All posts tagged: Travel

Weekend Unexplored: Phu Quoc Island (Vietnam) – Part II

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Editor’s Revision on 7/9/2015:  Mercure Phu Quoc Resort Hotel is part of the Accor Hotels Group.  We made the correction to this post as we originally wrote “Novotel” instead of “Mercure” in our post. We spent our Saturday exploring Phu Quoc island by boat and enjoying the island view from the ocean.  We will now start exploring the unique offerings of the island on our trusty moped. On Sunday, we headed to Mercure Phu Quoc Resort Hotel’s breakfast buffet before exploring the other sites.  We were wowed by the selection and quality of food at the buffet.  There is an abundant of fresh fruits, local selections as well as continental breakfast.  The only drawback we saw were the pastries.  They just did not taste like they were freshly baked.  This is an ongoing observation for most of the hotels that I have been to in Vietnam. The best fish sauce in Vietnam comes from Phu Quoc Island so it was mandatory to tour the local fish sauce factory.  The distillery of Nuoc Mam Hung Thanh …

Weekend Unexplored: Phu Quoc Island (Vietnam) – Part I

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Editor’s Revision on 7/9/2015:  Mercure Phu Quoc Resort Hotel is part of the Accor Hotels Group.  We made the correction to this post as we originally wrote “Novotel” instead of “Mercure” in our post. An island less traveled by foreign tourists… I have explored Vietnam since I was 18 years old.  I remembered the road trips my family took up and down Vietnam on perilous roads that still induced fear into me.  It is amazing how much Vietnam has changed in 14 years.  On my last trip to Ho Chi Minh City (“HCMC”), my best friend mentioned fresh sea urchins and the abundance of seafood on Phu Quoc Island that she tasted on her many trips there with her friends.  The island has relatively been untouched by foreign tourism and that is about to change with all the new resorts being built over the next few years.  Phu Quoc is one of the last sleepy fishing islands off the coast of Vietnam. It takes about an hour flight from HCMC.  It is the local weekend …

Street Food Fair: NYC UrbanSpace Garment District (May 4th to June 14th 2015)

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Over the last few years, NYC has seen a rejuvenation of street food.  The city went from having just your standard carts for hot dogs, breakfast items and the likes to a booming food truck trend. The “It” food trend for the last few years and gaining steam has been the rise of the gourmet street food fairs. UrbanSpace, a British company, started hosting various markets in NYC during the past few years including Mad. Sq. Eats, Broadway Bites, UrbanSpace Garment District, the Union Square Holiday Market and Columbus Circle Holiday Market.  For this post, I will be exploring some items that caught my eye at the UrbanSpace Garment District food fair. Domo Taco (Price:  Less than $10, Taste:  3.5 out of 5 stars) This is an asian-inspired Mexican food stall which means they put their interpretation of some basic meats with asian sauces on a taco. The result is surprisingly good, though not that innovative.  We tried the 3 tacos for $9 combo and selected lemongrass chicken, shrimp tempura and fish tempura tacos.  For $9, you do get a …

Weekend Unexplored: Day Trip to Sonoma and Napa

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There is nothing more rewarding than hosting family and friends and seeing them experience California’s Wine Country for the first time. When one thinks of California’s Wine Country, they are likely referring to Napa Valley and Sonoma Wine Country. They lie parallel to each other, tucked away about an hour’s drive by car from San Francisco proper. 9:00 AM PST: With my tea in hand and a pastry from La Boulange, I’m ready to head off to wine country with some out of town friends. We’ve rented a driver for the day (Million Services Limousine) and like clockwork, they show up on time. I’ve been with Reese and his team of awesome drivers for 5 years now. No matter the group size, their service and hospitality are always grade A.  I like to typically start off in Sonoma and work my way to Napa. I find the flow of that route, especially for first timers, works out beautifully. We take the Golden Gate Bridge and are automatically rewarded with breathtaking views of the city behind …

Road Trip: Pacific Coast Highway 1 (Part Two)

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“But why think about that when all the golden lands ahead of you and all kinds of unforseen events wait lurking to surprise you and make you glad you’re alive to see?” ― Jack Kerouac, On the Road Part Two of our family road trip picks up where we left off last week, heading south of Big Sur and concluding in Santa Barbara. “The longer you stayed at Hearst Castle, the further you’d sit from William Hearst during a meal,” said our guide as we walked into the dining hall. He was most definitely a Hearst fan and was beginning to tell us yet another story about the newspaper/media mogul and his distinguished guests.  We had just arrived for the 3 pm tour of the Castle’s main rooms and garden grounds.  After parking in front of the visitor’s center, we joined the line of tourists waiting to catch the bus that would drive us up to “La Cuesta Encantada,” the Enchanted Hill. Located atop the hill overlooking San Simeon, the estate’s grandeur and architectural details …

Must Do’s: Paris from a Local Point of View (Part 2)

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After sampling the eclectic selections of dining venues in Paris, it is time to look for places to drink, shop, and be merry.  The thing that Parisians do so well is to enjoy life with a certain “je ne sais quoi” attitude.  My favorite afternoon activities while living in Paris was to watch people go by and invent stories for them.  It is very much a tradition in Paris to meet up with friends for chit chat at anytime of the day. Must Shop: Impossible project space Wahiba:  “a cool polaroid shop” Librairie Ofr Wahiba:  “a wonderful bookshop with a lot of art and photo books” Panifica Wahiba:  “a great bakery” Le store MK2 Bibliothèque Wahiba:  “a concept-store” Les guetteurs du vent Wahiba:  “an interesting bookshop” Pierre Hermé (the one on 185 rue de Vaugirard) Wahiba:  “gorgeous desserts in a very innovative interior design” Charcuterie Verot Wahiba:  “gorgeous charcuterie” La Cave des Papilles Wahiba:  “The owner, a lover of ‘natural’ wine, has been operating in Paris for 16 years, and of the 1200 wines on …

Must Do’s: Paris from a Local Point of View (Part 1)

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I am excited to start a new travel series on this blog where La Vie Partagée will collaborate with locals that live around the world to write their Must Do’s in their own playground.  Our first post in this series will be about the second city closest to my heart: Paris. Wahiba is a friend I met when I interned at Accenture in Paris. She is a chic, young Parisian.  Fast forward a few years later, we are still great friends and travel buddies.  When I wanted to write about the current trends and new must dos from a Parisian perspective, I naturally went to the source. Wahiba was excited to share her favorite things to do and new places to see, eat, drink, and shop. Must See Fondation Louis Vuitton Besides the usual suspects that we all have come to know of Paris (Eiffel Tower, Louvre, etc), this is the newest attraction that sits on the edge of Bois de Boulogne.  In 2006, LVMH commissioned famed American architect, Frank Gehry, to design a building …

Airport Explore: Narita Airport (Japan)

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The image above was included in a complimentary booklet that was distributed in Narita Airport in 2011. It is a perfect start to our next Airport Explore post on Narita Airport located in Tokyo, Japan. Narita Airport is one of the busiest hubs when you travel to Asia.  If you are a frequent Japan Airline traveler like me, you become an expert of all the wonderful things the airline has to offer.   Don’t be scare of the language barrier and the somewhat confusing layout of the airport.  The staff is very helpful!  I normally fly in from Boston and connect through Terminal 2 for my flight to Vietnam.  For domestic and international connections, you will need to go through airport security one more time before entering the main Terminal 2 (T2) building.   If Tokyo is your final destination,  baggage claim and customs are located on the first floor. After clearing security, I would then make my way to the third floor. On the left after getting off the escalator, I would walk to the area marked “Day …