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Physical distancing is real - globetrotting takes a downturn in the year of the Rat, 2020. (Clockwise: Telephone Booth in London; Rosslyn Chapel grounds in 15th century Midlothian; Tagus river promenade in Lisbon; NH Hotel balcony in Madrid)
(Jan-Feb 2020) |
Journal Entry... Barely two weeks to a planned trip, Taal Volcano (Philippines) spews ashes from deep its core forty-three years in the making, causing indefinite flight cancellations. Looming ahead, at the same time, was this threat of a respiratory virus from a neighbouring country. If these were not stop signs, it had me deeply contemplating-- "Am I [still] one who does not back out from an adventure, or is wealth one's health more than these travel destinations of the world?" Got instant reply from this little cardboard cutout of a Gospel verse, when my gaze rested on a safekeeping bowl in the home foyer: "Do not fear. Only believe. - Mark 5:36"
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| Check-in: Qatar Qsuite |
28-jan: "You've been cleared for takeoff. Good luck and Godspeed." One's travel begins at the airport. My way to jump-start it is from a business class vantage point. Trust me, once you've been in business class, one will not look back to economy section; [uhm] on long hauls, that is. Had a first taste of "the Business Class" in 2015, after traveling economy on yearly trips for the past ten years since our 2005-honeymoon trip*wink;) This should be credited to advance planning, waiting for airline promo notifications to do the trick: 2015-Malaysia Airlines (in Airbus A-380 to Paris); 2016-Etihad Airways (to Rome en route to Athens); 2018-EVA Air (to Amsterdam); yearend 2018/2019-Gulf Air (to Istanbul); and this year, 2020-QATAR AIRWAYS (to London) - if not dubbed the world's best airline, it is the world's best Business Class, and I couldn't agree more; for what else can far outbid Qatar Airway's first-class service rolled into its business class section, feat. the Qatar Qsuite ? Not even when one is taunted by the reality that the Qsuite red carpet only got rolled mid-transit, at Doha, from departure gate in Manila en route to London, and by sheer luck, on our return flight to Manila.  |
Tea light meal
in Qsuite |
Reaching a required flight altitude level, after takeoff from Hamad International Airport, the designated FA proceeds to unlock the safety latch, that had kept my Qsuite door wide open, to let it gracefully slide to shut close, for my much desired private quarters for the remaining hours to my destination. Two clear portholes favored me with a fleeting glimpse of what incredibly engineered man-made islands-- in the shape of a gracefully poised palm tree off the coast of Doha --looked like from the sky. I settled comfortably inside my Qsuite, watching in-flight movies whilst bingeing on delectable meal courses barely illuminated by an e-candle, that was safely tucked inside a Moorish-design tea-light holder (which the FA had allowed me and the hubby to keep, one each for flight souvenir, alongside bespoke Bric's amenity-filled travel pouches-- thanks, Qatar Airways!) No sooner later, I got lulled to sleep by the white sound of air travel.
ENGLAND
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| Sharing a photo-op with random individuals outside the gates of Buckingham Palace in London |
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"Heathrow Express"
to Paddington Station |
Hopped on the Heathrow Express from the airport to Paddington Station; next, in a London Black Cab from the station to the hotel. Riding the black cab, in addition to making a tour bus out of the London Red Bus, were on my must-do list. At the taxi bay, idling however, was a white cab. Like, what is this?!! Must I have missed the memo that these customary London cabs came in white, as well. What must the driver of that white cab be thinking, when I refused to budge from the curb, luggage in tow, to ride his white cab; Me: Next black cab, please! Check-in: #StMartinsLane, in the area of Covent Garden and West End, a block away to/from Trafalgar Square. It was tad difficult to pin a ground zero for a London base, during the planning stage, to be honest; every location seemed walking distance to every city landmark, in mind. In the end, our hotel-of-choice did turn out to be well-thought-out. That Black Cab driver did remark, "Covent Garden is a wonderful location for first-timers!" Reliable fast food, #FiveGuysBurger (for the hubby) and #Chipotle (for me), dotted the street, solving quick-meal fixes on day's end; right on Trafalgar square were the London Red Bus stop, and the London Tube station; and traipsing past Trafalgar square, down the street to Westminster, leads to every tourist's photo-op session with the iconic Big Ben - clock tower.
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| Two Peas & "No Ben" |
29-jan: First day in London, counting landmarks... But, where is Ben for goodness sake?! Were it not for the clock tower's lonesome face, peeking out from its head-to-foot scaffolding, Ben was no BIG BEN in a construction site till reopening in the year 2021. Resigned shrug off my shoulders; smirk on my lips washed off by comical laughter; customary photo-op with Big Ben, or must I say, "Geez, no Ben!" done, on a first day walk in London. Even H.R.H., the Queen, was a no-show at her Buckingham Palace place of work. And so, there goes my childhood nursery rhyme-in-vain-- "I've been up to London to visit the (absent) Queen...," Big Ben included.
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A 900-year old Tower of London and Keeper of the Crown Jewels, sits next to the Tower Bridge
(Erratum: Tower Bridge is not the "London Bridge".) |
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| (L-R) Tower Hill outside the walls; St. Peter ad Vincula Chapel (the resting place of Henry VIII's beheaded second wife, Anne Boleyn); Waterloo Block, home of the Crown Jewels of England and the Headquarters of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers with Regimental Museum (behind the tower); and William the Conqueror's 11th-century White Tower, foreground |
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| England's Queen Victoria, in white marble statue, fronts the Kensington Palace |
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| Henry VIII's palace, ahead |
30-jan: Day trip to Hampton Court Palace... It did not come swiftly as riding a train to the stop, next to a bridge, that directly crosses over to the palace gates. Just as Henry VIII would sail 12 miles down the river Thames, in a boat, from the Tower of London. How we got ourselves first riding on a train, then a bus, and trudging on in puddle through the backdoor to the palace, because it was raining-- as the typical Englishman would say, "It's raining cats and dogs, today!" --is the actual side of the story.An unwritten part of "The Other Boleyn Girl" (American film, 2008) had been kept in my mind, enough to remember to snoop for tidbits at this Hampton Court royal palace when I get there. Surely up a corner panel of the Grand Hall was Henry's and Anne's ["H.A."] love-initials; it was kept intact by some palace keeper's ingenuity, thus etching officially Anne's whereabouts, in history... despite the King's order for all traces to the girl be discarded on the occasion of the King's third marriage. (Anne's female offspring with Henry, "Elizabeth," ended succeeding longest to the throne, without herself an offspring, as life's irony would not have it any other way.)
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| Henry VIII's Hampton Court Palace today is accessible by train or bus, not only on boat |
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| Spot the controversial "H.A." initials in the Grand Hall of Hampton Court Palace |
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| Courtyard protocols |
The Ticket Office handed out two maps: first - the Hampton Court Palace Map; and second - the Garden Explorer Map, to begin one's journey of discovery. The Hampton Court Palace map easily led to Henry VIII's Apartments, consisting of: the Great Hall, the Great Watching Chamber, and the Haunted Gallery, where one, they say, should watch out for one of Henry VIII's lady love making a ghostly run in the hallway at night; also, to Henry VIII's Kitchens, where grand feasts used to be prepared, and to the Chocolate Kitchens, the room dedicated to concocting drinking chocolate; also, to the Lost Dress of Elizabeth I; and to the Georgian sections annexed to the main palace, after the Tudor reign, of which I have lost interest in going. For I [still] had the Garden Explorer Map in my hand to contend with. |
| Out of The Maze |
The Garden Explorer Map led to the Great Fountain Garden; and the Wilderness, where, in the 17th century they say, was a place for courtiers to wander pleasurably and get lost 'along intertwining paths and hedges clipped in geometric patterns.' And, let's leave it at that. Entrance tickets to the palace included access to "The Maze" which proved easy to enter but laborious to exit from "circuitous paths and hedges"-- I am no courtier! Worming ourselves out of the crafty maze, I declared the day trip ended. Here, exit the front palace gates; cross the bridge; hop on the train at Hampton Court station, 4PM departing. Touring hours had me hungry and craving for traditional fish-and-chips, also on my checklist of must-eat. No fish platter came up when we walked Hampton Court's main drag; we ended swallowing up on overpriced and overrated fish-and-chips, at 20-pounds/serving, at #RockandSolePlaice in central London. No worries, it was lunch/dinner combined in a tourist's budget.
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Great Fountain Garden, with "[A]n avenue of yew trees in the fashionable form of a goose foot"
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Day trip
to Stratford-upon-Avon |
1-feb: Day trip to Shakespeare's hometown... Half of a day is not enough for one to immerse in Shakespeare's world; the other half of our day was wholly eaten up by train travel to Stratford-upon-Avon, from London. Connecting train, at Leamington Spa, I was that close to missing, running beforehand to the loo for nature call after the first train from London, and waiting for the hubby out on the platform (who had already hopped on the connecting train without dropping me a hint.) "I saved you a seat on the train," he says, grinning like a Cheshire cat, when I caught up on him on instinct. An empty seat if those train doors had closed, and if I got left behind by that connecting train. It's hubby's birthday, so he is excused from scolding.Lady staff at the Visitor's Information Center had mapped out what's to be a half-day's worth of places of interest in town - all Shakespeare-related, of course.
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| William Shakespeare sits in a chair on a town monument of Stratford-upon-Avon, joined in by four of his play characters - Prince Hall (in photo), Sir John Falstaff, Lady Macbeth and Hamlet |
From birth, to doom: Shakespeare's Birthplace; Shakespeare's schoolroom; Shakespeare's house, in ruins - because the buyer got tired of the number of daily visitors/tourists and demolished it; Shakespeare's old bank; Shakespeare's resting place at the Holy Trinity Church. Now, William Shakespeare sits in a chair on a town monument, joined in by four of his play characters - Prince Hal, Sir John Falstaff, Lady Macbeth and Hamlet.
All's well connecting the dots to Stratford-upon-Avon, after reading up on Shakespeare's literary works in a high school literature class, myself stumbling on Shakespeare's traditional writing, and reaching quickly for handy Cliffs Notes being passed around behind one brooding elderly Spanish professor, timely coming up with sensible interpretations to Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, Macbeth, Hamlet & Merchant of Venice.
"And to thee and thy company, I bid a hearty welcome," the gate at Shakespeare's (new) house quotes Shakespeare's The Tempest, Act 5, Scene 1.
Except for the church, all Shakespeare-landmarks encircled by the lady staff have been boxed in by the afternoon visitors. CNN report about the virus spike did leave me me content to being an onlooker, ticking off landmarks from the street till sundown. We have managed to circle the old town, reaching Cox's Yard by the river for the sunset scene. #Barnaby'sFishRestaurant nearby served traditional fish-and-chips, two-thirds cheaper than London price, at 7 pounds/serving, which was oh-so divine!
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| Sunset scene on the river Avon from Cox's Yard, in Stratford-upon-Avon |
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| HBD le poupee @52 |
Birthday boy had his eyes set on that "Bulls Head Steak" for his celebratory dinner at #SteakandCo., conveniently located within the block from the hotel. Cake and champagne had greeted the hubby in advance on hotel check-in, thanks St. Martins! A Kabayan (colloquial for co-Filipino) who happened to be the server that night had treated us like VIPs sans reservation in the restaurant. "HBD, le poupee! xo"
Why the hubby gets to have a celebratory trip every time is how it is when one loves to travel*wink;)
SCOTLAND
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| "Hogwarts Express" |
5-feb: King's Cross Station - London to Edinburgh... I hurried along to get to the loo (now, habit-forming) to get back before the appointed train makes a final call. When I caught sight of Platform 9 3/4 (the "Hogwart's Express") at King's Cross Station, instantaneously invoking the Harry Potter character of years past to my consciousness. I did forget Harry Potter fictionally exists in this part of the globe. Technically, Harry Potter was born in Edinburgh, where a local author, J.K. Rowling, wrote the Harry Potter series. It surely made my train ride from London to Edinburgh via #LNER that day feeling all wizardry... as if I was off to Hogwarts myself*wink;)Check-in: #HiltonEdinburghCarlton in Northbridge. Hilly walking up panting all the way to the hotel coming from Waverly Station. No reason to waste a taxi fare for the short distance. When in Scotland, no tourist really minds having a welcoming experience of walking up the highlands, ey!
6-feb: Sightseeing in Edinburgh... Castle Rock, on Day 1; Holyrood Palace and "Arthur's Seat" trekking, on Day 2; the Harry Potter trail and counting closes (Scottish for passageways) walking Edinburgh, on Day 3; and out-of-town trip to Rosslyn Chapel, featured in Da Vinci Code film, on a flip-flopping sunny.. er rainy, windy, stormy day.. er sunny, again, on Day 4, all because of that Storm Ciara.
Cheers, and welcome to Scotland !!! |
| "Arthur's Seat" (an extinct volcano) seen in the distance from Edinburgh Castle ramparts |
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| "Castle Rock", the impenetrable Edinburgh Castle that sits on a volcanic plug |
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| Holyrood Palace, home to Mary Queen of Scots, includes the ruins of a 15th century abbey |
10-feb: Flight Delay... Stuck in Edinburgh!!! "Storm Ciara" finally hit the UK, prompting virtually all airlines to cancel flights on 9-10 February 2020, including Brussels Airlines. Brussels Airlines had sent a text message of the "Flight Cancellation"... late in the evening of 8 February 2020, with a supposed rebooking process via their website. However, the rebooking process did not occur, and repeated attempts to contact the Brussels Airlines Service Center were routed to an automated system that only left calls on hold and unanswered.
We were thus compelled to extend our stay in Edinburgh for one day - 10 February 2020, and to purchase new airline tickets with UK's flag carrier, #BritishAirways, for that next available flight from Edinburgh (UK) to Porto (Portugal) on 11 February 2020... and to avoid the forfeiture charges on our hotel accommodation in Porto, as well as to fly out of the UK before the forecast of a succeeding "Storm Dennis" to also hit the UK. Thankfully, we had travel insurance c/o Standard Insurance cost-saving the day*wink;)
Many...
hours...
of delay...
later...
PORTUGAL
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Sit back and relax--
on Azulejos tiles
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11-feb: Touchdown... Ola, Porto! That Edinburgh-Porto flight delay ("Storm Ciara") may have cut short our stay in Porto by a day, still, we managed to get a good bird's eye view of this port city, plus food trip, in 2 days and 3 nights. 'Cause when life throws you lemons... go feast on frangos (grilled chicken at #PedrodosFrangos) every night in Porto!!! Add to the foodie list: francesinha (meat sandwich at #CafeSantiago); chourico assado (flaming chorizo at #CafeDoñaAntonia); pasteis de nata (sweet custard tart at #Manteiga).But first, check-in: #EurostarsPortoCentro located in the old town... 30-euros worth of taxi ride from Porto airport and a safe block on foot to the São Bento train station... (for that next Porto-Lisbon itinerary.)
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| Bird's eye view of the port city; the double-deck metal arch Luis Bridge (right) |
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| Crossing Luis Bridge |
"I'll cross the bridge when I get there..." So I made a visitor's tradition out of crossing the Luis Bridge, connecting Porto's old town to new town. Luis Bridge is often mistaken for Gustave Eiffel's Maria Pia Bridge, two bridges away to my right... which I (only) got to see aboard the train to Lisbon train from Porto's Campanhã station. This double-decker metal arch Luis Bridge is said to have taken inspiration from Gustave's Eiffel Tower and Gustave's Maria Pia Bridge built 9 years earlier in Porto, in 1887. But, Maria Pia Bridge is the more popular one, because it's in the city center connecting, as I've said, Porto's old town to new town. For someone with fear of heights though, crossing the topmost level of the Luis Bridge on foot is one story to remember: "Nakakatakot tumawid sa bridge, nalulula ako!"On day's end... Walking Porto meant having to do uphill or downhill in whichever order - get the picture? Escadas (Portuguese for long staircase) are supposed to make one's effort easier, or not. No wonder there are many birds in this port city. Aside from diving down to the river Douro for their seafood bounty, the birds are the only ones able to fly up and down the hilly city without a sweat.
14-feb: Happy Hearts in Lisbon... Train transit from Porto took 3 hours but happily saving 10 euros with the regular vs. high speed/tilting train.
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| Sunset scene from a view deck in the Baixa district of Lisbon |
Check-in: #AltisPrata in Baixa district. No ordinary room; our suite was equipped with washer/dryer any long-haul traveler will be most happy to find next to a working kitchen. Everything in Altis Prata Hotel was about their 'Heart logo' which perfectly fitted to Valentine's Day, once again, catching up on our usual winter travel. Stone's throw was Elevador Castelo lift to Pingo Doce grocery, and a view deck above it overlooking the picturesque city which was free-of-charge (great!) Here's to two happy hearts feasting on Italian food (lol! #DamaeVagabundo) on heart's day in Lisbon*wink;
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Trams plying
old Lisbon streets |
15-feb: Olá Lisboa! Sightseeing in Belem & Baixa districts... Next day: That 30-minute tram ride to Belém for sunset hour with highlights: 5:41pm... the sun begins descending into the depths of the Tagus River casting a shadow on Torre de Belèm from where Portuguese explorers had pioneered commemorative expeditions to world discoveries; 6:46pm... the water fountain at Praça do Império does its playful lights display entrancing passersby to admire it briefly; 7:28pm... a fast track (line-free) entrance to #PasteisdeBelem (est. 1837), here validate how their strictly guarded pasteis de nata formula differed from other sweet custard tarts bearing the same name, which had a suave sweetness to one's taste buds for starters. |
| 16th century-Torre de Belém gateway port gathers a crowd during sunset hour |
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| Two peas in Jeronimos cloister |
Come to think of it, we did spend more time around Lisbon's Belém area than Baixa district. After lunch on a Sunday the day following, we returned to Belém for a visita iglesia to Jerónimos Monastery - a UNESCO site, where the Jerónimos cloister is fully appreciated up close. This second visit had us leaving the area a bit later in the evening. Hubby hopped inside the arriving tram without knowing the tram would terminate halfway, and not reach Baixa. Twice, we had to hop in numbered trams. Only in that second, and last connecting, tram had a group of (seniors) pickpockets prowling said night tram: one was an old male I would surmise to be the ringleader who made 'eye signals'; and two other cohorts, I'd name-call, hags for their unkempt hairstyle, if you please. "Stand your guard!" I hissed to the hubby. My heart pounded heavily in anticipation to what scenario would play out inside the tram (from a list of tram tricks we've been warned about and did not forget.) Hubby and I got to 'side seats', which was by the tram's rear. As soon as we sat down, the ringleader, who had looked quite settled standing beside the tram driver, traded his front spot struggling on his steps towards the tram's rear, and stood beside where we sat. I know - of all places, right? The old man was barely holding on to the seat railing next to our seats, and choosing the seat railing to steady himself than the more secure straphanger swaying for his attention above his head. This ringleader was visibly boxing us to our seats, whilst two other cohorts by the tram's rear (exit) door were now interestingly picking up on an inaudible argument between them.
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Pastéis de Belém's
sweet custard tart |
So I held on tightly to my backpack, intertwining the straps around my wrist and into the clutch of my fingers, and discreetly nudged the hubby's elbow for him to do the same thing with his sling bag. But, really, I was more concerned the ringleader, who I had gauged was drumming up on losing-his-balance trick as the tram trudged forward... would not dare crash dive into a takeway bag of pasteis de nata in my other hand. I wanted the sweet treats to keep their round shape till breakfast, lol. |
| Bifana snack |
Unfortunately for the pickpockets then gaining a momentum for their tram trick was that they had not expected us to get off the tram early, when the tram hit that familiar Praça do Comércio stop, still some 2 blocks away and one stop shy of the terminus in Baixa district. "Tchau, amigos!" as hubby and I made a disappearing act into the cool night scene of Lisbon's old town. Insert here, two laughing hearts, definitely*wink;)To cap the last day, February 17, we walked up to Castelo de São Jorge for a higher, and better vantage point over Lisbon's old town. Route down the castle had bifanas (pork sandwich in piri-piri sauce at #AsBifanasDoAfonso) waiting for us around the corner to snack on, before continuing back down to street level thru the Elevador Castelo. |
| Ola! Lisbon vista up the walls of Castelo de São Jorge (castle) |
SPAIN
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2020 homecoming
in Madrid |
18-feb: Flying to pitstop: Madrid... via #TAPAirPortugal from Lisbon to our England-Scotland-Portugal-Spain itinerary. Nine years later, I'm back in capital city Madrid-- a homecoming of sorts. (I was in Madrid in November 2011 celebrating my 40th birthday milestone... not that I'm counting here.) Link to>>> Journal Entry: Viva Madrid! #spain #madrid #autumn2011Check-in: #NHCollectionMadridGranVia right smack on Gran Via main avenue; turn a corner, walk down Puerta del Sol and straight up 'Kilometer Cero' radial network of all Spanish roads of Spain, and nearby Plaza Mayor for a food trip detour>>> A las diez y media (18-feb) !Salud! a sangria y paella (wine beverage & rice dish and wine), plus takeaway jamon iberico (aged cured ham) at #MuseodelJamon... Merienda a las seis de la tarde (19-feb) !Salud! a sangria y fritura de pescados (wine beverage & mixed seafood fry) at Museo del Jamon once again... Alas nueve y media (20-feb) chocolate con 6 churros (deep-fried dough & chocolate dip) !Ola azucar! at #ChocolateriaSanGines...; add to this, there's a foodie craze happening in town for Mexican tacos at #TakosAlPastor; plus, loading up daily on my traditional Spanish breakfast spread on a plate that will not do without 'iberico." at the hotel's Picalagartos Madrid Sky Bar-breakfast floor.
P.s. Shoutout to Alvaro (hotel staff). Muchas gracias amigo! for quickly facilitating moving us to a higher 6/F from 3/F, which not only muted on-going construction noise down the Metro, but our new Rm. 611 opened up to a fantastic 180-degree city view, day & night, on the hotel room's wraparound/curving balcony.
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| Ten access points converge into the old town square of Plaza Mayor |
I love Madrid [heart emoji] in all the old familiar places. I have so loved the vibrant Madrid from first sight. Such familiar feeling comes rushing back the second time around. Package comes complete with 24/7 food trip hours. 10PM? 11PM? No problem! People in the neighborhood are just gearing up for merienda cena from a siesta, or work shift.
Retreated the last time, but not on this trip. We did locate the not-so-secret 400-year-old Monasterio del Corpus Christi going around curve's end off the Plaza de la Villa landmark, or at Calle del Code to be exact. Take note: Home to cloistered nuns, and their monastery-baked dulces (cookies) - surely not to be missed goodies-for-the-road. Here's how to buy the dulces: 1) Speak your intended order (in Spanish only.) 2) Put money on the turntable. 3) Wait... and wait... until the turntable moves. 4) Pick up item/change, and don't forget to say, "Gracias!" [Horario Venta de Dulces y Visitas, Mañana de 9:30 a 13:00h, Tarde de 16:30 a 18:30h. I'd say, "Success!"
Viva la Madrid! una vez más.
21-feb: Homebound Manila (before 2020 lockdown)... Knowing the end part is the hardest part of traveling, let's do it in style flying #QatarAirways. The Qsuite pillow says it all, "Love. Work. Travel. Repeat." Cheers to unforgettable travels! xo
(Author's Note: Thankfully, we were able to complete #UngklerTravels2020 without a glitch! Except for that "Storm Ciara" that delayed our Edinburgh-Porto flight by one day. No worries as all expenses were paid/reimbursed by the ever reliable Standard Insurance; one must always travel with a travel insurance which comes in handy-dandy when least expected, indeed.)
