My sister finally got hitched!

Best time ever!!! Nicole, love you forever!!!

Eyjafjallajökull volcano

When I heard the Icelandic volcano had erupted and airports in Europe were closed....huh....what? It was one week until I was meant to fly to SF for my sister's wedding and the infamous ash cloud was being tracked by everyone. Luckily no one in Iceland was hurt. Though, 600,000 people were stranded by the second day and all I heard about were stories of people trying to make their way home. It wasn't until 5 days later did they open up the airports. The good news is I did get on my flight and made it to my sister's wedding.

Disasters seem to be happening more often and are closely spaced together - Thailand Tsunami, Haiti devastation, earthquake in Chile, possible Tsunami warning in the entire pacific basin (I was in the Philippines when this warning came out), Iceland volcano erupting, oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Natural disasters do happen, however I don't think we are treating mother nature very well.

Checking in...

Its been a while since I posted to my blog and wanted to check in to let you know I'm still doing well! I spent 3 weeks in California over the holidays in December which was so much fun and in early January returned to London. The plan is to stay here for this year (2010) and continue to travel and do all of the great things I've been doing.

My travels while in London have mostly been for work...and going back to the same places...Geneva, Geneva, Geneva!

I am looking forward to the spring time as new trips are making their way into my calendar :)

Stay tuned and you'll see a post soon on my trip to Hong Kong and the Philippines

Hong Kong and the Philippines

Hong Kong is in fact full of tall sky scrappers, crowded street markets and shopping malls. As it was once a British colony the familiar Harrods and Marks and Spencers stores bring you back to a commonality in just about any city. People don't jay walk but they are a little shovey-shovey. Watch out for the maze of malls and walk ways, its almost like they don't want you to exit. Here are a few highlights

Hong Kong

Massages: Asia is known for its massages. I am here to tell you that massages are very much a part of the culture and social life in Hong Kong. After getting off a 12 hour flight, a massage was needed. I walked into a place at 11pm in the night market in Kowloon and it was packed with rows of people getting foot massages in plush maroon chairs. An hour later, I was ready for another hour. The best $20 I spent the whole trip.

Massages became a staple on the daily agenda, and this is the one thing I miss the most. The two places I went were: 1. G/F, 115, Woo Sung Street in the street markets in Kowloon and 2. A 5/F Lung Fai Houe 90-91 Tung Choi St Mongkok Lowlong in the Ladies Market

Ladies Market: It is all its cracked up to be. Streets and streets full of cheap stuff. Definitely bargain, dedicate a good 6 hours and watch your wallet (pick pocketer's heaven).

Octopus Card: Not only does this card allow you to travel on the transit system for little money, you can also make purchases in local stores like the Seven Eleven.

Other places not to miss on your trip: 1. Victoria Peak - The base of Victoria Peak is in the SoHo area (lots of shopping, bars and restaurants for when you come down from the tram ride) and Hong Kong Island. My favorite part was the 10 minute boat ride across Victoria Harbor. If you are a water person like me, suggest doing one of the longer boat trips.
Going in February is a good time, however it was foggy a couple of the days but still warm.


The Philippines
Combining city and beach in one vacation is my absolute favorite. For the weekend, Cebu (Philippine island a 2 hour plane ride from Hong Kong) is a nice get away. There are 7,000 islands in the Philippines, some inhabited and some tropical havens for plants and small animals. I stayed at the Abaca Resort which was a-mazing. The weekend was all about lounging at the infinity pool in the most relaxing private cabana right smack on the edge of the ocean, eating the yummiest food and taking a day trip out on a boat to go snorkeling.

Despite advice from the hotel we ventured into the main area of Cebu and I have to say I came across some of the happiest people. Everyone was smiling.