Joyride to Ilocos Norte

It was unplanned day out to Norte, the sun was shining, oh what a glorious day. The road going up north is smooth unlike couple of years back its a rough road, from Ilocos Sur to Norte is a 2 hours drive. We reached Paoay just in time for lunch and we went to Herencia Restaurant, its famous for its Pinakbet Pizza located just in front of Paoay Church. The food was delish we ordered bagnet ( deepfried big piece of pork and cut into bite size and  served with onion tomato & anchovy ) mix seafood chop suey with vegetables and Sinigang na Malaga ( a sour soup fish stew ). A sumptuous lunch we all enjoyed. Special thanks to Mike for paying our delicious lunch.

Just after lunch, we walk across the road to Paoay Church the oldest church in Norte. After a short visita Iglesa  and lots of picture taking then we decided to go to Barangay Kapururawan its about 30-45 minutes short drive.

Kapurpurawan in Burgos Ilocos Norte  it is  where the famous White Rocks Formation is located. Its a seaside area, the view is magnificent, the place is about 20-30 minutes walk on the footpath trekking or horse ride trek- we opted for the horse ride adventure it cost 100 pesos, the horse guide are all friendly and they are not only guides but can be personal photographers too he he he ( we had group pictorial and the outcome wasn't bad at all ) this activity is highly recommended.

After this activity we drove back to Paoay area for the Sand Dune 4x4 truck Adventure, its almost sunset when we reached there. A truck rent with driver cost 1500 pesos for 30 mins or 2500 pesos for 1 hour plus sand boarding, we only had the 30 mins. The activity was fun and scary, some are smooth ride when on a flat area but when its on top of the hill and suddenly goes down or up its exhilarating and scary its good for adrenalin junkies. The view on top of the dunes plus beautiful sunset is undescribable- the crimson skyline . The best ever experience I had so far. We had lots of picture taken, silhouette to  jumps shot it was fun.

Activities like these are fun but when shared with friends, its more extra especial. Thank you to Michelle,Wendy ( best driver), Sherany, Glen and the kids Mica & Mico.

Fun and good company. I truly enjoyed the Joyride.

Shanghai Stop over

Its 4pm in the afternoon when we landed in Pudong International Airport Shanghai China and we have 7 hours lay over, so me and sally (  Filipina I've  met on the plane)  decided to go and see abit of Shanghai. We went through the customs and they've given us a transit visa, after we gone thru the customs, we went to look for a luggage lockers- we asked to the airport employee from customs officer to guards and flight attendants what a stressful time just to find a luggage lockers towards the end we just roamed around the airport and we found it at last . Then  we went to look for the ticketing office for maglev card,we soon found it and  bought a Maglev day pass that cost 80 yuan, which includes a fast train airport link return ( SMT) and unlimited metro train and bus for 24 hours.

 The SMT

The Metro

Me & my travelling buddy bear in SMT

The SMT (Shanghai Maglev Trains) the fastest train in shainghai it run 300km/hr it's only 8 minutes from Pudong Airport to Longyang Road Station that was cool, then take a metro for Lujiazui where the famous Oriental Pearl Tower and the circle pedestrian fly over. The experience in metro is horrendous, it was rush hour and all the cabin is so full you can't even move, people are pushing each other just to get in, its like in a can of sardine ( not exaggerating it ) local people seem not bothered about it, I noticed most Chinese people are not friendly , abit  rude they speak a little English or no English at all - more of a sign language ( starts from the airline to Shanghai airport- the customer service isn't good as well  as the locals in public transport( some of these complaints are from american girl, German girl, and Italian guy I met on the plane and airport) ... For tourist like me the chinese locals need to learn English to communicate with the world.( or I am just use to British culture that's so soft and will say sorry to every little things).  I'm not being critical I may just be in the a wrong place in a wrong time???? I need to explore more to give  it another chance, maybe next time its better experience ..... Let's say Beijing next destination ....Mmm let's wait and see .

The Orient Pearl Tower

Sky scrapers buildings 

Turkish Delight

Turkish tonight dear? Its Saturday night Me and a friend booked a table in Grille- a Turkish restaurant in the heart of Cheltenham. As we arrived the place was so quiet we book the table for 7pm, we were the first costumer to arrived. As we get in I felt as I was entering in someone's house, the deco was OK a few pictures frames on the walls and one thing caught my eye the Hagia Sophia photo frame and a hanging  Turkey's flag.

We were greeted by a waitress and seated by the fireplace, it was nice and cosy. We were handed the menu and lots of dishes to choose from, it was my first time to try Turkish cuisine so I don't have any clue what to order, as I scan my eyes to the menu noticed a nice selection of dishes from mezze to meats, fish and drinks. We ordered Bottle of Rosè, together with a mixed mezze selection platter - Houmous mashed Chick Peas, Tahini, Lemon, Olive Oil and a hint of Garlic, Haydari Greek yoghurt mixed with fresh dill,garlic and olive oil, cacık yogurt with cucumber and garlic, tzatsiki greek yoghurt sauce made with cucumbers and fresh mint. Tyrokafteri feta and red chillies served with freshly bake Pide Bread with salad and onion rings. 

For our mains I ordered Lamb kleftico it came with salad and bulgur rice, the lamb was nice and I did enjoy the Bulgur rice it was well seasoned, my friend ordered Lamb shank stifado it came with salad and bulgur rice too.

The mains was so filling but we still wanted to try some Turkish desserts. We ordered Almond Baklava a filo pastry with honey and almonds and served with fresh cream, Loukoumades made from deep-fried dough balls, which are soaked in a honey syrup with cinnamon with almonds and fresh cream. The food was nice,the service was excellent the waitress and the manager keeps coming and checking on every table. The night ended with a mouthful of Turkish delight mmmm so sweet  ...And the night was literally a Turkish Delight...

Evening out in Swindon U.K

Sunshine in a lovely spring day , its a good day for a road trip. The timing was perfect Me and Josh decided to meet up in Swindon. I was working early shift and as soon as I finished work I drove down to Swindon. Its was a heavy traffic driving down to Swindon at rush hour and I hated it. I was an hour late meeting up with Josh but its good he didn't mind waiting, I think that was a good thing, me and time doesn't go together I think. But hey I arrived in Swindon, the only good thing is driving along the countryside, the sunset was beautiful like picture perfect in a postcard. Josh decided for us to go to Swindon old town... I kept telling to him nothing much to see in Swindon, but its good we didn't go there for stroll, its more of an evening drink. 

We came across to this nice and cozy restaurant called Cakes and Ale along the Devizes street in old Town Swindon ( cakes for me and ale's for Josh) as recommended by a local we met by the car park. We found this place and they are famous with their freshly bake breads/cakes. As we entered to this place were greeting by a smile and friendly face of the staff and we were seated by the window. As I look around the restaurant has a very quirky and rustic display, cake stand by the windowsill, it has a good atmosphere. Menus was handed to us, I ordered cappuccino and Josh ordered Gem Bath's ale which has a rich aroma of hops and malt with deep bittersweet taste. As they are well known with their bread,we tried the bread selection it came with four dips the usual butter, olive oil & balsamic vinegar, and red chillie paste and garlic dip, it was nice my favourite dip was the chillie and garlic dip. Josh like his ales so he tried another local Bath Ale called Wild Hare it has a fresh citrus hoppy aroma and a dry bitter finish.

An evening spent with good chat and giggles  we didnt realised the time, time flies so quick when your having a good time. I never laugh so hard and enjoyed a company of a tall, hunky ,handsome with good sense of humour man ( whole package in one ). Its good to catch up with a good friend.

Blackpool

Blackpool  is a seaside town and borough of Lancashire, North West England. It is situated east coast by the Irish Sea, between the  Ribble  and  Wyreestuaries.

Blackpool continues to attract millions of visitors every year. In addition to its sandy beaches, Blackpool's major attractions and landmarks include  Blackpool Tower which soars 158 metres above the city. On a clear day you can see from North Wales to the Lake District. Blackpool Illuminations which turn six miles of streets into a glittering festival of lights, and the UK's only surviving first-generationtramway.

Blackpool Tower

 Blackpool is famous for hen nights or stag do's , what ever your plan for visiting Blackpool it has lots to offers. Stroll along the promenade and watch the world go by or pub crawl or visit different casino if your feeling lucky. For the kids options there's Blackpool Zoo and Sandcastle Water Park.

As you stroll along the Pleasure Beach you will see lots of Hotel accommodations and B&b scattered everywhere, the buildings are very old along with Casino's and amusement parks.

Blackpool North Pier 

I have choose to go for a photowalk for the day and on the evening we are going to see Shane Filan concert in Winter Gardens.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach