Short Stay in Yangon

Myanmar is definitely one of the Asian destinations that travellers really wanted to go. Since it’s opening to the world, many travellers have great statements about the country, good or bad, it’s still the place to be. Apparently every traveller needs a visa to enter the country even for me who’s coming from the same Southeast Asian nation. But that did not deprive us from going there.

It was a short trip from a busy work so we only went to Yangon in Myanmar. Apparently afraid of getting templed out too being the country as the land of golden pagodas. But then hopefully i could go Mandalay or Bagan soon when I got the chance again.

Anyhow we started our city walks from the hotel to the downtown Yangon where the City Hall is located just across the Sule Pagoda

On that area also we can see the Independence Monument, the Hall Of Justice Building and some old buildings in Burmese architecture. Most of the time we head to one place through a taxi where we can pay either in kyat their local currency or US dollars. It’s good that we had a great weather during our stay. That means the main tourist attraction in Yangon which is Shwedagon Pagoda is lighted in its golden glory. It’s definitely a sight to behold.

Undoubtedly the biggest golden stupa i’ve seen, way bigger than Bangkok’s temples, Shwedagon Pagoda complex is huge that one can be mesmerized and how people pay respect to the shrine. The ticket to the Shwedagon Pagoda that day can still be used as ticket for night photo opportunities so better keep those tickets.

For Burmese food, we really appreciated our lunch and dinner at Feel Myanmar restaurant. It’s quite costly but the experience was really great.

Aside from Feel Myanmar, we also experienced to eat Shan Noodles on the streets and their version of Chicken Biryani Rice. The Yangon trip was one of the most memorable even if it was a short stay.

Stockholm: The Capital of Scandinavia

Stockholm: The Capital of Scandinavia

Scandinavia is a region in northern Europe that comprises of Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Finland and Sweden. Stockholm is the biggest city in Sweden and undoubtedly the most cosmopolitan among the capital cities in the region. From Linkoping in the Ostergotland region we traveled by train via SJ trains which also connects to Stockholm Arlanda airport and to down south to Copenhagen in Denmark. It was a two-hour trip and we arrived at Stockholm Central station where you can connect to Stockholm metro. Other alternative route is 3 hour bus ride from Linkoping via www.swebusexpress.com

From train station we went right away to the Stochholm royal garden, locally known as Djurgården.  You can see how beautiful the city is from the island. It was good that the sun was shining brightly, perfect for spring weather so every Swedes that time are out doing some outdoor activities. Famous attractions in Djurgården area include the Vasa Museum, Nordic Museum and the open museum Skansen. We visited the Vasa Museum as it’s the most famous. These tourist spots are interconnected by a tram as well.

Vasa Museum is where the famous Vasa warship stands. Relics and artifacts about the Vasa ship are stored in the museum. Brief history on the Vasa ship, it sank after sailing within 2kms on her maiden voyage. It’s actually a small museum that generally occupied by the Vasa ship. We skipped Skansen and Nordic Museum as were rushing to meet colleagues in Gamla Stan area. Stockholm Old Town or popularly known as Gamla Stan is an area in the city. Stockholm is composed of thousands of islets interconnected with bridges. It was lovely design for a city that’s why Stockholm is one of the most beautiful capital cities in the world.

Gamla Stan is also where the Swedish Royal Palace is located. Also in the are are other government, arts buildings, theaters and other architectural landmarks in Scandinavia. Stockholm trip will not be complete without the archipelago tour. It’s a tour by a steamboat with dinner and drinks. It was a great experience looking at the city from the sea. One of the best views, the archipelago tour also includes a visit to several islands near the capital.  Not to mention food was one of the best dinners I’ve got in Sweden. The package includes tour and food which includes herring with cheese, crisp bread, steamboat steak, with fried onions and potatoes and choice of beer or schnapps

It was only a 3-day stay in Stockholm including work day so no time to really explore the numerous museums and attractions in the city. Stockholm is also the H&M hub where every block has a branch. Hope to explore more of Stockholm. Definitely a lovely city and the capital of Scandinavia.

Min Resa I Sverige

Min Resa I Sverige means My Trip in Sweden.

It was actually a business trip and I was blessed to be sent to Sweden. I learned that i’ll be going to Sweden three weeks before the scheduled trip so the processing of visa via the Swiss embassy was done right away. We got no Sweden embassy here in Manila and the nearest is still in Bangkok so the processing was done quickly in Swiss embassy where Schengen visa applications are processed. The consideration too was the weather and lucky that it’s spring time in Sweden so i must say it was the best time to visit.

We got two offices in Sweden, one in Kista in Stockholm and another one in Linkoping, two hours drive from the capital. Most of our counterparts are assigned in Linkoping, so we stayed in this city, the 5th biggest in the whole of Sweden. Very laid back town and with charming old town , Swedish are really nice and friendly people. Also like Filipinos, most Swedes speak English fluently and at least understand it. It was great experience to really engage with the locals in my month’s stay and I could say one of the most memorable trips in my life. We flew Manila to Linkoping via Amsterdam. Luckily KLM flies to Linkoping directly so there was no need to change flights. We arrived there in time for the start of spring celebration so right away our Swedish hosts invited us in the bonfire that signifies the start of spring.

Then the first experience of Swedish beer at the city square makes it more appropriate for an expat. Swedes are beer and coffee drinkers and in this case, a cold beer in 10 degrees spring weather was not totally bad.  People stay the whole day and night outdoors during spring and summer seasons as they usually stay at home for the rest of the year at the end of fall and winter. It’s “depressing weather” for them until the snow arrives where it will brighten the dark atmosphere.

The following days were spent in touring the city. Important sights to visit include St. Lars Cathedral, the Domkyrka, Swedish Air Force Museum and Linkoping Museum.

Linkoping is such a small city and just like most of European cities and towns, it has charming old town, city square, laid back downtown and lovely sights. This was my home for four weeks.

I fell in love with the city and can probably say I can always go back. It’s not only the place but also the people there who were really nice and accomodating.

Malaysia Truly Asia

Malaysia will always be the first country I visited outside the Philippines. I also had first glimpse of a big airport too – Kuala Lumpur International Airport. AirAsia used it before until all budget airlines were tranferred to KLIA-LCCT terminal.

This first trip outside the country was also my first experience of a backpack travel – staying in a hostel, DIY itinerary and with backpacks! Maybe not so lucky to have a luxury travel as a tourist on my first trip but I got the idea that travelling is not always expensive after all. It was a very short stay as we were headed to Bali later that day so we only went to KLCC Petronas Towers for sightseeing.

The second trip to Malaysia was two months ago connecting to New Delhi via Kuala Lumpur. But this time via Cebu Pacific. It was a longer trip and this time I went to Batu Caves, exploring more city sights like Merdeka Square, Chinatown and shopping in Bukit Bintang. Not to mention i had my solo food trip as well from the classic Nasi Lemak to their classic white coffee.

Definitely Malaysia is truly Asia. I may agree that some cultures they portray in their tourism ads are not distinctly Malaysia but at least they promote tourism not only for the country but also for the Southeast Asia region. Apparently the Philippines is not on the tourist trail in the region but hopefully she will have the same tourist success stories like Malaysia.