Singapore - Gardens By the Bay

Everyone in my family agreed that the Singapore trip last August was nothing but a disaster. In fact, there was an unspoken rule in the house that we pretended this dreadful trip did not happen at all and I have no problem adhering to it. There is no holiday that manage to give me a nightmare like this.

The first thing you'll see at the Garden by the Bay

Bridge connecting to the Supertrees

The only thing worth talking about the trip is the fact that we went to Singapore's new attraction, Gardens By the Bay. Located at Marina Bays, this beautiful park is a relief to the eyes from a constant attack of metallic skyscrapers dominating the cityscape. It is a place to relax and slow down the rapid pace of life Singaporeans seem to lead.

OCBC Skywalk where you can go up for a breath-taking view

The main appeal of the park has to be the Supertrees. These man-made trees are the first thing you will notice once you're in the garden and rightly so. At the range of height between 25 to 50 metres, these Supertrees serve more than just to amaze. Their functions include planting, shading, and are the main environmental system to the whole Gardens.

By night time, these Supertrees are the performers of the light and music show. Known as the OCBC Garden Rhapsody, it is something like the Hong Kong's A Symphony of Lights, replacing the skycrapers of Hong Kong with these Supertrees and eliminating the light beams. A good 15 minutes of entertainment. Not to be missed when you are in the island.

All lit up

Not a good shot unfortunately...

The beautiful view of Singapore

Philippines - Overview

Philippines. The first thing that comes to your mind would be its pristine white beaches. Or, perhaps you might associate it with its chaotic capital, Manila City. At least, that is where most people would go to for their first trips to the country.

Manila Central Post Office at the background

For me, my maiden trip to Philippines has nothing to do with the cityscape and the sun-kissed beaches. Out of my five day trip, I spent less than 6 hours in Manila and barely more than 2 hours on a beach and even that, the beach itself is not the main attraction.

Manila Cathedral, one of the three must see attractions in Intramuros

Manila served as a transit centre in this trip. I have every intention of visiting and exploring Intramuros, the walled city within the capital, and nothing else. Both days (first and last day itself) I was in the city, both times I spent it walking around the heritage ground of Intramuros only.

The Sinking Belltower of Laoag

Ilocos region is where I spent most of my time in. I based myself in Laoag City, the capital of Ilocos Norte, for two nights, visiting those towns scattered around the city like Bangui and Paoay for their unique attractions, the Bangui Windmills and Paoay Church respectively. It was very refreshing to travel in such manner, taking local buses and jeepneys to these quaint towns and cruising through the countryside which offers spectacular views.

The breath-taking scene of Bangui windmills

Another place I went to was the Vigan City. Capital of Ilocos Sur, the main appeal of this city is its well-preserved Spanish colonial houses. Fusion of both western and eastern elements, these mansions are best viewed along Calle Crisologo, widely deemed by the locals as the place to go to for the most well-preserved colonial era buildings in the country. And their sentiments are well supported.

You are being transported back to colonial era in Vigan City

My Philippines trip was indeed memorable, as with most of my adventures. I do believe if you can’t enjoy yourself during the trip, then, why go in the first place? It is nothing but a waste of money. However, something unpleasant will forever be associated to my Philippines holiday which I am still trying to get over it. Let’s bygones be bygones. No point crying over spilt milk.

*TO BE CONTINUED*

All My Photos Are Lost, Thanks to Air Asia!

I just came back last Sunday night from my Philippines trip and after a hard tossing of my stuffs, I found out my external hard drive which I brought along with me for the trip, went missing. It was still in the luggage when I checked it in for my flight back but was no longer there anymore after retrieving my bag. Clearly, someone has been rummaging through my bag!

Also missing from my bag were my old phone and few hundreds Ringgit. This is the first time I experience such thing with Air Asia. I already logged in a complaint form and am waiting for their reply. Though doubt will receive any information worth celebrating (unless they told me they found my external), I still want to hear some form of explanation.

All my photos for the past few years were all in my external hard disk and without any backup. All my travel photos, my university years, my family shots, all lost in nowhere. How can I ever trust you again?

Happy Chinese New Year

恭喜发财! Happy Chinese New Year!

Today's the second day of Chinese New Year. How's everyone's celebration has been? For me, it's the same old every year, a day of binge eating, receiving ang pows, playing card games and mahjong, etc. This has been the traditions in my family and will remain so.

Anyhow, I will be flying off the Philippines on the fourth day of Chinese New Year (13 February 2013). After the third day, Chinese New Year is turning into a boring affair and since I'm off the whole week, why not scout to someplace for fun and exploration?

My Philippines trip will be a 5-day vacation and I'll spend most of the time exploring the country's largest island, Luzon. I will be heading up north to Laoag City first before slowing going back south. As my flight to the island country is through Air Asia, I will be landing on and departing from Clark International Airport, which is about 2 hours from Manila. Hence, you need to allocate some extra time for the shuttle between the two cities.

I will share more about my Philippines trip once I came back. Till then, continue having fun in the Year of Snake!

Vietnam - Danang Easyrider Tour Part 3

Continued from Part 1 and Part 2. Unfortunately, some photos of mine during the last 2 days were unavailable due to the fact that somehow, those files were corrupted and there were no back up. A waste, really.

We finally reached Hue after a long, long journey. My guide, Chien, brought me to the hotel where I'll be staying for the night and left me there on my own. This is one part of the tour that I don't really like. I knew little to nothing about Hue and I was under the impression that he would be bringing me around his hometown. I didn't realize the tour will only begin the next day.

The room at Huyen Trang 2 Hotel

The room I was given was beautiful and big. In fact, too big for one person. This is another aspect that I don't like, that he didn't customize the trip accordingly. I freshened up myself before heading out to explore the city. Equipped with a map I obtained at the lobby, I went for a walk around the city. The famous Perfume River is part of the attraction, along with its UNESCO Heritage Site inscribed Complex of Hue Monuments. I was just having a glimpse of the city before slowing heading back to hotel for a good night rest.

Delicious breakfast, bun bo Hue

Into the Imperial City of Hue

The next morning, Chien came to the hotel to pick me up and we left to have breakfast. After that, we began a brief tour of Hue. The first stop was the Imperial City of Hue. It is a walled fortress and palace of the former capital of Vietnam. Much like the Forbidden City in Beijing, the ruling emperor of Vietnam resided within the Imperial City, with a moat separating the royals from the commoners. It would have been a magnificent sight had it not been heavily bombed during the Vietnam War, leaving most of the palaces and structures in the Imperial City in total destruction. 

Look at the vastness of the Forbidden City

War had left many buildings damaged

I spent about an hour exploring the ruins of the Imperial City before heading to the next destination, Thien Mu Pagoda. Chien told me of a local legend of how the name Perfume River came by. According to him, the people of the North came down to the city and built the temple. The scent of the incenses being lit in the pagoda flowed through the river, giving off a fragrant smell. Thus, the name Perfume River. Whether this is for real or not is up for you to decide.

Thien Mu Pagoda

The famous Perfume River

The gods 

The garden in the temple

It was about 10 something by the time I finished exploring Thien Mu Pagoda and it was time for us to go to the Danang International Airport in time for my flight back KL. Before leaving the city, we made another stop at the Cao Dai Temple. It was a colourful temple where elements of five religions all merged beautifully together. 

Cao Dai Temple

The colourful praying ground

Look at the many familiar religious figures

The journey back was the same as the one we took to reach Hue. We made a stop at Lang Co Island for lunch and continued our journey. Only one difference was that instead of taking the twisty road uphill of Hai Van Pass, we took the Hai Van Pass tunnel. The motorbike was placed on a lorry while the passengers were seated in a bus to go through the tunnel. It was a long and dark ride, about 5 to 10 minutes. 

My lunch with six juicy prawns

To take the Hai Van Pass tunnel, motorcycles are placed on a lorry...

...while its passengers took seats in the bus

Hai Van Pass tunnel entrance

Inside the tunnel

By around 2.45 pm, we reached the airport, just in time for my flight, marking the end of my Vietnam trip.

My guide, Chien

*THE END*

Friday's Newsflash - Air Asia Ceases Flights to Colombo

Sad news to all of you who are planning to explore the island of Sri Lanka for Air Asia is withdrawing their flights to Colombo, the capital city of the country, effective 26 February 2013. The reason for this withdrawal is that it was, and I quote, "part of the commercial realignment of the airline". 

Those who are affected by this decision can either have their flights pushed forward without any extra charges, offered credit shell, or asked for full refund. For more information, you can go directly to Air Asia Service Centre to help you out with the process.

Sri Lanka is part of my to-visit countries and now that Air Asia is ceasing flights to the country, I have to make changes to my plan.