usa

My first update with iPhone.

Final leg of the holiday.

Am I loving it so far?

Kinda mixed feelings, really!

And I have no idea why I am up in the middle of the night when I am supposed to be really tired after having only 4 hours of sleep last night.

Was in Vegas for the last two nights and no!
We had little luck but apparently not enough.
And concluded that as much as we love Wynn casinos but we will never win in one.
Be it in Las Vegas or Macau.

I could also be jet-lagged still.
Traveling across west to east means adjusting to new timezone every few days.
Dinner or supper? Activity time or bed time?

I might be feeling guilty from the all the spending.
And from exprience, I do sometimes get up in the middle of the night,
hating myself for buying it or for not buying it.
Experienced! But I don’t know which is better or worst.
Last stop. Our luggage are already full.
And we have yet to start in the (some say) shopping capital of the world.
We too realized that our luggage / suitcase looked very small on the carousel, compared to the gigantic ones and some checked in more than 1 luggage and carry a lot on board too.
Conclusion, Chinese (nationals) are the true light travelers, the people I know travel with little luggage meant for carry-on, no matter where or how long they travel.

Now, I finally know why my luggage is almost full before I start.
And I thought the problem was Me.

I should really try get some sleep.
This isn’t helping much but I am glad to identify my problems/worries/depression/guilt/whatever.

Good morning. Good afternoon. Good night.
Whenever wherever you are reading this.

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“Travel light so that u have more space for shopping loot…”

EXCESSive

The last time I said that. I failed miserably.
I returned from HK with an excessive 7Kg load.
The lady at the check-in counter was kind enough to only charge 5kg.
I obediently paid.
Because I am sure I couldn’t hand carry and pull the extra weight around…
Without breaking an arm or bone.
And not after 5 nights of insufficient sleep!

I have started my reducing the size of my toiletries and makeup up pouch.
From 2 pouches into 1. A good start.
They would have taken 1/3 of the space. :-p

Since its summer… wear a pair of skinny jeans, bikinis (swimsuit will make me look like alien) and shorts for Hawaii and lots of light tops…
Flip-flops for the beach, a pair of sneakers (in case we are going to hike the Diamond Head in Honolulu) and flats.

Bringing my Prada Gauffre and an Agnes b. tote (very light)…

The above should ideally take up not more than half my suitcase.

2 Cameras, My new DSLR and a Compact. One is not enough!
(Dp n I debated over this. Which I won. Coz I said that he goes where the second camera goes.)

I am relatively very relaxed over packing (now!), cause like what Dp tells me every time, I just need to have $.

This time, I made a shopping list of things I should look out for… but with all the anticipation, I might just not buy anything.
And Dp was the big buyer on our last Europe Holiday. He bought a lot more than me!

Leaving for Beijing on the 7th… Watch the Opening Ceremony on TV, on the 8th and flying off to Hawaii on the 9th.

Because of the time difference, we are going to reach Hawaii same day, and 2 hours before we took off in Beijing.
And that’s after waiting for 5 hours in Seoul… hee!

Signing off…

Ps: I may or may not be able to update before I fly.

P.Ps: Happy 43rd Birthday, Singapore!!!

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Finally, 10 days, 100s of web pages surfed, 100s strands of hair, few wrinkles, pimples LATER…

I just booked the last hotel for our trip. The last of the 4 destinations.

A lot of work huh?
Yes. Only when it comes to Hotel…

Which Dp could tell why I was so engrossed to a program on Channel Travel & Living.
The program talked about hidden stylish boutique hotels in Florence, Italy.
And in another program, I saw a boutique hotel, Courtyard style (四合院)…

Dp gave me a budget for the 13 days stay in hotels and I have managed to work within the budget….
which would have been even lesser, if I booked earlier and is less hesitant.
He must be proud of me.

Along with the research of the hotels, I too know a lot more about the cities and where most of the retails are!
And in almost a heartbeat, I decided on Holiday Inn Express Fifth Ave in NYC… after my pleasant stay in HK Holiday Inn Express Causway Bay.
(“in almost a heartbeat” coz the decor wasn’t quite what I would love… so I hesitated for days.)
Can’t beat the location for shopping… and lots of walking is expected throughout the trip.

I am now left with tickets for shows in Vegas & NYC…
but with the huge burden of hotels off me…
I think I could do with a little window-shopping online of stores in US.

Yes. That was what I have been doing for the last week… and therefore took me forever to decide and book the hotels. :-p

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After talking about it, for what seems like a decade, we finally got our the tickets!

  • Go-USA

    We got our tickets 2 days ago and are going to leave on the 9th August 2008, from Beijing,
    and a day, after the opening of Olympics… which we were not too keen on.

    3 weeks in advance, is still kind of ‘last minute’ for a 2 week holiday but considering that we planned our Honeymoon to Europe, only a week before the trip. This is very early.

    Unlike, the honeymoon, we set off with the least idea of our destinations, decisions are made by Dp and how he is feeling for that particular day.
    Is he feeling “Scandina-vish” or not? And on some days, it depends on the side of the bed, he wakes up on!
    In short, we have no plans but somehow we always know where to shop or where to have coffee by the sidewalks.

    Anyway, been doing few of research and we wanted to be prepared.
    Or rather, I, want to be prepared!
    I am born-a worrier (and the only one in my marriage), if you haven’t realise by now!

    I am less worried with more info I read and found on the internet.
    SO I am feeling less Stressed now than I was, a week ago.

    I have a thing with Hotels.
    Which is why, its never easy for me to make decisions.

    Tripadvisor.com is a great site with many useful reviews of hotels.
    I suggest everyone who is going on free-and-easy to check this site…
    unless you are like me, who sometimes finds it too much info and make the already-indecisive me…. worst!

    Since its kind of holiday peak, I should really book my hotels ASAP!!!
    Twice during our honeymoon, we walked all over the city, for hours, with our luggages looking for available hotels.
    No more of that!

    Our Route:
    Beijing – Seoul (Stopover) – Honolulu – San Francisco – Las Vegas – New York – Seoul (Stopover) – Beijing

    Will be spending most of the trip (5 days) in Honolulu, a great place to get over jet lag while we tan on the beach paradise!
    Since Hawaii is popular with Japanese and Korean tourist… its not hard to guess that its a shopping paradise too!

    There is so much I like to talk about my plans and findings…
    but there is so much to do and I am having a really difficult time trying to complete this post…

    Too many distractions…
    Basically, where to sleep / eat / play / shop … on top of the 101 other stuffs I read and surf daily.

    Some are really silly, unnecessary…

    Like, adding the hotels we stayed during our last 2006 Honeymoon to my Trip folder on Tripadvisor.
    ( I am sentimental. I might search for those we stayed in 2002 too. We might go back to the good ones, one day.)

    Or what’s is “IN” for the coming Autumn / fall fashion…
    (A few beautiful pieces. Something to cheer me up for my least favourite season!)

    And maybe buy creme for my coffee…on taobao.com!

  • I better go book my hotels now.
    Go with my instincts and so that I can finally get something done!

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