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Valencia 2011 Day 3 – Last day!

retrogurl — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 06:07:44 +0000

I finally got around to editing the rest of my Valencia trip photos from November 2011 (lazy me), seems like a long time but it was just a couple of months ago. On the last day of my trip, it was another full day of activities.

Early in the morning I was invited to the City of Arts and Sciences, the architecture of the place was simply amazing, even just from the outside. I had a guided tour around the Science Museum Príncipe Felipe, Hemisfèric (Imax Dome, Planetarium), Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia (Opera House), Agora, Umbracle and Oceanographic. My favorite part was the Oceanogràfic, it is the largest aquarium in Europe, pretty amazing! After the long tour, I had lunch at the Restaurante Submarino at L’Oceanografic (inside Oceanographic). It was a great scene, I ate my Lobster Paella underground, surrounded by marine life behind the glass. It felt like I was inside a big aquarium, loved it.

Then onto Bioparc, one of the best zoos I’ve been to so far. Most of the animals are not enclosed in glass or cages, they seem to be able to run freely in a big space like their natural habitats. I felt the closeness to the animals, I think this is the closest I’ve seen some of the animals. Really a must go if you’re in Valencia. After the zoo, I had some time to kill before dinner. So sat down at Valor for some hot chocolate and churros.

I was seriously pooped by the time all this was done but I had a dinner to attend to, VLC made a really good choice and invited me to Seu Xerea by Stephen Anderson. I really enjoyed the food there, it was really good. Defnitely the best meal I’ve had in Valencia. I had a good time in Valencia, it was a different experience from my other trips, although small but very interesting.

> Valencia 2011 Day 1 – Arrival
> Valencia 2011 Day 2 – Tour of the city

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Valencia 2011 Day 2 – Tour of the city

retrogurl — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 21:00:58 +0000

On day 2 of my Valencia trip back in November, I had a personal tour guide take me around the historical town. My tour guide Sandra, told me that Valencia is also known as flower city, throughout the city there are orange trees and decorations all over. From my hotel we walked for about 3 hours to some of the most famous places: Cathedral and Miguelete Tower, Central Market and La Lonja (Silk Exchange Market). And of course shopping areas, the Golden Mile which is the most expensive shops, luxury shopping lined with shops like Louis Vuitton, Ferragamo, Carolina Hererra and Hermes; and Calle Colon which is filled with high street brands like Zara (a million of them), Uterque, Mango, H&M, Blanco, Bershka, Muji, Foot Locker, etc.

Lunch was organized by VLC at the Palace Fesol restaurant, the restaurants start getting busy around 2pm when shops closes for lunch. I find it pretty hard to communicate in Valencia, not much people can speak or understand English so I guess body language is the universal language. They chose Valencian Paella (no rabbit) for me again lol, the food came out quick and service was efficient.

After lunch, I took the Valencia Bus Turistic for an hour tour, my feet was tired so I had to sit and rest. It was pretty cool. I wanted to stay around for dinner so went to went across the street from my hotel to La Nicoletta. The food was pretty good there. I was seriously beat after the long day!

> Valencia 2011 Day 1 – Arrival

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Valencia 2011 Day 1 – Arrival

retrogurl — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 20:17:52 +0000

I’m a bit backlogged as you can see but better late than never! After Amsterdam, the second leg of my Europe trip was to Valencia, Spain. I was invited by Valencia Tourism (VLC) to visit and it was my first time there. I’ve been to Barcelona twice and Valencia is just about 1.5 hours away by fast train. The flight from Amsterdam to Valencia was quite brutal since there were no direct flights, I got up at the crack of dawn to make my Iberia flight which turned out to be a nightmare. Iberia flight attendants were super rude and there were little to no service at all. I was quite disappointed and never want to take Iberia again if I had a choice. After I arrived in Valencia, I checked into Hotel Vincci Palace, the hotel was pretty cute and modern. I was also happy that the hotel was in the city center, walkable from almost everywhere, especially food and shopping! I was beat by the time I got in so I decided to get some rest before dinner.

Dinner was organized by VLC as well, I went to Ocho y Medio which was about a 5-10 minute walk from my hotel. Valencia is a county known for rice, paella is the most famous. The typical Valencian paella is made with chicken, rabbit and snails, that was what I had for dinner minus the rabbit along with patata bravas. The Valencian paella was pretty different from what I’ve ever had, the presentation can be intimidating but don’t worry it’s not that much rice it just looks wide but it’s not deep ha! After dinner, I took a short stroll and headed back to the hotel quickly since day 2 would be very long! Stay tuned for more posts on my Valencia trip…

> Valencia 2011 Day 2 – Tour of the city

Read the rest of Valencia 2011 Day 1 – Arrival

Amsterdam 2011 Day 3: Last Day!

retrogurl — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 01:47:22 +0000

On my last full day in Amsterdam, I tried to pack in a as much activities as I could. FYI, I only brought 2 jackets/coats with me on my trip haha, so you’ll be seeing repeats! First off lunch was organized by NBTC at MOMO, located inside the Park Hotel. I enjoyed the quietness and good service at the restaurant, waitress was efficient and friendly too. The restaurant reminded me of NYC Japanese restaurants, it was contemporary and the food was pretty good too.

Remember I mentioned that the I amsterdam City Card has free offers? One of them was to take a canal cruise, so I went on the Holland International 100 Highlights Cruise after lunch. I think it’s one of those things that you must do when you’re visiting Amsterdam since there are so many canals there, it was pretty cool. I enjoyed it. Afterward, NBTC arranged a site inspection at the Hotel The Exchange, the same owners as Lloyd Hotel (the hotel I stayed at). The hotel wasn’t opened yet when I visited (it opened on 12.02) but it was actually cool to see the making of until the fruition of the rooms. The hotel rooms reminded me of college dorms, they were fairly small with about 4-5 big rooms which were 5 star rooms. Like Lloyd Hotel, the rooms range from one to five stars, based on their size and level of comforts. There are a total of 62 rooms each styled by recent graduates from the Amsterdam Fashion Institute. The concept was to have the designers dress the rooms as though they were dressing a body. It’s unique and interesting. The hallway was flesh color, like the human body, and when you enter a room, “you’re” dressed. I would love to stay in a 5-star room next time (hint hint) hehe.

There was no break after that, the boys wanted to check out Heineken Experience so we headed straight there. It was pretty interesting to learn how the Heineken was brewed and experience all Heineken everything.

Later that night, dinner was at Blue Pepper, a highly recommended Indonesian cuisine restaurant by many people. Apparently Indonesian food is big in Holland, it was my first time having it. The restaurant was small and cute with minimal seating, so a reservation is recommended. I went to dinner with 3 friends, we each ordered the the Sultan and I rice paper tasting menu for 70 Euro per person. It was about 16 different kinds of Indonesian food, a bit much but definitely worth the experience since it was created just for the Dutch. You won’t be able to experience Indonesian food outside of Amsterdam like this. The food was pretty good, I liked the variety and service was excellent. Almost every tabled ordered the Sultan and I. Dinner was long, took about 3 hours to complete, so go on an empty stomach and make sure you’re not in a rush. Seems like it’s a trend in Amsterdam for long dinners, if it’s good, I’m down. Overall I had an amazing time in Amsterdam, I’m definitely going to visit again!

> Amsterdam 2011 Day 1
> Amsterdam 2011 Day 2

Read the rest of Amsterdam 2011 Day 3: Last Day!

Amsterdam 2011 Day 2

retrogurl — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 13:54:47 +0000

On day 2 of my Amsterdam trip it was all about sightseeing and lots of walking. NBTC arranged a 3-hour guided tour to take me around the city, it was my first time having a guided tour and I highly recommend getting one if it’s the first time visiting a foreign country. Willem took me to the most famous neighborhood in Holland, which is the ‘Jordaan’. I was told this characteristic quarter in the canal area of Amsterdam has many narrow streets, which house trendy shops, modern restaurants and traditional cafes. Then onto the famous De 9 Straatjes (The Nine Streets) which is a melting pot for all sorts of fashion. There are vintage shops, trendy boutiques, designer studios, jewelers, art galleries, specialty foods stores and lot’s of fine cafes, lunchrooms and restaurants. Definitely a spot for all fashionistas. We also took a stroll down the Red Light District, definitely nothing like what I’ve seen before and it’s not only for men, there were tons of women walking around the neighborhood as well. RLD consists of theaters, shops, museums, restaurants, bars, coffee shops and of course the famous “red light” windows with sexy girls and places to see live adult entertainment. After the tour, I stopped by Kalverstraat to do some shopping before my feet gave up on me.

Dinner was arranged by NBTC at the Culinaire Werkplaats. The restaurant is a novel eating initiative and experience located opposite Amsterdam’s culture park Westergasfabriek. Being a blend of a design studio and a restaurant for contemporary food and eating concepts, they create contemporary dishes, snacks, bites, delicatessen, new foods and sometimes even new ways of eating every month. I wasn’t too sure what to expect but decided to give it a try. The approach and idea was unique and interesting but the food was not meant for everyone. The food requires an acquired taste and it was definitely not my cup of tea. It was 5-course vegetarian meal (small portions) and it was long, 3+ hours long. I’m a picky eater so I didn’t enjoy the meal, I had bites of everything just to try it out but was still pretty hungry after I left. For me food is about being satisfied and making myself happy but that didn’t happen at Culinaire Werkplaats. After dinner, I stopped by Burger Bar to fulfill my needs, that was satisfying. Lots of photos after the jump…

> Amsterdam 2011 Day 1
> Amsterdam 2011 Day 3

Read the rest of Amsterdam 2011 Day 2

Amsterdam 2011 Day 1: Arrival

retrogurl — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:00:41 +0000

Some of you may already know that I was in Amsterdam last week, I arrived on Thanksgiving day and it was my first time visiting. I was ecstatic when I received an invitation from the Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions to visit Amsterdam since I’ve never been there but heard many stories about the city. So far it’s a very friendly city and almost everyone speaks English so getting around was easy breezy.

I flew KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to Amsterdam and I have to say it was one of the better airlines I’ve flown. One of the best I’ve experienced. As I entered the plane, I was greeted by all the staff and they all had smiles on their faces. For those that fly a lot like myself, knows it means a lot especially when you’re tired and grouchy. The stewardess were really efficient, quick with requests and friendly. One thing that was scary on the flight was when we hit heavy turbulence, it was so unexpected that when the captain announced it it was too late for the stewardess to get to their seats and the two on my side fell on the floor. The captain’s tone was a bit scary too, I thought he could of been more calm about it, that totally scared me and everyone else on the plane. It was a scary 5-10 minutes but it was unavoidable since you have to fly through the heavy winds. Phew I made it there in one piece!

After about a 6 hour plane ride I arrived in Amsterdam! I was super excited, I was instructed to take the train to Amsterdam Centraal Station. The Schiphol train station is situated directly below the airport and travel time to Amsterdam Centraal is approximately 20 minutes. At Centraal Station I took the #26 tram a few stops to Rietlandpark and after a 5 minute walk I finally arrived at my hotel, Lloyd Hotel.

After lunch at a local spot, I stopped by the famous Anne Frank House. I lucked out and there was no wait, if you’re in Amsterdam it’s a must to check out.

Dinner was at Brasserie Harkema, a contemporary version of the classic Parisian brasserie in the heart of Amsterdam. The restaurant had a nice atmosphere, food was decent but service was lacking. There were long waits for everything. Sat down for 10 minutes without water, everything else lagged too including drinks, food and dessert. Not sure if it was because it was a busy night but I had to ask at least twice to get anything.

Called it a night after dinner but it was a good first day in Amsterdam. Stay tuned for the rest of my trip recaps…

> Amsterdam 2011 Day 2
> Amsterdam 2011 Day 3

Read the rest of Amsterdam 2011 Day 1: Arrival

MNG by MANGO Mission #5: Barcelona

retrogurl — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 03:13:41 +0000

Photos courtesy of jcpenney

Remember I was in Barcelona last month for the MNG by MANGO for jcpenney mission campaign? On the second day of the trip was the photo shoot for me and 9 other Style Coalition bloggers. Previously I’ve done looks inspired by London, Milan, Paris, Amsterdam and finally here’s Barcelona! I just got the final image and the group photo, I’m loving it! For those that always say that I don’t wear color, here ya go, I’m in bright red. It was definitely an amazing journey, I had a great time. And I just have to add, I wish I have my own professional makeup artist and hair stylist with me 24/7, a gurl can only dream haha. I seriously loved my hair! Check out the group photo and behind-the-scenes video below.

Outfit: Red Dress, Snake Print Bangle, White Rhinestone Ring, Gold Chain Pearl Bracelet all by MNG by MANGO for jcpenney and MANGO Leopard Print Sandals

Disclosure: This campaign is produced by Style Coalition and sponsored by jcpenney.

Read the rest of MNG by MANGO Mission #5: Barcelona