#144 On Travelling During The Summer

So we're at the end of April now, and summer is steadfast approaching! I'm sure a lot of you have already planned your summer holidays away.

Summer holiday. Eponymous. Renowned. A standard part of life for many people. Yet a summer holiday is something I admittedly don't really understand. Why travel during the summer? The reasons I can think of would be that either a) you have kids in school, b) you're still in education yourself, c) you work in education, or d) you like really hot weather.

Sandhamm, a popular holiday island in Sweden

So basically it mostly revolves around school. If you're not a teacher and you don't have child in school, I have no idea why you would actually ever want to travel during the summer season. I personally hate summer travel, I did it last year in Asia as I was unfortunately in the above mentioned grouping of being a teacher, and I would have much preferred to have done it any other time of year. Why do I hate it so? Summer travel is a) crazy expensive, b) overcrowded, c) tons of unsupervised children running riot and d) just too damn hot.



Irish people don't get a lot of warm weather, so most of them like to holiday in Spain or somewhere with a warmer climate. However, a lot of places are quite warm all year, and by going in the summer the Irish subject themselves to weather that is uncomfortably hot (although they will deny it) and earn dodgy tans and wince-worthy sunburns that they will wear back home like badges of honor.


I don't like hot weather. I don't like annoying children. I don't like being ripped off. I do not like summer holidays. Next month I will make a short mid-week trip to Belgium, and then I will remain static until around October, when the weather cools off, the prices dip, and the crowds are few and far between. Bliss.

Sunset on an island in the Stockholm archipelago

#139 Singapore

Singapore is a very interesting little place. It's both a city and country in one, incredibly multicultural, vibrant and modern, and best of all everyone speaks English and it is very clean and safe. However it is also one of the most expensive places to visit in Asia, so best for a short trip or as part of a long stop-over. Overall I really enjoyed my short visit, and honestly it looks like a cool place to live.

The highlights of the city are the gardens, in particular the Botanical Gardens (which are free) and the Gardens by The Bay (paid attraction). When I visited it was in the summer holidays and the height of the Pokemon Go craze, so there were lots of young people crowded around the Botanical Gardens on their phones. I appreciate nature and getting out  for a nice walk but I'm not hugely interested in types of flowers etc so in hindsight visiting just the free Botanical Gardens would have been more than enough for me, and probably for most people too.

Cloud Forest

The Gardens by the Bay were quite expensive but since it's one of very few attractions there I splashed out to pay for it. The Cloud Forest was really cool, but you have to be careful as the misting only happens for a few minutes every few hours and unless you're there for that it's a bit pointless, so plan in advance. I was lucky and happened to be walking in just as misting started, so I ran around the different levels taking as many photos as I could while it lasted, then when it was over I finally relaxed and went back around again taking my time. I had an enjoyable time and since the domes are temperature controlled it was really nice taking a break from the heat, but overall unless you really like flowers it's not amazing and probably isn't worth the money.

The Gardens by the Bay area is also where you will find the Super Trees and also for a good view of the Marina Bay Sands hotel with the Infinity Pool on top. The only way to get to the pool is to stay at the hotel which is obviously very expensive so I didn't do this. The absolute highlight of my visit was the SuperTrees light show in the evening. They change the music and theme every few months, and when I went it was a 70's disco theme which I absolutely loved beyond words. You can pay to walk around the trees but it's only a small walkway between two of them so it didn't look like it was worth the money.

Shopping

There are tons of shopping malls and high class boutiques around the city, which for commoners like me aren't exactly budget friendly. Despite this I liked my visit to The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, it had a little Venetian boat ride going through the mall which is a first for me. It also had a deck out the front with a great view of the water and city skyline, I came here in the evening at sunset and waited around until it got dark.


The good places for eating, shopping and souvenirs would be Chinatown and Bugis Street which both had lots of stalls. There were also two malls beside Bugis which had familiar high street brand names and restaurants.

The Shoppes

Chinatown

Bugis Street

Transport

The best and only way to get around Singapore is the MRT (underground trains) which is very easy to use, very clean and safe and quite cheap too.

For getting to the country itself, I incorporated a visit to Singapore as part of a wider trip which included Thailand and Malaysia, which I think many tourists do. There are a few options for this including train, plane and bus, and in the end I flew to Thailand, flew to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, got a bus to Singapore and then flew back to Thailand again. It's slightly more expensive to travel from Sinagpore to Malaysia than vice-versa which is interesting, and therefore I decided to go to Kuala Lumpur first and travel to Singapore.

I had originally planned to get an overnight train but they changed the schedules and routes shortly after I booked so I had to think fast, and opted to get a bus instead. The bus was luxury and the ticket was quite cheap, but the downside was it took a long time - we left KL at around 7am but didn't arrive in Singapore until around 1pm. Sinagpore Changi Airport is supposed to be the best in the world with all these crazy attractions - but to be honest I saw very little of this - there was a small Japanese garden, a small sunflower garden on the roof, and a small cinema room, which were nice but nothing particularly amazing like I had imagined.

#117 Kakegawa Bird and Flower Park

This is a popular attraction in Kakegawa, a stop on the Shinkansen in Shizuoka Prefecture, about an hour and a half south of Tokyo. There is also a small castle here, but overall, if you're not already in the area, don't bother stopping especially for this.



The entrance fee for the park for adults is 1,080 yen. It is then 100yen per food serving to feed the birds, so that’s probably another 500 yen. It’s then 500yen to get a photo with a penguin, or 300yen for a small owl. There is a footbath with fish which costs 300yen, and also a one hour buffet lunch for 1000yen. They do have free bird shows about twice daily.

Overall, the park is quite small. You see pictures and assume it’s much larger, but in reality there are only about 5 bird enclosures. For the price, which probably ends up around 2,000 yen for most people, I think it’s too much.

There is not so much information in English, apart from the bird names. They have notices that you must pay 100yen for bird food, but they don’t bother to translate safety notices like ‘These birds like to bite’ which I find typical of Japanese thinking of “Make sure the foreigners pay and don’t break the rules, but if they want helpful information they should learn Japanese or get out of the country.” (Maybe it’s a little unfair, but I have seen enough notices, or lack-of notices, that this mentality just can’t be ignored.)

For the flower aspect, there’s not really that much going on. There’s an indoor greenhouse where the buffet is served and there are many flowers hanging from the ceiling, and a large lilly pond, but that’s basically it. Comparing with something like the Garden Park or Flower Park in nearby Hamamatsu it doesn’t level up at all.

Yes it’s fun to get a photo with a penguin, have a toucan sit on your shoulder and an emu chase you around a field, but that’s all the highlights. You could be in and out in an hour if you wanted. While I enjoyed myself, I couldn’t help but think the price was too high and the park too small. This is in comparison with a zoo, the average price of a zoo in Japan is probably about 500yen and it would be much bigger with a larger variety of animals, although admittedly you’re not likely to get a photo with a lion.

Overall I would give it 3 out of 5. It’s fun and interesting, but you would get better value visiting Hamamatsu Zoo and adjacent Flower Park. The zoo is 400yen, and the flower park varies by season but can be free, 500yen with a 500yen shopping voucher, or up to about 1,000 yen．

If you’re only in Japan a short time I would skip it entirely, there are far better animal focused places to visit like Ueno Zoo in Tokyo and see Giant Panda’s for only 600yen, or take a trip to Nagano and see the famous snow monkeys relaxing in the hot springs.

#116 Do NOT use Airtickets24

Airtickets24 made a mistake and misspelled a name from the information I gave them, and a spelling error in a name is probably the worst thing that could happen regards flying.

They are difficult to get hold of, and when they eventually emailed back they said the airline does not allow any name changes, but they put a note on the booking saying it was a mistake and she should be able to fly (but it's not guaranteed).

I have no proof they misspelled it, the only thing is I'm 95% sure I wouldn't misspell my own mothers name, and also in the booking info it says it correctly, it's only on the airline boarding passes that it is spelled wrong. I doubt there is much point in trying to argue or get them to own up and take responsibility, so I am just praying it will work out and am vowing never to use them again, and to discourage anyone else.

I was a little apprehensive about using them in the first place, but they were the only website offering cheap tickets. I found them using the Skyscanner website.

The mistake is from Barbara to Barbra. It's literally one letter, but I know that airlines are very strict on names exactly matching the passport, and I am worried she will not be allowed enter Japan.

Her flight is in May so I will update then and let you know if she is in fact allowed fly.

Update: She was allowed fly both to and from Japan. Because the mistake was small they allowed it, but it was a nerve racking experience wondering whether she would be allowed on the next flight or not. At check in she was only allowed her boarding pass for the first flight, and had to get the boarding pass for her next flight at the discretion of the airline staff at that airport. There was also problems with online check in and seat picking, and of the three reservation numbers I had only some of them worked, and it was a bit messy in general. And my final problem was that they only said "you have free baggage" but they could not tell us how much it was - we were unsure if it was one or two pieces since she was flying different airlines each time.
Thankfully it all worked out in the end, but I would still urge everyone to stay away from Airtickets24.

#114 Manila, Philippines

One of the infamous Jeepneys!

Monument with the national flag

As a young, particularly pale white woman, I didn’t enjoy my time in the Philippines. This could have been different had I also been travelling with a male partner, as did other young foreigners I saw, but I was alone.

I don’t dress sexy, and on the average day I would never turn heads walking down the street. I live in Japan so I’m well used to being an outsider and getting side-eyed when they think you’re not looking. But in Manila I encountered staring and leering on a scale like never before.

On my first day there I was walking beside a busy road and I suddenly realized all the men in the trucks and vans were beeping their horns and yelling at me. I never felt more disgusted in my life. From that moment onwards I felt self-conscious and unsafe.

I couldn’t handle the taxi’s. Also on my first day I was at a mall, and trying to avoid the worst of rush hour waited until around 6.30pm and then decided to head back to my hostel. Being a Friday evening, there were people lining everywhere trying to get jeepneys and taxis, and I ended up standing near a slum with children running around me, but there was a city hall employed traffic warden who was kind and said he would help me find a taxi. Even with the city hall employee I still felt uncomfortable and unsafe and just wanted to get back to my hostel asap, and I had to wait maybe 15mins. It doesn’t sound like a long time, but it was hell not knowing when one would finally show, or if I was going to get mugged or hassled by the slum children (which sounds terrible, but it was scary). I think because it was a Friday it was especially bad, but it made me nervous going out again in case I had similar issues trying to get home again.

Crowds trying to get home on a Friday evening

Getting on/off buses etc. there are people grabbing at your suitcases and asking you where you’re going and if you make the mistake of answering, one will grab your bag and push you in whatever direction and then it’s too late when they rip you off. It’s disorientating and you don’t have two seconds to try figure it out for yourself, they’re on you like leeches, and you have people asking for a tip and you’re not even sure what they did to assist you in the first place.

For the taxi’s they say you should make them turn on the meter because it’s cheaper – but actually I found it was easier for them to impose a rip off price at first, that way at least they have no reason to go the long way around or delay you further.

SM City mall - not one of the biggest, but nice

I would talk about the cultural things, but I didn’t see them. I tried to go to Intra Muros the first morning, but the taxi driver said it was too hot and suggested an aquarium, I politely said “Oh yeah maybe later” but before I knew it he had dropped me at the aquarium. This is when I tried to walk to Intra Muros and failed. So I ended up at a mall and went to the cinema, so I could just get away from it all. The next two days I spent on a nearby island resort, and when I returned on my last day in Manila I had planned to try see Intra Muros again, or go to one of the famous giant malls. Neither of these happened – I was sick from the worry and stress. I knew I was wasting an opportunity, but I couldn’t deal with the stares and the people ripping me off. I didn’t even eat that day because the thoughts of even walking down the street and going to a restaurant was too much. This is very unlike me, so it really emphasized the impact. I just wanted to leave.

I know many people have travelled the Philippines and had very enjoyable times, but this was my experience. I’m glad I had the experience, but I could never recommend a solo white woman to travel here. 
While you might not be in immediate danger of rape or mugging, the stares and leers and the constant overcharging leave a stressful and distasteful impression of the people and the country. You’re constantly self-aware and on your guard, ready for the next argument. For me, it just wasn't worth the bother.

#98 London on the horizon

I'm going to London in a few weeks. I've been to London before, it was 5 years ago on my 18th birthday, and my older sister and I went for a weekend. We did the London Eye and the London Dungeons and we got one of those bus tours around everywhere else. It was the end of November and the Christmas lights were all up which was a nice touch.

Christmas!

So I've already been. But then I was only 18 and I was chaperoned by my older sister. This time I'm old and hardened and well travelled and I'll be with a friend (who I haven't seen for nearly 2 years, so you know it's gonna go down!).

London is horribly expensive, but then I've seen the major sites and I'll be with a friend who also happens to have a spare bed in her room which is wonderfully convenient!

Thankfully I'm a native English speaker and occasional viewer of Eastenders so there will be no language barrier to contend with on this occasion, and I think my biggest worry will be the currency. The pound-euro rate has more ups and downs than a rollercoaster, so even though I'm not going for a few weeks I've started eyeing up the exchange rates in order to try and get the best value.

The transport around London is pretty expensive, I'll probably be getting a £30 Oyster card, and travel within zones 1 and 2 (basically central London) has a max daily charge of £7. So (avoiding peak times!) it should be £28 over 4 days. Peak times are 6.30 am to 9.30am (easy enough to avoid I think) but again also from 4pm to 7pm, which is slightly more difficult to avoid, but by (Prince) George I'll try my best!

Not this kind of oyster though

#95 Yes, it is cheaper than flying

I'll be getting the bus to London (from Ireland) in a few weeks.

After searching through a few forums online, and after getting a similar reaction from anyone I've told - I would like to clarify and say that the bus is cheaper than flying. It is a fact.

Since I don't live in Dublin it will cost me €30 for a return ticket to Dublin Airport. A return air fare to London will be about €50, and then once you get to London you'll need a transfer to the city which will be about €20. So flying will now cost €100 total. With only hand luggage.


Now for the bus. Since it leaves from where I live, and arrives into the centre of London, there's no transfer fees. The bus ticket is €53 return. And I can bring as much luggage as I want. So what's the total cost? €53. Half the price of flying.

Apart from the price, everyone's talking about how long it takes. The bus leaves around 8pm and arrives 8am the next morning. So I acknowledge that it is 12 hours of my life gone, but it's all night time so realistically I should be sleeping soundly anyway.

"But flying only takes an hour". No sir, no it does not. That is a lie.

Anyone who has ever flown anywhere knows you have to get to the airport at least two hours in advance of your flight. And then there's the aforementioned connections - so for me it would take 3 hours to Dublin airport, and about an hour once I get to London. So that's 7 hours, and this would be probably during the day.

Oh, and there were a few who said I'd spend all my money at the petrol station stops buying food and coffee etc. Like, I'm travelling at night. I dunno about you, but I'm not one to tuck into meals at 3am. And even if I did buy coffee, I'd have to buy a lot for it to make a dent price wise in comparison to flying.


Now, if you lived in Dublin and only wanted to bring hand luggage then yeah, flying could work out about the same price as the bus. But, for me, getting the bus is a far cheaper option, and since I have very little money to spend on this trip, it's the only option.

Am I looking forward to sitting in close proximity to a stranger for like 7 hours (I get a 5 hour break while on the ferry)? Not really, last time I got a long distance bus (Oslo-Stockholm, night bus, took 7 hours) I had a friendly but odd woman fall asleep on my shoulder and it was terribly uncomfortable. But let's face it, it's €53, and I'd say I'll be getting what I paid for. If I had more money I would definitely fly, but the reality is that I don't, so I will be bussing it, and I will let you know how it goes.

(Oh, and before you say I could get the train - it's more expensive than the bus, and cheap is the name of the game).

#63 Oslo, Norway

And this concludes my visit to the 4 big cities of Scandinavia - Copenhagen, Helsinki, Stockholm and Oslo (sorry for ignoring Iceland - it's too far!).

Oslo was the most expensive out of all of them - food is ridiculously priced! Although the museum prices were okay (about 50nok for students anyway) and a one day travel card only cost 80nok, and there are lots of free things to do too. In general, there isn't a huge amount to do and because it's so expensive I would probably recommend only staying a day or two.


I think the first thing that you notice in Oslo are the skyscrapers. There none in central Stockholm or Copenhagen, and it made a change - it feels like a modern city. Also, it's almost surrounded by wooded hills with houses, which is again different to the other cities.

Shiny!

Ooooh!

The main attractions include the Opera House, which is very close to the central station. I heard there was a great view from the roof, but I didn't realise that you actually walk on the roof. . .it's a great building, although the view isn't that great.

Look!

Casually walking on the roof!

Other attractions include the National gallery which houses the famous Scream painting by Munch (but this was closed for a week from the day we arrived - so unfortunate!), the Nobel Peace Museum (the other Nobel prizes are in Stockholm though) and the Ice Bar.

Then there is Carl Johans Gate which is the main shopping and restaurant street, and that leads up to the Royal Palace. The street is nice, it has a mix of high end stores like Chanel as well as everyday favourites like H&M. The Palace isn't very pretty, but it's worth seeing.

 Carl Johans Gate

The Royal Palace

We managed to see the changing of the guard!

One of the main highlights of Oslo is the Vigeland Sculpture park. It's about 20mins walk from the city centre, but it is really worth it. I am not interested in art, but this was very pretty and really interesting (and some of them were funny).

On closer inspection, the pillar is a mass of bodies. . .

 And here are just some pictures of around the city:

Nice street

Nice fountain

Norwegian Parliament

National Gallery

So Olso was nice, it wasn't fantastic but it was a nice city and I had an enjoyable time there, and would recommend a visit. If I had to pick a favourite out of the four cities, I would probably say Copenhagen, then Stockholm, then Oslo, then Helsinki (although I only spent a few hours in Helsinki, so maybe I didn't see enough to like it!).

#62 Abba The Museum

The facts: I went on a Saturday afternoon, and I was told to come back at an allotted time about 2 hours later - which is pretty good since it has only opened.
It costs 200kr, which is pretty expensive.
It's not very big- the rooms are packed with different things to see and take in - and unfortunately they are packed with people too. So I think they could have spread it out a lot more.
The Swedish Hall of Fame is small and disappointing.

 The phone didn't ring :(

 Nice costumes

 The recording studio

 The "Become a 5th member" hologram

 This quote on a wall near the end of the museum made me sad

 A wall of their releases

And a wall of all their awards

So, the "Become the 5th Member of Abba" hologram thing was pretty disappointing. The holograms are very cartoon-y, I had really expected it to be more realistic. Nevertheless your video is recorded online, so you can go back and download it and keep it forever! There is also the karaoke booths, a quiz with different difficulty levels, a music mixer thing, a video that puts you in the video for dancing queen (although it doesn't look quite right), a thing that takes a picture of your face and then puts it on a cartoon Abba member - and then you can dance as them. There is also a disco room blaring Dancing Queen for those who feel they want to dance (no one did). They had lots of pictures and quotes from songs and tvs playing their songs and stuff all over the museum, and basically anything about Abba you ever wanted to know.

Swedish Music Hall Of Fame

This was pretty much the room

The Swedish hall of fame was disappointing - there are so many famous songs that have been written or produced by Swedes and they barely got a mention in a list on a wall. . .They really could have done a lot with this museum, and I feel it was just shoved onto the side of the Abba Museum to fill in space. They have different rooms with some information and samples of songs that were popular from the 1920s to today. It was nice but it could have been a lot better.

Just to point out that I am not a big Abba fan, I just know the singles like Dancing Queen etc etc. The museum provides a lot of background about each member, how the band started, the stories behind some of their songs, their recording equipment, outfits, albums, awards etc. There is also the interactive things like the karaoke, quiz, dancing, music mixer etc which are fun. There is really a lot, but it is all very close together, and I think they could have made it bigger and easier to see at a more comfortable pace.

If you're an Abba fan you simply have to go, but if you're not it's still interesting and I would recommend it!