Living Social and Beyond Boundaries Travel had a special deal for A 4-Day, 3-Night VIP Trip to Orlando Theme Parks for a Family of 4 – for $875.  This is for the Melia Orlando Suite Hotel at Celebration.  But wait a minute before you book – make sure you read the fine prints.  At first I too thought it was an excellent deal – but luckily I read the fine prints and found out that it was a per person rate and that you have to make good with your book before the end of February 2012.   So when a deal is too good to be true – it is usually not as good.  So make sure you read the fine prints before booking else I would have lost my money for nothing.  When there are so many kind of conditions to the special deal – it’s not such a special deal anymore.

Vouchers cannot be combined to extend stay • Reservations are required; subject to availability and must be made by February 28, 2012 • Not valid on existing reservations • Price is per person; rooms accommodate up to four people • This price is only valid when four people are in the one bedroom suite; voucher can be applied to the trip price for less than four people per suite • Additional fee applies for rooms under 4 people • For 3 people in a room it is an additional $60 per person; paid at booking • For 2 people in a room is is an additional $130 per person; paid at booking • For 1 person in a room is is an additional $350 per person; paid at booking • Taxes and fees are not included and will be collected at redemption • There will be no refunds once booking is made through Beyond Boundaries. Cancellation will result in being charged the full amount • Bookings subject to Beyond Boundaries Terms and Conditions • Airfare not included • All deal components must be redeemed during one stay and by one person • Disclaimer – Beyond Boundaries Travel and Living Social are not affiliated with Warner Bros. or J.K. Rowling. This event has not been planned, approved, or licensed by Warner Bros. or J.K. Rowling. Beyond Boundaries Travel do not claim or imply any rights to any Harry Potter intellectual property • HARRY POTTER, characters, names and related indicia are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Harry Potter Publishing Rights © JKR.(s12) Universal elements and all related indicia TM & © 2012 Universal Studios. All rights reserved. These themed tours are not official Harry Potter tours and are not endorsed, sanctioned or in any other way supported, directly or indirectly by Warner Bros. Entertainment, the Harry Potter book publishers and/or J.K.Rowling and her representatives and/or Universal Orlando.Downtown Disney is a trademark of The Walt Disney Company • Other conditions apply• PAID VALUE EXPIRES ON January 28, 2017 • PROMOTIONAL VALUE EXPIRES ON June 4, 2012

My ex-boss being a resident in Madrid, of course brought us to places where the locals go and The Plaza De Santa Ana was recommended by him and it’s a real Spaniard experience here especially in the evenings.  You don’t find a lot of tourist around and drinks and food were a lot cheaper than the places where the tourists are brought to by their tour guides.  There were outdoor cafes and bar everywhere at the Plaza De Santa Ana and folks play guitar there every night with singing and dancing – it was a very lively scene.  There are a few vendors there – who would try and sell you their touristy souvenirs and you can politely refused if you didn’t want any.   We usually stay till late in the evening – as people watching as well as the singing was really good.  If you want to experience a true spanish atmosphere – try this plaza.

The Plaza is always crowded and with lots of people.

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I loved traveling as you all know – but I`m also worried when I travel that I might fall sick or worst – if the kid gets sick and everytime we do stay in a hotel that is dusty I get a very bad headache or migraine. Chronic headache is actually my greatest enemy when I am traveling  – therefore, I never leave home without my travel health kit – and I tell yer – I feel a lot safer when i have all my back up medication and anything that I might need in this travel health kit.   I take a small portion of whatever I need, from tylenol to band aid with me when i travel and of course medication for my headaches/migraine is a must and if I don’t get an attack, it will not go to waste, I can always use it on my next trip.  But of course, I do check for expiry dates and make sure I change them ever so often if I haven’t used them for the last 6 months.  So if you are traveling for vacation or work  – make sure you pack your health travel kit with you – for you never know when you might need it.

For someone who travels as much as I did before – you would be surprised at how much pictures I had printed out during the last 20 yrs of traveling.   20 yrs ago – I wished for a printer that I could carry around with me and print out pictures I liked or had taken with a friend or family members and share it with them immediately but alas, there was none.  As I looked at my Epson TM-T88V receipt printer today – I was thinking about how nice it would have been if I had a printer that was this small and prints as fast but in color.  Of course, they now have portable printers that are small and affordable now – but with digital cameras – one don’t really need to print out all the photos that you’ve taken during a vacation to find out which one is the best.  But it would still be very nice to have a small color printer like the Epson that I have for my store’s receipt printer to use for my holiday pictures.  I really like my Epson printer – it’s small – cheap and definitely ink friendly – now if only some manufacturer or designer can design a portable printer as small and lightweight as my Epson – I’m sure folks like us would love to have one too.

So it’s that time of the year again – where everyone is rushing to go on vacation or getting out of the cold weather into the warm.  Some of you might be going home for Christmas as well or visiting good friends in another continent.  But before you leave home with your kids especially if you are traveling with your kids – make sure you check if there is a nearby doctor or hospital and if you are staying in a hotel if there is an in-house doctor.  That’s what I do everytime I go on vacation with my kid – I remember how flustered I was when my kid had a temperature for days – and the nearest hospital was like an hour away.  Luckily the hospital was well – equipped with medical computer cart and all the medical equipments needed for x-ray and needles else I would be really devastated.   So before you go on your Christmas vacation, check if you can find medical help nearby where you are staying before leaving and take the number and address down – you never know what might come up during your vacation.

A friend who was heading up to Paris asked me where he should go eat – a must eat – in Paris and I recommended an outdoor cafe in Paris called the Au Petit Sud Quest – located at the  Avenue de la Bourdonnais.  If you can’t find your way there – check with your hotel concierge.   The prices range from $50 – $90 per person but it will be one of the best meal you’ve eaten anywhere.

What so special about this little outdoor cafe?  first you can sit indoors if you wished but I always choose to eat outside because of the beautiful scenery and all walks of people come by here.  The service is awesome and they have a very well stocked cellar in the cafe.  I loved the way they are so personable – while everyone says that in Paris – the french just don’t want to speak in other languages – but the owner of the cafe is very nice.  I speak very little french – but they were very kind to us. The best part was that they took time to explain to us about the dish and how it was cooked.  This place is about wine, duck and foie gras  and because I loved mushroom so much – they made a nice crepe with mushroom for me.  For dessert we had the creme brulee – what else!  so if you are headed out to Paris – check out this little cafe/restaurant.

My in-laws will travel to as far as USA for the bluegrass festival in their motorhome – and now that they are both retired – it’s a great opportunity for them to travel as much as they want.  With a good motorhome insurance they can go just about anywhere in the world – without worrying about anything.   I told the spouse that when our kid is grown up – we should be like his parents and travel around in a motorhome – it’s a great way to travel – but i don’t want a huge motorhome   – a medium size one is great for us and with all the comfort of home and not having to stay in crappy hotels – i loved it.  I think my in-laws like their motorhome when they travel is because they can travel the way they like and freely.

Yokohama’s Chinatown is huge – plenty of Chinese restaurant and they even have a store that can read your palm – some sort of feng shui master.  You can take a train from Tokyo to Yokohama – it’s like 45 mins if i remembered correctly. Chinatown in Yokohama opens at about 10am in the morning right up to 10pm in the evening – most stores and restaurants I am told are opened everyday.

The Chinatown here in Yokohama is as busy as the one in San Francisco.

Folks lining up to buy BBQ Pork bun – are they better than the ones in Japan – yup!! very yummy ! very smooth !

These sesame balls were so yummy! and as you can see – they were unlike the ones we get back home in Asia – where they are so oily – these were absolutely delicious without feeling sinful at all.  But there are more than just food in Yokohama’s Chinatown – there are gift stores, clothing store and even a food court if I remember correctly.  Find a shrine in yokohama chinatown and make your wish come true as well.

Another souvenir store – selling all sorts of panda.  They weren’t kidding when they said the Japanese loved their pandas.

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