[12.10.2009] We didn't leave Montmartre at all today which was fine with me. All we had planned was to explore the area and find some cute shops to buy our souvenirs. We didn't get the memo that most stores are closed on Mondays so we were pretty disappointed with our shopping selection but found some shops that were open. We were hungry since Soapy's early morning pastry shopping didn't hold us over. I ate half a chocolate croissant this morning (thanks Soapy!) and it was delicious! Extremely flakey and buttery just the way croissants should be. I wonder if the French eat them daintily without getting crumbs and flakes all over themselves like I do =/ Later after walking around a bit, we got hungry again and I halved a pizza-like sandwich thing from a nearby patisserie and ate a mille feuil (??) aka some thousand layer pastry with flakey dense crusts layered with creme. cést bon. We wandered down rue abbesses or abscess street as we call it haha.
Then after more wandering and window shopping the closed stores, we went back to the apartment to hang out, watch pop music videos and take a nap. After waking up and watching more pop videos we left the apartment to do some grocery shopping for dinner where I bought my cannelloni in a box (4,50E). The grocery store was overwhelming because it was busy and extremely small. Most of the French I spoke today was "pardon" or "escuse moi".. I haven't learned much since I came here haha. Pui asked the produce guy for some grapes by pointing to the green grapes and saying one. Then he pulled off a grape and said one? Hahahah.. then she was like noo one whole then he pulled a HUGE bunch of grapes hahah. I bet he had the time of his life teasing her.. poor Pui.
After heating up dinner in our "trusty" microwave in 4 different heat settings, we ate our gummy cheesed out lasagna, etc then headed to the laundromat. The laundry place closes at 22h and we got there at about 21h so just enough time to dry my hand-washed clothes and run one load of laundry. When we got there and stuffed our clothes in we were perplexed by the number of holes there were to put detergent in. Apparently there were 2 holes for detergent because one was for the 1st wash or pre-wash and the 2nd was for the "good" wash. We were so confused at first but luckily there was a guy who spoke english and explained it to us... but it was AFTER we dumped all our detergent into the first hole.. The owner lady who was black only spoke French but she felt bad that we put all our soap in the wrong hole and filled our second one with free detergent. She even stayed after until our laundry was completely finished at about 22:10. Verr nice. At about 22:05 the lights turned off and we were sitting in the dark waiting for the last of our clothes to finish its drying cycle. She explained to us that it automatically turns off at that time so it was ok. Cést bon she assured us =) As for laundry prices.. it costs us 4E to use the small washer and 1E per 10 minutes of drying in the jumbo dryer.
Since today was chill day tomorrow we're gonna try to see the last of the sights since we're leaving for Prague on Wednesday morning. We have planned Moulin Rouge and the "I love you wall" in Montmartre then a close up of the eiffel tower and notre dame. Hopefully I can find some more cute stores and paperies that are open tomorrow since its Tuesday..
Anyway, its about 100 here.. Bon soiré =)
Monday, October 12, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
PARIS
[11.10.09] I just finished a delicious pastry from a patisserie nearby.. I have no idea what it was called but its layered with flakey dough and creme. The top part of the pastry was glazed with sugar then topped with strawberries. Cést bon! As of now this is marking the end our day 2 in Paris.. sad that time is going by so fast! I'm beginning to love it here, especially in our neighborhood of Montmartre. The beginning of our Parisian adventure was a very bad impression of the city but its growing on me =)
--NOTE: Let's rewind back to yesterday and how it all went down... also keep in mind I never studied french so I probably have it all wrong... >.<
[10.10.09] As soon as we arrived in Gare du Nord, everything around us was French including the signs. Luckily I can read pictures and we were able to easily find our way to the Metro. The sad thing was that we did not know how to buy our Metro tickets via the machine since that, too, was in French. We ended up buying a pack of 10 metro tickets via the Ticket window where the lady spoke English.. YAY. On our way back to the Metro line, some gypsies asked us for money. The way they asked was weird. "Do you speak English?" If you responded yes, which I did... they show you a paper in English showing their situation and asking for money. I thought it was weird how they just didn't ask me straightaway after I responded I speak English rather than showing me the paper...
Anyway, we got on the line and got off at Chateau Rouge where there were a LOT of Africans. There was a swarm of people attempting to enter the Metro station as we exited and someone shoved me back through the turnstile so I got stuck for a bit in the middle. Did I mention that I was hauling my luggage with me?? I was really scared and hung on to my purse and luggage for dear life. When I finally got out of the station onto the main street, my friends were waiting for me and were wondering where I went since I was just behind them before I got shoved back.
We got lost finding our apartment even though we knew it was by the Sacre Coeur church but we couldn't manage to locate ourselves on the map. When we finally saw signs pointing toward the direction to the church all the streets were uphill and steep so we dragged our luggage up and down 5 or 6 blocks before we got onto the road we were looking for. That totally drained us out so we were happy to finally reach the apartment. However, once we put in the code to the door, we entered only to come across another door which we could not open. The lady who was supposed to meet us could not be contacted until another 10 minutes passed then she finally said she was coming down to meet us.
She was very kind and told us that it was busy because of the wine festival happening at the church later on in the evening. Also we mentioned that we got off Chateau Rouge and she called it Africa. She told us the area that we were staying in has very different parts of it such as "Africa"and "China"and some others I forgot. She showed us around the apartment which is very cute. We are on the 3rd level but luckily there was a lift to bring our luggage up. The lift is the smallest room in the world. It says max capacity is 2 persons but I'd say it only fits one skinny/small person comfortably. I went in the lift last with my luggage and it was so small.. once the elevator doors close then there is barely any light inside as it goes up. I wouldn't recommend it to claustrophobic people. When we get to our floor there are 3 doors, we go into one then there are 2 more doors. One of those doors leads to our apartment. We have to lock both that door and our door when we enter/leave so I feel very safe. It is a hassle though since it takes a lil time. What if there was a real fire coming..? We'd be screwed trying to scramble with our keys to open the doors. Our view from the apartment is spectacular. From one room, we see the back of the Sacre Coeur and from the main room there is a panoramic view of Paris.
After getting settled in we decided to explore the festival happenings. When we were leaving we realized we didn't know how to open the 2nd door to enter the apartment complex without having someone open it for us so we asked the restaurant next door. He showed us that the key had a remote that you touch to a sensor to open it automatically. He laughed after he explained and looked at us... "Japan.. technologie!! China.. technologie!!" Yeah apparently even though we're all asian we don't have the concept of technology lol. The festival was super crowded but exciting. It was right in front of the church and there were people playing music and tents set up selling food and wine all around the church's perimeter. We ordered some street food (7E) and bought some macaroons (100kg = 10E). Our food was delicious and I attempted to go back today, the last day, but they were closed by the time I reached them. I spoke my first French words in France when I ordered my food.. parlais vous englese? Luckily the asian guy serving the food also spoke fluent English and French and I was able to check the ingredients (no fish or peanuts please). He gave us generous portions which we still have leftover in our fridge here.
After we saw enough wine, sweets, meat, bread, and couples making out, we wandered away from the festival to sit down and eat. We found a spot to grub along a fence, listened to some guy play the tetris theme song on a clarinet, and enjoyed the view of the church lit up at night. We wandered a bit around the area and saw some cute shops, cafes and picked up some dessert. Gelato for 2 of my friends and 2 sucre crepes for me and my friend. Crepes were 2,50E and I think was quite a steal. "Un...sucre...crepe..si vous plait?"she went along with my lame french but I was happy. Ling ordered hers by interrupting and putting up 2 fingers. Deux?? Oui. We headed back to our apartment after that and called it a night.
[11.10.09] Today we had the whole day reserved for the Louvre but we took our sweet time getting ready and arrived there via metro around 11pm. The line was long but luckily we didn't wait that long. We ended up getting in line at the museum store to buy tickets so we weren't even sure where the main entrance was. The metro tunnel took us directly to the store entrance which was convenient. The Louvre is enormous, lovely, and exhausting. We went up and down so many stairs there that we didn't care to see Mona Lisa after seeing 2 wings of the museum. We were starving when we first go to the museum so I ate an apple turnover (1,30E) in hopes that it would hold me over until dinner time. Stupid me had a throbbing headache and got fatigued after going up and down so many steps.
After we saw the egyptian artifacts and mummies we wandered around the area and almost everything was closed since it was Sunday. We were in search of some good food (a real meal) that cost less than the fare for food at the museum. We stumbled across a ramen restaurant and ate there. I had shoyu ramen (7,50E) which was pretty good. Still, the price was expensive and a lot more than I would expect to pay for a bowl of ramen. Nonetheless, I was satisfied and reenergized by my bowl of carbs.
We headed back to the Louvre since its a day pass to see the Mona Lisa but we decided to wander the jardin in front of the Louvre instead. They were very beautiful and surprisingly colorful considering the weather. There were a lot of random modern sculptures (gigantic silver heads) put up as well which was weird because it was right next to all these classical statues.. but it was still cool haha. We could see the Arc de Trimophe from the place de concorde (where I bought a sucre crepe for 2,50E again hahah) and decided to walk towards it and shop around Champs de' Elyses. We ended up walking all the way up the street and empty handed b/c everything is brand-name and super pricey. The Louis Vuitton store was 3 stories! We caught the metro and came back to the apartment from there.
We bought some fruits on our way back from the metro station. They were so delicious! Very fresh and even the grapes did not taste sour at all. We bought green ones that were large and round with seeds. After resting for a bit, Soapy and I decided to check out the wine festival one last time before it ended but once we got there they turned off the festival lights. A little disappointed, we decided to wander the area and see what else was open. We saw some extremely cute shops, that were closed, along the way to revisit tomorrow. There were a lot of cafes still open but not that many shops/vendors. We found one patisserie that was still open where I bought my layered pastry/cake and Soapy got a strawberry tart.
Now here I am, pastry devoured and exhausted from walking up and down stairs all day. I think I shall call it a night from here... good night moon. <3
--NOTE: Let's rewind back to yesterday and how it all went down... also keep in mind I never studied french so I probably have it all wrong... >.<
[10.10.09] As soon as we arrived in Gare du Nord, everything around us was French including the signs. Luckily I can read pictures and we were able to easily find our way to the Metro. The sad thing was that we did not know how to buy our Metro tickets via the machine since that, too, was in French. We ended up buying a pack of 10 metro tickets via the Ticket window where the lady spoke English.. YAY. On our way back to the Metro line, some gypsies asked us for money. The way they asked was weird. "Do you speak English?" If you responded yes, which I did... they show you a paper in English showing their situation and asking for money. I thought it was weird how they just didn't ask me straightaway after I responded I speak English rather than showing me the paper...
Anyway, we got on the line and got off at Chateau Rouge where there were a LOT of Africans. There was a swarm of people attempting to enter the Metro station as we exited and someone shoved me back through the turnstile so I got stuck for a bit in the middle. Did I mention that I was hauling my luggage with me?? I was really scared and hung on to my purse and luggage for dear life. When I finally got out of the station onto the main street, my friends were waiting for me and were wondering where I went since I was just behind them before I got shoved back.
We got lost finding our apartment even though we knew it was by the Sacre Coeur church but we couldn't manage to locate ourselves on the map. When we finally saw signs pointing toward the direction to the church all the streets were uphill and steep so we dragged our luggage up and down 5 or 6 blocks before we got onto the road we were looking for. That totally drained us out so we were happy to finally reach the apartment. However, once we put in the code to the door, we entered only to come across another door which we could not open. The lady who was supposed to meet us could not be contacted until another 10 minutes passed then she finally said she was coming down to meet us.
She was very kind and told us that it was busy because of the wine festival happening at the church later on in the evening. Also we mentioned that we got off Chateau Rouge and she called it Africa. She told us the area that we were staying in has very different parts of it such as "Africa"and "China"and some others I forgot. She showed us around the apartment which is very cute. We are on the 3rd level but luckily there was a lift to bring our luggage up. The lift is the smallest room in the world. It says max capacity is 2 persons but I'd say it only fits one skinny/small person comfortably. I went in the lift last with my luggage and it was so small.. once the elevator doors close then there is barely any light inside as it goes up. I wouldn't recommend it to claustrophobic people. When we get to our floor there are 3 doors, we go into one then there are 2 more doors. One of those doors leads to our apartment. We have to lock both that door and our door when we enter/leave so I feel very safe. It is a hassle though since it takes a lil time. What if there was a real fire coming..? We'd be screwed trying to scramble with our keys to open the doors. Our view from the apartment is spectacular. From one room, we see the back of the Sacre Coeur and from the main room there is a panoramic view of Paris.
After getting settled in we decided to explore the festival happenings. When we were leaving we realized we didn't know how to open the 2nd door to enter the apartment complex without having someone open it for us so we asked the restaurant next door. He showed us that the key had a remote that you touch to a sensor to open it automatically. He laughed after he explained and looked at us... "Japan.. technologie!! China.. technologie!!" Yeah apparently even though we're all asian we don't have the concept of technology lol. The festival was super crowded but exciting. It was right in front of the church and there were people playing music and tents set up selling food and wine all around the church's perimeter. We ordered some street food (7E) and bought some macaroons (100kg = 10E). Our food was delicious and I attempted to go back today, the last day, but they were closed by the time I reached them. I spoke my first French words in France when I ordered my food.. parlais vous englese? Luckily the asian guy serving the food also spoke fluent English and French and I was able to check the ingredients (no fish or peanuts please). He gave us generous portions which we still have leftover in our fridge here.
After we saw enough wine, sweets, meat, bread, and couples making out, we wandered away from the festival to sit down and eat. We found a spot to grub along a fence, listened to some guy play the tetris theme song on a clarinet, and enjoyed the view of the church lit up at night. We wandered a bit around the area and saw some cute shops, cafes and picked up some dessert. Gelato for 2 of my friends and 2 sucre crepes for me and my friend. Crepes were 2,50E and I think was quite a steal. "Un...sucre...crepe..si vous plait?"she went along with my lame french but I was happy. Ling ordered hers by interrupting and putting up 2 fingers. Deux?? Oui. We headed back to our apartment after that and called it a night.
[11.10.09] Today we had the whole day reserved for the Louvre but we took our sweet time getting ready and arrived there via metro around 11pm. The line was long but luckily we didn't wait that long. We ended up getting in line at the museum store to buy tickets so we weren't even sure where the main entrance was. The metro tunnel took us directly to the store entrance which was convenient. The Louvre is enormous, lovely, and exhausting. We went up and down so many stairs there that we didn't care to see Mona Lisa after seeing 2 wings of the museum. We were starving when we first go to the museum so I ate an apple turnover (1,30E) in hopes that it would hold me over until dinner time. Stupid me had a throbbing headache and got fatigued after going up and down so many steps.
After we saw the egyptian artifacts and mummies we wandered around the area and almost everything was closed since it was Sunday. We were in search of some good food (a real meal) that cost less than the fare for food at the museum. We stumbled across a ramen restaurant and ate there. I had shoyu ramen (7,50E) which was pretty good. Still, the price was expensive and a lot more than I would expect to pay for a bowl of ramen. Nonetheless, I was satisfied and reenergized by my bowl of carbs.
We headed back to the Louvre since its a day pass to see the Mona Lisa but we decided to wander the jardin in front of the Louvre instead. They were very beautiful and surprisingly colorful considering the weather. There were a lot of random modern sculptures (gigantic silver heads) put up as well which was weird because it was right next to all these classical statues.. but it was still cool haha. We could see the Arc de Trimophe from the place de concorde (where I bought a sucre crepe for 2,50E again hahah) and decided to walk towards it and shop around Champs de' Elyses. We ended up walking all the way up the street and empty handed b/c everything is brand-name and super pricey. The Louis Vuitton store was 3 stories! We caught the metro and came back to the apartment from there.
We bought some fruits on our way back from the metro station. They were so delicious! Very fresh and even the grapes did not taste sour at all. We bought green ones that were large and round with seeds. After resting for a bit, Soapy and I decided to check out the wine festival one last time before it ended but once we got there they turned off the festival lights. A little disappointed, we decided to wander the area and see what else was open. We saw some extremely cute shops, that were closed, along the way to revisit tomorrow. There were a lot of cafes still open but not that many shops/vendors. We found one patisserie that was still open where I bought my layered pastry/cake and Soapy got a strawberry tart.
Now here I am, pastry devoured and exhausted from walking up and down stairs all day. I think I shall call it a night from here... good night moon. <3
Saturday, October 10, 2009
PARIS
ENROUTE TO PARIS:
[10.10.09] We are currently on the EuroStar train leaving London St. Pancras or London's Pancreas =) Sadly, we thought it would be better to just buy our train tickets at the window in person so we could have some flexibility when leaving London. However, when we got there, the cheapest train would leave at 1600 hours when the one we originally planned to take was at 1300. We decided that leaving at 1600 hours would make us arrive in Paris at 1930hrs.. too late. The price we paid for our train ride at 1230 is double the price of the 1600 one but it seemed as we were left with no choice. We ended up just getting a first class ticket for all of us so we could sit together. It comes with a 3-course meal and champagne for 10GBPs more than 2nd class. Sadly, this cuts into the rest of my budget by a lot but I think I'll manage.
I realize I didn't get the chance to blog much about our hotel accommodations. It was decent priced for a decent room. It was clean: bed made, the paint was new, furniture wasn't aged much but the spring bed mattress was horrible and uncomfortable. Also, we had no clock radio so I never knew what time it was unless I asked Soapy since she had her phone on. The bathroom was extremely small but clean. Once you walk into the bathroom, everything is within arms-length. I could probably take a dump, brush my teeth and scrub someone in the shower simultaneously if I wanted. The flusher was a little difficult to maneuver at first since pulling the handle down wasn't enough to make the toilet paper go down the drain. Instead, doing so only made it sink to the bottom. We found out (after freaking out that we couldn't take any #2s in our hotel) that if you hold down the flusher long and with force, everything eventually goes down.
As for checking out of the hotel today, it was no problem. The biggest problem we had was not how large our luggage was but transporting our luggage through the British Transit tunnels and transferring trains. The only lift we came across was when we first got to the station, which then opened its doors to reveal a flight of steps to go down to catch the train. This wasn't too bad. However, when we transferred, or should I say try to transfer, to the Victoria Line, it was closed so we had to go with plan B and transfer 2 more times. We went up and down steps to transfer to different platforms and it was difficult without the assistance of lifts and escalators. Maybe first class is a better ride for us to rest our weary bodies.
Anyway, my overall perception of London?? It's not too bad.. people are generally friendly and I didn't feel like someone was going to pickpocket me. There are a lot of Indians though, I've noticed. At the palace I saw some sort of memorial for a number of East Asia countries since they helped Britain fight in the war. I assume that's probably the reason why the Indian population in London is so large. I feel like I saw enough of London though and I wouldn't mind coming back. I'm a little scared though for Paris since only one out of 4 of us studied French... I know it will be a completely different experience there with the language barrier.
-- RANDOM SIDE NOTE:
We just got the menus for the 1st class train and inside it says their motto is "tread lightly, eat well"... sounds like my kind of motto hahaha. =)
I shall update you all later when I'm in the city of lights... goodbye <33
[10.10.09] We are currently on the EuroStar train leaving London St. Pancras or London's Pancreas =) Sadly, we thought it would be better to just buy our train tickets at the window in person so we could have some flexibility when leaving London. However, when we got there, the cheapest train would leave at 1600 hours when the one we originally planned to take was at 1300. We decided that leaving at 1600 hours would make us arrive in Paris at 1930hrs.. too late. The price we paid for our train ride at 1230 is double the price of the 1600 one but it seemed as we were left with no choice. We ended up just getting a first class ticket for all of us so we could sit together. It comes with a 3-course meal and champagne for 10GBPs more than 2nd class. Sadly, this cuts into the rest of my budget by a lot but I think I'll manage.
I realize I didn't get the chance to blog much about our hotel accommodations. It was decent priced for a decent room. It was clean: bed made, the paint was new, furniture wasn't aged much but the spring bed mattress was horrible and uncomfortable. Also, we had no clock radio so I never knew what time it was unless I asked Soapy since she had her phone on. The bathroom was extremely small but clean. Once you walk into the bathroom, everything is within arms-length. I could probably take a dump, brush my teeth and scrub someone in the shower simultaneously if I wanted. The flusher was a little difficult to maneuver at first since pulling the handle down wasn't enough to make the toilet paper go down the drain. Instead, doing so only made it sink to the bottom. We found out (after freaking out that we couldn't take any #2s in our hotel) that if you hold down the flusher long and with force, everything eventually goes down.
As for checking out of the hotel today, it was no problem. The biggest problem we had was not how large our luggage was but transporting our luggage through the British Transit tunnels and transferring trains. The only lift we came across was when we first got to the station, which then opened its doors to reveal a flight of steps to go down to catch the train. This wasn't too bad. However, when we transferred, or should I say try to transfer, to the Victoria Line, it was closed so we had to go with plan B and transfer 2 more times. We went up and down steps to transfer to different platforms and it was difficult without the assistance of lifts and escalators. Maybe first class is a better ride for us to rest our weary bodies.
Anyway, my overall perception of London?? It's not too bad.. people are generally friendly and I didn't feel like someone was going to pickpocket me. There are a lot of Indians though, I've noticed. At the palace I saw some sort of memorial for a number of East Asia countries since they helped Britain fight in the war. I assume that's probably the reason why the Indian population in London is so large. I feel like I saw enough of London though and I wouldn't mind coming back. I'm a little scared though for Paris since only one out of 4 of us studied French... I know it will be a completely different experience there with the language barrier.
-- RANDOM SIDE NOTE:
We just got the menus for the 1st class train and inside it says their motto is "tread lightly, eat well"... sounds like my kind of motto hahaha. =)
I shall update you all later when I'm in the city of lights... goodbye <33
Friday, October 9, 2009
EUROTRIP BEGINNINGS
The following was written on Thursday, Oct 8th... in case you get confused about my writing tense:
NORTHWEST AIRLINES:
We scored a $675 plane ticket, open jaw from SEA --> LHR / VCE --> SEA but unfortunately you get what you pay for: a delayed outgoing flight, only 10 minutes to spare to catch our transfer in Minneapolis/St. Paul and bad quality airplane monitors.
Our first flight was domestic but due to some weather and apparently construction issues, our flight was delayed by 30 minutes, leaving us only 10 minutes to deboard the plane, find food, and find our transferring flight gate before boarding to London. The movie they played was "My Sister's Keeper" but the monitor ended up blurring the movie for the last 30 remaining 30 minutes of the movie. Both Soaps and I were sad since we heard good reviews about the movie and have been meaning to watch it.
Our second flight was much roomier and we also got dinner, which I assumed we didn't since I never get fed for free on domestic flights. We were served dinner right after we stuffed our faces with Chinese food we bought at MSP. Our touch screens were pretty cool until they kept restarting every once in awhile =/ On the other hand, I saved my food for a midnight snack and it was actually really good vegetarian pasta.
LONDON:
[WED 7.10.09] Once we landed in London it was a long line to get to "interrogation". They only asked me a few questions and I was on my way but for some reason they held Soaps back for a few more questions. It was her first time traveling international and she was nervous already so this did not help with her stress level. We got through and everything was fine until we picked up our luggage and couldn't find our other friends who flew via British Airways. We landed in different terminals and had to meet at the central terminal after costing each other 1.50 in text messages.
We then purchased a train ticket to London which cost about 7 pounds. My friend almost purchased the Heathrow Express ticket for double the price. Our stop, Paddington was only a few stops away . Our first view of London was the stop immediately following the airport, Harem, which reminded me of the ghettos of the Bay Area when riding the BART. I was surprised at how ghetto most of the stops were, actually. I just assumed everything in London was pretty like in the movies. Our area, however, is quite nice and sometimes I wonder if love actually is all around... The point of the Heathrow Express was to skip all the ghetto parts and travel straight from the airport to Paddington Station.
Most people vacation to a spot where weather is nice and everyone dresses half naked, however, the weather in London was almost identical to our dreary Seattle weather. The irony of this was that when we left Seattle, it was nice sunny weather. We had to roll our luggage through puddles and find our hotel. However, once we found it, there was a sign saying we had to check in across the street... pretty inconvenient if you ask me! On top of their reception being in a different building with a different name, we have to drop off our room key at reception whenever we leave our room, then return to the reception to retrieve it when we return... apparently we go through all this trouble because they only have 1 key to the room. What I want to know is, how do they know if we end up keeping the key when we go out?
Crossing the street took some getting used to even with signs on the ground saying "LOOK LEFT" or "LOOK RIGHT". Being a jay-walking rebel here could be more dangerous than in the states for me. Our first day in London we spent it settling down and catching up on sleep since we were all exhausted. We also discovered that wifi was not free and that it costs 2 pounds per hour. Not knowing where to eat, we asked a receptionist where she suggests a good dinner place for us and she asks us "what do you fancy?"*sigh* British English is so cute! But then when I hesitated to answer she asked if we were looking for Chinese food.. um WRONG. Just because we're all Asian doesn't mean we want Chinese food... We asked for Indian and ate at a place called "taste of India". The food was OK but I've had better... so much for Indian food being super good in London!
[THU 8.10.09] Today, day 2 of London, we bought a day pass on the tube for 5.60 pounds and explored a few places. We first caught the tube at Lancaster Gate right across from Kensington Gardens, which reminds me of central park but prettier. Its a land where dogs roam leash or "lead"-free and are extremely obedient! Also, I got to see a swan up close =) The park is beautiful and I hope I can go back at least one more time before we head to Paris. We took the tube to Tottenham Ct Rd station to find Ling's all-time favorite designer flagship store: Orla Kiely. She pined over everything and left with a gigantic shopping bag. I kind of wanted a small shopping bag since they were so adorable and bought a face towel with cars on it. =) Technically I left with more than I paid for, a face towel and a lunch bag hahah. I also was tempted to buy a cup of Starbucks to see how it compared. After waiting for my drink I realized that everyone before me got their drinks before I did! I found out the hard way that once you pay for your drink, you tell the barista what drink you had so they can hand it to you. They don't call out completed drink orders here =/ Although I find that it is less convenient, it seems much more proper to talk to the barista directly rather than not say anything at all, have them yell out your order, then take it and go without having to say a word...
Anyway, we explored the area, saw Trafalger Square, The National Gallery, and ate at a cute cupcake place that had delicious sandwiches (mine cost 3.85 pounds). We also visited the British Museum which was gorgeous and had many cool artifacts. Being the language nerd that I am, my favorite exhibit was the Rosetta Stone. I still cannot believe I got to see the real slate in person! We tubed over to St. James and saw the St. James Cathedral, the Millennium Bridge and the Tate Modern Museum. We soaked in the rest of the sunlight by the bridge sipping mochas and hot chocolates while a man sold the most annoying bird whistles behind us. The view and the music was unforgettable... We topped off our evening by revisiting Monmouth Street (home of Orla Kiely) with a plan to eat bangers & mash at a pub next to the cupcake cafe. Unfortunately the pub and almost every surrounding restaurant was packed but we managed to find one with an open spot for 4: a vegan/vegetarian restaurant called Pete's Salad Bar Cafe. We all ended up ordering meat dishes which were OK. The best part of the meal was the dessert: Brazilian Pudding which was similar to tiramisu but possibly more delicious.
Now, here we are back at the hotel. We saw a lot today, much more than I expected to see but I don't feel overwhelmed, nor do I feel like there isn't enough time to see the rest of the sights tomorrow. I'm relaxed and enjoying my time here. The only downside is I felt we had wasted too much time looking for the right street or direction to head to but hey, its not like we know this area so its expected. I did however research our itinerary for tomorrow so we spend less time wandering where we don't want to. I am exhausted after all the walking but still feel chubs from all the food I ate. I thought that being on a budget would make me spend less money, which it does, but I still end up buying food. Without the convenience of a microwave it seems that leftovers aren't an option. Of course I hope my mindset about this changes when we stay in Paris but we'll see.. once a foodie, always a piggie =)
--UPDATE ON 9.10.09:
[FRI 9.10.09] Our last full day in London I think we museum-ed out. We wanted to see all our last sights while we were still here since we're leaving tomorrow. We started our day off by taking the tube to Piccadilly Circus to see how crazy it was but it wasn't as busy as we thought since it was only 10am. Most of the shops here open late (11am) and close early (5pm). We wandered around Piccadilly Circus area and ended up walking to Chinatown by Leicester Square Station. Chinatown was pretty small but we found a bakery that was open early and bought some pastries (egg tart, custard bun and hotdog buns). We paid 3.80 pounds for our total when our friends, who spoke Cantonese to one of the sellers paid 4 pounds total for more food than we bought. Sucks to be ripped off =( Then we took the nearest tube to head to Hyde Park Square to see the Wellington Arch and Buckingham Palace.
We got to the palace before the changing of the guards but were too cold to stay outside and wait so we ended up walking to the Victoria Line to tube to some museums. Today's weather was overcast with strong cold winds so we wanted to defrost indoors. Soapy had been waiting to visit the Natural History Museum and we were not disappointed! There we saw dinosaurs and other stuffed animals (not teddy bears but dead animals who were stuffed) and minerals. My favorite exhibits was the Vault that had the most expensive gems and stones and the brontosaurus skeleton. It reminded me a lot of "A Night at the Museum"haha =) After spending a few hours there we tried to leave but the Museum was so huge we just kept walking through and found more parts of it. After exiting, we went to the Science Museum next door but could only manage to explore for an hour. I'd say half of the hour was dedicated to their gift shop haha. I really wanted to buy a little Lego man on a keychain who had a "torch"/flashlight on the bottom of his feet but he was too expensive and would have cost 8 pounds. We had originally planned to see the Victoria & Albert Museum next door but our legs were tired and some of us had blisters on our feet so we headed to Westminster to see the last of our sites and make it home ASAP.
As soon as we got off Westminster Station, Big Ben was standing there before our eyes! It was beautiful and also conveniently located so we didn't have to walk too far. Westminster Abbey and the view of the London Eye were also just around the corner so we were able to take pictures of those. Westminster Abbey, where Princess Diana's funeral service was held, was breathtaking and definitely worth the trip over there. Unfortunately it was closed for tours so we couldn't see the inside. From there a sign said that the Victoria stop was nearby but it wasn't really and the gloomy rain came back to shower us. Fortunately, there was a pub where we could rest our weary feet and order some "bangers and mash". It was delicious and decent priced. Soapy and I ordered 2 orders of sausage and mash for 10 pounds. Very filling. Luckily the nearest tube station was across the street, the St. James Station.
We just got back a little bit ago and there's plenty of evening left to spare. I'm spending the rest of the evening packing and planning for country #2: France. Tomorrow we shall be en route to Paris =) Hopefully we will have WiFi access from there!
-- UPDATE AN HR LATER:
just realized I had free WiFi access in the lobby at the reception across the street. pretty lame considering my discovery happened our last night here.. BOO.
NORTHWEST AIRLINES:
We scored a $675 plane ticket, open jaw from SEA --> LHR / VCE --> SEA but unfortunately you get what you pay for: a delayed outgoing flight, only 10 minutes to spare to catch our transfer in Minneapolis/St. Paul and bad quality airplane monitors.
Our first flight was domestic but due to some weather and apparently construction issues, our flight was delayed by 30 minutes, leaving us only 10 minutes to deboard the plane, find food, and find our transferring flight gate before boarding to London. The movie they played was "My Sister's Keeper" but the monitor ended up blurring the movie for the last 30 remaining 30 minutes of the movie. Both Soaps and I were sad since we heard good reviews about the movie and have been meaning to watch it.
Our second flight was much roomier and we also got dinner, which I assumed we didn't since I never get fed for free on domestic flights. We were served dinner right after we stuffed our faces with Chinese food we bought at MSP. Our touch screens were pretty cool until they kept restarting every once in awhile =/ On the other hand, I saved my food for a midnight snack and it was actually really good vegetarian pasta.
LONDON:
[WED 7.10.09] Once we landed in London it was a long line to get to "interrogation". They only asked me a few questions and I was on my way but for some reason they held Soaps back for a few more questions. It was her first time traveling international and she was nervous already so this did not help with her stress level. We got through and everything was fine until we picked up our luggage and couldn't find our other friends who flew via British Airways. We landed in different terminals and had to meet at the central terminal after costing each other 1.50 in text messages.
We then purchased a train ticket to London which cost about 7 pounds. My friend almost purchased the Heathrow Express ticket for double the price. Our stop, Paddington was only a few stops away . Our first view of London was the stop immediately following the airport, Harem, which reminded me of the ghettos of the Bay Area when riding the BART. I was surprised at how ghetto most of the stops were, actually. I just assumed everything in London was pretty like in the movies. Our area, however, is quite nice and sometimes I wonder if love actually is all around... The point of the Heathrow Express was to skip all the ghetto parts and travel straight from the airport to Paddington Station.
Most people vacation to a spot where weather is nice and everyone dresses half naked, however, the weather in London was almost identical to our dreary Seattle weather. The irony of this was that when we left Seattle, it was nice sunny weather. We had to roll our luggage through puddles and find our hotel. However, once we found it, there was a sign saying we had to check in across the street... pretty inconvenient if you ask me! On top of their reception being in a different building with a different name, we have to drop off our room key at reception whenever we leave our room, then return to the reception to retrieve it when we return... apparently we go through all this trouble because they only have 1 key to the room. What I want to know is, how do they know if we end up keeping the key when we go out?
Crossing the street took some getting used to even with signs on the ground saying "LOOK LEFT" or "LOOK RIGHT". Being a jay-walking rebel here could be more dangerous than in the states for me. Our first day in London we spent it settling down and catching up on sleep since we were all exhausted. We also discovered that wifi was not free and that it costs 2 pounds per hour. Not knowing where to eat, we asked a receptionist where she suggests a good dinner place for us and she asks us "what do you fancy?"*sigh* British English is so cute! But then when I hesitated to answer she asked if we were looking for Chinese food.. um WRONG. Just because we're all Asian doesn't mean we want Chinese food... We asked for Indian and ate at a place called "taste of India". The food was OK but I've had better... so much for Indian food being super good in London!
[THU 8.10.09] Today, day 2 of London, we bought a day pass on the tube for 5.60 pounds and explored a few places. We first caught the tube at Lancaster Gate right across from Kensington Gardens, which reminds me of central park but prettier. Its a land where dogs roam leash or "lead"-free and are extremely obedient! Also, I got to see a swan up close =) The park is beautiful and I hope I can go back at least one more time before we head to Paris. We took the tube to Tottenham Ct Rd station to find Ling's all-time favorite designer flagship store: Orla Kiely. She pined over everything and left with a gigantic shopping bag. I kind of wanted a small shopping bag since they were so adorable and bought a face towel with cars on it. =) Technically I left with more than I paid for, a face towel and a lunch bag hahah. I also was tempted to buy a cup of Starbucks to see how it compared. After waiting for my drink I realized that everyone before me got their drinks before I did! I found out the hard way that once you pay for your drink, you tell the barista what drink you had so they can hand it to you. They don't call out completed drink orders here =/ Although I find that it is less convenient, it seems much more proper to talk to the barista directly rather than not say anything at all, have them yell out your order, then take it and go without having to say a word...
Anyway, we explored the area, saw Trafalger Square, The National Gallery, and ate at a cute cupcake place that had delicious sandwiches (mine cost 3.85 pounds). We also visited the British Museum which was gorgeous and had many cool artifacts. Being the language nerd that I am, my favorite exhibit was the Rosetta Stone. I still cannot believe I got to see the real slate in person! We tubed over to St. James and saw the St. James Cathedral, the Millennium Bridge and the Tate Modern Museum. We soaked in the rest of the sunlight by the bridge sipping mochas and hot chocolates while a man sold the most annoying bird whistles behind us. The view and the music was unforgettable... We topped off our evening by revisiting Monmouth Street (home of Orla Kiely) with a plan to eat bangers & mash at a pub next to the cupcake cafe. Unfortunately the pub and almost every surrounding restaurant was packed but we managed to find one with an open spot for 4: a vegan/vegetarian restaurant called Pete's Salad Bar Cafe. We all ended up ordering meat dishes which were OK. The best part of the meal was the dessert: Brazilian Pudding which was similar to tiramisu but possibly more delicious.
Now, here we are back at the hotel. We saw a lot today, much more than I expected to see but I don't feel overwhelmed, nor do I feel like there isn't enough time to see the rest of the sights tomorrow. I'm relaxed and enjoying my time here. The only downside is I felt we had wasted too much time looking for the right street or direction to head to but hey, its not like we know this area so its expected. I did however research our itinerary for tomorrow so we spend less time wandering where we don't want to. I am exhausted after all the walking but still feel chubs from all the food I ate. I thought that being on a budget would make me spend less money, which it does, but I still end up buying food. Without the convenience of a microwave it seems that leftovers aren't an option. Of course I hope my mindset about this changes when we stay in Paris but we'll see.. once a foodie, always a piggie =)
--UPDATE ON 9.10.09:
[FRI 9.10.09] Our last full day in London I think we museum-ed out. We wanted to see all our last sights while we were still here since we're leaving tomorrow. We started our day off by taking the tube to Piccadilly Circus to see how crazy it was but it wasn't as busy as we thought since it was only 10am. Most of the shops here open late (11am) and close early (5pm). We wandered around Piccadilly Circus area and ended up walking to Chinatown by Leicester Square Station. Chinatown was pretty small but we found a bakery that was open early and bought some pastries (egg tart, custard bun and hotdog buns). We paid 3.80 pounds for our total when our friends, who spoke Cantonese to one of the sellers paid 4 pounds total for more food than we bought. Sucks to be ripped off =( Then we took the nearest tube to head to Hyde Park Square to see the Wellington Arch and Buckingham Palace.
We got to the palace before the changing of the guards but were too cold to stay outside and wait so we ended up walking to the Victoria Line to tube to some museums. Today's weather was overcast with strong cold winds so we wanted to defrost indoors. Soapy had been waiting to visit the Natural History Museum and we were not disappointed! There we saw dinosaurs and other stuffed animals (not teddy bears but dead animals who were stuffed) and minerals. My favorite exhibits was the Vault that had the most expensive gems and stones and the brontosaurus skeleton. It reminded me a lot of "A Night at the Museum"haha =) After spending a few hours there we tried to leave but the Museum was so huge we just kept walking through and found more parts of it. After exiting, we went to the Science Museum next door but could only manage to explore for an hour. I'd say half of the hour was dedicated to their gift shop haha. I really wanted to buy a little Lego man on a keychain who had a "torch"/flashlight on the bottom of his feet but he was too expensive and would have cost 8 pounds. We had originally planned to see the Victoria & Albert Museum next door but our legs were tired and some of us had blisters on our feet so we headed to Westminster to see the last of our sites and make it home ASAP.
As soon as we got off Westminster Station, Big Ben was standing there before our eyes! It was beautiful and also conveniently located so we didn't have to walk too far. Westminster Abbey and the view of the London Eye were also just around the corner so we were able to take pictures of those. Westminster Abbey, where Princess Diana's funeral service was held, was breathtaking and definitely worth the trip over there. Unfortunately it was closed for tours so we couldn't see the inside. From there a sign said that the Victoria stop was nearby but it wasn't really and the gloomy rain came back to shower us. Fortunately, there was a pub where we could rest our weary feet and order some "bangers and mash". It was delicious and decent priced. Soapy and I ordered 2 orders of sausage and mash for 10 pounds. Very filling. Luckily the nearest tube station was across the street, the St. James Station.
We just got back a little bit ago and there's plenty of evening left to spare. I'm spending the rest of the evening packing and planning for country #2: France. Tomorrow we shall be en route to Paris =) Hopefully we will have WiFi access from there!
-- UPDATE AN HR LATER:
just realized I had free WiFi access in the lobby at the reception across the street. pretty lame considering my discovery happened our last night here.. BOO.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Day 2: 7.22.09
CARBOHYDRATE CRASH
This morning I awoke in a sweat to the sound of a baby crying. the sweat because the sun had already come out for the day and the attic room I slept in got pretty hot. The sound of the baby crying was because of the daycare run downstairs by ms. Tran. This morning as I was getting ready i was followed by a little 1 and 2 year old both who only understand Vietnamese but are so adorable!!! I pretty much won them over by playing peek a boo.. works every time =) Then I met Russell from the Pixar movie up... his real name is Brandon though but I keep calling him Russell hehe.
This morning I awoke in a sweat to the sound of a baby crying. the sweat because the sun had already come out for the day and the attic room I slept in got pretty hot. The sound of the baby crying was because of the daycare run downstairs by ms. Tran. This morning as I was getting ready i was followed by a little 1 and 2 year old both who only understand Vietnamese but are so adorable!!! I pretty much won them over by playing peek a boo.. works every time =) Then I met Russell from the Pixar movie up... his real name is Brandon though but I keep calling him Russell hehe.
Something that kind of sucks is that after talking to my mom this morning I found out my bag form Matt and Nat arrived yesterday after I left so I coudn't take it to Cali with me. Also, my old passport was returned and arrived in the mail yesterday as well which my dad opened up. Not that him opening it is going to affect anything but it just really bothers me that he opened my mail... grr. Anyhoos, back to Cali.
For lunch I had carne asada fries with a friend who spontaneously moved down to san Diego after graduation last year. Then we just hung out at his apt in La Jolla and played guitar and watched some British show about cars which I found pretty entertaining despite the fact that I don't know much about cars. I ended up taking a nap on his couch while he slept in his room and his roommate's friend slept on the other couch. It was pretty much a lazy day since it was kind of hot. Today was hotter than what I expected but at least it was bearable. Just that all the carbs and heat made us all sleepy. After waking up we went to Ralph’s (aka Safeway but nicer) and got soft serve ice cream at Golden Spoon which is like those "froyo" places but less healthy since its not yogurt its soft serve.
When I got back to the Tran house in Mission Valley I found Russell just chillin outside eating his dinner while leaning against a car in front the house. I asked him why he was eating outside by himself and he tells me that its because he sees himself as an outdoors type of guy. Too cute! I hope I can pinch his cheeks before I leave =) He's a peculiar little guy. Lorrie (who I last saw as a toddler and is now 13) and Kelly scolded him for wearing short shorts and a tank top but he defended himself saying that she wears short shorts lol. but you're a boy she tells him and all he can say is well its hot. Hahah I could just listen to him talk all day.
It wasn't an action-packed day but this is what being on vacation is all about right? Tomorrow we got a big day lined up for Valencia’s Six Flags. =) Hopefully I’ll be able to sleep earlier today than last night...
Note to self: I can probably only handle 1/4 a to-go box of carne asada fries since half a box plus a soft serve ice cream is all I needed to keep my tummy full for the whole day.
DESTINATION CA: San Diego & San Francisco
DAY 1: 7.21.09
TRAVEL BLOGGING 101
I'm currently sitting in seatac airport with a really nice view of the runway. My plane will be boarding in approximately t minus 30 minutes to SFO where I will have a 2 hour layover before arriving to my destination san diego aka carne asada fries land.
This will be my very first travel blog which I'm hoping will prep me for my trip to Europe. I figured this is the best way for me to remember my trips which have been increasing while depleting my monies. I could never get myself to scrapbook since scrapbooking takes too much dedication and time. Blogging is like journaling for lazy people like me. =)
I'm hoping that the tools i brought will be sufficient in my attempt to travel blog: laptop, charger, USB cord, flash drive and homemade cases for all my goods. Aside from blogging I also bought a super cute herringbone luggage lined in bright pink which is officially my own first luggage. I think I'm even more psyched to travel since I can roll around the airport in style hahah.
I guess I'll just start with a list since I love lists:
THINGS TO DO... EAT IN CALI
- carne asada fries in SD
- sushi in SD
- gelato in SD
- creme brulee in SF
- brunch at tangerine in SF
Anyways, more updates to come but this will be it for now...
note to self: don't consume lactose products before flying
Thursday, June 25, 2009
FML
i fail at blogging... i guess one post a month is as much as i can get myself to do haha.
today sucked.
today sucked.
- almost missed the bus by a second
- the jeans i was wearing today had a hole in the crotch
- i was reminded that i am a nursing school reject
- discovered i got charged for a trial make-up that i returned
- can't find the receipt of the returning package b/c i did a massive cleanse of my room last week
- apparently my dad thinks im getting aids and doing drugs
- this post is just me complaining.. not what i intended my blog to be at all but i don't know who to tell to get all this out of me before i go to sleep
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