The City That Never Sleeps: New York City!

For the next few days the gorgeous H and I will be exploring some of New York City's famous landmarks and attractions. Not to mention completely forgetting our diets as we eat our way through some of the Big Apple's much raved about eats.  

First things first though, we needed our caffeine fix. One of the things my sister and I have in common is that we have to have coffee first thing in the morning.  Wait! Let me rephrase that. My sister and I are walking zombies before our first cup. Good thing we didn't have far to go to get that cup o'java as the hotel provided free coffee (and breakfast). Surprisingly, the coffee wasn't the watered down variety but was really quite good. Just enough caffeine to wake us up in the mornings.

And off we go!

New York! New York!

It was a little over thirty years ago at the height of winter when I first arrived in New York City. My family and I arrived from a red eye flight from London where we lived for a year. It was a brief stopover on our way to the West Coast.

I don't recall much of New York City since it was a very short visit plus I was just a little kid back then. That trip was also my first time in the US of A. Since then I have been traveling to the states every so often but never had the chance to go back to New York until recently. 

I had just retired from the corporate world and decided to take a trip visiting with friends and family particularly my siblings who are now living in the US. Too bad the big K couldn't come with me since he had to do extra work to support me now *wink*. Kidding aside, we were going on a trip to Europe later in the year so his vacation days were all tied up for that trip.

View of Central Park from the view deck of the Rockefeller Center also known as the Top of the Rock. 

Eating our way through Alsace

As Napoleon Bonaparte famously quotes, "an army marches on its stomach",  so goes true for the big K and I as we eat our way through Alsace. 

Our week-long tour of the Alsace Wine Route in France was a wonderful experience of sampling the region's local cuisine and at the same time a great challenge trying to fit into our pants after each delicious meal. 

Germany: Prost to Oktoberfest!!!

Now where do you find a place overflowing with beer, giant pretzels, beer, hearty food and more beer? Where else but at the Oktoberfest in Munich. Or as the locals call it "The Wiesn" after the name of the fairgrounds where it is held every year. 

For a little over two weeks of each year from late September until the first Sunday of October, an open field in Munich called the Theresienwiese is transformed into a place of colossal beer worship. Or as the big K jokingly calls it, Disneyland for drunks.

My Childhood Playground, Bohol!

Bohol, my Mom's hometown. I have been coming to this beautiful island ever since I was a little girl. Childhood summers with my siblings and cousins were spent on the beach until we were all toasty brown, days running around the corn and kinampay fields, digging up those fragrant purple yams. Or, just simply lazing around in my Mom's ancestral home.  

If you're wondering where Bohol is, it is one of the 7,000+ islands in the Philippines located in the middle part of the archipelago. More famously known as the home of the Chocolate Hills (a group of limestone hills that turn brown during the summer months) and the smallest primate with the biggest eyes this side of paradise, the Tarsier. Oh, and of course there are the white sand beaches scattered all over the islands. The once sleepy province of Bohol is fast becoming a popular tourist destination.

The province of Bohol actually consists of 70+ islands and islets (depending on the tide). The main island, Bohol, is where Tagbilaran (capital city), Chocolate Hills and the airport are located. While the second largest island, Panglao, is where the famous white sand beaches can be found. Panglao is connected to the mainland by two causeways, one as seen above (squint a little and you'll see it or better yet come closer to the screen).