Travel – Page 5 – Regina Chow

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Plane Awesome Experience with Scoot and Golden Village

July 27, 2013 by Regina Chow No Comments

Did you know that Scoot is the only low cost carrier that flies to Seoul? In fact, Scoot now flies to Seoul 3 times a week!

Thank you Scoot, for flying me to Seoul to catch the Asian Premiere of ‘The Wolverine’!

I
had a very comfortable inflight experience because the kind folks at
Scoot put us on their Super Seats on our flight to Seoul and ScootBiz on
our return flight to Singapore.

One of the key advantages of flying with Scoot is definitely the large, comfy seats and spacious leg room. Unlike typical low cost carriers with cramped seats and barely any legroom, Scoot’s Standard Economy Seats (Blue) are larger than all other carriers’ seats, including full-service carriers.

If you desire more leg room, you can also opt for their Super Seats (Yellow), like I did, nearer the front of the cabin, which give you up to 35″ of legroom.

For even more legroom, you can consider the Stretch Seats (Yellow) located at the bulkheads and by the doors, which offer at least 35″ of legroom and no seats in front of you. A small fee (less than $100) is all it takes for you to enjoy additional comfort!

Comfortable Super Seats on Scoot

I tend to get restless on flights that are longer than 4 hours as my muscles start to ache but Grace and I both agreed that the Super Seats on Scoot are extremely comfortable despite the long journey to Seoul. I for one, slept like a baby most of the time.

And nope, I didn’t get any muscle aches or neck aches at all.

Lots of legroom!! It’s amazing how spacious it is.

Everyone loves to travel in style, and with ScootBiz, you can do just that at a fraction of the cost that you’ll expect to pay on full-service carriers.

ScootBiz

I was already very satisfied with the Super Seats in Economy Class, but ScootBiz’s luxurious full leather seats with at least 38″ of legroom and 8″ of recline blew me away.

I could extend my legs fully!

Full leather seats and maximum leg room

Our return flight was a red-eye flight, and I had to return to office immediately after touchdown at 630am for meetings. If not for the comfortable plane ride, I would have succumbed to fatigue. Thumbs up for ScootBiz!

Here are the other privileges that you’ll enjoy on ScootBiz:

Preferred seat selection in an exclusive 32-seat upfront cabin, with their most experienced staff
A complimentary meal with beverages
20kg of checked baggage allowance
Up to 15kg/ two bags of carry-on baggage
Priority boarding
ScooTV in-flight entertainment streamed to your own device
Request a free access code from the crew and remember to bring your own laptop or tablet*. If you have an iPad, download the Gogo Video Plugin before your flight. On multi-sector journeys, ScooTV access codes will be given out on a per sector basis.
In-seat power
Fast-track check-in at Scoot’s dedicated ScootBiz counter
Flexibility to change name, date, time, origin and destination of
your booking up till 2 days before departure* (change fees & fare
top-ups apply).

The great thing about Scoot is, you only pay for what you need for every flight that you book. Scoot bundles the most common options for you to choose from and you’ll enjoy bundle discounts too.

If you prefer to travel without check-in luggage, Fly is the best option for you.

To add on 15kg check-in luggage, opt for FlyBag, which is cheaper than what you have to pay if you were to purchase an air ticket (without baggage) and top up for baggage separately.

I always get hungry on flights and I honestly can’t survive without food for more than 3 hours. If you’re like me, then the FlyBagEat option would serve you well.

This is what a complete set meal looks like. I’m usually not a fan of airline food, but I would highly recommend the soy sauce chicken rice if you take Scoot. It was so sumptuous and flavourful that I devoured every last morsel.

Soy Sauce Chicken Rice Meal

I also got to try the Moroccan Chicken meal, which was rather yummy too.

Moroccan Chicken Meal

Like the FlyScoot Fan Page to keep up to date with the latest news and promotional deals!

**********

I’ve never been on a flight where the crew plays games or jokes with the passengers on board, so I was pretty excited when Scoot and GV Movie Club told us that they would be springing a surprise Wolverine Q&A contest on the passengers mid-way through our flight to Seoul after a quick transit at Taipei.

DJs Jean Danker and Lim Peifen took over the airwaves spontaneously and it was actually somewhat comforting to hear their soothing, familiar voices in a foreign land.

Jean Danker

Lim Peifen

By participating in the contest, passengers would stand to win the following prizes:

1) The Wolverine movie poster

2) S$50 Scoot voucher

3) Scoot Blanket

4) GV Mr Popcorn Plush Toy

The contest was held close to bed time, but check out how bright and cheery everyone looked. Everyone was fired with enthusiasm and their eyes were shining with excitement.

You can see how happy this lucky winner was when Jason handed the prizes over to him. He was literally beaming with joy. In case you were wondering, he was holding up the mascot for GV Movie Club, Mr Popcorn!

There were 5 lucky winners in total, of which 2 also won a pair of tickets to The Wolverine Fans Screening and got to meet Hugh Jackman himself.

To determine the 2 grand prize winners, a card was drawn by each of the 5 winners.

Watching movies is an activity that ranks high on the usual list of hobbies for most Singaporeans. If you like to watch movies, you should register to be part of the GV Movie Club.

Registration is absolutely free!

Here are just some of the perks that you will enjoy:

1) $6.50 movie tickets every Tuesday
2) Complimentary Gold Class Ticket/Standard movie tickets for top spenders every month
3) Invitations to Gala Premieres

Like Mr Popcorn on Facebook to be updated on GV Movie Club Giveaways and stand to win movie tickets as well as exclusive invites to Gala Premieres!

*****

**Announcement: Winner for ‘The Wolverine’ Movie Tickets Giveaway**

Thank you everyone for participating in my recent giveaway! The response was overwhelming and I received so many emails!

The winner was selected randomly using a randomizer, and the lucky reader who won a pair of ‘The Wolverine’ movie tickets is:

1) mummytang

Please contact me at regina.chow@gmail.com to collect your tickets!

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‘The Wolverine’ Asian Premiere in Seoul: Getting Up Close & Personalwith Hugh Jackman

July 24, 2013 by Regina Chow 5 Comments

Wolverine
is finally back! The Wolverine will be hitting cinemas in Singapore on
25th July (this Thursday), much to the delight of Marvel comic fans. I
have caught most, if not all the X-men films and was looking forward to
watching this on the big screen as well. My lucky stars must have been
shining on me, because I managed to catch it at the Asian Premiere of
the movie last week!

I have so much to thank Scoot and Golden Village for, because they flew me all the way to Seoul just to catch the Asian Premiere of The Wolverine. I even got up close and personal with Hugh Jackman at the press conference and on the red carpet! Alvin and Grace were the other two bloggers who were there with me, and to say that we had a ball of a time is a huge understatement.

Although we landed late at night in Seoul and had to attend the press conference at Grand Hyatt Hotel bright and early the next day, I was overwhelmed with excitement, especially at the thought of seeing Hugh Jackman live in action!

Celebrity DJs Lim Peifen from Y.E.S. 93.3FM and Jean Danker from Class 95FM were at the press conference with us too. Both of them are such affable and friendly ladies with absolutely no airs about them.

The ballroom was packed by the time we made our way in and everyone was eagerly awaiting the arrival of Hugh Jackman.

I have never seen so many cameras in my life! One of the photographers was eyeing me suspiciously when I took this picture, but I don’t blame him. As much as he loves to take photographs, he probably isn’t used to being photographed.

Finally, the star of the show appears on stage!

Angst ridden yet romantic, animalistic yet humane, Wolverine is dangerously charming. In fact, the actor himself opined during the interview that aside from the claws and superhero traits, it is Wolverine’s human side that makes the character interesting.I have to agree.I love the X-men film series, but among the entire pack of mutants, Wolverine stands out the most because of the depth of his character.

Playing the role of Wolverine was probably the most definitive moment in Hugh Jackman’s career, and the actor’s dedication to the role is highly commendable. He recalled during the press conference that he used to injure himself very often when he first put on his incredibly sharp claws, but it didn’t take him long to get accustomed to his deadly claws, which have now become second skin.In fact, he shared that he got so used to having his claws around that there was once when he forgot to place them in his check-in luggage on one of his trips and was promptly stopped by the authorities (who had no idea who Wolverine was) for a round of interrogation. LOL.

For those of you who are familiar with the story of Wolverine, you would remember that he has a love interest Jean Gray, which means that love scenes would inevitably have to be incorporated into the movie. It was funny how Hugh Jackman shared very candidly that he would choose not to tell his wife when he has to shoot love scenes until they were over to save her from having to deal with pangs of jealousy. Haha!

I have read and heard so much about Hugh Jackman’s approachable and friendly personality, but I was still surprised at how down to earth he is in real life. His wit and humour never fails to put a smile on your face, but it is his punctuality and affability that takes the icing on the cake for me.We never had to wait at length for his arrival at the press conference or the red carpet and he was very accommodating to his fans whenever they stopped him for pictures. He also stopped to chat with his fans along the way and from what I observed, I could sense that he was genuinely interested in interacting with everyone.

He was so busy talking to everyone that it took him quite a while to reach the front, where we were waiting in anticipation. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally walked over! Can you see how close we were to him?

When he finally stopped in front of me, I asked if he could autograph my poster and take a picture with me. He agreed very readily and even signed his name twice on my poster.

Those of you who follow me on Instagram and Facebook would have seen this blurry picture of us. I wish the picture turned out sharper, but it made my day nevertheless. I was starstruck! He looks exactly the same as he does on screen!

And so, yes the actor is suave and charming, but the golden question for the day remains.

What did I think of the movie, ‘The Wolverine’?

The movie started at 9pm after the red carpet, but despite my slight headache due to a lack of sleep, I was sitting at the edge of my seat throughout the entire movie. Sleeping was definitely not an option. There were riveting fight scenes and adrenalin pumping action intertwined with a dose of humour and romance, basically everything that you could ask for in an X-men film. It was an exhilarating experience.

That said, my fellow travel companions and I concurred that there is no need to watch it in 3D because the difference is so negligible that it doesn’t affect your cinematic experience at all. Throughout the movie, I was expecting someone to come flying into my face (they did fly in all other directions though), but that never happened. Hence, I would recommend that you save your money and forget about watching it in 3D.

The film starts off with a brooding Wolverine, jaded by his inner struggle with immortality. I loved how the film delved into an unexplored dimension of Wolverine as it gave me a holistic understanding of his character as well as deeper insights into his vulnerable side beneath that hotheaded, beastly exterior. Wolverine may have healing powers, but those powers certainly do not extend to his emotional well-being.

The movie is largely shot in Japan, where yakuzas and ninjas roam, and the first action scene is unleashed only about half an hour into the movie, but trust me, it is as refreshing as it is gratifying. One of my favourite action scenes is the bullet train chase, but I shall not elaborate any further lest I spoil the fun. 😉

To pique your interest further, I will leave you with the official trailer of The Wolverine.

Go catch it soon!

Tickets are probably selling out fast for this blockbuster movie so remember to book your tickets early.

Alternatively, maybe I can offer you a pair of complimentary ‘The Wolverine’ movie tickets? 😉

**Giveaway**

Yes, I’m giving away a pair of ‘The Wolverine’ movie tickets!!

All you have to do is drop me an e-mail at regina.chow@gmail.com or leave a comment here to win!

Deadline: 26 July (this Friday!)

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Hunter Valley Gardens

May 27, 2013 by Regina Chow No Comments

We woke up to a splendid morning with azure blue skies and a blanket of huge, fluffy clouds. The clouds looked deceivingly 3-dimensional, and for just a split second, I actually contemplated reaching out my arms to touch them.

The plan for the day was to visit Hunter Valley Gardens, home to 10 feature gardens spanning over 25 acres. We love taking long walks in the park and admiring the glorious blooms while taking in the alluring scents and captivating sights. Flowers are natural mood lifters and we felt instantly refreshed.

One garden that I particularly liked was the Formal Garden. Infused with French and English influences, this magnificent garden features beautifully manicured hedges and lawns. It brought back fond memories of our travels in Europe, where we used to spend at least a month out of the entire year in our favourite continent.

Wanderlust is an incurable addiction, and as I am penning this post, I am reminiscing about Versailles in Paris, Eagle’s Nest in Austria, Sagrada Familia in Spain and Cesky Krumlov in Czech Republic. There are many parts of Europe left unexplored, and I hope to return soon to visit Switzerland and Greece.

Daydreams aside, I remember it was an absolute joy to be surrounded by abundant flowers, shrubs and trees. The picturesque gardens make spectacular photography backdrops, but nothing beats being there in real life.

This trail of poppies was a hot favourite among avid photographers, who stood there for what seemed like an eternity, trying to perfect each and every shot. As you can tell, I was more interested in using the lovely poppies as my backdrop haha.

The Rose Garden was probably where I belonged that day. My outfit was completely unplanned and coincidentally, the rose on my sleeve is just as huge as the real roses in the garden!

Cherry Blossoms are a familiar sight in Australia in Spring too. I remember the road leading up to my apartment was lined with glorious cherry blossoms from September all the way till about early November. Ah, the perks of living in a country with four seasons.

I am infatuated with dandelions too. I know they are pests, but I would marvel at these fuzzy, cottony plants with childlike wonder without fail, every time. I love blowing on them, seeing the little seeds take flight and parachute to the ground.

Before I entered Hunter Valley Gardens, I heard about its Storybook Garden, where you’ll find characters from Alice in Wonderland and other fairytales as well as nursery rhymes. That piqued my curiosity and the long walk through the other feature gardens only served to build up my excitement as I waited eagerly in anticipation for the storybook characters to be unveiled.

A huge storybook stood with its pages open, marking the entrance of the garden.

On the other end
of the entrance sat a pile of equally ginormous books stacked carelessly
in a haphazard fashion, one on top of the other. Cuteness overload!

The childlike spirit in us manifested as we hopped from one nursery rhyme display to another, with silly smiles plastered on our faces, completely oblivious to our surroundings.

Humpty Dumpty was the most popular display and it was perpetually surrounded with children attempting to climb on top of its egg of a head. LOL.

I loved the Jack and Jill display as I thought it captured the essence of the nursery rhyme. The expressions on the statues’ faces are priceless!

Hey diddle diddle,
The Cat and the fiddle,
The Cow jumped over the moon,
The little Dog laughed to see such sport,
And the Dish ran away with the Spoon.

JW really looks like he’s running away with the dish and the spoon! Can you see the spoon looking at him with adoring eyes? Haha

Finally, here’s the Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter’s Tea Party that I was so looking forward to!

Can you spot me?

There we were, playing the fool and pretending to bite into the rock hard chocolate cake! It was quite a surreal experience to be a guest at this fairytale tea party. 😉

Words can’t express how much I love the set, so if you are a fan of Alice in Wonderland (like me!), remember to visit this garden when you’re Hunter Valley!

Top from MDS

Jeans from Mango

Shoes from Rubi

Bag from Louis Vuitton

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Fashion Trend: Are you up for Scarves?

December 6, 2012 by Regina Chow No Comments

Scarves are perhaps the most versatile accessories anyone could have. Ornate, standout prints are great for jazzing up a plain top or dress, and the best part is, you can wear them in more ways than one! I started incorporating scarves into my wardrobe lately and I am happy to report that I am more than satisfied with the number of styles I can create with just a handful of scarves!

Scarf and Hat from Forever New

Black pumps from Chanel

Black Tank from Bangkok

Ruffle Skirt given by Sushi

I went for a preppy chic look with my newly acquired Forever New scarf tied in the style of a girl scout. And just like that, it single-handedly transformed my otherwise boring black tank top into a cute and stylish one! I carried my fashion experiment further by pairing the top and scarf with a ruffle skirt given to me by Sushi and voila, I looked like I put on a fancy little dress. The next time you think you’re running out of clothes to wear, remember that a scarf may just be what you need! 😉

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A Walk in Fagan Park

December 5, 2012 by Regina Chow No Comments

By the time you read this, I would already be in New Zealand for a 15-day trip. I am a city girl at heart, but I am just as awed by the beauty of nature and the sense of serenity it evokes. A concrete jungle lined with rows of retail shops may be my cup of tea, but sometimes, I just want to get away from the main artery of the city and retreat into a land where all I see are trees, flowers and birds.

Sydney is perhaps the most bustling city in Australia, but it has its fair share of sprawling nature parks and trails, mere steps away from the horrendous traffic. One such park is Fagan Park, located in the neighbourhood of Dural.

It’s incredible how quiet and tranquil this part of the city is. There was hardly anyone in sight!

Fagan Park pays homage to gardens from different countries. The gardens aren’t particularly well-maintained, but I do like the fact that they’re very secluded and you can just while your afternoon away in the company of nature.

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Strawberry and Watermelon Cake

December 3, 2012 by Regina Chow 1 Comment

Nestled in a quiet spot away from the heaving Newtown traffic, Black Star Pastry is home to an assortment of delightful pies and desserts. My favourite dessert here is its popular strawberry and watermelon cake, sprinkled with slivered pistachios and rose petals.

It’s hard not to fall in love with such a beautiful yet wholesome cake, especially when it is devoid of sinful layers of sweet cream. Made of two layers of almond dacquoise, succulent strawberries and watermelon laced with just a hint of whipped cream, this cake definitely aims to please. More importantly, it tastes refreshingly light and every bite sends you to dessert nirvana.

Just thinking about it now makes me salivate. Need I say more? 🙂

Black Star Pastry
277 Australia Street, Newtown
Tel: +61 (02) 9557 8656

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Family in Town!

December 1, 2012 by Regina Chow 1 Comment

My inlaws were in town last week, with my sis-in-law being the first to arrive. The first couple of days were spent shopping, eating and camwhoring all over town. I know, I’m a girl, but the boundless energy that we girls have when it comes to shopping never fails to amaze me.

Birkenhead Point is a must for all shopaholics in Sydney, because that’s where they house outlet stores for Australian brands such as Alannah Hill, Forever New, Witchery, Mimco and Review, just to name a few. We spent hours there on the second day, much to the dismay of the hubs.

Camwhoring at Forever New, Birkenhead Point

Sportsgirl was having a massive sale, and that was where we spent the bulk of our time along George Street.

It was an eventful day, to say the least, culminating in dinner with Pei at Darling Harbour followed by obligatory shots along the Harbour.

I think everyone except JW had a ball of a time because most of our time was spent shopping and taking photos (he’s the default photographer although he has absolutely no interest in it whatsoever). To his credit, his photography skills are improving by leaps and bounds! He deserves a pat on the back for sure! Ok, I’ll throw in a massage too.

Outfit from Dip Drops

Boots from random shop in Bondi

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Palm Beach & Avalon Beach

November 25, 2012 by Regina Chow 2 Comments

We’re leaving Sydney very soon and while I do miss Singapore very much, I know I’ll really miss the pristine beaches, many of which remain untouched by commercialization.

Two of such beaches are Palm Beach and Avalon Beach, tucked safely away from civilization in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney.

We were the only visitors at Avalon Beach that day. Time seemed to stand still as we watched the waves crashing against the beach and felt the soft sand beneath our feet.

Secluded beaches like this are hard to come by these days, and there are times when I wonder why Australians venture abroad to Bali etc. when there are so many gorgeous beaches right at their doorstep.

The Palm Beach vicinity may be home to the rich and famous, but likewise, the beach is untainted by any signs of development and absolutely perfect for relaxing on a sunny afternoon.

Monokini from Valleygirl

The beaches at Manly and Bondi are immensely popular spots for people watching, but if you crave a little quiet time alone, away from the hustle and bustle, Palm Beach and Avalon Beach may just be your cup of tea. To me at least, these are the best kept secrets of Sydney. 😉

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Mentaiko Pasta

November 21, 2012 by Regina Chow 1 Comment

I haven’t been cooking much in Australia, but ever since I tried the mentaiko pasta at Porcorosso, I’ve been curious about the possibility of making it on my own. This isn’t much of a recipe actually because lazy me would never make sauce from scratch. I went to the Asian supermarket to get prepacked mentaiko sauce just to try it out.

Each pack (priced at A$4.20) comes with mentaiko sauce and seaweed (2 packets each) and makes a great meal for two!

I tend to be very picky about the texture of my pasta, so these are the steps that I would usually take to ensure my pasta tastes exactly the way I like it:

Step 1: Boil pasta in water together with a dash of sea salt and olive oil

Step 2: Drain pasta with strainer the minute it is cooked, douse it in cold water before draining it again

Step 3: Finally, fry pasta with butter in the pan together with prawns

What I love about the prepacked mentaiko sauce is, after cooking your pasta, all you have to do is mix in the sauce (without cooking), top it off with the seaweed provided and voila, you’re done!

The verdict? This recipe promises to tantalize your tastebuds with every bite, even if you weren’t a mentaiko fan to begin with! JW
is now a mentaiko pasta convert, and as for me, I would never splurge on
another plate of mentaiko pasta at a restaurant again!

Trust me, this home-cooked mentaiko pasta tastes just as good, if not better. 😉

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Arm Cuffs – The Alternative to Bangles and Bracelets

November 20, 2012 by Regina Chow 1 Comment

Before you think this post is gonna be about something remotely kinky, please get your head out of the gutter mister. 😉

Sorry to disappoint you. I actually just meant to show pics of my latest accessory, a matt gold arm cuff from Diva. I’ve been wearing a lot of basic tops lately, which makes accessorizing a necessity, and I’m absolutely loving how a simple geometric arm cuff like this adds panache to my otherwise plain outfit. It makes a great arm swag and the best part is, you don’t have to think about coordinating your stash of bangles and bracelets. How convenient!

Page 5 of 11« First...«456 7 »10...Last »

Plane Awesome Experience with Scoot and Golden Village

‘The Wolverine’ Asian Premiere in Seoul: Getting Up Close & Personalwith Hugh Jackman

Hunter Valley Gardens

Fashion Trend: Are you up for Scarves?

A Walk in Fagan Park

Strawberry and Watermelon Cake

Family in Town!

Palm Beach & Avalon Beach

Mentaiko Pasta

Arm Cuffs – The Alternative to Bangles and Bracelets

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