July traveling!

July is full of traveling! I have so many visitors this month, so it's a mix of traveling and touring around UK.

This is what my travel schedule is looking like:

• Early July - Scotland: Whisky tours, Edinburgh, Inverness, Glasgow
• Mid July - Italy/Switzerland: Bologna, Cinque Terre, Milan, Interlaken, Geneva
• Late July - Greece: Athens, Santorini, Mykonos

It's really nice living in Europe and being able to easily get to all these other places. It'll definitely be nicer to go to these warmer places because England has not given me much of a summer!

Hope to blog more - lots of updating that I need to do!

Enjoy :)

Country Guide: Costa Rica

Reflections on Costa Rica

• Really, really loved my trip there!
• "Pura vida" - pure life - one of the mottos of CR. People are very friendly and it's known as one of the happiest places in the world.
• I was on the Pacific coast side (west), but I've heard great things about the Caribbean side. 
• Costa Rica has so much natural beauty and wherever you do, I'm sure you'll see amazing natural scenery. Beaches, forests, volcanoes, lots!

Places I went:

• SAN JOSE
• Typical town, not that impressive but the rest of Costa Rica is. I went around to some of the museums and main squares. Since you're there longer, I'm sure you'll find more interesting places.
• The countryside surrounding San Jose was great. I got a tour guide and did a day trip and we went to Sarchi, Zarcero. 
• SARCHI: They are famous for ox carts, so there were places you can go to see them make them (paint them, etc) and there is somewhere you can see the largest ox cart in the world. 
• ZARCERO: We went here to see the church and the gardens which are really cool. It's called Parque Francisco Alvarado.   
• POAS VOLCANO - close-ish to San Jose, so it's pretty popular. Not really an active one with red lava but the area around it is forests and a lake so it's a nice hike in the area. The day we went, we hiked around because it was too foggy so visibility wasn't great. We did eventually get to see if better though. 

• MONTEVERDE
• It rains over 300 days a year here so it was soo green, hence the name (green mountain). We took a public bus here from San Jose. There were really nice views of the mountains from here.
• Ziplining!!! We did the Selvatura Canopy Tour that goes through the cloud forest. One of the most amazing experiences ever! Anddd it was even pouring rain but it made it so much fun! You must do this, rain or shine!
• MANUEL ANTONIO
• Beach! One of the nicest beaches I think I've ever been to. The water was warm (I was there in June) so we went swimming in the water which was really fun. There are trees and rocks nearby so really picturesque and AMAZING sunsets! 
• There is a park that you can go hike in, but I didn't get the chance to go. Should be lots of wildlife and great scenery.

What type of transportation?

• We used public bus from San Jose to Monteverde, but its a set time so not that flexible. From Monteverde, we took a shuttle van that was better because it was more flexible. The hostel you stay at can probably help you with that. Makes it much easier to get between destinations.
• The other option is renting a car if you feel comfortable doing that. I think might be mostly manual cars though. Check that. Costa Rica is small, so a car would make it so much easier to get around. I've had friends that have done it and they said it was great.

The Wonderful World of Frequent Flyer Programs & Airline Alliances

Today's post is about the lovely world of airline miles! People often ask me about this so I decided it'd be a good idea to just blog about it! And, I haven't been so busy, so decided to create this graphic!

This post will be split up into a Q&A format...

(1) Q: Why does this matter?

A: It's free! Nearly all airlines have a frequent flyer program and it is free to sign up. You may not think you fly a lot, but it can add up. Ultimately...why not? Once you understand how airline alliances work, you may realize that it is a lot easier to earn airline miles than you thought.

(2) Q: What is so special about these airline alliances?

A: Basically, in the world there are THREE main airline alliances, as you can see in the graphic above. So, by just signing up for a frequent flyer account in each of the alliances, you can earn and redeem miles for over 50 airlines in the world. And most of these airlines are ones that I'd assume you'd fly on for most destinations around the world.

(3) Q: Can you give me an example?

A: To use my own experience, I have a frequent flyer account for United Airlines (United Mileage Plus), American Airlines (AAdvantage), and Delta Airlines (Delta SkyMiles). These 3 airlines cover all the 3 alliances. So, if I fly any airline within the alliance, I can use my account number for one of these that I have to earn miles. For instance, if I fly Air Canada, on the page where I buy flights, I can choose United Airlines for a frequent flyer number and enter in that number. Then, all the United Airlines miles I get, I can used it on United Airlines OR on any of the other airlines in the alliance.

(4) Q: What about the airlines not in an alliance?

A: Yes, there are a substantial number of key airlines that don't participate in one of these alliances, but they typically have their own frequent flyer program so I just sign up for those. Example, I do have accounts for Southwest Airlines (Southwest Rapid Rewards) and Virgin America because I fly those fairly frequently. Also, most of the budget airlines in Europe (EasyJet, Monarch Airline, RyanAir) don't have frequent flyer programs but well, nothing you can do about it. 

Let me know if you have any questions!

On The Road: Late Arrivals into Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris

Paris, here we are!

Lesson learned: If you get into Charles de Gaulle airport after 11pm...be ready to take a taxi into city centre! The last train left at 10:55, and the buses stop around then too. It took us lots of walking around the airport to figure this out, especially getting different information from different people. Apparently there's a night bus, but the guy at information didn't seem to think it was that safe? Good to know for next time!

On The Road: Nearly Missed Flight and Wandering Around the Souks of Marrakech, Morocco

Helloooo from Marrakech, Morocco! Oh my, what a long 24 hours! Some updates...(I know, it's been a while!) - it's "spring break" for me right now as of last week. The reason spring break is in quotes is because we have 2 big term papers due at the end of it so I don't think I was really supposed to take a "break", but well, I did!

We were in Brighton yesterday morning and was on a journey to Gatwick Airport to catch our 7:45am flight. So yea, didn't really plan for enough time at the airport! IT WAS STRESSFUL! We were basically told that it was too late and we wouldn't make it and t next flight to Marrakech was 25th of March. Keep in mind that our flight from Marrakech to Paris was on the 23rd of March... Just great. Anyway, the lady said to try to bring our bags and RUNNNN to the gate. Oh, North Terminal of Gatwick...why must your gates be so far away?! Security had some set backs but we rushed over and thank you, Easy Jet for letting us check in our bags and be the last on the plane 3 minutes before scheduled departure. We were sooo relieved to have made it to Morocco!!! The food is great and the souks are awesome for shopping (even though the shopkeepers are quite aggresive!

Today we are off an excursion to go camping in the Sahara desert! Catch you next time!

City Guide: Paris, France

From the first time I arrived in Paris years ago, it has remained as my favorite city in Europe. There's just something about it. I finally returned in December 2011 after years of not visiting and while the weather wasn't great (cold, windy and rainy), the city was just as lovely and I got quite nostalgic seeing my old hot spots.

• Places to go
• Shakespeare & Company Bookstore (37 rue de la Bûcherie, 75005 Paris)- I love these little bookstores. We crossed over the bridge over the Seine from the Notre Dame Cathedral and stumbled onto to this gem of a bookstore.
• Good eats
• CREPES! I love these things - especially the savory ones! My ingredients of choice are ham (jambon), cheese (fromage), mushrooms (champignons) and egg (oeuf). I could eat these everyday!
• Getting around
• The metro, while not the nicest, is quite extensive and basically can take you everywhere!

This will be updated with more!

Travel Goals While Living in Europe!

It’s been so wonderful living in Europe. For years, it’s been one of my favourite places to travel and it’s so much easier to travel around when I’m living here now! When will I get a chance to live in Europe again? So, I think it’s fitting for me to create a realistic list of places I want to travel to while over here. I’ll be here until September 2012 at least so plenty of time to make this happen! I'll cross these off and update this post as I go to them. Let's goooo!

Travel Destinations - 2012

§  Croatia

§  Cyprus

§  Denmark (booked for February!)

§  Greece

§  Ireland (booked for March!)

§  Israel

§  Italy

·         Cinque Terre

§  Jordan

§  Malta

§  Morocco (booked for March!)

§  Poland

§  Slovakia

§  Slovenia

§  United Kingdom

·         England       

o   Arundal Castle

o   Harry Potter Studio Tour

o   Leeds Castle

o   Stonehenge & Bath

o   Stratford upon Avon & the Cotswolds

o   Windsor Castle

·         Northern Ireland

o   Belfast (booked for March!)

·         Wales

o   Cardiff

·         Scotland

o   Edinburgh

o   Glasgow

§  Romania

§  Stockholm (booked for March!)

Hello, my name is...

Victoria! Welcome to my page! Glad you dropped by. :)

Who am I?
I am a Vietnamese American, born in Redwood City, California, USA and raised in Union City, California. My parents are from Southern Vietnam. They immigrated to the US in the late 70's. I attended university at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and so I lived in Los Angeles for a number of years. I have a passion for travel, photography, design, the political economy and development, creativity, and all around, pretty things! What can I say, I am constantly on the lookout for eye candy and an interesting story!

Why did I decide to create this blog?
I've been blogging for ages now, but decided that I finally wanted to develop something that was a culmination of everything about me - a space for me to incorporate my loves in life.

Where am I and what am I doing?
I'm now living in the United Kingdom - more specifically, Brighton, England. It's a lovely coastal town about an hour south of London by train. I'm currently a Masters student at the University of Sussex, working on my degree in Global Political Economy. Other than being a student, I am incorporating as much traveling into my free time as possible!

What is my blog about?
I absolutely LOVE traveling and travel planning. Ask anyone I know! Through the years, I've been asked to give advice about cities I've been to and for ages now, I've been wanting to put it somewhere that I can share the knowledge. I'm in the midst of term paper-writing (don't worry, I have most of it done :P), so decided that now would be the time to do it. Life isn't waiting for me...if I want something I have to make it happen.

Where does my design background come from?
I've never been formally trained in graphic design, but my dad always had a printing shop as I was growing up and every weekend when I would go there, I'd invade his computers to use his awesome Adobe programs. True story: for a number of years, I was writing my essays in high school on Adobe Pagemaker. I've since realized that Microsoft Word was better suited for that, but hey, what can I say. I've always loved Adobe programs. Fast forward to high school and college - I was an editor for the school yearbooks and loved it! I'm all about capturing memories - whether through photography or design!

Cheers! Hope to see you again soon! x

Trip: Southern Spain (Andalucía Region)

España es muy bonita! I was glad to be able to visit a part of Spain that I haven't been to before. My winter break had just ended the day before, I attended a holiday party and didn't sleep so I could make my 6am flight! What a day! Overall great trip! More details to come...

Trip itinerary:
Transportation was very easy to figure out!

• Flew into Málaga (coastal city) - LGW   AGP
• Bus from Málaga to Granada
• Bus from Granada to Córdoba (day trip)
• Train from Córdoba to Sevilla (only about 50 minutes,  ~€10)
• Train from Sevilla to Málaga city centre
• Fast train from  Málaga to Málaga Airport (about 12 minutes) 
• Goodbye Spain, hello Paris! LGP   CDG

City Guide: Granada, Spain

Ah, Granada was one of my favorite places in Southern Spain - up there with Barcelona in all of Spain. This whole region is characterized by a mix of Islamic and Christian architecture and this can be seen all over town! I've been taking my Spanish class so I tried to speak Spanish as much as I could. All that matters is that I tried!

• Places to go:
• Must-see: the Alhambra (I suggest you get tickets ahead of time:  http://www.servicaixa.com/nav/en/mucho_mas/granada/alhambra_y_generalife_09oz/visita_general/index.html) just to make sure you get in
• Good eats:
• Free tapas when you order a drink around town (usually a toasted sandwich and fries) - yummm! At first we didn't believe it!
• Delicious chocolate churros!
• Getting around:
• Most everything in the city centre is in walking distance. We did a walking tour and saw some really cool places around town!