A breakie for 4 days Our Phuket trip was made possible with Silk Air promotion. While not exactly cheap, I was glad that the air tickets were fully sponsored by my dear company. I am fortunate enough to go away for a few days in mid Nov while still on job probation with my new company. After more than 2 years of taking budget carriers around the region, I finally have the privilege to fly with conventional carriers yet again. Food, assigned seating and wider leg-room ..... Memories of the tsunami remains in the hearts of many whom I told them about my dear Phuket trip. There we are, 3 of us at Terminal 2 awaiting patiently for our flight to depart in the afternoon of 18 November. In less than 2 hrs time, we will ... read more

Malaysia, Truly Asia Our JB trip started late today. After meeting my friends (Yq and March) in Chinatown at 6pm, we proceed to drive up the causeway to cross the Malaysian border. March was doing this religiously every weekend, rain or shine because he could save 50% off his expensive petrol bills at his favourite Shell Station at JB's Taman Sri Tebrau. Like a typical weekend, the causeway was packed with vehicles - Malaysians rushing back home after a day's work and Singaporeans for their weekend seafood therapy. I do not know if the escalating crime rates in JB have deterred Singaporeans from visiting. All I know is that we were stuck at the Woodlands customs for a good 40 minutes before reaching the Malaysian border. It was about 7.45pm when we checked in the url=http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g298278-d302264-r5796526-The_Puteri_Pacific_Hotel_Johor_Bahru- ... read more

It doesn't matter at the end of the day whether you are going to book a trip from me. I am satisfied if I could offer my frank opinion of the place!" I am in this travel consulting business with X Travel Agent where there were occasions when I need to lie in order to close a deal. For our Europe Tours, a minimum group size of 16 is required for a confirmed departure. Usually, even when there is not a single person in the group, we are required to lie that there are already 10 in order to instill confidence to prospective customers. At first I found it hard to accept, now it has become like a normal routine to me. Usually, there are requests from customers to fax our itinerary to them. I am ... read more

This 10 days, 9 nights backpacking around HK and Macau would not have been possible without the following which the writer would like to acknowledge: The Progress P******* which helped to defray 78.3% of the total trip expenses. It was simply god-send. T**** Airways which sold them 5 pairs of round trip air-tickets in January 2006 @ rockbottom prices for S$124.21 each (all taxes inclusive, no hidden agenda BUT without the comfort of assigned seating, food and beverages on board, in-flight entertainment, boarding bridges and luxurious leg rooms which the author is already so used to it.) He kept lamenting that for his next trip overseas, he would board a full service carrier with all the frills built in. But this has since become a distant reality. The last time he flew with a full board ... read more

Our final morning in HK… Breakfast at Tsim Sha Tsui MacDonald’s. I noticed a small kid lying on the table with his head down while waiting for his mum. It was quite a cute sight. Its ham macaroni for breakfast today thinking that it was something unique. It’s bland even though it seemed healthy. We split into two taxis where they brought us to the ferry terminal to catch a fast ferry to Macau. It simply reminded me of my BMT days in Tekong having to take the weekly fast craft. Our 8 Days 7 Nights in HK had finally come to a complete end. 1 hour later ~ Welcome to Macau A free shuttle bus from the ferry terminal took us to Taipa Hotel. “Yes it’s a hotel finally…...” Even though it’s only a 3 ... read more