Monthly Archives: November 2009

Nov12

Slinging it In Singapore

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Slinging it In Singapore

I’m back in Singapore for the weekend before I head out to Kuala Lumpur! Friday, I headed down to Little India. I really liked it, a pretty nice place. I found the place comforted me, being from Sri Lanka, I felt at home.

Saturday, I took a walk through the Botanic Gardens. I though the walk would only take maybe an hour, but was I wrong. It took me almost 4 hours, by the end, I was one sweaty puppy. But, I figured everyone else was just as sweaty as me, so that gave me confidence to walk on down to Orchard Road, it’s famous for the amount of shops. I found it overwhelming. It was huge. There was no way to check out every fantastic store in one afternoon. But, I did manage to check out as many as I could! Plus, I really enjoyed the air-conditioning. While I was inside one shop, a deluge of rain poured down. Needless to say, this only made me buy more items in the shop I was stuck in. When the rain let up, I was loaded down with shopping bags. I was already wiped out from the Botanical and now all the shopping I did, so I hailed a taxi to take me off my feet and back to one of the best Singapore hotels I’ve ever stayed in. Driving back allowed me to see the beauty of the city streets, clean, really clean.

My last day, Sunday, I headed to the train station to buy my ticket to Kuala Lumpur. I’m pretty much of a pro when it comes to train travel and I like to buy my tickets on line, but I’m pretty much winging it this trip. My only regret while I was in Singapore was not ordering a Singapore Sling! I here the drink is all the rage for any visitor or traveller. When I did have a chance, I wasn’t allowed inside because I wore my flip-flops. Well? I mean I was on the beach, of course I wore flip-flops. I’ll just have to order one on the train, I just hope it will be as good as everyone says it is.

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Nov3

Job satisfaction in Hartford CT

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Job satisfaction in Hartford CT

Only a few more months here in Ohio and I am done with my consulting job. It has been rewarding doing the job both financially and career wise. I have been here three years now and it is time to move on. I miss being home in Hartford, CT. I am booking a room at Hartford hotels for next weekend so I can go home and look for somewhere to live once I move back.

I am really happy I was able to manage landing my next job in Connecticut and particularly pleased it is in Hartford. I have been away from home long enough and am really getting home sick, as the time gets closer.

I love Hartford because it has so much history going back long before European settlers inhabited the area. Some of the earliest Europeans in the area set up fur trading posts as early as 1614. Originally the settlement established there was named Newtown but was changed to Hartford in 1637. Hartford was incorporated and was named the states capitol in late 1700’s.

In the older areas remaining examples of colonial architecture still remain; adjacent streets are lined with red brick row houses and brown stones from the early Victorian era.

Over the years Hartford has attracted a number of large insurance firms giving the city the nickname the Insurance City and having a dramatic effect on the skyline as one firm builds a structure to out do another.

Hartford is situated in the beautiful green rolling hills of central Connecticut and the easy access to New York City and Boston from Hartford is one of the things I love the most about living there. Another side benefit to Hartford living there are some great deals on flights out of Hartford as the Hartford airport competes with the airports serving Boston and New York for more passengers.

Hartford is home, I grew up in the Connecticut countryside, went to college there and only for the past three years here in Ohio have I lived anywhere else.

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Nov2

Valencia in the Wee Hours

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Valencia in the Wee Hours

Arrived in Valencia from Barcelona. Valencia turned out to be a wonderful city for me. The place is small in comparison and the architecture was stunning, and that was everywhere I looked. Valencia houses the holy grail, it’s even recognized by the Vatican. I thought it to be pretty disappointing, I was hoping it would be floating about or all a glow, but it just sat there. I had to catch the train to Madrid early tomorrow morning, so I found one of the luxury hotels Valencia that wasn’t to far from the train station. I basically only needed it to change clothes, take a hot shower, order room service and a bed to sleep in, but this hotel offered me so much more! I recommend it to anyone staying in Valencia.

I got to the train station very early in the morning, too early. I was told by a couple of guys that I might get mugged just hanging about on a bench. I decided then to find a restaurant or bakery that might be open for business at this hour, luckily there was a bakery open and I slid in and ordered coffee and a pastry. It was a cold early morning so I’m glad there was something open near by. I always do that, arrive too early somewhere. But, I didn’t think it would have been a problem in Valencia. But, I guess any tourist is an open target. It was about 4am, and I didn’t want to intrude on this bakery, so I went outside and I found this young guy, who seemed like a 12 year old boy sitting on his travel bag, so I began to talk to him. He was American and he came here to visit with his girlfriend, and no, he wasn’t 12, but 18. He had met her on a previous travel and came back here to see her once again. We talked until it was 5:30am, so I went back to the train stations and I could see things starting to come alive. On to Madrid!

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Nov2

Dancing at Club X in Bangalore

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Dancing at Club X in Bangalore

The only difficult aspect to deal with when traveling in the city of Bangalore, is deciding just what to do on any given day.  The number of sights to see can be mind boggling.  There are many galleries and museums, filled with art, or historical facts and and ancient relics.  One such venue is the Visvesvaraya Technological and Industrial Museum. Temples and parks also fill the city, such as the beautiful and ethereal Dharmaraja Temple, or the Bannerghatta National Park.

If shopping is your thing, well you have come to the right place as Bangalore is one of the homes to the art of shopping and finding not only incredible treasures and trinkets, exquisite hand made silk clothing and crafts, but finding these treasures at bargain prices.  Whether you are looking for a vast selection of hotels, Bangalore, India has many to offer, from luxury accommodations to small quaint motels in the quieter districts of the city.

Clubbing.  This is not something that Bangalore is known for, but there does actually exist quite a few choices when it comes to night clubs and one of the most popular is Club X.  Club X is one of the favorites of the locals, so while it is a happening nightclub, there is a local pub feel.  This is a great place to and meet other travelers from around the world, as well as the people of Bangalore. The atmosphere is fabulous.  The dance floor is open-air and the decor is straight out of the 80′s.  The neon and the lights serve to enhance the ambiance of this very retro dance club.  The music however, is varied.  The popular music of the young is R&B and hip-hop and organized “battles” of rap occur weekly.

Club X stays up later than many of the other bars and pubs in the neighborhood, so this is a popular stop for those coming from other locations.  And one of the aspects of this club, is that there are booths, or cubicles located throughout, where regardless of the volume of the music pumping on the dance floor, friends can sit together and have actually have a conversation with each other.  If you are looking for a place that offers great music, a dance floor, good food and great ambiance, Club X is just for you.

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