Busy Travel Year 2011

 Its not even the end of 2011 yet and we have travelled quite a bit this year.

I  never thought we would do a lot of travelling in 2011. These are the places we visited:

MONTREAL , we went during the summer break of the kids.

NEW YORK, went with my husband during his business trip. It was summer so we brought the kids along.We visited not only New York City  but also the Fatima Shrine in Lewiston, NY and the American Military Academy(West Point)

LAS VEGAS , the last trip we took before the school started in September. Vegas was super hot(climate was sizzling at 104F) but the two boys loved Vegas!

 EUROPE, its like a dream come true that I revisited Europe again and this time around(April) with hubby.

and QUEBEC, hubby and the kids wanted me to spend my birthday(August) in Quebec since I have requested that several times. Finally on our third visit to Montreal, we headed off to this beautiful city that is very much like Europe.

Using Craigslist & Kijiji to furnish your Home

Yesterday, I scoured through Kijiji.ca and craigslist for free items that I can use for our house.

I found someone giving away a photoframe divider and called him. He asked me to come right away since there were other people interested in picking up the divider.So with hubby in tow we drove to his house(which has already been sold) and picked up the divider. The owner was so happy in giving away he threw in a sofa, two side tables and a plant stand to go with the divider.He was leaving for Tokyo to stay there for 2 years so he sold all this things and only these items that he gave us were still with him.

 So here is the sofa and the divider in our family room

 Did I tell you I also got 3 free artificial plants and mirrors and tables from another house? How lucky can we get.

Five Best Hotels I Have Stayed In

These are the five best hotels I have stayed in. I am saying its the best since I  can still remember the best service,food and accomodations I  have enjoyed while staying with them. Four of these five hotels have won awards from Travellers and Travel Industry experts.

1) Ruma Mertua (Indonesia)- This is a small boutique hotel tucked away in a small neigborhood in Yogyakarta. What I like about the hotel is that they treat you like a house guest. They offer good Indonesian food and personalized but cheap massage service.Hotel website is rumahmertua.com 

2) Royal Macau Hotel(Macau)- This was a discovery,Winner of Hotel Club’s 2010 Outstanding Value Hotel Award only means you get the best value for your stay in this hotel.

It is located in a hilly place at the foot of the city’s legendary landmark, the 174-metre-high hill, Colina da Guia and walking distance from several Macau tourist spots. We were taken cared of by Filipino hotel staff who made us feel at home. The hotel was newly renovated and due to its location (in a neighborhood close to schools )it gave us a look at the typical life in downtown Macau .Hotel website:  hotelroyal.com.mo 

3) Cebu Plantation Bay Resort(Cebu) This is a resort  far away from the city and has a very short beachside but the different pools in the resort more than made up for the lack of sea view. It has very courteous hotel staff and they even have a butler at your beck and call 24 hours a day.One of the best breakfast buffets I have ever tasted. This is a Conde Nast Traveller Top 20 Resorts in Asia Winner 3 years in a row which defines the hotels excellent customer service.Hotel website: plantationbay.com

4)  Ritz Carlton,Bali(Indonesia)-Now rebranded as Ayana Resort  has won Conde Nast Travellers Choice 2010 Number 1  Spa in the World award. The hotel staff here are the best in providing service and making you feel so special.The view in the hotel is just beyond words. They even have a bar perched on top of a rock overlooking the sea. You can just swim in the numerous pools while viewing the sun melt into the water casting the sky in brilliant colours of yellow, ochre and orange. Hotel website:ayanaresort.com 

and

5)  Disney Hollywood Hotel(HK) - It is a Tripadvisor Top 25 Travellers Choice Award Winner for Family hotels .This is a hotel located near HK Disneyland. My kids will never forget and totally loved the experience of swimming with Goofy and posing with various Disney characters who were roaming around the hotel to entertain child guests.Hotel website: hongkonghollywoodhotel.com

Advance Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to Everyone

BUYING A CAR AND GETTING A LICENSE IN CANADA

In Canada just like in the US it would be an advantage if you have a car to get around since public transportation is not that readily available everywhere not unless you stay in the heart of the city.

Thus it is important for you to get a drivers license immediately upon arriving in Canada.

The basic license given to newcomers is G1 which means that you can only drive if you are with a person who is a holder of a G2 drivers license. A G2 license will allow you to drive alone anywhere in Canada.

To get a G1 license you must pass a written test that consist of 40 questions  (multiple choice) and payment of a fee of C$125.00

If you have a valid drivers license anywhere in the world (except US) you still need to present additional proof like a letter from the Issuing agency in the home country before they can convert your G1 to G2 license.

Or you can schedule a practical driving test with the Drivers Test Office anywhere in Canada to covert your G1 to a G2 license.

Then and only then can you buy a vehicle under your name.Without the G2 license they wont issue a car insurance to you and thereby you cannot buy a vehicle. So its important that you complete all your documents including drivers licenses and certifications when you are migrating to Canada. 

I AM BUSY DOING SOME CRAFTS

Today, I bought two rolls of wallpaper at the dollar store. I saw from several online blogs and lifestyle TV programs how they decorated the stairs steps.

I bought a light blue and grey speckled design which looks like a floor laminate. You see our basement steps are still very rough and unpainted so I wanted it to look nice specially when I am going up the steps. 

I wanted to achieve something like this  

This is how my basement steps turned out. Not bad for half an hours job(pat on the back) 

  Now it looks better. Tomorrow,I shall attempt to paint our garage wall.

TRAVELLING IN 2010

     Its now October and two more months and its almost the end of 2010.

This year marked a big move for us, since its not like my usual travelling year(You see travelling is my hobby) .This year we have finally moved to Canada which will be our home for the next few years.

Evidently this move has clipped my wings(literally and figuratively) since travelling to Asia which is my favorite region will now be curtailed due to high costs of airfares.

It good I can still reminisce that I have somehow whet and satisfied my appetite for travel in 2010.

Here are the places I visited in 2010 before our move to Toronto in June 2010:

March- PHUKET,THAILAND, We revisited Phuket(its our 2nd time here) in time for my 2 boys school holidays. We stayed at Marriot Kamala beach courtesy of our Marriot membership.

April-BEIJING  and TIANJIN,CHINA. Hubby and I finally saw the Great Wall and are happy to have climbed to the top. Its one of our most remarkable and memorable trips as a couple. Again we made use of our Marriot Membership to stay for free at Marriot Beijings downtown hotel.

May, YOGYAKARTA,INDONESIA I. SInce hubby had work commitments I had to travel all by my lonesome self to Yogyakarta to see Borobodur,one of the temples that is in my wishlist of places to see. I stayed in a small but charming boutique hotel,Ruma Mertua which translated means Mother In Laws House.

June, PENANG & LANGKAWI,MALAYSIA -As a Huling Hirit(last Call), hubby invited me to join him in Penang and later Langkawi where he was winding off his work commitments before our transfer to Canada.

Lastly we arrived in Toronto ,Canada on June 7,2010.

I am surely missing the beaches of Asia and the warm weather. 

I am still dreaming of going places with hubby and the family but maybe that would be in 2011. 

SENDING YOUR CHILD TO SCHOOL IN CANADA

One of the benefits of migrating to Canada aside from Universal health system is the free educational system offered to most public as well as catholic schools here.My two sons have enrolled in Catholic schools here in Brampton.

My younger son Niles is going to Grade 8 at St Angela Merici Catholic Elementary School while my eldest Nygel will go to Grade 9 at St Edmund Campion Secondary School.

 When I registered my Grade 8 son to school a week ago, I was surprised and happy to find out I have nothing to pay for…no registration fee,no tuition fees, no uniforms,no canteen, no cellphones in class and most of all if your child lives more than 1.5 km away your child is also entitled to free school bus. For a parent that is a blessing .Imagine not paying school fees till they finish high school.

Today Tuesday, September 7, is the start of a new school year in Canada. Below is a breakdown of the expenses we incurred in enrolling our two sons in school. 

Grade 8 costs 

School supplies(from $1 store) estimate is $20

Art supplies (paid to school)                          $20

Locker Fee                                                            5

SUB TO                                                          $45.00

Grade 9(high school) costs 

Enrollment fee(cover lockers etc)             $60.00

Uniforms(expensive)                                   230.00

School Supplies($1 store)                            30.00

SUB TOTAL                                                     $320

TOTAL                                                                            $365.00 

Isn’t this wonderful?  Wait till they deduct it from our income which is about 25%. The HST(Harmonized Sales Tax) in Canada for all purchases(with no exception) is 13%.

To New Immigrants-What to do After Landing

Before we came to Canada I researched on the internet about what we would be doing soon after landing. Here are some of the things a new immigrant should do

First of all, some of the important things:

• If you don’t have somewhere already, find a place to live! In our case, I have my sister Bambi who generously opened her home to us;
• You should apply for your Social Insurance Number as soon as possible. The legalities of asking for the SIN seem to be a grey area, but banks will demand your SIN to open a bank account.
• You will also need a Medicare card to take advantage of the Canadian health care system.Be sure you have proof of address in Canada like a bank statement before applying for this card
• Open a bank account. This is the most important thing since if you dont open an account you will have a hard time getting credit. You can also try getting a line of credit, to start a Canadian credit history which is needed if you apply for home mortgage; In our case we have stumbled into a miracle, we got a good housing agent who was able to get a mortgage for us even though we didnt have a credit history in Canada.
• Get a driver’s licence. 
• Look for your childrens school;If you enroll your children in a catholic school you will have to attend an orientation and your children will be asked to attend an English as a Second language course;
• And some more other things:

• Take some time to settle in and enjoy your new environment. Don’t jump straight into work, unless you really can’t afford not to.
• Explore whatever city you are in, get to know the public transportation system and start learning your way around. 
• Do some sight-seeing, and some of the touristy things. You will probably have family and friends visiting at some point, so it’s good to know where to take them.Specially know where to get free tourist attractions visits.

Some people have reported PIDS (Post-Immigration Depression Syndrome), but we can’t say we ever felt that. I expect if you’re emigrating on your own , it could be a bit depressing. My family and my sisters family are like having a reunion of sorts thats why my kids are enjoying our new life in Canada. 

Canadian Life

We have been in Canada for almost two months now, so far we have completed almost everything we need to do:

1) Apply for our SIN(Security Information Number)

2) Look for housing and be approved for mortgage, we are moving to our new home by first week of AUgust

3) Find a school for our two boys

We are still on vacation mode(since I am not working) but hubby will be travelling to Asia by next week for his work and on August 9, we will be going to Quebec with him for a work assignment. 

Toronto is our new home

Talagang lagalag ang mga Pinoy katulad namin. We have filed our immigration papers about 4 years ago and after a year of saving up for this move we are finally here in Canada.

Toronto is our new home now. July 1st is Canada Day and to all Canadians, Happy Canada Day 

A Neglected Blog

I have been remiss in my blogging on this site. There are several reasons for this:

 One, I am maintaining two blogs (Turistangbarat- my travel blog) and (Febeth- my personal blog) as well as a facebook and a multiply account ,and

Secondly, I am a bit busy with our move from Singapore to Canada.We have finally migrated to Canada on the 7th of June 2010. My husband and two kids have so far been pretty settled.There seems to be no loneliness(yet) in our family. No homesickness (we have been away from the Philippines for 10 yrs) since sanay na kami sa buhay overseas.

But its a bit surprising that most of my enquiries or visitors actually come from this blog and most of them manage to locate me at my facebook account.

I hope to resurrect this blog soon after we have fully settled in our new home.   

Beijing Come True

Its a dream come true, visiting Beijing, eating Peking Duck,seeing Tianenmen Square and the Great Wall of China and most of all buying fake goods from the source(bought Uggs, Crocs,Burberry) the same products but much cheaper,evidently factory over runs from Chinese factories.

I cant use facebook and blogger and even multiply nor can I upload photos to my site.Terrible..its like being stranded.

Planning for a Trip To Beijing

The Great Wall of China is one of the places(not necessarily Beijing) that is in my wish iists of places to visit.

So when I saw this offering for initial budget trips to mark  the launch of Air Asia’s maiden trip to Tianjin(Beijing), I grabbed on the opportunity to book two tickets for hubby and myself.

Since I will be flying to Tianjing,I will still be riding on one of the worlds fastest bullet train, the Tianjing-Beijing  train which cuts down the travel time from these two cities from the normal 70 minutes to a record 30 minutes.

The two tickets which was flying out from Kuala Lumpur only costs RM760 for two which is about S$330 or (S$165@). How can you get lower than that for a trip to Beijing.Normally tickets to Beijing would costs somewhere between S$500-700.

The only hassle however was that I still have to fly to KL and stay overnight which means that I have to look at the prospect of sleeping again at the cold cement floors of the LCCT(Low Cost Terminal of Air Asia) or staying in Tune hotel for RM158 or getting into the Premier Lounge at RM106 for 5 hours or just sipping several cups of coffee at the LCCT McDonalds store.

At least this time I have 4 options, last year in February while going to Macau we had to sleep at the terminal while waiting for our morning connecting flight.

I really cannot cancel this trip since ,

1) I cant rebook and would totally lose my Beijing trip booking

2) I have already booked two nights at Courtyard Marriot Beijing using our Marriot card

3) I dont think I will be able to plan another trip to China now that we are moving to Toronto by June 7

Our budget for airfare and hotel

Airfare- Singapore to KL            S$80.00 (I bought another ticket going to KL)

              KL -Johor                             58.50 (RM136)

     KL-Tianjin to KL                         330.00 (RM 760) 

TOTAL AIRFARES                       S$  468.50  (S234.25 per person)

HOTELS (3 nights)                      Free courtesy of Marriot Vacation Club

allowance for 1 night hotel (KL)         54.00

TOTAL                                             S$     522.50 

Take a Look at Sentosa SIngapore’s New Hotels

Can You Beat this Low Air Ticket Fares?

The next time you book a flight compare these prices.

Singapore has a definite advantage in low cost airline travel since two of the regions low cost carriers are based in Singapore (Tiger Airways and Jetstar Asia) while another low cost carrier Air Asia is based in nearby Kualu Lumpur:

Here are the lowest airplane tickets from SIngapore and Kuala Lumpur :.

Flights with less than 3 hours duration:

Singapore to Kuala Lumpur                S$25 roundtrip    April 2010          Air Asia

 Singapore to Bali ,Indonesia              S$40 roundtrip    Dec 2009         Air Asia

Singapore to Yogyakarta,Indonesia   S$42 roundtrip   May 3-5,2010    Air Asia

Singapore to Phuket,Thailand             S$63 round trip  Mar 16-18,2010  Air Asia

 Singapore to Ho CHi Min,Vietnam     S$76 roundtrip     Nov 2009         Tiger Airways

Flights over 5 hours in duration:

Singapore to Perth                                S$117.3 rndtrip     Sept 2009         Jetstar

Kuala Lumpur to Tianjin(Beijing)       S$157.5 rndtrip   April 2010         Air Asia

As a rule of thumb for me, I find fares low if they fall below S$100 for flights for less than

3 hours and for less than S$200 for flights for destinations 3-6 hours duration.

The next time you book, let these rates serve as a benchmark whether you are buying real cheap tickets

Tips for 2010

ITCHY FEET

My lola(grandmother) used to say that if you have a mole(nunal) near your mouth you would be a glib talker, and if you have a mole down your nosetrils you will lead a good life. I dont have a mole in my feet which would denote I have either an itchy feet or a knack for travelling but thats how I had become because of these cheap airline bargain trips.

Next week four of us(without hubby who is in Taiwan) me, my two boys Nygel and Niles and our ever faithful alalay Nette will be off to our Bali holiday. I had long dreamt of Bali and it was only 6 months ago when I was finally able to get that bargain ticket of $40 for a round trip ticket to this Indonesian Island Resort.

I am also excited of course to go home this December and we will be visiting Coron ,Palawan. The seat sale of Zest Airlines was incredibly tempting at P400 but when I finally decided to book our tickets the price already went up by a 1000 bucks but it was still worth going there.

Hubby doesnt know yet but by next year, I had planned our return to Phuket in March for the kids school holidays. Just the two of us ,we will be in Beijing in April(to finally see the Great Wall) and in Borobodur,Indonesia in May. In between , Singapore’s Universal Studio might already be open and hopefully we can visit before we live and settle in Canada.

From Canada onwards, it will be penny pinching time for us….but hopefuflly not the end of my Itchy Feet saga. 

2009 A Busy Travel Year

Thanks to the different budget airlines in Asia, 2009 marked a busy travel year for me. and my family. 

Beijing is in my List of Places to Visit in 2010

Except for my US trip financed by hubby all the rest of our family trips materialized due to numerous online sales of budget airlines namely Air Asia, Jetstar and  Tiger Airways.

Here is my busy travel schedule this year:

JANUARY-FEBRUARY- Los Angeles,San Diego,Sta Barbara and Carlsbad California USA

MARCH- Macau, China

APRIL- Penang,Malaysia

JUNE-Bintan Island,Indonesia

SEPTEMBER-Perth, Australia

OCTOBER- Siem Reap,Cambodia

NOVEMBER, Saigon,Vietnam

DECEMBER- Bali, Indonesia

                         Palawan and Manila ,Philippines   

My wish list next year(2010) is to visit these places:

MARCH-Phuket again

APRIL- Beijing to see the Great Wall of China

MAY -  Yogyakarta,Indonesiato visit the Borobodur temple

JUNE- Settle in Ontario,Canada 

Being in Singapore is an advantage since most budget airlines have their base here.This is the reason why most fares are cheap coming from Singapore.

Saigon Bound

    We are travelling to Vietnam particularly in Ho Chi Minh(Saigon) by Tuesday next week. Last week in Phnom Penh we met a US couple who didnt like Saigon very much because they said the War Memorial brought back memories that they didnt want to be reminded again (Vietnam War).

I heard that the Vietnamese are very happy people. Maybe much like Pinoys. We also forgave the Japanese about the atrocities they have committed during the Japanese War.  

We dont expect to see awesome structures like Angkor Wat in Ho Chi Minch but as we were told Vietnam is a gastronomic adventure.

Saigon here we come/

BUDGET PLANNING FOR OUR SIEM REAP TRIP

There is this wrong notion that only rich people travel Although that maybe true in the past nowadays, anyone can travel.

With the numerous budget airlines and price wars and sale programs going on….one cant resist the offers of travelling at the least costs.

 Our trip tomorrow in Siem Reap,Cambodia is an example.

Out tickets costs  S$220 for two($110 each). We had booked at Golden Temple in Siem Reap where our room is US$22/day. for our 3 days 2 nights trip we estimate that we will spend about $50-$100 for food. Our entrance to the Angkor Wat Temple is US$20 and our departure tax is US$25.

Estimated costs for the entire trip(without shopping) is therefore about  US$500-US$800 for two persons.

Memories Through Facebook

hi! my maiden name i carmelita “milette” baring. i was wondering if you and i were classmates in st. joseph’s college qc?

 Hi Betty,
Are you Apha Delta from UP?

Cost of Migrating to Canada

This is to document the activities and expenses one has to go through and spend when you are planning to migrate to Canada.

First of all these expenses that I am going to list down are expenses without the cost of any consultant or legal attorneys that some would engage to apply for them.

These are the expenses for going to Canada in Singapore dollars

1) Application fee-                                                                          S$2,051.8

2) Cost of medical fees (xray etc for 2 adults and 2 children)  -S$599.8          

3) Cost of NBI /Police Clearance and Photos                              S$180.00

4)  Cost of Issuing Visa for 2 adults at $599@                         S1,200.00

5) Other Miscellaneous costs(transpo,xerox etc)                          100.00

ESTIMATED /ACTUAL TOTAL EXPENSES                          S$4,131.00 or about P137,500

In our case, we received our notice to do ou medical examination a 1st step for issuance of our permanency visas exactly 3 years

after we submitted our application.

We still have to spend for our air tickets and our relocation which will amount to probably around S$10,000-20,000 or about P500,000.

Its not a joke to migrate to Canada. 

Unbelievably Cheap Air Tickets

   With the advent of budget carriers in Asia,nowadays you dont need to be rich to be a jetsetter.

Look at the bargain air tickets that I was able to snap for my family:

 Jetstar Perth Airtickets two way- S$469 for 4 or about S$117 (P 3,904)/person. This is for our Sept 6-11 trip.

Jetstar Siem Reap tickets - S$110 or P3,670 /person for our October 20-22 trip.

Tiger AIrways Airtickets for Saigon S$76 or P2,536/person. This for our November 3-5 trip to Ho Chi Minh City.

Air Asia airtickets for Bali (the cheapest) at S$40 or P 1335 each.This is for our Dec 1-3 trip

It pays to monitor prices of air tickets once in a while specially if you are planning for vacations.You can enroll in Message Alerts from these budget airlines so that they will notify you when they have special promotions.

Touring Austral Asia

 Now that we are about to embark on a transfer to Canada (sometime next year), Asia will be a far off continent that would be too expensive to make a trip to.

Some of my friends and relatives who have moved to the US and Canada have not been outside the US and Canada and taking a vacation is an expensive indulgence .

So now that we are still here, I have lined up trips for my family to visit till end of the year.These are not expensive trips since there are a lot of budget airlines in Singapore:

Sept 6-11,2009    PERTH AUSTRALIA- we will spend our 15th years anniversary,Niles Bday which falls in September and the one week school holidays of the kids here.This is our first time to Australia

 October 20-22  SIEM REAP,CAMBODIA -me and hubby will visit the ancient Angkor Wat temple, a once in a lifetime trip that might not repeat itself. So while we are still 2 hrs away from Cambodia and still in Singapore,might as well visit one of the Ancient Wonders of the World.

November 3-5 HO CHI MINH,VIETNAM - This is the first time that we will be using our Marriot Timeshare plan, we will be staying gratis at amore at the Renaissance Marriot hotel just infront of the Mekong Delta River in Saigon(Ho CHi Minh City)

December 1-3 BALI  -This will be a dream for me to see Bali and we are staying at the Ritz Carlton Bali (Marriot). AT last I will visit this place that I have heard so much of.

Except for our Australia and Siem Reap trips, our hotels in Bali and Vietnam will be through Marriot Vacation Club.

At least pag nasa Canada na kami, we have already toured the exciting places in Asia

Sino Sya?

SIno Sya, was my first reaction ng bigla na lang nagsolo etong mukhang instik na e2. Biro mo bida siya agad

When the all-star Michael Jackson memorial ceremony in Los Angeles came to an end today, millions of fans watching the event became curious about the woman who sang lead on Jackson’s “Heal the World.” The mystery singer was Judith Hill, a Pasadena, California-based vocalist who was recruited to be one of the backup singers for Jackson’s This Is It! concerts at London’s O2 Arena. Hill wowed the crowd and the millions watching around the world with her rendition of the Dangerous song, but her identity had most viewers baffled — the “We Are the world” and “Heal the world” performers weren’t identified in the handouts at the Staples Center or on any other documents distributed to the press.

According to the bio on Hill’s official Website, “Judith was born in Los Angeles and raised in a family of musicians. Her mother is an immigrant from Japan who met her father in a funk band in the 1970s.” Hill is described as discovering her love of music at an early age while growing up in a deeply religious household, which led her to attend the Christian university Biola University in Southern California

Its Back to School in Singapore

  Unlike in the Philippines were schools are extended, in Singapore, the schools are now monitoring the travel of all their students. If the child has travelled to any of the H1A1 affected areas, they will be given a Leave of Absence for 7 days from the date of their travel till school opening which is on June 29,Monday.

This morning I received a  call from Niles teacher and he was advised to stay home till June 30 since we arrived from Bintan Indonesia only on June 24.

These efforts to contain the spread of the flu epidemic is laudable but I dont think it would really be  so much effective since as proven in the Philippines it has affected children who had never even travelled overseas and has spread to the community at a rapid phase.

Happy Fathers Day

Adam Lambert-The Next American Idol

With the exception of Carrie Underwood, there has never been a time except now that there emerges early in the contest a sure winner.

This year Adam Lambert will surely win.I am willing to bet on it.

The top two will be Danny Gokey and Adam Lambert

FLIGHT BARGAINS

Lately there had been a lot of airticket bargains online. It seems that airlines are just trying to fill up their capacity to survive.

Jetstarasia has launched noontime bargains(11-2pm).Just by logging on during these hours, fantastic bargains on airtickets are  at stake.

Airasia has launched also zero fares for trips to Indonesia. I bought our plane tickets for Bali at an unbelievable S$40 roundtrip.Just imagine that. It is even cheaper than going to Malaysia by bus.

Travel to and around Asia is getting cheaper but still nobody is travelling now adays.

Now is the time to travel , just surf for your cheap tickets online.

Bali here we come!!(this December)