The Gal Travels

Bali holds a charm that draws many back to visit time again. And for me, this trip to Bali is all about cafe hopping, beach clubs and massage. I have come to learn that the art of cafe hopping is never to have a full meal but to try their best dish or a portion of it so that one would still have stomach space for the next cafe. Here's some of the cafes I visited in my last trip to Bali: The Bistrot Jalan Kayu Aya No.117, Seminyak, Kuta Kabupaten Badung, Bali 80361, Indonesia When you step into this cafe, you can't help but saying "WOW". It has super high ceilings, a long grand flight of stairs and a huge chandelier greeting you. I almost felt like I was stepping into an old grand french house with a rustic countryside feel. After a long walk along Seminyak, this is a perfect place to escape from the heat outdoors. I was on a clean eating diet then, and had a Caesar Salad. Perfectly healthy with grilled chicken and wiggly egg on a bed of lettuce.

I have done quite a bit of hotel hopping in London and the rest of United Kingdom recently. It is one of those once in a life time road trips to explore a country in depth and wonder about the history and how people lived through the years. The cities I covered in this road trip included hotels in London, Cardiff, Liverpool, Edinburgh, and York. Here is a review of each of them. Hilton London Angel Islington, London My first hotel when I arrived in London. It was a new area for me, and though I was initially hesitant about this suburb, turned out to be quite a lovely gem. Hilton London Angel Islington though relatively quiet with a basic lobby area, has spacious modern and clean rooms, perfect after a long trip flying in from Singapore. The best thing about staying in Angel is that it is a food hub with unlimited choices of restaurants serving different cuisines along the street. You would never go hungry here! It is also a cozy neighborhood that does not have huge loads of people ...

Having been to Bangkok countless of times, this was one trip that I wanted to take my time to enjoy Bangkok, instead of rushing from one place to another as what most would normally do. My days were planned around checking out cafes that I had not been too, a bit of shopping, and yes, massage. I also managed to use the gym in the mornings which was a huge plus. I think what makes each trip to Bangkok unique, as with repeated trips to the same place would be to stay in a different area each time, so that I can explore a little more in depth of a particular area. This time I stayed near the popular EmQuartier shopping mall. It took me a while to figure out the mall layout. It is divided into 2 blocks with one housing the luxurious brands and the other was a mix of shops. While most of the dining options is found on the top floors with great views of the cascading waterfall set in the backdrop of lush foliage, one can also find several cafes scattered around.

Located at the Changi Business Park, Capri by Fraser Singapore is popular with executives working in the area during the week. The area transforms into a shopping hub for locals over the weekend as  it is just next to the Singapore Expo where different major retailers run outlet sales often as well as the Changi Shopping Point, a mall with primarily outlet stores. Though a distance away from Orchard Road, this is where you would shop if you are into cheap sporting gear as sports brand outlets like New balance, ASICS, Puma, Crocs are just some of the brands you would find. In addition, supermarkets like FairPrice Xtra, discount stores like Daiso are also found just steps away from the hotel. What I like being located to shops is that when you are tired, just head back to rest, together with your purchases, and when ready, step out again!

Novotel on Stevens is located just off Orchard Road. The hotel provides a free shuttle service to Orchard Road which is a great idea as there is nothing around the neighborhood to see apart from exclusive condos and elite schools. The wonderful thing about Novotel on Stevens is the luxurious you experience you get when you step into the hotel, right through the rooms, gym and pool. It is a pleasant hotel to stay in and chill out. My favorite places outside of the room is the gym as well as the lap pool. What was lacking in hotel ie food choices is easily made up with a short trip to Orchard Road.

It is less then a year and I am back at Sydney, Australia. This time I had to choose a hotel that was right in the heart of CBD so that I would not have to take to much of public transport, rather just walk from building to building for my meetings. I noticed that Sydney CBD is split by Town Hall station. Anything from Town Hall towards Chinatown is where the hub of activity is after office hours. Whereas anything upwards from Martin Place towards Circular Quay was mostly offices, crowded during the day, quiet in the night, with little food options. If I had a choice again, I would stay right at Town Hall station so that it would not be so difficulty finding a reasonably priced place to dine after work hours. I arrived on the weekend before my work week to have a feel of Sydney city and walk around a bit to visit some of my favorite places. The first night on arrival, I stayed at Amora Hotel Jamison Sydney. It is a lovely hotel to stay, though a little shabby in the lobby, the r...