3 Days of Travel

Hello Friends,

Last summer Annie and I were discussing travel and we decided to plan a trip to Thailand. She is a great travel buddy for me, and luckily enough with both our teacher schedules we have a large block of summer off. We researched flights, hotels and restaurants, and finally in July of last summer we booked flights. The trip was officially on! A few days later she texted me and told me that her parents wanted to join us on the trip. I love her parents, so that was an easy yes!

Annie researched hotels, restaurants and I looked into various activities. She had been to Thailand twice before, so she has some recommendations. She was planning to travel with her husband to Japan before our Thailand trip, so we ended up booking her parents on my flight, and I am so glad we did. It was nice to have a friendly face to sit next to, and to double check all the flight details with!

Singapore Airlines:

So flights were pretty tricky. Most of the ones we looked at took off in the morning from the US, and landed in Asia somewhere in the evening, with a layover until the next morning for the second leg. After a few hours of looking, we found a flight that left super late from SFO, and a short layover in HongKong, and finally landing in the evening in Bangkok. That was the winner for us. We flew with Singapore Airlines, which was a great experience. We checked into SFO around 9:30pm on Saturday for a 1:15am flight ( i didn’t know they even flew that late!).

The flight was long (14.5 hours!!) but great. The food was tasty and there were so many choices! They had a bunch of great in-flight movies and entertainment, but for the first 6 or so hours I slept. We had a quick layover in HongKong where we got Starbucks and freshened up. I felt like a new person with freshly brushed teeth and hair and a clean shirt. We had a much shorter flight (4hrs) to Singapore where we had our longer layover (4 hours). It was middle of the day when we arrived, so we decided to get some steps in at the airport and explore. I was blown away by how many shops, interactive displays and interesting decorations the Singapore Airport had.

Singapore Airport had 3 terminals: one that had a butterfly garden, one with a magnetic sand exhibit, and one that had these orchid/koi pond gardens. There was lush flowers everywhere! We ended up grabbing some food just before boarding.

We landed in Bangkok around 4ish. We picked up our luggage and met the driver from our hotel. It was rush hour traffic on a work day (Monday) so it took about an hour to get to Chatrium Hotel.

It was beautiful evening when we arrived, as we looked out over the balcony into the city lights. We were finally here!

Have you ever been to Asia or Thailand before?

Love,

-S

Gloucester & Kennebunkport

After spending one short but amazing day in Boston, we jumped into our rental VW Jetta and started north. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in a beautiful coastal town call Gloucester. We had beautiful blue skies, brisk winds, and a gorgeous coastline at our very fingertips.

We stayed at the Bass Rocks Inn, which was truly stunning. Built in 1897 by George Stacy as a wedding gift to his bride, it is built in the Colonial Revival Style, with elegant lines and lots of traditional white paint with dark shutters. Purchased by new owners in 1946, it evolved to become a popular destination for summer visitors, including a father and daughter pair from sunny California.

 

Gloucester

Gloucester

Gloucester
My dad and I enjoyed their freshly baked cookies in the late evening as we sat in front of their outdoor fireplace with a glass of wine and took in the view.

We ended up at a small but fantastic restaurant called Market. It had a great view of Lobster Cove, and we enjoyed everything from the ambiance to my delicious pea and lemon zest pasta.

Here is a video from my SnapChat account: SisforSandy. You should add me if you haven’t already!

 

The next day we enjoyed the pool for a bit before hitting the road again. We drove North thru Kennebunkport and walked the town a bit.

Kennebunkport Kennebunkport Kennebunkport Kennebunkport Kennebunkport

I like their mini homage to Pont des Arts with locks on the bridge overlooking the water. It was a charming, but bustling town. The next day we explored my favorite town. More about my trip tomorrow!

Love,

-S

 

Venice Beach, a Roof with a View, and Sunsets on the Pier

On our last day in L.A we walked along the canals and Venice Beach, had rooftop drinks with a gorgeous beach view at Hotel Erwin, and saw a fantastic sunset at the Santa Monica Pier. I had a lot of fun visiting … Continue reading