Where would you go?

I've joined several Travel Blogger groups on Facebook and find myself reading the most inspiring posts from other bloggers as well as following a lot of travelers on Instagram. Much like foodporn, I'm inspired and love hearing other people's stories. I asked my fellow travelers this question:

If you could go back to a place, where would you go and why? 

"The place I would love to go back to is Ubud, Bali. I was just there 2 weeks ago and I just can't shake it off my head. Everywhere I look, there is always a touch of art. It has great ambience, plenty of things to do and everything seems reasonably priced." - Sara F. of Travelosio

Photo Credit: Travelosio

Photo Credit: Travelosio

"Switzerland is heaven on earth. There is never a dearth of wonderful places in Switzerland. Snowcapped mountains, an abundance of greenery, gorgeous lakes, picturesque landscape and much more appropriate to be a travelers paradise. We were based out of Geneva and would plan day trips every weekend which was invigorating and rejuvenating. We have visited a dozen of places and still the country never stops to mesmerize us.  

One can also choose Bern or Zurich as a base. Most of the stunning landscapes are around Interlaken. There are many quaint villages which can be visited. Switzerland is great in terms of transportation and facilities for tourists. One can also plan easy trips to prominent cities of the neighboring countries of Germany, France, Italy and Austria." - Rashmi and Chalukya of  Go Beyond Bounds

Photo Credit: Go Beyond Bounds

"I would like to travel back to Chandratal situated in the Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh in India. It is a place that offers serene beauty and if you are lucky enough you could get the perfect reflections of the brown peaks and the clear sky.. Its simply breathtaking. 

What makes me want to go back there is the feeling it gives me to live the moment to the fullest because while on the route to lake and stay in the nearby camp is so challenging that you never know weather you'll be there for the next moment or not. This trip makes me to love those little moments we have in our life which people generally ignore due to the problems they face. Also I missed the view of the lake at its best the last time I visited so would visit again with a new hope of capturing it this time." - Mohit A. of Jaunting Journeys

Photo Credit: Mohit Arts

"I would return to Kutna Hora, Czechia. Prague is beautiful, isn’t it? But can you imagine some time ago a city nearby seriously competed with Prague in terms of wealth, architecture and importance? Yes, there was such a city – Kutná Hora. It rivalled Prague both economically and culturally, being the favourite residence of several Bohemian kings. It boasts different architectural styles, unique buildings from various historical periods and a long history of wine making. Kutna Hora is 120 kilometres away from Prague, an hour by train or 40 minutes longer by bus, which makes for an easy day trip. Kutná Hora and the neighbouring town of Sedlec are on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. In the 14th-15th centuries trading silver made Kutna Hora one of the richest places in Europe. The single currency of the entire Kingdom of Bohemia, Prague ‘groschen’, was minted here." Anita from The Sane Travel

Photo Credit: The Sane Travel

Photo Credit: The Sane Travel

"Niagara Falls is where my partner first said he loved me and is our fave place in the world. It was the first place we ever "travelled" too so brings back lots of memories of our first trip and that first anxiety you get when exploring the world. This place is so beautiful is settled my nerves and made me fall in love almost instantly!!" - Katie from Creative Travel Guide

Seeing a lot of Art in London

London has tons of museums, street art, and performances. It can be intimidating and overwhelming at first. Don't be. A lot of it is accessible and free for everyone.

The Museums I visited were mostly free admission.
British Museum (Gratis)
National Portrait Gallery (Gratis)
National Gallery (Gratis)
Tate Museum  (Gratis)
and Textile & Fashion museum

On a previous visit a few years ago I also visited the Tower of London, Kensington Palace, and the Tate Museum.

Here are some of my pictures from my museum whirlwind. :-)

Some of the photos from The National Portrait gallery:

The National Portrait Gallery is a medium sized museum that houses portraits that range from the Royal family lineage to the families of Dukes, Duchesses, to Celebrities, Politicians, etc. Its a lot of portraits to take in all at once so just be prepared to see faces staring back at you ;-) I spent a couple hours in this gallery but one could spend more time perusing the galleries. Admission is free for the public except for the special temporary exhibitions.

British museum: 

The British Museum houses many large collections and one can easily spend a whole day here getting lost. My favorite section are the Roman sculptures. This museum also houses a large Egyptian collection, Rosetta Stone, and more. This is a great rainy day activity.

Tate museum:

I love modern art and the Tate Museum is one of my favorite museums for modern art. A lot of people have this misconception about modern art that its hard to understand and at times absurd. I don't love all modern art but it gets the viewer to stand there and analyse the piece. You interpret what you want about the piece using your background experiences. Then you try to figure out what the artist is trying to say. Its usually art that makes you think and realise a bit of humanity. This is why I love modern art. When I went to visit this museum last month, I found a temporary exhibit about performers and choreographers using video, film, and spoken dialogue. Pina Bausch, Anna Teresa de Keersmaker, Merce Cunningham and Philip Glass were highlighted.

Textile and fashion museum: 

I had about a couple hours before a wine tasting in the Bermondsey street area so I stopped into the Fashion and Textile museum. Its a small museum that houses a gift shop and a cafe. They focus on one exhibit at a time and then change it quarterly. I would recommend checking out their current 1920s jazz age exhibit. Its my favorite era because everyone loved to party, drink, dance their nights away with a carefree attitude. The glitzy dresses and videos of women doing the charleston as well as relics and photographs from the era were on display. This little museum surprised me and I really enjoyed my visit there. Definitely check it out if you're in this cute little area filled with cafes, restaurants, bars, art galleries, and Wine school.

Wandering amongst hipsters in Shoreditch

Street art near Brick Lane

Street art on Rivington st.

The very first trip to London, I stayed in Shoreditch and was a bit lost wandering around. Only the last few days of that trip, I walked to Brick Lane a couple times and discovered really cool pockets of bars, restaurants, and of course the ubiquitous Beigel Bake. After that trip, I vowed to return and check out this neighborhood.

I did recall that the neighborhood was changing on my last trip. People were telling me that the neighborhood was once a grunge capital and tattoo and body piercing parlors were rampant. The equivalent of East Village/Williamsburg/Bushwick in New York. I was craving this kind of grittiness that is rare in sunny, pristine, and cleaned up Singapore. What I discovered on that first trip was that the grunginess was making room for hipsters, designers, already there artists. In contrast, my most recent trip, I found this area to be the start-up capital for said hipsters, designers, artists. With trendy bars and restaurants, pop-up shops, trendy hotels like Ace Hotel, Citizen M, and of course the Hoxton hotel making the neighborhood a visit for the wannabe-rockstar-hipster-turned coffee and craft beer start up.

Korean fried chicken served in a cone from a street food collective. @Maki Mayo

This was a gas station! Now its turned into a permanent food truck collective!

Entrance to Pump Shoreditch - the food truck collective

The pop-up food trucks, food stalls, small eclectic boutiques, and of course the exciting bar scene in the area really come alive in the evening and working professionals along with hipsters rub elbows with each other during the happy hours after work. This area has merged with the Spitalfields market with its proximity to Brick Lane, Old Truman Brewery, and Commercial street. I found this area great to hang around, take yoga class, drink hipster Brooklyn Coffee, eat at a pop-up food truck, drink at one of the cool cocktail bars.

This drink was awesome at Hawksmoor Bar 

I don't really like going to bars alone to drink unless I know that the drink is going to be mixed well and the ambiance isn't going to be pretentious. I went to the Hawksmoor Bar in Spitalfields after dinner in PUMP Shoreditch on my way back. It is located in the basement of their restaurant and the entrance felt like you're going into a private basement. Awesome. These are the kind of places that surprise me in more ways than one. Previously, I had walked by the place and checked out the cocktail list which saliva-inducing. I wanted a cocktail from this bar.

The ambiance was chill, I was served a special punch on the house from a previous house that was leftover from a private event they hosted earlier. It was strong and potent with rum but sweetened with the cocktail of juices. My drink had a refreshing honey tea appeal to it and was so good and smooth.  

Bar behind a wardrobe at Callooh Callay

Negroni at Callooh Callay

Another I visited in the area with a couple friends is Callooh Callay on Rivington street. There's an inner room behind the main area. Its rated as one of the best cocktail bars in the world so there's quite a bit of expectation for this place to blow me away. Was I blown away? Not really but the place was beautifully designed and the designer was inspired by Alice and Wonderland to create this space. I crave a negroni at least once a week but so many places mess this seemingly simple cocktail. Campari, Gin, Sweet Vermouth and an orange peel. I like my negroni served with a 1 giant cube of block of ice. The flavours of the negroni at Callooh Callay were all there and a good negroni yin my opinion trickles down your throat smooth as opposed to a sharp taste.

I love wandering around the Brick Lane area and discovering little shops and the street art or the shops themselves feels like one big art project! The vibrancy of the area that is bursting with creative expressions makes me feel inspired.

A duck wrap from #theducktruck at Boxpark Shoreditch 

When there's a hashtag for the sign of your little eatery, you know that people are Instagramming their food, writing reviews on Yelp, and sharing pictures of their food to their social media network. Oh wait.. hahahahaha.... I have no shame in sharing awesome pics of #foodporn
London is crazy about duck. I think almost every single eatery, restaurant I've patronised during my trip had a dish with duck in it. When I entered the trendy Boxpark Shoreditch there was a small eatery that specialised in duck appropriately named #theducktruck ! A food trend and a hashtag! How millennial hipster can you get!? I was curious and ordered the wrap. It was delicious and filled with lots of duck meat.

Chocolate shop on Brick Lane

The AWESOME Beigel Bake that sells hot salt beef buns (kind of like pastrami)

I highly recommend spending a couple days roaming the streets of Shoreditch in East London. I stayed near the area on the last leg of my trip and walked around Shoreditch almost every single day. I would in a heartbeat stay near there again because there's so much to see, eat, shop, do in this neighborhood. One of my favourite things to do while traveling is to stay in a great area where local residents hang out. Though becoming increasingly popular amongst visitors and newly arrived London residents as well as hipsters, Shoreditch has something for everyone without the overcrowded-cheesy tourist traps lining the streets of Convent Garden. 

Summer travel part 2: Rest and Relax in Malta

On the island of Gozo to see the famous Azure Window. June 2016

Malta is made up of three islands in the southern part of Europe between Italy and Tunisia in the Mediterranean. The main language is English and Maltese. Malta is a member of the EU and Commonwealth. A great spring/summer destination to get some sunshine and beach time. Sandy and rocky beaches are plenty spread out among the three islands. The main island has quite a lot to see and do. Historic sites in the old town of Mdina and Valletta. Bars and clubs in St. Julians and everything else in between. For more of an overview of Malta check out Destination Travel

I came to Malta to relax and chill by the ocean. After living in land-locked locations for the past year and a half, seeing the ocean is always a nice change of scenery.

Verdala bianco Maltese wine

Dinner in St. Julians on the first night was a bit on the crowded and tourist-y side. But there is a chill vibe in the air and pace of the locals and tourists alike isn't frenetic. The Eurocup football was being broadcast on a large screen right by the boats. The night breeze coming from the ocean inspires one to stroll instead of rushing around. I ordered a half bottle of local white wine to go with my plate of grilled octopus spaghetti. This white had a light smooth taste with a hint of fruit and dryness that works well with the octopus meal and environment.

As the night wears on, the party revelers start to emerge and walking to the heart of St Julians was a tricky web of narrow streets until you reach the main stretch of night clubs, gentlemen's clubs, lounges, and pubs. Crowded, loud, and filled with party promoters handing out drink promotions for their establishments to entice passerbys to enter. A bit on the aggressive street marketing side, I was not convinced to enter any of these bars. Perhaps if one was a bit on the tipsy side, it would be easier to convince. I'm usually turned off by aggressive street promoters or aggressive sales assistants at stores.

The view from the balcony of the hotel. St. Julians. June 2016

Staying right across from the beach (rocky and sandy) was convenient. The balcony made a nice spot for sunbathing and people watching. Isn't summer the time to slow down and relax? I'm usually pretty happy just hanging out and people watching on some days during vacation. 

Strolling by the coast line in Saint Julian's/Sliema area. June 2016

The hot and balmy weather was rather shocking for me as I've been used to cooler temperatures in Switzerland, Brussels, and Amsterdam. I was ill-equipped with my lack of summer clothes. Most of my lighter summer clothes are stored in Singapore as that's the place where I'm constantly sweating. The hot sunny days paired with quite a bit of walking around required a lot of water. I'm a bit skeptical about drinking tap water when I arrive new locations so I tend to play it safe and purchase bottled water. 

Rocky "beach". June 2016

The waters of the mediterranean coast are rather cool and a bit choppy due to the winds. One has to wonder how the refugees who manage to swim to the Greek island of Lesbos in such conditions. 

Taking a ferry to the islands of Gozo and Comino for a day trip was rather a harrowing experience at sea. That morning, I forgot to tell the barista not to put any milk in my coffee as milk makes me feel queasy in the stomach. Paired with a choppy sea, I felt seasick for the first time in my life. The hour long ferry felt like eternity. I was so happy when we arrived and docked. Many passengers were throwing up on the ferry. A girl was so sick she couldn't enjoy the bus trip to see the Azure Window, old historic town, and Church of Victoria. 

Travel tips: Make sure to keep hydrated throughout the day and bring seasick pills. Don't go out drinking the night before. (the people that were hungover were the most sick on the ferry)

Bring some mint or chewing gum. 

Azure window. Malta. June 2016

The Azure window is the most gorgeous natural cliff I have ever seen thus far. It's one of the main attractions of Gozo so be prepared to see loads of tourists trying get the perfect picture and selfie. With the waters so blue and the window just breathtaking, you can see why it is a popular attraction. Tourist attractions are popular because it is usually either breathtaking, unusual, and/or delicious. I consider myself a traveler rather than a tourist most times but it is ok to be a tourist. Just don't be an obnoxious one, ie. blocking others from taking pictures, blocking sidewalks, being rude to locals, and claiming to know a culture just because you've been there once to take pictures. 

As a TCK, I like to travel and I like to observe how locals live. Slow travel is more my style and returning to the same locations even if it takes a few years to come back is also ok. I never feel satisfied visiting a place once. I like exploration. Reading other travel blogs, yelp reviews, tripadvisor reviews, watching travel shows with animated hosts such as Anthony Bourdain or Samantha Brown (two very different hosts), and reading travel magazines inspire me to make some decisions on what to see,do, eat but I also rely on instinct as well as local residents' recommendations. 

Blue Lagoon. Malta. June 2016

I rarely swim in the ocean. In fact, I can recall the number of times I've swam in the ocean and submerged my body in the water. I like chilling by the ocean but have a slight fear of swimming in lakes and oceans. Perhaps it's due to the sheer amount of shark movies and horror movies involving getting eaten alive or attacked by unknown entities in natural bodies of water. I like to be able to see the bottom. Upon hearing that Malta has crystal clear blue waters and swimming in the ocean where I can see the bottom has been on my bucket list since I was a little girl, I was excited to be able to experience swimming in clear blue ocean waters and tick it off my list. 

The blue lagoon in the small island of Comino was incredible! Warm shallow waters with little to mild waves. It makes for a perfect swimming spot. This little island has not much on it except for this swimming area. A slice of peaceful heaven! The waters felt warm and I remember giggling like a school girl because it felt amazing and surreal at the same time. Being able to see the bottom and wade through the cool shallow waters of the blue lagoon felt glorious. 

Can't get enough of this beautiful coastal view. 

The hotel location was technically across from an amazing Italian restaurant called Fresco's and right by another really good authentic Italian restaurant called Vecchia Napoli. 

Pasta, pizza, wine, and amazing views. What more could you want? 

Beautiful sunset at Fresco's restaurant. But what comes next also blew my taste buds away...

Smoked duck breast with cherry tomatoes and fried duck skin tagliatelle pasta. This was seriously my favorite dish of the summer. The creamy pasta with the flavor and saltiness of the duck breast was a match made in heaven. 

Argotti Botanical Gardens. June 2016

I joined one of those hop on hop off buses to explore what Malta has to offer. There's historic sights near downtown Valetta, gardens, and museums. Part of the filigree silver jewelry trade comes from Malta. 

Argotti Botanical Gardens. June 2016

The Argotti Botanical Gardens was a tranquil escape from the crowded tourist areas with beautiful flowers, fountains, ducks, peacocks, cats, birds roaming the grounds. At the end of the gardens sits a very beautiful majestic house that is used for special events. A quick quiet stroll through this park from the hop-on hop-off tourist bus is a nice change of pace. 

Its so easy to get dehydrated or get sunburnt in Malta so a bottle of water and sunscreen is a must in your daypack before you go out for the day. I'm constantly reapplying sunscreen and drinking while seated on the tour bus. 

A nice refreshing drink by the Golden Sands beach. June 2016

It is ok to be a tourist. Sometimes as a seasoned traveler we shun all aspects of tourism. Tourist attractions became popular because it is a wonder and something to experience. Duomo in Milan, Matterhorn in Zermatt, Azure window in Malta, Niagara Falls in Niagara/Ontario, Gold temple in Kyoto, Empire State Building in New York, Orchid Garden in Singapore, Grand Place in Brussels, Berliner Dom in Berlin, Gamla Stan in Stockholm, Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Anne Frank house in Amsterdam, etc. you get the idea. I believe that if you were so inclined to travel to a destination there should be no shame in wanting to see the main sights but to also explore beyond the tourist areas. (within the parameters of safety of course!)

Travel is an experience. Enjoy the journey!