Hong Kong Trip: Fooling Around Madam Tussaud Wax Museum

My Trip to Hong Kong and Macau

One of the attractions at The Peak is the Madam Tussaud Wax Museum, It is located at the second level of the The Peak Tower. Jackie Chan, Michelle Yeow, and Pierce Brosnan awaits you at the entrance lobby where the ticket booth is located. Entrance to the museum costs HKD 160.

Weekend Indulgence : Overnight in Johor Bahru, Malaysia

 It came out as a last minute decision. Though I was looking for a diversion to break the restlessness of the monotonous week days, going out of Singapore did not cross my mind at first. I was thinking of visiting a local place that I was aiming to visit but none appeals to me and my body was longing for a change environment. So I thought I have to go out somewhere that is just a short travel and just chill out and do nothing to clear out and be freed of my present state of restlessness. Beach bumming was the option but I don't want to travel far since it will just be an overnight option.  So I decided to stay in a hotel in Johor Bahru with a pool and a health club and within the city center. Although the room rate is much cheaper compared to Singapore hotels, the rate of the hotel I intend to stay is out of my budget. So I explore other areas outside  of the city center, and boy I was lucky to find one. It has jacuzzi right inside the room! 

Hong Kong Trip: Disneyland Resort

Choosing which place to visit between the Ocean Park or Disneyland when after you visiting Ngong Ping is easy. Disneyland is just a station away from Tung Chung station, then a disney train awaits you at the station. 

Another reason I choose Disneyland is that I want to find out how it differ to Universal Studios. The entrance fee is HKD 350. 

The resort is divided into four themed areas. Upon entering the gate, the Main street USA will be the first. Attractions included the City Hall that serves as the information and I guess the admin offices. Several restaurants and refreshments, and shop buildings completes the buildings lined along the main street. The buildings decor where identical to small town America in the late 1800s. An excursion-style steam train that encircle the resort has a station at the Main street and at Fantasyland.

Hong Kong Trip: Exploring Ngong Ping 360

 Just as I planned before coming to Hong Kong, exploring Ngong Ping 360 is the first on the itinerary. From the hotel where I billeted, I took an mtr from Chai Wan station of the Island (blue) line to Central station then transferred to Tung Chung (orange) line and alighted at the end of the line station Tung Chung. The Cable car terminal is adjacent to the mtr station but about a two minute walk from exit B of the station. The bus station is at the foot of the terminal too. I took the cable car, and the ride cost HKD275 two way.

Ngong Ping 360 is a main tourist attraction in Lantua Island. It consists of Ngong Ping Cable car ride experience, Ngong Ping Cultural Village, and home to Po Lin Monestery, and the Tian Tan Buddha.

Gunung Kawi Temple, Bali Indonesia

Another Bali's ancient temple complex is the Gunung Kawi temple situated in a hidden deep valley surrounded by rice fields. The complex uniqueness from the other temples is its carved shrines and royal tombs on a solid rock hill. It is believed that the shrines were dedicated to a king ruler, his queen and sons, and his concubines. 

Goa Gajah Temple in Bali, Indonesia

One of the places I have visited in Bali Indonesia is the Goa Gajah Temple in Bedulu Village in Blahbatuh District about 27 km from Kuta. This is  included  in the itinerary of  the Bali full day tour package I availed while on holiday in Bali Indonesia. Goa Gajah is an archaeological site  but still an active worship place. It is located on a steep valley beside the main road. You have to descend from the stone steps to reach the complex. 

Colmar Tropicale in Bukit Tinggi Malaysia

My first foray of working overseas was in Malaysia. I was hired by an international civil and structural consulting firm based in the US with a local office in Kuala Lumpur. My job description is to oversee the site development and eventually the construction of a resort hotel at the heart of a virgin forest 45 minutes from the city of Kuala Lumpur. The project followed the next phase of development where a golf course and clubhouse and residential development has already been in placed.  

Kek Lok Si - The Temple of Supreme Bliss

One of the main tourist attractions in Penang Malaysia is the Temple of Supreme Bliss that sits majestically at the hill of Ayer Itam about 6 kilometers from downtown Georgetown.

Entrance to the temple is a bit complex  as the path that is leading up to the temple is actually alleys of stores selling dry goods and souvenir items. It is quite frustrating because aside from you don't know if you are traversing the right path, the hawkers were quite persistent and noisy offering their goods. You will know that you are on the right track when you reach a murky pond full of turtles, named liberation pond. The Chinese believes that turtles set free in the pond is an act of spiritual liberation.

Exploring Georgetown

The main attraction in Penang is the old town district of Georgetown. The colonial era straits architecture is evident here. Other than the Georgian buildings and shophouses scattered around town, there are chinese mansions, Indian temples, mosques, and churches  to due many ethnic groups who settled in Georgetown.

My Trip to Penang Malaysia

My first travel this year happened last weekend to Penang Island, Malaysia. For four days I got to explore and experience the island's unique cultural, historical, and natural scenery. Penang has plenty of sightseeing opportunities scattered around the island. Aside from the attractions they have their on unique food not to be miss while in Penang.

This year's list of task

Last year, I skip this habit of making a list of task to do for the whole year. But this time I decided to have one, but unlike in previous years, this year's list of task will be concentrating on places I want to visit, things related to travel, and photography. As my resources is limited, I can travel only as far as the neighboring countries or just within the southeast asian countries where I don't need to secure a visit visa to enter one's country.

Places I have visited in 2010

Five countries, eight new places, three times in one place, in one whole year.

2010 is almost over, and at this time of the year we usually  review things that we have set to do the entire year  whatever task that we set and planned. In my case I would be like to look back the year on my travels. I set goal of traveling once in a month to any Asean destination. Thank you Jetstar and Agoda for being instrumental in achieving this goal.

Bintan Resorts Gateaway

This month travel happened last November 7, 2010 to Bintan Indonesia. While it is still not far from Singapore being just 55 minutes ferry ride, I still consider it travel. My second time to Bintan, I basically wants to explore the other side of the island. 

Why my blog is inactive lately?

Its been awhile since this blog has been updated. In the past I made it a point to at least write an entry one in a week and I always have time to do so. But these past days I had a hard time to update not because I have nothing to say but because its just that I don't have the urge anymore to make one. Sorry but its just that the interest in me to blog was no longer there. This kind of situation happened to me before. If you will backtrack my entries there are long gaps of in between entries, and this is happening to me again. Lately I have been trying hard to gain back the interest in blogging and slowly conditioning my mind to once again become active to blogging.

Side trip to Battambang, Cambodia

My third day of my trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia was spent in nearby province of Battambang. I have been invited by a Filipino friend working there. He was hired by a non government organization based in Europe to assist and provide training to one local agency run by the government. There is nothing much to do there nor have any place of interest to speak of, so the only thing you can do there is to observe and feel the daily life of the locals. it's pretty laid-back provencial town. On thing I observed though is that there were hotels scattered with in town center though I spotted only a few tourists during the day I was there, and mostly backpackers.

Temples of Angkor et al.

I woke up late in the morning, my driver and I agreed to start the day by 5:30 to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat. I managed to come down at the lobby by 5:45 am . I forgot to tell the receptionist to pack my breakfast the night before so I did not have my breakfast that day lucky I was able to shove in my bag some cookies that night before going to sleep so somehow I have something to eat in between temple hopping. My tuk tuk driver was driving fast I thought he was mad at me for letting him wait, and I was bearing the coldness of the morning as I was just wearing short and shirt. But we arrived at Angkor Wat still dark and there were a lot of people already coming in, somehow I realized that the driver was really in a hurry so that I will have ample time to settle in before sunrise which was the purpose in the first place for the early trip, not the one I was thinking.

Day 1 in the Kingdom of Wonder, part 2

As agreed, my driver was already waiting for me at the lobby by 4 o'clock in the afternoon. The rest of the day will be spent checking out the Phnom Bakheng Temple sited on top of a hill and at the same time sunset viewing there. As read online, tourists crowded this place to view a spectacular sunset view. True enough by the time I reach the place, it was already crowded and still a lot were coming up on top of the temple.

Day 1 in the Kingdom of Wonder, Part 1

After arriving and checking in to the hotel, I immediately called up the tuktuk driver I hired online. He's already at the hotel lobby by the time I freshened up and ready for the day tour. I briefed him my itinerary for the next two days and asked if he can suggest more. I intentionally did not hire a tour guide as I want to do it at my own pace and so as not be pressured. I told him my first day will be spend roaming around town center and visit the Cambodia Cultural Village. Rest in the afternoon to try to avoid the heat, come out at 4 in the afternoon to purchase one day ticket for the temples visit, and proceed to climbed up Phnom Bakheng to do sunset viewing atop the temple, dinner at this resto that offered buffet and cultural show, then proceed to town center for the night market. The next day will be spend for the temples visit. I told him I intend to visit 4 temple sites only unless he can recommend more.

My Trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia

My first oversea travel for this year happened last thursday. I went to Siem Reap Cambodia to explore one of the seven wonders of the world. I booked the ticket months ago and supposed to be there last November but because it coincides with the unannounced company in-house training, I have to postpone the trip and rescheduled the trip. By the time I booked the ticket I imagined myself to be doing an Indiana Jones in Angkor Wat and be doing what Lara Croft did in Ta Prohm and expected to be sighting a girl keep popping up from inside the ruined temple.

Looking back

In three days, another year will become into past year. No matter what was the outcome to us of the year that was, we always look back and review the events that shaped our life. I myself has never given it a thought in the past, its not my habit of assessing the things that I have done in my life in the year that past. But I make an exemption this time, but I have nothing interesting to share personally so instead I concentrate on the trips I have made the whole year.

It was this year that I become active traveling that I have been to different places some of them first time. I went back to thePhilippines in April as my birthday gift to myself and visited Guimaras and Iloilo in the visayas, and to Manila