We are going to Hongkong in May and I am excited! I’ve traveled to this city more than a couple of times already, but this will be different as the little boy is tagging along. I expect that this will be (like our Singapore trip) a semi non-shopping trip for me and more of a sight-seeing one since I want Manu to enjoy the trip most. Having said that, I’ll still be making a short shopping list so that I could plan our itinerary well:

1. A designer bag for myself
2. Something for Gats
3. THOMAS trains and accessories for Manu
4. More GAP clothes for Manu
5. Digital camera

They say that London is one of the most fashionable cities in the world. I really wouldn’t know since I’ve never been there, but if there is truth to this statement, then I definitely would want to visit the city. Just thinking about this makes me really excited and makes me want to plan the trip right now! Oh I could see myself already staying in a luxurious hotel, visiting popular attractions, and the most important thing of all – shopping!

The coming Holy Week and Summer Season already have me thinking of going on a vacation. With so many destinations to choose from, both locally and abroad, it comes to getting good packages. Good travel deals abound in almost any travel agency so I guess choosing the destination won’t really be the problem, but the budget. We really want to take Manu to the beach, say Boracay or Bohol – so we’re saving up for that. But we’re nevertheless open trying other good vacation beaches. I guess we’ll see what we decide on in the coming months.

When Gats and I were planning on a honeymoon destination, we considered going on an Asian cruise. But due to budget constraints, we just traveled to Hong Kong and enjoyed a four night stay at The Marco Polo. I still want to experience going on a cruise though. An Asian cruise would be ideal, but a royal caribbean cruise would just be fantastic! But until our travel budget permits us, plans of “cruise” trips will be put on hold.

Manu enjoying the view as we headed to our hotel, Royal Plaza on Scotts

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Hotel staff welcomes our family with a smile and a complete set of nth century attire

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Manu and his lolo

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As mentioned in this post, our trip to Singapore will be my and Gats’ first with a toddler in tow. I know it will be a bit different from my previous travels BUT I didn’t realize it would be THAT different.

You see, when my family travels abroad, all me and my siblings do is shop, shop, and shop some more until our legs (and pockets) couldn’t take it any longer. Well, that’s exactly what happened the past five days. Except I wasn’t able to do it. Truthfully, I was envious of them. I wished I could do what I’d done before. But I couldn’t because the little one needs daddy and mommy’s attention all the time. We couldn’t stay in one store for more than a few minutes because Manu would just get cranky. We knew that we had to keep him busy with play so he wouldn’t get “inip”. We knew that one of us had to sacrifice some – correction: a lot of – shopping hours so that the other would be free to roam around and spend money on whatever she fancies (if you notice the pronouns, you’d know who did what ). Gats and I knew that this trip would definitely be different.

BUT.

Despite this shallow difference, every minute with my two boys was BLISS. I wouldn’t exchange THAT for anything.

I’ll leave you with a picture of my lovely boys making faces during our New Year’s Eve dinner at The Carousel, Royal Plaza on Scotts (will post more pics in the coming days):

We’re off to Singapore tomorrow

So please bear with the succeeding posts as I have to finish at least three assignments before the trip.

By the way, this will be our first trip with a toddler in tow so in case you are reading this and have travelled with one, your tips will be super appreciated! (and oh, pardon the shoddy photo )

We’re going on a five-day vacation to Singapore in two weeks. This will be Manu’s first plane ride, and I am a bit (ok ok maybe a lot!) anxious on how the trip is going to turn out. We have purchased a stroller two months ago in preparation for this trip, but we have barely used it since Manu just wants to play with it. You see, instead of riding on it, he wants to be the one carrying it around. Take note that he does not want anybody touching it when he does this. He gets irritated and cries when he sees mommy, daddy, or yaya touching it. One time, he even threw a fit when his dad tried “assisting” him in pushing the Chicco stroller around ATC. Because of this, we avoided bringing the stroller to the mall, and just let him walk or be carried by the three of us. Of course we couldn’t do without a stroller during our trip, but the daddy already told me that if Manu makes “inarte” because of the stroller, he would just leave it at the hotel. This made me think of buying a harness for the little boy as an alternative to the stroller (well, and also because my mom keeps suggesting it too). I really didn’t want those types that I see in Rustan’s so I requested Gay, my sister in-law, to buy the Eddie Bauer 2-in-1 Harness Buddy for Manu specifically for our upcoming trip. It was available at target.com but since the Target store is only a few blocks away from where my SIL lived, she just purchased it there. A few days after my request, she told me that she was able to buy the last piece and showed it to me via webcam. Here’s a picture of Manu’s new buddy:

I just hope it arrives before our departure. And I hope Manu uses it! Else, pagod-pagod si mommy and daddy

Our family, with some of our close friends, is planning to spend some time out of the country next year. This is why I have already started searching for the best travel and hotel accommodation deals for us.

I chanced upon the Hotel Reservations site while I was doing my research. I liked that it provided me several flight, hotel, and vacation packages to choose from. Not to mention, the competitive rates they offer. They could even guarantee that they have the lowest special internet rates online. This is why I am seriously considering booking our travel through them.