All You Can Jet

Are travel deals really for real with no strings attached? You bet it’s real !!! That’s how I was able to travel to 6 cities in 3 countries within 24 days using Jetblue’s All You Can Jet Pass for $499!!!

As my traveling using Jetblue All You Can Jet Pass 2010 comes to an end – all I can say is Thank you to Jetblue for the opportunity to be able to do one of my most favorite things in life – traveling without breaking the bank!

On Aug 18, 2010 – I received an email about Jetblue's All You Can Jet pass (AYCJ) promotion. I was in disbelief that such deal exists. Is it possible to travel unlimited times to over 50 destinations for 1 whole month just for $799 includes all 7 days or $499 any day except on Fridays & Sundays? I got so excited about this deal, however, I had to sleep on it for 1 night before jumping in and purchasing my $499 AYCJ pass.

Here are my adventures and unforgettable experiences:

Trip #1 – Las Vegas

I have not been to Vegas for almost 2 years. I flew in midday from Long Beach and flew back that same afternoon. It was so nice to see all the new hotels and buildings but something’s never change – lots of food and buffets everywhere. I should have brought an extra stomach to try all the food. It was also a great opportunity to meet with my friend, Mafe who I have not seen for almost 5 years.

Trip #2 – Oakland & Berkeley

I flew in to Oakland for the day to celebrate my bestfriend, Geraldine’s birthday. It was a beautiful day to walk around the park by the bay. We shared our stories while enjoying a beautiful sunny day in Berkeley.

Trip #3 – New York City

Yeah!!! I can hear Alicia Keys singing in my head “In New York , concrete dreams are made of. There’s nothing you can’t do, now in you’re in New York”. Of course, with that song in my head, I had to visit the famous Sex and The City places. I went to Carrie Bradshaw’s front porch on Perry St., I had to try the cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery that I saw Miranda and Carrie ate in a couple of SATC episode, and even went to Manolo Blahnik store to have a glimpse and try the shoes that Carrie Bradshaw made famous. It was fun!

I also get to walk around town at Time Square, Rockefeller Center and Radio Music Hall. But most of all I get the chance to spend time with friends – Christine and her family, Chiari & Jay and Rosemarie.

Trip #4 San Jose, Costa Rica

My first time in Costa Rica and my second time visiting a foreign country alone and not knowing anyone. However, I have heard so many great things about Costa Rica and it is one of the destinations included in Jetblue’s AYCJ – so I just have to go and see it for myself!

Two things are predictable in Costa Rica - the beautiful sunrise and the rain every afternoon for a few hours.

I enjoyed ziplining or canopying (as they call it in Costa Rica) through the rainforest while enjoying all nature and animal wildlife as we hiked through the jungle. I also got to do white water rafting and jump off the cliff to a deep cold fast running river!

It was so nice to learn about the culture . I also got to meet locals and ex-patriots from first world countries. Definitely, a country I would recommend to everyone seeking to enjoy nature and some outdoor adventures.

Trip #5 Seattle / Vancouver

Since it’s my last trip using my Jetblue AYCJ pass, I had to visit one of my favorite places – British Columbia, Canada.

I arrived in Seattle and enjoyed walking around town. I ended up shopping at DeliSeattle, a clothing store that features local NW artists and have been promoted by M.A.D. Northwest.

I drove up to Vancouver on a sunny cool day. It was so beautiful – blue sky, green trees and fresh air. I hiked Grouse Grind Mountain with my very close friend, Ruby. We made it to the top in 1 hour and 55 minutes , far from the 24 minutes record. It was a difficult, challenging hike but when we got to the top and saw the view it made it all worth it. While I was there. I also get to hang out and have fun with my favorite little boys Aaron and Ethan and other friends – Chris, Carlos and David.

The Pacific Northwest was so beautiful with perfect weather during my visit. A great way to end this wonderful All You Can Jet adventure!

Pura Vida!!!

- Kaye

Traveling Solo in Australia

I have never traveled alone before. Alone meaning not traveling with anyone or not know anyone in that city I am visiting. I finally decided to get out of my box and to do just that – traveling Solo in Sydney, Australia. A continent that I have never been before and more than 7,000 miles away from where I live. This adventure is truly a very memorable experience of my Spring 2010 !!!

I love traveling, I mean I LOVE traveling. I love everything about it – the people I meet , the different cultures from different countries and cities I visit, the food, the tourist attractions. I love traveling so much that I even enjoy airplane food, long lines to go through immigration/customs, filling out immigration forms, long wait for the luggage, and the tight seats on the plane when I travel economy. That’s how much I love traveling. Traveling is my “drug” , my “therapy’ and sometimes my way to get to know “me”. I tell people I can live without wearing designer clothes, designer bags, designer shoes or eating fancy food as long as I can travel and see more places all over the world.

After 15 hours on a plane I finally arrived in Sydney, Australia. When I got there, it was cold and cloudy since their winter season starts in 1 week. BBrrrhhhh !!! How I wish I brought sunny California with me.

Day 1 in Sydney, I got into the shuttle to go to my hotel and noticed that the driver is on the right hand side. The driving in the city was fast , changing lanes and not much regard for pedestrians. The driving reminded me of being in Time Square in NYC or one of the crazy streets in Manila. After I have dropped off my luggage at the hotel, I was ready to explore the city with me, myself and I. I went to have some dimsum in Chinatown which was just 4 blocks away from my hotel. My first stop, Art Gallery of New South Wales. I joined the tour of the highlights of the gallery. The painting , statues and crafts were all so amazing. It was not the paintings that awed me but it was the huge number of students in their uniforms ages 5 to 18 y ear olds in this gallery. I guess, Australians emphasize and nurture the appreciation of art. I then head to attend mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral, the first Catholic Church in Sydney. I learned a Catholic mass is the same in Australia, Philippines and US. I also stopped by Australian Museum It started to rain, but that did not stop me. I still continued to see other tourist places in Sydney. I went to Darling Harbour and enjoyed the sunset at 5 pm. Then continued to walk around the streets of Sydney until I found myself in Circular Quay where 2 world famous attractions are located – The Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House. It’s now 8 pm, time to head back to my hotel room and take my first train ride here in Sydney.

Day 2 in Sydney, I have been up since 4 am because of the 17 hour time difference of LA and Sydney. I turned on the TV and most of the channels are about sports – rugby, footsy (Australian football), golf, Tennis French Open – omg! I did read about Aussie’s love for sports but now I am actually seeing it myself . It was raining heavily on this day. I took my first ferry ride from Circular Quay to Olympic Park where they had the 2000 Summer Olympics. It was nice to see the venues for the different events. I even get to see the ANZ stadium where they were going to have the first Rugby game of the season that night. As I was walking around, I suddenly hear people cheering and screaming, I got a little scared that something was wrong. As it turned out the Rugby Players are walking around Olympic Park. I did take a couple pictures of the players even if I do not know who they are. Now I take a train back to the city center. I visited The Museum of Contemporary Art and Sydney Observatory. Did a little shopping at The Rocks. Some people said that I got to try some kebabs so I had some for dinner. It now, 8 pm and I found myself sitting inside the Sydney Opera House and about to experience the music of Sydney Symphony Orchestra. There are all so good. I am glad I got to watch a live performance rather than just doing a tour of the Sydney Opera House. Learned a few things about opera music from David, Australian sitting on my right side. I also learned certain “clapping’ rules when watching an orchestra perform. I really love all these new experiences.

Day 3 in Sydney, once again I woke up before sunrise. And since the rain have stopped, I decided to walk around and grab breakfast in a nearby café instead of eating in the hotel. It is a cold morning. After walking around for 30 minutes , 8 blocks and 5 cafes, I ended up in a 7 Eleven store sipping cappuccino because all the café opens up at 9 am. What 9 AM ?!? Today, I can see some sun and some blue skies so I took advntage of it and went to Bondi Beach and Manly Beach. It was so cold and windy in Bondi beach so I did not get to see the beautiful “attraction” as my gay friend would say. I like Manly Beach, it is a town about 40 minutes away by ferry from Sydney Harbour. It was nice to walk around this town. Once again, I get to see how much Aussie love sports - I saw highschool boys with their shirts off playing footsy on the sand . I also saw a few surfers and swimmers. It was cold and this do not bother them at all.

Day 4 in Sydney, as my solo adventure in Sydney ends today. I get to do a few more things before my flight to Melbourne. I got to try their favorite Australian spread – Vegemite. I will not share too much about this. All I can say is it is unforgettable and definitely very Australian. Everyone got to have some Vegemite when they visit Australia. I also learned a few Australian words – “Cheers” (Thank you) “No worries” (Welcome), Ta (Bye) and how they say the number “8”.

I am so glad that I chose Sydney as the place to travel alone because they have a great transportation system so I get to explore the city like a local by bus, train and ferry all for just $41 for a 1 week pass. Their prices also includes taxes so that’s pretty nice too when shopping.

The second part of my trip – I am in Melbourne. I am staying with my high school friends – Fe and Thess and also at my gradeschool friend, Christine. It was definitely a great reunion for us.

Day 1 in Melbourne, I explored the city with their free hop on hop off tram. I went to a tour of Parliament of Victoria, St. Patrick’s cathedral and Bourke St. for shopping. Just enjoyed the different sights while on the tram. Then had dinner with Fe and her husband, Fhedz and Thess with her daughter, Thadine.

Day 2 in Melbourne, Fe, Fhedz, Romy and I went for a 3 hour drive along the Great Ocean Road. I get to see the 12 Apostles rock formations that I first saw on pictures in a gallery in Las Vegas. I was so happy to see it in person. I also got to eat for the first time kangaroo meat. Very tough and required a lot of chewing. I was so happy when we went to the ice cream parlor and saw all these unique ice cream flavors – Boysenberry, Bailey, and Figtree. Yummy ! Then we all went to my friend’s Christine’s lovely home for dinner.

Day 3 in Melbourne, I had brunch Christine’s family, Fe and her husband and Thess and her family in a hotel overlooking the beach. We shared stories about our gradeshool and high school days and lots of laughters. It was great to reconnect and catch up on each other’s lives after not seeing each other for many years. After brunch, we went to church at St. Patrick’s Cathedral since it’s Sunday. In the afternoon, we walked around the city, harbour and did some shopping. I then found out that price of Ugg boots in Australia is the same in the States. Then again, we had dinner at Christine’s.

Day 4 – time for me to head back to the States. It might be the end of my trip but definitely have lots of great unforgettable experiences and memories. There were a few things that I found very unique here in Australia – they are very eco-friendly. They have this toilet bowl and sink combo so as you wash your hand the water you use for washing going directly to the toilet tank to be used as a flush, it is very common in restaurants that they serve cage free chickens. However, they smoke a lot here in Australia, there are walking chimneys everywhere. Another thing that I like is you can also text message on their payphones.

This is my Australia adventure! I experienced and learned a lot during this trip but my greatest lesson is – “Wherever I am, I am still who I am so I got to love me so I can give more love!” God, Thank you very much.

I’ve been to 5 continents and 2 more continents to go – let’s keep on going!!!

- Kaye

30-Hour Adventure in Seattle and British Columbia

Ten dollar one way airfare anywhere in the United States ?!? It sounds like a joke or a scam or a glitch in Jetblue's website. However, thank God it was not. This was the beginning of my spontaneous fun adventure from sunny southern California to the green fresh air of Pacific Northwest.

As a simple Filipino immigrant, one of my goals is to visit as many countries as I can in all 7 continents in this lifetime. So with a little hesitation, I decided to book the flight to Seattle and reserved a rental car so I can drive up to British Columbia, Canada to visit my friend Ruby and her family when I saw this airfare promotion from Travelzoo.com.

Here's my 30-hour adventure in Seattle and British Columbia.

This is how it all begun, I am now checked in and was finally assigned a seat after all the passengers who paid full-priced airfare boarded. After 2 hours and 20 minutes, I arrived at Seattle International Airport then I picked up my car rental.

I am so glad that the sun is out in Seattle, however it is still chilly at 55 degrees Fahrenheit. I guess I got lucky because the weather the day before was cloudy, windy and cold.

Now, I was getting ready to drive around Seattle. So I programmed my first destination on my GPS. On my way to the first “place” I was going to visit I was excited at the same time scared. I have not done anything like this before so this is definitely out of my box. Finally I got to my destination, I was so happy and very grateful. I walked around and took pictures. I would say it was a success since I did what I planned to do. I wished I had more courage to go one step further and just do it. Well, at least I learned about myself that my looking good issue or my not wanting to look bad sometimes get in the way of what I really want. So that’s it for destination #1!

I am now on my way to my next destination – to see the First Starbucks Coffeeshop in the world and to walk around the famous Seattle’s Public Market. As I was driving in the freeway, I notice a few things that are different from driving in the 405 freeway in LA/OC, one is that the beautiful green trees in the freeway and also noticed how different the drivers are here in Seattle because they follow the speed limit of 60 mph and they rarely change lanes. So refreshing to enjoy my drive without being worried of being cut off or tailgated that can sometimes happen while driving in the 405 freeway.

I finally arrived at Pike Place. I walked around the public market. This public market is famous for the fish throwing entertainment. I did not get to see this because it usually happens between 8-10 AM. The public market have lots of cool stores – organic fresh and dried fruits, jams, souvenirs, unique clothes and of course seafood.

After looking at the different shops, I met with my college classmate, Apple, who lives in Seattle. We met at the first Starbucks coffeeshop. I got myself a grande Soy Strawberry Frappuccino. The best part was we got there during their happy hour, which means half off on the Frappuccinos. It was so cool to see the where it all started. It was so amazing to me because this first Starbucks coffeeshop was just a way for a couple of friends to make money while they were in college, and is now in every city in the US and even worldwide. Apple and I walked around downtown Seattle while catching up on what has been going on in our lives after we graduated from college more than a decade ago. I definitely enjoyed downtown Seattle, seeing the waterfront view, Seattle Art Museum and many more.

Last part of my journey, it is late in the afternoon and it is time to drive up to British Columbia to see my very close friend Ruby. It was a nice drive up but I stopped by a Seattle-based burger place, Red Mill Burger, that JR Celski tweeted about. The great scenery, great spring weather and the sunset made the 2 1/2 drive go by so fast. As I passed the US-Canada border I was looking forward to seeing Ruby’s 2 sons. When I arrived at their house, I played with the boys and they taught me how to play their new card game Eureka. Of course, they beat me because they are just that good, smart and adorable. Ruby is so thoughtful, she cooked dinner for me and she bought me my favorite Philippine fruit, lansones (it’s like longan but better). I ate all of it by myself since they do not sell this fruit in the States.

As my 30 hour Seattle and British Columbia adventure comes to an end, my heart is filled with gratitude to God who continues to guide, support and amaze me on how wonderful this life is. God who has always provided opportunities in life, I learned that I have the choice to take a risk and say “yes” or be scared and say “No”. Thank you God!!!!

Lastly, I’ll leave you with my own version of the Visa commercial: ”Roundtrip airfare ticket from Long Beach to Seattle = $41.40, Soy Strawberry Frappuccino at the first Starbucks coffeeshop = $2.16, a thirty hour spontaneous trip to Seattle and Canada = PRICELESS!"

P.S. I hope that after reading this, you get inspired to do something spontaneous, out of the box or something that scares you that you would need to partner up with God to achieve it. Just do it!!

Being in the "NOW" moment,

Kaye

Spring is Here !!!

Spring is my favorite season of the year. I love it for a couple of reasons, first the weather is perfect – not too hot and not too cold, and another reason is the blossoming of ALL nature – the beautiful flowers( the above photo is the picture I took of flowers from our garden) , the trees turning green and including human beings growing and enjoying life after hibernation during the winter.

2010 – A new year and a new decade. In the beginning of the year I have written 10 goals in the different areas of my life (spiritual, mental, emotional and physical). It is also a year that I decided to be open. Be more open to new experiences especially with regards to my personal life specifically dating.

My dating life maybe considered simple, inexperienced or even boring in other people’s standards. But to me it was one of the great lessons in my 20’s. Honestly, I did not even really date because by definition dating is “a form of courtship, and may include any social activity undertaken by, typically, two persons with the aim of each assessing the other's suitability as a partner in an intimate relationship or as a spouse.” I only had 2 romantic relationships in my entire life and did not go on any other dates. My first relationship, he courted me for 4 years in college before I finally said “yes” on the last 3 months of our senior year that lasted 20 months and we just spent 5 months together since I had to move to the States. In my second relationship I wanted to be his girlfriend after our first date. I have a checklist of the qualities I want in a man, the non-negotiables, the must-haves, and he had them all. The relationship lasted for almost 8 years. That relationship was when I learned a lot about myself. I learned about commitment, unconditional love, trust, growth, surrender and letting go.

As winter comes to an end, I am so grateful for all the lessons and new experiences I've had. It was a winter that was pivotal in my life and I will always remember. I get to “be” in touch with my emotions from both ends of the spectrum. The happiest experiences are: to be at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and watch inspiring athletes especially JR Celski, learning to snowboard for the very first time and Women’s Getaway in Lake Tahoe. The most challenging is to really “let go” of a relationship.

Spring is here …. I am so happy, excited and optimistic. I am going to savor each day, every moment since there will never be another 2010 Spring season.

Carpe Diem,

Kaye

Women's Getaway

As my first entry on my blog, I want to share the 3^rd Women’s Getaway (WGA )that we just had in Lake Tahoe with my amazing, powerful, beautiful, smart and more great adjectives to describe sister / sister-friends. The group of women I am so proud to call my sisters / sister-friends are: Karen Retardo, Kim Retardo, Geraldine “Den-Den” Alano, Genevieve “Genie” Torcende, Giannina “Ninay” Torcende, Charlene “Bonz” Abdon, Christine Carnal…. Meg Bayquen-Bray and Chiari Ringor (not in attendance this year) and new friends Christian “Tan-Tan” Fajardo and Kristie Agbuya.

The idea of Women’s Getaway came about 3 years ago when I was going through a challenging time in my personal life – a break-up with my boyfriend. Like many people, the break-up felt like the end of the world at that time.

As they say, with every breakthrough comes first a breakdown. So I decided , instead of crying about it and suffering, I talked to my bestfriend, Geraldine and we started planning our 1^st getaway in Yosemite. We called our sisters and childhood friends that we will now be having Annual Women’s Getaway.

The mission of this Annual Women Getaway is for life-long sisters /sister-friends to spend 3-4 days a year to have fun, bond, rejuvinate, cry, laugh or simply keep each other sane through life’s peaks and valleys. A time to be ourselves, to support each other, to vent out our pains, to celebrate our victories, to honestly give each other feedback if we are not being the best woman that we are and “laglagan” times. Or simply, to LOVE each other.

On our first getaway we went to Yosemite in October 2008. The second getaway was in Catalina Island in May 2009. This year was in Lake Tahoe.

Our WGA in Lake Tahoe

Day 1 - started with our snowboarding and ski lessons. There were 4 of us that snowboard while the 6 other gals decided to ski. It was snowing and that did not stop us. Go! Go! Kah jah!! Most of us even took the lift and thankfully we did not cause a domino of falling skiers and snowboarders while getting off. The skiers learned the new meaning of the words “pizza” and “french fries”. And the snowboarders learned that lifting your toes is very important to avoid breaking your bones or colliding with other snowboarders. I was so happy too coz I did 8 runs and the last 3 runs I did not fall. Yeah!

The excitement did not stop there. Driving back to our cabin which is 20 miles away from the ski resort was a lesson in itself. It was snowing, and one of the cars did not have any snow tires and I was the driver. I have never driven in the snow ( I am from the Philippines – what snow?!?) So we were brave and followed the SUV truck that Genie was driving very closely. Finally we got to our cabin.

We celebrated Kim and Tan-Tan’s birthday. And lots of karaoke singing and dancing. We also had a 30 minute of silence ( this was a miracle in itself since our favorite hobby is talking, talking, talking like we all swallowed a sound system). During this silence, we all wrote a letter to “oneself about what life is in 10 years”, Kim will keep these letters and will be mailed to each woman in 10 years.

Day 2

Half of the group decided to snowboard and ski again. While the rest of us, went to enjoy the view – gandola ride and walking around downtown. We also went iceskating.

Day 3

We played Taboo. It was so funny! The group was divided into 2 teams. The “winning team” : Karen, Chistine, Genie, Ninay and Tan-Tan. The “losing team”: Kaye, Kim, Den-den, Bonz, Kristie The game lasted for 1 hour – lots of laughters. Remember ladies “ Use your words !” and “Please speak in English, not Tagalog !” In the end, the “losing team” won and the “winning team” lost.

The “winning team” treated the “losing team” for lunch. After lunch, we bought similar “Lake Tahoe” sweaters. Den-den negotiated with the store owner and she was able to lower the price of our sweaters from $32.50 to $20. That’s the power of negotiation – ask and you shall receive.

As our getaway comes to an end, we did our trademark jumping picture by the lake. We had so much fun jumping almost 30 times to get the perfect "up in the air" jumping photo.

To all the ladies, thank you very much for the great times. All the laughters and sharing who you are. Until the next WGA! Be the best you….

Here’s to -- ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES!!!!

-- Kaye