Frannywanny

After a very busy afternoon touring around Ubud on our first day in Bali, Indonesia , we told Swantika that we wanted to end our day tour with some traditional Indonesia Crispy Duck before heading back to the city proper and based on my friends' recommendations, we should go to Bebek Tepi Sawah which was also in Ubud. However, he told us that it's best that we go to Bebek Joni Restaurant or I Made Joni instead as it has a nicer view. Well, he's the expert and I were quite impressed and happy with the places that he brought us to earlier in the day so ok then, Bebek Joni Restaurant  it is. As he entered the huge compound, we noticed that we were the only ones there. Okay, maybe because we were there at 6PM so it was way too early perhaps for the dinner crowd. Not to worry though as the view was a-m-a-z-i-n-g. Save for the pesky mosquitoes that won't stop feasting on our legs, we love the soft rustle of the leaves, the smell of grass and the whole provincial vibe. I...

While Singapore is popularly known as Asia's Little Red Dot  mainly due to its small land area, this has never hindered the nation in becoming one of the fastest growing country in the region (if not the world). Take their wildlife reserves for example, the country is home to hundreds of land, sea and air creatures and mind you, they all live freely in their own natural habitat instead of being thrown in a cage. This was one of the things that has impressed me when I first visited the Singapore Zoo more than two decades ago. Growing up, my parents would make it a point to take Pan and I to various educational sites be it in Manila or outside of the country. They both believe that learning is an ongoing process and this should not be limited to what was taught within the four corners of the classroom. I really love going on trips with them as we always come back learning something new. So, when my family came to visit me a few weeks ago, I think it's about time to return the...

It has been a while since Paul and I had our weekly hawker challenge and we just felt that it was time to go for one again. What a perfect timing that the Chinatown Food Street recently re-opened making it our next hawker stop destination. Admittedly, compared to the two other hawker centres that we've visited and reviewed, this one had a more touristy feel. It was better ventilated, the kiosks are quite limited but have a good mix of basically anything and everything you'd like to try in Singapore, tables are cleaner and you'll see a lot of tourists dining here all day long. We were a bit hesitant to do the Hawker Challenge here simply because we know that anything tourist-y also means it can be pricey but as Mommy would always tell me, you'll never know unless you try . The first step is to walk around . Visit every stall and see what they have to offer. Most of these were specially chosen from all other hawker centres so you're assured of getting pretty ...

Summer in Manila is just around the corner and this just means one thing : It's time to plan your summer trips! For those who are coming to Singapore in the coming months or even years, I will begin this series called Explore Singapore!  highlighting several must-visit places that you could consider to include in your itinerary. It's true. Singapore is a small country but being small doesn't mean there's not much to see. Living here for a year, I've come to realized that there are a lot of places that I have yet to visit. As Paul and I would dedicate our weekends in exploring the city, our love for the Little Red Dot grows more and more. Let me begin with the most popular one -- welcome to Universal Studios Singapore ! Since it opened about 4-5 years ago, Universal Studios Singapore or USS as we would call it, has been one of the most visited spot here in Singapore. It really just shows that theme parks are not just for kids. For example, my parents who v...

Macau is such a small city with a total of 29.5 km 2 land area. Just to put things into perspective, Metro Manila has a total land area of 683.6 km 2 and Singapore is just slightly bigger at 710 km 2 . So in essence, Macau is about the same size of Mandaluyong City (21km 2 ) and San Juan City (7km 2 ) combined. That said, it is indeed possible to tour around this city in a day. However, I recommend that you stay overnight as the night life (light) scene here is really amazing! With two days in Macau, here are some things that you should not miss: 1) Senado Square  (Largo de Leal Senado) I've seen a number of Asian soap operas that have been filmed in this iconic square. I'll be honest in saying that I was really expecting a beautiful Spanish-like city square where kids play, people hang out and entertainers do short performances. Somehow, what I saw fell short of my expectations. No, it's not ugly as I truly adored the artsy floor tiles but it was just extremely c...

Happy Holidays !! I know it has been months since my trip to Korea and yet I always get to remember it every time someone comes up to me asking for Seoul travel tips . That was definitely one of the best trips I've had this year and Paul and I are will hopeful that we can go back to Korea SOON! I realized also that I failed to create a summary to better guide you in going through all my Korea travel entries . First and foremost, here's a guide on how to apply for a Korean Visa for all Philippine Passport holders . Next step is to look for a place to stay. I highly recommend our hotel: Hotel Skypark 1 in Myeongdong, Korea . Here's also a quick 101 for all Korea newbie s. Be tourist-y and visit these places: Myeongdong for all out shopping (all the beauty brands are here!) and eating Gyeongbokgung Palace COEX Mall and Aquarium (although I don't recommend the aquarium) Everland Theme Park N Seoul Tower   Remember this: must watch the Cookin Nanta S...

After coming home really late from Everland the night before, half of our group decided to just sleep a little more and to just wake up in time for lunch at the COEX mall . The other half headed out early to check out the Samsung Kids Museum. Researching on Seoul, Korea; the COEX mall is always included in the list of must-visit shopping malls. What probably makes this mall attractive to its visitors is its size and the fact that it houses two food courts, hundreds (if not thousands) of retails shops, a well-stocked supermarket, a Duty Free outlet, restaurants, a number of movie theaters and an aquarium. Some would say, it would definitely take you an entire day to go around the entire mall. The mall is also adjacent to the Intercontinenal Hotel as well as the Expo and Convention Center making it very accessible to foreign travelers. Arriving at the COEX mall via the subway, our small group headed to the food court to have lunch. The choices were quite limited but each stall h...

Our recent trip to Korea wasn't just devoted to eating. Aside from nourishing our tummies, we also nourished our minds. It's also perfect that we had three young kids with us and I believe taking them to places such as this will allow them to have a better idea of Korea's history and to see what life was back then. After all, traveling should also be educational. True, I'm the type of traveler who wants to have a good mix of cultural immersion while enjoy the fun cosmopolitan life of a particular travel destination however most of my trips just lasts a week and with all the sights and places that we have to visit, I have to be wise and to choice the best spots instead of boring myself out by visiting them all. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate the history and the culture but at some point, I feel that you see one __________ (fill this in with palace/temple/mountain/ruins) , you've seen them all! There are actually a lot of palaces in Korea but our group de...

One of the attractions that I made sure we didn’t miss was a visit up to the N Seoul Tower . Researching about it, I found out that this 236.7m communication tower also goes by several other names such as the Seoul Tower, Namsam Tower or the CJ Tower . For starters, the tower sits on top of the Namsam mountain located right at the heart of Seoul in South Korea . Going there was pretty easy as there are buses that will take you straight to the base of the mountain. Look for bus numbers 2, 3 or 5 as you get off either the Chungmuro or Itaewon Station. As for our group, we took the train to the Chungmuro statio n and seeing that the tower doesn't seem to look so far away, we decided to walk. Yep! The Food Club decided to burn off all those calories gained from eating and so we walked. Luckily, we had Peter, Paul and Richard with us who were amazing navigators as they led us through an underground shopping center and up towards the base of the funicular . glass elevator. There’s...

My recent trip to Beijing, China was business-related so I wasn't really expecting to be able to visit much of the touristy sites or have as much free time to roam around and to have food trips on my own. It was pretty good actually as it was my first time to travel alone thus I don't feel very comfortable go around such a HUGE province on my own. I happily tagged along with the group wherever our host takes us. That set-up worked perfectly fine for me. At least, the next time I get to go back with Paul , I'll have a better idea on where to go! Out of the four days that we were there, our gracious host took the afternoon off on our 3rd day to take us to the Palace Museum , otherwise known as the Forbidden City . This is located right at the center of Beijing and as we were told, everything surrounds the Forbidden City . We entered through the North Gate where the ticket counter was located. Believe me, the Forbidden City is HUGE! It actually reminds me of the Gyeong...

In every country, there is a particular district that I have grown fond of. There's Tsim Sha Tsui in Hong Kong and Raffles City in Singapore. As a result, I would tend to book hotels within these areas as I find myself most comfortable and at ease when staying in these places. Both districts are considered highly commercial areas as they are filled with lots of shops and restaurants making it so convenient for Paul and I to eat, shop and walk around at any given time of the day. After all, being in a foreign land, it's important to still feel safe to be able to fully enjoy and maximize the trip. As we got to our hotel in Korea , I immediately fell in love with Myeongdong . I love the fact that the entire place is filled with retail shops, food establishments and a lot more. There are a number of malls present such as the Lotte Young Plaza , Migliore and the huge high-end department store called Shinsegae . Just around our hotel, there are a lot of beauty shops which wer...

The Food Club went on a trip again and this time we went up up north to Baguio ! It was actually a first for our kiddie companions namely Lauren, Kei and Ken and I truly had a great time playing tour guide not only to our three little travelers but to the rest of the group too. Baguio is approximately 240km away from Manila. Thankfully, the road heading to Baguio is now better as we pass through the provinces of Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac, Pangasinan and La Union before the slow ascend up the zigzag road of Marcos Highway . While my mom and sister would always complain about the long drive up, I actually enjoy it every time we get the chance to visit Baguio...I guess it's just me and my love for geography. We left Manila around 6AM and after a quick breakfast stop in Pampanga, we arrived at Baguio a little past 12 noon making it just in time for lunch. I will be sharing more stories about our food adventures in my succeeding entries but for now I'll give you a low-down...

Everyone has their own collections and fascinations, take my husband Paul for example -- he loves wearing caps thus he has a growing collection of caps bought from all over the world and even funny looking ones that he came across at some point in his life. His collection is quite huge that it took him a while to finally decide that he needs to leave some behind when we got married and moved into our humble cozy...room. I, on the other hand, love collecting tickets and souvenirs from my travels. Thanks to my best friend T who gave me a pretty travel journal, I enjoy filling each page with photos and tickets taken from our trips. I also love my name thus my growing collection of keychains, stickers, magnets with my name on it. Call me vain but I love keeping my items personalized. It all began during our honeymoon trip to Kuala Lumpur where we came face to face with the 5th tallest tower in the world : the Petronas Twin Towers . For one whole day, we stared and took lots of photos s...

As with every trip, we try to inject a bit of history in order for us to learn a bit more about the country that we're visiting. For example, we watched the amazing Siam Niramit show in Thailand which I felt was worth every penny because I have learned to appreciate the colorful Thai culture. In Malaysia , Paul and I visited the Petronas Twin Towers which stands as the icon of Kuala Lumpur. Thus, in Taiwan , our trip began with a short visit to the Chiang-Kai Shek Memorial Hall which was just a few MRT stops away from Caesar Park Hotel . I love how accessible going around Taipei is. Almost all tourist spots are adjacent to an MRT terminal making it easy for one to go around without getting lost in the process. Note that it may be difficult to get lost in Taiwan as majority of its population can't speak English that well. Thus, make sure to have a trusty map (make sure it's in English! My sister grabbed a map but it was in Mandarin..not very helpful at all :P) and or...

It was a great way to celebrate Easter! At exactly 930AM last Sunday, I together with Paul , my sister Steph, our cousin A and a couple of friends boarded the special Enchanted Kingdom shuttle that will take us directly to Sta. Rosa, Laguna and back. We were with our fellow bloggers and a couple of friends from media. The ride was really short as I just remembered taking a short nap and when I woke up, I immediately saw the ferris wheel from the window. My sister and cousin were excitedly clapping and preparing their bags already. Enchanted Kingdom is definitely one place every local and foreign visitors should visit! It has a wide array of rides and attraction suitable for every member of the family! Everyone in our group was so excited to explore the park. Paul was our designated photographer while our friends C, J and P were the brave souls who really tried almost all of the thrilling rides. I was just looking forward to the water rides while my sister and cousin just went ...