One Night in BKK, One Day in KL

Bangkok, Thailand and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

May 27 – 28 and June 2, 2018

Any DIY trip involving LCC connecting flights could be a dicey situation. Delays would wreak havoc on the best-laid plans with only a few hours elbow room between flights. I’d rather spend the night at my layover. That was how I lived out the 80s hit song, One Night in Bangkok, literally. My friend Jo and I were on our way to Myanmar via Cebu Pacific Air to Bangkok and Air Asia to Mandalay the next morning.

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Express, No Stress

Shanghai, China and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

February 17 – 20, 2012 / March 1, 2013

The first impression of foreign visitors was usually their experience at the airport and the ride out. If that proved to be more stressful than the flight itself, then it certainly leveled expectations. “That’s the way the cookie crumbles,” I’d say, in my city. While I relished such convenience in most cities I’d visit, it depressed me that we didn’t have the same luxury back home. Case in point: Shanghai. I flew in past midnight with my girlfies, Perfy and Vang. No other choice but to take a taxi. Metered, no haggling and overcharging. For our return flight, we could not pass up taking the Maglev train, the first in the world.

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July 13, 2015 4

Fields of Gold

Bhaktapur / Pokhara / Kathmandu, Nepal and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

February 25 – March 1, 2013

The low-hanging sun and a blanket of yellow flowers conspired to set a Pokhara hillside ablaze. This field of gold, one of enchanting natural beauty, was comprised of mustard plants, their flowers looking every bit as bright as the sauce squirted on hotdogs. Miles away in Bhaktapur, the dusty, sunny valley was similarly touched by Midas. I was reminded that it took mustard seed faith for me to realize my dream of visiting Nepal, and that dream bloomed before my eyes like a mustard flower.

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April 3, 2015 4

Street Food to High Tea

Singapore, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

November 21 – 25, 2011 / March 1, 2013

Singaporean cuisine was certainly not bad; it just was not distinctive. The city was a melting pot, so was its kitchen. Local dishes called to mind other Asian cuisines. Rather “reductive,” to borrow Madonna’s vocabulary. Still, I relished all its familiarity, more so its sweets. As the most universal taste, sweetness did not demand uniqueness.

Ice Cream Sandwich