As always, the hassle with travelling is getting a visitor visa, especially for countries which require them. It seems I've been applying for lots of visas recently starting with Taipei last year, to China and our forthcoming trip to Japan. I always have to make a checklist because completing visa requirements isn't easy, and if you don't organize your list well, the task looks daunting. The requirements for China visa look the same as the one listed by the other embassies, except for one. If you're a first time visitor, you have to get an NBI Clearance for Travel ... Continue Reading...
Best budget tour to the Great Wall of China: DIY (do it yourself)
Touring the Great Wall is the high point of any tourist's trip to Beijing. Prior to this, I made a lot of reading on the internet on how this can be done. First thing, I realized that there is not just one Great Wall, it's so vast that you can go through as many six entrances - each with varying degrees of distance, restoration and photogenic factor. It was tempting to just consider one of those Great Wall hiking companies with an online presence. Unfortunately, most of them quote a price depending on the group size. Since February is still winter in China and was ... Continue Reading...
Taking the CRH fast train from Shanghai to Beijing, and back!
Last year, we took the fast train from Taipei to Taichung. It was modern enough. But nothing prepared me for the massive expanse of glass and steel that is the Shanghai Hongquiao Railway Station. It looks bigger than our airport terminal in Manila. Okay, I will vote for the next Philippine president who will build a train station like this :D (riding PNR is something I never tried, or plan to do) Flying to Beijing from Shanghai was tempting. But I guess taking the night 'D' trains with soft sleepers that depart around 9:30 p.m. and arrive at 7:30 a.m. the next ... Continue Reading...
Shanghai, China: great views, big city
I female student I met on this trip told me: "Shanghai is not the real China." Maybe like me, she came from the typical small town (in my case, small country) who was in awe at seeing the mega city for the first time. Still, modern Shanghai is an apparent indication of what China will be in the very near future and what it is now... an emerging economic powerhouse of the world. State of the art architecture greets one upon arriving in the Pudong International Airport, accessible via subway and the super-fast Maglev trains. As a tourist, I loved being in ... Continue Reading...
Hotel Celeste, Makati : cozy small hotel with the French flair
We could have gone out of town, but on the day of our second wedding anniversary, hubby and I chose instead to snuggle up in Hotel Celeste. Reason for staying: we've never been here! I was certainly glad that the place looked as classy as it was in the pictures. The sight of those envelope-shaped pillows by the bed summoned me to open the surprises and possibilities that awaited us here in this inviting cocoon. We liked the little touches like the L'Occitane toiletries in the bathroom. Yes I admit, I took the unfinished bottles home :D The entertainment ... Continue Reading...
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