A change in latitude, does wonders to my attitude.

Looking forward to 4 weeks of summer vacation. Started good, having chosen for the first time to fly Finnair to Brussels, which incidentally just started daily flights from SIN-HELSINKI two months ago. I'm satisfied with the flight: good food, pleasant service and the best part must be the small and uncrowded airport to make quick transfers, painlessly. Landed on a chilly morning in Brussels and we drove to Gent to pick up our Volvo garage. These people at Volvo are so sweet, putting at our disposal a car at very reasonable rates. We arrived exactly 13 hours point to point at Niewpoort, which in the past took about 16hours when we came via CDG Paris with Air France. You can smell the iodium rich crisp air.. aah perfect. We dined on scrumptious north sea shrimp tomato salad with lotsa freshly cut fries. After we unpacked and stopped by the grocers to pick up the essentials.  Five days of lazy living punctuated with me getting up early to fetch fresh croissants and danish. ...

We spent a leisurely week on Bali, "the island of the gods". Bali equates sea, surf, spa, spot of shopping for me. Not on a culinary adventure and since we still had to eat, we checked out some new addresses recommended by our friend /seasoned club owner Fabrice. Fabrice's new gig, Word Of Mouth had two big events last weekend and judging by the crowd, it looked as if they will be back for more. It was surely the hippiest, trendiest and happening people there. If you wanted some tips on club dressing, that was the best classroom! We had Capricom : a dizzy mix of lychee and alcohol. Not suprisingly, KUDETA has its loyal fans and continues to attract newbies since they are listed as an icon when in Bali. Other than breakfast ( which is good ), the other meals are on the high side. Nonetheless, this does not deter people from enjoying sundowners and then go off else where for dinner. Good tactic to say you've been to KUDETA. I took hubby to some tried and tested haunts...

AAAh.. My feet started to itch. Then R had a regional meeting in Tokyo and i decided to pack my suitcase too. This time I had an ally in Marge. One is an acomplished photographer ( Nikon et al ) and the other ( that's me ) a hopeful. Sakura or Cherry Blossoms were the main attraction and we trailed all possible locations of these delicate blooms. Day 1: First stop was the gardens of the Hotel New Otani in Akasaka where we stayed. We took some solid shots of its manicured grounds with its obligatory red bridge, Koi ponds and mini waterfall. After we left for Higashi Gyoen inside the Imperial Palace. Sadly, it was closed off to the public so we half meandered, half got lost and found ourselves in Chidorigafuchi. This was actually the choicest spot we could have wished for. Sakura trees lined the pavements bordering a lake. There was boating to be had, but we decided that we were both too clumsy for a self-manned boat. Pressing on, we moved off to Shinjuku Gyoen to catch the "...

Vienna is Europe's oldest imperial capital and its famous inhabitant: Elisabeth of Bavaria (fondly known as Sisi ), who was the Empress of Austria and queen of Hungary, consort of Emperor Francis Joseph I become the country's icon inspiring many film-makers and playwriters. Her residences at Schonbruun Palace and Hofburg - Imperial palace are "must see" for tourists to Vienna. In the imperial appartments, there are the Sisi museum for Sisi fans and the Treasuries housing the magnificent crown jewels. Nearby is the reknown Spanish Riding School with the Lippizan breed of horses offering public performances. Tickets have to be booked beforehand. Across from the Riding school is the Kohlmarkt street where one has enter the Demel cake shop. This is a tourist stop because it is mentioned in the Austrian tourism website as once being a Purveyor to the Court, hence explaining the presence of camera totting Japanese tourists jostling with Spanish tourists for tables at this ...

Costa Rica's capital San Jose is huge. The city isn't pedestrian friendly and people depend on public transport while tourists like me, were discouraged from roaming by myself. So i had to be dropped off at an agreed spot and picked up at an appointed time. The rest of the adventures were at the courtesy of organised sightseeing trips which were touted by the many tour agents around town. I didn't go looking for them, in fact the hotel conceirge thrusted a few brochures into my hand while he helped us with the luggages. We stayed at the relatively decent Radisson hotel. The staff were friendly and breakfast spread was generous. Gallo Pinto- the national dish made of slightly spiced rice and black beans, enchilladas, casado featured in the buffet spread. That's important because i always like to know the local delights. Plus I liked the adjustable beds fitted with an air pump to regulate the hardness of the mattress. Each morning, i got my freshly roasted Costa Rican cof...

La Havana, the must see destination on every travellers' bucket list. We flew with Iberia Airlines from Brussels to Cuba via Madrid. Easy, no fuss and under 13 hours flying time. We stayed at the Melia Habana hotel, a beach fronted property belonging to the Melia group of hotels. Rooms were large and had a view of the sea. The swimming pool area is spread out resort-style, so one can chill out without intruding on someone else's privacy. The Italian restaurant is reputed to be the best in town and there is a courtesy shuttle coach to the Old Havana daily. During the day strolling along the Malecon, the expanse of blue sea stretches out to the horizon and not a single tanker, ship or boat in sight. At night, locals gather to enjoy the breeze and chat while musicians will try to serenade you hoping for a buck ot two. The tourists like us always stuck out and we were rooted to our spot while five youngsters sang and entertained us. Old Havana proclaimed UNESCO World Heritage site...