Europe 2016

Starting of this year.. I never thought I would travel to the cities I have been wanting to visit for the longest time - Paris & London. It had been a great time planning our itinerary and although not everything was fulfilled, I'm glad it all went pretty well.

In this post, I'm going to selectively pick a few places on where to eat.. and probably a little more on tax refunds and where to get your items!

Paris

Carette

They serve the best scrambled eggs I have ever eaten in my life. Even the ambiance feels so parisian. A pity I didnt manaage to score a table outdoors but I still left this place feeling bloated :)

Brunetti

I thought I can never have another good gelato other than Cow & the Moon from Sydney but Brunetti blew my mind. I had 3 cones of ice cream straight (and even before breakfast!) and no, I am not guilty of my actions. Not a single bit :)

Jacques Genin

Their chocolates and truffles were sooooo yummyz. What's better is that you'll get to taste before you buy too, all you have to do is just ask. No worries about bringing them back because it will be packed into hot/cooler bags before you leave the shop to suit the temperature of your surroundings!

Le Comptoir de Gastronomie

Famous for their Foie Gras, I am not surprised about the taste of their Foie Gras Truffle Ravioli. The boyfriend enjoyed their Cod Fish very much while I liked their Duck Sheperd Pie better. The chocolate lava cake was good too.

Cafe de La Paix

Near to our vicinity was this eye catchy cafe/restaurant which we kept walking pass! Decided to try it during one of our stays in Paris and certainly wasn't a disappointment at all. I had my first Croque Madame and it was really delicious! Their cafe was separated into two, for both fine dining and casual dining. Was supposed to come back for fine dining but didn't manage to find the time to. Next time then!

Monsieur Bleu

A restaurant that has a view of an Eiffel Tower. Making reservations with them was a hassle as it's super not user friendly. The mains weren't amazing but I guess if you're paying for the view and ambiance, it is worth it. I did enjoy their Calamari and Chocolate Dessert though, they were delish.

London

Restaurant Gordon Ramsay

We were lucky to get a table for lunch at the 3 michelin starred restaurant in London!!! Their service was top notch and they even surprised us with a dessert on the house cause it was our anniversary! Loved their dessert and mains very very much, thinking of them now makes my tummy grumble.. We paid about GBP $110/pax for lunch, pretty much affordable I would say.

Duck & Waffle

BEST DUCK CONFIT IN MY LIFE. I am not kidding. At GBP $17 at level 40 with floor to ceiling windows, it was truly a steal. I had a great time! I wish I can devour you again T.T

Flat Iron

Hummingbird Bakery

SAID Dal 1929

Chocolate lovers rejoice! Visit them for a cuppa hot chocolate and take a short rest here before continuing with your shopping/sight-seeing!

The Breakfast Club

The Muffin Man Tea Shop

Borough Market

Is it me or every brownie I've tried in Europe was just darn amazing? Even those at Borough Market made me packing 4 of them back to Singapore! I am even regretting now that I did not get more than what I did. They sell many things such as Truffle Sauce, Sausages, Desserts, Cheese, Coffee..etc!! Make sure you visit with an empty stomach :)

Since the BREXIT, we were afraid that we will not be able to get our tax refunds done in London airport for our Paris purchase but not to worry, it can still be done as of now! Leave yourself enough time before checking in for your plane though.

THE TAX REFUND QUEUE IS REAL.

My flight was 2200hours and I reached the airport at 1830. I was supposed to shop at duty free but guess what, I was only done with tax refund, custom checks and check-in at 2145. I literally had to run to my gate for boarding! I was super bummed. Nonetheless, if you are rich enough then skip the tax refund since whatever you're paying for is already cheaper than in Singapore hahaha!

TIP FOR SHOPPING

Hermes

Get your items in Paris!! Every items for Hermes sold in London is slightly more expensive unless you have time to get in Heathrow Airport, then by all means!

We managed to score a few belts from Paris boutiques which were at almost 40% cheaper than in SG, 2 bags which were slightly cheaper and in a new seasonal colour! Accessories were also cheaper in Paris and Heathrow Airport so ya.. skip London's boutique unless you are just...overloaded with money.

Chanel

It is no doubt happier to purchase from their first original boutique in Paris's Rue Cambon. It is where you will get your packaging in white rather than the usual black box. However when I was there, it was cheaper to get Chanel bags in London due to exchange rate (so it really depends, make sure you know your price). A medium classic bag would cost about SGD $5700 in Paris and in London it's about SGD $300 cheaper!!

As of July 2016: Classic Medium EUR $4260

Galleries Lafeyette / Printemps

Wow.....a shopping centre full of brands! You can easily purchase brands like Louis Vuitton, Celine, Balenciaga, Chanel, Saint Laurent... etc. The shoes were also priced slightly lower because of sales. 

Summer Sale

Going in July means SUMMER SALE!! What is Great Singapore Sale because it is NOTHING compared to London's SUMMER SALE. I SWEAR Everything was so cheap!! Even the boyfriend who rarely shops actually bought more stuff than me... -_-

You say it, they have it. Glasses, polo tees, shirts, dresses, shoes.. whatever!

Primark

It was literally a cheap thrill heaven! Priced at lowest about GBP $1?! We bought almost SGD $400 worth or maybe more.

Ralph Lauren / Paul Smith / Ted Baker / Burberry / G-Star Raw

Ohhhhhhhhh... All their jeans, shirts and polo T-s were almost at 30%-50% discount! Super good deal right?!

Fortnum & Mason

THEIR CHOCOLATES LOOK SO GOOD. Skip Harrods, go for Fortnum & Mason instead. Their items are all so pretty that I filled a basket full of food but left empty handed in the end cause I was thinking of my luggage space and weight :( It was very sad that I had to leave without even getting my Alice in the Wonderland teacup! But all is good cause I went for their high tea instead. I WILL RETURN FOR YOU!

Last Tip: DONT BOTHER BRINGING A LOT OF CLOTHES TO LONDON in july because you can basically go with empty luggage and come back full I promise. We went on this trip with 1 luggage and came back with 4 (and we did not even buy finish what we wanted).

♡

#2xtroubleinUSA

Hello from us!

Warning: Picture-heavy with a final text wall

It's been almost a month since I've been back and a year since I've posted (because of work). Before the holidays, I'd been feeling very depressed because I had felt like I hadn't accomplished much across the year at work. I confided in a few colleagues and friends and I was very touched to receive so much love and warmth. Going on such a long break gave me wanderlust. It made me feel like there's so much more to the world.

I've posted most of the following photos on Instagram, the hashtag is also #2xtroubleinUSA if you want to find those that are not here and vice versa. I have edited very few of what I took in total, I'll work on short write-ups for each area that I've been to.

Here we go!

Day 1 in Siem reap

Entrance of Cuisine Wat Damnak

Indoor

Outdoor

This was our menu and we ordered all 6 courses, both tasting menu 1 and 2:)

"Amuse-boche"- Minced pork with vegetable (the peanut does complements the minced pork thankfully but due to the nature of the vegetable "xiang cai" it was a big no-no for me.)

"Tonle Sap Croaked Fish" - The fish was super fresh and succulent but the paste beside it on the left tasted like tomyum. for non tomyum lovers like me, it tasted pretty bad....

"koh kong scallop" - was pretty hard and bland.. but it was relatively alright, quite a special dish i would say.

"mekong" - wow this was surprisingly delicious! there was an added touch to the dish as the prawn was charred and so damn fresh. however, with another bowl of rice at the side was overkill. 2 small prawns were also inadequate!!!

Had dinner at Cuisine Wat Damnak during my recent trip to Siem Reap! Bringing both Cambodian and French culinary techniques together, they have surely executed themselves well. Apparently I heard that they are the top restaurant around in Siem Reap so for the price I guess it's worth it. The menu changes weekly though so be prepared to experience different types of dishes each time!


Cuisine Wat Damnak

Between Psa Dey Hoy market and Angkor High School

Wat Damnak village, Sala Kamreuk Commune, Siem Reap, Cambodia

opening hours: tues to sat 1830 - 2130

tel: +855 (0)77 347 762

♡

Glamping at The Canopi

WARNING: PICTURE HEAVY!!

Sunset at The Canopi

Ever heard of Glamping? Hahaha. It's actually glamorous + camping put together. Well..  The Canopi has been on my list since last year so the bf and I have decided to go for it (partly to clear off my annual leave for 2015 and also have a mini celebration for our monthsary.) No we don't usually celebrate our monthsary but if we could kill two birds with one stone, why not? It also serves as a relaxation get away for our minds and soul!

Anyway... so we have been surfing around the net for the cheapest and value for money package around and decided to go with the agency straight chancing upon Groupon. I did not purchase from Groupon as the agency was very near my workplace. I have booked my stay with Lokopoko Travel and it was a swift and efficient transaction :)

My agent was Melanie and she answered all my questions and everything was processed nicely. Initially it was a 3D2N but we thought a 2D1N would be sufficient enough so yup! Changed our itinerary to a Wednesday ferry and we will be back on Thursday night. Taking a weekday return ferry also means no surcharge!! We also upgraded from Safari Tent Suite to Lagoon Suite at an extra cost of $40. Seaport tax was $54 and the 2D1N package was $238 for two pax. Total damage = $332.

So....... on Wednesday! We woke up early in the morning to catch our ferry at Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal. Had to check in 1.5 hours earlier than the stipulated ferry time so we got there about 1000 when our ferry will set sail at 1110 hours!

Hello!!

Reception area

The journey to Bintan was about 1.5 hours and the time to clear the custom was super short. We had to leave our passports with the custom upon arriving which made us felt super uncomfortable because it's the most impt document when you're out of your own country?! (Our passports will be returned to us upon check-in at 3pm.) Once we stepped out, the people from Canopi were already there waiting to transfer us which only took about 5 minutes to reach!

Otw to Pujaseri!

Stalls in Singaporean hawker style lol

Can't remember what stall was this, almost everywhere sells the same thing

A plate of Squid, Egg, Hash brown, Chicken Wing and Rice! IDR 35000 (SGD S$3.50)

As we had plenty amount of time to kill, we walked to the "white house" in Canopi and rented a Electronic Vespa Scooter for half a day at IDR 250000 (SGD S$25). Started our journey to the Pujaseri Hawker to fill our tummies!! Their food was normal nothing special and the place was... small.

Of course, we had to have Magnum whenever we're in Indonesia!!! Its only like RP20000 (SGD $2?!). Cheap thrills ;)

Lagoi Mall or ghost town? Lol!

Just doing our thing!

Lagoi Beach. Kinda reminds me of Patong hahaha

Scooted off to Lagoi Mall and Beach afterwards and it's the worst mall I've ever been to?!!? THERE WAS PRACTICALLY NOTHING and turned me off so bad the moment I reached. The place was pretty clean though, that I would have to admit and it's near The Sanchaya!!! What a pretty resort that is :)

Lagoi Lake. Saw this on our way to the mall, not bad right!

Went to Nirwana Gardens after to look at the Kelong Seafood Restaurant! Was deciding between this or BBQ right outside our tent but decided to settle for the latter. Oh what a wrong choice, more on that later! I CAN'T BELIEVE WE SCOOTED AT 30KM/HR FOR LIKE 3 HOURS?! LIKE 30KM/HR ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! (I used to go mentally crazy when my driving instructor told me to drive at 30km/hr.) I swear I don't know where all that patience came from... and the SCORCHINGGG sun. Oh my I can't even... Headed back to Pujaseri again to get some snacks and water and back to Canopi for check in!!!

Cute tents

The bed!!!! The linen was a little hot though

'Luggage' cabinets and big ass air conditioner at the side

The interior of the room. Didn't take any pictures of the outdoor bathroom as I'm not an 'outdoor bathroom' kinda girl.. I really like my bathroom indoors, clean and well... it's just the most important factor to me wherever I go. Hahaha!

Bathed and changed!

As we had about 3 hours to kill till dinner (we are having BBQ), we decided to watch Harry Potter (all the episodes were screening on TV) instead of heading out to bask in the sun. It was reallllyy warm. I never had any problems with getting any sunburnt so this was considered my first time (because of the ride from the scooter)!! VERY.PAINFUL. To make it worse, the sun only burnt a rectangle shape on my legs.... NOT EQUAL, NOT PRETTY.

Waiting for our bbq!

Foooooooooooood

Anyhow the staff from Canopi will actually prepare your food and get them delivered at about 1830 hours and allow you to start BBQ at 1900! It was nicely set up for us and all we have to do is put the wire over the fire and start barbecue-ing! The boy and I was so excited until...we had our first bite. OMG I can't believe I actually chose bbq over KSR!! The food was quite bad and only the Chicken Wings was good. Guess it's true when they say you get what you paid for. But at IDR 370000 (SGD $37) and for these little amount of food (there's still marshmallows and a few more meat), it wasn't exactly justified. Nonetheless, we enjoyed ourselves very much and had a great time watching HP marathon from the door :) It was a great night, with our alcohol from the ferry terminal, chocolates and chips! After all how many times can you actually BBQ right outside where you sleep, right?

This sums up my DAY ONE.

Breakfast spread

Woke up early for breakfast and definitely did not expect much ever since we tried their BBQ food. Lol. Indeed, only the omelettes were good!! The spread was quite meh... and I only tried a few mouth here and there.

Was supposed to chill at the Crystal Lagoon and take a few pictures because the main point is the lagoon right?!! The weather however wasn't in a good mood and it's too hot to even step out of our room. Sigh back to room.....We did not have much time left in the room since we had to check out at 1200.

White float at the lagooon ^^

SO... 

8 HOURS TILL OUR FERRY BACK TO SG. 

HOW TO PASS TIME?!

D' Bintan Salon Day Spa

Reception

Massage beds

Decided to book our massage with D' Bintan Massage and Spa because it's the cheapest around! Took many brochures and asked for price and this seems like the best out of all. Located at Pujaseri, you can just call them and they'll send a car over to pick you up! Yay. (You may contact Erwin at +6282386410888, he's really good and will not cheat your money hahaha!! plus there is a 15% off).  We did the Tropical Massage for an hour which cost IDR 595000 for two (SGD $64 after credit card conversion)

It was initially 4 hours till our massage (booked the slot at 1600) so we wanted to watch a movie on our laptop in the resort. Then again, the heat jussst had to kill us. Both of us aren't a fan of heat (as you should probably sense by now). Lol. Went to the reception, changed our ferry timing to the one at 1735 instead! It was quite sian because I had to skip sunset at the Kelong Seafood Restaurant just for an earlier ferry back home.

Kelong Seafood Restaurant 

Salted Egg Yolk Crab 450G IDR 360000

Sambal Kang Kong IDR 118000

Black Pepper Chicken IDR 155000

Erwin (from D'Bintan) arranged a car to pick us to Nirwana Gardens for Kelong Seafood Restaurant right after our massage and back to Canopi to take our luggages. He got us a one way transport back to Canopi at only IDR 120000 when usually it costs IDR 150000. Sounds good! The food at KSR was good though overpriced. Spent about IDR 653000 for two and will definitely be back if I ever come back to Canopi again.

My favourite pic!

Returning the scooter at the reception!

All in all, THERE'S NO REGRETS though one shalln't expect to be WOW-ed!... There really isn't anything much to see nor do at Canopi/nearby and despite all that, it was a really relaxing short getaway. I would be back if they add more activities, upgrade their food quality and have more things to see.

♡

Tokyo Disneysea - How to live your dreams!

Warning: A photo-heavy post ahead (avoid using Data!!!)

If you've read my previous post on how to get to Disneysea then you definitely know that you should get to the entrance ahead of opening hours too!

In order to take the rides efficiently, (most rides out of hours spent at park) you have to plan!

Having NEVER been to Disneyland/sea before or Japan for that matter, I had no idea the scale of the park or the amount of people. If you're confident enough, I would encourage you to split up for Fastpassing and meeting up later at a fixed location. Remember to set a back-up plan to meet if you miss a time and place! (Most Airbnb hosts provide a pocket wifi, make sure it's charged because you'll surely need it).

More details after the jump!

Tokyo Disneysea - My Childhood Dream Come True xD

I never thought I'd be so excited going to a theme park at 22 years of age.

It started when I was researching on what I should be doing at the park - I mean, we knew that we were going to spend a whole lot of time inside; we knew we should be at Disneysea and we knew that the theme park was going to be expensive. 

But we didn't know what to do, where to go, what NOT to do and what we wanted...

And after my hours of research, discussion and planning/briefing altogether, I bring you a thorough guide based on my *own* expectations of the following:

• The prep work - planning the day to hit the park, how to get tickets, which park to go, what to bring, what NOT to bring
• The directions - how to get there, what time to reach
• Inside the park - a ride strategy + fastpass guide, a teensy food guide, show timings

Details after the jump!

Universal Studios Japan

I have been wanting to visit Universal Studios Japan ever since hearing about the opening of the Harry Potter World!! Yup, who doesn't? During my recent trip to Japan (Jul '15), the main reason was to visit USJ before I officially step into the working world!

Anyway it was an impromptu trip where we booked the tickets only the night before and flew the next afternoon so we didn't really have time to plan for Osaka and Tokyo. Thankfully I have been to both 2 years ago so I still have recollections of it here and there! I would also suggest that you start your itinerary with Osaka and then head up to Tokyo, that is IF you are only going to these 2 places. However, if you have more days in this beautiful country, you can add in Kyoto in between before heading to Tokyo! Kyoto is really gorgeous and more stuffs to see than Osaka, just saying :)

Now back to USJ ... so how do you plan for it?

Book your tickets in advance!

The boy and I did a huge mistake by getting our tickets at the booth itself and it was such a horrible experience!! By that, I mean LONG queues for both ticketing and entry line. We were there early but only to be running a tad late in the end. We had to split up so once he bought the tickets, we get to go into the park immediately! Even though we went on a weekday, all the better express passes were sold out and I only managed to get my hand on a limited express pass which only have 5 rides and most were pretty...lame. To ensure you get a full experience, get your express pass way before hand!!!

Each Adult Ticket cost 7200 Yen (SGD $84) after tax for a 1 day studio pass. They have a 2 day studio pass to if you'd like to spend more time at the park (as below).

https://www.usj.co.jp/e/ticket/

And if you aren't aware, Universal Studios always tweak their express pass's prices according to the day's projection. Offering 3 different types of pass (Express 7, Express 5 and Express 3) , it can be as low as 3300 Yen (SGD $38) after tax or as high as 9800 Yen (SGD $113) with tax depending on the category you choose. The number behind indicates the number of popular attraction at the studio where you can cut all the queues! Always.. just go for the 7 hahaha!!

You can purchase your Advance Tickets from your respective agents which most could be found here: where to buy?. If you want to try your luck on that day itself, then I hope you aren't as unlucky as me! Haha.

What do I need to bring?

If it's just 2 of you, share a bag!!! It really helps to lessen the load a lot! Bring a small bottle of water so you can refill them in the studio once its empty. Depending on your season, wear a cap, bring an umbrella/raincoat or sunblock if you need to. It was July when I went so it was hooot but there was occasional rain so I brought everything basically hahaha :x

Next, if you have an iPad mini, it'd be perfect!! Load up with TV series or stream them by connecting to your pocket Wi-Fi while waiting for your ride! The queue can get up to an hour sometimes especially if you're in Harry Potter Land. That being said.. with all these electronic devices going on, you probably need a portable charger. However, if you're scared that all these are gonna be heavy, you can choose not to and choose to snack instead (at least you can throw them away after eating). Again, bring your own snacks because it can be way overpriced in the studio. Just a reminder: bring some wet tissues, in case you need to wipe off dirt from your fingers and walking to the toilet is just too much of a hassle.

Which ride should I go to first?

WHEN YOU STEP IN FOR THE FIRST TIME, IT FEELS SOOO AMAZINGLY OUT OF PLACE!!!

Harry Potter Castle!!

In my opinion, I think we need to visit HPL first!! I mean.. it's the highlight of the studio right?! To me, at least.. USJ always have this time slot ticket where you can get them at the entrance of the attraction so you can go there at that stipulated time (which makes waiting time less short and less crowded).

Next.. look at your map and plan which attraction is a must you have to complete before leaving!! For me, I would usually look at the reviews online at those rides I wanna take and also videos from Youtube!! From there, you can have a rough gauge of how the attractions will be like and if they are satisfying enough for you :)

Amazing Spiderman Ride :)

Merchandises you can buy at the store! It's damn cool because each attraction has their own store selling a lottt of cute souvenirs..

This bun was so cute I just had to get it at the hot dog store for photo sake!!!
Forget about the taste though, sometimes pretty things ain't nice.

My favourite would be The Amazing Spiderman Ride, Hollywood Dream, Space Fantasy and Harry Potter & The Forbidden Journey!!! I went on the HP ride like thrice?!?! You get to travel through the HP castle and enter the Hogwarts School, explore pass Dumbledore's office, Gryffindor's common room and even the Dark Arts classroom before going on the ride. They used 4K technology with 3D effects and you get to experience the ride in high speed and the adrenaline rush through certain parts is definitely not to be missed! I am never a fan of such rides but this was surely unforgettable.

A pity though.. I didn't have time to take the Hollywood Dream - Backdrop and only managed to go onto The Ride. You need to plan your time wisely to be able to try both roller coasters, enjoyed myself on The Ride nonetheless!

JAWS

A boat tour where you could get slightly wet at certain areas. Basically a man-made shark show attraction which I thought was pretty good. I was quite uncomfortable throughout as I'm not a big fan of sharks, in other words: scared. Haaa :(

This above was taken at the Universal Wonderland where every rides were designed for small children. The theme goes by Hello Kitty, Snoopy and Sesame Street!! Did not queue for any rides there because I wasn't interested in them except their merchandises!!! Omg everything was so カワイイ kawaii (cute) !!!

Remember: Know your route around the studio by starting with either anticlockwise or clockwise direction depending on your very first attraction! Check out their available rides and temporary closed attractions here.

Oh one more tip ... do not prioritize watching their shows!!! All their shows are in Japanese so if you don't speak them, forget it. We went to one of the attraction and ended up wasting our time as we understand nothing except a bit of basic Jap here and there. I wish they do everything in English though..

Where to eat?

The Three Broomsticks - Harry Potter Land
Some fish and chip meal which wasn't even a single bit worth it at all!!!!

There are plenty of kiosks and food restaurants in the park itself but as everyone knows, they don't come off cheap but you still buy them anyway. WHY? you'll most likely finish the food you self-packed (if you did), unless you packed enough OR you simply can't be bothered to pack any HA! I, on the other hand, ate whatever I feel like and buy whatever I feel photo worthy (like the spiderman bun above).

However, if you're not interested in the food in the park, NO WORRIES!!! There are a lot of food places outside the park!!! One of it will be the Takoyaki Museum where you get to try out different brands/type of takoyaki!!! I remembered trying about 3 stalls which all tasted sooo good but it gets sick after awhile.

BRB // Enrolling into Hogwarts

YUP these summarizes up my day to the park. I left USJ a happy girl but I probably wouldn't be back again in the near future. It's time to conquer different theme parks instead :) Enjoy Japan!!! さようなら ♡♡♡