My Travels

I'm back in Hawaii!! I was a little sad that I didn't go to Hawaii last year and looked forward to this trip. I have never been to Maui before and wasn't sure what to expect. The reputation/impression I always had of Maui was a very resorty type of island where mainlanders outnumber locals. I flew out on United Airlines direct to Maui. During the flight, I was able to get a free Lonely Planet Hawaii guide book by participating in the trivia game onboard. UA likes to have people submit their estimates of when the plane will be at the midpoint of the flight path. Even though I didn't calculate the math, the answer was submitted in my name and it was the closest time; off by 45 seconds! The reason I was in Maui on this particular trip was influenced by a Westin Vacation Ownership  timeshare promotion. For some reason, I'm on the Westin timeshare mailing list. I had previously attended a presentation at the Sheraton Kauai and is likely the reason why I'...

Went out to Pennsylvania for a graduation. I flew into Philadelphia on US Airways as it was the closest city to State College. My friend lives out in the suburbs about an hour northwest of the city. After landing, went to visit my friend and was taken to a local cupcakery, Cups N Cakes . It did not compare to Sprinkles but the flavors were interesting. I tried the tequila lime cupcake and tres leches cupcake. If you check-in at Yelp , you will get a free coffee or tea. Afterwards, visited her workplace, Ursinus College , and wandered the small campus. Took a mid-day break and visited the King of Prussia mall. I also needed a meal; cupcakes for breakfast doesn't quite satisfy even for this sweet tooth junkie. After wandering in this gigantic mall reacquainting myself with the local Philly culture, I went back to Royersford. Being mindful of keeping with the local time zone, I powered through the rest of the day and had dinner at Daddy Mims in Phoenixville. I shared a braised por...

Back near the John Wayne Airport area for work. I have an early morning and opted to stay close by instead of going home. Checked into the Hampton Inn & Suites Santa Ana/Orange County . This is my first time here and is tucked into a business neighborhood near The District. One of the few area hotels that allows free parking, the rooms here are interesting. I believe it is an all suite hotel and my room is a French suite. I guess the French doors makes it French. I'm not sure why it is a window paneled doors but the room is very spacious. Still feeling under the weather, I went to Pho Saigon Pearl to grab a bowl of pho. A pretty good option in Irvine for Vietnamese food and the restaurant is open later than the typical American style restaurants in Orange County. Must be an ethnic thing to have late night eateries even if the neighborhood shuts down early. Diamond Jamboree plaza is probably the only thing in the area that is opened late. I popped into Bon Epi Patisserie...