tips

How to Avoid Expensive Roaming Charges in Malaysia

February 8, 2013 by Bino 1 Comment

when in malaysia…

Okay guys. I’m sharing this with you because I think you can save quite a bit with this!

For someone like me who lives just across the causeway, trips to Malaysia are almost considered inevitable. In my 5 years in Singapore, I must have visited Malaysia ten or more times. In terms of duration, it can be as short as a daytrip to as long as a few days. While the transportation options to Malaysia can be as cheap as chips, sometimes I come home and find that I’ve incurred hundreds of dollars in roaming charges alone. It’s quite an annoyance considering that I don’t receive any physical good in exchange for what I pay for (yes, I am a visual person) so it’s really important for me that my mobile services are as cheap as possible!

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My Qatar Airways Experience, Part 2 (Doha to Tbilisi)

September 16, 2012 by Bino 6 Comments

I have received quite a number of queries from my Tbilisi post on how I managed to get there so this update is definitely way overdue. This trip was taken some months back on Qatar Airways. I transited in Doha for about 8 hours before boarding my 3 hour or so flight to Tbilisi, Georgia.

The terminal was basically the same one I transited in when I flew to Iran (also with QR) just a few months prior to this trip. The terminal was in the midst of upgrading and those of us with connecting flights were given color-coded boarding passes for easy identification.

Here is the rundown:

Pre-flight:

after 8 hours of waiting, I was relieved to see this

I did not have to check-in as this was a connecting flight. As previously stated, I had an 8-hour transit time which was mostly spent dozing off in Doha’s Airport. Given the relatively small-sized terminal, it was a consolation they had a sleeping area for passengers to use free-of-charge. Spaces were limited however. Silver and gold tiered Privilege Club members have lounges which can be used free-of-charge.

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My Qatar Airways Experience, Part 1 (Singapore to Doha)

March 17, 2012 by Bino 14 Comments

As one of the few airlines with a 5-star rating (as awarded by Skytrax), Qatar Airways took a step further by incorporating the number of stars it has into its marketing slogan to really bring the point home. The world’s 5-star airline – is what it calls itself on TV, billboards and in major dailies. During some of my recent trips, I got to try out this 5-star quality which they’re so proud about.

I have flown with Qatar Airways several times during the past six months alone – mostly on the SIN <-> DOH route. While I normally go for low cost carriers, full-service airlines still reign supreme over the long-haul space. One’s really got to eat on a flight that’s over five hours long. Entertainment’s more or less mandatory as well, else the flight could be unbearably boring. So is precious baggage space. This is where all the creature comforts of a full-service airline come in.

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The Six Travel Buddies From Hell

January 15, 2012 by Bino 15 Comments

You know who they are. You set off for your weekend getaways to Bangkok or even month-long trips to Europe, with high hopes of the places you’ll go and the things you’ll get to do. And why not? You have the backing of a few people who you’re going with – either friends of yours or other travelers you met along the way. Easy to get along with – or so you thought. A week or two afterwards however and these same people end up bringing misery to your trip with a capital M. And somehow, somewhere, you end up with a sense of buyer’s remorse.

there’s no doubt that traveling with others has a lot of benefits… but don’t let the disadvantages outweigh it!

And so, without further ado, I present to you the six worst travel buddies that you can have (and I’m not even mentioning the usual culprits here).

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Singapore Walking Tour: Why You Should Do It at Night

December 13, 2011 by Bino 14 Comments

For a country that has often been branded by its detractors as dull, Singapore’s nightscape is everything but. A world apart from the day, the same buildings which look neat but otherwise unremarkable against the sunlight turn into a homage of modern construction with an added layer of mystery, sleekness and futurism once the sun sets.

the amazing singapore skyline at blue hour… the building where I work is one of the buildings shown in this picture

As a (almost) local here, I witness this spectacle almost every night from where I work. Despite the sweltering heat, I sometimes prefer to walk above ground on my way home (rather than on the underpass) just to see this when I need a break from the masses of drone-like men and women making the commute home. The skyline looks even better during blue hour – that few minutes when the sun sets but just before it completely turns into night.

Many tourists do the standard walking tour of Singapore around this area, no doubt about it. But I find that barely anyone does it at night, which is a shame. The perfect time for a walking tour around the Civic Center / CBD area is actually at night. Not only is it cooler at this time, but everything appears sleeker than usual, even sultry. My suggested Downtown Singapore walking tour after the jump.

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7 Things to Watch Out For When Buying a Budget Airline Plane Ticket

December 11, 2011 by Bino 13 Comments

Since I usually buy budget airline tickets several months in advance, It has been a while since I bought one to anywhere. Did a couple of bookings this past week which led to some startling if not, annoying discoveries which seem to foretell an inevitable trend in the LCC segment of the airline industry.

by 713 Avenue | CC by SA 2.0

Generally, I find the booking systems of most LCC’s to be quite annoying – this stems from their tendency to pre-select add-ons by default in a way that is not so obvious to unsuspecting passengers. Previously, the pre-selection was only confined to travel insurance. Lately, I discovered that not only more and more of these add-ons are pre-selected, but also that some airlines have made it more tedious for passengers to unselect the pre-selected add-ons (probably in hopes that passengers won’t want to exert the extra effort of unselecting and just pay the extra dollars). Smells like an unethical way to make a quick buck to me, but in a highly volatile industry I suppose every cent counts.

At the end of the day, budget airlines can still offer a lot of value especially during seat sales and I suppose that for the majority of the target market, these are hassles that one should just take note of. Thought I’d share some tips on unspoken rules with regards to LCC bookings and how to avoid getting charged unnecessarily in the booking process. These are in my opinion, 7 things people should watch out for when buying a budget airline plane ticket.

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Burmese Days Pt 3 – From Scenic Pindaya to Placid Inle Lake

January 26, 2010 by Bino 4 Comments

The third and final leg of our trip took us to the highlands of Shan State, which is not very far from China, Laos and Thailand. Again, we boarded a short morning flight – this time to Heho. By this time, the faces we saw inside the airport were beginning to look very familiar. Many others were taking the same route that we did. The authorities seemed to be stricter this time around – and we were asked for our passports despite it being a domestic flight.

not the typical southeast asian landscape

Heho, and the surrounding areas, seemed like a different region altogether. The landscape, consisting of fields sunkissed in yellow, brown and red, seemed inconsistent with what I would typically associate with Southeast Asia. This, along with numbingly cold temperatures, made it hard for me to imagine that I was only a few dozen miles away from the punishing tropical jungles of Burma and Thailand.

inside pindaya cave

The main highlight for this third leg was Inle Lake, but we made a detour and went the other way to see Pindaya Cave. West of Heho, the cave was a labyrinth filled with thousands of Buddha images. Some parts were pitch black, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some paths actually led to a secret passageway.

From Pindaya there was also a great view of the lake and surrounding plains below. As I said earlier, it really was not the typical Southeast Asian landscape.

almost perfect reflection

inle lake

From Pindaya, it was another 2 hours drive to Inle Lake. We passed by several oxcarts and trucks cramped with people hanging onto the handles. It reminded me a bit of East Timor although the weather this time was certainly much more pleasant. We arrived in Nyaungshwe, the traditional departure point to reach the lake, in late afternoon. A $3 zone fee was collected from each of us upon entry. Our boatman was already there waiting for us at the dock- our “programme” was certainly well-arranged. Our driver left us there, promising to show up two days later to take us back to the airport.

temples on the lake

Having seen similar places before, I wasn’t all too impressed by the lake per se. The formation was a bit similar to some of the lakes in the Philippines, and many other places in Southeast Asia could offer similar views. What was more interesting about those 2 days in the lake however, was our ability to observe how the locals manage to preserve their traditional way of life. Though a lot of them have managed to find a living around the tourism industry, most of the people still work in the agricultural sector.

looking out for the morning catch

We stayed at the Myanmar Treasure Resort, one of the newer accommodation options in the Inle Lake area. Like all other “resorts” in the lake, our room consisted of a cabin on stilts – well, sort of. For about US$80 a night, we got a very spacious room that included a living area which could very well sleep up to 5.

monks

There are several interesting villages surrounding the lake, with each famous for a certain thing such as silverware, weaving, soy-based products, etc. The highlights are Indein, and Ywama. Most boatmen will take tourists to see some of these shops, where the quality is commendable. The good thing is that there is absolutely no pressure to buy – even when there’s no option for the customer to just walk out (because it’s on a lake).

village women

thaung tho kyaung stupas

Those who happen to be there during the weekend can actually catch the market gathering activities which the tribes people do during Saturdays and Sundays. On display are arrays of jewelry, knick-knacks, vegetables, spices and whatnot. It’s a good place to take interesting photos of locals who wear curiously draped headgears.

Tip: It can get extremely cold in the mornings. During the two days that we were there, temperatures reached near freezing (4 degrees celsius) in the morning. Accommodations there don’t have any heaters so warm clothing is essential!