(End of my) Bottega Veneta Era

And just like that (I felt like I had to start with these because of HBO’s season 2 of And Just Like That…), I officially ended my Bottega Era.

As soon as we decided that we’ll be going to Europe this year, I already began planning what bags to bring to the trip. I knew I’d go for those that are as discreet as possible, knowing how rife of pickpockets most areas in Rome and Paris (our major destinations) are.

I did not want to attract much attention, although I have not been using any bags with identifiable logos for quite some time. And so, I had Bottega Veneta in mind.

Inside the Colosseum with a bunch of Bottega Veneta goodies - Men with Bottega Veneta

Inside the Colosseum in Rome, Italy. Yes, I carried two bags because I was extra. LOL

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Eurotrip 2023: Day 13 – Le musée du Louvre et l’Arc de triomphe

While we had been around Louvre twice already in our last few days in Paris, we had our tickets only towards the end of our stay. It was exciting to finally see in person some of the most famous artworks in the world.Papa, on the other hand, was more than happy to stay back at the AirBnB. We had to remind him not to cook at all, rather just use the microwave to warm the food we got him from Le Merci the night before.

He’d watch Netflix the whole time, anyway.

Our timed entry for the Louvre is at exactly 10:00 am, and we got there at around 9:51 am. We just hoped we’d have enough time to queue. The line, however, was long as soon as we got out of the walkway.

Sun shining at Mama at underneath the Louvre Pyramid

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Eurotrip 2023: Day 11 – Sacré-Cœur and the Jardin du Luxembourg

The sight of a ‘no rain’ forecast on my weather app was a welcome news!

The previous day had been very wet, but Paris still delivered. For our 11th day, we’d be visiting Sacré-Cœur at Montmartre.

Compared to Rome where I already lost count the number of churches we have visited, Sacré-Cœur was our first in Paris.

First glimpse of Sacré-Cœur after a long walk

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Eurotrip 2023: Day 9 – La Tour Eiffel and a bit of shopping

The following morning, we woke up quite late. It was safe to say I no longer had any jet lag.

It was our first full day in Paris after a wonderful preview the night before. We were all looking forward to getting up close to the Eiffel Tower from the Place du Trocadéro.

I even used my Trocadéro just for that. LOL

    Our first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower up close; and tourists at Place du Trocadéro

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Eurotrip 2023: Day 7 – Trastevere, Castel Sant’Angelo and Walk

Day 7 and it was our last full day in Rome. By this day, we had nothing major planned, except to go around the Eternal City one last time.

But for the last full day, we did not leave until around lunch time as we expected to be out until late in the evening, We also had to pack our bags and not rush the following morning.

Our flight to Paris won’t be until mid-afternoon, but we’d be checking out early of the AirBnB for Fiumicino much earlier.

Thankfully, the weather forecast had no rain indicated whatsoever, making it easier for us to move around.

Walking the streets of Esquilino on our last full day in Rome

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Eurotrip 2023: Day 5 – Vatican City and Vatican Museums

Day 5 and I was beginning to think there was already a pattern to the weather.😅 Much to our chagrin, it was raining even before I woke up.

It was unfortunate as we’d be spending most of morning at St. Peter’s Square for the Papal Audience.

I dressed appropriately, not only because we are to enter St. Peter’s Basilica, but also we’d have to possibly stand in the rain for hours.

It was quite early in the day, and raining – St. Peter’s Square

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3rd Winter in South Korea 2023: Nami, Yonsei, Hongdae

It was our second full day in South Korea and we had Nami Island mostly in store for the whole day. It has been around 6 years the last time we were there on a winter, and our recollection of how to get there got rusty.

We were just there last autumn 2022, but it was a bit uncomfortable bus trip all throughout. This time, we decided to take several train transfer instead. Thank God for Google and the meticulous guides that gave us updated directions.

Still, we got a bit lost. How was that even possible? LOL

On our way to Cheongnyangni for Gapyeong

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First trip 2023. Third time SG.

When we went twice to Singapore last year, Mon shared if we could go back early in the 2023. He wanted to treat his parents to a quick vacation overseas, which would be their first ever trip out of the country. We thought of Hong Kong (which we have not visited since 2011), but the several testing requirements turned us off.

Nothing make’s a child more happy than to eventually have the opportunity to do this for their parents. So off to Singapore (again), we go!

At NAIA Terminal 1

Our flight to SG was around after dinner, but we reached the airport around 2:00 pm. Traveling has always been erratic, a hit or miss that one time, you clear everything in about an hour, then the next, it would take around three. We did not want to gamble and we’d rather that we arrive early and just wait it out.

We reached NAIA Terminal 1 with the check-in counters still closed, and we waited for the wall showing the flights to eventually show us where the counter would be. As soon as they announced where, we already queued despite it not being open within the next hour.

We were unsure how the immigration process would go for someone who’d be flying overseas for the first time. They, however, were asked only two questions: who they were traveling with, and when they are flying back.

After the security checks

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Autumn 2022 in South Korea! Day 3 – Meeting Familiar Faces

Day 3 and and it was our 2nd full day in South Korea. We woke up at 7:30 AM to have an early breakfast. But for some reason we still end up leaving the hotel 2 hours after.

We also still were living on single journey tickets on the train. We had been having difficulties looking for TMoney, unless it was something we had to personalize with some photos. We walked all the way to Myeongdong, hoping there was some TMoney there but we found none. It was comical how we were not able to find any, considering it was not our first time in South Korea.

A new day. Let’s go.

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And just like that… we’re back in Singapore!

 

As mentioned in my previous post, we re-booked our flight to SG from October to September after our visas to South Korea were approved!

Aside from us not wanting to waste (yet again) a bunch of tickets, we decided to go overseas for our 14th anniversary. The last time we were out of the country for that day was way back in 2018 in Taiwan. We did not want this year to be the same buffet and movie. Besides, we jokingly justified that we had an unused Klook voucher for the Jewel Changi from our trip to Singapore last July to be expired!

Same as last time, Mon’s sister agreed to look after the cats for the next couple of days. It won’t be a very long trip anyway, and we’ll be back before the weekend. So bye for now, to our dear cats!

Unlike our previous trip to SG, we flew this time via Cebu Pacific, thus we had to go to NAIA Terminal 3 instead. I loved this terminal among the others because, well, it looked the most pleasant and modern. It was also the quickest trip from Makati from the Skyway.

Going to the airport… again!

Again, unlike last time, we made sure this time around that our Php 1,620 travel taxes were paid way ahead. There was already a long line by the check-in counter, but not as long as last July. It only took us 30 minutes to check in our luggage and get our boarding passes.

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