelines. This is the most concise I can get. haha... That's how much I enjoyed KL. Will definitely be back in Malaysia to do Teman Negara and Lengkawa. probably climb Mt Kota Kinabalu.
Equator hotel...
is amazing. Err... AMAZING!! thanks, users of hostelworld.com for a good rating.
+ Its clean clean.
+ Very organised.
+ Lots of amenities (food, dvds, internet, drinks). The last 2 aren't free though.
+ Friendly staff.
+ Poo poo water blast spray.
+ Working shower heater.
+ Nice ambience. Green and Blue - my favourite colours.
+ Good location. Near Imbi Monorail. Few stops to KL Tower and Petronas. Time Square within reach.
- Mossies.
- Weak airconditioning.
Some of my travel trivias and random experiences:
*I realised that Bahasa Malaysia sounded a lot like Filipino. Really!! I somehow understood what the locals were talking about.
*10 out 10 people talk to me in the local native tongue.
*One word I learned: Keluar. Its not translated and my curiousity has led me to learn what it meant.
*Premium toilets cost 2 ringgit. Only to find out that the toilet seat is strangely flat and digusting to poo.
*I have poo'ed like >5 times today. Most embarrasing was that Premier toilet (mentioned above). So many blast farts. And the attendant was listening!!
*I haven't eaten any Malaysian food during my KL visit. Got a bad impression with the restaurant I should have eaten. Maybe cos I look poor. But literally I am. My budget was only USD 100 for everything, including accommodation.
*Didn't ride any cabbie.
*Walked and walked and walked. First day I covered the muslim mosques. china town. KL tower and Petronas. Not to mention I walked all the way home. Imagine - KL Towers to Petronas and to my Backpacker home at Imbi.
*Have so many iterations of KL tower just because there's no one to take pictures of me. Its even raining for crying out loud.
*Wasn't able to do my three options for the last day. namely: Batu Cave, Flying Fox, Lake Garden. Just because my time was exhausted queueng up for the bridge ticket all morning. and going back there by mid-afternoon.
*Never did I realise that the budget terminal is more than an hour away from the city. I was so conservative that I ended up waiting for 5 hours in the airport.
*Exceeded my budget cos I toured so many shopping malls. Used up my AUD and PHP reserves cos I ended up shopping!
Have heaps of stories to tell but rather keep it in a format of my cool experience rather than narrative timelines. This is the most concise I can get. haha... That's how much I enjoyed KL. Will definitely be back in Malaysia to do Teman Negara and Lengkawa. probably climb Mt Kota Kinabalu.
tiger's p(l)aws...
not satisfied.
IMHO, the worst budget airline.
flaws i'd identified:
- delayed flight.
- no apologies during the flight.
- no drinks were sold.
- they don't clean the pouch where the inflight magazine is. God knows what's in the black plastic bag left in my seat. some empty candy wrappers scattered.
- poor customer service.
- i wasn't even given the embarkation card.
- and oh... they don't know what the embarkation card is. pretty much i have to explain that its the card presented in immigration. the stewardess seemed to frown when i requested for it. what the...
i hope they do something about it. not because i only paid for the taxes and surcharges, means that they can compensate fair services.
just my two cents.
IMHO, the worst budget airline.
flaws i'd identified:
- delayed flight.
- no apologies during the flight.
- no drinks were sold.
- they don't clean the pouch where the inflight magazine is. God knows what's in the black plastic bag left in my seat. some empty candy wrappers scattered.
- poor customer service.
- i wasn't even given the embarkation card.
- and oh... they don't know what the embarkation card is. pretty much i have to explain that its the card presented in immigration. the stewardess seemed to frown when i requested for it. what the...
i hope they do something about it. not because i only paid for the taxes and surcharges, means that they can compensate fair services.
just my two cents.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Day 1 - Singapore
Quick note:
I have to make this blog concise and quick as I only have 8 minutes left on the ticking clock. Plus I have to poo before I go to budget terminal. I'm currently at Mcdonald's in Changi Airport.
Cebu Pacific/T3 experience
Very smooth and quick process. Can't imagine that the terminal isn't being used by other international carriers. Why? It seems its only 40% operational. NAIA is so clustered and needs total improvement. I finished the whole check-in process within 30 minutes.
Had my dinner at some local resto. Only to have Tuna sandwich and instant noodles. Their lame excuse was the brown out. Shesh. After 20 minutes my seatmate already have nice yummy meal. Not good.
Cebu Pacific is not bad. I was able to sleep well and the landing was not bad. Though I have occasional fright that it would crash. Talk about downgrade from Singapore Air's business class to a budget airline.
Sing's Budget Terminal
I arrived the budget terminal of Singapore at 2350H. Its not too bad really. Its even better than our very own T3. So many shops and free internet. Got free bus shuttles to/from T2.
I slept at Plaza Premier Lounge. It was good minus the snoring neighbour. Their internet pamplet isn't updated. I was overbudget by $5.
Plaza Premiere Plaza/McDonalds
Funny story, I put my ipod on cos of the noisy snoring dude on my left. But I slept. When my alarm went on, I got startled. I even went to the reception speaking in Filipino. Haha... "Nag-snooze na po." Oops. Good thing she's also Filo. Had a nice bath. Free lemonade. Ate at Mcdonalds. McGriddles? A bit confused what it was at first. Because its the normal sausage muffin with egg and cheese. But when I took the first bite. I realise whats different. The bun was made of pancakes.
And now ready to go to my next journey.
I have to make this blog concise and quick as I only have 8 minutes left on the ticking clock. Plus I have to poo before I go to budget terminal. I'm currently at Mcdonald's in Changi Airport.
Cebu Pacific/T3 experience
Very smooth and quick process. Can't imagine that the terminal isn't being used by other international carriers. Why? It seems its only 40% operational. NAIA is so clustered and needs total improvement. I finished the whole check-in process within 30 minutes.
Had my dinner at some local resto. Only to have Tuna sandwich and instant noodles. Their lame excuse was the brown out. Shesh. After 20 minutes my seatmate already have nice yummy meal. Not good.
Cebu Pacific is not bad. I was able to sleep well and the landing was not bad. Though I have occasional fright that it would crash. Talk about downgrade from Singapore Air's business class to a budget airline.
Sing's Budget Terminal
I arrived the budget terminal of Singapore at 2350H. Its not too bad really. Its even better than our very own T3. So many shops and free internet. Got free bus shuttles to/from T2.
I slept at Plaza Premier Lounge. It was good minus the snoring neighbour. Their internet pamplet isn't updated. I was overbudget by $5.
Plaza Premiere Plaza/McDonalds
Funny story, I put my ipod on cos of the noisy snoring dude on my left. But I slept. When my alarm went on, I got startled. I even went to the reception speaking in Filipino. Haha... "Nag-snooze na po." Oops. Good thing she's also Filo. Had a nice bath. Free lemonade. Ate at Mcdonalds. McGriddles? A bit confused what it was at first. Because its the normal sausage muffin with egg and cheese. But when I took the first bite. I realise whats different. The bun was made of pancakes.
And now ready to go to my next journey.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
travel resumed...
I've changed my website. Its on another undisclosed location. Some close friends have it. But its still under a lot of modifications. I've been updating it and adding a lot of multimedia.
For now I will be posting updates to my SEA travel @ blogspot.
As you know I am traveling to Southeast Asia today. Seven locations in four countries. At last, I will use my new machine-readable passport. After all the sweat and blood of renewing it. My old passport is kept safe. It has 66 stamps and 5 visas. It has well served its purpose. Weird thing is from PP now I got XX. Kinda cool, eh?
I've been spent a lot of time and headaches in booking flights, accommodation and looking at the most cost efficient way to do the tour myself. I can say that my itinerary is really hectic but all worth it. I mean I don't have to spend a lot of fortune to attain what I wanna do. I'm actually worried that I only have US$465. My mom is worried as well that this ain't enough. I told her I have Australian dollar reserves - just in case.
Well, good luck to me and i will keep you posted. In the meantime, I would like to thank the following sponsors:
+ Lonely Planet *insightful info - indeed its a big trip on small budgets!
+ HostelWorld.com *very cheap and user-friendly accommodation website. good reviews and easily comparable hostels.
+ Sing Air *for my free trips to Vietnam and Indonesia
+ Budget Air (Cebu Pacific, JetStar, Tiger Airways, Air Asia, Lion Air) *cheap flights! nuff said.
+ TripAdvisor.com *very useful forums and interactions on fellow-travelers.
+ Wikipedia *informative. gives background on history and culture of places I wanna go to.
... and many more.
My instinct tells me to shut up and pack up. :)
For now I will be posting updates to my SEA travel @ blogspot.
As you know I am traveling to Southeast Asia today. Seven locations in four countries. At last, I will use my new machine-readable passport. After all the sweat and blood of renewing it. My old passport is kept safe. It has 66 stamps and 5 visas. It has well served its purpose. Weird thing is from PP now I got XX. Kinda cool, eh?
I've been spent a lot of time and headaches in booking flights, accommodation and looking at the most cost efficient way to do the tour myself. I can say that my itinerary is really hectic but all worth it. I mean I don't have to spend a lot of fortune to attain what I wanna do. I'm actually worried that I only have US$465. My mom is worried as well that this ain't enough. I told her I have Australian dollar reserves - just in case.
Well, good luck to me and i will keep you posted. In the meantime, I would like to thank the following sponsors:
+ Lonely Planet *insightful info - indeed its a big trip on small budgets!
+ HostelWorld.com *very cheap and user-friendly accommodation website. good reviews and easily comparable hostels.
+ Sing Air *for my free trips to Vietnam and Indonesia
+ Budget Air (Cebu Pacific, JetStar, Tiger Airways, Air Asia, Lion Air) *cheap flights! nuff said.
+ TripAdvisor.com *very useful forums and interactions on fellow-travelers.
+ Wikipedia *informative. gives background on history and culture of places I wanna go to.
... and many more.
My instinct tells me to shut up and pack up. :)
Friday, June 12, 2009
The Australian Immigrant
finally after 2 months and 22 days, I got my visa grant - subclass 176 (state sponsored skilled migrant AU visa). It was a surprise yesterday morning. It took 24 hours for me to absorb the news and blog about it.
happy.
overwhelmed.
confused.
got stomach upset from all the thinking and the rush of excitement. tentative date of departure might be mid-Aug.
will start a new life. new beginning.
but first i have to contemplate on some few things. clear my mind. and straighten things out.
happy.
overwhelmed.
confused.
got stomach upset from all the thinking and the rush of excitement. tentative date of departure might be mid-Aug.
will start a new life. new beginning.
but first i have to contemplate on some few things. clear my mind. and straighten things out.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
i am...
... a commuter
traveled by tricycle. jeep. bus or shuttle from quiapo, morayta, makati, roxas blvd, sucat.
... a travel planner / trip advisor
booking flights. reading reviews. providing past travel reviews. researching routes, budgets.
... an internet geek
been connected to the net for 20/7. whoa. 4 hours sleep. far out.
... a patient
got sick over the weekend. whilst the rain is pouring.
... a party planner
been organising get together with my friends from both work, HS and College
... part of an audience
tons of TV shows. Movie Marathon. Mall hoping!
... an investor / business man
fx trading. business prospects. or going back to practising my profession
... reader
finished two books. awesome and captivating; boring but informative.
... observer
sitting in a cafe just looking at busy people's lives. *yawns*
now - whats next - DJ/VJ? i'm getting bored. watch my blips (mono; be somebody; like a stone; this heart attack). guess the theme?
traveled by tricycle. jeep. bus or shuttle from quiapo, morayta, makati, roxas blvd, sucat.
... a travel planner / trip advisor
booking flights. reading reviews. providing past travel reviews. researching routes, budgets.
... an internet geek
been connected to the net for 20/7. whoa. 4 hours sleep. far out.
... a patient
got sick over the weekend. whilst the rain is pouring.
... a party planner
been organising get together with my friends from both work, HS and College
... part of an audience
tons of TV shows. Movie Marathon. Mall hoping!
... an investor / business man
fx trading. business prospects. or going back to practising my profession
... reader
finished two books. awesome and captivating; boring but informative.
... observer
sitting in a cafe just looking at busy people's lives. *yawns*
now - whats next - DJ/VJ? i'm getting bored. watch my blips (mono; be somebody; like a stone; this heart attack). guess the theme?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)