Tuesday, July 28, 2009
23 June 2009
Got good news in the snailmail today and was informed by the NCBC (Nor Cal Bowling Centers) that Sam has won the Rookie of the Year award and as such, she has been invited to the All Stars Event to be held at Reno, Nevada from Aug 22-23, 2009 and with this award, it means she has been awarded a $100 scholarship money. No doubt it's not much, but, hey, any amount is better than none, agree? Also, she's been invited to play a friendly scratch tournament where all the All Stars participants will bowl in. This will be the toughest playing field as she's up against the best of the best in Northern California. We are proud of Sam's achievement and am happy that she's been acknowledged and so, Reno, here we come on Aug 22, 2009.
22 June 2009
This is going to be random posting from now on, no longer blogging on a daily basis coz I figured you'll probably be tired of "hearing" too much from me. Today's the 1st day I came back from my holidays in Europe. You wouldn't believe me but I did 5 countries in 10 days. If there's a record for that, I'll probably be the 1st to have achieved such a feat. Looking back, don't know where I got the stamina from but it sure was crazy and, at the same time, a challenge and it holds wonderful memories of which I am still finding time to report it on my blog but until now, haven't had enough time in front of the computer to pen out all my thoughts. So, hang in there and very soon, I'll finish writing all about my holidays and can share it with all you dear friends out there.
Today is nothing great except the usual housekeeping. 10 days out of town and the house is all dusty and though it was tiring, it feels good to have a clean house again after I was done with cleaning it at 5pm.
Ah...now to rest those tired legs and bones...
Today is nothing great except the usual housekeeping. 10 days out of town and the house is all dusty and though it was tiring, it feels good to have a clean house again after I was done with cleaning it at 5pm.
Ah...now to rest those tired legs and bones...
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
18 June 2009
Good morning from Zurich.....Rise and shine. Beautiful day with lots of sunshine. Left early this morning and have Ed dropped me off at the Bahnhofstrasse train station in downtown Zurich. From there, he left for work with Jim, his colleague and I walked to a nearby Starbucks which happens to be located right across from the bus station where my Grayline tour starts. Perfecto! As I was way early (my tour won't start till 11am), I sat in Starbucks sipping my decaf coffee latte and eating my doughnut breakfast and downloading and checking my emails on my iPod touch. This is what I call a holiday. No stress, no hurry, great coffee and no one to rush me off anywhere, yay! My tour today will take me to downtown Zurich, Rapperswil - the City of Roses, Vaduz - the principality of Liechtenstein with our last stop at Maienfeld - the village where the Heidi stories orginates.
After finishing my breakfast and sending all my emails, still had some time on hand so, decided to do some walk exploration of downtown Zurich by myself. The buildings there are just simply gorgeous and if you like shopping, it's a haven. This exclusive shopping mile is lined with elegant department stores, famous boutiques for fashion and jewellery, inviting street cafes and restaurants. A beautiful boulevard to be at for sure! I couldn't resist going into Mango and ended up with a tee-shirt in bright orange color in hand as I walked out of the store. What a great start!
This photo on top is that of the train station which is located in the heart of town. The photo in the center is that of a typical cafe lined boulevard leading to the St Peter's church which can be seen in the far end of the background. Did you spot that? And the picture at the bottom is River Sihl that runs across the city center.
Incidentally, the common language spoken here in Zurich is German so, I didn't feel quite as lost coz I could understand the language a little. Didn't have any problem finding the Fraumuenster which was founded in 853, mostly noble women lived in this influential Benedictine abbey.
This is Fraumuenster Abbey. The guy that has a lot more hair, in red t-shirt and with glasses is my tour guide.
Managed to catch a glimpse of St Peter Kirche (church). It houses Europe's largest clock face and is a fire watch lookout point. Parts of the building are from the 9th-15th century and the Baroque gallery stand witness to centuries past and is the oldest city parish church.
Closer glimpse of St Peter's Kirche (above).
Wanted to walk further to see the Blumenuhr at Buerkliplatz but was rushing for time so, decided to skip that. Otherwise, would have been good coz this is a tower clock fitted with about a 1,000 colorful flowers. My mom would've loved that.
Photo above of what I missed had I gone to the Blumenuhr.
Tour started right at 11am. Met this couple Alice & Louise who hails from Maine, USA on the same tour and we started talking and getting ourselves acquainted. They were a very pleasant couple and as the tour took us to various parts of the city center, the tour guide went on a rambling with regards the history of the town which literally got me zoned out by the time I had a chance to take notes. For more readings on the history of Zurich, go to the following link en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Zürich
As we left the city center and go on our 1st destination, Rapperswil, we were introduced to this restaurant called the Kronenhalle which according to the tour guide, is a must eat place if one has a chance to go there. Apparently, many politicians, actors and actresses have been patrons of this Swiss, Bavarian and classic cuisine restaurant. For more info, here's the link: http://www.kronenhalle.com
We drove along the banks of Lake Zurich and it was a beautiful sight as we caught glimpses of houses across the river which, according to our tour guide, is divided into Gold Coast, Silver Coast, Copper Coast and Diamond Coast. As the name beholds, the Copper Coast is one that's inhabited mostly by farmers and the lower middle class and without a doubt, the Diamond Coast is one place I can't afford and is often inhabited by what the people of Zurich called the "Shikimiki". These are the egoistic and narcissistic Swiss people who shows up in their Lamborghinis and show off their wealth in their possessions.
Pictures of the housing across Lake Zurich. These are the homes of the rich and famous. We can only go "ooh and ahh" at the expanse of the homes there.
After about an hour's drive, we reached Rapperswil, the City of Roses. This town is located on the eastern end of Lake Zurich. This city has a picturesque medieval town center and that is why it is such a draw to tourists like me who marvels at a little zoo with animals that has been tamed living in there, rose gardens with at least 600 different kinds of blooms (although most have wilted under the hot sun by now), the Altstadt (old city) and Castle of Rapperswil.
Here's the pictures taken of this little small town. Very interesting....
And guess where I ate even though they have nice lake front dining? Well, I was alone and rushing for time coz I spent too much time sightseeing, I forgot to eat lunch. So, guess what? Lunch was the usual, quick and easy meal at Mr McDonald's as the tour guide called it. Can you spot that little small golden arch of McDonald's on the left hand side of this Hotel Hirschen? Well, stories goes that the city council will not permit McDonald's to have their huge golden arch coz they want to promote their Swiss cuisine. Anyway, after a quick meal of cheeseburger with gelato ice cream and diet coke to take it all down, boarded the bus and headed off to Liechtenstein. We are now heading towards Vaduz, the capital city of this little principality.
Liechtenstein is the 4th smallest country in Europe and the 6th smallest country in the world. It's dimensions are 24.8km at longest distance and 12.5km at widest distance. The highest mountain is Mt Grauspitz at 2,599m. The annual average temperature at Vaduz is 10.7 deg C. Their head of state is Prince Hans-Adam II and they have a population of 35,000 inhabitants.
It was "one eye sees all" for me when I set foot on Vaduz. Nothing much to shop for except rows and rows of shops selling souvenirs, the Rathaus, some sculptures and a church. Apparently, the stamps of Liechtenstein are very popular and if you're a philatelic enthusiast, here's one place you may want to buy a postcard and send it to yourself.
This is the souvenir shop and the church in the background of the 2nd picture demarcates the end of the town of Vaduz.
View of the town of Vaduz on top of the hill. Vaduz is in a valley and has a fair amount of rainfall thus, the grounds are very fertile making it a great place for agriculture.
The Rathaus for the town of Vaduz and a miniature mock up of the castle of the King of Leichtenstein.
Don't ask me what all these sculptures meant coz I have no clue but, I took the picture coz it's interesting....
After we were done with Liechtenstein, we boarded the bus and headed towards Heidiland. This place is famous for the Heidi stories by Swiss author, Johanna Spyri which we read so much about whilst in school. In case if you haven't read this story before, here's the excerpt:
Typical countryside pictures of Heidiland. The mountain goat epitomizes it all. And the cow is not for real ok?
After Heidiland, we boarded our bus and headed back to town. Tour ended on time at 5.45pm and Ed came early to fetch me. Parked his car and fed the meter and then went on to wait for me at the Starbucks where I boarded my bus. I told him to come fetch me at 6pm so, daren't call him in case he is on the road driving and without hands free. Waited till 5.55pm and then sent him a text message. He told me where he was, I walked there to meet him and walked back to his car only to find a parking summon on the windscreen. Apparently, Jim didn't even see the police issuing the summon coz it has gone beyond the time limit. And the fine is CH45.00. Oh well...gotta pay and figure how to coz right after this, driving all the way to Geneva.
The ride was about 2.5 hours. Ed must be so tired now, working during the day and driving during the night and with construction work everywhere, the GPS wasn't helping as it couldn't figure out an alternate route. We arrived into Geneva in time for late dinner and drove across the border to France to this nice French place and had a good sumptuous dinner. We didn't finish till about 11pm.
Checked into the Movenpick Hotel, was dead tired and lights out...
After finishing my breakfast and sending all my emails, still had some time on hand so, decided to do some walk exploration of downtown Zurich by myself. The buildings there are just simply gorgeous and if you like shopping, it's a haven. This exclusive shopping mile is lined with elegant department stores, famous boutiques for fashion and jewellery, inviting street cafes and restaurants. A beautiful boulevard to be at for sure! I couldn't resist going into Mango and ended up with a tee-shirt in bright orange color in hand as I walked out of the store. What a great start!
This photo on top is that of the train station which is located in the heart of town. The photo in the center is that of a typical cafe lined boulevard leading to the St Peter's church which can be seen in the far end of the background. Did you spot that? And the picture at the bottom is River Sihl that runs across the city center.
Incidentally, the common language spoken here in Zurich is German so, I didn't feel quite as lost coz I could understand the language a little. Didn't have any problem finding the Fraumuenster which was founded in 853, mostly noble women lived in this influential Benedictine abbey.
This is Fraumuenster Abbey. The guy that has a lot more hair, in red t-shirt and with glasses is my tour guide.
Managed to catch a glimpse of St Peter Kirche (church). It houses Europe's largest clock face and is a fire watch lookout point. Parts of the building are from the 9th-15th century and the Baroque gallery stand witness to centuries past and is the oldest city parish church.
Closer glimpse of St Peter's Kirche (above).
Wanted to walk further to see the Blumenuhr at Buerkliplatz but was rushing for time so, decided to skip that. Otherwise, would have been good coz this is a tower clock fitted with about a 1,000 colorful flowers. My mom would've loved that.
Photo above of what I missed had I gone to the Blumenuhr.
Tour started right at 11am. Met this couple Alice & Louise who hails from Maine, USA on the same tour and we started talking and getting ourselves acquainted. They were a very pleasant couple and as the tour took us to various parts of the city center, the tour guide went on a rambling with regards the history of the town which literally got me zoned out by the time I had a chance to take notes. For more readings on the history of Zurich, go to the following link en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Zürich
As we left the city center and go on our 1st destination, Rapperswil, we were introduced to this restaurant called the Kronenhalle which according to the tour guide, is a must eat place if one has a chance to go there. Apparently, many politicians, actors and actresses have been patrons of this Swiss, Bavarian and classic cuisine restaurant. For more info, here's the link: http://www.kronenhalle.com
We drove along the banks of Lake Zurich and it was a beautiful sight as we caught glimpses of houses across the river which, according to our tour guide, is divided into Gold Coast, Silver Coast, Copper Coast and Diamond Coast. As the name beholds, the Copper Coast is one that's inhabited mostly by farmers and the lower middle class and without a doubt, the Diamond Coast is one place I can't afford and is often inhabited by what the people of Zurich called the "Shikimiki". These are the egoistic and narcissistic Swiss people who shows up in their Lamborghinis and show off their wealth in their possessions.
Pictures of the housing across Lake Zurich. These are the homes of the rich and famous. We can only go "ooh and ahh" at the expanse of the homes there.
After about an hour's drive, we reached Rapperswil, the City of Roses. This town is located on the eastern end of Lake Zurich. This city has a picturesque medieval town center and that is why it is such a draw to tourists like me who marvels at a little zoo with animals that has been tamed living in there, rose gardens with at least 600 different kinds of blooms (although most have wilted under the hot sun by now), the Altstadt (old city) and Castle of Rapperswil.
Here's the pictures taken of this little small town. Very interesting....
And guess where I ate even though they have nice lake front dining? Well, I was alone and rushing for time coz I spent too much time sightseeing, I forgot to eat lunch. So, guess what? Lunch was the usual, quick and easy meal at Mr McDonald's as the tour guide called it. Can you spot that little small golden arch of McDonald's on the left hand side of this Hotel Hirschen? Well, stories goes that the city council will not permit McDonald's to have their huge golden arch coz they want to promote their Swiss cuisine. Anyway, after a quick meal of cheeseburger with gelato ice cream and diet coke to take it all down, boarded the bus and headed off to Liechtenstein. We are now heading towards Vaduz, the capital city of this little principality.
Liechtenstein is the 4th smallest country in Europe and the 6th smallest country in the world. It's dimensions are 24.8km at longest distance and 12.5km at widest distance. The highest mountain is Mt Grauspitz at 2,599m. The annual average temperature at Vaduz is 10.7 deg C. Their head of state is Prince Hans-Adam II and they have a population of 35,000 inhabitants.
It was "one eye sees all" for me when I set foot on Vaduz. Nothing much to shop for except rows and rows of shops selling souvenirs, the Rathaus, some sculptures and a church. Apparently, the stamps of Liechtenstein are very popular and if you're a philatelic enthusiast, here's one place you may want to buy a postcard and send it to yourself.
This is the souvenir shop and the church in the background of the 2nd picture demarcates the end of the town of Vaduz.
View of the town of Vaduz on top of the hill. Vaduz is in a valley and has a fair amount of rainfall thus, the grounds are very fertile making it a great place for agriculture.
The Rathaus for the town of Vaduz and a miniature mock up of the castle of the King of Leichtenstein.
Don't ask me what all these sculptures meant coz I have no clue but, I took the picture coz it's interesting....
After we were done with Liechtenstein, we boarded the bus and headed towards Heidiland. This place is famous for the Heidi stories by Swiss author, Johanna Spyri which we read so much about whilst in school. In case if you haven't read this story before, here's the excerpt:
Summary of Johanna Spyri's Heidi
The orphan child Heidi first lives with her aunt Dete, but Dete would like to concentrate on her career. So she brings Heidi to her grandfather, a queer old man living in an alpine cottage far from the next village (he is therefore called Alm-Uncle, Alpöhi or Almöhi in German). Alm-Uncle is good-hearted but mistrusts anybody and wants to keep the child from all evils of the world. So he refuses to send Heidi to school; instead she goes to the pastures, together with Peter, a shepherd boy looking after the goats (Geissenpeter = goat-Peter in German). This (all too harmonious) alpine idyll finds a sudden end when aunt Dete comes in again and brings Heidi to Frankfurt (Germany) where she shall stay with Clara, the paralyzed daughter of a rich family, and learn something.
Thanks to the grandmother of Clara, Heidi learns to read but she can't get acquainted to the strict discipline in a bourgeois upper class house (personified by governess Fraulein Rottenmeier). She is very lonesome and gets depressed by the gray anonymous city. Heidi becomes ill of homesickness, she starts to walk in her sleep. Miss Rottenmeier is alarmed, not because of the fate of the poor child, but rather because she thinks that there are ghosts in the old house. Finally Clara's father Herr Stresemann and the sympathetic doctor of the family decide to stay up till midnight and find out about the ghosts. When the doctor sees Heidi walking around in her sleep, he finds the right diagnosis and sends her back to the alps.
Next summer, Clara visits Heidi there. They go to the pastures and Heidi shows Clara all the beauty of her world. Peter gets terribly jealous, and in a moment when he feels unobserved, he pushes the empty wheelchair down to the valley so it gets smashed. Clara wants to see the flowers and is forced to walk - and her desire is strong enough that she overcomes her handicap. Healings at body, spirit and soul in that healthy Alpine world - end well, all well.
Typical countryside pictures of Heidiland. The mountain goat epitomizes it all. And the cow is not for real ok?
After Heidiland, we boarded our bus and headed back to town. Tour ended on time at 5.45pm and Ed came early to fetch me. Parked his car and fed the meter and then went on to wait for me at the Starbucks where I boarded my bus. I told him to come fetch me at 6pm so, daren't call him in case he is on the road driving and without hands free. Waited till 5.55pm and then sent him a text message. He told me where he was, I walked there to meet him and walked back to his car only to find a parking summon on the windscreen. Apparently, Jim didn't even see the police issuing the summon coz it has gone beyond the time limit. And the fine is CH45.00. Oh well...gotta pay and figure how to coz right after this, driving all the way to Geneva.
The ride was about 2.5 hours. Ed must be so tired now, working during the day and driving during the night and with construction work everywhere, the GPS wasn't helping as it couldn't figure out an alternate route. We arrived into Geneva in time for late dinner and drove across the border to France to this nice French place and had a good sumptuous dinner. We didn't finish till about 11pm.
Checked into the Movenpick Hotel, was dead tired and lights out...
17 June 2009
Oh, my goodness. So many hours I've spent on the computer and I am only on my 3rd day of holiday? Oh, this is a real pain in the neck.... downloading all the pics to the blog is a real pain, I tell you, a real pain... Anyway, persevere on Chris, persevere on....
OK, so, where was I? Oh, ya, Stonehenge. I woke up this morning 1 hour early coz apparently, the hotel alarm clock was 1 hour fast and I didn't know that. Anyway, better early than late I suppose. We checked out, leave the room key at the front desk coz it was still closed, no breakfast to eat coz it will only be served at 8am and left at 7am :-( Well, got a long drive to Stonehenge which is located in the vast empty tract of Salisbury Plain.
Driving in England itself is indeed a very unique experience. We drove through countless roundabouts and sometimes, it feels as if we are driving through other people's backyard as it goes through side streets and we are so used to driving from one exit to another to reach our destination, this one is exits after exits and still no sight of our destination. It was like driving through a maze. Just thank God I wasn't the one driving but Ed, hahaha. And thank goodness for GPS which we couldn't live without. It took us about 3.5 hours drive from Shrewsbury to Stonehenge. By the time I got out of the car, both legs were stiff from sitting too long, hahaha.
An adult entry per person costs GBP6.60 and this comes with an audio guide that tells you what it is all about and where the Sarsen and Blue stones comes from. Incidentally, some 7-8,000 years ago, the area was mixed pine and hazel woodland before becoming a downland. When we were there, it was very windy indeed and my hair was being blown about like a mad woman. Was so afraid of the Druids (historical ancestors???) coming to get me coz am sure the women in those ancient of days' hair would be a mess coz no combs were invented then, hahaha.
Here's some of the pics of Stonehenge:
Can you believe that the Sarsen stones were brought from the Marlborough Downs 19 miles (30 km) away and the smaller stones, known as Bluestones, are from the mystical Preseli Mountains in Wales, 240 miles (385 km) away. In those ancient of days, can you imagine the amount of work one has to do to carry/transport the stones and mind you, these stones are not light. These are 40 ton rocks. I am awestruck for sure...
After Stonehenge, we drove straight to the London Gatwick airport for our flight to Zurich, Switzerland. We arrived in good time at Gatwick without being lost at all, thanks to a good navigator like me *ahem, LOL* and although the GPS ran out of battery, I was smart enough to note down the route just before it konked out on me. I am so brilliant am I not *grins*?
We were way early coz our flight on EasyJet wasn't till 1655 hrs. We couldn't find an area where we can charge the laptop to charge our GPS that ran out of battery. The areas that had plug extension clearly says, "not for public use". I wonder why it's there to start with if not for public use??? Finally we found one and started charging the GPS coz we need it as we'll be driving in Zurich too.
Flight on EasyJet was really no frills and efficient. We arrived at 1935 hrs into Zurich airport. Zurich is 1 hour ahead of British time and we got our car rental and drove to Moevenpick Hotel which is a mere 15 mins away. Hotel was nice and spacious. After putting our baggage away, we walked out to a nearby restaurant for dinner. It was a nice stroll of about 12 mins and we wanted to sit indoors coz we noticed some people smoking outdoors and the waiter kinda gave us a funny look and must've thought we were weird coz normal people would probably want to dine outdoors esp on a beautiful day like this. Anyway, we changed our mind and sat outdoors instead.
After dinner, it was back to the hotel and an early night's sleep coz tomorrow, Ed has a business meeting with his customers and I will go on a Heidiland tour by myself (7 hours tour). Am excited as I am still on holiday but poor Ed, his holiday has somewhat ended!
OK, so, where was I? Oh, ya, Stonehenge. I woke up this morning 1 hour early coz apparently, the hotel alarm clock was 1 hour fast and I didn't know that. Anyway, better early than late I suppose. We checked out, leave the room key at the front desk coz it was still closed, no breakfast to eat coz it will only be served at 8am and left at 7am :-( Well, got a long drive to Stonehenge which is located in the vast empty tract of Salisbury Plain.
Driving in England itself is indeed a very unique experience. We drove through countless roundabouts and sometimes, it feels as if we are driving through other people's backyard as it goes through side streets and we are so used to driving from one exit to another to reach our destination, this one is exits after exits and still no sight of our destination. It was like driving through a maze. Just thank God I wasn't the one driving but Ed, hahaha. And thank goodness for GPS which we couldn't live without. It took us about 3.5 hours drive from Shrewsbury to Stonehenge. By the time I got out of the car, both legs were stiff from sitting too long, hahaha.
An adult entry per person costs GBP6.60 and this comes with an audio guide that tells you what it is all about and where the Sarsen and Blue stones comes from. Incidentally, some 7-8,000 years ago, the area was mixed pine and hazel woodland before becoming a downland. When we were there, it was very windy indeed and my hair was being blown about like a mad woman. Was so afraid of the Druids (historical ancestors???) coming to get me coz am sure the women in those ancient of days' hair would be a mess coz no combs were invented then, hahaha.
Here's some of the pics of Stonehenge:
Can you believe that the Sarsen stones were brought from the Marlborough Downs 19 miles (30 km) away and the smaller stones, known as Bluestones, are from the mystical Preseli Mountains in Wales, 240 miles (385 km) away. In those ancient of days, can you imagine the amount of work one has to do to carry/transport the stones and mind you, these stones are not light. These are 40 ton rocks. I am awestruck for sure...
After Stonehenge, we drove straight to the London Gatwick airport for our flight to Zurich, Switzerland. We arrived in good time at Gatwick without being lost at all, thanks to a good navigator like me *ahem, LOL* and although the GPS ran out of battery, I was smart enough to note down the route just before it konked out on me. I am so brilliant am I not *grins*?
We were way early coz our flight on EasyJet wasn't till 1655 hrs. We couldn't find an area where we can charge the laptop to charge our GPS that ran out of battery. The areas that had plug extension clearly says, "not for public use". I wonder why it's there to start with if not for public use??? Finally we found one and started charging the GPS coz we need it as we'll be driving in Zurich too.
Flight on EasyJet was really no frills and efficient. We arrived at 1935 hrs into Zurich airport. Zurich is 1 hour ahead of British time and we got our car rental and drove to Moevenpick Hotel which is a mere 15 mins away. Hotel was nice and spacious. After putting our baggage away, we walked out to a nearby restaurant for dinner. It was a nice stroll of about 12 mins and we wanted to sit indoors coz we noticed some people smoking outdoors and the waiter kinda gave us a funny look and must've thought we were weird coz normal people would probably want to dine outdoors esp on a beautiful day like this. Anyway, we changed our mind and sat outdoors instead.
After dinner, it was back to the hotel and an early night's sleep coz tomorrow, Ed has a business meeting with his customers and I will go on a Heidiland tour by myself (7 hours tour). Am excited as I am still on holiday but poor Ed, his holiday has somewhat ended!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
15 & 16 June 2009
After exploring the beautiful sights of London, we all went back tired but fulfilled that we've done and seen as much of London as we possibly could. And we praise God that the weather was so beautiful with no rain whatsoever. Frankie, Kay's husband fetched us from the train station and they were kind enough to drop us to get our car and guided us to our hotel for the night which is the Travelodge Croydon. And we didn't know better that this hotel is a crummy one till we came home and realized that they have cheated us blatantly. T4, as I look back now, it is my sincerest request from all of you who read my blog, NEVER TO STEP INTO ANOTHER TRAVELODGE in your life if you can help it coz they are a bunch of cheaters. What happened was, when I made the online booking the 1st time around, the server timed out on me and indicated that my reservation did not go through. T4, it asked me to try again the 2nd time around which I did. And, this time, it went through. We checked into Travelodge Croydon close to 11pm at night on 14 June 2009. Was tired and was not happy that they didn't have an on-site car park. One has to park in a multi-storey car park across the road which was very inconvenient especially if you have lots of luggage. Luckily for us both, we only have 2 and though it was a hassle, we had no choice as nearby roadside parking were all full. I checked into the hotel and the room was nothing fanciful. Travelodge have not been noted to be fancy to start with and I knew it was a bare necessity hotel coz as you want more things, you just need to pay. They only gave us 1 towel even though I booked the room for 2 adults. The bed was sinking in the middle and I had a backache the next morning as sleeping in it was so uncomfortable. The windows would not open totally and so, it was very stuffy in the night and the traffic sound was so loud at 5am as trucks was unloading and I could hear people talking. That was our morning call. We checked out the next morning but what agitated me most was the fact that upon checking in, I just gave them my last name and they didn't tell me that I had made 2 room reservations (apparently, both my online reservations went through). Upon returning from my hols on June 22nd, I got my credit card bill only to find out that I have been charged for an extra room I didn't need. So, I gave them a call and was told to write to customer service which I did. And here's my email and their reply to and fro:
Hi there
My name is Christina and I stayed at Travelodge Croydon Central from 14-15 June 2009. Upon returning, realized that I was charged twice for the same stay. What happened was, when I booked my stay online, after I keyed in the credit card details and clicked on the submit button, the process went on for a while and then came up with a message that says the transactions again as the credit card details were not there the 2nd time around. The 2nd transaction went through without a hitch. But, I did receive 2 confirmation numbers in my email and they were 148197081 and 149265187.
I would appreciate if could be so kind to refund the excess of GBP46.50 to my credit card asap.
Thank you for your cooperation and if you need further details with regards this issue, please do not hesitate to liaise with me.
Regards
Christina Goh
And, their reply:
Dear Miss Goh
I am sorry to learn that at the point of making a reservation via our website that you have by mistake reserved two rooms when only one is required.
As the reservation made is subject to our flexible terms and conditions, being non-amendable and non-refundable after 12 noon on the date of arrival.
As you have agreed to our terms and conditions and you have not informed us of this duplicate booking in a timely manner, I am unfortunately, unable to meet with your request for a refund on this occasion.
Kind regards
Leah Gutheridge
Quality Management Team
Travelodge Hotels Ltd
And, my reply to them:
Hi there
Thank you for your prompt reply. I would like to clarify herewith that I DID NOT MAKE A MISTAKE when making the reservation. I keyed in all the details and clicked on submit after I've filled in all my credit card details and YOUR SERVER timed out on me and came back with a message indicating that my reservation DID NOT GO THROUGH and I should try again. And, that was exactly what I DID. When the page was refreshed, it didn't have any of my credit card details anymore and I had to key it in all over again. This time, I clicked submit and everything went through. I wasn't aware that I have been charged twice until I came home and checked my credit card statement. In all matter of fairness, it was your computer system that caused this discrepancy and it is unfair to pin it on your customer under "terms and conditions". In all honesty, why was I not asked about my double room booking when I checked into your hotel when I only clearly stayed in 1 room and not 2? Just because the customer doesn't have any "terms and conditions" to lay on the hotel doesn't mean you can abuse it and reverse it to your customers.
I am therefore, asking you that you be fair on your part as a representative of Travelodge and look into this matter again. Appreciate it.
Thank
And, their reply:
Dear Miss Goh
Thank you for your recent e-mails into Customer Services and our Press Office.
I am sorry to hear that you have not been entirely happy with the level of correspondence received so far. When making a reservation via our website you are asked to confirm that all details are correct. The number of rooms, hotel, date of stay, etc, are all displayed on the payment page. We display these details on this page as it allows our customers to make any necessary amendments.
Once payment details have been entered and the terms and conditions agreed to, a contract is created between us and the customer. This contract does include our relatively strict terms which means that the booking is non-refundable and non-amendable after 12 noon on the date of arrival.
We do operate a cooling off period of 24 hours, whereby we need contact within 24 hours of the booking being made and we can then issue eVouchers as a gesture of goodwill. Unfortunately as we have not received contact within 24 hours of the booking being made it is very difficult for us to offer anything outside of company policy.
I apologise that we are unable to assist you on this occasion.
Kind regards
Paul Austin
Quality Management Team
Travelodge Hotels Ltd
And, my final reply to them:
Hi there
I believed with all my heart that you've never had an ounce of goodwill in the first place. Yes, I agree that the page shows the number of rooms but it doesn't show the total number of rooms booked under my name as each reservation is treated as one individual reservation. I really don't know how else to explain to you except that by cheating me of GBP46.50, you will get pass this but not anymore in the future as I will make sure I tell all my family and friends and spread the word around what a crummy hotel Travelodge Croydon is that you are all a bunch of cheater bugs. That kind of advertisement is something that will, I trust, not want on your resume anytime in the future. Well, you can take that GBP46.50 as my donation to your Travelodge and you can suck it up your ass....
Well, that was the last straw coz I had already spent enough money and time on them trying to explain my side of the story but, they won't listen. T4, I am pleading to all of you out there: DO NOT EVER STAY AT ANY TRAVELODGE ever again. Do not hesitate to pass the word around to all your friends and families coz I want them all to be aware and not be cheated the way I was. I've learnt my lesson and hope all of you will learn too b4 it is too late.
Anyway, now that we've got the unhappiness part out of the way, as you can see, I've just changed the color of my font thus, my mood has changed for the better and I've gotten the Travelodge incident off my chest. Shall I continue with my story then? Oh, b4 I forget, we had to pay GBP7.00 for the stupid parking. It's not even free for hotel guests. Stupid, crummy hotel and cheater bugs....
We went out this morning to get some breakfasts to eat in the car as we have a long way to drive to Wales today. The trip should take us about 4-6 hours and, we intend to stop along the way and visit the several wonders of Wales (if only we knew better, hahaha - will tell you all in a bit). Anyway, just for information sake, the seven wonders of Wales are:
1. Llangolen Bridge
2. Overton Yew Trees
3. Wrexham Steeple
4. All Saints Church
5. St Winefrides Well
6. Pistyll Rhaeadr
7. Gresford Bell
Our 1st stop was at the Llangolen Bridge and we stopped at a nearby hotel to ask for directions and she was very friendly and told us exactly where to go. This shop somewhat amazes me - read on:
If you look closely at the signage outside this shop, there's no comma and full stop to its name. This is the longest word I've ever seen. Try pronouncing it in one breath!
This is the 1st wonder of Wales - the LLANGOLEN BRIDGE. Can you believe it that for being one of the seven wonders of Wales, there was not a single signage that says it is the Llangolen Bridge. It's said this was the site of the first stone bridge over the River Dee. The bridge was built in 1345 by Bishop of St Asaph John Trevor I, before being rebuilt during the Elizabethan period. It's said that the structure remains the same today.
Our 2nd stop was a visit to the Overton Yew Trees. Here's the background story to the trees:
Hi there
My name is Christina and I stayed at Travelodge Croydon Central from 14-15 June 2009. Upon returning, realized that I was charged twice for the same stay. What happened was, when I booked my stay online, after I keyed in the credit card details and clicked on the submit button, the process went on for a while and then came up with a message that says the transactions again as the credit card details were not there the 2nd time around. The 2nd transaction went through without a hitch. But, I did receive 2 confirmation numbers in my email and they were 148197081 and 149265187.
I would appreciate if could be so kind to refund the excess of GBP46.50 to my credit card asap.
Thank you for your cooperation and if you need further details with regards this issue, please do not hesitate to liaise with me.
Regards
Christina Goh
And, their reply:
Dear Miss Goh
I am sorry to learn that at the point of making a reservation via our website that you have by mistake reserved two rooms when only one is required.
As the reservation made is subject to our flexible terms and conditions, being non-amendable and non-refundable after 12 noon on the date of arrival.
As you have agreed to our terms and conditions and you have not informed us of this duplicate booking in a timely manner, I am unfortunately, unable to meet with your request for a refund on this occasion.
Kind regards
Leah Gutheridge
Quality Management Team
Travelodge Hotels Ltd
And, my reply to them:
Hi there
Thank you for your prompt reply. I would like to clarify herewith that I DID NOT MAKE A MISTAKE when making the reservation. I keyed in all the details and clicked on submit after I've filled in all my credit card details and YOUR SERVER timed out on me and came back with a message indicating that my reservation DID NOT GO THROUGH and I should try again. And, that was exactly what I DID. When the page was refreshed, it didn't have any of my credit card details anymore and I had to key it in all over again. This time, I clicked submit and everything went through. I wasn't aware that I have been charged twice until I came home and checked my credit card statement. In all matter of fairness, it was your computer system that caused this discrepancy and it is unfair to pin it on your customer under "terms and conditions". In all honesty, why was I not asked about my double room booking when I checked into your hotel when I only clearly stayed in 1 room and not 2? Just because the customer doesn't have any "terms and conditions" to lay on the hotel doesn't mean you can abuse it and reverse it to your customers.
I am therefore, asking you that you be fair on your part as a representative of Travelodge and look into this matter again. Appreciate it.
Thank
And, their reply:
Dear Miss Goh
Thank you for your recent e-mails into Customer Services and our Press Office.
I am sorry to hear that you have not been entirely happy with the level of correspondence received so far. When making a reservation via our website you are asked to confirm that all details are correct. The number of rooms, hotel, date of stay, etc, are all displayed on the payment page. We display these details on this page as it allows our customers to make any necessary amendments.
Once payment details have been entered and the terms and conditions agreed to, a contract is created between us and the customer. This contract does include our relatively strict terms which means that the booking is non-refundable and non-amendable after 12 noon on the date of arrival.
We do operate a cooling off period of 24 hours, whereby we need contact within 24 hours of the booking being made and we can then issue eVouchers as a gesture of goodwill. Unfortunately as we have not received contact within 24 hours of the booking being made it is very difficult for us to offer anything outside of company policy.
I apologise that we are unable to assist you on this occasion.
Kind regards
Paul Austin
Quality Management Team
Travelodge Hotels Ltd
And, my final reply to them:
Hi there
I believed with all my heart that you've never had an ounce of goodwill in the first place. Yes, I agree that the page shows the number of rooms but it doesn't show the total number of rooms booked under my name as each reservation is treated as one individual reservation. I really don't know how else to explain to you except that by cheating me of GBP46.50, you will get pass this but not anymore in the future as I will make sure I tell all my family and friends and spread the word around what a crummy hotel Travelodge Croydon is that you are all a bunch of cheater bugs. That kind of advertisement is something that will, I trust, not want on your resume anytime in the future. Well, you can take that GBP46.50 as my donation to your Travelodge and you can suck it up your ass....
Well, that was the last straw coz I had already spent enough money and time on them trying to explain my side of the story but, they won't listen. T4, I am pleading to all of you out there: DO NOT EVER STAY AT ANY TRAVELODGE ever again. Do not hesitate to pass the word around to all your friends and families coz I want them all to be aware and not be cheated the way I was. I've learnt my lesson and hope all of you will learn too b4 it is too late.
Anyway, now that we've got the unhappiness part out of the way, as you can see, I've just changed the color of my font thus, my mood has changed for the better and I've gotten the Travelodge incident off my chest. Shall I continue with my story then? Oh, b4 I forget, we had to pay GBP7.00 for the stupid parking. It's not even free for hotel guests. Stupid, crummy hotel and cheater bugs....
We went out this morning to get some breakfasts to eat in the car as we have a long way to drive to Wales today. The trip should take us about 4-6 hours and, we intend to stop along the way and visit the several wonders of Wales (if only we knew better, hahaha - will tell you all in a bit). Anyway, just for information sake, the seven wonders of Wales are:
1. Llangolen Bridge
2. Overton Yew Trees
3. Wrexham Steeple
4. All Saints Church
5. St Winefrides Well
6. Pistyll Rhaeadr
7. Gresford Bell
Our 1st stop was at the Llangolen Bridge and we stopped at a nearby hotel to ask for directions and she was very friendly and told us exactly where to go. This shop somewhat amazes me - read on:
If you look closely at the signage outside this shop, there's no comma and full stop to its name. This is the longest word I've ever seen. Try pronouncing it in one breath!
This is the 1st wonder of Wales - the LLANGOLEN BRIDGE. Can you believe it that for being one of the seven wonders of Wales, there was not a single signage that says it is the Llangolen Bridge. It's said this was the site of the first stone bridge over the River Dee. The bridge was built in 1345 by Bishop of St Asaph John Trevor I, before being rebuilt during the Elizabethan period. It's said that the structure remains the same today.
Our 2nd stop was a visit to the Overton Yew Trees. Here's the background story to the trees:
Some of the 21 famous yew trees at St Mary's Church, Overton, date to the 12th century, when the first stone church is said to have been erected. According to research by Clwyd Family History Society, the earliest reference to the church is found in Public Records from 1402, in which Overton was declared to be a chapelry of the parish of Bangor-on-Dee. The yew trees themselves date back to medieval times. In 1992 the Queen planted a young yew tree in the churchyard, to commemorate her visit to Overton as part of 700th anniversary celebrations. Can't really see what Yew trees actually look like but that is St Mary's Church in the background. After being so disappointed with 2 of the "wonders of Wales", both of us wondered if it's worth to go on to the other 5 coz the 1st two was quite a let down. Ed then decided to skip the rest and drive to our B&B place called Bryn Holcombe which is located at Colwyn Bay, a seaside town. With the help of the handheld Garmin GPS, we made our way there in good time and checked in and the proprietor was most friendly and welcoming and the room was so spacious and the bathroom was huge. Here are some pics of the hotel and the room. And for GBP60 a night, this bed and breakfast place beats Travelodge hands down and Welsh breakfast is even included. What more can I ask for? Was most happy with the service provided and the room was clean and the owner friendly and welcoming. We put away our stuff and asked the owner where we should explore and she suggests we visit Llandudno and so, we drove a short distance away to this seaside town and it was very quaint, tranquil and pretty. Somehow, the only thing lacking in this town is absence of people as most of the shops are closed as the time was about after 5pm. We walked around the town area but it somehow reminded us of Twilight Zone. We then decided to drive up to this Ski & Snowboard Center as it has a picturesque view of the Colwyn Bay and its surroundings. After that, our empty stomach beckons and we went back to town to look for food and lo and behold, found a cafe that was opened and though the food wasn't great, it filled our stomachs. Here's me in our little Twilight Zone town called Llandudno. After dinner, we drove to to Conwy Castle and walk around the area and perhaps see the castle when it is lighted up beautifully at night. We were way early and explored the grounds on foot and just enjoy the quietnes of its surroundings. Conwy castle standing tall as we enter the town and the many faces of its splendor. One of the buildings in the town centre within the walls of Conwy Castle. The interior part of Conwy Castle. A little history lesson here:
Conwy is by any standards one of the great fortresses of medieval Europe. First impressions are of tremendous military strength, a dominating position and a unity and compactness of design. The eight mighty towers seem to spring from the very rock which dictated the castle's eventual layout. As with Edward I's other great castles in north Wales, the design and building operations were in the hands of James of St. George, who eventually held the title of Master of the Kings Works in Wales. At Conwy, however, he somehow created a building which, more than any other, demonstrates his brilliant understanding of military architecture.
It was during his second campaign in Wales that King Edward gained control of the Conwy valley in March 1283. He began work on the new fortress almost immediately, the natural advantages of the site being so far superior to those of the older castle at Deganwy on the opposite side of the estuary. Moreover, plans were laid for an accompanying garrison town, itself to be defended by a complete circuit of walls and towers. Castle and town walls were all built in a frenzied period of activity between 1283-87, a tremendous achievement in which up to 1,500 craftsmen and laborers were involved during peak periods.
Conwy in its glamor of lights at night and the capture of sunset off the little estuary that runs through the town of Conwy.
Soon after, we drove back to Colwyn Bay and had a restful night's sleep in a nice warm bed. Ah...at least I won't wake up with a backache tomorrow, hahaha.
Rise and shine and off we go to another new destination. Today, we will visit another castle. This is called Caernarfon and is the most impressive of all castles in Wales. It was intended as a seat of power by King Edward I in the 13th centure and as a symbol of English dominance over the the subdued Welsh. It is located at the southern end of the Menai Strait (which allowed speedy access between the north Welsh coast and the western coast between north Wales) and Anglesey which was referred to as the garden of Wales.
The town center of Caernarfon in the background. I love the clouds above. Makes this picture look like a postcard doesn't it?
Caernarfon Castle as it stands today. The birth of his son, the first English Prince of Wales, in the castle in 1284, was a perfect device to stamp his supremacy. In 1969 the current Prince of Wales, HRH Prince Charles’s investiture took place here. Thus, the disc in the center of the field where the throne sits for the investiture ceremony.
From Caernarfon, we drove on to Llanberis where we went on the Snowdon Mountain Railway. Again, God has been really good to us as the day was full of sunshine and there was no interruption to the rail services. If the weather is bad, the rail doesn't run.
Majestic Mount Snowdon dominates the glorious, ancient landscape of North Wales. At 3,560ft (1,085m), it is the highest peak in Wales. On a clear day like this at the summit, we could see as far as the Wicklow Mountains in Ireland and the Isle of Man. It was indeed a breathtaking view as I stand literally, on top of the world, looking down and enjoying the spectacular sceneries, lakes beneath and waterfalls cascading through the ancient oak forest on the way up. Whoever built this railway is brilliant.
The first sod was cut at Llanberis station in December 1894. The railway was due to be ready for summer 1895 however, the harsh winter of 1894 was one of the worst in living memory, and the construction of the two large viaducts between Llanberis and the waterfall took much longer than expected and they were not completed until August 1895. Once the viaducts were completed the remaining track to the Summit was laid in a remarkable 72 days and the first train reached the summit in January 1896. With the remaining work on fencing and signals then being finished the railway was ready to open to the public at Easter 1896.
Me posing with the train before we boarded it and the cascading waterfall we saw along the way up to Snowdon.
This is the view from the top of Snowdon Mountain. It is so breathtakingly beautiful don't you agree? If you ever have a chance to go to Wales, do not miss this. This is by far the best mountain peak I've been and you know what's the best thing? You don't have to hike to reach the top, hahaha. Lazy person in me talking....
The other picture is the gift shop cum cafe in the background. Unique looking building isn't it? I loved the shape of it....
After the trip to Snowdon Mountain, we drove on from Wales to Shrewsbury in England, which will be our place of rest tonight. Ed has booked another B&B but this place is nothing compared to Bryn Holcombe at Colwyn Bay. This is a very small and contained hotel room with very limited walking space within the room. But, it's only for 1 night so, que sera sera.
This is the photo of Shrewsbury Abbey. Apparently, the relics of the Welsh Saint, Winefride were brought to the Abbey in 1147 and the building became an important center of pilgrimage after that. Notice the architecture of the arch leading to the doorway which is made of red sandstone and is reminiscent of Gothic artistry. Beautiful, I tell you, beautiful....
After photo session, we walked around the town center and as usual, most shops were closed and so, we decided to go eat at a restaurant nearby our hotel. Food was nothing great, edible kind and filling. Gotta get a good night's sleep as it's another long drive tomorrow to Stonehenge, yay!
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