tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25004286937729015532024-03-14T19:50:09.677+08:00Pieces of MeAll about travel and photographywjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.comBlogger336125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-41103582993850688392017-09-13T15:26:00.000+08:002017-09-13T15:26:19.451+08:00A Visit to Hoi An, Vietnam This was kind of an impromptu trip for the 3 of us as we wanted to go somewhere near, cheap and to chillax. As my other two friends have not been to Vietnam, we decided to book a flight to Da Nang for the famous Hoi An town.<br />
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It was in July and the weather was hot, in fact it was so hot and humid that by the time I was out of the cold shower from the hotel, I was sweating buckets. We booked a nice new hotel not too far from the old town in Hoi An. We chartered a transport from the Da Nang airport to the hotel for USD 15. We head out to the old town after checking in the hotel. The aim of the trip this time was to take practice our portrait shots and I only brought along my trusted prime lens.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The old town reminds me of Melaka</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Practicing my Korean love sign. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love this part of the town. </td></tr>
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Initially, we booked a walking tour for the old town but somehow, the person did not turn up and we decided to have lunch and go ahead with plan to walk on our own. When you entered the old town, you are supposed to pay a small fee but we noticed this is only applicable to tourist. Once you entered the old town, it's a different feel altogether. I feel the town is quite similar to Melaka but bigger. It was really fun just to walk around when the weather began to cool down. A word of advice though, try to avoid sweltering afternoon heat from 12-3pm. As clouds began to shield the sun away, the walk was much comfortable. Try the famous Mdm. Phuong Banh Mi for the various choices of filling. We had it comfortably at the cafe beside the stall.<br />
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Some of places worth visiting were the market in the center of the old town. Look for the famous Cao Lao mee. I can't recall the name, but it's the stall right at the back of the market.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cao Lao</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The stall selling the delicious Cao Lao</td></tr>
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The town of Hoi An literally lit up at night with lots of lanterns and it's a sight to behold. One peculiar thing I noticed was the enormous amount of Korean tourist visiting Hoi An and Da Nang. There are even Lotte mart located in Da Nang.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The colourful lanterns at night in Hoi An</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lantern</td></tr>
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<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-23826015629768469772017-04-10T10:26:00.000+08:002017-04-11T10:27:25.609+08:00Food to Try in Cheung Chau Island, Hong KongThis time around, we decided to hop over to one of the many islands in Hong Kong and we selected Cheung Chau. To get there is fairly easy as we took the MTR to Central station and follow the signboard to get to the pier. The ferry departs from Pier 5 and there are two types of ferry, the fast and the slow one, alternating half and hour each. Prices for the fast ferry is double of the slow one but we reached the island in approximately 40 minutes.<br />
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I had researched for some of the food to try in Cheung Chau and here are some of the food. Can't really recall the address of these places but since the island is quite small, all these eateries are within the town area. Cheung Chau is also famous for their bun festival which occurs every year in May.<br />
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Here's are some of the food that we tried<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5EGjH0F29MWCHwDwIo7PLd6ZEt610TMvBzuFvRZFCOvm9OwDsKEt1aGL8GPXnnbyLISBxv54D6v5KzvZYBT7eibhkR_oihLdeEJplFlvKfYHL5wocPVEUXs5iEfItI_283Mx7zqcGSaPE/s1600/IMG_4498+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5EGjH0F29MWCHwDwIo7PLd6ZEt610TMvBzuFvRZFCOvm9OwDsKEt1aGL8GPXnnbyLISBxv54D6v5KzvZYBT7eibhkR_oihLdeEJplFlvKfYHL5wocPVEUXs5iEfItI_283Mx7zqcGSaPE/s400/IMG_4498+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My parents trying out the fishballs and fish cakes</td></tr>
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<b>1. Fish balls, all types</b><br />
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<b style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">甘永泰魚蛋</span></span></b></h3>
We tried a few types of fishballs at this shop and I quite like the salmon and cheese flavour. There are many flavours and many stalls selling fishballs in Cheung Chau. When we ordered, they will deep fried the fishballs for us. Overall, the fishballs are ok but a tad too salty for my liking. The stall is at one of the square not too far away from the jetty. When we were there, we saw some locals bought the fresh fishballs.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVhHiSqANbV8ul_2QCMRY0pnpl6JjQ_Hcw3kNJZE9ykIrCrQzdgr88Vg8jAwFRmHW_vdPXvnW4DiZNZiALwk_mOaePz32chwD66cZ854h2n0MRLyNZFN-RBK-xhs0F87XRDBXOG29B5vVN/s1600/IMG_4627.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVhHiSqANbV8ul_2QCMRY0pnpl6JjQ_Hcw3kNJZE9ykIrCrQzdgr88Vg8jAwFRmHW_vdPXvnW4DiZNZiALwk_mOaePz32chwD66cZ854h2n0MRLyNZFN-RBK-xhs0F87XRDBXOG29B5vVN/s400/IMG_4627.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The dessert we ordered</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcxj3mvw-uvitPiMl6fAqQi3qk7ptlJ1qTjCGvKps9gSkPTIEiFt_KMARnWySqFlsYyrizjdTYcO7B2iks3eQ135zCjtp4lbwyv7HQy4A-GYZhyphenhyphenU_cmmdIMR5YqCzmKFUFDsic6AjlA37s/s1600/IMG_4629.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcxj3mvw-uvitPiMl6fAqQi3qk7ptlJ1qTjCGvKps9gSkPTIEiFt_KMARnWySqFlsYyrizjdTYcO7B2iks3eQ135zCjtp4lbwyv7HQy4A-GYZhyphenhyphenU_cmmdIMR5YqCzmKFUFDsic6AjlA37s/s400/IMG_4629.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Check out the real mango filling</td></tr>
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<b>2. Dessert</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">允升甜品</span></span></h3>
Originally, I wanted to try this Tin Yin dessert but found out it was closed on Monday. So we proceed to try another shop in the list. We ordered the Mango mochi, fruits tong sui and tau fu fa. Personally I love the mochi the most as it was huge and the mango filling is actually real mango filling instead of paste. Highly recommended just for the mochi.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Queuing up to buy the red bean pancake</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enjoying our pancake</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Check out the red bean filling</td></tr>
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<b>3. Red Bean Pancake</b><br />
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<b style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">故鄉俱樂部 Hometown Members Club</span></b></h3>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">We actually stumbled into this place by accident after we took a stroll at the beach nearby. It was my mum who saw the signboard indicating red bean pancake and we decided to try. It was one of the best red bean pancake I ever tried. The filling of the red bean is the similar to the filling of the red bean pau that my grandma used to make. The only thing I regret was that we only bought two to share among three of us. Should have bought 1 each. </span></span></div>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>4. Seafood</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: small;">There is plenty of seafood restaurants along the coast and most offered lunch set which gives 3 dishes with one vege dish. I felt the food was quite meh though the prawns were not bad. I would not recommend to try them as the seafood in Malaysia was much better and cheaper. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My dad insist on trying the 'put chai kou' aka bowl pudding</td></tr>
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We only managed to try a few of the food in Cheung Chau as we were still full from the dim sum breakfast in the morning. There are plenty of street food in the small town and we saw many stalls selling mochi.<br />
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I quite like Cheung Chau overall as the island is quite laidback and not so touristy as there are many locals still living in the island. Highly recommend for a visit to Cheung Chau if anyone heading to Hong Kong. A nice change from the bustling city and a nice place just to chill and eat some pretty good mochi.<br />
<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-85098855407062161192017-03-19T23:00:00.000+08:002017-03-20T10:52:46.153+08:00Best Food to Try in Hong KongJust came back from a 4 day food trip to Hong Kong which the main aim of the travel is to eat as much as we can. As my parents are huge Cantonese food lover, we had like 5 meal per day. Here's are some of the best food we savored for the 4 day trip.<br />
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<b>1. Dim Sum</b><br />
<i>Dim Dim Sum </i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="color: blue;"><i>112 Tung Choi St, Mong Kok (there are a few branches ie in Jordan and Wan Chai)</i></span></span><br />
Hands down this is one of the best dimsum we tasted in Hong Kong. We reached the restaurant around 3.30pm on Saturday and had to queue about half an hour to get a seat. But the wait is worth it as this restaurant had the most innovative dim sum we ever tried. Some of the must have dim sum are the chu cheung fun with prawn spring roll, pineapple polo bun, wasabi 'ham sui kok', piggy buns. Do try their ice milk tea.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkFkc-6zG208MfX3E2g9l_sZFnSj21aG_M0pikccMAq-IUSh2dKc5huclfWA5D9l2_aKNAulMTLlwU5UV7ThqDSQssbEXciaFxdk7a3CGdl3WLVO0MpHjVSEl4C5lkcho0TL5PwXIAWfP8/s1600/IMG_4235+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkFkc-6zG208MfX3E2g9l_sZFnSj21aG_M0pikccMAq-IUSh2dKc5huclfWA5D9l2_aKNAulMTLlwU5UV7ThqDSQssbEXciaFxdk7a3CGdl3WLVO0MpHjVSEl4C5lkcho0TL5PwXIAWfP8/s400/IMG_4235+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Polo Bun with pineapple filling</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ-E28nBAizJFkhTSY-KrN99fZTIQjtYBjsrbB09SnfqYR5L5ndFpvgFrgdFG2b__4OfthkNVgA11o3ZuBDN4-YJHd1Lo6Dn11KhCGwVDaOeMdGW1NgsrCzO7SSnMPhuB630aiRkqPvEy9/s1600/IMG_4236+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ-E28nBAizJFkhTSY-KrN99fZTIQjtYBjsrbB09SnfqYR5L5ndFpvgFrgdFG2b__4OfthkNVgA11o3ZuBDN4-YJHd1Lo6Dn11KhCGwVDaOeMdGW1NgsrCzO7SSnMPhuB630aiRkqPvEy9/s400/IMG_4236+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wasabi 'Ham sui kok'</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJRSFDH-GP62W9C5W0CDpwHJZ9lb-Wehw9kKXcr4vhO7O2jg3ujoNb5Zb5xOA07V1FMZ1a2S8Otl0LzrfCIk_h9VWWH2sj-QMNid1hyQFaYylBijbdlpOUApgxRtlkho0Q1Mi-LnzZOx9/s1600/IMG_4237+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJRSFDH-GP62W9C5W0CDpwHJZ9lb-Wehw9kKXcr4vhO7O2jg3ujoNb5Zb5xOA07V1FMZ1a2S8Otl0LzrfCIk_h9VWWH2sj-QMNid1hyQFaYylBijbdlpOUApgxRtlkho0Q1Mi-LnzZOx9/s400/IMG_4237+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Piggy Bun (must have!!)<br />
I won't disclose the filling here</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8kbfQOX9HV9vHj_tuVt55gOMNsEuhyNyqjH1qfHTHkRQRTMyWT6xXH6-5QLOhAaiGDrMWRcaCn3SzsRhvl1gD_N5m5huhdURjmwIQedfUrij2NK_8BdwCWX_kWHL9H6cl3-g8-D6nWia/s1600/IMG_4238+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8kbfQOX9HV9vHj_tuVt55gOMNsEuhyNyqjH1qfHTHkRQRTMyWT6xXH6-5QLOhAaiGDrMWRcaCn3SzsRhvl1gD_N5m5huhdURjmwIQedfUrij2NK_8BdwCWX_kWHL9H6cl3-g8-D6nWia/s400/IMG_4238+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love this prawn roll in chu cheung fun</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNc91wc4wNtZjub_IshzQ9zZQlm8_BRIfo5m9AqQxK_luojrl0hRqy9yNPzpsCGyTMqTrzx9guSE_ZEdNuhWOc1aiYoBZ4gvR-Ww-1GlJk7Qk29O4jUP4vBv33SCCU7LeYMsNM1WMb_RPe/s1600/IMG_4231.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNc91wc4wNtZjub_IshzQ9zZQlm8_BRIfo5m9AqQxK_luojrl0hRqy9yNPzpsCGyTMqTrzx9guSE_ZEdNuhWOc1aiYoBZ4gvR-Ww-1GlJk7Qk29O4jUP4vBv33SCCU7LeYMsNM1WMb_RPe/s400/IMG_4231.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ice milk tea<br />
Notice that the ice is actually outside of the cup to prevent dilution of the tea</td></tr>
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<b> </b><i>Luk Yu Tea House</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="color: blue;"><i>Hong Kong, Central, Stanley St, 24-26</i></span></span><br />
The Monday morning before we embarked for Cheung Chau Island, I decided to bring my parents for a traditional dim sum experience. I was thinking between Luk Yu Tea House or Lin Heung Lau but went with this instead. My dad claimed that this is best dim sum he had, while my mum and I preferred Dim Dim Sum than this. And we got a shock of our life when the bill came to about HKD 550 for 3 person for 8 types of dim sum. So if you want more affordable dim sum, I won't recommend this place.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwAZkqFBl9P8abmAzzNYKFjEhSSJALXo99D-oLigJyke0EvCksH5PteLPplofJa6hzOjEk3P3yhQ2s3bK8RA2UIXwcPh5wUo0iMyGNT75J_Vqs4nJZpK8Vy4MIzWzPaf4qvnXmnQJihdg-/s1600/IMG_4453.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwAZkqFBl9P8abmAzzNYKFjEhSSJALXo99D-oLigJyke0EvCksH5PteLPplofJa6hzOjEk3P3yhQ2s3bK8RA2UIXwcPh5wUo0iMyGNT75J_Vqs4nJZpK8Vy4MIzWzPaf4qvnXmnQJihdg-/s400/IMG_4453.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The egg tarts are quite good and this 'siew pau pastry'</td></tr>
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<i>Dim Sum in Airport</i><br />
You can just forget about the dim sum in the airport. Not worth the money or the stomach space<br />
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<b>2. Wanton Mee</b><br />
<i>Mak's Noodle </i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="color: blue;">77 Wellington St, Central</span></i></span><br />
We had this no.1 wanton mee in Hong Kong on our second last day and it totally surpassed every wanton mee standard we had. Definitely one of the best wanton mee we had in Hong Kong minus the alkaline after taste. And I read that Mak's noodle are the origin of wanton mee.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR2So0HsGxYchh7WvgPYSZ0eberyqn9bnE-NuyzI1BGvAXDRrfBvZq54yWj1KTDqxpG8QxtLGCF936MGdTs6ueCTWv4iWxdhUUu-KgwtsRu42_znLLg1SCV9DjE37NJde_7e09Gxsf04eQ/s1600/IMG_4649+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR2So0HsGxYchh7WvgPYSZ0eberyqn9bnE-NuyzI1BGvAXDRrfBvZq54yWj1KTDqxpG8QxtLGCF936MGdTs6ueCTWv4iWxdhUUu-KgwtsRu42_znLLg1SCV9DjE37NJde_7e09Gxsf04eQ/s400/IMG_4649+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mak's noodle. The portion is smaller than other shop</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-nmxnnZiPh3HmhRJjTJ6f9sy2jj_COj3y9nccPLrz7e4-YE38j5wExiYIN5Ot-MUYGcUsR0KygTXDT6x2rYACnOD-Qo0Og4utWwZGnYsFQSnexygIXJKR69DJ3xMzxy1BZdJovwYr_IxR/s1600/IMG_4662.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-nmxnnZiPh3HmhRJjTJ6f9sy2jj_COj3y9nccPLrz7e4-YE38j5wExiYIN5Ot-MUYGcUsR0KygTXDT6x2rYACnOD-Qo0Og4utWwZGnYsFQSnexygIXJKR69DJ3xMzxy1BZdJovwYr_IxR/s400/IMG_4662.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dad giving his thumbs up for the best wanton mee in town</td></tr>
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<i>Mak Man Kee</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="color: blue;"><i>51 Parkes St, Jordan</i></span></span><br />
Mak Man Kee actually opened a branch in 1 Utama in KL but I did not have the chance to try. So I wanted to try in Hong Kong, the origin place. I quite like the noodle but my parents were not too keen as there are some alkaline aftertaste.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1XsIfmj-QrAl-CYWkLbXyWx3LSnN-HvzvXGTWJvJKFAVqxDui6aCDgVVDyRYsi5D5uRDdroMnyuQKvC9pNzm71RGWUJ6ceN5MmZDsXnkv90gjtl9FEzw3Y54iGt0g8saijPLvFsVmaUiL/s1600/IMG_4322.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1XsIfmj-QrAl-CYWkLbXyWx3LSnN-HvzvXGTWJvJKFAVqxDui6aCDgVVDyRYsi5D5uRDdroMnyuQKvC9pNzm71RGWUJ6ceN5MmZDsXnkv90gjtl9FEzw3Y54iGt0g8saijPLvFsVmaUiL/s400/IMG_4322.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mak Man Kee </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQHPQgBs1-hxzcTFc3u8Z0qpTz1_B3QUcCQuCdqq3y16Q0lSerGotnVtLwliy40Z8tVdAxUcPRiMZC3Db7HsUh0g1osf_J688WUZZbiZlRaBJTyZIukwqpBJaCc8CS-dhscBPNl9UIVsRI/s1600/IMG_4323.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQHPQgBs1-hxzcTFc3u8Z0qpTz1_B3QUcCQuCdqq3y16Q0lSerGotnVtLwliy40Z8tVdAxUcPRiMZC3Db7HsUh0g1osf_J688WUZZbiZlRaBJTyZIukwqpBJaCc8CS-dhscBPNl9UIVsRI/s400/IMG_4323.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dad enjoying his wanton mee</td></tr>
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<br />
<i>Shek Kee Wanton Noodle</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="color: blue;">UG, 386 Portland St</span></i></span><br />
We had wanton mee from this shop 6 years ago when we stayed at the nearby hotel. Back at that time, I did not research much on food and hence my parents still think highly of this place and this time my dad requested to go back for the noodle. We felt that the noodle is too hard.<br />
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<b>3. Dessert</b><br />
<i>Kai Kai Tong Sui</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="color: blue;">29 Ning Po St, Jordan</span></i></span><br />
I got to know about this dessert shop from another blogger and apparently it's one of the Michelin star street food acknowledged not too long ago. The shop is actually relocated due to the enormous hike in rental after being awarded the Michelin star. Read this in a Bloomberg article which depicts why sometimes having Michelin star award is not all good. We ordered the mango dessert, red bean and black sesame and added extra tong yuen. Nothing too spectacular but the tong yuen was good. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx_gM9Hc7AKQybdyE63SfmGgqQ5TzdWiRnMzzBIXqUt8u3Nq5FwxjYOdWer80t6-G0XA38MmIph6TcLvip52NcMZq8wzq1F8bD-eHqPWtLasluaKgqjeVNRwXsIg_hW1gIzEh5pEyRgjLe/s1600/IMG_4414+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx_gM9Hc7AKQybdyE63SfmGgqQ5TzdWiRnMzzBIXqUt8u3Nq5FwxjYOdWer80t6-G0XA38MmIph6TcLvip52NcMZq8wzq1F8bD-eHqPWtLasluaKgqjeVNRwXsIg_hW1gIzEh5pEyRgjLe/s400/IMG_4414+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the tong sui that we ordered</td></tr>
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<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
<i>Yee Shun Milk Company</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="color: blue;">513 Nathan Rd, Yau Ma Tei (there are a few branches but this is the nearest to our hotel)</span></i></span><br />
I classified this as dessert as we had our supper here instead of breakfast/tea. We ordered the steam milk with red bean and the french toast. We actually went back on the last day of the night coz I was craving for their steam milk.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz_8SLZOnKNi_QViguNsC9aW0d3UFP9Hcp7hyphenhyphenVgGU_8eulzjYYzXJyqJVOpzJjLSNmsLIKN7A4-stgVpt6fGBGIPUv6cXt9RCRZbKQrJPIxDlBMDk4G8Kef9KQMrm3XmDCm5LSxtNsQsjc/s1600/IMG_4325+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz_8SLZOnKNi_QViguNsC9aW0d3UFP9Hcp7hyphenhyphenVgGU_8eulzjYYzXJyqJVOpzJjLSNmsLIKN7A4-stgVpt6fGBGIPUv6cXt9RCRZbKQrJPIxDlBMDk4G8Kef9KQMrm3XmDCm5LSxtNsQsjc/s400/IMG_4325+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steam milk with red bean</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9W9UYAhTyMqnC7T_ySD2BDoTEgLJC49YDLtrIR8wPpKFFAZEx2hb_vjXv6Rd39P0qr2NN9GaaV2oT9MWMlk7DCkcez8icUr_vnV8LSvXTKpP8zW7EXAK3KzzyugZanpBxLnX7thSdhRSy/s1600/IMG_4326+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9W9UYAhTyMqnC7T_ySD2BDoTEgLJC49YDLtrIR8wPpKFFAZEx2hb_vjXv6Rd39P0qr2NN9GaaV2oT9MWMlk7DCkcez8icUr_vnV8LSvXTKpP8zW7EXAK3KzzyugZanpBxLnX7thSdhRSy/s400/IMG_4326+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">French toast, love this so much</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1JXQDEvuRBYJ1yh-PGpCBcJEaDk916cpaF0P2IfaaccFUsvNLRB5WpYeDhm-0VOldxjkDkPF09BHdOwqnliZYA8CfgJ3MdS2l78K5dTy-8GT1ZvDXIXdGldVmAoPh6hHWEahCiJLrUCPk/s1600/IMG_4667+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1JXQDEvuRBYJ1yh-PGpCBcJEaDk916cpaF0P2IfaaccFUsvNLRB5WpYeDhm-0VOldxjkDkPF09BHdOwqnliZYA8CfgJ3MdS2l78K5dTy-8GT1ZvDXIXdGldVmAoPh6hHWEahCiJLrUCPk/s400/IMG_4667+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steam milk with ginger. Love the silky smooth texture</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<b>Cha Chaan Teng</b><br />
<i>1. Australian Milk Company</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="color: blue;">47 Parkes St, Jordan (it's just a few doors away from Mak Man Kee)</span></i></span><br />
We had breakfast here on a Sunday and I had to drag my parents out early morning to avoid the crowd. We managed to get a table within 5 minutes in queue and I gotta admit that the staff are rather rude but we enjoyed the food especially the scrambled eggs a lot. It comes with a breakfast set with macaroni soup and tea/coffee and the portion are rather huge.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZbO4rv-psiB7i0BAIZU2-u6dpu1xiTwbZHDmC8rIHjVJvSdvAfYnbkCBTQGjAO68BRyzWkeruPdbFjC4pMqqB_V7hE53Pp-HS7MNi-NuVUd6NUJGvwH5cYl3WkUCZkRNABS-ovdeDUhvS/s1600/IMG_4333+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZbO4rv-psiB7i0BAIZU2-u6dpu1xiTwbZHDmC8rIHjVJvSdvAfYnbkCBTQGjAO68BRyzWkeruPdbFjC4pMqqB_V7hE53Pp-HS7MNi-NuVUd6NUJGvwH5cYl3WkUCZkRNABS-ovdeDUhvS/s400/IMG_4333+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Macaroni and ham soup</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7mB85XdDg1KaQ2dnreg22hhyvUUNJFYVjxvORQbvF6mYxf7syUwxeKL6K6yEDm_CqqEZqiL45Dqju0WltCVSrqZEIMEYv78vg7VoYyPQiPhT2vNozh2Wn9hOQkSkACEGTxPfQgsM87LUb/s1600/IMG_4334+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7mB85XdDg1KaQ2dnreg22hhyvUUNJFYVjxvORQbvF6mYxf7syUwxeKL6K6yEDm_CqqEZqiL45Dqju0WltCVSrqZEIMEYv78vg7VoYyPQiPhT2vNozh2Wn9hOQkSkACEGTxPfQgsM87LUb/s400/IMG_4334+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the best scramble egg</td></tr>
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<b>Polo Bun</b><br />
<i>1. Kam Wah Cafe & Bakery</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="color: blue;">47 Bute St, Mong Kok</span></i></span><br />
The butter melting in the piping hot polo bun. Need I say more.<br />
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<b>Egg Tart</b><br />
<i>1. Tai Cheong Bakery</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="color: blue;">35 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central</span></i></span><br />
We did not try much egg tart in Hong Kong. Only this and the egg tart from Luk Yu Tea House. The egg tarts here are so so and I have tasted much better ones in Malaysia.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNkRJTacAk1MPop1TIuGVaNGw84AzYcQXPPUmfOLlkOnwwYybilv5jm12S3DO4Apa90ydry1r4714p4w1WtWInAdW3RZWtnDJyHzaEjZvQfOSOS7OvAdyghyphenhyphenloNSJnOM-AkPwbkBJRGO_V/s1600/IMG_4666+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNkRJTacAk1MPop1TIuGVaNGw84AzYcQXPPUmfOLlkOnwwYybilv5jm12S3DO4Apa90ydry1r4714p4w1WtWInAdW3RZWtnDJyHzaEjZvQfOSOS7OvAdyghyphenhyphenloNSJnOM-AkPwbkBJRGO_V/s400/IMG_4666+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kind of meh to me</td></tr>
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<br />
Overall, I am quite satisfied with all the food that we managed to had during this trip. A piece of advice though, go for the famous places during off peak hours. We were quite lucky that most of the time we reached before a long queue is formed and the most we waited was 30 minutes for a table for Dim Dim Sum. If I had to choose my top three food for this trip, it would be Dim Dim Sum, Mak's noodle and Yee Shun steam milk.<br />
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I will do another post covering food in Cheung Chau island.wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-39276879237204215882017-02-17T10:01:00.001+08:002017-02-17T10:01:36.593+08:00Central Japan Winter Travel Itinerary (Takayama, Kanazawa, Gero and Nagoya)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXU9oK-j6c6G7gUmW-lqbtgijpHUnjGexr01jR3QF7yfIQU7JnmyYSXNhWnIlZqKdMkd8QOwYBjO6YuS8sr7DlAcfZVVKXw6EbgXElyFMPGW4BscYCCp7z3Y3LvIOOG3p8Z-wxnEM-BbiN/s1600/IMG_9127+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXU9oK-j6c6G7gUmW-lqbtgijpHUnjGexr01jR3QF7yfIQU7JnmyYSXNhWnIlZqKdMkd8QOwYBjO6YuS8sr7DlAcfZVVKXw6EbgXElyFMPGW4BscYCCp7z3Y3LvIOOG3p8Z-wxnEM-BbiN/s640/IMG_9127+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">UNESCO World Heritage - Shirakawago</td></tr>
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<br />
This is actually my first winter travel in the last 7 years or so since I am back from UK. Most of the time I would avoid winter travel like a plague as I hated the heavy wrapping of layers of clothing and the frozen feeling of my toes and hands. However, this time I took the plunge and went ahead with a winter holiday in central Japan covering mostly Gifu area. We were actually lucky to score a good deal via Thai Airways which we flew to Osaka and back from Nagoya. The air ticket actually cost less than RM 1k (to be exact, its RM 980.90) and we transit for an hour each in Bangkok. We took the overnight flight from KL and reach Osaka the next early morning.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip5-DXsk4SfjoRey-PX0wPESMZOCckHR8Nm67Al6f5IAW6DofbA_3SloHL5418lyV_HA0l-kv67XbV1IB2vIHOZlACC9hY1TIKb34Rr3bIezSJudTXw5HOrE41hkEO_4RKAfeZsjSaoxrl/s1600/IMG_8527+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip5-DXsk4SfjoRey-PX0wPESMZOCckHR8Nm67Al6f5IAW6DofbA_3SloHL5418lyV_HA0l-kv67XbV1IB2vIHOZlACC9hY1TIKb34Rr3bIezSJudTXw5HOrE41hkEO_4RKAfeZsjSaoxrl/s640/IMG_8527+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kanazawa Castle</td></tr>
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<b>Day 1 - Kanazawa</b><br />
We reached Osaka about 6.30 in the morning and we proceed to take the Haruka express to ShinOsaka and then the Thunderbird to Kanazawa. By the time we reached Kanazawa, it's about 12.30pm. As it's yet for us to check in, we decided to get the day bus pass which costs 500 yen and went to our first destination, sushi at Omi-cho market. It was raining the whole day and for the first time, KC actually disagreed with me to share a sushi platter but to have our own platter each instead. Our first sushi costs us about 2200 yen with 10 pieces and the feeling of sushi swimming in my tummy was enough to warm us up for our next stop, Kanazawa castle. We did not entered the castle but instead took some photos outside of the castle compound. Initially we wanted to enter the Kenrouken garden to see the hanging trees with snow but it was raining and no show, hence we decided to save the money instead. We went to Higashi Chaya, the old town of Kanazawa for some nice portrait shots before calling it the day and went back to our hotel for check in. We stayed in Oka Hotel for a night which costs us 5600 yen for one night. The hotel was old but it was comfortable and quite near to the train station. We hoping to catch some snow today but was disappointed that it rained instead.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcb5ORXaZn9gmwlRGUOYUMp0SVDHOL69HlwSVq_nDISSE1wqS5uLD3Gza3GOeBgiP_LkyI-z3Uxvd_H3YrqJ8vK7gOpW3lj3oSyHIMrHKbKOOb4z3ENgt6Aw_PYD9hJqh9Kyi4S0tukgy/s1600/IMG_8605+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcb5ORXaZn9gmwlRGUOYUMp0SVDHOL69HlwSVq_nDISSE1wqS5uLD3Gza3GOeBgiP_LkyI-z3Uxvd_H3YrqJ8vK7gOpW3lj3oSyHIMrHKbKOOb4z3ENgt6Aw_PYD9hJqh9Kyi4S0tukgy/s640/IMG_8605+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Takayama</td></tr>
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<b>Day 2 - Takayama</b><br />
When we stepped out from our hotel the next morning, we were greeted with snow and lots of them. It was such a sight to behold as the last time I saw snow dropping down from the sky was 8 years ago in Edinburgh. The whole town was covered with snow but we did not have much time to admire as we rushed to the train station for our train to Takayama, the highlight of the trip. We took the Shinkansen to Toyoma station and changed to Hida train. We actually got the 5 day Takayama-Hokuriku pass which costs us 14,000 yen in Malaysia and the pass basically covers all our intercity train travel and also Nohi bus. We reached Takayama quite early, around 9.30am and it was snowing!! We were so excited but faced some difficulty in dragging our bags through the snow pavement. And since it's not time to check in yet, we dumped our bags at our hostel, J Hoppers and went out to explore the town. The first time we saw the famous red bridge in Takayama, we were totally blown away. Almost every corner was postcard perfect and we can't stop snapping photos. Plus I had my prime lens with me and every photo turn out great. I practically ooh and ahh at every single photo we took! We took a leisure stroll along the old town and ate soba for lunch. As we had an hour to kill before we can view the sake brewery, we went around the town and stopped by a grocery store. Bad decision as I can't stop buying ramen, soba, and all sorts of Japanese noodle to bring home. Meanwhile, KC was down with stomachache and had to rush off to the nearest toilet.<br />
We joined the sake brewery tour with another two young Western guys as the rest of the guide only speaks Japanese. We get to sample some sake and I even bought a sake for myself eventhough I rarely drinks. I swore Japan has its way of making me want to spend all my money there! As KC was not feeling too well, we went back to the hostel to rest and while she slept, I was too hyper to sleep. Must be the side effect from the sake! We had a simple lunch as a nearby restaurant and went to sleep early.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghVPIpZszrPTvx6EtQ96h1RpyjIVVwDh9tXEEGazOOvzS6sXhwsxWvJgEKJxTeZdez5n2tctH3KQCjF3UZQkSVbsVMWeJ4guEipCEb7R_HfjVA5gkt6q4jB82PQUKPYPGQK-MBAKp0EcLX/s1600/IMG_8842+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghVPIpZszrPTvx6EtQ96h1RpyjIVVwDh9tXEEGazOOvzS6sXhwsxWvJgEKJxTeZdez5n2tctH3KQCjF3UZQkSVbsVMWeJ4guEipCEb7R_HfjVA5gkt6q4jB82PQUKPYPGQK-MBAKp0EcLX/s640/IMG_8842+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the way walking up to the observation point</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipFY4qCuEq1crZUz2DBAo0BCyrYoTZzgRw4XcK33U6BU8v-hJFNUl3n4E4etTAvWmb-HNetp6rVOg1xKzdQCWqwkBF6P6696ihVRQlHj_ARFr099Xt8nD8aUVRmxzlCQw28CLo5XclXg0s/s1600/IMG_8916+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipFY4qCuEq1crZUz2DBAo0BCyrYoTZzgRw4XcK33U6BU8v-hJFNUl3n4E4etTAvWmb-HNetp6rVOg1xKzdQCWqwkBF6P6696ihVRQlHj_ARFr099Xt8nD8aUVRmxzlCQw28CLo5XclXg0s/s640/IMG_8916+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty gassho covered in snow</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAMkqdLjrV60CBkdfEkDVJM55l6hERRwNMrA-lX-1aOE87Y-XfQ__Dhm3iRxz8bXd93xL6SQC_SYQTnbOQBeO2ckFTHN1swSZJCmzsYEXeQw9lfFApcB0G5nQ431b11zRelnN9YXIMvF_9/s1600/IMG_9246+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAMkqdLjrV60CBkdfEkDVJM55l6hERRwNMrA-lX-1aOE87Y-XfQ__Dhm3iRxz8bXd93xL6SQC_SYQTnbOQBeO2ckFTHN1swSZJCmzsYEXeQw9lfFApcB0G5nQ431b11zRelnN9YXIMvF_9/s640/IMG_9246+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stumble upon this while walking around the village</td></tr>
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<b>Day 3 - Shirakawago</b><br />
I could say this was the highlight of the whole trip and we prepared ourselves with ear muffs, lots of heat pad, thick socks and gloves for the day trip to Shirakawa village. We took the earliest Nohi bus from the bus station and the whole journey was filled with heavy snow. I was a bit worried as we might not be able to get to the view point and we reached Shirakawago around 9am. It was still snowing quite heavy and we took some time to eat our breakfast, pile on the heat pad and a quick toilet break before embarking on the journey to walk up the observation point. Initially, we wanted to take the shuttle but after KC bumped into a girl in the hostel, she specifically mentioned that we need to walk up as the scenery is stunning along the way. As we still deciding to walk or sit on the shuttle, the snow began to stop and we just go ahead with walking. The girl was right! The scenery is stunning, so beautiful that every photo was just like a postcard. We can't stopped gushing at every corner and the 20 minutes journey up turned into 30 minutes. It was not a tough walk and fairly doable. Highly recommended to walk up instead of taking the shuttle. Many bus passes us by and I guess they probably felt pity seeing us walking up but we were actually pity them for not able to appreciate the scenery like we do, haha. Once we reach the observation point, it started snowing again and we loitered in the souvenir shop for some time for the snow to stop. The view? If I were to compare photos from summer/autumn with winter, winter wins hands down! Nothing compare to seeing the little gassho houses covered with white snow !<br />
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We spent some time exploring the village, taking photos in every nook and crook and not forgetting posing and using my modelling skills. Pity KC for being forced to model and taking photo of this fake model. When I looked back at the photos at home, every single one of them was gorgeous. I felt like a winter wear model, lol. And for the first time, I had so much good photos of myself instead of my travel partner. We took the 3.15pm bus back to Takayama and since we did not reserve the bus, we went to the bus station earlier. Luckily for us, we managed to get into the bus and reached Takayama around 4.30pm.<br />
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<b>Day 4 - Gero</b><br />
The following day we went to check out the market in Takayama and for the first time, I almost could not feel my fingers and toes. Forgot to bring out my gloves and did not check the weather forecast. Later only we found out that it was -5 degress outside. No wonder my toes and fingers were frozen. We did not stay too long outdoors and we took the 11.30am train to Gero. This is the day we will be spending a night in a ryokan and have our Kaiseki dinner and breakfast. I have booked us a cosy family owned ryokan and the owner was kind enough to fetch us from the train station to the ryokan. This time, the ryokan was larger than the one we had in Hakone but we had to eat at the dining hall instead in our room. I told KC that next time, I want to try out the resort style onsen. Gero town is small and we basically covered it in less than 2 hours. With nothing much to do, we went back to the ryokan and went for our onsen. This time we were not culture shock to shower naked in each otehr presence unlike the first time, lol. The onsen was great and it's good to dip our tired bodies into the hot spring water and unwind. It's time for our multiple course dinner and after that we went out to see the fireworks and a free Kabugi at the nearby hotel. Kabugi is basically like a Japanese opera but since it's spoken in Japanese, we can understand only bits and pieces of the play.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGHhANb5erZEYTPrp_rm8uMBpQhBUXhdHtYLiojwoITti5uYmL2C2z6nfhaq1yqmoE3qdk12HFYAFX2v7WW92DEcZE4eqOsO3uNNIm3Cd47qKsplH7528kSTZkV_cIZhEymkQ7y9SrAnHA/s1600/IMG_9840+2+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGHhANb5erZEYTPrp_rm8uMBpQhBUXhdHtYLiojwoITti5uYmL2C2z6nfhaq1yqmoE3qdk12HFYAFX2v7WW92DEcZE4eqOsO3uNNIm3Cd47qKsplH7528kSTZkV_cIZhEymkQ7y9SrAnHA/s640/IMG_9840+2+.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nabana no Sato</td></tr>
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<b>Day 5- Nagoya</b><br />
We set off from Gero station leaving towards Nagoya around 10am after taking a last dip at the onsen and our breakfast. As it stared snowing in Gero, the whole town was covered in snow. Kind of sad to leave the town when it started snowing and once we reached Nagoya, there was no snow, only rain. The main reason for getting to Nagoya is to see the famous winter illumination, Nabana no Sato. It is located a far bit from Nagoya and we got the package comprising of train, bus and entrance ticket amounting to 3,700 yen. At first, when the train ticket counter told us about the price, we were very shocked as we did not know that it comes with the entrance ticket as well. After getting some assistance from a lady who was stationed nearby the counter who can actually speaks English, only then we realised there's a package with train, bus and entrance. We took the Keitetsu line train from Nagoya station to Kintetsu Nagashima station and then the shuttle to the entrance of the illumination. The entrance ticket included 1000 yen voucher which we used for buying food.<br />
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<b>Day 6- Flying back</b><br />
It's the day to fly back to KL but not forgetting stocking up on Japanese snack in the airport.<br />
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<b>Total Cost RM 3,901</b><br />
Flight RM 980.90<br />
Takayama-Hokuriku pass RM 561.00<br />
Hotel + Transportation + Souvenir RM 2,360.00 (actual hotel costs are = RM 860)<br />
If you do not buy much souvenir, RM 3,000 should be enough to cover the entire trip.<br />
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<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-14494840871587523562017-02-15T15:12:00.001+08:002017-02-16T09:16:37.804+08:00How to Dress for Winter Travel<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk13kKUPPoT0DJbfTljzTk3xNNnaXNmTCLJvfE45yGQ9GsaUKesDQGANiMZ_0FOSUfK6x7curnOb0yMm6i4J6AbYaCYaegAZuLanh33nJrRUxfWdpOEMssO6OVMRYAaXeAkZdv_DR_Fb2d/s1600/IMG_9069+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk13kKUPPoT0DJbfTljzTk3xNNnaXNmTCLJvfE45yGQ9GsaUKesDQGANiMZ_0FOSUfK6x7curnOb0yMm6i4J6AbYaCYaegAZuLanh33nJrRUxfWdpOEMssO6OVMRYAaXeAkZdv_DR_Fb2d/s640/IMG_9069+1.jpg" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With my down jacket, blocktech pants, Ugg style boots and a pop of blue</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I recently went for a winter trip to Japan and I realised my previous winter clothing in UK were not able to withstand the harsher environment and snowing situation in Japan. Plus I swore never to buy one of those puffy down jackets that makes me looked like a penguin. But this changes after I saw some photos of Japan covered in snow and makes me overhaul my whole winter travel wardrobe.</div>
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So how do I managed to survive and bundle up against the winter? Here's are some of the tips<br />
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1. Have a good base layer. For this, I bought the Uniqlo Extra Warm Heattech which is very good in keeping the body warm.<br />
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2. Get a good down jacket preferably with down duck feather. Check the label to ensure it's feathers. Best is to get one with detachable hoodie and water resistant as I realised winter weather mostly comes with rain and snow. I got mine from Mango Spain which surprisingly is stylish yet warm.<br />
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3. Layer and layer and layer up. The best is to wear a few layers and I usually layer a wool based shirt/top after my heattech.<br />
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4. Buy lots (and I mean LOTs) of heat pad. I particularly find this very useful after I almost could not feel my toes while walking around Takayama. For your info, I worn a pair of thick woolen socks with Ugg style boots and still my feet are extremely cold. I put the heat pad on top of my toes and the warm feeling makes the walking much more pleasant. I kept some heat pad in my down jacket pocket so that it can keep my fingers warm.<br />
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5. Pack gloves and earmuffs. Personally, my hands are not so cold compare to my feet.<br />
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6. Pack some colour popping scarf. Trust me, this could change the outfit in an instant and makes your photos pop.<br />
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7. I bought a blocktech pants and a heattech legging pants, both from Uniqlo. I find that both the pants can block the wind better than jeans.<br />
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Here's come of my ootd shots from Japan<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhgruOu2LUVWnNuxy1Thzp_JxN-h8r_sTNCtq-48dJf7I83-EMMrnBsTJuG7azXJ6JYCLla4_BZvtAuTZ8dko4T1qVy1IS4Vui8iCalaOmmMkPzXpWCnDvcOGQ0FSwGLHQgpcriHQIWBq-/s1600/IMG_6778+JY+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhgruOu2LUVWnNuxy1Thzp_JxN-h8r_sTNCtq-48dJf7I83-EMMrnBsTJuG7azXJ6JYCLla4_BZvtAuTZ8dko4T1qVy1IS4Vui8iCalaOmmMkPzXpWCnDvcOGQ0FSwGLHQgpcriHQIWBq-/s400/IMG_6778+JY+1.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All wrapped up with beanie and gloves</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7qJX5xPY6Lrt7UH1QLCXWGVzHT8R7mrHpXznzb7JjhMEFZEJcDFBTn8A_pOJs4qbETo-elgBvTAOEV9RFPnWtVn6kSMZLno3-125NwxTI8YcLAnpLJkZBeoN0dCpsJm_mcMS2-Au-3eX5/s1600/IMG_9041+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7qJX5xPY6Lrt7UH1QLCXWGVzHT8R7mrHpXznzb7JjhMEFZEJcDFBTn8A_pOJs4qbETo-elgBvTAOEV9RFPnWtVn6kSMZLno3-125NwxTI8YcLAnpLJkZBeoN0dCpsJm_mcMS2-Au-3eX5/s640/IMG_9041+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With my shades as a fashion accessories</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiryOCzGzyz53OqQ3QeIv9UKSnbG3n9g597RXcyW4TZUyNalNcMqFzwB1TL_hm8M7bFgef3yd2ZwQXo2HKSs2xSZioDU_YQTfULBMRA_wX01LOwCSmeOVFaZv4Rxw1AGzjB3q6VyRcfl2RL/s1600/IMG_9676+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiryOCzGzyz53OqQ3QeIv9UKSnbG3n9g597RXcyW4TZUyNalNcMqFzwB1TL_hm8M7bFgef3yd2ZwQXo2HKSs2xSZioDU_YQTfULBMRA_wX01LOwCSmeOVFaZv4Rxw1AGzjB3q6VyRcfl2RL/s640/IMG_9676+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With my Uniqlo Heattech Leggings Pants. As you can see here, I took out the hoodie</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7Bv_Qj3Wj7oaGZh1qp6nvXyqOv16kqvScSpFeQTgGtVaUydDrELYA7ZcI-G3dEYYjmAT_OS1u44swALkdZXhzlvBsUeeOwDwZ1AeHBhapMHgxGt7mPE6f_bt2CvrqggsoFLO40xsFBot/s1600/IMG_8505+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7Bv_Qj3Wj7oaGZh1qp6nvXyqOv16kqvScSpFeQTgGtVaUydDrELYA7ZcI-G3dEYYjmAT_OS1u44swALkdZXhzlvBsUeeOwDwZ1AeHBhapMHgxGt7mPE6f_bt2CvrqggsoFLO40xsFBot/s640/IMG_8505+1.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Different way of styling the scarf</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adding shades and different colour scarf brought a different feel<br />
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wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-71954509745336838042017-01-06T09:50:00.000+08:002017-01-06T09:51:26.807+08:00Viewing the Midnight Sun in Tromso, NorwayFirst post for 2017! Hopefully I can keep up with the writing and photography this year. Last year I wrote only a grand total of 5 posts for the whole year. Definitely one of my worst year in blogging, career and personal wise, hence the missing in action. I am not a person who make new year resolution or going to recap what happened in 2016 but hopefully this year I can start moving towards achieving some of my long time dreams. Now back to writing business.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of Tromso</td></tr>
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One of my biggest wish travelling to Norway is to witness the midnight sun. During summer, the sun never sets in parts of Northern Norway, at the Attic Circle and since I could not stand bitter cold winter, I have to settle for midnight sun instead of Northern Lights.<br />
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Did some research and set on flying to Tromso from Helsinki. What I did not expect was the epic coldness and wind chill which can make the temperature fell below 5 degrees and stupid me for not bringing a pair of gloves. We spent two nights in Tromso and the town was pretty small but fill with stunning scenery and that's how I fall in love with Tromso.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQBSZNoF9CfjaKw-f2fC90a_1KC-MAbugV3gOG0YGJJf-alejs16-T1qzO0PgyQxTasi3mY34yZyFepiGF7cVM1ewCMK18dvkpGDFzts9mGnbaue_koa35C0MN62yHItNYMc1Jyi68-yRY/s1600/IMG_4611+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQBSZNoF9CfjaKw-f2fC90a_1KC-MAbugV3gOG0YGJJf-alejs16-T1qzO0PgyQxTasi3mY34yZyFepiGF7cVM1ewCMK18dvkpGDFzts9mGnbaue_koa35C0MN62yHItNYMc1Jyi68-yRY/s640/IMG_4611+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cold and feels like winter</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUEjMIijE1mDS7DuqKACeGWdrxSxQzevO-kSfPTyRdTvVUj8X1GopTf4NQAsB4TtPgYyavWvcY4QVkpLov_L8BbBYouJEWBfhRbx5rmIbo31_POh_FJDM411ZNkp3jNI5WLy1mF10DXoU2/s1600/IMG_5051+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUEjMIijE1mDS7DuqKACeGWdrxSxQzevO-kSfPTyRdTvVUj8X1GopTf4NQAsB4TtPgYyavWvcY4QVkpLov_L8BbBYouJEWBfhRbx5rmIbo31_POh_FJDM411ZNkp3jNI5WLy1mF10DXoU2/s640/IMG_5051+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">view from the harbour</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCy4eU8UX0eoC1tMVOPH4WIpOgwlJKMNVRL2zJ97zzemO3kqp8BfRtBPH4dd-iAR8AUPpkrg7PXPNgbn4LYqZoqLEvRuJYxNArbDUW_-RkvW_xyVuGCIrnouAcjBNcl9lTv7GXk3L7Bhjq/s1600/IMG_5060+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCy4eU8UX0eoC1tMVOPH4WIpOgwlJKMNVRL2zJ97zzemO3kqp8BfRtBPH4dd-iAR8AUPpkrg7PXPNgbn4LYqZoqLEvRuJYxNArbDUW_-RkvW_xyVuGCIrnouAcjBNcl9lTv7GXk3L7Bhjq/s640/IMG_5060+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The town is practically surrounded by mountains</td></tr>
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On the first day, we decided to take the cable car up to the viewing point at night to see the midnight sun. Instead of the sun, we were 'rewarded' with windchill and I practically ran back and forth between the viewing point and the waiting room to warm myself. Scenery wise; astounding and eerily beautiful.<br />
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The next morning, we took the<span style="color: blue;"> <a href="https://www.visittromso.no/en/City%20Buses" target="_blank">city bus</a></span> day ticket costing NOK110 and went out of the city center. We went to Telegrafbukta to see the amazing mountain view and Prestvannet for the lake and it was quite easy to navigate around using the bus.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwODvEmbYWDHAWzu07ovmAj7NqRLDZG04C2yFSa7_YniSTN-SRrEtxFBAz_mHdRS6dg6ocwHdD-GpIrqDQNbQcnkYqq995LhoQWMbaoatE8UtQ3aICT7YBaf44of3rkfhxkWF2MQVT1Wld/s1600/IMG_4763+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwODvEmbYWDHAWzu07ovmAj7NqRLDZG04C2yFSa7_YniSTN-SRrEtxFBAz_mHdRS6dg6ocwHdD-GpIrqDQNbQcnkYqq995LhoQWMbaoatE8UtQ3aICT7YBaf44of3rkfhxkWF2MQVT1Wld/s640/IMG_4763+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from Telegrafbukta</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjBHwxZQdmuFqwJqSeZrEPFGakzAUqOKzWYDHPp_pkq8ctDMEVFUEGeKoCWne4GxNvh8YMnDYlLm-m0JD73yW5sNXY8ust-IMWSXo9fkYXx-VzE-QiL34uyN26xfWy1QHD3sJHfm74ti48/s1600/IMG_4941+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjBHwxZQdmuFqwJqSeZrEPFGakzAUqOKzWYDHPp_pkq8ctDMEVFUEGeKoCWne4GxNvh8YMnDYlLm-m0JD73yW5sNXY8ust-IMWSXo9fkYXx-VzE-QiL34uyN26xfWy1QHD3sJHfm74ti48/s640/IMG_4941+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And we are the only two person there</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jrk6WffgLMjEZAl112hb6beyYQqzIB25_lKrbsxF1LtbBW_nAwrrsLe0ep6yryouRyZaes4008CFJI-ZMUTTsOrqln_a_zbGOESzFGI8T0ONLNBlmFF1MG1ER5Y3ekmFKGmDeR_SjcJ3/s1600/IMG_5015+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jrk6WffgLMjEZAl112hb6beyYQqzIB25_lKrbsxF1LtbBW_nAwrrsLe0ep6yryouRyZaes4008CFJI-ZMUTTsOrqln_a_zbGOESzFGI8T0ONLNBlmFF1MG1ER5Y3ekmFKGmDeR_SjcJ3/s640/IMG_5015+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From Prestvannet</td></tr>
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Even the view from the airport is amazing. While many travel guide would recommend coming to Tromso for the Northern Lights, I would say ditch that and come here for the midnight sun. It's less colder, less tourist plus the sun never sets!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAGy3gVUe_zVe_HYxiJ-_E25HJR73LUQtlNbZ7bkmytpy3d2WAT3XUZePT_28PSBwZfMTfIYCcxfKVT9HZAhpg_cHpZiwn4JvIhIlnASczBW2MNLdy4blHLmzQ04ynPMX8ikq1br9oB6A/s1600/IMG_5216+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAGy3gVUe_zVe_HYxiJ-_E25HJR73LUQtlNbZ7bkmytpy3d2WAT3XUZePT_28PSBwZfMTfIYCcxfKVT9HZAhpg_cHpZiwn4JvIhIlnASczBW2MNLdy4blHLmzQ04ynPMX8ikq1br9oB6A/s640/IMG_5216+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazing scenery even we were about to fly off </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZj1HU7_XffxMeViuvNqYtrd0wjrsl602hpA-82hfXg9gf2EFBFYZi0xpkFN49Aa28vjYphiqJqK_jhXHsWT8V18Yp6T0lqfRZfeoCLa435eX4CdlN1pks9HyCO9gAdA2ooj_CN8LEdRKX/s640/IMG_5201+1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We actually walked out from the airport after checking in to take more photos</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZj1HU7_XffxMeViuvNqYtrd0wjrsl602hpA-82hfXg9gf2EFBFYZi0xpkFN49Aa28vjYphiqJqK_jhXHsWT8V18Yp6T0lqfRZfeoCLa435eX4CdlN1pks9HyCO9gAdA2ooj_CN8LEdRKX/s1600/IMG_5201+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
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<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-55987347564948252022016-12-21T10:25:00.001+08:002016-12-21T10:25:12.231+08:00Hiking the Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock) at Stavanger, Norway<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwpoOXIm1KfKF0wwSBM9So7KZAVZBoTlKmNztkbscxgyzdM9bgYBmM2CR2fYGY-AULsUGrAGIMtVxmMNII8lmBt2zobjvMH3_M5dwgrc-bNyfq52z3P0a9wybOoMg6hxqap1bs9tJp7cZa/s1600/IMG_6416+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwpoOXIm1KfKF0wwSBM9So7KZAVZBoTlKmNztkbscxgyzdM9bgYBmM2CR2fYGY-AULsUGrAGIMtVxmMNII8lmBt2zobjvMH3_M5dwgrc-bNyfq52z3P0a9wybOoMg6hxqap1bs9tJp7cZa/s640/IMG_6416+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The famous Pulpit Rock, inspiration for the Frozen movie</td></tr>
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One of my dreams of going to Norway to hike some of the famous landmarks but I realised most of them are quite difficult to reach either with public transport or it's still snowing when I was there in May, one of them being the famous Troll's Tongue. So imagine my surprised when I googled for Pultpit Rock and it's a doable day trip from Stavanger, and Stavanger was not part of my initial itinerary. I decided to cut short my days in Bergen and did a trip to Stavanger, just to hike the famous Pulpit Rock. I read that Frozen's backdrop is inspired by Pulpit Rock and when I was at the top, I know why!<div>
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So it began my research on how to get there the most cost efficient way. I read that most people will take about 3-4 hours ascending and descending from the Rock and I budgeted that I would take around 5 hours. </div>
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There is no direct train services from Bergen to Stavanger, so the most reliable option is to get onto a bus, which takes around 4-5 hours. It costs about NOK 400. It's advisable to book the tickets online from the <a href="http://kystbussen.no/start.aspx?lang=en" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">website</span></a> before reaching there as the bus was quite full when I boarded. </div>
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I booked myself a nice studio apartment at City Housing- Kirkebakken 8 for my two night stay in Stavanger which cost around NOK 1200. I was ready to conquer the Rock! </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPuLPfNlOCKptQSVvwrdugtEFm38tzzCFnKYfPJ0dbFMH_q5pqHiC_1qlgxoFE8xlyz0AugEl76CgcyMkUxaLEpTdmslXW1N0dLusaHyqjjcQ5h1GO5OJVw38GTZ4xH67xBYE7YsBNUzau/s1600/IMG_1396+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPuLPfNlOCKptQSVvwrdugtEFm38tzzCFnKYfPJ0dbFMH_q5pqHiC_1qlgxoFE8xlyz0AugEl76CgcyMkUxaLEpTdmslXW1N0dLusaHyqjjcQ5h1GO5OJVw38GTZ4xH67xBYE7YsBNUzau/s400/IMG_1396+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ferry schedule from Stavanger to Tau</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7jOcDdWtk_q2qFVappD-KoofLBqfFgWiT1-rDO6zF3zQGmidPic6uxW6v_DMdCTiO1YM6lp4gGd-igMCIllM5mCtLFXlHduUg_xgFnvB-MQNolwDsHIYvR7CJdiuh5fQa52AFJ-qtC-_u/s1600/IMG_1397+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7jOcDdWtk_q2qFVappD-KoofLBqfFgWiT1-rDO6zF3zQGmidPic6uxW6v_DMdCTiO1YM6lp4gGd-igMCIllM5mCtLFXlHduUg_xgFnvB-MQNolwDsHIYvR7CJdiuh5fQa52AFJ-qtC-_u/s400/IMG_1397+1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The package combination by Tide bus</td></tr>
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To get to Stavanger, you need to first take a ferry from the harbour in Stavanger to Tau, then transferred to a bus which will take you to the starting point of the hike. There's a package combining both the ferry and the bus but I decided to take it separately as the cost was cheaper that way. The package cost NOK 300 for return but if not mistaken, buying the ferry tickets only cost NOK 110 for return and bus NOK150 return. Be mindful that there are two bus companies to Pulpit Rock and I took the green one (Boreal) instead of the Tide bus (which is package together with the ferry).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi1pAAwZqUKL-8WeQU7ykJSEHLkvTnVWuNIieupgFiypowkCsx5SSokS5N0kkwXBtjnC8plQ5HTYThxhFODNFRJmGHx3tmLF30o8BsfRNA75MycJLLgH3MYnc0ZQcswBLwTIroVo-2vnw0/s1600/IMG_6354+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi1pAAwZqUKL-8WeQU7ykJSEHLkvTnVWuNIieupgFiypowkCsx5SSokS5N0kkwXBtjnC8plQ5HTYThxhFODNFRJmGHx3tmLF30o8BsfRNA75MycJLLgH3MYnc0ZQcswBLwTIroVo-2vnw0/s640/IMG_6354+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The start of the hike</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFzNHl1uLZWL-f10Go5QNVZ79sCXQfXfHGgpslSKGlvkLW5kVZivTrgac6gX-szwzK6onAF_V1RQ3N4Y9JXku7Ou9zsg2vyFFoHloOQ6FfryXA_b5nL8TOyVIXX_sh8ZLYLOFb23SMZ8Pf/s1600/IMG_6378+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFzNHl1uLZWL-f10Go5QNVZ79sCXQfXfHGgpslSKGlvkLW5kVZivTrgac6gX-szwzK6onAF_V1RQ3N4Y9JXku7Ou9zsg2vyFFoHloOQ6FfryXA_b5nL8TOyVIXX_sh8ZLYLOFb23SMZ8Pf/s400/IMG_6378+1.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The dramatic drop of the Rock</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiit79qHa_I7KSc6Dux3f_DG0GAanYnJLrHAPfh6I7CQmsz9gnIO-qTXNhLjHcwWx1ebo7J9Rj-miuF-lAEN0IWQHa78E_htHgDnlX1GHAMGyclvm4D4oJotXe5tX6vXRmE-T8J6mhcH2FA/s1600/IMG_6388+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiit79qHa_I7KSc6Dux3f_DG0GAanYnJLrHAPfh6I7CQmsz9gnIO-qTXNhLjHcwWx1ebo7J9Rj-miuF-lAEN0IWQHa78E_htHgDnlX1GHAMGyclvm4D4oJotXe5tX6vXRmE-T8J6mhcH2FA/s640/IMG_6388+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enjoying the view</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vaN0Eq9qLADOQMPdi6xQaoZfIFdp7vKB8HG_KfyaNT4E_eHycAmQVFDkaiEX9qb_D9gmgmgntlUC5vXVGpkXAl_yYYsoCOfQxeEeIz5fqYR8NT3jyDu7K3OwymDyUUS5SjPD0Y_hl4rP/s1600/IMG_6390+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vaN0Eq9qLADOQMPdi6xQaoZfIFdp7vKB8HG_KfyaNT4E_eHycAmQVFDkaiEX9qb_D9gmgmgntlUC5vXVGpkXAl_yYYsoCOfQxeEeIz5fqYR8NT3jyDu7K3OwymDyUUS5SjPD0Y_hl4rP/s640/IMG_6390+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The fjord, alternatively you can take a cruise to view the Rock from the fjord </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1sKTV2ngwGkZJCOoGXSbX9Pv8gHZAvcKnyHIdjSEKUZ0PExN4Dh2VWMQ9vJbD2-SUsfmtY85Ll9YRLMUh0yugReTBtDRGRjbknxRjqO0t43cOoogiVcf2WzB0CYQAlhM_o10h6KwiJKb9/s1600/IMG_6431+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1sKTV2ngwGkZJCOoGXSbX9Pv8gHZAvcKnyHIdjSEKUZ0PExN4Dh2VWMQ9vJbD2-SUsfmtY85Ll9YRLMUh0yugReTBtDRGRjbknxRjqO0t43cOoogiVcf2WzB0CYQAlhM_o10h6KwiJKb9/s640/IMG_6431+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and the Rock</td></tr>
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I started the hike around 9am. The hike is fairly easy at the beginning but turn rocky from the middle towards the end. It took me about 2 hours to reach the Rock and I was rewarded with the most beautiful scenery ever. Feels like singing 'Let me go' on top of the Rock, hehe. To get the view of the Rock against the fjord, I climbed up to another level and just sat there to enjoy the view and had my salmon sandwich, lol.<br />
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After that, it was descending time and me being the very clumsy type, managed to slip and fall a few times and got a few scratches from the trip. Painful but very rewarding hike.<br />
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<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-11743501148943194672016-12-14T15:41:00.000+08:002016-12-15T11:11:37.275+08:00Norway in a Nutshell On Your Own<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGi7uheiihvAeE10Zj04d77HWUkWiMy8vXSiJt5hUtIfKbN_F41t5TvKa67RCWvh3u015g45iJN8xHo4wDelD5OJN__VnqgYG_Xas6jfDRLYdFop2t5fRSG4OKE7mSPgmoNilPRotljR_b/s1600/IMG_3741+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGi7uheiihvAeE10Zj04d77HWUkWiMy8vXSiJt5hUtIfKbN_F41t5TvKa67RCWvh3u015g45iJN8xHo4wDelD5OJN__VnqgYG_Xas6jfDRLYdFop2t5fRSG4OKE7mSPgmoNilPRotljR_b/s640/IMG_3741+1.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Little coloured houses at Myrdal station</td></tr>
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Wow, time flies! And it's already end of the year. Personally many things had happened this year and I had gone through major changes within a year. Not going to dwell much on my personal front in a public space but let's just say I grew up a lot from the experience and learn to love myself more and hence more shopping and travelling guilt.<br />
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Been meant to share about my experience of doing the Norway in the Nutshell on my own but after my laptop crashed, the idea had been shelved for months. Well, better late than never. Basically, Norway in a Nutshell is a combination of bus, train and ferry from Oslo to Bergen or vice versa which is something like this:<br />
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Oslo → Myrdal → Flam→Gundvagen→Voss→Bergen<br />
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You can actually booked Norway in a Nutshell via a tour but basically the tour requires you to take the train, bus and ferry as well. So I guess I tried to save some money and did the whole thing on my own using the <a href="https://www.nsb.no/en/frontpage" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Norwegian train timetable</span></a> and this <a href="http://assets.fjordtours.com/fjordtours-umbraco/4410/nin-from-oslo_2016-2017.pdf?_ga=1.107970818.1860065657.1481680630" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">website</span></a> as a guide. The tour can be done in a day but I decided to break the journey into two days and spend a night in Flam.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg7LY52JMCIasNFjVMOEYN_LFuwcQvVVEK2-1sehpnS4UMIJX5bh5kSx9VhDGJe_0x3r3oujv5T6C6YFHqODMmYeTfS8X-5rO-6yEbpqfPUlhQaihH6QTb1gfSHE35GIyGOJZZyT4vKgjO/s1600/IMG_5524+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg7LY52JMCIasNFjVMOEYN_LFuwcQvVVEK2-1sehpnS4UMIJX5bh5kSx9VhDGJe_0x3r3oujv5T6C6YFHqODMmYeTfS8X-5rO-6yEbpqfPUlhQaihH6QTb1gfSHE35GIyGOJZZyT4vKgjO/s640/IMG_5524+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Check out all the snow</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDgQe3O95Vx74U_6BtoSqbvC60BiLKjOEVYKYClMHdDaSB2u6XlM-ulFnpcZn8V8jp9cbd6iiC4aYZCic8F00v0ht18dT26EvaE4wC2nBGscj00igkZfIThfMAzD5bjdqgvc_smggZgB5R/s1600/IMG_5531+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDgQe3O95Vx74U_6BtoSqbvC60BiLKjOEVYKYClMHdDaSB2u6XlM-ulFnpcZn8V8jp9cbd6iiC4aYZCic8F00v0ht18dT26EvaE4wC2nBGscj00igkZfIThfMAzD5bjdqgvc_smggZgB5R/s640/IMG_5531+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Never been so excited to see snow in May</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0fWw_9f8X6h0XHnVOLECibCttvo-aZaoFi3V8DNjYXD6qb5xxgi1fSwApNHXp-9GIONMvjHTlQOAXF-RMPAubp3_s1ldqb81rnzV9FUfyHGma7080I50-yJhZjw-jA5dIm7qXOYiuDki/s1600/IMG_5622+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0fWw_9f8X6h0XHnVOLECibCttvo-aZaoFi3V8DNjYXD6qb5xxgi1fSwApNHXp-9GIONMvjHTlQOAXF-RMPAubp3_s1ldqb81rnzV9FUfyHGma7080I50-yJhZjw-jA5dIm7qXOYiuDki/s640/IMG_5622+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The red lady which I thought is a ghost</td></tr>
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My plan was to start from Oslo and took the train to Flam but along the way, we need to change train at Myrdal to a smaller train, Flamsbana. What I did not expect was in May, I can still see snow along the way. In fact, it was still snow in Myrdal which makes the weather pretty cold and pretty, haha. The Flamsbana will stop along some pretty stops for tourists to take photos. Do spot the lady in red singing at the waterfall. For a second I thought I heard and saw a ghost!! The whole journey through the Flamsbana is very interesting and very very scenic. And once it gets into Flam, the town is very pretty although it was raining by the time I reached there and there went all my plans to do some hiking around the town. I ended up just walking around the town to get some food and went to bed early. I stayed in Flam hostel which was not too far away from the train station and the ferry port. Basically the port and the train station is just next to each other. I had booked for the earliest ferry to Gundvagen at 8am. Glad that I took such an early ferry as I managed to snap some really good photos although the sky seemed quite cloudy along the whole cruise. There were only me and this other Korean family in the ferry.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw-xizWN8G7jReLI7eAIPwgL1vsUUqIMKCi-vuHCGHKPWVnI27BgoU66rh1J5omwh4asBo06TBAMsvgrzJvymqJ15NVbUdLpPWsUi_hsxvrI-l4aG3nx-L19V8aCe0aGBOjzBnB1Frmi_6/s1600/IMG_5657+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw-xizWN8G7jReLI7eAIPwgL1vsUUqIMKCi-vuHCGHKPWVnI27BgoU66rh1J5omwh4asBo06TBAMsvgrzJvymqJ15NVbUdLpPWsUi_hsxvrI-l4aG3nx-L19V8aCe0aGBOjzBnB1Frmi_6/s640/IMG_5657+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As the Flamsbana going into Flam town</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ilvD42tLDpmPKILaqyC5em4rhWJf0qDJ51hcYp551b7AUcT6DK02Ltemv7gkqTPnOfKqw9mW_0vy2tKjXWePXe0E3JoPFSg0ZdlwYJ-qLDQbf_XVLjltQFvt7YKvpHVgfaRCKiD9G2-F/s1600/IMG_5971+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ilvD42tLDpmPKILaqyC5em4rhWJf0qDJ51hcYp551b7AUcT6DK02Ltemv7gkqTPnOfKqw9mW_0vy2tKjXWePXe0E3JoPFSg0ZdlwYJ-qLDQbf_XVLjltQFvt7YKvpHVgfaRCKiD9G2-F/s640/IMG_5971+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View on the cruise </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKJ9D6_ptUPFPX16s0qzjJPaGTvOEUMpNy1Y4xobO-y8ihPEorAlbYbBvAiOy-MYYAKa29qzOBIa4yiS3EmIt2sfJooC5CjC6PJvuw-axS17NIV_qEaY88jrwvNUX3mcwrShGdub4ma4P/s1600/IMG_5717+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKJ9D6_ptUPFPX16s0qzjJPaGTvOEUMpNy1Y4xobO-y8ihPEorAlbYbBvAiOy-MYYAKa29qzOBIa4yiS3EmIt2sfJooC5CjC6PJvuw-axS17NIV_qEaY88jrwvNUX3mcwrShGdub4ma4P/s640/IMG_5717+1.jpg" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love the reflection. Early morning before the ferry ride to Gundvagen</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbKI9WWCnh_bGJBdji_zFh4t8skcxdBrM8-a5XflxNA-vVqu5PFP-1kyQWCZIl8v2syQy9gZFOfa-ZwOwWCXzNmjNs_CdioxGRROFb60ElQ3ekl62aF1gl5ZIoNwJKgebgPJ-FpN9jAWOu/s1600/IMG_5793+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbKI9WWCnh_bGJBdji_zFh4t8skcxdBrM8-a5XflxNA-vVqu5PFP-1kyQWCZIl8v2syQy9gZFOfa-ZwOwWCXzNmjNs_CdioxGRROFb60ElQ3ekl62aF1gl5ZIoNwJKgebgPJ-FpN9jAWOu/s640/IMG_5793+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's gloomy yet it's so mysterious</td></tr>
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When I reached Gundvagen, I got a bit confused as I was not aware of the bus schedule to Voss and waited almost an hour for the bus. Take <a href="https://www.skyss.no/globalassets/bussruter/hostruter-2016/hardanger---voss-5.-september/linje_900-950.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">bus number 950</span></a> from the bus stop just right in front of the souvenir shop. The bus timetable is slightly different during summer and winter. I read that there's actually an express bus to Bergen from Gundvagen but one of the perks of getting the bus to Voss and then train to Bergen was the view. As the bus to Voss will take you up to the Stalheim hotel which will goes through Stalheimskleiva hairpin road which cost around NOK 110. That was one of the highlight of the trip! Once in Voss, it's just a direct affair to Bergen using the train.<br />
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Total rough estimate for my diy Norway in a Nutshell trip (as prices may change depending when you reserved for the train from Oslo to Flam)<br />
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Train from Oslo to Flam NOK 800<br />
Ferry to Gundvagen NOK 260<br />
Bus to Voss NOK 110<br />
Train to Bergen NOK 94<br />
Accommodation in Flam NOK 300<br />
Total NOK 1564 <br />
which is still cheaper than the <a href="https://www.norwaynutshell.com/original-norway-in-a-nutshell/oslo/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">tour</span> </a>quoted at NOK 1770wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-75513562650856401052016-07-05T16:32:00.002+08:002016-07-08T16:33:36.753+08:00Conquering Mount Rinjani<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKt60JgDkM9oZPw7fg_vbCc43Yi8Ei_F66Z118c8I79sB_MCM1FBhFRqKsGdT5Pt2lTfGQt35af4EY9QRy6cY_r4fuUl3tApEzVmpeS49vS7iaDhpLBLVf9AYXkiVO78Iypw4la0leF2EF/s1600/IMG_2184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKt60JgDkM9oZPw7fg_vbCc43Yi8Ei_F66Z118c8I79sB_MCM1FBhFRqKsGdT5Pt2lTfGQt35af4EY9QRy6cY_r4fuUl3tApEzVmpeS49vS7iaDhpLBLVf9AYXkiVO78Iypw4la0leF2EF/s640/IMG_2184.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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People who know me well, knows that I hate camping, hate the feeling of stickiness and not be able to shower even for a day. But somehow, I end up signing up for a 3 days 2 nights including CAMPING to Rinjani!<br />
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It all started when I got message from a friend asking me whether I am interested for a hike to Rinjani. I was like Rinjani what?!! Then I ask her day trip ah? She said no and there is camping involved. I told her no way I am going as I hate camping. But I asked another two friends and they said yes and somehow due to my yolo spirit and kiasuness of not wanting to ffk these two friends whom I persuaded to join the trip, I end up buying the flight ticket and paying for the 'camping' trip. I did not do much research nor train much other than hiking up Gunung Nuang two weeks prior and a two hour hike up to Pulpit Rock when I was in Norway. </div>
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The day came when we boarded the flight to Lombok and then another two hours on the road to the foot of the mountain. Our group consist of total of 16 people with 8 were from the same group/clique. I prepared myself for the worst as we ate dinner and take a long shower before hitting the bed. We had three guides, Sarwan, Anan and Erun with another 16 porters bringing our big rucksacks, food, gas, tent, chairs and etc...yes...they brought even chairs up to the mountain, something we very much appreciated later on. We were briefed on the route and the hours for each route the night before. Physically I was prepared, mentally I was not sure..more like mentally not going to shower for 3 days. The plan is to use Sembalun trail for ascent and then Senaru for descent and spend 1 night each at the crater rim and hot spring. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Carb loading before the hike</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our hotel at the foot of the hill</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First stop. Let's take a photo</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxz-pEipGEcWjZd7UmjoGxFtyQgXY_8MoxQtHuauaCbXwqziOU-i-V8fnuaG1mo0VyZAjbEyedDf9pWr8JGK0Q5rwgnqh9z2Wh-NbMnOMJYI4zq4vTr0m1hmcJPZESGEbmUJxCJtp6cKJT/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+39+21+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxz-pEipGEcWjZd7UmjoGxFtyQgXY_8MoxQtHuauaCbXwqziOU-i-V8fnuaG1mo0VyZAjbEyedDf9pWr8JGK0Q5rwgnqh9z2Wh-NbMnOMJYI4zq4vTr0m1hmcJPZESGEbmUJxCJtp6cKJT/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+39+21+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our group of 16<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLT01tFZDJptd2mtcfEzSm5FH1kV9Vwrfp8sC0uK4at5Z536NpQ5Hrt1Bs4SO1nRfF4jRrh-L-EaPT25XRhYzVboY2ULuUh1ntIn-vg8hSysQstjoeJ9wK6AZHzoxloEOxgshvggL7Po6m/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+38+10+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLT01tFZDJptd2mtcfEzSm5FH1kV9Vwrfp8sC0uK4at5Z536NpQ5Hrt1Bs4SO1nRfF4jRrh-L-EaPT25XRhYzVboY2ULuUh1ntIn-vg8hSysQstjoeJ9wK6AZHzoxloEOxgshvggL7Po6m/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+38+10+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The real deal is on the right hand side of the photo<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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We started the day around 9 am after having a heavy breakfast. The day was hot and humid and not long after 10 mins, I have started to sweat and asking myself why would I signed up for this. After about 1 hour, we took a small break eating bananas and filling up our tummies. This was before we reached Post 1 and it's already crazily hot and felt like in a savannah. After about two hours we reached the spot for our lunch, which is Post 2. We saw some half naked Dannish man running up along the trail and stopped at the same spot as us. My tour leader in his finest sense of humour decided he needed to take the moment of half naked men in full glory and captured us in his photos. Well, as least there were something for us girls to look back in the future:) After seemed like a more than hour of lunch and three bowl of rice for myself (I have never taken more than half a bowl of rice at home), we continue the journey, this time through the hot savannah field with not a single tree for shade.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lunch for the day<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9PgAW9MD7R2YzObR3EFAg3TfkkamVfica9WRYewHanFhGkrwNCehD-JVMvGDHqIIv4NMV9zP1kVJJuoG7mzpp0RecnlYP1xdJnl1VRoRdoNWUFKuyYUwTZnaCtH1fwacPy3NvjOBF-PB2/s1600/IMG_2159.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9PgAW9MD7R2YzObR3EFAg3TfkkamVfica9WRYewHanFhGkrwNCehD-JVMvGDHqIIv4NMV9zP1kVJJuoG7mzpp0RecnlYP1xdJnl1VRoRdoNWUFKuyYUwTZnaCtH1fwacPy3NvjOBF-PB2/s640/IMG_2159.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cooking in the progress. the porter even brought a gas stove along!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">check out all the stuff the porter has the carry</td></tr>
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Oh and not forgetting that every few minutes, I felt like I was being 'chased' by one of the lady in our group. Apparently, after I told this to my other friends, they said the same thing of her trying to catch up with me and another girl. Sigh..it's not a race my dear! I conserved my energy and used most of the yoga breathing and small steps to hike up the Bukit Penyesalan, where there are seven small hills to be hiked. After seemed like eternity, we reached the camping site but to my horrow, it's surrounded by mist and I can barely see anything, let alone the lake or the peak of Rinjani. Apparently, our tent were set up at the most strategic spot overlooking the lake, but all I can see is layers and layers of mist. We settled down for the night and imagine my big surprise and happiness when we were provided with mattress and pillows. Ok, don't expect like the soft mattress and pillows in hotel but they were good enough for me, someone who hates camping! We washed up or more like using sheets and sheets of wet tissue for 'shower' and then I went out to 'survey' on the makeshift toilet prepared for us. Surprisingly again, it was far exceeded my expectation or maybe my expectation has been lowered down after witnessing how bad the toilet situation back in Everest Base camp. Soon after, we had our dinner and once again, it's a fight to get the chicken, lol.<br />
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The next morning, we were woken up around 1.30 am to ascent the peak in time to catch the sunrise. Before the trip, I repeatedly told my friends that I am not gonna try ascending the peak and I just wanna chill at the camp while waiting for sunrise. But somehow, kiasuness kicks in again and off I went in the dark, dusty, full of rocks and sand trail. We started the journey quite late and I knew that I won't make it for the sunrise and hence took my own sweet time to hike up. The first 70% of the trail was ok, fairly doable but the last 30% where the loose sand, rocks, volcanic dust and not forgetting the chill wind which I swear was blowing at almost 80km/h. Every three steps up were followed by two steps down and it was so demotivating that after half an hour, I barely move 50m! I spotted our guide, Sar and Anan along the way and many thanks to them that I managed to reach the peak at 8am. I even asked Anan to shield the 80km/h wind for me, lol.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe2jETF5lLGMeVpwiCQTpkLxA76jhBfzpxgC16R42xLGZfn2AuBdVXYzlv19wtoiyMC1LDwc8fgUkohk2VBx42JiIJFsuC_7_zJpi4WZZsZXNj8SX4QBuhAjNcuIcaj0ykmyT9CNlviyM2/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+37+16+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe2jETF5lLGMeVpwiCQTpkLxA76jhBfzpxgC16R42xLGZfn2AuBdVXYzlv19wtoiyMC1LDwc8fgUkohk2VBx42JiIJFsuC_7_zJpi4WZZsZXNj8SX4QBuhAjNcuIcaj0ykmyT9CNlviyM2/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+37+16+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the toughest part of the journey<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Only manage to catch the sunrise mid way</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The lake is totally covered in clouds</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">tour leader making his signature coffee tarik</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Made it to the top</td></tr>
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What I did't expect was it was really cold up at the peak and I was practically shivering through my jacket and uniqlo extra warm heattech. And while waiting for my tour leader who tried so desperately to light up the fire to boil his coffee tarik, a signature drink that he must do everytime he went up any peak of mountain or hill. After the arrival of the last member of the group, we did some group shots and savoured our hot coffee tarik. Then it's time to head down and here comes the tough part. You see, I have no qualms of climbing up any mountain but I have trouble going down. With the loose rocks and sand, I fell down more than 10 times and I think after that, one of the guide took pity of me and kind of fed up that I was so slow that he proceed to help me 'figure skate' down the mountain! At one point, I fell and almost dragged him down with me, almost making him the first guide in history to 'tergolek' down, lol. With the skating down part, I had to stop every 30 minutes to get the sand and rocks out of my shoe before continuing the skating and after 3 hours I finally managed to reach the campsite in one piece but covered in volcanic dust from head to toe. As it was almost 1pm, we had to make a decision whether to proceed to the hot spring or stay another night at the campsite. As I was too 'pancit' to walk anymore, I voted for another night and the same with the others. Meanwhile 8 others will descent back to the foot of the mountain to catch the transport to the Gili Island. I think our decision to stay on made the guides and porters extremely happy as the dinner for the night, we get to eat two whole chicken between the 8 of us instead fighting over a small piece of chicken like the other night!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv8hJnUjc_bW7H8wbKPx-G0GsU3TMSE0xJY_JkMct3Rgyd7hHzgVZM93mPKQ0o0JSCW2jG8I4DuAQQo4GWG2hDjC8qQw25R0RjGd5mxLkHVblCZXoEQ6kDxPM5Rx-JijFddt7-i-IJ7mQa/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+36+17+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv8hJnUjc_bW7H8wbKPx-G0GsU3TMSE0xJY_JkMct3Rgyd7hHzgVZM93mPKQ0o0JSCW2jG8I4DuAQQo4GWG2hDjC8qQw25R0RjGd5mxLkHVblCZXoEQ6kDxPM5Rx-JijFddt7-i-IJ7mQa/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+36+17+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dinner in progress<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8yYFB5dH0aA8nSRes3fbXo71dI6DlYzjmaGLFCXqam-BYFnZ_3qZ00MVMfrw5Lg-GCuJQHGZXtlDtdIBaePEkKYig6ukkNIHKzDjOs6Hk4J0_5WWNJNaircpCW-WSrlqkraKKC5tpBL4X/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+36+51+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8yYFB5dH0aA8nSRes3fbXo71dI6DlYzjmaGLFCXqam-BYFnZ_3qZ00MVMfrw5Lg-GCuJQHGZXtlDtdIBaePEkKYig6ukkNIHKzDjOs6Hk4J0_5WWNJNaircpCW-WSrlqkraKKC5tpBL4X/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+36+51+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BBQ chicken, two whole chicken instead of bite size chicken<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdF_6uGfaSLQJ2mKmoUThzP8hKvCjdP8UyScBL5YC8uwVAQH3d0Rbc7rwkUs4tBB3BbbpRP2FBbCJXA7Rdmlf9K0V5q7tuTu8sD6PT9tdbwD8sGeFGACdRim1XJSoxpiSr33UqS9kTqC9/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+37+43+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdF_6uGfaSLQJ2mKmoUThzP8hKvCjdP8UyScBL5YC8uwVAQH3d0Rbc7rwkUs4tBB3BbbpRP2FBbCJXA7Rdmlf9K0V5q7tuTu8sD6PT9tdbwD8sGeFGACdRim1XJSoxpiSr33UqS9kTqC9/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+37+43+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After conquering Rinjani<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS6iDukQ1UC6nCYJ8oTa5YcdIv_H_hNHeoS5gPA7Ot1GZMSQWjsTSrx-v-f_cMkpGRezFrom-QffOK0lshL0_aBYPnna6VEOvZFBWcVv0faZU8ZKN5Ha6ig0nOKi-uMvgi-L9rnWr0OMvc/s1600/IMG_2378.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS6iDukQ1UC6nCYJ8oTa5YcdIv_H_hNHeoS5gPA7Ot1GZMSQWjsTSrx-v-f_cMkpGRezFrom-QffOK0lshL0_aBYPnna6VEOvZFBWcVv0faZU8ZKN5Ha6ig0nOKi-uMvgi-L9rnWr0OMvc/s640/IMG_2378.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Camping in style</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2puuF1xSoOC5DcYCAWJtrlJvy__SVWvup1qqwB4EmzfuponrqxyOb90RcOWa6M3O6UYTlo6lHp9lBWpDjHxq8zY2TWTgh4ri6OosaJB2tLJujPxdOK51mNaHzBeIIjpwaggPVFrUFH3tG/s1600/IMG_2397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2puuF1xSoOC5DcYCAWJtrlJvy__SVWvup1qqwB4EmzfuponrqxyOb90RcOWa6M3O6UYTlo6lHp9lBWpDjHxq8zY2TWTgh4ri6OosaJB2tLJujPxdOK51mNaHzBeIIjpwaggPVFrUFH3tG/s640/IMG_2397.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Segera Anak lake</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjBuiidAwTdgzKL3-M_OWYu9DYFDD36qE3eoYgwSbuc7491UswYKKsO-xHes-Fqe-usK3mor1OR5zpHlURD4NvTKy3ByjzTyIq_vngb9hy2N_skWqkftLI804LbHYNhzIE_y53ms_LPZZ/s1600/IMG_2605.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjBuiidAwTdgzKL3-M_OWYu9DYFDD36qE3eoYgwSbuc7491UswYKKsO-xHes-Fqe-usK3mor1OR5zpHlURD4NvTKy3ByjzTyIq_vngb9hy2N_skWqkftLI804LbHYNhzIE_y53ms_LPZZ/s640/IMG_2605.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We were so happy to finally see the lake </td></tr>
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The decision to stay another night at the campsite proved to be the best decision made as we managed to catch up on sleep, rest and finally able to see the lake in front of our tent during sunset. We also enjoyed gazing at the stars at night with the warmth from the campfire while trying to guess the title of the movies mentioned by our guides, haha. During the night, it rained but surprisingly it was quite warm in the camp. I was surprised that I was really enjoying my stay in the camp and quite chill about not showering for the 2 full days.<br />
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We enjoyed our hike down which turn took us about 8 hours plus lunch in between as we played, sang, jump and skipped along. I think our guide must be thinking these people were crazy and they might as well joined in the fun, lol<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgASJQLxKxvT7o8u109MFjQ8qvOr9JENYNeS-7M2QeA7LjIvUgRFni43Ar3N0fsIfP7xdowjxYA-ctKRcO8BDRqBZbSBKPzHEvjAvAMt1r4ILRetol8hccS6AEX9-1eUMwI8iUkHm3uq6D/s1600/IMG_2604.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgASJQLxKxvT7o8u109MFjQ8qvOr9JENYNeS-7M2QeA7LjIvUgRFni43Ar3N0fsIfP7xdowjxYA-ctKRcO8BDRqBZbSBKPzHEvjAvAMt1r4ILRetol8hccS6AEX9-1eUMwI8iUkHm3uq6D/s400/IMG_2604.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plenty of Edelweiss</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLOC1OyEdgojJsc6z6Y3ltMwNpS19fPcD3xw9NfyCRE-A_zcW4gBuM76uLCY4KJfn5acORxuWlSWx79hFZTRxGvtwRtv_4GKrYU-HzPzYLK8-H3UKWk5ulKYb1vGpK2_G2NEoMdavMmUxn/s1600/IMG_2608.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLOC1OyEdgojJsc6z6Y3ltMwNpS19fPcD3xw9NfyCRE-A_zcW4gBuM76uLCY4KJfn5acORxuWlSWx79hFZTRxGvtwRtv_4GKrYU-HzPzYLK8-H3UKWk5ulKYb1vGpK2_G2NEoMdavMmUxn/s400/IMG_2608.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And my guide keep asking me to take a photo of him with the cow</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOysd4EY-dO61LVMMljvIKOT4efiHoGWlH0nugqFLHZGrx1FEEZE3TBzmVuvQfmXlX513UsZQeZoZbgHqEUBrtVDBDxV6AG2AghvOtGJ7dSE0cXD02UVB14h2lvKEuLJDuhkqDt8hlqG_A/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+34+19+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOysd4EY-dO61LVMMljvIKOT4efiHoGWlH0nugqFLHZGrx1FEEZE3TBzmVuvQfmXlX513UsZQeZoZbgHqEUBrtVDBDxV6AG2AghvOtGJ7dSE0cXD02UVB14h2lvKEuLJDuhkqDt8hlqG_A/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+34+19+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another jump in front of Rinjani</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB11M6-y9eVMTaipq6CT92DD_Y-AHEuvItuJQc5EUnnIB4IvCPFQ8b8D3D9GryS5AYyil2lcBwIIZ5DfkMRqSjKw-e47Xu3HicqTR1rYgZ_AlnbY29KR7Ux5rfLqPNZOiJlCnTzbQEBygn/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+35+21+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB11M6-y9eVMTaipq6CT92DD_Y-AHEuvItuJQc5EUnnIB4IvCPFQ8b8D3D9GryS5AYyil2lcBwIIZ5DfkMRqSjKw-e47Xu3HicqTR1rYgZ_AlnbY29KR7Ux5rfLqPNZOiJlCnTzbQEBygn/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+35+21+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crazy things that we do while descending<br />
(photo credit to tour leader)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEk1HQBQO5gcE5z6IcbNbPK6C5bzQmDheJ6th2CcZqBHB0ilbGp0RiGVfOYogvCGUlVroflGLx6PtNOxhPf8N0LXbQj_2oighAH6d3jV9uMfPMM3MTtT5h1NK-Bu2J4gYeAHZNKVAtS5Mi/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+35+50+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEk1HQBQO5gcE5z6IcbNbPK6C5bzQmDheJ6th2CcZqBHB0ilbGp0RiGVfOYogvCGUlVroflGLx6PtNOxhPf8N0LXbQj_2oighAH6d3jV9uMfPMM3MTtT5h1NK-Bu2J4gYeAHZNKVAtS5Mi/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+35+50+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">See what I mean, even our guide Sar and Anan joined in the fun</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8k5s9PrZKJA7YoXkgugjJgRPHoEAKJbKAFt0vpncIpDuxKZUFBZtVBosd5Isq6LAhIBaR72ALdD0-pLpx4QC5tNWqBnfXyai07Y1a1KibmWw66iyi-CvVc4jH0Xy-78Xoo7T430LwRnT1/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+35+00+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8k5s9PrZKJA7YoXkgugjJgRPHoEAKJbKAFt0vpncIpDuxKZUFBZtVBosd5Isq6LAhIBaR72ALdD0-pLpx4QC5tNWqBnfXyai07Y1a1KibmWw66iyi-CvVc4jH0Xy-78Xoo7T430LwRnT1/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+35+00+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Didn't know that a can of coke can make us this happy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7aE28_Hagsxp-Y4_lZvpro8YT2CiExycQn7Zoa731fr7BC57h3ZfXy1YPSNaL-U8qAlZBbbYQ4G9uj0rC-ghKp5dVp486pTJu6AcAb2oojJxMEuft0gwFNNGQxBTsFGdaJYJJS3fn498t/s1600/IMG_2609.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7aE28_Hagsxp-Y4_lZvpro8YT2CiExycQn7Zoa731fr7BC57h3ZfXy1YPSNaL-U8qAlZBbbYQ4G9uj0rC-ghKp5dVp486pTJu6AcAb2oojJxMEuft0gwFNNGQxBTsFGdaJYJJS3fn498t/s400/IMG_2609.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rolling hills of Rinjani</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyB-npMYTpZqs-ax46ZEpZMVah_ysoXAcaCN4eY1g0Qjtga8vFAkhOvQVHn0utWiSYA2Wypf_-QrVDTGQ8Ig71mBufDwF2uP-8iujrEjgW-aa5U3QNEDC8pG-i2xpI0pGGJnso8xevqWjc/s1600/File+7-5-16%252C+3+34+37+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyB-npMYTpZqs-ax46ZEpZMVah_ysoXAcaCN4eY1g0Qjtga8vFAkhOvQVHn0utWiSYA2Wypf_-QrVDTGQ8Ig71mBufDwF2uP-8iujrEjgW-aa5U3QNEDC8pG-i2xpI0pGGJnso8xevqWjc/s640/File+7-5-16%252C+3+34+37+PM.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And finally we made it back in one piece with 3 days of dirt and unforgetable memories</td></tr>
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Going on this trip made me cherished little things in life such as comfortable bed, meat, shower, being in good company and having good health. It is also my first ever camping trip that I really enjoyed and this time around, my leg was fully recovered from the ache by the second day, unlike the previous time in KK when it took me a week to fully recover. I guess being prepared and doing some yoga really helps a lot. To all the porters and the guide we had, trully appreaciate what they did, taking care of us for the past few days and not forgetting tour leader for organising this and lastly, my dear friend who first contacted and asked me,"Eh, wanna go hike Rinjani or not"? and to think that I almost ffk her :)<br />
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wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-21556455393460019022016-06-03T15:52:00.002+08:002016-06-03T15:52:46.807+08:00Wingardium Leviosa to Warner Bros Studio (The Making of Harry Potter), LondonBlows off dust from my blog...wow it's been ages since I have updated, the last entry was in early Jan 2016 and now it's half a year gone from 2016. Truth is I do not have that blogging mood anymore and plus I don't really like to post about personal stuff here anymore or anywhere else, so yea, only travelling and photography related will be able to make an appearance here.<br />
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I have been travelling to Europe or specifically Norway, Finland, Estonia and UK the last 3 weeks or so. It's a break I have been longing for a very long time and take some time off to not think about stuff. For me the highlight of the trip gotta be the visit to Warner Bros studio tour, the making of Harry Potter. I was a Harry Potter fan, having read all the books and watch all the movies, so this tour of the studio for the making of the movie really sets the expectation. I have been to the studio making of LOTR, so I half expected something like that and full of tourists.<br />
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We actually booked the tickets in advance but only managed to get the 1.30pm slot, probably due to bank holiday. We stopped at Watford Junction station via train and since we were 2 hours early, we decided to stop by for some early lunch/late breakfast at one of the pub. Bad decision as our food only came after almost 45 mins wait and we gobbled down the food in 5 minutes in order to catch the 12.20pm bus. The bus ride is about 15 mins and cost about 2.5 pound both ways. It was the fastest breakfast/brunch I ever had!<br />
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The bus itself was decorated with the Harry Potter related stuff on the outside and once we reached the entrance of the studio, we were blown away. It felt like we were brought into the movie itself. Giant posters of the actors and actresses decorate the main hallway upon entrance and the queue was long. We had to line up for half and hour before getting in. Once we were in the waiting room, the staff brief us on the movie production and we were shown some footage of the production. It really brought back good memories of why I love the books and the movies in the first place.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_J9nW3gFfXVgJE-De7TvdNSr-C_gLA7FXOz5SAyGi0SdRRwbYvtrgPCGwz0yq_U_ICTcviZ2pBU0QiQpE9uHSPeZIbDrbH_7nlQQ_SH3BYEt5of8CJrZzw6TTO5zjmWzNtI4I6ZsIvwK_/s1600/IMG_1918+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_J9nW3gFfXVgJE-De7TvdNSr-C_gLA7FXOz5SAyGi0SdRRwbYvtrgPCGwz0yq_U_ICTcviZ2pBU0QiQpE9uHSPeZIbDrbH_7nlQQ_SH3BYEt5of8CJrZzw6TTO5zjmWzNtI4I6ZsIvwK_/s640/IMG_1918+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The shuttle bus from Watford station to the studio</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVr8JX2giv41HjZamGykCmnavSzzerbRRvydjSCCLqJWmJPHMncdvR0G-aLAohrzwmX6C7Kix8dIew1LWHSTTKjN2q_lUqe8z_hyZo5rsc92M0KD8CrQ0u2PpU8cOx5Cs_T-AqDxoRc8SA/s1600/IMG_1920+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVr8JX2giv41HjZamGykCmnavSzzerbRRvydjSCCLqJWmJPHMncdvR0G-aLAohrzwmX6C7Kix8dIew1LWHSTTKjN2q_lUqe8z_hyZo5rsc92M0KD8CrQ0u2PpU8cOx5Cs_T-AqDxoRc8SA/s640/IMG_1920+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Entrance to the studio, we were so excited!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQlNrmXqRuMbP1GxFDOVRcMES6t9VB1Ra0ljyVCEWESF0MkmdROASwJPDeoWGfQ-iVGepUDszYIZzoS81-D8ZA4Px-7HykJPuNpqD7koaAb4BoJ-hELuxoUzvDrycalt0mtLZZBTInHXw8/s1600/IMG_1654+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQlNrmXqRuMbP1GxFDOVRcMES6t9VB1Ra0ljyVCEWESF0MkmdROASwJPDeoWGfQ-iVGepUDszYIZzoS81-D8ZA4Px-7HykJPuNpqD7koaAb4BoJ-hELuxoUzvDrycalt0mtLZZBTInHXw8/s640/IMG_1654+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Right before the entrance. Seeing the photos of the actors brought back a lot of memories</td></tr>
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Once we enter the main hall, we were so excited with the props and keep reenacting the scene in the main hall with all the floating candles and the famous sorting hat in the middle of the hallway. The studio for the making of Harry Potter comprise of studio J and K with a backlot in the middle of the two studio. Studio J is more like props and location used for the filming while studio K is more the makeup, drawing board and conceptual art.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sorting Hat at the Main Hall</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4m0qLSlTuB4GL0DCO-9Q28WzjuhAPenpYucWTBTn0EZEBhHk2rsGgwcNBIcxMIQnYobg4JQu_MQH0-NuEJNf5wK_RfpxH222VellygSwkuMFNfSEj2J_Lsnhp9JP4dLJz3pc3nwF2yteR/s1600/IMG_1718+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4m0qLSlTuB4GL0DCO-9Q28WzjuhAPenpYucWTBTn0EZEBhHk2rsGgwcNBIcxMIQnYobg4JQu_MQH0-NuEJNf5wK_RfpxH222VellygSwkuMFNfSEj2J_Lsnhp9JP4dLJz3pc3nwF2yteR/s640/IMG_1718+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gryffindor common room</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLIv01BjIXaVRrriNzx8TXt5WTj5eYwDsAKOfeDh3ehUGgc4xcm8X4UwuwiZk3ugLISVlSQisnumHmEEOO8tuNND9nHfGo-UwWZIqZQvAG3sKaOMDrBL_UmzTk3aQveqe5lFW-Ksh4glaI/s1600/IMG_1745+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLIv01BjIXaVRrriNzx8TXt5WTj5eYwDsAKOfeDh3ehUGgc4xcm8X4UwuwiZk3ugLISVlSQisnumHmEEOO8tuNND9nHfGo-UwWZIqZQvAG3sKaOMDrBL_UmzTk3aQveqe5lFW-Ksh4glaI/s640/IMG_1745+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scene from the headmaster room when Dolores Umbridge is the headmaster</td></tr>
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After the main hall, we headed to the main studio J and this is where all the location such as the Weasley's home at the Burrows, Potion room, Gryffindor common room and the boy's dorm, the goblet of fire, the snake door from the Chamber of Secrets and not forgetting Dumbledore's headmaster room. The highlight will be the trying out the flying broom via green screen. It was fun looking as yourself at the tv and trying all funny sorts of expressions and motions. Although we did not purchase the video and photo, the experience itself was really fun. The next best part was trying to get the letters from Hogwarts which was spit out from a door every 10 minutes. And then off to the Platform 9 3/4 and the real Hogwarts train.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj49H0fZXWEWeP4k-6sWDx02GdQOmk5lmiTjp1RIqPd9wY02RrMWhf87Thh3312DIQeRIlq46xUcqNM0HTcZ7yEsGirJLoZtffMQAvg5Fe9heZesebQzJ5nQxmrH-6WfUI8f_mUNDi0NJiC/s1600/IMG_1778+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj49H0fZXWEWeP4k-6sWDx02GdQOmk5lmiTjp1RIqPd9wY02RrMWhf87Thh3312DIQeRIlq46xUcqNM0HTcZ7yEsGirJLoZtffMQAvg5Fe9heZesebQzJ5nQxmrH-6WfUI8f_mUNDi0NJiC/s640/IMG_1778+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hogwarts choo choo train</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49DM4zQ9Yymix_euzXy2Z0jrM4oSQCNLZAGWiX_uOfqCVhTc-FfX9imHo6S-szfx17VtsmuhBqn2s2pzwBETrB93fMqja5UNZbbSZz_koWk8syWdSy1xh3SpbUckJeiq5pRu16iMz0TrU/s1600/IMG_1793.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49DM4zQ9Yymix_euzXy2Z0jrM4oSQCNLZAGWiX_uOfqCVhTc-FfX9imHo6S-szfx17VtsmuhBqn2s2pzwBETrB93fMqja5UNZbbSZz_koWk8syWdSy1xh3SpbUckJeiq5pRu16iMz0TrU/s640/IMG_1793.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Going through Platform 9 3/4</td></tr>
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We took a break at a cafe at the backlot and had some butterbeer drink, ice cream and cupcakes. Privet drive was opened for visit only for that week and we had a chance to peek inside of the living hall when letters from Hogwarts was flying in from the chimney. The letter are practically floating in the air!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiudR2hex9CfqoYHlJ2ak6lMsH-RG5ErlLIkQeo08cFZ3KYiwrmL8lRqTxa5ewgZoNJnHU46fFbnfUirpYIpsFg9jyJipqYYx3CzOHgRK3qCG7il30keRfqL2d0DsloXHt7ZmSAiEFE1g6V/s1600/IMG_1924+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiudR2hex9CfqoYHlJ2ak6lMsH-RG5ErlLIkQeo08cFZ3KYiwrmL8lRqTxa5ewgZoNJnHU46fFbnfUirpYIpsFg9jyJipqYYx3CzOHgRK3qCG7il30keRfqL2d0DsloXHt7ZmSAiEFE1g6V/s640/IMG_1924+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remember this scene from the first movie?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbioAjDjAKOj_LfVZj-_hEKwpxzYLsxYhWT49xWa7L-t1CGebaLiQ0VU25lYG7Q3uNVg9rciN6HK77T3KiYYQkrpdvKxP2uet0duzOzLF_eYacHseLGqP0VQ9gyrouRAWLO7LCtvyKqdHS/s1600/IMG_1792+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbioAjDjAKOj_LfVZj-_hEKwpxzYLsxYhWT49xWa7L-t1CGebaLiQ0VU25lYG7Q3uNVg9rciN6HK77T3KiYYQkrpdvKxP2uet0duzOzLF_eYacHseLGqP0VQ9gyrouRAWLO7LCtvyKqdHS/s640/IMG_1792+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Butterbeer drink, ice cream and cupcakes (though it looks more muffin to me)</td></tr>
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Another impressive stuff in studio K will be the Hogwarts model which is not miniature at all. It's so surreal to see the details and effort being put in to construct such props. And not forgetting the impression drawings and the makeup and hair!! saw Luna's hair/wig being display.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqMSDXtUZCsNwlXAYiBSOuZGhzC2V27PLRaVqUIEA83uwVtEWSYTjycxy-2z2uQ2IhLLiWGk3dGDUlw194_ZK7jv6iUAksq7La8mw4-cueENhZuKGzyRqhhH1prYul1OxXWFir44RS1Pqf/s1600/IMG_1852+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqMSDXtUZCsNwlXAYiBSOuZGhzC2V27PLRaVqUIEA83uwVtEWSYTjycxy-2z2uQ2IhLLiWGk3dGDUlw194_ZK7jv6iUAksq7La8mw4-cueENhZuKGzyRqhhH1prYul1OxXWFir44RS1Pqf/s640/IMG_1852+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Check out the drawing board, literally every single prop up to Dumbledore's chair are drawn to detail!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwNVnJg7YI74N_nJFXcj8VN2lIdP0oZWfL4s4Q44z0B17YMQChZaQ8Zx__JarRwu-8IfokZ3fI4Y1sEDbnCA5415iC2rdsrxiMiaNRVi9ZRnbn8LVqNy61owcPBL9bhP6Wjgdypmkd3YVO/s1600/IMG_1837+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwNVnJg7YI74N_nJFXcj8VN2lIdP0oZWfL4s4Q44z0B17YMQChZaQ8Zx__JarRwu-8IfokZ3fI4Y1sEDbnCA5415iC2rdsrxiMiaNRVi9ZRnbn8LVqNy61owcPBL9bhP6Wjgdypmkd3YVO/s640/IMG_1837+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At Diagon Alley</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3BxCVV19jSZw9yrcPwk4OeyOi0sN0OJ7DAS0sloLyQDMESl048F7VKhnxwDbubMs3iUCKCAgRImaoh6uXkP1uRZZi1h4SzKmyWTMsLQwjApeZB4zA2vSQCWemvDYVoqnk40H8hqE58Caj/s1600/IMG_1869+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3BxCVV19jSZw9yrcPwk4OeyOi0sN0OJ7DAS0sloLyQDMESl048F7VKhnxwDbubMs3iUCKCAgRImaoh6uXkP1uRZZi1h4SzKmyWTMsLQwjApeZB4zA2vSQCWemvDYVoqnk40H8hqE58Caj/s640/IMG_1869+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Model of Hogwarts</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2u0vND1x4Ebl4rORXAfUurnGHiW0d4BJAGP2tgbx_7KAkpOHXFpGJFU_VeJjCnb-fGqN2TbqMuc23T3WzlnRHedE4R-4cGzYVpjlPR__0eW5zpeT8gaZV8TxqCgB7iLg0gwbr7sPPOQBc/s1600/IMG_1886+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2u0vND1x4Ebl4rORXAfUurnGHiW0d4BJAGP2tgbx_7KAkpOHXFpGJFU_VeJjCnb-fGqN2TbqMuc23T3WzlnRHedE4R-4cGzYVpjlPR__0eW5zpeT8gaZV8TxqCgB7iLg0gwbr7sPPOQBc/s640/IMG_1886+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another view of Hogwarts. The model really blew us away</td></tr>
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We finished touring the place in 5 hours as we took our own sweet time reading and appreciating each of the details. This is definitely the best studio I ever had and highly recommended for Harry Potter's fan. Take your time to see each and every detail and try out all the simulation especially the green screen. It was really fun and interactive and able to take photos and videos made it well worth the 35 pound spend. If possible, go early in the morning as the crowd will be less compared to afternoon.<br />
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<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-65818600606914358642016-01-05T21:30:00.000+08:002016-01-05T21:30:05.029+08:00Happy New Year 2016Unlike past tradition which I would reflect the happenings in the previous year, I won't do it for 2015. I don't want to end up writing about depressing stuff while this blog is supposed to capture my adventures, my love for photography and travelling.<br />
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I have not have a chance to exercise my photography skills since the last photography trip to Ipoh in July. Bangkok and Kuching trip do not really count as I barely take the camera out of the bag. On a happier note, finally found a perfect bag to keep the big ass fella while shopping in Mitsui Outlet park the other day. Although it's slightly pricey but since it's from Converse and in a shocking pink, I will take that, haha and not that I even love pink. Just wanted something bright and does not shout camera bag. Too bad, the big ass fella won't get much chance this year to see the light as I barely have any travel/holiday planned for the year. Sometimes, I just wish my hb would surprise me a holiday all planned out for once. I am getting tired always being the one doing the planning, camping in front of the pc waiting for flight ticket sales and making sure he's not hungry while travelling. Just for once, this year I wish it is the other way round.<br />
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And like previous year, I don't make anymore new year resolution. I kind of lost my believe in resolutions and even wishes the last few years. That's why I foresee the above simple wish will probably just remain as a wish.<br />
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Will try my best to getting out all the backlogs of travels from last year since I won't much to write about this year. Really miss all my adventures and especially my travel besties. Travelling is more fun with both of them around and kind of missed all the stupid stuff we did while holidaying ie trying to dry our clothes in the dryer for 10 times in NZ and not forgetting the epic of doing nothing and waiting the time for lunch, dinner, shower and sleep while in Tibet!<br />
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<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-47352862646593436592015-11-25T21:30:00.000+08:002015-11-25T21:30:02.621+08:00Chinese Version of Criminal MindsOnce I start, I couldn't stop.<br />
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Nay, not eating, or talking or sleeping. I am talking about starting chasing a drama. Close friends would know that I was actually a TVB drama addict. I can marathon a few episodes or even a full drama in two days. But since the last few months, I have been shifting my focus to C-dramas, chinese dramas produced by China. Haha, gotta be specific. It started when I was in Kuching following this ancient fairy mixed wushu drama, The Journey of Flower just to pass time at night and recently I am hooked to another new C-drama called 'Love Me if You Dare'. Ignore the title, it was tad too cheesy, but the drama is good considering that it's something like the chinese version of Criminal Mind and I love Criminal Minds.<br />
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And nothing will get me hooked if the lead actor is not good looking, haha. Yup, the main actor was good looking (and he was the same actor in The Journey of Flower) and with a nerdy and bizarre personality makes it more attractive to watch. The storyline so far is not bad and I found out that it was adopted from a novel.<br />
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Sigh, I miss those good old tvb dramas with good storyline and good looking actors like Mysteries of Love. Kenneth Ma was so yau yeng in that drama! Meanwhile, just gotta feast my eyes on other chinese speaking country production drama besides HK.<br />
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Ok, end of another 'wu liao' postwjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-66450619273099852282015-11-22T10:50:00.003+08:002015-11-22T10:50:24.530+08:00Canola Flowers in Spring @ Daejeo, Busan<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzFatYuMpnFtu6dLVvebcWGVibX4OSoQpZBlVWtc4KxZUri7ex2XXwisCa3_HANOx069LQaAWYBM7rjTv7P-QDRzzgWrxxeUr4GnG9w2cFz-Sn2RwvBS6_CXXcNi-L1XdTzehenrLfBem/s1600/IMG_0314+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzFatYuMpnFtu6dLVvebcWGVibX4OSoQpZBlVWtc4KxZUri7ex2XXwisCa3_HANOx069LQaAWYBM7rjTv7P-QDRzzgWrxxeUr4GnG9w2cFz-Sn2RwvBS6_CXXcNi-L1XdTzehenrLfBem/s640/IMG_0314+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The vast field of canola flowers</td></tr>
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Canola flower is something I did not expect when I was in Korea. Instead I was expecting pink sakura flowers blooming. But to my disappointment, most of the flowers already dead by the time we reach Busan and Seoul. Basically, the trees already botak when we were in Busan but still managed to catch a glimpse in Seoul. Kind of sad and disappointed but as my friend said, why sad when I had seen the best sakura in Japan.<br />
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So I was glad that instead of the pink flowers, we caught the yellow flowers instead. Also thanks to this friend who pointed out where to catch the flowers in its full glory. We picked the best day with the best weather to see the flowers at the farm near to Busan town. It's actually quite easy to reach via the subway and it is a walking distance from the train station. You can actually see the farm from the train before approaching the station.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkSIQsI73HxmQ-QvJXXKxoWYcEbKe9T0NBQlRmtM3L4Otdgr7Gm7zpmtu1UZErbLk1sk6m0uLSHgFslXIz5PgpslAhcM0ECnn5xASoBQOKqdyhtbRt3hV8F5FYA8H5cHBZtQoWPwIk2ecN/s1600/IMG_0307+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkSIQsI73HxmQ-QvJXXKxoWYcEbKe9T0NBQlRmtM3L4Otdgr7Gm7zpmtu1UZErbLk1sk6m0uLSHgFslXIz5PgpslAhcM0ECnn5xASoBQOKqdyhtbRt3hV8F5FYA8H5cHBZtQoWPwIk2ecN/s640/IMG_0307+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No tripod, so have to improvise using boxes available at the farm. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9jVYd4nrH3zTkb-OM2Ph8Yp5tuFbPR3Hy1tbhdFEBRpUGBhl1Gcau7XW18afVDsEWZCU6jbz6A-UdgtJeeCt6goqz4R5KsDiqeelTQacDSkN_ZmL3iTp0dJa7-miTKmdQqdLBOWao7MO9/s1600/IMG_0315+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9jVYd4nrH3zTkb-OM2Ph8Yp5tuFbPR3Hy1tbhdFEBRpUGBhl1Gcau7XW18afVDsEWZCU6jbz6A-UdgtJeeCt6goqz4R5KsDiqeelTQacDSkN_ZmL3iTp0dJa7-miTKmdQqdLBOWao7MO9/s640/IMG_0315+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We were lucky that the sun came out to greet us after hiding for the last few days in Busan</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx4l4vMmyGPdDwJx62UD8G_mYm9OOQoq6GmYvX-WQjQryNL6qOOJD2wbuAen3QEottb0bHoGUTJ8LZKLplsehAHsBV3-VBpRzIyJqWUZC3GsQRCGDwcD5li6b9xZWPvulwwbJvMvMd1HDr/s1600/IMG_0359+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx4l4vMmyGPdDwJx62UD8G_mYm9OOQoq6GmYvX-WQjQryNL6qOOJD2wbuAen3QEottb0bHoGUTJ8LZKLplsehAHsBV3-VBpRzIyJqWUZC3GsQRCGDwcD5li6b9xZWPvulwwbJvMvMd1HDr/s640/IMG_0359+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looks at all the paper windmills</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB6GaQCnVf-HwlRO2eWTlr2_r1HsrfNDmFUZPb88O8tklnIcQjj_2wD6YeTMQ2e0WP7Fvv2sDvwNA7o2dM2xrF0g2rgDJqLLX5svQK3Kp7tZTQGbuXd25sO9mfvTBpSlsJ4ynzkvppiFeJ/s1600/IMG_0399+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB6GaQCnVf-HwlRO2eWTlr2_r1HsrfNDmFUZPb88O8tklnIcQjj_2wD6YeTMQ2e0WP7Fvv2sDvwNA7o2dM2xrF0g2rgDJqLLX5svQK3Kp7tZTQGbuXd25sO9mfvTBpSlsJ4ynzkvppiFeJ/s640/IMG_0399+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the few decent photos that my hubby managed to take</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoZ6Gbdvhb3Xsl-s3nyFx3p6VM2Ow5jD0BGnzS5CA1O34AvJrLHyHzr0CYYgME9lg1OTtObeG7Ka4w4ipgVLesu_Ty7ZI8JOh_aDcBPxzqLHBx_JAeqFVX8i4oMVyliy0jg1r7MgNt_NAJ/s1600/IMG_0405+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoZ6Gbdvhb3Xsl-s3nyFx3p6VM2Ow5jD0BGnzS5CA1O34AvJrLHyHzr0CYYgME9lg1OTtObeG7Ka4w4ipgVLesu_Ty7ZI8JOh_aDcBPxzqLHBx_JAeqFVX8i4oMVyliy0jg1r7MgNt_NAJ/s640/IMG_0405+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The farm reminds me of Sekinchan</td></tr>
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We walked a bit to the canola flowers farm and since it was only 10am, the crowd had not come yet and we had the place to our own for quite some time. But the sad part was, i brought my tripod but my husband forgot to put in the tripod head, so instead of getting nice photos, I had to use the boxes and other stuff as the tripod. Was a bit sad but it did not dampened my mood to snap nice photos away.<br />
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Actually was quite impressed that my husband managed to snap some good photos of me, haha. <br />
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To get to the canola farm, take the metro line 3 and stop at Gangseo-Gu Office.wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-53759677829371725002015-11-20T13:20:00.000+08:002015-11-24T13:20:46.175+08:00Missing in Action*blows dust off my blog*....<br />
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I did not even realised that I have not written anything for the last few months, although I found a few drafts sitting or rather rotting in my notebook. Yea, I know I have not been diligently updating about what's happening in my life right now, I rather not write here as it's mostly depressing and half of the time trying to survive my insane working assignments that come one after another. Went to Kuching for a job assignment and then coupled with some issues of my condo which I was really pissed off with the neighbour downstairs making demands while he conveniently forgot that I was also the victim of him conveniently forgot that these issues should be resolved during the warranty period and not after. Which I then make myself conveniently forgot to answer his and the management calls. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rEfcAynWXN_s_iC_cyuGED9pppuKtLxao6l9K9igBNa4jzlMa6dFPFsfgxc47N9ifrVo_kXST1cXZ62GihuX6mqclYitI_ayS-M83jk5ggEShkXJOfuhzjpqMwc4Ms4Dtxm5d2nn_iyb/s1600/IMG_0234.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rEfcAynWXN_s_iC_cyuGED9pppuKtLxao6l9K9igBNa4jzlMa6dFPFsfgxc47N9ifrVo_kXST1cXZ62GihuX6mqclYitI_ayS-M83jk5ggEShkXJOfuhzjpqMwc4Ms4Dtxm5d2nn_iyb/s320/IMG_0234.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
Came back from Kuching and realised that I gained weight due to the constant eating and drinking of the 3 layers tea almost every other day. I just can't stop drinking this 3 layers tea with milk , tea and palm sugar which makes it even tastier. Did not realised that Kuching have quite a bit of nice food and I super love the Sarawak laksa, kolo mee and the pork satay. All located quite near to our hotel. We even tried the Kelabit food nearby the hotel.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji5NSWIs6yQhmVAsGmE3mLRBYcfQAvdBnszL0lG96MkfQcUfJwkrzJRsQQUbcP3npiy4c28KjyIAQX8-wS5GsaDNKoNrah_POMWiAo3GjmKUoyWL3pNR5d5GAyoBGNJeZ8rDKDM5mSXct0/s1600/IMG_0221+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji5NSWIs6yQhmVAsGmE3mLRBYcfQAvdBnszL0lG96MkfQcUfJwkrzJRsQQUbcP3npiy4c28KjyIAQX8-wS5GsaDNKoNrah_POMWiAo3GjmKUoyWL3pNR5d5GAyoBGNJeZ8rDKDM5mSXct0/s320/IMG_0221+1.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1IYINmqbMggbeKgij5XKtgQOP4QVUi4QVmgj9q3YFgMpqyoCi9Iw4xNJvKUOS4efR5Q32wUbbUGPilmIql10MPx0DuX_mwa7YcC2wbhPcI5_BRJbOSMo9lIZc_Wa-zWrUW2RLdMJPzuKv/s1600/IMG_0222+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1IYINmqbMggbeKgij5XKtgQOP4QVUi4QVmgj9q3YFgMpqyoCi9Iw4xNJvKUOS4efR5Q32wUbbUGPilmIql10MPx0DuX_mwa7YcC2wbhPcI5_BRJbOSMo9lIZc_Wa-zWrUW2RLdMJPzuKv/s320/IMG_0222+1.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Kong Peah is slightly different from the Sitiawan. I personally think it's a bit oily </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4iJ9ISW77_bo2jzrtlJU-mbTj_eP-fTiAlEvgDJu_BKupj1gGqx6xdu-VIYxmX_0i5aI8-LaepP_yhA3z4ZKVNixRYUiNz8RSD2H6kKY8T7rTMWW-Km5La4vdGbd-n5BOPXeMbJBVpfot/s1600/IMG_0233+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4iJ9ISW77_bo2jzrtlJU-mbTj_eP-fTiAlEvgDJu_BKupj1gGqx6xdu-VIYxmX_0i5aI8-LaepP_yhA3z4ZKVNixRYUiNz8RSD2H6kKY8T7rTMWW-Km5La4vdGbd-n5BOPXeMbJBVpfot/s320/IMG_0233+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Kongsi gelap chicken rice. The owner and the chicken chopper are all tatooed</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7-irWY4qOnveW_SGGZF7AirvWRuy6Nzm7GHXL2f-4WI_aoO9SkqAGqtzl-2okuohnJs6yEhUxmJLNk3xZnIruSOj5NqBF3HKrN3n5E2Yl8xw0vBlsXy6C5NmhBHlgABuS7TW624RFBqYd/s1600/IMG_0241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7-irWY4qOnveW_SGGZF7AirvWRuy6Nzm7GHXL2f-4WI_aoO9SkqAGqtzl-2okuohnJs6yEhUxmJLNk3xZnIruSOj5NqBF3HKrN3n5E2Yl8xw0vBlsXy6C5NmhBHlgABuS7TW624RFBqYd/s320/IMG_0241.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kelabit dish. <br />Albeit the pricey menu, it was actually quite nice. <br />The restaurant is called Tribal Stove</td></tr>
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<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-76800121729560452962015-07-08T11:32:00.000+08:002015-07-09T07:53:40.035+08:00Qing Xin Ling 清心嶺 @ Ipoh<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmeEPhotS_2DjtRfiSP9EDtIC9tGJ627Ggy65Zx_v8axRSFWuzxKckK-ji2HEA51M3BFoq7HjbvO043oVXILr3cxWd04tWml6NIlj3B9YYdOJPiML-FTSyuPIEaUeCcvV_kPDB_vJbCqB/s1600/IMG_1375+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmeEPhotS_2DjtRfiSP9EDtIC9tGJ627Ggy65Zx_v8axRSFWuzxKckK-ji2HEA51M3BFoq7HjbvO043oVXILr3cxWd04tWml6NIlj3B9YYdOJPiML-FTSyuPIEaUeCcvV_kPDB_vJbCqB/s640/IMG_1375+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Qing Xin Ling at Ipoh</td></tr>
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So, over the weekend the photography gang decided to throw a farewell for one of the gang who is leaving for the states in a month's time. After much deliberation, we decided to head to Ipoh for the weekend, for food and for photography as requested by Bee. As she is the queen of the gang and also the one that we were celebrating, we booked two rooms at Sekeping Kong Heng which is smacked in the middle of the Ipoh old town complete with food and plenty of photography opportunities.</div>
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Initially, we did not have any idea for photography until I saw some photos from my friend who went to this place called Qing Xin Ling near to the Gunung Rapat. It's actually located quite near to a few famous temples such as Sam Poh Tong and Kek lok Tong and not too far away from the Simpang Pulai toll plaza.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Models of the day</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFFYw45wD4S9NpVVKpwbf6fTgvw7qpFvW7Cg2_Kg30hJ2QaGx-iwPNv-f_qT1l_OcJYSkfnCftmeVjB2_W1NNvD5JeHUDqlnrVovqBFso60-QfumJK35TDZHdRhfb5uDXaYURQbBPBWhrT/s1600/IMG_1473+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFFYw45wD4S9NpVVKpwbf6fTgvw7qpFvW7Cg2_Kg30hJ2QaGx-iwPNv-f_qT1l_OcJYSkfnCftmeVjB2_W1NNvD5JeHUDqlnrVovqBFso60-QfumJK35TDZHdRhfb5uDXaYURQbBPBWhrT/s640/IMG_1473+1.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mirror lake</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBK_plMOvOmwhJ6LfqpsvtefvQoex3GO1VmaTjB9DKc8vQ7jjdPIo5hKQIFQg3SFtVJM9ZAKmM8uskrwQistW3hto7qEWUjnTDJjxZkc465oW3qPtidPyVt6CNvEnOU32ndy4aTWxcREPd/s1600/IMG_1479+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBK_plMOvOmwhJ6LfqpsvtefvQoex3GO1VmaTjB9DKc8vQ7jjdPIo5hKQIFQg3SFtVJM9ZAKmM8uskrwQistW3hto7qEWUjnTDJjxZkc465oW3qPtidPyVt6CNvEnOU32ndy4aTWxcREPd/s640/IMG_1479+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can see a bit of Krabi plus Gui Lin </td></tr>
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Qing Xin Ling is located in the middle of some taman perumahan and hence it's a bit difficult to find without the GPS. We managed to reach the place at noon after stopping in Bidor for breakfast. Seriously, the food in Pun Chun restaurant is getting more expensive with the amount of mee that they gave. I would not go back and pay RM 7 for a fraction of the wan tan mee and it's not even like the best mee in the town.<br />
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The entrance fee to Qing Xin Ling cost RM 4 and they have chalets in the village which can be stayed overnight. Qing Xin Ling is more like a cultural village with lots of old antique stuff dated years back and the whole place is not very big but there's plenty of things to explore and take photo. And hence started the craze of flipping hair and turn around portrait shots. Haha. Trick that I learned in Hanoi.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ9zDQJmDWIeJ2jSvmp9qQZPwo4RjRQClC3o48F4bW6j-W9t5OkFM-4fZGF0mBUEz7YM273id5ZPrWbBOmNWcVL-OqbitXd3Gm-QEE3Bk7i7Kyg3NaAicHccIUVNkDu8o9RraxJV93j0hK/s1600/IMG_1495+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ9zDQJmDWIeJ2jSvmp9qQZPwo4RjRQClC3o48F4bW6j-W9t5OkFM-4fZGF0mBUEz7YM273id5ZPrWbBOmNWcVL-OqbitXd3Gm-QEE3Bk7i7Kyg3NaAicHccIUVNkDu8o9RraxJV93j0hK/s640/IMG_1495+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reenactment of a shop scene from the 60s</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bee basking in the attention given </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love this shot of the gang. <br />
Too bad I am not in the picture</td></tr>
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We spent about 2 hours in a place taking numerous ridiculous shots and stopping at each corner, haha. The whole village is very vintage and there is even an old juke box playing oldies. We spotted so many vintage things along the way. Oh, do walk up the hill which displays most of the vintage stuff along the hill. Although it' kind of creepy some parts but it's a very good view. There's even an antique place for washing clothes.<br />
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Kind of glad that we manage to see this place and enjoyed it so much even for my non photography friend who tagged along. Most of the time, she had to be the model of the day, haha. The cultural village looks a lot like a scenery from China. With the limestone as the background, it does have a bit of Gui Lin's vibe in it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKKVtCsQEAL-Ao0HIkNqjKXkT_lcG7SjmPtgJf80CieAuM5BWfI9Dzzcs1Q59QPYQAQhr9P7ZJ4OEzCkSb3xQdoygDX3BHrVxsSFQJRPp2IAq3uWlXUC7_TaNVUU4mNGFfGXKbrTPm7Bb/s1600/IMG_1596+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKKVtCsQEAL-Ao0HIkNqjKXkT_lcG7SjmPtgJf80CieAuM5BWfI9Dzzcs1Q59QPYQAQhr9P7ZJ4OEzCkSb3xQdoygDX3BHrVxsSFQJRPp2IAq3uWlXUC7_TaNVUU4mNGFfGXKbrTPm7Bb/s640/IMG_1596+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Those colourful houses are actually chalets</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7_siNDKexu-Lf4xyDaqmUtdLPLtmJrGT2398Len3PKe5oplH2RIDbT5vTXxEhlc0eDWvodT2KeY5XkKnlERX4YHGe39Byr-OWjhfuHPmwSflE7Z4xuNu9RA2nhv5PiHjs78298Et9P-zK/s1600/IMG_1599+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7_siNDKexu-Lf4xyDaqmUtdLPLtmJrGT2398Len3PKe5oplH2RIDbT5vTXxEhlc0eDWvodT2KeY5XkKnlERX4YHGe39Byr-OWjhfuHPmwSflE7Z4xuNu9RA2nhv5PiHjs78298Et9P-zK/s640/IMG_1599+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you stayed inside the cultural village, entrance fees is free</td></tr>
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After Qing Xin Ling, we went to the old town to check in and time for makan makan. That will be another post in another day.wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-70277691547242635472015-06-19T21:50:00.000+08:002015-06-19T21:50:00.184+08:00Yonggungsa Temple 해동 용궁사 @ Busan, KoreaAh.. I have been neglecting my blog again. I find it getting harder to sit down and really write out my travel experiences while trying to remember the details of at least how to get to the place. I wrote a summary of getting there in my itinerary but here I will share what are some of the alternatives as provided by our hotel. Mr. SON actually gave us a printed paper on various alternatives to go to this temple. I was actually toying the idea between this temple or Beomeosa but since the weather forecast to be raining whole day, we just went for this one. It's ironic that in Malaysia, I never appreciate those weather forecast as 90% of the time it is wrong but here in Korea, 100% of the time it is accurate even to the detail hourly forecast.<br />
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This temple is located by the sea and by looking at pictures from the internet, it is supposed to be a very pretty temple with nice scenery but sadly when it rained, everything looked white and foggy. Nevertheless, we went there anyway and it was so cold and I regretted not to bring a thicket jacket. yea, I am that vain as I only brought two thin nice jacket and I wanted to save my luggage space for more masks, skincare products and shopping. </div>
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To get here we just follow the instructions from the piece of paper provided by Mr. Son and it was another 10 minutes walk into the temple. Inside the temple, there were still bits and pieces of sakura left but it was miserable to see mostly had fallen. I think I had maxed out my sakura luck in Japan last year :(</div>
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As the sky started to pour, it was getting foggy and we were so cold that we spend most of the time inside a cafeteria. We quickly take a few shots and then left the temple shivering while waiting for the bus. My plan was to catch the bus back to Dalmalji hill but after we stopped at one of the departmental store for directions, we changed our mind. The staff told us that the sakura flowers had withered and not worth going there. Ok, then let's go for shopping, haha. We went back to Nampo and start the shopping madness by buying 10,000 won bags. Seriously, the bags here are so cheap and nice and so Korean, haha. Yup, so Korean.<br />
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wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-85870517264621624912015-06-17T21:48:00.000+08:002015-06-17T21:48:28.646+08:00Recommended Dessert in HanoiOne of the reason why I enjoyed Vietnam is because of the food and the pho. Ok, mainly because of the pho and the dessert. I am getting a bit nonsensical here, haha. You see, before we left for the trip, I gave the task of food to my travelmate and she is the one who dictates what and where to eat most of the time. We tried a few places but majority of the time, we just spent sitting at those small portable food stalls eating pho. I can only read pho ga as chicken pho and most of the time, we just ordered those.<br />
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But I am not gonna dwell much on pho and bun cha and those stuff. What I wanted to share here is more like the dessert we had while we were in Hanoi. We did not try much but these two are my top favourite dessert.<br />
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<b>Fruit Ice Kacang style at To Tich</b><br />
To Tich is a very short road and once you turned into the junction you can find many of the shops selling similar kind of dessert. Look for the one with the most people. There are plenty of choices on the menu and you can even order this topped with ice cream. Price starts around VND 25,000<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvYYpF1Vy8lepQeqf3zR5X38y22_uhr2eC7VSpRAYRkU9DqpApChGTHugcPf2_n6JwmNN1IMwQKrSU9PMeL5tmSkHZsWAYUfQi4F-Xc3JWM7bi8IDcGoeY2qe5TfVLgqY0ozIYSwSo4-O3/s1600/alexis+fong+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvYYpF1Vy8lepQeqf3zR5X38y22_uhr2eC7VSpRAYRkU9DqpApChGTHugcPf2_n6JwmNN1IMwQKrSU9PMeL5tmSkHZsWAYUfQi4F-Xc3JWM7bi8IDcGoeY2qe5TfVLgqY0ozIYSwSo4-O3/s400/alexis+fong+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo from internet courtesy of Alexis Fong<br />The fruit ice kacang. Do not judge the dessert by it's bowl, it's one of the best I had so far</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The location of the shop<br />Photo courtesy of Alexis Fong (ripped from the internet)</td></tr>
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<b>Coconut Icecream with sticky rice at corner of Hai Ba Trung and Phan Chu Trinh road</b><br />
This shop has no name and basically it's at the corner of the two roads. You won't miss it as it was quite packed<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioYxvyEKGBMq00-1ESNtTfombOLJ6HPwiciR9yDjL1qtXUNvNarXotimEppCINe1rE3Q1HcOz_9lE_xdVTlMJw4z6Xj_XZdxeiz6eW2xl1vCrV33NAzquwzyzNhZnbePG5guuaArgnmt0_/s1600/IMG_0029+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioYxvyEKGBMq00-1ESNtTfombOLJ6HPwiciR9yDjL1qtXUNvNarXotimEppCINe1rE3Q1HcOz_9lE_xdVTlMJw4z6Xj_XZdxeiz6eW2xl1vCrV33NAzquwzyzNhZnbePG5guuaArgnmt0_/s640/IMG_0029+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mango sticky rice with pandan flavour</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the famous coconut ice cream with pandan sticky rice topped with coconut flakes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDaTF4_LmhMCtor0qAD2adGpJXoRRa_Udouerr33rwWQRS7D4HgwasbBPax9q5Sg_SuMcBOTTVn_n2sOkKSACaU9iIWQZDnwU5WXh9Hnz_oMk6XK84djps-w_fjYsYRMs-fQOqmq9Jbxiw/s1600/IMG_0032+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDaTF4_LmhMCtor0qAD2adGpJXoRRa_Udouerr33rwWQRS7D4HgwasbBPax9q5Sg_SuMcBOTTVn_n2sOkKSACaU9iIWQZDnwU5WXh9Hnz_oMk6XK84djps-w_fjYsYRMs-fQOqmq9Jbxiw/s640/IMG_0032+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The shop, look for the green rooftop</td></tr>
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<b><br /></b>wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-49155573623339064552015-06-14T22:41:00.004+08:002015-06-17T21:48:48.487+08:00Vietnam in a NutshellFinally had the time to sit down and write some stuff happening over the few weeks. After Korea, I went to another impromptu trip to Hanoi, Vietnam but this time with my colleague. Hanoi is a place I wanted to go very badly especially Sapa Valley after I have seen the photos.<br />
<br />
For this trip, I just booked like some sort of ground arrangement tour with our hotel, Glance Hotel. I send them my planned itinerary and they gave me a quote on the things I wanted to do and see. And it seems ok, hence the booking. This must be the shortest research I ever done for my trip and also the most relaxing one since the hotel already arrange everything for us. The details of my itinerary is as follows:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNSEzKgQ54XJnBsXAt1NgL1zmynCRtkrOYrdbh7hx96Zq8eGOI38yjfxQI_RiKkY0hrBTEbmEszGc20q6-D28XwK6bXJBikKNV4w1vejAH7bOF5iUDtImvmw_2r4fWJh6-Md9coQdVdspN/s1600/IMG_9798+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNSEzKgQ54XJnBsXAt1NgL1zmynCRtkrOYrdbh7hx96Zq8eGOI38yjfxQI_RiKkY0hrBTEbmEszGc20q6-D28XwK6bXJBikKNV4w1vejAH7bOF5iUDtImvmw_2r4fWJh6-Md9coQdVdspN/s640/IMG_9798+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the paddy fields in Sapa </td></tr>
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<br />
<b>Day 1</b><br />
Arrive in Hanoi and wow..I got such a good impression of the airport. From landing to picking up our bags in less than half an hour. Small and compact airport but yet not suffocating. Much much better than our klia2 which takes forever to reach the boarding gate. We got picked up from the airport and send to our hotel in the old quarters. I asked for a day use room as we reached early in the morning we wanted to take the overnight train to Sapa on the same day. Actually before the trip, I have compared the cost of going on my own and taking the arrangement offered by the hotel. It's not much difference, hence we took up the offer. If we to take the overnight train itself, it cost about USD 40 per way. So we spend some time to wash up, sleep, walk around the old quarters and then dinner before being transport to the train station. First time sleeping in the train and it was really eye opening but nevertheless the journey was quite comfortable.<br />
<br />
<b>Day 2</b><br />
<b>Sapa </b><br />
Reach Lao Cai in the wee hours of morning and again we were transported to our hotel, Panarama hotel in Sapa to freshen up and breakfast before the hiking. The journey up the hills took about an hour and by the time we reach Sapa, we were famished and dashed to the breakfast counter. We did not even washed up as since we are going for trekking and will be sweaty afterward, why bother to wash and sweat again, haha. And we even wore the trekking clothes as pajamas the night before in the train! We went to the Cat Cat village and some rivers nearby for swimming. While the rest of our group's Ang Moh swam, the Asian us sat under the umbrella and shade. At night, we walked around the Sapa town.<br />
<br />
<b>Day 3</b><br />
<b>Sapa</b><br />
Today, the trekking was a bit tough especially going down and we were swarmed by Hmong women offering to accompany us during the trekking. I was glad to have one of them to hold me while I descend the rocky trail and end up buying some souvenirs from them. Later on, I realised I paid double for that but it's ok since it's for repaying her for helping me. We took the night train back to Hanoi at night.<br />
<br />
<b>Day 4</b><br />
<b>Hanoi</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSNDZfb3un10MYqdskete1-4GkHLOl4YW1s6hyphenhyphen1QcnBspnfaw1MOeUFZexrpM6It8Ad17gfdnb4RI_csce5Yu7mSnmdL3BEeJZs3xf8rgdP7L8KGFDagwz9M739zHcXPdVI0vgWJkc57o/s1600/IMG_9352+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSNDZfb3un10MYqdskete1-4GkHLOl4YW1s6hyphenhyphen1QcnBspnfaw1MOeUFZexrpM6It8Ad17gfdnb4RI_csce5Yu7mSnmdL3BEeJZs3xf8rgdP7L8KGFDagwz9M739zHcXPdVI0vgWJkc57o/s640/IMG_9352+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The famous red bridge in Hoen Kiem lake</td></tr>
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Reached Hanoi early in the morning and the hotel arrange for transport to ferry us back to our hotel. We stayed at the same hotel, Glance. We slept for a while more before getting down for breakfast. Today, we explore the attractions in Hanoi. We walked from the old quarters to the Temple of Literature and to the One Pillar pagoda and then to the other side of the Hoan Kiem Lake for the dessert before ending near the bridge. Walked about 30km in that one day!<br />
<br />
<b>Day 5</b><br />
<b>Halong Bay</b><br />
It's the day for the 1 night cruise in Halong bay. It's a 4 hour journey from Hanoi to Halong Bay and we stopped by one of the places for souvenirs. Did not buy anything here as it was pretty expensive but I got to admit the embroidery was pretty impressive. I almost wanted to buy one myself. We checked into our cruise by lunch time and we had lunch while the boat cruising along the bay. After that we went for kayaking into some of the more secluded area and this is the first time my friend experience kayak and she is pretty good at it! Even better than my husband. Our cruise had a mother and son from Malaysia but we were intrigued with the couple from Thailand. Was speculating whether they are really a couple or the girl is just an escort for the much older guy. And who the other older woman who followed the couple along? These are some of the questions we were so dying to ask but refrained from doing so. At night we had squid fishing but sadly we did not manage to catch any squid. <br />
<br />
<b>Day 6</b><br />
<b>Halong Bay</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoDQckLQ-4TDetNVJWg7JLluCxnz4B7YdewgUAJVbNnLfViNgW3Muz13i5sPd4sqiXAbmLc4N7BfjWyz8fvbh1BJ18Psvh8AfCyg7TqbR_YHQ4uFCF5iTOrS17gVr4u6lJ0QJ8_jaXJmc/s1600/IMG_0205+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoDQckLQ-4TDetNVJWg7JLluCxnz4B7YdewgUAJVbNnLfViNgW3Muz13i5sPd4sqiXAbmLc4N7BfjWyz8fvbh1BJ18Psvh8AfCyg7TqbR_YHQ4uFCF5iTOrS17gVr4u6lJ0QJ8_jaXJmc/s640/IMG_0205+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset at Halong bay</td></tr>
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The next morning, it was raining and there was no sunrise to catch. So continue sleeping until breakfast and then off to one of the caves. We alight from the cruise around noon after lunch and then it's another 4 hours back to Hanoi.<br />
<br />
<b>Day 7</b><br />
<b>Tam Coc</b><br />
I wanted to go this place after hearing raving reviews from my dad but boy, we picked the wrong time to go as it was hot as hell and I just practically sweating by just standing outside the aircon bus. It took us about 2 hours to get there from Hanoi and this is another day trip we booked with the hotel. The highlight will be the sampan kayak by the locals using their feet instead of hand. I spent most of the time hiding under the umbrella in the boat. One of our tourmates, a Polish guy kept asking me to help him take photos and dictate me how to take them. I was a bit pissed off and ran off after the first time helping him. If you want me to take photo of you, let me do it my way la. So when the guide suggested him to share a boat with us, I quickly dragged by friend to a boat while the Polish guy is busy showing off his photos to another Singaporean couple. Luckily we did not share the boat with him as I can foresee that he will block most of the view with him in front. After that, we went for biking along the paddy fields for another 45 minutes. I almost forgotten how to ride a bike.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixp4M4FHxzdU0T-2V9pmbvwSp8GRoHD-5aYK2tuWzLB9VWbzM0et6kKkE2gxxu-iwWGdVfTdHRt3oWnrjYEDHbHzZ49GjK38tEUHMC6FM8zrad0_qtE0AjrVfxq4sW_DS-lpoh9v3EnEhn/s1600/IMG_9972+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixp4M4FHxzdU0T-2V9pmbvwSp8GRoHD-5aYK2tuWzLB9VWbzM0et6kKkE2gxxu-iwWGdVfTdHRt3oWnrjYEDHbHzZ49GjK38tEUHMC6FM8zrad0_qtE0AjrVfxq4sW_DS-lpoh9v3EnEhn/s640/IMG_9972+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Train tracks in Hanoi town</td></tr>
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As it was the last day in Hanoi and the only day we can go to the night market, we spend almost 4 hours walking around the night market trying to finish our dong. It was good have someone helping out with the bargaining, haha.<br />
<br />
<b>Day 8</b><br />
<b>Flight home</b><br />
It's time to head home.<br />
<br />
<br />wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-74764816382373528552015-04-27T21:31:00.000+08:002015-04-28T16:19:36.248+08:00Korea Itinerary: Seoul and Busan in 9 days <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9dBmdjPZS0mjswPh3mUI2_vyu3lURJk8Obu5uWPc4wLUnPTI4-S6oxkFVRjzxzpk8bExk-lijEIDc9NN3oVLUMTdpPL1dKA9PRYUSh1l0b2Xwo5GLBselhvg463rLArhORcfE64JTFcR/s1600/IMG_1213+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9dBmdjPZS0mjswPh3mUI2_vyu3lURJk8Obu5uWPc4wLUnPTI4-S6oxkFVRjzxzpk8bExk-lijEIDc9NN3oVLUMTdpPL1dKA9PRYUSh1l0b2Xwo5GLBselhvg463rLArhORcfE64JTFcR/s1600/IMG_1213+1.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My favourite shot along way up to the N Seoul Tower</td></tr>
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I finally had the time to properly sit down and recalled the itinerary of my trip to Korea recently. Better to pen it down before it get lost in my memory box and sit somewhere collecting dust. You see, the trip was planned in a time to coincide with the cherry blossom in Korea. Yea, you can say I was a bit addicted to catch all the pink flowers after Japan last year. After this trip, I realised how lucky I was last year when I was able to catch the sakura perfectly but no so this time around. We were slightly a week late and most of the flowers already dead by the time we reached Busan and in Seoul, there were still pockets of sakura.<br />
<br />
Initially my plan is to spend all 9 days in Seoul and hence the booking of the flight to and fro Seoul. I did a big mistake here as I decided to fit in Busan. And to take the KTX all the way from Seoul to Busan. The better option is to fly into Busan and fly out from Seoul.<br />
<br />
So the summary of my itinerary is as follows;<br />
<br />
<b>Day 1 </b><br />
<b><i>KL to Seoul to Busan</i></b><br />
We reached Incheon around 3.30pm and came out from the immigration around 4.20pm. We went straight to the KTX counter as we wanted to catch the 4.30 direct train to Busan from Incheon and to reach Busan around 8.30pm. Yup, the train ride is almost 4 hours long and imagine my horror when the girl at the counter told us that the sitting tickets were finished and there was no more sitting tickets for the rest of the day. I actually thought of booking it upfront at Korail website but since I was not certain of the timing that we can land, I decided against it. Double horror as it was Sunday weekend!! So we were discussing which were the best options when there was this couple in front of us decided to take the standing tickets instead. Suddenly, I remembered that Korail also provide standing tickets but at a lower price. But still, 4 hours of standing, I was not sure whether hubs can take it (he had worse stamina than me). Standing or left stranded in Incheon. So standing it is. We were able to get seats from the airport until Seoul station and luckily only stand for an hour. For info, for standing tickets you can sit as long as there was no one at the seat. After all the mishaps and adventures, we reached Busan station around 8.30pm and proceed for dinner in one of the restaurant. We then take the subway and stopped at Nampo station for our hotel, <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&uact=8&sqi=2&ved=0CFYQFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tripadvisor.com%2FHotel_Review-g297884-d1186766-Reviews-Elysee_Motel-Busan.html&ei=hNI9VeOrGZOUuATGmIHYCw&usg=AFQjCNFZbn_-tTgc0TvWnHIa5l3LyNZQcw&sig2=fHiRPhQgNFrbkCz9uKNMug&bvm=bv.91665533,d.c2E" target="_blank">Elysee hotel</a>. I really love this hotel for the strategic and the hospitality of the owner, Mr. Son. He even send me the detail descriptions to reach his hotel from the Nampo station along with photos!<br />
<br />
<b>Day 2</b><br />
<b><i>Yonggusa temple</i></b><br />
It was forecast to rain when we were in Busan and it rained whole day we were there. So we decide to just go to Yonggusa temple and spend the rest of the day 'lepaking' around Nampo after knowing that the sakura flowers in Dalmaji hill had also died. So we ask Mr. Son for the directions there and he gave us a paper which comprise of all the alternatives of going to the temple. I will share the details in a more detail post, lol.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj4ppYKGkMr77oKJeQmsrCJf31RzLsBDcF7Tj8k7T4RMh_Pp80K4WvkZrOmLU3NumEBUV85moiT9GBveA1PhHvoQHJlbycnhISK_kJ1KMFh4ocw9uEC32rHL__EUMr5xK3ni6J6FCm4Bd/s1600/IMG_0405+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj4ppYKGkMr77oKJeQmsrCJf31RzLsBDcF7Tj8k7T4RMh_Pp80K4WvkZrOmLU3NumEBUV85moiT9GBveA1PhHvoQHJlbycnhISK_kJ1KMFh4ocw9uEC32rHL__EUMr5xK3ni6J6FCm4Bd/s1600/IMG_0405+1.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sea of canola flowers hidden among the tall buildings in Busan</td></tr>
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<br />
<b>Day 3</b><br />
<i><b>Canola flowers and Gamcheon</b></i><br />
Initially I planned for Gamcheon and combined with Beomeosa temple but my friend texted me and asked me whether I was going to see the famous yellow flowers ie the canola flowers or rapeseed flowers in Busan since I told her that the sakura flowers already dead in Busan. She gave me a link and I read that there is a festival going on to celebrate the flowers. To reach there, take the metro line 3 and stopped at station no. 315, Gangseo-Gu Office. You can see the yellow flowers even from the metro. The best time to visit should be around early to mid April, I think. Not too sure on the timing as we were there in mid April.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPNh3ZexXwKKeQhlT34v8uR2wGvQvOE9gKe5_9z2CMVFnN82JRie8XpgoA-xn2HeA_QMxU8ICq7nPRk1dHMJ1MY-rfjmeGH9OfNFebudX4sV37aR-aijUJy5TGraHge9pJCk_O1G1Hm_jb/s1600/IMG_0505+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPNh3ZexXwKKeQhlT34v8uR2wGvQvOE9gKe5_9z2CMVFnN82JRie8XpgoA-xn2HeA_QMxU8ICq7nPRk1dHMJ1MY-rfjmeGH9OfNFebudX4sV37aR-aijUJy5TGraHge9pJCk_O1G1Hm_jb/s1600/IMG_0505+1.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gamcheon, the Santorini of Busan</td></tr>
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Then from there, we went to Gamcheon also known as Santorini of Busan. To reach there we take the metro line 1 and stopped at ToSeong exit 8. After exit turn right at the intersection walked a few metres until you see the Cancer centre. Take bus no. 2 or 2-2 to the Gamcheon village. You won't get lost as there are a lot tourists going the same way.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3YUt3hu5zdOccSQk_K5BLfCQybDz5MDzt7LXbkHfiwbJeKAEZALWPkpg-8w7SZjOw1uGf69UcHohNho2FXQRRhfBxaWZ2kCcqyisX55alohDfluLHndmiufOMZFMCWzjP3qjCv4E1aZpv/s1600/IMG_0589+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3YUt3hu5zdOccSQk_K5BLfCQybDz5MDzt7LXbkHfiwbJeKAEZALWPkpg-8w7SZjOw1uGf69UcHohNho2FXQRRhfBxaWZ2kCcqyisX55alohDfluLHndmiufOMZFMCWzjP3qjCv4E1aZpv/s1600/IMG_0589+1.jpg" height="425" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bulgoksa temple in Gyeongju. <br />
One of the UNESCO heritage and a must visit temple in Korea.</td></tr>
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<b>Day 4</b><br />
<b><i>Gyeongju and KTX to Seoul</i></b><br />
I had intention to see the famous cherry blossom festival in Jinhae, hence the pit stop at Busan. However, upon consultation with Mr. Son, he mentioned that most of the flowers are dead..sad..I had been repeating the flowers death for many times now. He suggested to go to Gyeongju which we may still able to catch the sakura as it was little north of Busan. He gave us directions and alternatives to reach there. We took the KTX, fastest but more expensive as we had to rush to Seoul in the evening. And this day, I did a very big mistake, an accountant should not make. I forgot about the Korea day pass that I booked from Korail for KRW120,000 + for two person which I could have use for this day, the day I traveled using the most KTX trains (and also it is the day we going to Seoul using KTX) and could have save back on at least KRW 40,000 for two of us. We stopped at Singyeongju, which is a little outskirt from the town and took bus no. 700 from outside the KTX station which lead us straight to Bulgoksa temple. I will share other alternatives to Gyeongju in another post. This one is getting too long and my hand is aching trying to type as I recalled my itinerary. We also went to Seokgurum grotto, not too far away from Bulgoksa temple. You can take the bus no. 12 from the tourist information centre or just hailed the bus from the bus stop outside Bulgoksa temple. Cost is KRW 1,500 per person.<br />
<br />
After that, we took the KTX back to Busan, take our luggage and went to purchase the ticket for Seoul at 7.30pm. As it was a sunny day and I did not want to waste a sunny day in train travelling, I decide to only go to Seoul late evening. And the worst has yet to come. We stayed in Myeong Dong and the <a href="http://www.hillguesthouse.com/default/" target="_blank">guesthouse</a> I booked was at top of a hill. By now, my husband already in foul mood and blamed me for booking such cheap and inconvenient place to stay. I was really upset as not only he did not help out with any of the booking and itinerary but I was the one dragging the big bag up the hill and the room. So I ignored him for the rest of the night.<br />
<br />
<b>Day 5</b><br />
<b><i>Gyeongbukgung, Changdeokgung (including secret garden), Insa Dong and Myeong Dong</i></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPZ-v_GnfGUlJh8jqXJOtFkSkbPurRT0auJq7_7l6ddwRFAfBTqlhhKuPcmCjW8PKO3lUhBTmiqXeISsYzwnpvRMi-8rXEuzx0vAJG2M26JLO9VL7CamaaygAYgQY8PsIxh1KbPxyUBkT/s1600/IMG_0886+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPZ-v_GnfGUlJh8jqXJOtFkSkbPurRT0auJq7_7l6ddwRFAfBTqlhhKuPcmCjW8PKO3lUhBTmiqXeISsYzwnpvRMi-8rXEuzx0vAJG2M26JLO9VL7CamaaygAYgQY8PsIxh1KbPxyUBkT/s1600/IMG_0886+1.jpg" height="425" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A secret garden amidst the palace ground. I felt transported back in time</td></tr>
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It was raining the first day in Seoul, sadly and I was not in a good mood to go anywhere after yesterday's night incident. We just visited the famous palaces around Seoul, the most famous ones and also the secret garden in Changdeokgung. We bought the KRW10,000 ticket package which includes going into the two palaces we went, Jongmu shrine, and also Changyeonggung. If we buy separately, it would cost total of KRW 14,000 for 4 palaces and 1 shrine. As it was raining, we did not really enjoyed the palaces that much except for the morning trying out costume at Gyeongbukgung for free. After secret garden, we went to Insa dong for souvenir shopping and later Myeongdong for shopping.<br />
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<b>Day 6 </b><br />
<b><i>Yeouido Park, Deoksugung, Namsangol Hanok Village and Seoul Tower</i></b><br />
Still holding to my hopes of seeing sakura, we went to Yeouido park near to the National Assembly. We took the line 9 subway and exit 1 or 6. We walked for about 5-10 minutes towards the sea and then we saw it. Too bad, again half of the flowers were dead. We did not spend much time here and rush over to City Hall subway station to Deoksugung. We managed to catch the change of guards at 2pm and after that proceed to Namsangol Hanok Village after recommended by my colleague. From there we went back to Myeongdong for fried chicken (will review that later) and then proceed our 'Mt. Kinabalu' hike up to Namsan park/Seoul tower. The 'Mt. Kinabalu' hike is more like what my husband describe, haha. For me it was not that difficult walk up with all the beautiful scenery and sunset. We locked our lock at the famous lock place and then proceed with going up the tower with popcorn and coke for the night view. Normally, I won't spend such money on popcorn and coke on top of the tower but since it was a tough hike for my husband, got to reward him.<br />
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<b>Day 7</b><br />
<b><i>Nami Island and Petit France, Dongdaemun and Cheongyecheon stream</i></b><br />
Check the weather forecast and this day, it was also sunny. We took the 8am ITX train to Gapyeong from Yongsan. I will elaborate more on the mode of transport to get to Nami Island in a more detail post about Nami Island and Petit France. I feel Petit France a bit overrated but since it's the filming location for My Love from the Star and also Running Man. A bit advice though, do not take the local subway from Gapyeong back to Seoul especially on a sunny weekend. It's madness as we were packed in sardine for an hour standing. I can't barely move an inch. After that, we went straight to Dongdaemun market and to see the famous Cheongyecheon stream.<br />
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<b>Day 8</b><br />
<b><i>Bukchon village, Ginseng chicken, Myeong Dong</i></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwJYqerGnggvbuALanmJdy4Bp_UnCpIwupCxkd1XqqV0JnqauFJtljiMKPu3tnaItuZBbSMVIsnfAJbpnIkOpQ0mt9Mjwytc60REWd3-1yDBus-FDChPXFAHSU6oTDGI1rpnuoP3Yy66S/s1600/IMG_9295+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwJYqerGnggvbuALanmJdy4Bp_UnCpIwupCxkd1XqqV0JnqauFJtljiMKPu3tnaItuZBbSMVIsnfAJbpnIkOpQ0mt9Mjwytc60REWd3-1yDBus-FDChPXFAHSU6oTDGI1rpnuoP3Yy66S/s1600/IMG_9295+1.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The rainy atmosphere of Bukchon</td></tr>
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Another rainy day today as we head towards Bukchon. As we only woke up around 10am, we took our own sweet time to get ready. I kind of regret not going to Bukchon when it is sunny as the place is amazing for portrait shooting. To reach Bukchon, stop at Anguk station exit 3. After that, it's lining up for the famous ginseng chicken, Tosokchon near Gyeongbukgung. And then it's more shopping in Myeongdong and Lotte Department store. I managed to nab a few tops from the Myeongdong subway underground station.<br />
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<b>Day 9 </b><br />
<b>Flight back to KL</b><br />
We use the airport express (AREX) to the airport. To take the AREX, stop at Seoul subway station and walk towards the KTX Seoul station. You can get the tickets at the Korail counter or the lower ground counter before the entrance of the AREX.wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-62592044222579181552015-04-26T14:13:00.000+08:002015-04-28T14:16:01.735+08:00Pray For NepalHeard about the Nepal earthquake today and feel sad for the casualties. The quake even affect those in India, Bhutan and Tibet and also coincidentally, these are the few places I had a chance to visit three years back.<br />
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When I looked at the photos of the demolished UNESCO heritage in Kathmandu, my heart sank. I quite like Kathmandu honestly and its quirky traits and now most of the buildings were in rubble. My prayer goes to the people of Nepal and not forgetting those who are affected by the earthquake. I will forever treasure the memories and the good times I had when I was in Kathmandu 3 years back.wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-81544472996146214722015-04-21T20:30:00.000+08:002015-04-21T20:30:03.612+08:00Anyeong HaseyoI am back from my one week trip to Korea, spending time between Busan and Seoul. Man, this trip is much much more expensive than Japan last year. I think I spend almost double the amount including on shopping. I don't dare to see my credit card statement. Sigh..why the hell I end up buying more than 100 sheets of face masks while I only have 1 face to use?? Guess I had to sell some of them to earn back some money to pay off my credit card debts. The only consolation I can tell myself that this will be the second last trip for the year at least.<br />
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In summary, I enjoy Korea but sadly we reached when most of the sakura had fallen so we left with pretty much bare sakura trees in Busan. But with very pretty yellow canola flowers. There are still some left in Seoul but pretty much the rest of the sakura had fallen. I will share my itinerary and cost for the trip which I am not very satisfied this time as I did a few stupid mistake and end up costing more than what it suppose to be. I could have save back at least a few hundreds by just opening up my brain...sigh<br />
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Stories wise, quite some adventure happened here and there, with my husband forget to bring the tripod plate and end up we had to buy one in Busan to even bargaining for the clothes which I thought the Koreans don't really bargain and to speaking Chinese in Seoul, mostly in the shopping area.wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-5625836251182877672015-04-06T22:30:00.000+08:002015-04-07T15:38:48.174+08:00Backpacker or FlashpackerI kind of abandon my blog for a very long time due to personal reason but now I got to stay positive and think positive. Just hope I can stay in this state for some time before another emotional breakdown. I find that whenever I have a upcoming trip or travel, I will automatically feel better, think more positive and focus all my energy into researching for the trip or trips.<br />
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I think I have gradually graduated from a backpacker to a flashpacker. I feel that I was more a backpacker when I was in my twenties and now being in thirties and married, travelling takes a whole new different view and off course packing involves two instead of one person. Even when I called myself a backpacker in my twenties, I rarely carried those gigantic backpack save for the Tibet, Bhutan & Nepal adventure. Most of the time I used a rolling luggage bag and carried a small backpack for my big ass camera. I find that giant backpacks tend to consume me as I was quite a petite size (which I keep telling myself that) comparing to the giant backpack.<br />
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In my twenties I love staying in hostel and plus the budget constraint I had, it suited me well. I think the last time I stayed in a hostel for my whole trip was in New Zealand and Japan. Ok, it seems like I am still much of a backpacker in my thirties as well. So how do you classify yourself as a backpacker or flashpacker? For me, it's the accommodation, my style of packing and what bags to used, budget constraint in buying food or shopping and mode of transportation. I find that the older I get, I am more incline towards a bit of luxury. I still use the occasional excel worksheet to work out my itinerary and cost just like how I am doing now for my Hanoi trip in May, which it will be definitely a flashpacker trip. And I find that only my friends who are accountant / auditor background will use an excel worksheet to work out the itinerary and cost, haha.<br />
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So in conclusion, which mode would I prefer now? I guess it's mixture of both flash and back. I still tend to find cheap accommodations such as B&Bs, hostel but at least with a private bathroom. I still cut on my transportation, getting the best and most cost effective way to travel around. I still haggle like mad eventhough it was just to reduce a few ringgit (probably I feel happy and sadistic just to get what I want according to what I am willing to pay).wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-70523323125601569052015-02-24T22:00:00.000+08:002015-02-25T09:20:39.556+08:00Not so Happy Chinese New YearIt's the start of the goat year but frankly speaking, I don't have much hope or looking forward to the year. Been having many personal and career wise problems around until I wish I could just run away. Suffocating best describe what I am going through right now.<br />
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A lot of personal stuff going on around my life right now. Start of something I dreaded but glad that at least he is free of problem. I would rather I have the problem so that one day if I fail, he still can find another one to fulfill his wish. I do not know how long or how much can I take before this day comes.wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-20769208905648049942015-01-25T11:41:00.000+08:002015-01-25T11:41:00.482+08:00Koyo (Autumn) in JapanI think I have mentioned it before, my dslr died when I was in Tokyo last autumn due to water. And I had to rely on my friend's camera and my handphone for most of the photos. Besides sakura, autumn is another season whereby most of the places in Japan is full of tourists. For koyo viewing and it's much longer period than sakura.<br />
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I checked that the time I was there (mid Oct) was not the peak season for koyo yet. Leaves are still in green and we only saw full blown autumn in Nikko, which is around 3 hours away from Tokyo city. Yes, we purposely sit 3 hours of train to see the autumn leaves. When we were there, I kind of regret not staying a night so that we can queue for the cable car.<br />
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Most the autumn photos are taken using my Samsung S3. Not as nice as dslr but better than nothing.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHkjll5e_wbyz58akD3S3fkPRUkVdcPvzatAZeSv_PxCZw44T8FjCNl8LtRxXKiU_xTFJwcdSbTFFgeHUhw989AhrLS0vu4UBNEGnjGvxvPDHJyYIywCtHmrTnHx5oYIt1p0nxhHALsYA/s1600/floor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHkjll5e_wbyz58akD3S3fkPRUkVdcPvzatAZeSv_PxCZw44T8FjCNl8LtRxXKiU_xTFJwcdSbTFFgeHUhw989AhrLS0vu4UBNEGnjGvxvPDHJyYIywCtHmrTnHx5oYIt1p0nxhHALsYA/s1600/floor.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Floor full of autumn leaves</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK_JLnLt6ol-cXWEVCVcoxuRQBLxA_cVIhNFgs8cpAl0LS0jgDMS3KDxvSJSayUlW5LgTML2nzBd54WtImGrNB3b1qKf0h0aQAacIzMW6_qCo4pd7w-Um6IHF3LIiH-CvWnrTxGbTC5d-t/s1600/nikko+bridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK_JLnLt6ol-cXWEVCVcoxuRQBLxA_cVIhNFgs8cpAl0LS0jgDMS3KDxvSJSayUlW5LgTML2nzBd54WtImGrNB3b1qKf0h0aQAacIzMW6_qCo4pd7w-Um6IHF3LIiH-CvWnrTxGbTC5d-t/s1600/nikko+bridge.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The famous bridge in Nikko, Shinkyo bridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW4eS6w-V5YDiY6WAN0DZNsk_CK_gHZEyt9WOMmvCM4VhrlufWCsTqBKM0jmr-W-erCUUtG3OZTTgBdN8awss6508wK4j8pX1yeXrGDH_xmNzeudepHh7dyLFbx_09RwLvBOD2vLMFZztK/s1600/waterfall2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW4eS6w-V5YDiY6WAN0DZNsk_CK_gHZEyt9WOMmvCM4VhrlufWCsTqBKM0jmr-W-erCUUtG3OZTTgBdN8awss6508wK4j8pX1yeXrGDH_xmNzeudepHh7dyLFbx_09RwLvBOD2vLMFZztK/s1600/waterfall2.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kegon waterfall at Nikko</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsNQ40Ma0xFlkS1YH3fHXhqMSXGeDWaDt0U876jja7rv_XNXiS7LyM53lRWY1P0C7TAZPswsdqVqhRAs7Sc8Cpvi3PKjj8WXOKnnOuZXrIoPTbeqDws_U_mOAR913ModtEN6w69uT74t03/s1600/tree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsNQ40Ma0xFlkS1YH3fHXhqMSXGeDWaDt0U876jja7rv_XNXiS7LyM53lRWY1P0C7TAZPswsdqVqhRAs7Sc8Cpvi3PKjj8WXOKnnOuZXrIoPTbeqDws_U_mOAR913ModtEN6w69uT74t03/s1600/tree.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So nice</td></tr>
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wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500428693772901553.post-32371010129255417312015-01-20T17:20:00.001+08:002015-01-21T11:35:05.290+08:00What Snacks to Buy in Japan, or At Least What I Bought<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0yHYEO0MvWDJvbmnmHos-ZtckHMTxbwnc2My5siQZ8Eje7QD4WAzfIpMRXspU2ZI2V_GZlDxeA2NPxXDPo1kXlMqZ3-rKIPjYf_jknZ2DQmkS8ZXXYGROTEQPkc23FxBiR0KngmjMrX8F/s1600/summary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0yHYEO0MvWDJvbmnmHos-ZtckHMTxbwnc2My5siQZ8Eje7QD4WAzfIpMRXspU2ZI2V_GZlDxeA2NPxXDPo1kXlMqZ3-rKIPjYf_jknZ2DQmkS8ZXXYGROTEQPkc23FxBiR0KngmjMrX8F/s1600/summary.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">my haul from Japan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I kind of compile a list of food stuff that I bought from my two trips to Japan. Can't say I am the expert in this but I kind of observed and see what other tourists bought, haha.<br />
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The list goes like this:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVuchuKOE18gFnT5fQxU4_FMmIv5RVS-42T6YMYbLpH4DqH3MoTBWaZQExRy4W8qQkCWz6h7vHffvGj-a6S8e_T38ySCtCU4id8UpKuQ5XB4WiUHMd7NnObDrwybjEG8rt2VXlqfW0W8Y/s1600/photo+4.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVuchuKOE18gFnT5fQxU4_FMmIv5RVS-42T6YMYbLpH4DqH3MoTBWaZQExRy4W8qQkCWz6h7vHffvGj-a6S8e_T38ySCtCU4id8UpKuQ5XB4WiUHMd7NnObDrwybjEG8rt2VXlqfW0W8Y/s1600/photo+4.PNG" height="400" width="287" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Many flavours of Tokyo Banana</td></tr>
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<b>1. Tokyo banana</b><br />
This one I totally went crazy the last time I went to Tokyo. Story goes like this. I first saw someone holding the tokyo banana bag when I was in Kansai airport and almost everyone was holding one. So I came back and googled. The next time I went to Tokyo, I sapu so many boxes but mostly for other people la but I think I bought almost 10 boxes. There is one flavour only available at Tokyo skytree. We walked all the way there. Regretted didn't buy more. And I kept a few in the fridge to extend the shelf life which is usually a week. Both the hot and cold version taste very good.<br />
Verdict: Highly recommend and it comes in many flavours<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji-WoJYh9Bi0riHvTUKgvq3Ob-IH_Bk7TvG0xwiASh9JLuWRyU9Uva7TWApSAMKiCbfZky8XlBNBli0fdapLVL5oJhlK0kkQUgvionLIN3jngNyUPARs1YL29Uc9wHBiIyeB0jaTt7VS9u/s1600/Kit-Kat-Japan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji-WoJYh9Bi0riHvTUKgvq3Ob-IH_Bk7TvG0xwiASh9JLuWRyU9Uva7TWApSAMKiCbfZky8XlBNBli0fdapLVL5oJhlK0kkQUgvionLIN3jngNyUPARs1YL29Uc9wHBiIyeB0jaTt7VS9u/s1600/Kit-Kat-Japan.jpg" height="280" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The many Kit Kat universe<br />
credit to japanverse</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>2. Kit Kat</b><br />
I bought three boxes in Osaka with green tea, sakura and hokkaido red bean. Came back to Malaysia and saw these flavours, I can get in Sukiya, sigh..waste my effort in carrying. So I googled other flavours and bought a lot more in Tokyo, this time in smaller packs as I was not planning to give anyone, haha.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPuFmpKfR3EuHoC2-ioZ31C8De0jd84R9K40YN5WxV1XHmfUp2PNxU1NBR9XIalecheitSW_fmg9IW3epRrgA5vMBoopn1lrMui9g2afqSVjM4v11nWtkjaoxzTMnfG3RTe7e4JLWchBIh/s320/GX0EX.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPuFmpKfR3EuHoC2-ioZ31C8De0jd84R9K40YN5WxV1XHmfUp2PNxU1NBR9XIalecheitSW_fmg9IW3epRrgA5vMBoopn1lrMui9g2afqSVjM4v11nWtkjaoxzTMnfG3RTe7e4JLWchBIh/s320/GX0EX.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo credit to Cheryltay</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<b>3. Potato Farm chips</b><br />
This by far the best chips I ever tasted. Period. Much much better than Mcd fries, haha<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyK-Am9LHvpRsf7kO4GyPbQONfnsC7bJNIeVxBnlMo7SyhEu9VpagUtGIVc0JgcvOaQhMHi0IGSG3Hn2LLwIyd_aiojTdLxMqvpnuxO3IjjxWKhr_q2Q-NgTwhQw9H7EhzRfz2BoREpKI_/s1600/yatsuhashi-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyK-Am9LHvpRsf7kO4GyPbQONfnsC7bJNIeVxBnlMo7SyhEu9VpagUtGIVc0JgcvOaQhMHi0IGSG3Hn2LLwIyd_aiojTdLxMqvpnuxO3IjjxWKhr_q2Q-NgTwhQw9H7EhzRfz2BoREpKI_/s1600/yatsuhashi-4.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yatsuhashi<br />
photo credit to Shizuokagourmet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>4. Japanese mochi</b><br />
I prefer the one I got from Kyoto called Yatsuhashi, shaped like a triangle. I got this a lot when I was in Kyoto last time. The normal round balls mochi were kind of too sweet for me.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieXBWCuXOuNQ31vZIwF8QkNYBymc96HHFvV8VpJ7YbFFYFqBqvPiUpxS8zWclNuLddY7r3HkGE0Z85_MhSQt1V48q0FakSpSVLyaQ2aKN1CIy9VxlH6zr7N3t2YqDNjZuTCEMTul8sp7uB/s1600/pocky03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieXBWCuXOuNQ31vZIwF8QkNYBymc96HHFvV8VpJ7YbFFYFqBqvPiUpxS8zWclNuLddY7r3HkGE0Z85_MhSQt1V48q0FakSpSVLyaQ2aKN1CIy9VxlH6zr7N3t2YqDNjZuTCEMTul8sp7uB/s1600/pocky03.jpg" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">check out all the flavours<br />
credit to japanstyle.info</td></tr>
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<b>5. Pocky</b><br />
Again, it's available in Malaysia but for the different flavours you can't get here.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_a4sR8RLsIDZkL4Ke7im_6RxcubCQQpK7p1E9qwFPbrWcLCPP4vEY0oTyf_9DxrHZrGtI_jqhkZaqisJbAmQPBItuSDEPdOE8XjUM2ti3C1kESRssywP6Pda4XhQoaNjZAeZCVxvw0AG/s300/royceMildCacao.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_a4sR8RLsIDZkL4Ke7im_6RxcubCQQpK7p1E9qwFPbrWcLCPP4vEY0oTyf_9DxrHZrGtI_jqhkZaqisJbAmQPBItuSDEPdOE8XjUM2ti3C1kESRssywP6Pda4XhQoaNjZAeZCVxvw0AG/s300/royceMildCacao.jpg" height="200" style="cursor: move;" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMoF5a0GBxbQ96qZw9jYyiiK0ZfuaG1yIiDvlaPTFfqAScAzl4gkpwz28Ovq2MP958oaNBlloRfHkkwY05KO8erMQJ5CBXRWwaMXSFGCeKZEBnoeAxCm7qOueGyKDU6u28VX35V3IH5uWW/s1600/royce4-300x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMoF5a0GBxbQ96qZw9jYyiiK0ZfuaG1yIiDvlaPTFfqAScAzl4gkpwz28Ovq2MP958oaNBlloRfHkkwY05KO8erMQJ5CBXRWwaMXSFGCeKZEBnoeAxCm7qOueGyKDU6u28VX35V3IH5uWW/s1600/royce4-300x300.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
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<b>6. Royce chocolate and potatochips</b><br />
I got this again because I saw some air stewardess rushing into the tax free shop in Haneda airport and grabbed so many. I asked one of them, "Is this good (referring to the chocolate)?" She replied, "Royce is the best chocolate in Japan." Needless to say, I was sold and bought one pack home. Had to wrapped it with ice pack to prevent from melting. And not forgetting the very unique potatochips in chocolate. Fattening but so addictive!<br />
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wjingyihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815423097786874284noreply@blogger.com0