In early November my friend and I ventured out to Oslo, Norway for a short weekend getaway. Oslo is a beautiful city and the gateway to Norway’s fantastic natural wonders. However, winter travels in Oslo makes for limited museum hours and early sunsets, and it is evident Oslo is used by travelers as a start…
Lufthansa Boeing 747-8 First Class Baku-Frankfurt- Washington DC
I had the great opportunity to fly Lufthansa First Class on my return from my short trip to explore Baku, Azerbaijan over labor day. Note: feel free to skim or skip the text all together and just browse pictures. Again, all menu pictures will be at the end. Summary: 100% would recommend Lufthansa First Class,…
24 Hours in a City of Contrasts: Baku, Azerbaijan
Introduction and Food for Thought The Lonely Planet guide to Baku put it the best, “Azerbaijan’s capital Baku (or Bakı in Azeri) is the architectural love child of Paris and Dubai…albeit with plenty of Soviet genes floating half-hidden in the background.” The secular Sunni Islamic country has seen Medieval times with the Shirvanshah dynasty (an…
Review: Capella Shanghai JianYeLi
At the tail end of a recent trip to Shanghai, my family met up with me and we opted to book with The Capella Shanghai Jian Ye Li. Located in the XuHui district in and around the French Concession of Shanghai, The Capella Shanghai has taken basically an entire old Shanghai Shikumen town village and…
Vinegar, Noodles and Banks: PingYao Ancient City, Shanxi, China
In August I ventured to PingYao Ancient City located in the Shanxi Province of China. PingYao has one of, if not the only, best preserved walled cities from the Ming/Qin Dynasties. It is also where China’s banking system first began. It is also home to the best and most fully preserved Ming Dynasty government centers/…
Review: Sanctuary Cap Cana Adult All-Inclusive, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
In July my friends and I ventured down to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic for a relaxing weekend getaway. Yes, the Punta Cana that in recent months has been in the sensationalist American media spotlight for the string of coincidental deaths and tainted alcohol. This in turn has made Punta Cana light on the number of…
Review: Belmond The Royal Scotsman “Scotland’s Classic Splendours” Journey
At the end of May over Memorial Day weekend I set off to Scotland for the fist time. My 7 day 6 night journey included 1.5 days in Edinburgh, 1 day playing golf at St. Andrews Links in St. Andrews, and the main event: the 4 night 5 day Belmond Royal Scotsman “Scotland’s Classic Splendours”…
Maya Beach Hotel and Scuba Diving in Placencia, Belize
Over Easter weekend this year I ventured down to Placencia, Belize to squeeze in some Scuba Diving. Belize is a small Central American country known for its jungles, Mayan ruins and most famously its marine life. Belize is at the core of the world’s second largest barrier reef, and largest one in the Western hemisphere….
Review: restaurant Le Louis XV – Alain Ducasse, Monte Carlo
In my previous post I wrote about my short but sweet time in Monaco and how one of the highlights was my meal at Le Louis XV – Alain Ducasse. The meal was truly exceptional and quite memorable, certainly top 5 dining experiences and most definitely worth the journey to Monaco. Le Louis XV is…
24 Hours in Monte Carlo, Monaco
In early April I ventured to the small and beautiful but mighty and certainly wealthy city-State on the French Riviera: Monaco. The setting of two 007 James Bond films, the most famous Formula 1 Race, and home to the Monaco Royal Family, perhaps most famously associated with American Actress Grace Kelly who married into the…
Review: KLM World Business Class part II, ICN-AMS Boeing 787-9
Part II of my KLM business class multi city journey and continuation from my prior post on my flight from LHRAMSTPE. As I briefly mentioned in my Part I of this KLM journey, all flights met expectations and were very solid. However, the ICNAMS flight was the highlight in terms of service and KLM Crew….
Review: KLM World Business Class part I, AMS-TPE Boeing 777-200ER with new Crown Lounge 52
Back in March I had a trip back to Taipei. In January I started looking for flights and ways to get back. I came across a KLM business class deal exit London to east Asia thanks to God Save the Points. I ended up booking a multi-city roundtrip ticket for 1478 pounds (approx USD $1800…
