Ginza Bellevue Hotel, Tokyo

Based from experience from 2014's Tokyo trip, more or less I could already tell which hotel would be better for our itinerary.  While our stay in Sotetsu Fresa Inn last time was not bad, we felt it could be better.  So Hubby and I opted not to stay at the same hotel and just pick another one.  I guess staying in Ginza last time spoiled us.  It was more familiar too, so we chose another hotel in Ginza for this trip:  The Ginza Bellevue Hotel.  

Fast forward to the day of the trip - we booked the same flight as last year's at 5:25am.  The only difference was that the flight got delayed (BOO!) and by the time we got to the hotel, it was already check-in time.  I guess the delay also worked to our advantage - it gave us a bit of time to rest before venturing out to explore the city. 

Corridor

The entire room

The room from another angle

Cabinet with all the essentials

Working table

Bathroom

Toiletries

Finally, I got my Shiseido bath products!  LOL.  Everything the hotel used - from the shampoo down to the hand soap - was Shiseido.  Yay!  

So the verdict?  Location wise, Ginza Bellevue Hotel is fantastic.  A yummy steak place and a spa is just right downstairs, and there's a 7-Eleven AND a Starbucks a few steps away.  Not too far from the subway too.  The best part?  Ginza shopping district is about two minutes walk away.  From a shopaholic's point of view, it can't get any better than that!  While the hotel's interior might be a little bit older than expected, it was clean.  As for the size.. oh well we know how tiny Japanese hotel rooms always are, so that's expected.  But it fit the both of us, so it's all good.  4 out of 5 stars!

Ginza Bellevue Hotel is at 6-4-14 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061 Japan

Why you should NOT go to the PAL travel fair this weekend

I'm a travel junkie.  Besides food and shopping, traveling is my next hobby.  But before you go and think that I have unlimited funds, I assure you, I do not.  What I usually do is book early and make the best out of those piso-fare and travel fairs happening whole year round.  Hey, the less money you spend on fares, the more you have for shopping, right?  So when I read that our country's own flag carrier is having a travel fair, I immediately scheduled it on my calendar.  That day was today. 

See the ad above?  That was all it took for me to drag my butt out of bed early, skip work and venture to Macapagal on a Friday morning.  Thanks to Friday traffic, we arrived at 10am.  By then the line was already outside - they had stopped people from going inside for crowd control.  We patiently lined up for about 15 minutes, wondering how long it's going to take before we can actually step foot inside the Banking Hall.  You see, after the line outside, you'll proceed inside to line up again.  And after the line inside, you'll be directed upstairs, where there is (guess what?)  yup, another line.  Luckily, Mom had to go to the bathroom.  Why lucky?  Because of the way back from the bathroom, she got hold of the flyer with all the "promo rates" for the ongoing travel fair.  This is what it looks like:

International Flight Rates During Lean Season

International Flight Rates During Peak Season

We were supposed to get the tickets to London, and the dates we picked out happens to be part of the peak season.  1 "discounted fare" round trip ticket to London will cost you $1053.  I crossed check this with the current rates on the Philippine Airlines website (without the discount) and it comes out at $1228.  What was supposed to be a 50% discount on fares has just become 15%, according to calculations.  And there is no way I'm going to brave those lines for such a small discount.  Read the ad copy again (first photo) and tell me what's wrong.  Spot it yet?  It says "get 50% off on our domestic and international destination".  GET 50% OFF, not GET UP TO 50% OFF.  Those two words make all the difference.  Why stoop so low, Philippine Airlines?  Do you really have to go that low to dupe all your loyal customers?  Seriously, even if you're not going to give an all-out 50% off, you could at least give something more than 15%.  It's simply not worth it.  So yes, I am therefore boycotting ALL PAL-sponsored travel fairs from now on.  Please, count me out.  I'm better off in one of those legit travel fairs with REAL discounts.

Cosmo Hotel, Hong Kong

So how did everyone's Holy Week turn out?  Oops.  Should I have asked about Labor Day instead?  Sorry!  Been meaning to blog ever since I came back but was too swamped with work.  Girl's gotta earn some moolah!  Anyway, I mentioned in my previous post that I am off to somewhere for Holy Week.  And as you guys can probably guess from the title of this post, I was in Hong Kong.  Yes, again.  I swear, judging from the number of times I go there in a year, they should make me an honorary citizen.  LOL.

Our trip was actually a last minute thing.  A few weeks before Holy Week, Dad suddenly asked if everyone would like to spend it out of the country.  What the heck, who'd say no, right?!  So off we scrambled to make last minute plans of where to eat, and what to do (who am I kidding?  It's more of where to shop!)  

First up, where we stayed.  Dad made all the flight and travel arrangements, and since it's peak season, he wasn't able to book us a room at our usual hotel.  All we knew was that we were going to stay at a hotel called Cosmo and that it's quite near the Causeway Bay shopping area.  Great!

Fast forward to Holy Friday, we arrived in Hong Kong early in the morning.  We took a cab to the hotel, and were surprised to find out that the hotel was situated near a temple, a hospital and the cemetery.  You could say that Mom was not pleased.  Oops.  The only hope that we had was that the hotel rooms are going to be nice and cozy.  Well was it?  Scroll down to see!

First glimpse of the room

Wall mounted TV and working area

The room at another angle

Side table

Closet, safe and mini fridge

Bathroom

Tub

Sink

So... how was it?  Initial reaction:  the room is so tiny!  Even smaller than the already tiny room we stayed in at the Butterfly on Victoria Boutique Hotel the last time we were in Hong Kong.  And no free in-room wifi.  You'd have to hang out in the lobby if you want to go online.  Oh dear.  On the first night, we didn't have any hotel toiletries either.  We thought they really do not provide, but were surprised on the second day to see that everything from the shampoo down to the cotton buds were there.  In addition to the scary location, there seems to be no MTR station nearby.  And the "near Causeway Bay shopping area" remark?  You'd have to walk about 20 minutes to get there.  I think it's safe to say that we won't be staying in this hotel in the future.  Oh Dad, thanks for trying anyway.  1.5 out of 5 stars.

Cosmo Hotel is at 375-377 Queen's Road East, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Macau

Back to regular programming!

Surprise!  Though I only mentioned that our trip was to Hong Kong, Hubby and I did a day trip to Macau.  Being only an hour away by ferry, it's really easy to get to Macau from Hong Kong.  It's been quite a while since the last time we were in Macau, and we miss it!  So off to Macau we went.  We really did not have anything planned, so we went around as we please.  They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I'll let the pictures do the talking and let you guys enjoy the sights of Macau without my constant blabbering.  LOL.  Enjoy! 

Amazing huh?  We thought we could go around Macau in just a day, but it turns out that Macau is bigger than we thought.  We didn't even get to do the touristy things!  And we didn't even get to taste Portuguese food except for one egg tart.  Does that even count?!  So... both of us agreed that next time, we'll do a separate Macau trip and savor everything they have to offer.

Oh and before I forget, HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!  Spread the love! <3

Hong Kong Eats: Ippudo HK, a second time

Remember this?  Well, we loved it so much that we cannot simply pass up the chance of going back there again.  Plus, the last time we ate in Ippudo Singapore, they don't serve the codfish that I've been raving about in their HK branch.  So here we go, Ippudo HK, take two.

Akamaru Shinaji

Broth is good, but found it a tad too salty for my taste.  Guess my tastebuds got spoiled with our very own Ramen Nagi in SM Aura.  :)

Eel Rice with Egg in Stone Pot

Ah, something new.  I've always been a fan of the unagi (eel) so finding this in the menu, I just had to order it.  No regrets here, the eel perfectly complemented the soft Japanese rice.

Codfish with Saikyo Miso Sauce

And of course, our Ippudo favorite.  The codfish that haunted me for half a year.  This was just a teeny tiny bit overcooked compared to the last time, but nonetheless, it does the job well.  An explosion of  greatness in my mouth.  Ooooh.

Soft Boiled Egg

And being the egg monster, we ordered not one, but two kinds of soft boiled eggs.  If they had 10 kinds of soft boiled eggs, I tell you, we would've ordered them all.  LOL.  This one tasted very plain.  But I liked that they were consistent in delivering real soft boiled eggs, unlike some ramen joints that give almost hard boiled ones.

Flavored Soft Boiled Egg

Now this, will be my staple order every single time in our future Ippudo visits.  Marinated soft boiled egg is love.  Almost made me order another one if only I wasn't afraid of cholesterol levels shooting up, haha!

All in all, I applaud Ippudo HK for consistency.  Will definitely be back again and again and again!  4 out of 5 stars! 

Ippudo HK is at Shop 210, Silvercord Tower, 30 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong 

Butterfly on Victoria Boutique Hotel, Hong Kong

To start off my Hong Kong post, let's go with where we stayed first.  Butterfly on Victoria Boutique Hotel in Causeway Bay.  Whenever in Hong Kong, our family usually stays in L' Hotel Causeway Bay Harbour View.  The hotel is clean and nice, has free wifi on the lobby, and the MTR is just across the street.  This trip however, L' Hotel was fully booked on the nights that we were visiting, so we had no choice but to look for other accommodations.  During our past vacations, we distinctly remembered passing by a small, colorful building near L' Hotel called Butterfly on Victoria.  A quick check on the internet and we discover that the rates were quite similar to L, so we decided to book Butterfly this time around.

Hubby and I took the first flight out to Hong Kong.  So when we arrived in Butterfly Hotel, it was a bit early for check-in.  Special thanks to the staff who were very accommodating with helping us with our luggage (even the front desk officer, a girl, helped us drag our luggage into the hotel!) and letting us check-in even if we were early.  Plus points!  Now, let's see how the hotel room compares to our tried and tested one.  Scroll down for photos!

First glimpse of the room

A shot of the bed from another angle

Written on top of the headboard.  Good quote!

Working area

Closet

A glimpse of the bathroom

Bathroom

Shower area

So how was it?  We found the room a bit smaller than the ones we're used to, but other than that, the hotel was pretty great.  The rooms are nice and clean, the wifi is fast and free (and in-room!), and the rates are reasonable.  Good location too!  Seems like we discovered another gem of a hotel in Hong Kong.  4 out of 5 stars!

Butterfly on Victoria Boutique Hotel is at 33 King's Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.