San Francisco - Sights and St Regis stay

The week in the US was eye opening - from the hotel, to the scenic/touristy sights to the mega malls!
Stay at St Regis was a Wow! In the sense of the luxury one could afford. Every aspect of the hotel is very well attended to. Enjoyed the stay completely, especially with the huge bed and TV. (The only distraction is the sirens sounding in the middle of the night due to the proximity to the Fire Station. As for the mega pool, it looked almost like an exclusive, private pool. It is a pity that we did not spare sufficient time to have a dip.

Fisherman's Wharf - For many tourists to SF, this is a must go place. For the sights, Ghiradelli chocos and food! This was also the first time we hopped on the public transport. The entire journey was under 30 minutes. Pleasantly surprised at how warm the people could be, more of the middle aged folks. Some started to chat with one another even as more people piled onto the bus. An uncle even initiated that he could take a picture for us. Liked how open they could be, a very stark contrast to the 'stern and strict' faces we see on the trains daily. However, it will also be very awkward if someone were to start on conversation with you on the train. Ha...
Lunch at The Pier Market was cool - Managed to try the Sour Bread and teriyaki salmon. Prefer the salmon for its freshness while Sour Bread was a good try.

The Pier Market

Sour Bread

Teriyaki Salmon

Time to shop @ Union Square - We had small pockets of time to check out Union Sq. Was quite intrigued to see how large their Nike shop was. There were 7 levels in all, packed with Nike branded merchandise and loyal customers. There was a marathon that weekend, and most of the apparel were branded and customized for that event. Their marketing efforts were quite a bang as they plastered the buildings with the participants' names, set up a mega map of the route and that attracted a frenzy of people in buying more!

Names of the participants!

The route

Shots of the stores...!

LEVI'S

French Connection

The Disney Store!

It is time to shop!

Trip to Pakistan, Islamabad

The company decided that we would make a trip to Pakistan on an urgent basis. It was either via SQ (to Lahore) or Thai Airways (to Islamabad). Since we had to head to Islamabad, Thai Air was the natural choice. Given the longer hours, we had the privilege to fly Business Class. Woo Hoo! But I was later told that the Business Class of Thai Airways is rather nominal. As it was not a direct flight, we had to transit in Thailand (Bangkok). If only we had some time to shop around in Thai. Hee.
Just before the trip, I heard quite a bit about the suicide bombings in the major cities of Pakistan. Upon thinking back, it was actually quite a "garang" decision to move on with the trip given the security and safety issues. Although I hesitated, am actually very glad I was there! Its quite an experience.
When we alighted at the airport, it was a lil intimidating as there were so many airport staff hovering near the immigration and luggage segment. *shudders*

Seemingly peaceful street

In order to be safe (from the bombings), we decided to stay away from US hotel chains... esp the Marriott! We eventually checked out Serena Hotels - one that is operated by the locals. That should be a safer option we thought. To safeguard the interests of the guests, the hotel is heavily fortified: All the cars have to stop at the entrance of the hotel for a security check. Upon entering, we had to exit from the car alongside with the luggage. We hopped on another car (to drive us up the ramp) driven by another driver. Upon entering the hotel, it is another round of checks! We were greeted with a fresh mug of fresh mango juice! My fav!
The food items are kind of exotic and spicy! I was more conservative lest I have the runs again. I also love the citrus sparkling juice from the breakfast place.

Fish

Mutton

Sparkling Juice

On a day to day basis, we read of gloomy deadlines, ranging from bombings, attacks etc. The people are constantly in fear.
On the return trip, we need to stop over in Thailand for a night. But, we practically checked our luggages from Pakistan through to the flight to Singapore. As such, we did not have any luggage at all, other than the laptop bags. From this incident, I realized how important it is to have change of clothing in the hand carry.
The stay was at Metropolitan Hotel - a cool boutique style hotel. It was nothing but neat! Besides being spacious, the facilities are all swanky new.

1022

As we had to catch the morning flight, I had the chance to order Breakfast. Was really quite a feast at 5+ in the morning, with a full set meal, hot chocolate and tea! =)

Batam - Bungalow stay at Batam View

We finally managed to go on a trip together, after much talks about heading to KL and so on! Heh.. and the destination is Batam. This trip was really a R&R trip, coupled with good seafood and many pics.The ferry ride for about 45 minutes, though uncomfortable was worthwhile when we saw the resort and the sea view. We practically stayed in front of the sea at Batam View!

Bungalow by the sea!

Seafood Restaurant

We tucked into seafood at the Seafood Restaurant in the hotel itself.

Great feast

The weekend was over in no time. The most unbearable part of the trip is actually the return journey. We were sitting at the front of the ship and I almost puked. Though it was a relatively short ride, it was really too bumpy. 

Trip to Indonesia, Jakarta

Was in Jakarta for a brief 2 days in early March. This is the breathtaking view from the window seat.

From the window seat!

Given the short trip, the most memorable experience was the stay in Four Seasons, Jakarta.

Chocolate Display

This was my first stay at a Four Seasons Hotel. I've always read about how good they were. The staff really go the extra mile in ensuring that the patrons are at ease and comfortable! Will like to stay in another Four Seasons Hotel elsewhere, just to see if it is consistent. Heh.

Just before leaving, we went to a restaurant where we are served a multitude of dishes (as you can see from the dish) the moment we are seated. They repeat the same range of dishes for every 3 - 4 diners. 

Amazing Variety

It was overwhelming as there was curry fish, chicken, prawns, veg... you name it, they have it! We were told that we only need to pay for the dishes we 'attacked'. Was starting to enjoy the food when I started to think a lil... What happens to the untouched dishes? Are they being served again? Oh man... I turned around to ask my colleague. He went "Maybe we should not think so much. Just eat" Then my appetite was kind of affected, but went on ahead with the feast. Woo hoo!