Wantunn mee

Chinatown, originally uploaded by wantunn.

Taken during my lunchtime stroll.

S5 on S1, originally uploaded by wantunn.

Picture of my new Canon Powershot S5IS taken with my Canon Powershot S1IS

Villa – Bedroom, originally uploaded by wantunn.

So this was the first time we had ever tried staying at a villa and it was definitely a refreshing change. We stayed at the Royal Pita Maha which was promotion via Planet Fitness (and UOB as well I think).

Right from the start, we could tell it would be different when the pickup at the airport escorted us to the vehicle and offered us ice cold towels and drinks (apparently he had a cooler box in the back of the mini van). In fact, all the staff we encountered here were excellent and friendly and this includes every bellboy, waiter, gardener etc.

On arrival at the villa, we were seated at the 3rd floor restaurant for our welcome drinks before being led to our villa. At this point, I was wondering what happened to check-in but it was all prepared in advance and all I needed to do was to sign the registration slips once we reached the villa.

Incidentally, our villa was situated halfway down the valley (the river we white water rafted on previously runs through the bottom of the valley). This made it fantastic in terms of privacy but going to the restaurants can be a pain (literally) due to the number of stairs. Definitely not recommended for those with problem climbing stairs. Alternatively, you can chose to take your meals in the villa which we opted for dinner and it’s pretty amazing how they can bring everything down to the villa in one piece.

The villa itself was pretty nice, totally glass fronted with 3 rooms, bedroom, living room and toilet/bath and an infinity pool in front. The only problem we had was that the water in the pool seemed to be perpetually cold, probably a by product of being situated in the valley.

All in all, our stay here was enjoyable and I would definitely return for another visit if possible.

For more photos, jump over to http://www.flickr.com/photos/wantunn/tags/royalpitamaha/

water, originally uploaded by wantunn.

Taken in the pool while taking my kids swimming today.
A reflection of the top of the water from the bottom.

golden gate bridge, originally uploaded by wantunn.

Second visit in about 2 years.
I’m surprised I still recognised many of the landmarks and I could actually do a little bit of tour guide-ish type stuff

For a bunch of 6 guys, we sure did a lot of shopping (some would say too much) and not enough sightseeing. I guess we didn’t really have that much time to work with but hopefully everyone managed to get to do or buy whatever they wanted, be it shopping for bags (coach, timbuk2) or seeing the golden gate bridge (which really doesn’t look golden to me) to having a meal at some obscure fast food restaurant (never heard of Arby’s before this).

All I can say is thank goodness for the GPS and the excellent weather.

airport in seoul, originally uploaded by wantunn.

This is where we got off, cleared the security checks again and got back on the same plane on the same seat. All in the space of under 2 hours.

Cheesecake Factory, originally uploaded by wantunn.

Had lunch here the first day after touchdown. The cheesecake and carrot cake on the counter were about a foot high each. Couldn’t convince myself to order it.

Lakspur Landing – Bedroom, originally uploaded by wantunn.

I’m typing this out at 630 am in my hotel room in Sunnyvale . So far this trip has been pretty great and I must say the experience of business travel alone and in a group is a lot different.

Managed to meet tons of folks I’ve been speaking to over the last year and a half but never gotten a chance to meet and also catch up with folks I haven’t seen for 2 years.

Anyway, I got a pretty nice room this time around (probably due to the fact that the hotel was pretty fully full and there weren’t many choices).

The irony of course is that I’m in SF, earthquake central around here and I’m worry about famil back in SG being affected by the indonesia quake tremors.

Happy New Year, originally uploaded by wantunn.

Happy Lunar New Year to everyone out there.
May this year be better then the last.

white water rafting 1260215, originally uploaded by wantunn.

We stopped by at this waterfall during the white water rafting trip. It was cold! but a fun experience. Try standing under it for a few minutes.