Top Travel Destinations for 2018: World

Posted on January 17, 2018 by memoriesandsuch

Trip Advisor comes up with a list of top travel destinations at the start of each year for that year and I really look out for these lists. It’s super helpful to me when planning my holiday for the year (and I also know which destinations I should avoid that year because it will be overcrowded and overpriced!).

For 2018, the top 25 destinations in the world are:

1. Bali, Indonesia

2. London, United Kingdom

3. Paris, France

4. Rome, Italy

5. New York City, United States of America

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6. Crete, Greece

7. Barcelona, Spain

8. Siam Reap, Cambodia

9. Prague, Czech Republic

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10. Phuket, Thailand

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11. Istanbul, Turkey

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12. Jamaica

13. Hoi An, Vietnam

14. St. Petersberg, Russia

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15. Roatan, Bay Islands

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16. Marrakech, Morrocco

17. Ambergris Caye, Belize Cayes

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18. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

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19. St. Martin, Saint Maarten destinoplayadelcarmen_tcm55-176480

20. Palya del Carmen, Mexico

21. Dubai, United Arab Emirates

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22. Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

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23. Kathmandu, Nepal

24. Bora Bora, Society Islands

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25. Cusco, Peru

Some of these places are there almost every year and some are already on my bucket list. Some places, I’m hearing for the first time so these will go on my bucket list after more research. Click the link to see the full list available on Trip Advisor

Trip Advisor also does individual continents, of which I will do Asia in more depth in a later post.

Disclaimer: Most photos are from the WordPress free photos. Siam Reap is a personal photo. For the other photos, the links are embedded in the name of the destination. Crete, Phuket, Istanbul, Jamaica, Roatan, Marrakech, Ambergris Caye, Rio de Janerio, St. Martin, Palya del Carmen, Grand Cayman, Kathmandu, Cusco

Chillin in Batam Part 2

Posted on June 23, 2017 by memoriesandsuch

Part 1

The South entrance of Nagoya Hill Mall

We dumped our stuff in the hotel room and decided to explore the Nagoya Hill Mall and also grab some lunch since it was almost noon in Batam, which meant it was 1 pm in Singapore and our stomachs were growling with hunger. After asking the hotel reception the best way to the mall, we reached there and entered by what we later learnt was the south entrance. This entrance is right at the small alleyway which houses a number of spas and massage parlours. It was also here that there was an A&W restaurant, but both BB & GG were not interested in the root beer which was no longer available in Singapore. They said they’ve had it before and that it tasted like toothpaste!!

Food Street on the first floor

We entered the mall and walked to the first floor which was like a food street with many food stalls and restaurants. After walking the length of the food street, we realised we could not eat anywhere as none had vegetarian options and we ended up at Pizza Hut which was our last choice place to eat. There was not much option at Pizza Hut also, so we ended with some pizza, garlic bread, waffles etc which didn’t really fill our stomach.

After lunch, we walked around the mall and brought some manga toys for GG, then some fidget spinners for both BB & GG and then while walking, saw a shop selling some fake bags. The children brought some backpacks and I got a fake Longchamp bag. The quality was quite good and for the price (around SGD 10) quite worth it. After that we went to see the theatre, there was just The Mummy and Pirates of the Caribbean running so opted not to see at the moment. Then decided to explore the mall more and went into their anchor department store, Matahari. Since it was the month of Ramadhan, the store was running a lot of promotions and tee shirts were on a buy one get one offer.

Another anchor tenant was a hypermarket called Hypermart where we went next to stock up on water and some snacks and drinks and also check out what was available. After that we were quite knackered, so decided to stop for some coffee for the adults and bubble tea for the children. After this was time to spend money on massages, one of the big reasons to come to Batam. While having coffee, I looked around and saw a spa called Thai Odyssey.

A cute elephant at Thai Odyssey Spa

I remember reading some good reviews about Thai Odyssey, which is an upscale spa in Malaysia so decided to do our first massage there. We all wanted a foot massage, so went for the 60 minutes one which cost Rp 180,000 each. They started with washing our legs and then giving us slippers to wear. After that, we were asked to put our bags (except handbags) into a locker, the keys to which was handed to me. Then we were asked to change our bottoms to their own which would help them massage. Then we went to the massage room and they served us some ginger tea after which the actual massage started. We were also offered some eye shades if we wanted to relax. The massage was great but at Batam prices, slightly expensive. We walked back to the hotel to relax a bit before venturing out for dinner.

The handles in the cupboards at the ‘pantry’ area of our room, which I was very taken up by

Back at the hotel, S rested and slept awhile and the children and I chilled and watched some videos. Sometime slightly before 6 pm, we left to try and find an Indian restaurant I had found was close to the mall. The restaurant is called Taj Indian Delight and I thought we could reach it from the other side of the mall. You exit from the side of J.CO and get out of the mall completely. Walk to Nagoya Hill hotel and at the main road there, turn left. Walk for around 5 minutes and at the traffic light, cross the road. At this point, you see the road turns right. Just follow the road and at this turning, you see the restaurant. We had a nice Indian meal there. All of us took the Bombay Meal which included one chapati, a huge bowl of rice, a small cup of aloo jeera, a soup bowl full of Dal fry, a soup bowl full of chana masala and a papad. They also gave us a small cup of mango ginger pickle. The portions were quite generous and the meal came to approximately SGD 6 per person, inclusive of a drink each.

The next day, all of us woke up early despite being on a holiday and so went for an early breakfast which was a big disappointment to us. We know that usually in hotel buffet breakfasts, we can probably eat around 30% of the food available, but here, we could eat less than 10% given that there was hardly any options which were vegetarian friendly.

We reached the mall around 10 am and started looking for a spa which seemed wallet friendly. We chanced upon Eksa Spa and Wellness which also had good reviews on Trip Advisor and so when we went in and checked, we found the rates for a massage seemed reasonable and so S and I did the deep tissue massage for one hour. The price stated was Rp 170,000 per person which became Rp 187,000 per person when they added the taxes. During the massage, we had to disrobe except for underwear and they give women a sarong to wear while guys get a pair of pants. The massage area is actually a screened-off area and we got the ‘couple room’. The massage started with some dry massage and then the therapist started using some oil to do really deep and hard massage. It was quite good and after the massage, we were given some delicious ginger tea.

Post massage we went into the mall and looked for a nail place for BB and me to do a pedicure. Found one near the movie theatre. The cost for a classic pedicure was Rp 98,000 per person and while we were doing it, the boys went to find out the next show timing and then play some arcade games nearby. After the pedicure, we went to look for them and it was time for lunch which we did at the same Indian place we had dinner. After lunch, we decided to go and see The Mummy. We had two Rp 30,000 vouchers from Matahari from the previous day so this meant two tickets were free and we only paid Rp 60,000 for four movie tickets (SGD 1.50 per person). We were tired by the time the movie ended, but I didn’t want to go back to the hotel because knowing myself, I wouldn’t come back if I did that. So I decided to go for a facial and before that we finished all our shopping. GG decided to wait for me while BB and S went back to the hotel to keep back the things.

I did the facial at Eksa again. It was some whitening and hydrating facial for dry skin. The therapist started with cleansing my face and then a scrub was applied. After that, she applied some toner and then used some vacuum thingy to suck the pores and blackheads. I have like a gazillion pores and blackheads and this was not painful at all. She then next extracted the blackheads using the blackhead extractor and I can say she was quite skilled as I hardly felt any pain at all. I am usually in tears at this point in a facial and there are times I want to ask the therapist to just give up and that I will live with the blackheads. But she did it in such a way it didn’t pain at all, even at the most which is the worst area. Next she toned it and started massaging my face which was quite wonderful. After the massage was some sort of a metal which she said was a high frequency machine. After this she put in a mask and waited for it to dry. While drying, she also massaged my neck and shoulders. After the mask dried, she peeled it off and then applied serum and moisturiser. Then a drink of ginger tea and I was done.

After dinner at the Indian restaurant again and a leisurely walk back to the hotel, we asked our hotel reception to see if we could change our ferry tickets to an earlier one. This was because our helper was sick in Singapore and I wanted to go earlier to see if she needed to see a doctor. I had taken her to the doctor before our trip, but during my daily calls to her, she still sounded sick, hence the decision to go earlier. We were told we would have to pay Rp 30,000 per person since they had already issued the boarding pass to us when we booked online. Initially we were not sure, but the next day, we decided to go ahead with paying the fee and leaving earlier.

On our last day in Batam, we went back to the mall after a slightly late breakfast and brought some o their famous layer cakes and honeycomb cakes to take back home. Then came back to the hotel and after making sure we had left nothing, checked out and took a hotel taxi to the ferry terminal. The process to change the boarding passes at the ferry terminal was quite simple and since we still had an hour to boarding, we decided to check out the mall next to the terminal to catch a bite to eat before boarding. The ferry going back home was a single decker one and we sat in the back. Our bags were kept in the luggage rack at the entrance of the ferry and I was a bit worried about them since it was not locked and Singapore has very strict drug laws and so made some check the luggage periodically. So that ended our two day holiday in Batam. I am quite tempted to make day trips there, especially to do some spa treatments as they are cheap compared to Singapore as well as shop in the hypermarkets where some household goods and toiletries are a real steal if compared to stores here.

Chillin in Batam

Posted on June 21, 2017 by memoriesandsuch

Superstar Gemini berthed at the Ferry Terminal

In all the years of living in Singapore, I’ve never even considered Batam which is just an hour’s ferry ride from Singapore as a possible holiday destination. In fact, newspaper articles I’ve read over the years about old men having second wives on the island, made the whole place seem sleazy in my eyes. Even S, who has lived his whole life in Singapore has never been there.

Then when we decided on a holiday this June, S could only take a few days because of his schedule and because of his and children’s schedules, this was the only few days we could go on a holiday. Since we didn’t have a lot of time, we decided to go to either Malaysia or Indonesia and didn’t want to spend a lot of time travelling. We considered Melaka or Kuala Lumpur but we’ve been there before and so it didn’t enthuse anyone. So we decided to try the Bintan or Batam islands in Indonesia’s Riau province, which are an hour’s ferry ride away. Bintan is mostly a resort island and since we’re not beach people with interests in watersports, we decided to give Bintan a miss this time and zoomed into Batam.

I wanted a holiday where I can just chill and not rush from one tourist site to another. Usually, I am the opposite, wanting to maximise our holiday and I meticulously research places to see and do. I did the same here too, but there was really nothing much to see, so we decided to have a lazy holiday.

I had decided on the Harris Hotel near the Ferry Terminal as the reviews were quite good for the hotel. But just as I was about to confirm the hotel, I had a thought to check out places to eat near the hotel, when I found that there was nothing which was a walkable distance. We would have to take taxis everywhere and this was something I was not too keen on since taxis are not metered in Batam and we didn’t have a local cell phone or data to call for any metered taxi or even Uber. So I decided against Harris and checked out other areas. I looked at the Nagoya Hill area which had the biggest mall in Batam and so we could definitely find something to eat. I found an Indian place at a walking distance from the mall and so started looking at hotels close to the mall. There are many hotels there, and I chose based on reviews and price and decided on Harmoni Suites hotel which was a 5-7 minute walk from the mall and a 10-minute walk to the eating place.

I booked the hotel through Agoda and we got the room for around S$50 per night, which was a decent rate for a space we would hardly use. The location is great though and except for two occasions, (to and from the Ferry Centre), we didn’t use any taxi at all.

Another Sindo Ferry vessel which came in just as we left the ferry berth

I also booked our ferry tickets online and used Sindo Ferry. There are a few ferry operators who ply between Singapore and Batam and most have similar reviews and safety records. I just chose one which had the times we wanted. The tickets cost us around S$50 for a return ticket for one person and since we booked online, our boarding passes were issued along with the ticket. If you already have the boarding pass, you need to be at the terminal only 30 minutes before time, otherwise, you may have to be there almost 60-70 minutes earlier. This is because the ferries do not have assigned seating and if you are travelling as a family and get there late, you may not be able to sit together.

We reached the ferry terminal around 40 minutes before departure time because of traffic and roadworks on the way. But our taxi driver was very nice and dropped us off very close to the escalator leading to the departure area. Since we went on a weekday morning, immigration was a breeze and even in the departure lounge, we realised that there were not many people travelling that day. We saw some people lining up around 10 minutes to departure and I did too, over S’ objections not to waste time standing!

Sentosa and Resorts World Sentosa as we left the Ferry Terminal

There were less than half the seats taken up in the ferry and the one we went in was a double-decker one. Initially, we were sitting on the lower deck, but S went up and saw that the upper deck was better, so we moved there too. Luggage has to be stored on the bottom deck. If you are travelling with small bags (think cabin baggage size), then you can carry it with you on board, but larger and odd-sized luggage need to be checked in.

The ferry even had in-flight instructions, just like an airline. We left with Sentosa on our left and the Singapore skyline on our right. The ferry name was Queen Star 5. At some point, S and I went to the open deck (probably meant for smokers) and took pictures of the receding Singapore skyline with the froth the ferry left behind. It was so windy and thrilling but both the children didn’t want to do it. At most points of the trip, we could still see the Singapore skyline, though it looked slightly as if it is shrouded in haze.

Our first view of Batam with the ferry terminal and immigration building in the foreground

Immigration at Batam was a breeze since the ferry hardly had any passengers. I had heard stories about Batam immigration deporting people back to Singapore for being noisy, so had prepped BB & GG to be quiet and not use their headphones while queueing, but perhaps because it was so fast, we didn’t have anyone asking anyone in the line to shut up. We came out and took a taxi from the counter who told us it will be IDR 70,000.

Outside of immigration, we took a taxi from the counter who told us it will be IDR 70,000 to our hotel. It’s probably more expensive, but since we don’t know any better, we let it slide. On the way to the hotel, my first thoughts about Batam reminded me of Malaysia, maybe Singapore some 30 years back? Roads are like those in India, slightly pot-holed. Lots of hotels and inns here, probably a bustling Singapore holidaying population.

We stayed at the Harmoni Suites which was a 7-10 minute walk to the Nagoya Hill Shopping Mall. We’d asked for early check-in and we go it when we reached the hotel around 11:30 am. We’d asked for a room away from the road since there’s a mosque opposite the hotel and since this was the Ramadan period, we didn’t want the prayers being broadcast disturb us. What we got were adjoining rooms which faced the breakfast buffet area. After settling in, we decided to walk to the mall to grab some lunch.

This is part one, more to come on Friday….

Wanderlust takes over….

Posted on December 21, 2016 by memoriesandsuch

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Growing up, as a little girl, one of my favourite books was my copy of the world atlas. If I remember, I had a fairly old one (it should have been at least a decade or so old by then), it actually showed Jakarta as Djakarta, which was the Dutch spelling, but I loved the book. I’d spend hours reading the various maps and learning the names of all the countries in the world as well as their capitals and major cities. Later on in school, Geography became one of my favourite subjects and I loved the map work which came with it, so much that my classmates would wait for me to complete my work just so they could copy it off me!

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Source – That’s a life goal for sure….

What’s the above paragraph leading to? I just saw TripAdvisor’s best destinations of 2016 and this has ignited the wanderlust in me. In fact, the other day S and I were talking about trips to Europe and the States. We have family in both places and a chance to visit these countries would be awesome. We just need to start saving up, with four adults, airfare alone will be a huge expense.

Throwback to Siam Reap

Back to the best destination list – London, UK has been declared the best in the world and Siam Reap, Cambodia the best in Asia. London’s already on my bucket list and now that travel has become a lot easier for us as a family, we aim to see a lot more of this region as well as Europe and America. Within Asia, I really want to visit Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Japan and other smaller countries.

I guess this is what happens when you come back from a holiday, you start planning for the next one….

I’d Love to Visit….Mount Kailash and Manasarovar Lake

Posted on October 21, 2016 by memoriesandsuch

I just finished reading Colin Thubron’s ‘To a Mountain in Tibet’ and the book reignited one of my life bucket lists. The book is an account of his travel from Kathmandu to the foothills of the sacred and mystic mount Kailash, which is revered by Hindus , Buddhists, Jains and the followers of the Bon religion. Hindus believe that Kailash is the earthly incarnation of the mystical mount Meru, which is the supposed to be the centre of the universe in Hindu mythology. Buddhists and Jains also believe in the sanctity of mount Meru and therefore Mount Kailash and so for members of all three religions, circumambulating or doing a parikrama of the mountain will wash off all sins. Hindus also believe that Lord Shiva, the Destroyer, one of the three Gods who form the trinity of the Hindu pantheon, also resides at the top of Mount Kailash.

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Mount Kailash Parikrama Map. Source

This post is neither about the book nor about Hindu mythology. What it is instead is about Mount Kailash and Manasarovar Lake. Ever since I’ve heard of these two places, I want to go there. Both are in Tibet, which is now in China. But most importantly, both are at very high altitudes, around 15,000 feet above sea level. For someone born, brought up and living in areas which are at sea level, I need to be extremely fit to attempt climbing this high, for my lungs to be able to cope. I still want to do this, preferably before I am too old, but one can only hope.

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Mount Kailash is extremely ancient, even predating the Himalayas according to the book. The mountain is probably an island in the ancient Sea of Tethys which was what the whole Tibetan plateau was before the Indian subcontinent (India was a continent then) collided with what is now the rest of Asia, the tectonic shift that was caused gave birth to the Himalayas. It is said, even today, fossils of marine animals can be found in Tibet. The four faces of the mountain also correspond to the four cardinal points and four of India’s rivers, Ganges, Sutlej, Brahmaputra and Indus also originate close to the base of the mountain.

North face of Mount Kailash Source

The Indian government has a lottery where certain people get selected for the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra which is a pilgrimage officially sanctioned by the government and which enters Tibet through India. This trip is a longish one, through Himachal Pradesh and so pilgrims have a chance to slowly acclimatise themselves for the high altitudes. But I’ve heard that it’s quite difficult to get into this pilgrimage and also many people drop out during the process. You can also do this via private operators, most who are based in Nepal. I understand they fly you directly to Tibet from Kathmandu (huge amounts of elevations in altitudes in a matter of hours) and then you use vehicles to get as far as you can, and the balance is done by foot.

Manasarovar Lake with Mount Kailash in the background. Source

Manasarovar Lake and Rakshas Tal are two lakes found in the base of the Kailash Mountains. They lie around 15,000 feet above sea level. Manasarovar is a fresh water lake, probably one of the largest at that elevation. Rakshas Tal, which lies next to it is, however, a salt-water lake and there’s a natural channel which connects the two of them. Hindu mythology has this lake as a manifestation of Lord Brahma’s mind and so is quite sacred. It is said, anyone drinking the water of this lake will be cleansed from sin over a hundred lifetimes.

Yam Dwar or Lord Yama’s Door. Source

The first step or the start of the parikrama is a small door called Yama Dwar or Lord Yama’s door. Lord Yama is the Lord of Death (like the Grim Reaper in western thought) and the reasoning is that by going through this door, you get reborn. Another reason is that all of us have sinned at some point in time in life and it’s only a newborn who is pure of heart. So when you are reborn, you become pure and can complete the circuit without much difficulty.

Gouri Kund Source

Then you start the parikrama. It is said a very fit person can complete it in 15-16 hours, but realistically speaking, for a normal person, not used to the high altitude and thin air, it should take at least two to three days to complete it, taking into account frequent rest stops on the way plus a camp at night. The average altitude for the parikrama is around 16,500 feet. You also see the Gouri Kund along the parikrama. This freshwater lake can be found during your descent from the Dolma Pass and is said to be a sacred place where Goddess Parvati seduced her husband and also the place where the Sky Dancers or Dakhinis in Tibetan mythology play and take bath in.

I loved writing this post and this has really allowed me to live through a virtual pilgrimage. I hope that in the near future before I am too old, I can actually do this physically as opposed to living it virtually!

Memories and Such

Memories of a very ordinary life

Category Archives: Travel