My friend Bubbles, who I was travelling with within the Balkans had a request that we stop over at Medjugorje. We got lucky because Medjugorje was on the way to Dubrovnik, Croatia, which is our next stop. Half an hour into our driving, we reached Medjugorje. Parking was not so easy to find but we struck lucky and found a space not too far away from the Saint James Church. Medjugorje or Medugorje is a world-famous Catholic pilgrimage site due to the Our Lady of Medjugorje which claimed to have a series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus, to 6 Bosnian children at Križe ..read more

I miss blogging... it's such a nice feeling to see the blog again. I really need to write and post pictures more often again. I know it's not an excuse to be very busy with the daily grind and the stress accompanying it. Right now, I feel bad not finding time to take care of this blog. Why is it so difficult to promise these days? *sigh*  Anyway, I was going through the drafts and saw this one of the last days we had in Mostar. The pictures were already in the draft, so might as well post them :) Having tea on the balcony of our hotel in Mostar. What beautiful scenery to wake up to on ..read more

A few years back I went on a Balkan road trip with my friend Bubbles and I blogged this. However, I didn't get to finish it so here I am back again, picking it up from where I left. We flew into Tuzla in Bosnia and then drove to the capital, Sarajevo. Afterwhich, we took the 2+ hour winding road to Mostar. What makes this drive amazing is that the highway follows side by side the route of the Neretva River. We had amazing scenery! What a joy! Finally, in Mostar we checked in at Kriva Cuprija Hotel & Bridge and then had a delicious lunch with a view of Restoran Lagero. This is the ..read more

Last day in Dresden. We fly in the afternoon so we have a whole morning and lunch. We had a lovely walk on the Bruhlsche Terrace and had a light very late breakfast at Visa a Vis. The atmosphere was wonderful. I like having a slow breakfast with a view. We have the morning for more sightseeing and shopping. In the Old Town, there is this adorable and lively alley filled with cafes and terraces called Munzgasse. It reminds me of a similar alley in Brussels, the Beenhouwersstraat (Rue des Bouchers). There are stairs connecting from the Bruhlsche Terrace that goes to this street. I just know thi ..read more

I went to Dresden, Germany with a friend (Bubbles) who flew over from Canada to visit me. We did a number of trips. She wanted to see Dresden so visited for a few days. You can find our Dresden diaries here: Dresden, Germany Trip On our last day in the city, we did some strolling in the Inner Neustadt where our hotel was located, then we crossed the River Elbe to the Altstadt (Old Town) on the Augustus Bridge. We wanted to enjoy the sights of the city before we leave in the afternoon. Dresden is full of old historical buildings so it is always a joy to walk around.  Our plan for the m ..read more

 Our last night in Saigon / HCMC was spent with drinks at an upscale hotel with a view, followed by some local entertainment on the promenade, and then dinner at the famous roadside restaurants. A great evening way to finish off our trip to HCMC, Vietnam. The Majestic Hotel in HCMC is a luxurious historical hotel located on the riverfront. The old grand lady has been around for some time to see history unfold in this city. When you enter the lobby, the hotel's atmosphere and design evoke nostalgia, like you are being transported back to an important bygone era.  Interestingly, I ..read more

 Well, hello! How do you find my Vietnamese cone straw hat? They are called "Non la" and they go well when you are on a sampan boat :) In 2016, the day after Christmas Day, my parents, my sister, and I went to Saigon / Ho Chi Minh City for a week's trip. It was a city trip but we wanted to taste the country as well so we booked a Mekong Delta Day trip to Ben Tre which is approximately 2 hours down south. Our group was relatively small, all of us fitting in a small van. I like it this way especially when you are travelling with parents that have mobility issues. The tour guide is able to ..read more

I made this trip back in 2016 with my family and one of the things we did was visit the Bitexco Observatory aka the Saigon Sky Deck. But not after a traditional Vietnamese lunch at Quan Vit Gay.  I found this restaurant randomly after searching for a place to eat near the mall we visited in the morning. My parents cannot walk far so my search was focused between a 100-200 meters radius. Because of the yellow exterior signboard and ornaments, I was able to quickly notice this restaurant. After a quick look at their menu, I knew right away that this is the place for our lunch. We ..read more

My second day in Brno was a full day of work topped by a lovely dinner. I will take you through the day. Brno city center. I woke up early and had breakfast at the hotel. Together with my colleague, we headed off to the customer site which was just a few kilometers away. I made sure to book a hotel with easy parking and just a few minutes drive from the customer's address. At the customer site, we were welcomed nicely, and the room booked for our 1.5 days round of meetings was fully stocked with snacks and drinks. They were spoiling us rotten! They also treated us to nice lunch onsite where w ..read more

Back in the summer of 2019, I went to visit Brno, a pretty city in the southern part of Czechia.  Did you know that Czech Republic has changed its name to Czechia? However, it seems that the rest of world is struggling to accept its new name because Czech Republic is still being used to reference the country. Renaming a country is always a tricky thing. My trip to Brno was actually a business trip and I went there together with a colleague. He was travelling from Milan so we met at the Vienna Airport. Because Brno has a small airport, which mostly serves charter flights during the warmer ..read more