Getting ready to go for dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. & a NewMan Magazine party at Eurostar (near Sunway Pyramid) yesterday.

I’m moving to the new apartment at Suasana Sentral Loft tonight! Can’t wait to shop at IKEA

Wished I could share with you the photos I’ve taken recently but I totally forgot about my memory card reader! It looks like you’re going to have to wait until after the 19th when I make a short trip back to Singapore. Moving to a new apartment at Suasana Sentral The Loft next week! Soooo exciting!

RoomService.com.my is the bomb! I’ve ordered from them twice already. They have RoomService.com.sg too. You’re welcome

I had Nando’s for the first time and honestly, I don’t get the hype built around it. It was good but not THAT great. I’ll still take KFC over Nando’s anytime.

In January 2008, I went on my first backpacking trip to Guatemala in Central America for a total of 10 days. It is by far the most intense and exciting trips I’ve had. I barely spoke any Spanish and only had about USD200 to last me a week – which turned out to be a real treat. I stayed in cheap hostels for about USD5/night and met a number of other backpackers from all over the world who were really friendly and outgoing – that helped a lot.

I must say, climbing an active volcano in Guatemala and being the only female tourist sitting in a chicken bus filled with about a ratio of 4:3 male to female Guatemalans WAS not just an unnerving experience, it was almost suicidal. Who would have thought that very volcano would erupt 2 years later…

This is the Pacaya volcano in Guatemala 2 years ago before it erupted. Taken from my hostel in Antigua. Sometimes you can even see smoke coming out from the top of the volcano. Yup, it was still active when I went up there!

Poking fun.

My guide. He took a group of about 10 people (including me) up to the volcano. Pacaya rises to an elevation of 2,552 metres (8,373 ft). It wasn’t an easy climb at all! Mind you, what he’s standing on is hardened lava and underneath it is 1250° Celsius of hot lava!

Sitting on the igneous rocks (hardened lava). The climb took about 6 hours – we started at 730am and ended at about 1pm.

It was worth the thrill. However, I still find it hard to believe that Pacaya volcano erupted recently. My condolences to those who have lost their loved ones from the disaster.

I’d really like to climb Mount Kinabalu next.

The pretty blue skies made up for the extreme humidity and hot sun. Everything’s cool once I entered the mall

Decked out in everything YesStyle!

*     *     *     *     *

REDOPIN - Striped shirt

US$36.10

Drama – Skort

US$49.40

ASHTON – Faux-Leather Shoulder Bag

US$77.90

I had such a tough time deciding which color to pick for the handbag… Thanks to everyone on Twitter & Facebook who gave their suggestions! Blue was a definite winner. I am such a sucker for handbags…  I’ve gotten 4 handbags from YesStyle!

More photos from my weekend trip to KL coming up!

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Watching the sunset on my last day in Bali – Double Six Beach

Living the dream.

I’d highly recommend going to Rip Curl School of Surf in Bali (Jl. Double Six) if you wish to learn how to surf. I love that they even have a photographer to take photos of you while you try to catch your first wave. I look pretty dorky with that helmet on, but hey, at least I’m covered by insurance!

Horseback riding along the beach, near Ku De Ta. I learnt how to trot the horse, it was challenging at first as you try to figure out the momentum, but I managed to get a hang of it! My buttcheeks were sore for a couple of days after that though… but it was worth it!

Shisha is only about S$3 here. I can’t believe I’ve been paying between S$10-$20 in Singapore! They had bubblegum on the menu but it was out of stock! I would’ve so loved to try that out.

Dinner @ Rumours with friends who are working & living in Bali. A chill, laid-back restaurant with a funky vibe. I liked their choice of music – they start off with alternative/rock and gradually moving in to house/trance. FashionTV showing on the 2 plasma tellies add to the cool factor of this restaurant. Oh and yes, I had pizza & margarita. Life is good!

It was like living my dream. I couldn’t believe I was waking up to the sounds of the breaking waves and even fell asleep watching the stars.

I even saw 4 shootings stars, 3 in one night. It was so magical…

Nikoi is a 15 hectare private island 8km off the east coast of Bintan, Indonesia. Located less than 85km from Singapore, traveling time from Tanah Merah ferry terminal is approximately two and a half hours.

The design of the beach houses reflects both traditional Indonesian architecture and contemporary form.  Using driftwood and alang alang roofing to blend into the environment, each beach house incorporates a modern ensuite bathroom.  Providing “simple barefoot luxury” in a sublime setting.

There was no air-conditioner, and they use solar panels to provide the hot water!

In operating Nikoi Island we minimise our day to day impact by recycling our waste, using solar panels to provide hot water. We minimise our electricity consumption by using low voltage LED and CFL lighting and limited landscape lighting. However in order to provide guests with water to shower, cold drinks and fresh food we have not been able to avoid the need to run diesel generators to power our pumps and fridges. We do however buy these generators second hand and endeavour to run them as efficiently as possible. We live in hope that renewable energies will become more affordable, simpler to operate and not need vast banks of lead batteries to store power. Wave and tidal powered renewable energy we believe will one day be the solution for Nikoi. We avoid the use of plastic by using refillable bottles for toiletries. Our food is purchased in local markets and whilst not certified as organic, the use of pesticides and fertilisers is uncommon due to the cost and the small scale of the farming. We avoid the use of processed food and make our own museli, bread, pastries and fresh juice.

The hut

View from the bedroom upstairs

This was what I woke up to…

I slept with all the windows open and while there were ZERO mosquitoes, the mosquito net helped to keep other little insects out.

Happy Birthday, Judd!

Can’t wait for my next adventure…

5.30pm - Decided to go to Bangkok (was watching ‘All About Eve’ – Classic!)
6.30pm – Got a taxi to pick up my friend, Lionel, who already got a tix for himself and drove to the airport
7.30pm - Got to the airport, went on the waiting list, waited for 30 minutes & finally got a ticket
8.40pm - On the plane to BKK
10pm (local time) – Arrived in BKK, took the taxi straight to the party at Metropolitan Hotel!

Charles used the idea I proposed to him for a slumber themed party (can’t go wrong with that) for his birthday at the Met in Bangkok. It was hella fun, (almost) everyone dressed up!

Flip Sandwich! With Nina Tinitigan (Charles’ cousin; we met in Manila) and the birthday boy himself.

It was a crazy, crazy night… Went to bed at 5pm but was up by 9am…

I stayed at the Banyan Tree (right next to The Met) with 3 of my friends and decided that it was about time to explore the real beauty of Bangkok.

3.15pm: Rushing to the Grand Palace. They close the ticket counter at 3.30pm and the palace closes at 5pm. A ticket costs 200baht.

If you took a moment and imagined yourself there by yourself, no one else… This place is more than just magical, it’s surreal…

“If there is one must-see sight that no visit to Bangkok would be complete without, it’s the dazzling, spectacular Grand Palace, undoubtedly the city’s most famous landmark. Built in 1782 – and for 150 years the home of the Thai King, the Royal court and the administrative seat of government – the Grand Palace of Bangkok is a grand old dame indeed, that continues to have visitors in awe with its beautiful architecture and intricate detail, all of which is a proud salute to the creativity and craftsmanship of Thai people.”  - Bangkok.com

You ever look a picture of yourself, and see a stranger in the background?

It makes you wonder how many strangers have pictures of you.

How many moments of other peoples life have we been in.

Were we a part of someone’s life when their dream came true or were we there when their dream died.

Did we keep trying to get in? As if we were somehow destined to be there or did the shot take us by surprise.

Just think, you could be a big part of someone else’s life, and not even know it…

Taking the tuk-tuk with my friends Ben Wei & Eduardo Saverin. Going to see the world’s largest reclining Buddha!

Taking the public boat to the Temple of the Sitting Buddha (Wat Wat Trimitr Wittayaram). Tri means three, Mitr means good friend.

The story was told that this temple was built by three friends. They were merchants in the area.

Unfortunately, the temple was closed and would only be open again on Christmas day but I didn’t leave without buying a little souvenir and making a small donation.

The rich and very different cultures, traditions and beliefs in SouthEast Asia never fail to amaze me. You learn something new everyday. This was by far the 2nd best most spontaneous trip of 2009 for me.

Manila comes first. The rest were just as memorable…

A quote I came up with from that weekend, that I’ll live by forever:

“Live the moment. Make it worthwhile.
Take a chance. Make it count.”

]]> http://www.withlovefay.com/2009/12/bangin-bangkok/feed/ 0 http://www.withlovefay.com/2009/12/mahubay-mahalin-manila/ http://www.withlovefay.com/2009/12/mahubay-mahalin-manila/#comments Wed, 16 Dec 2009 10:01:51 +0000 Fay Hokulani http://www.withlovefay.com/?p=1977 Continue reading →]]> To Live, To Love Manila

I made a much needed trip out of town last weekend to the Philippines (Manila) with 2 of my good friends, Adam & Charles. It was a spontaneous trip and I booked my tickets a week before the trip for SGD557 on Philippines Airlines – it was almost 3 times the usual price but it was worth every dollar.

On the night we arrived, like true ‘ballers’, we hyped ourselves up after a 4-hour plane ride to watch Armin van Buuren spin at the World Trade Center.

It was an epic night. Armin showed why he was named the No.1 DJ in the World (for the 3 consecutive years) and that set was probably the best House/Trance music display I’ve seen this year.

The man’s got talent and living his dream. Amazing.

A little hangover didn’t stop us from doing a little retail therapy at the biggest mall in Asia the next day – MALL OF ASIA.

Girls, if you like shopping, GO THERE. Personally, I think it beats Bangkok. Good price and good quality. It reminded me of the malls in California! Make sure you bring lots of recycled bags, you’re gonna need it for all the shopping. I bought 3 killer heels in an hour, for about 1300 pesos each. You can never get a deal like that in Singapore.

I even got a manicure/pedicure for 300 pesos – That’s about $10! I know, I know.

Yup, Mall of Asia is SO big, it even has an ice-skating rink!

We hopped on over to Greenbelt Mall for dinner at Fely J’s restaurant. It was about 15 minutes away but we got there 45 minutes late because of heavy traffic. Traffic is HELL. Luckily, we called the restaurant to let them know we were running late so they kept our table for us. I recommend making a reservation before heading down there because they are usually fully booked, especially during dinner time. Also, definitely try the Crispy Tilapia Fish & Sticky Mango Rice with Vanilla ice-cream… It. Is. Yummy. In. My. Tummy.

That’s Charles’ sweet mom on the left. She taught me a bit of Tagalog (it is related to Austronesian languages such as Indonesian, Malay, Javanese & Spanish). Unlike Thai, it was so much easier for me to pick it considering I speak a little of those few languages. I want to learn how to speak Tagalog fluently already!

After dinner, we made our way to Rockwell to check out a friend’s bikini stall at a bazaar they had right outside the mall. Rockwell is a very nice downtown area, it reminded me of  Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills a little. I’d totally move there. Can you tell that I’ve already fallen in love with Manila?!

We were going to out partying again that night (we only had 4 days in Manila afterall!) but finally decided to rest up for our day trip the next morning to Tagaytay. We hired a driver for about 3000 pesos (SGD90 to take us around). $90 for a driver to you around anywhere you wanted for the day? Can’t get that in here. We had a pretty pimp ride too.

Don’t forget to eat your breakfast! I still live by my health rules everywhere I go. We ate at Pancake House (may not be the healthiest but hey, I eat oatmeal almost every other day!) and it was heaaaaaaaaven. Probably even better than IHOP?! I had the blueberry pancake with kiwi juice. It was so good. SO. Good. I’m telling you. And it wasn’t too filling either. Portion was just right and it wasn’t too sweet nor too rich. Simply parfait.

Time to walk it out! On our way up the mountain to see the beautiful view from Tagaytay. Adam & Charles were poking fun at my backpack – said I looked like I was ready to go to school. Meanies! Wait, do I, really?

We got lucky because it had been drizzling/raining a bit but the weather that day was PERFECT.

Click Here For A Full View

After an hour of excessive cam-whoring, we were off to look for the pier to find a boat that would take us to Taal Volcano for a little hike. Sure you’ll see a few cows, horses and goats for sale on your drive up/down the mountain but we even spotted a Starbucks! And a pretty nice looking one too (again, it reminded me of the States. Am I homesick?).

The castle and tree top houses looked UNREAL. At first I thought I was hallucinating. Would definitely like to check it out sometimes. I’ll see you next time, FANTASY WORLD.

Our driver took us to this pretty shady looking pier that had only one boat and a guy asking for 1700 pesos for the boat ride to Taal Volcano. That only included a return trip and no guide or whatsoever. We had a feeling he was trying to rip us off so we left the place and after nearly 3 hours later, we realized our driver was lost again. He didn’t know the area very well and had stopped more than 30 times to ask for directions but it didn’t get us anywhere. We could only blame ourselves for not having a map. It was already almost 3pm and we had made dinner plans at 8pm so we decided to skip the whole volcano adventure altogether and hit the beach to catch the sunset.

Cutest puppy I’ve seen in a while!

We found ourselves on a beach near Batangas (South of Manila), don’t remember what it was called but the people there were really nice, friendly and not too pushy at all. We rented a bamboo house float where we enjoyed some fine brew (San Miguel, baby!) and watched the sunset…

That’s the bikini I got from a friend’s bikini store. Check it out here!

It was so beautiful…

Checked out a club called Encore that night (heard it used to be called Embassy). It reminded me of Butterfactory, but better. They had a house/trance room and a hiphop room. Both were PUMPIN’. People were  nice, friendly and weren’t “too cool for school”. Unfortunately, my camera’s battery died, so I didn’t get a chance to take a lot of pictures…

The next day was Charles’ grandma’s 85th birthday (the main reason why he went there to visit, Adam & I just tagged along because neither of us have been to the Philippines). A few of their close friends and relatives came to the house to celebrate. It was nice to be at a traditional Filipino family gathering. It really made me appreciate the culture, tradition and…

FOOD!

(Left) Halo-halo dessert! It’s kind of like ‘ice-kachang’ but BETTER! (Right) Indulging the food buffet!

We left the same evening, I was a little sad because I wasn’t ready to leave!  Nanai is wearing the necklace I got as her birthday gift – it was a smoky quartz stone from Brazil. Its believed to help detoxify the body, relieve fears, lift depressions and bring calmness and positive thought. ♥

Wished I could have stayed longer, I’ve fallen in love with the Philippines. Words can’t describe. The nature, the people, the culture, shopping… There’s just so much to explore out there.

I can’t wait to go back.

My favorite online shopping spot, YesStyle.com, is opening their first physical store in the San Francisco Bay Area this Saturday, September 26th, 2009!

I’ve modeled for YesStyle.com and have been an avid fan since. I’ll always remember the people from YesAsia because they were so warm and friendly when I first visited Hong Kong for the shoot.

Congratulations, guys!

For those of you in the Bay Area, hop on down to Stonestown Galleria and check it out! Since this is a Grand Opening Event, there will be festivities and also some giveaways! The first 10 customers who make a purchase at the store will receive a FREE collectible Momoko Doll valued at US$139. The following 100 customers get a FREE Green Banana Beanie valued at US$20. Of course, the YesStyle Store is mainly about the clothes! Browse their full selection of Asian fashion, try it out, see what you look in & shop away

Stonestown Galleria (Upper Level)
3251 20th Ave
San Francisco, CA 94132

I will not be able to make it there because of all the F1 events and happenings in Singapore, but attending the Grand Opening Event will be Miss Victoria Pham, newly crowned Miss Asian California of the Miss Asian American Pageant 2009. She’ll be on hand to greet customers and take photos with guests.

This time last year, I won the CitiSpa Playeur Race Queen Contest and got to be on the race tracks for the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia.

2 years ago, I was in Sepang, Kuala Lumpur, as one of Redbull’s Formula Unas and had one of the best experiences in my life.

This year, I received a ticket to watch the race from the Paddock Club that was personally delivered to my home. Here’s the basic itinerary:

Everything else is kept a secret and meant to be a surprise. I can’t wait!

I will be at Mimolette this Friday night for the ‘Hard Drive’ Party. See you there!