Thursday, May 28, 2009
Aptos!
Well, as they say, all good things must come to an end...
But at least our end is a relaxing weekend with Dad in Aptos, CA!
Our flights on Wednesday were relatively painless - long but comfortable. We had a very brief layover in Tokyo, our flight from Singapore came in almost on time so we easily made our connection. Fortunately, Tomoko and TomTom would have graciously hosted us if we had missed the connection - Katie and I had already discussed which restaurants we would be revisiting in the not so upsetting situation of being 'stuck' in Tokyo for an extra day or two.
Definitely dealing with some jet-lag and a pile of stanky traveling clothes, but otherwise adjusting to life after Asia quite well.
Stay tuned for photographic updates to the blog in the coming days!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Singapore
So, you thought Bali was a whirlwind visit, welcome to Singapore! We arrived Monday evening after an eventful morning of the world's most dangerous transport (actually, come to think of it, I have just been inspired to create a new reality TV series based on our experiences - Crazy Cab Rides International - there have certainly been some doozies). The ride in question was particularly memorable because the driver actually got pulled over for his reckless and speedy travel - of course this is Bali, so he just slipped the cop 100,000 rupiahs and we were on our way (100k rp is about 10 bucks). The Denpasar airport also proved to be the most hassle inducing airport of our travels (I won't go into the details but let's just say we had at least 4 security screenings and they burned incense throughout the entire place). Anyway, enough about the journey to get here and onto our adventures in Singapore...
We are staying at Cozy Home - a funky hostel-esque apartment in a very nice complex just outside of the city center. It seems to be brand new, so very shiny and clean! Close to the train, so it has been easy to get around. We explored the City Hall, Boat Quay and Clarke's Quay areas on Monday night. Had some tasty Indian food while sitting right on the riverside, with lots of cheap Tiger beer to wash it down. Also visited a nice brewpub called Brewerks, also right near the river.
Today we tried to cram as many tourist attractions into the day as possible - we started by heading down to the Marina area and gazing upon the famous Merlion statue - yes, it is a mythical half-lion, half-merman statue that spews forth copious water into the river. Pretty groovy, but not nearly as big as we thought it would be from all the hype! Apparently it is the symbol of Singapore. We then meandered through the city to Orchard Road, which is the premier shopping district. We got caught in a mammoth rain storm there and had to duck into a mall and seek lunch. Fortunately, things dried off a bit and we hopped on the train and headed to the Singapore Zoo! We visited both the Zoo and the Night Safari. The Zoo was great - they focus on trying to recreate natural habitats as much as possible for the animal. Saw gorgeous white bengal tigers, orangutangs climbing about, zebras, giraffes, pumas, cheetah, lions, flamingos, kumodo dragons - the list goes on...
The Night Safari was really the highlight - so unlike any 'zoo' experience elsewhere. The park didn't open until after 7pm, around dusk. We watched a cheezy fire show while waiting for the initial hoards to gain entrance. The exhibits were very similar to those in the zoo, but how different to see them at night! The paths were all dimly lit to enhance the experience. Some of the animals were definitely active and rearin' to go as night fell, and others were laying low and hard to spot. There was a 'Mangrove Walk' which was essentially just a big fruitbat enclosure - the nets were quite low so they divebomb you as you scurry through - spooky! We saw a pair of stunning leopards - they were lounging against the glass viewing area of their enclosure, so they were literally just inches away from us! They teased us with a little foreplay, but then got bored and retired to separate corners. Lots of other assorted animals we weren't familiar with to gaze upon as well. Ended the night at back in Clarke's Quay for some late bites.
Monday, May 25, 2009
BALIcious!
Way too short of a stay on the wonderful island of Bali, Indonesia - only 5 days to enjoy the many varied delights the island has to offer.
Our first two nights we stayed in Legian (which is just up the beach from Kuta - worldwide party destination) at the Alam Kulkul Resort. Very nice place right on the beach - wonderful grounds, service and room. The beach was great - wide and flat, super for walking, sunbathing, etc. Watching the surf and surfers was also good fun! Apparently the good waves were breaking a bit south of us in Ulu Watu, so we didn't see a ton of surfers on our stretch of beach.
We definitely took advantage of the reknown nightlife of the area. The first night we hit a couple of clubs - kind of spooked me as we were people watching, from our perch on the verandah of the first club, as tons of tourists were posing for pictures in front of the massive 2002 bombing memorial. Not much of a party scene at the first club, so we moved onto M Bar Go - where there was a fun DJ and dancing. They also had a couple of sets where a big troupe of drummers came onstage and supplemented the dance beats - that was really fun to watch/dance to, and really got the party rev'd up. Our second night we hit the infamous club Bounty - pirate ship themed, with a bevy of different rooms and options. We joined the packed dance floor and shook it until 5am when they shut the place down. Fun to watch all the cute young'uns and their dance shenanigans - especially enjoyable because all the surfer boys had their shirts off. Sorry to report, there was not a dance sando in sight - I propose a Rialto field trip to Kuta to introduce the dance sando to the international audience!!!
So, after a day and two nights of life in the fast lane, we were ready to head to Ubud and soak up some tranquility. We arranged for a driver and took off after a filling lunch of Indonesian specialties at a local Warung - enjoyed a big bowl of veggies, rice and tempeh with peanut sauce and a chicken curry with rice that had been steamed in banana leaves. We found a nice little homestay bungalow in Ubud - Sania's House Bungalows. Our first room was a bit of a dungeon, but we upgraded for the second two nights into a gorgoeous 'castle' room right next to the pool. Lots of fun with carved wood and stone accents. Ubud was not exactly as we expected (not that we really knew what to expect) - not quite serenity. It is a gorgeous and lush city - with decorations and temples and local flavor everywhere. It is also a huge tourist resort - boutiques, bungalows and restaurants crammed into every available space. Had some great meals there - a lot of upscale restaurants with Indonesian influenced menus. Our most amazing eating experience was at the Ubud suckling pig institution - Warung Ibu Oka (don't tell Sucky Pig!). For 7 bucks we each had huge portions of all sorts of pig bits - skin, belly, blood sausage, leg, loin, etc. All served with rice, awesome pickled chilis and a yummy slaw of coconut, green beans and fried shallots. We went on a short walk through some of the lush rice paddies, but didn't get too much of a chance to explore the beautiful country side. We also indulged in a half day at one of the many local spas - we each had multiple massages and treatments - 4 hours for about $40! Definitely a highlight of the Ubud visit. We will definitely need to revisit Bali at some point, I think we barely scratched the surface...
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Happy Birthday Ho Chi Minh!
After a lovely time in the quaint town of HoiAn, staying at the Phouc An Hotel, we headed down to Ho Chi Minh City. The morning before we left we took a nice tour of a village outside the city with a gentleman named Mr. Trung. He showed us around his fishing and pottery making village - we even got to try our hand at both skills! The biggest fish I caught was about 4 inches long and they threw my lopsided bowl back into the clay pile, but still an interesting foray. Mrs. Trung cooked us a delicious lunch in their home.
We flew down to Ho Chi Minh City (or Saigon, which it is still commonly referred to as well) on an absolutely mammoth plane, must have fit at least 300ppl, and it was packed for the quick hour long jaunt! Turns out that it was also Ho Chi Minh's birthday that day (May 19) - kinda random but jolly coincidence. We were only there overnight at the Saigon Mini Hostel 2, but managed to have some of the best food of our Vietnam adventures - all on the street. Had amazing pho for a dollar - packed with noodles, herbs, shrimp, beef, pork, liver and some really damn spicy peppers to garnish. Drank some cheap beers at some very entertaining bars - lots of middle aged men partying and getting lots of attention from young locals of both sexes. On the way home got a succulent banh my with a variety of meats for 60 cents. Had some really lame corn stir-fried with chilis and tiny shrimp.
Had an early flight the next morning to journey to Bali! Connected in Kuala Lumpur which was not a particularly friendly airport - lots of hassles during our 5 hr layover and the beers were redonk expensive (especially when we had gotten used to paying 75 cents). All well worth it of course once we stepped off the plane onto the lush island of Bali!!!
Sunday, May 17, 2009
HoiAn, Vietnam





Saturday, May 16, 2009
Halong Bay





Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Hanoi




Sunday, May 10, 2009
Cambodia!











Thursday, May 7, 2009
Ko Phi Phi











Saturday, May 2, 2009
Ko Lanta





Monday, April 27, 2009
Bangkok
We arrived in Bangkok last night! Staying at the Lamphu house..
http://www.lamphuhouse.com
More reports to come after our explorations today.
Had some delicious curry and lots of cold beer last night
Our night on the town clubbing in the Pat Pong district of Bangkok at Spicy Bar.
YUM!!! Our first meal in Bangkok - Thai curry!


Sunday, April 26, 2009
Tokyo Finale
We managed to get out a bit on the early side on a gorgeously sunny and warm day. Dropped a few things off at the post office to make their slow return to the USA and then headed to the Azabu Jyuban area. Lots of shops and restaurants - Tom and Tomoko used to live in the neighborhood, so we stopped at one of their favorite Ramen shops for lunch.
We all had a different flavor of ramen, and also a few dumplings - all very distinct in flavors and ingredients, and all so delicious! We stuffed ourselves silly...
Happy noodle slurping faces!
We walked over to the Roppongi Hills area - a fairly new and massive complex, full of shopping, business, housing - all very chic. We went to the top of one of the towers where there was an observation deck. Gorgeous views of the city. Above is the Tokyo Tower...
Lovely seating around the sky deck for gazing at the city, and on lucky clear days like ours the breathtaking and sacred Fuji-san.





For dinner, we found a great little shabu-shabu restaurant right in Tom and Tomoko's neighborhood. Such a fun experience, another unique cuisine to devour!
A display of most of the condiments available for our meal...
The premise of shabu-shabu is that you have a simmering pot of broth in the middle of the table, and then you are served a variety of meats and vegetables to dip and cook in the broth. Above is the Japanese beef - holy marbling!
They also served a chicken forcemeat that you slid off of these scoops into little meatball shapes. We also had a bevy of vegetables - enoki mushrooms, carrots, garlic chives, cabbages and tofu.
There were an amazing number of courses. After cooking all the meats and veggies, we had noodles to cook in the broth, and then rice with egg. And then some funky pumpkin flan type dessert.


Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)