Last day abroad

Tiled footpath in Little India

The Quincy

C & D left us early for the next leg of their holiday in the sunny Philippines. We had planned to go back to sleep but instead, after breakfast, set off on foot to Little India. We enjoyed the walk under the hot, blue, morning sky; seeing parts of Singapore that we'd not seen up close before.

Little India was still waking up, but it was good to see the old shop houses and smell the spicy aroma of the eating houses.

We ambled on to Arab Street for more fabric and then to Suntec City where was sat for a while at a coffee house with the locals, drinking kopi, strong coffee made with sweetened condensed milk and long poured to make it frothy.

Mosque at Arab Street

Suntec City is where we regularly buy running shoes - they're a third of the price they are at home. There were a couple of other shops to check out then it was time for lunch at a great burger place in the underground arcade, called 'Handburger'.

Our energy levels were running low by now so we trained it uptown for a last look at the shops.

Kopi

We bought some electronics from Sam at Lucky Plaza. I haven't been tempted in many years, but the prices for what I was after were very good this time.

Packing and a rest - we paid for a half day extra to allow us to check out at 7pm. So worth it when we're on a late flight, to be able to shower and change and then pack everything up at leisure.

I'm not ready to go home this time, but work is calling.

Another fabulous day with friends

This morning we started out to breakfast a little earlier, and then caught a taxi to Fort Canning Park for a wander through the greenery. The park is right in the city, between Orchard Road and the CBD, and is built around the remains of WWII bunkers.

Taxis: quite cheap in Singapore, and much more convenient than the MRT for direct access to places, especially with four people. There are certain times of the day - shift change, dinner time, when hailing a taxi is a difficult sport, however.

We left the park behind and after a few blocks' walk in the mid morning heat, gratefully took a seat in the air conditioning of a coffee house.

Beers at Peranakan Place

We introduced C & D to the warren of underground shops between Raffles and the Marina, but between us all, bought nothing. Another taxi back up town to the Peranaken Place, a preserved traditional style street of shop houses with bars right on the middle of the bustle of Orchard Road.

After a beer and some tasty satays, C & D walked back through the breaking thunderstorm to the hotel whilst we investigated our favourite shops uptown.

Singapore rain

At six we availed ourselves of the free cocktails in the hotel bar/restaurant and the light entertainment provided by the bar staff. Then it was back in to another cab and across town the Bar Opiume at the Asian Civilizations Museum which is on the riverfront at Boat Quay.

The setting was beautiful, with tables outside under bright red chandeliers, with large candles and vases lining the tables and lounges. It was billed as having happy hour (which it didn't) and in being renowned for its wine bar (no wines on the list). Things didn't get any better from there with the cocktails all poorly made, so we high tailed it through the evening to Lau Par Sat, our favourite local eatery, located close to Raffles Place MRT in the CBD.

We ordered Tiger beer by the jug, stingray flap in tamarind sauce, satays, char kway teow, black pepper crab and maturbak (thin pancake cooked with fillings of chicken or vegetables) and shared, whilst sitting in the open air enjoying the bustle of the eatery.

We decided that it was appropriate to celebrate the end of our short holiday at The Long Bar at Raffles. We sat out on the verandah in the warm night, sharing fabulous champagne in frosted glasses, and travel stories.

Fort Canning Park

Boat Quay

View from the rooftop

On our May visit to Singapore we discovered La Terrazza, a cool rooftop bar in Ann Siang Hill, in the Chinatown district. We caught a taxi across town and found the bar pleasantly less populated than last time.

Long Island Iced Teas were in order, some tapas, and sundown over the great city whilst listening to lounge beats.

We walked the crooked pavements, checking out the myriad restaurants, all quirky and well attended. We couldn't get in to a few places, but came across 'Platters', a fabulous restaurant serving share food on wooden platters. The wine list was inspiring and the food, truly delicious. One of the platters was called 'The Boner' and held pork, lamb and the softest and tastiest beef, all still on the bone. It was excellent.

It took some time to flag down a taxi, but finally back at the hotel we shared a bottle of fabulous champagne by the pool, with a view of the city skyline.

The platters hanging above the bar

Sampling the wine list

Happy in Singapore

Haji Lane

We struggled to a late start, both parties a little discombobulated from travel and the time difference (and the celebrating) and enjoyed the included breakfast in the hotel restaurant.

Haul from Arab Street

A taxi dropped us at Arab Street, where I like to shop for fabric. I bought some batik by the meter for making a quilt cover, as well as some regular cut pieces for making clothes. There's only so much batik that I can use at any one time but I always enjoy searching through the piles of beautiful colours and designs in the darkened shops that smell of incense.

C & I also bought some lovely cotton by the meter - very good quality for only SGD8.

From there we headed off to the Gardens by the Bay. This is a newly built botanic gardens on 400 acres of reclaimed land, next to the impressive Marina Bay Sands hotel.

There are giant tree like structures, covered with orchids and vines, with a suspended walkway 60 meters in the air.

The cost of going up onto the walkway was only SGD 5pp, and well worth it for the view and experience.

We had a tasty Singaporean lunch at the Hill Street Cafe, right next to the lift entrance to the elevated walkway.

C & D headed back for a nap, and we carried on through the park to the Heritage area of orchids, limestone monoliths and restful spaces, to the MRT and Orchard Road shops.

We enjoyed a very cool, refreshing swim back at the hotel and then set off for an evening out.

Newton's Circus

After settling in we headed out to eat with the locals at a hawker centre. Newton's Circus is a few blocks' walk from The Quincy. It was refurbished from its original food cart and makeshift tables origin to a permanent, semi covered structure a few years ago.

We shared three plates of our favourite dishes; char kuey teow,roast duck noodles and stingray flap in tamarind sauce. Dinner was SGD13 all up, and a bottle if Heineken to share was $7.50.

We walked through the shops for a little and then opted for a nap whilst waiting for C & D to arrive from Dubai.

They got in at about 10pm, and we celebrated for quite some time!

The Quincy

For the first time in my travels, there was a gentleman waiting for us as we exited the arrival hall with a gorgeous black Mercedes E350.

This was thanks to the accommodation package at the Quincy, and I liked it.

The hotel is a small boutique hotel, located in the elbow between Scotts Road and Orchard Road. It won the Trip Advisor People's Choice award for 2012.

Check-in was a breeze and the room is comfortable.

The photos are of the lovely art in the public areas, and the view from our room.

The journey over

So we've arrived safe and sound in Singapore, albeit an hour late due to departing late.

We had seats up the front of the aircraft with extra legroom, which was nice. The plane was almost full, with only a few spare seats. Eight hours is a long time without entertainment, but we read and napped. The meals were tasty (SGD10) and the flight smooth until we entered the more turbulent air of the wet tropics.

I saw lots of islands in the midst of the beautiful blue of the Timor Sea and even a small, solitary volcano, quietly expelling ash into the atmosphere.

I'm not sure that I'm a fan of Scoot. The seats were uncomfortable and the service a little less than expected, even for a cheap airline. Air Asia seem to have it all down to a fine art, but perhaps Scoot is still settling in to their trade.

Departure

Parking, check-in and a tasty breakfast (now with metal cutlery!) all without hassle at Gold Coast airport.

Parking cost is $88 for the first four days, then $17 per day thereafter in long term parking, which is an easy walk from the terminal.

Check-in opened three hours prior to departure, but before that there was no indication of where to line up. The staff were friendly and efficient.

There are two security checks on departure as the entry to domestic gates is the same main entry to the international gates. There is a second bag screening for international departures prior to immigration. After this, there is a cafe, a newsagent and a small duty free. Not terribly exciting, but sufficient.

Our Scoot B777, named Barry, arrived 30 minutes behind schedule.

A quick trip back to the Orient

Tomorrow we set off for Singapore!

It will, admittedly, be the third time that we'll step off a plane there this year. Having visited many times since my first trip in 1980, I still have not had my fill of this fabulous country.

This visit is purely to meet up with our friends, C & D, who now live in Dubai. They were planning to be there for a holiday and invited us to join them.

We're flying with Scoot this time http://www.flyscoot.com/index.php/en/. They are Singapore's newest airline, flying B777's direct to the Gold Coast, Sydney and Melbourne. Like Air Asia, they are a no-frills airline, and having travelled often on the former, I am keen to see what Scoot is like. They often have return airfares to Singapore for $300!

We didn't manage to get the cheapest seats as we were locked into the dates we could travel, but it was still quite a bit cheaper any other option. It is already school holidays here for some, and many school leavers now choose to head overseas for their end of year celebrations, rather than attend 'Schoolies' at the Gold Coast. Last year at this time I went to Bali, and the aircraft was full of 17-18 year olds.

Flying out of the Gold Coast is definitely more hassle than flying out of Brisbane for us, but the cost of parking is fair. The asian internationals all depart at around 9am and arrive back in country at 8am. Driving back to Brisbane in peak hour traffic after a long night on a plane can be a challenge. I've booked extra leg room seats this time, in the hope of getting some quality rest.

We are staying at The Quincy http://www.stayfareast.com/en/hotels/the-quincy-hotel.aspx, which is high up Orchard Road, close to Scotts Road. We haven't stayed here before, but if C & D decided to rebook there after a previous visit, that was more than good enough for me.

The room rate includes laundry (very handy in Asia, if only for cleaning the travel clothes), breakfast and dinner, cocktails, minibar, wi-fi (which can be extremely expensive!) and limousine pick up from the airport - impressive!

Roll on tomorrow.

Last day in the USA

We slept in a little this morning and then breakfasted on Pine Avenue in Long Beach.  Yet another gorgeous day (we were very lucky with the weather) today, so we drove south down Long Beach, Seal Beach to Huntington Beach, where we walked down to the pier and watched a little of a surfing competition in action. The beach was wide and well populated, being a Saturday. The water was a little cool but very clear.

I was keen to go to Macy’s (a US department store) and when I asked the GPS, she directed us to one not far away. We arrived to a very large and attractive centre called South Beach Plaza, where we both found happy bargains.

It was a quick trip back to the hotel in easy traffic (weekends definitely the pick of travel times) for a dip in the hotel’s rooftop pool.

An early dinner at the Yard House again and it was time for me to pack and prepare to leave. The hotel booked a town car for me, as that seemed to be the easiest way for me to get to LAX. It cost no more than a cab, and was worth the money for the convenience. It was a fast trip and a quick check in for my Virgin Australia flight.

Unfortunately my lounge membership doesn’t work here, and there is not much to do here in Terminal 3. No duty free, limited restaurants, two newsagents and that’s all. Still, it does have free wi-fi and so I’ve finally written this blog. I have the best intention to write it every day, but this trip, like the last to Hawaii, were very busy.

We loved LA. We had a wonderful 4 days and are both very much looking forward to coming back as soon as we can. With our dollar so strong it’s a comfortable place to be – the taxes and tipping are all affordable  and not something to begrudge in addition to the listed prices. The people all seem pleasant and helpful. Staff actually want to help. The weather is incredible.

LA, Day 3



Inside California Adventure

It was an early start today to see G’s last performance and as we entered the parking garage to collect our car, we saw a film crew assembled. Someone clapped the board and shouted ‘Action’, then a car flew around the corner and into a parking spot, and out leapt Kiefer Sutherland! Seeing a star in action in LA – perfect!

G dancing with her troupe

Today G was performing at California Adventure Park, across the way from Disneyland. Same parking lot, same entrance fee. She danced under another hot blue sky at the Hollywood Backlot stage, watched by all of the families and friends of the dancers who had come from all over Australia. It was another excellent show and G did a fabulous job. We saw her afterwards to congratulate her, and left her with her sisters and friends to tackle the rides.

The transport from the carpark at Disney

We wandered back through the park and it does look like a great place to spend time. We’d agreed to see it all another visit, as we were so short on time this holiday and were more interested in seeing other parts of LA. I liked the look of California Adventure Park more than Disneyland, but I think that is because of my age. Both parks were full – it must be a sensational money maker. Parking costs $15 per car on entry, although we didn’t pay the first day when we arrived at 6pm. Disney closes around 7 or 8pm, but California Park stays open til around 11pm, so many of the people leaving Disney at night went straight across and into the other park.

The staff certainly know what to do and are friendly and efficient. It all works well.

We left just after noon and went in search of the Hollywood sign. We didn’t get as close as I’d hoped to, so I’ll have to investigate for our next visit. We drove through some fabulous neighborhoods, past beautiful houses and luxurious cars, up windy, narrow roads.

From there we started to encounter a little trouble with our navigation systems. I couldn’t get her to understand where we wanted to go and the map I had didn’t have sufficient detail to allow me to navigate without her. In frustration we stopped for coffee and came across ‘Five Guys Burger and Fries’. Dom had heard they made great burgers, and they really did. Highly recommended.

Fortified, we located Coldwater Canyon which led us to Mulholland Drive and some fabulous views both north and south. We drove down Benedict Canyon to Beverly Hills, admiring the beautiful houses along the way. It was a small and windy road, with a single house on each side wedged into the canyon walls.

We walked down Rodeo Drive and looked in the windows of the high end shops. There was not much there for people without Hollywood star bank balances, so we went back to Santa Monica to do a little more shopping, and have an early dinner at Trastavere, a restaurant I’d wanted to eat at since my first visit here in 1989.

We made our way down the coast road and found a carpark at Venice Beach in time to see the sun set on another glorious day. We watched the guys in the skate park for awhile with awe, and wandered the beach. The shops and stalls were all closing up for the day, so we didn’t stay long. There were no muscle men to be seen. Obviously it’s a place to visit during the day.

Continuing on down the coast we passed Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Rendondo Beach, which all had lovely ‘town’ centres with inviting restaurants and bars. All to be investigated at another time.

La La Land, Day 2

Hotel swimming pool on the roof

Driving in LA takes time. Time for the traffic and time for the vast distances this city covers. The traffic wasn’t tooooo bad. The GPS lady would sometimes note the heavy traffic ahead and recalculate a new route for us. We discovered that she didn’t take into account the fact that we could travel in the car pool lane, which was often much clearer that the main lanes. She would try to take us out into the city streets, which were very much stop and go, with heavy traffic. At least on the freeways we would be at a constant 40 miles per hour, even at the worst.

Some of the on and off ramps are a little confusing and a couple of times we had to backtrack. Sometimes we chose a different route to the one the GPS selected – sometimes to try a different road so that we’d see different parts of LA, and sometimes because I felt her plan was flawed (traffic). She would often say ‘recalculating’ so often that I thought she might give up completely! It was an asset to have a good map to give us a broader picture of where we were.

After sleeping very well last night (very tired after a Wednesday that seemed to go on forever), we set out for Santa Monica. We found a carpark and walked to 3^rd Street Promenade – I have been here twice previously and really enjoyed the restaurants and shopping. We ate at an outdoor café (America doesn’t seem to do breakfast very well) and then shopped a little. Our dollar is worth more than the US dollar at the moment, so it’s hard to ignore all of the fabulous stores. Their sale stuff is perfect for us as we’re a season behind, too.

View from the Santa Monica Pier

 
It was another spectacular day in LA – hot and blue. We wandered down to the Santa Monica Pier, already busy with tourists. There are souvenir and food stalls lining the pier, buskers, and a bar/restaurant at the end. We took photos and enjoyed the view and the people watching.

Under the pier

At 3.30pm we departed for Disneyland to see G dance prior to the Grand Parade at 6.40pm. We imagined that would be plenty of time, and that we’d have hours to look around. Wrong. It took til 6pm to get there (should have been a 1 hour trip) and then 30 minutes to park, take the shuttle, get tickets and get in. We made it in time, which was the important thing, and saw her dance brilliantly down the streets of Disney, with the biggest smile on her face.  Very proud and excited for her.

The trip back to the hotel was swift and we made it across the road to Hooters for a late dinner. The girls were decked out in teeny orange hotpants, long legs with white bubble socks (anyone who lived through the 80’s should know what I mean) and a variety of tight t-shirts. They were very friendly and efficient, and we ate wings (one of their specialties) and some very tasty nachos, whilst watching college football on the big screens.

Brisbane to LA

This was a very short holiday, organized specifically to see my Step-Daughter dance at Disneyland with her dance school. We weren’t able to get away from work for long due to it being school holidays, and we weren’t even sure that I could make it at all.

We booked Dom’s flight first, on Qantas, and by the time that we could guarantee my trip, that flight was too expensive for just a 4 day trip. I bought a ticket on Virgin Australia, and departed on Wednesday via Sydney, then onto a Delta operated flight.

The Sydney transit is something that I have purposefully avoided for at least a decade due to the hassle of changing terminals. I approached this trip with optimism, but found that the two hours allowed by the company was barely enough. There was a transit bus waiting as I disembarked my domestic flight, which took us onto the public road around to the international terminal. I checked in without hassle, but with just over one hour to go to departure. The immigration line was very long and very slow, so definitely no time for duty free shopping.

It was a very full B777, but the crew were friendly and efficient. We departed on time, and arrived at about 6.30am local time in LA. I made it quickly through the immigration process and wandered out into the airport to locate Dom. He had arrived earlier than me, but his terminal was very busy and therefor exited about 30 minutes after me. We were very happy to see eachother and relieved that we’d both arrived on time.

We caught a shuttle to the Alamo car rental place, where a very friendly attendant gave us a Cadillac SUV.

My cousin had recently introduced me to the benefits of having a GPS so we hired one this time, and were immediately glad. It made navigating very easy. I had been a little concerned about getting around in LA, but we really didn’t have any problems.

We found our way to the Hyatt The Pike at Long Beach http://thepikelongbeach.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels-thepikelongbeach/index.jsp?null through the cool and foggy LA morning. The traffic was mild at that time of day. They allowed us to check in at 9am without extra charge (impressive!) and so we elected to have a nap. There was a mild danger in this – would we want to get up again?! Luckily the threat of only having 4 days here had us up and into the car on our way to Ontario Mills, a huge outlet centre north east of Long Beach. The fog had dissipated and left a sparkling, hot blue sky. It was around 30 degrees.

The food court lunch was surprisingly excellent – I had the best chicken burrito I’ve ever tasted and Dom chose some very tasty blackened chicken.

After a couple of hours, we returned to the hotel (parking was only $7 a day) and then walked across to Shoreline Village where we ate at the Yard House. It was similar in all respects to the one we’d frequented in Hawaii. Great beers, friendly staff and tasty food. This one had a great view, right next to the marina.

Home again

We woke to another beautiful, blue sky day, and very much wanted to head out to the beach. Instead we packed and departed without a problem, taking a $32 cab ride to the airport. The Honolulu airport is a little confusing. Check in appears to be the same for domestic as it is for international, then we took a shuttle bus ride around to the shops and departure lounges. There is no outward immigration in the US, which is always a little discombobulating. Just a security check, shops, and the gate.

We departed a little late, with a plane less than half-full (yay), with a 9hr57 minute flight time. We left at lunch time, and arrive at 7.20pm Sydney time, which I find quite comfortable as far as long international flights go.

The dollar was still around parity for this trip, which makes everything so affordable for us.

I would definitely come back to Hawaii. We’d like to see some of the other islands, but there’s still plenty to see and do on Oahu, including just relaxing at the beach.

Our hotel was fantastic. It was close to the beach, had a great view (from every room, apparently), a lovely pool and excellent staff. Some of the hotels further down Waikiki looked fabulous, but had little beach front and appeared more hectic.

Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay

Hanauma Bay for fabulous snorkeling

Today started slowly, as a result of last night’s drinks. Dom and I woke late and ordered room service lunch, then were collected by M & J to head to the eastern side of the island to snorkel.

I really enjoyed the drive through the suburbs and along the spectacular coastline to Hanauma Bay, a protected marine park. We hired snorkel and flippers for $7.50 each and found some free space on the beach. It was a Saturday afternoon in summer holidays, so it was a popular place to be. There was plenty of sea space for all and we had a blissful couple of hours watching the many and varied sea creatures go about their daily business. M & J even spotted two sea turtles.

Further around the east coast, J took us to dinner at Haeiwa Joe’s, a favourite restaurant with views over the craggy mountain peaks. The house specialty was prime rib, which the boys both ordered. The steaks were massive, but impressively, both finished. The meat was very tasty, and not at all as expensive as the ‘Market Price’ we had expected.

I enjoyed travelling on the highways as they cut back through the mountain ranges via tunnels through to Waikiki.

We all said goodbye and then Dom and I did a last trip into Waikiki for a few souvenirs. There are many people out at night, making for a quite festive and comfortable atmosphere. We sat on the beach for a while, looking at the stars and trying to pick the northern hemisphere constellations.

Hawaii, Day 4

 By yesterday morning Dom and I both had sore throats – thanks to international travel, I think. There were some overtly unwell passengers on our flight out. I made it through with some throat lozenges, but sadly Dom was quite unwell.

He soldiered into action for a morning trip to the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Whilst we arrived at 9am, and were given the next available tickets to the boat trip to the Arizona, it was not available until 11.45am. We weren’t interested in waiting that long and so toured the site ourselves, reading much of the story boards and seeing the relics. It was a moving experience, even without the Arizona, which we’ll see next time. I think that taking an official tour would help, or perhaps pre-booking, but I’ll look into that before we go back again.

The weather has been really lovely. Day time temperatures are around 30 degrees, and at night it is about 24 degrees. Balmy. Idyllic.

I spent the afternoon checking out the shops at Ala Moana, a large shopping centre close to our hotel. The prices were excellent, and it was difficult to decide what to take home. Designer labels were affordable – not something you come across in Australia.

We spent a quiet moment at our hotel pool, which was very pleasant, and then joined M & J at a teppanyaki restaurant in downtown Waikiki for dinner, followed by drinks back at the Yard House.

Turtles and Waimea



Today we set off to swim with the turtles at a beach on the western side of the island, close to the Disney resort. It wasn’t signposted at all, and I’m not sure how M knew they were there. It was at a little rocked-in cove, with no facilities. We saw a couple of friendly creatures, and admired their swimming style.

Lunch was at a Mexican restaurant nearby, which served delicious corn chips and salsa.

From there we rejoined the main highway north to Waimea, where we swam again, enjoying the extra buoyant seawater. The sun and sand were hot, and the ocean cool and refreshing. We saw many military bases during our round-island tour and enjoyed the changing scenery.

The two mountain ranges create great misty clouds which sit on the range top, and the northern side of the island was windswept and dark, in contrast to the sunny and vividly bright Waikiki. The ‘Jurassic Park’ movies and the TV series ‘Lost’ were filmed here, to give you an idea of the spectacular scenery of the island.

Sun lounging and swimming in the afternoon, followed by dinner at the Yard House again. We walked a lot during this holiday – it was about 1.5km from our hotel into the restaurants and shops. There were very friendly cab drivers, but walking seemed like a good idea to help wear off some of the (fine) American cuisine.