Been traveling and eating so much these years that I've decided to pen down all these experiences (digitally). Singapore is a small country and the only way to expand my experiences on the cultures, lifestyles, food and behaviours of different ethnics is to travel to all parts of the world. Instagram @lynnechua_
My trip to New Zealand was back in May 2015. It has been 3.5 months since I got back from NZ, I hope I will be able to recall at least 70% of the trip to share my experience. Photos always help. =) Hop on to my instagram @lynne_chua and search for #LCinOceania if you wish to view more updated pictures for the trip.
Day 1
Taking Air New Zealand from Singapore to Auckland, we arrived after 10pm NZ time at Auckland airport. The flight was 10 hours long..... The comfort, food, service of Air New Zealand was as expected of any legacy airline.
Initially, we were seated at row 50 of the aircraft, a 3-seater row. However, 2 Indian passengers requested to change seats with us as they are the family of the other Indian woman sitting with us on the same row. We gladly changed seats with them to the last 2-seater row at the back of the aircraft. One negative point of switching the seats, we got served last for breakfast and they ran out of what we wanted. Oh well, at least it's our 二人世界 (two people's world) for the flight journey.
SIN-AKL
Breakfast
Dinner
Upon arrival at the airport, we went to Vodafone to top up a SIM card that was kindly passed to me from my friend HP who just returned from NZ 1 week before our trip. I spent about NZD 20 for a total of ~1 GB of data and there's a remaining of 90+ minutes of call from HP. You may want to check out their prepaid plans at their website here.
After collecting our car, we drove to our first accommodation at Auckland City using my iPhone 6's Google Map. It's about a 15-20min drive.
TIP: If you have a smart phone with good GPS and a Google Map app, you don't even need to rent a GPS from the car rental. Although some mountainous area of NZ do not have reception, as long as you've mapped it, GPS will STILL WORK.
Auckland City Oaks Serviced Apartments
Address: 188 Hobson Street, Auckland City Center, Auckland, New Zealand
Contact : +64 9 337 5800
As we did not pre-book our parking slot (NZD 25 a night), we had to find a parking slot along the street. As long as it's within the white box/line, parking is free! =D We parked at the visitor slot in our apartment first, checked in and deposited our luggage before shifting the car to somewhere else.
Living Room
Kitchen
Bedroom 1
Bedroom 2
Toilet
Washing machine
It's quite a big apartment for just the 2 of us. It would be cheaper if we have more travel companions. We rested for a while, and set off to Viaduct Harbour to witness the nightlife of Auckland after midnight.
As parking is free within the white lines, it's really not easy to find a parking slot! We parked pretty far away from the main attraction where all the pubs/clubs are. Good thing is that the weather and air were really good! We enjoyed the peaceful walk along the harbour. =)
My Canon S100 was getting really cranky, especially in low light, after dropping it at Alaska during my last trip to USA in April. If you are observant, you'll be able to tell from the photos in all my upcoming NZ blog posts. =(
Nightlife at Viaduct Harbour, Auckland. Pretty similar to Clarke quay in Singapore.
Popular club with long queue
Soul Bar and Bistro
Address: 16-18 Corner of Lower Hobson Street and Customs Street West, Auckland 1143, New Zealand
Contact: +64 9 356 7249
We settled down at Soul Bar and Bistro for supper and some drinks. There was only 1 table being occupied at the restaurant section, all the others were partying at the other side. The songs played did not appeal to us at all. Lol.
Fries was da yumz!
We will be leaving Auckland city the next morning, towards Matamata for Hobbiton Movie Tour then to our next accommodation at Taupo. Will update more in New Zealand 2015 Part 2.
Ever since I tried Gordon Ramsay BurGR at Las Vegas last year, I have been waiting for GR to open a restaurant in Singapore. Extremely elated by the news that GR is opening a restaurant at the Marina Bay Sands, I waited for months before Bread Street Kitchen was opened for reservation. Reservation was made via email on 9 June and the earliest lunch slot was 2 July, 12pm. Not too bad at least!
The restaurant called me in the morning to confirm my reservation and reminded me that they will only hold the table for 15 minutes. We arrived 5-10 minutes after 12pm; MBS is nearly 20-25min walk away from our office.
When we arrived, there was no one at the main entrance, the restaurant was pretty busy. We waited for less than a minute before someone popped up to bring us to our table. It's a fine dining style setting even though the name of the restaurant sounded casual. You can view the menu here.
Complimentary Breads
The complimentary assorted breads were interesting. I've never seen such variety of breads served in a bowl.
London Lager (SGD 18++)
Cute cup for London Lager (SGD 18++)
Appetizers
We ordered 3 appetizers to share - Spicy tuna tartare (SGD 19++), Seared scallops (SGD 24++) and Roasted veal carpaccio (SGD 26++).
Spicy tuna tartare was an interesting dish. It's very savoury to a point that I find it too salty. The punch was definitely enough, with a slight adjustment to the sauce in making it less salty, this dish will be perfect.
The scallops looked dry and was indeed dry. Bacon strips at the top of the scallops was not my cup of tea. I'd prefer to have bacon wrapped around a larger piece of juicy scallop. =P This hot appetizer was quite a disappointment to me.
Hmm, I've always liked carpaccio to be 100% raw meat instead of a roasted one...
Nevertheless, the presentation was pretty cool.
Mains
The 6 of us ordered 2x Irish Angus Rib-eye Steak (SGD 68++), 1 Black Angus Sirloin steak (SGD 60++), 1 BSK short rib beef burger (SGD 26++) and 2 Shepherd’s pie (SGD 38++).
Every main dish does not come with sides. *whuutttt?!* For photography sake, I combined all our side dishes together for the picture below. From left: Chips (SGD 12++), Mashed potato (SGD 12++), Spiced honey carrots (SGD 10++) and Seasonal greens, chili garlic dressing (SGD 10++). All the sides dishes were great. The vegetable tasted really special and I like the chili garlic dressing.
Irish Angus Rib-eye Steak 12oz 28 Days Aged Grass Fed (SGD 68++) with Blue Cheese Sauce
Very well cooked medium-rare Irish Angus Rib-eye Steak!
I have to say that the Rib-eye steak was FANTASTIC!! There's a layer of slight crisp on the surface with some charcoal taste and once my teeth was sank in, the juice of the beef oozed into my mouth! Every bite was delightful! I picked Blue Cheese sauce (can't remember what the other sauces are) and I find it a perfect match with the steak. If I managed to finish a 340 gram steak, it must be really YUMMY. OH YES, @gordongram liked my photo on Instagram! I hope this account isn't manage by his manager and it's GR himself is using it! Thank you for the like!!
GORDON RAMSAY LIKED MY PHOTO ON INSTAGRAM!
My Instagram photo (@lynne_chua)
BSK short rib beef burger, Monterey Jack cheese, spicy sriracha mayo (SGD 26++)
The burger looked unquestionably appetizing, I did not taste it but my colleague said it was very good.
Spiced honey carrots (SGD 10++)
One of the four sides that I find it special. I have never tried carrots cooked in spiced honey. It's rather unique and I like it.
Shepherd’s pie with braised lamb, onions, carrots, potato purée, and brioche garlic crumbs (SGD 38++)
A pity that I did not have a taste of the Shepherd's pie. 2 of my colleagues love it and according to their reviews, it was creamy due to the cheese used, braised lamb was savory and tasted like slices of pork, and the whole dish itself was very flavourful. I'd love to try it the next time I go! Photo was taken by LQ, edited by me. I was too engrossed with my rib-eye steak and forgotten about taking a picture of the Shepherd's pie!
Bill
The six of us at Bread Street Kitchen
It was an enjoyable lunch on a Thursday afternoon. The food was commendable except that some of the appetizers can be improved. GR is indeed living up to his reputation. Even though there are many mixed reviews, I think my stand will be on the positive side. I hope that GR will be there when I visit the next time!
It was a very short flight from Fairbanks to Alaska. My carry on luggage was too huge for Bombardier Q400 cabin's overhead compartment so I had to stow it under the seat in front of me, making the leg room for me and the person sitting next to me smaller. Oops.
Bombardier Q400 at Fairbanks Airport
On Board Bombardier Q400
THIS VIEW <3
Arrival at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport
Plane model hanging from the ceiling
25 Apr 2015, Saturday PST (UTC/GMT -8 hour)
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage airport itself is okay, but the view out of the windows was fantastic.
The view out of Anchorage airport
We rented a Toyota Corolla Altis from Dollar Car Rental at USD 74.65 for 2 days, including insurance for third party liability. Glad that they gave us the actual car we booked, not like the huge minivan in Fairbanks. GPS rental was USD 15 per day but we got it refunded when we returned the car the next day as the GPS device was a little bit 'crazy'.
En route to our resort, an hour drive away from the airport
There were many stopovers where we could pull our car over to rest and adore the beautiful nature.
Stunning view
Feels like a scene in Fast and Furious
As I was driving, LQ kindly offered to help me capture all the picturesque images with my iPhone. Thank you! =)
Alyeska Resort
Address: 1000 Arlberg Ave, Girdwood, AK 99587, United States
Contact: +1 907-754-2111
Website: http://www.alyeskaresort.com/
Saving the best for the last. Here's our awesome lodging for the first night in Anchorage, last night in Alaska!
Snow mountain view out of our window
Heated Pool at Alyeska Resort
Gym at Alyeska Resort
The friendly lady at the concierge provided us with many ideas on what we could do in Anchorage and also introduced us to a restaurant that serves really great food. As the restaurant only opens after 4.30pm on Saturday, we ate cup noodles that we bought at Fairbanks in our hotel room as we were really hungry. =p
On the way to our first destination in Anchorage
Panorama by my iPhone 6
Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center
Address: Seward Hwy, Girdwood, AK 99587, United States
Contact: +1 907-783-2025
Website: https://www.alaskawildlife.org/
Opening Hours for 2015 (https://www.alaskawildlife.org/hours/):
May 10 – September 17: 8:00 am to 8:00 pm (no entry after 7:30 pm)
September 18 – December 31, 2015: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm (no entry after 4:30 pm)
CLOSED: Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year’s Day
Map of AWCC
Ticket costs USD 12.50 per adult. You can choose to walk through the (huge) park or drive through it. We chose the latter as they were about to close in an hour, we didn't have much time left.
Our rented Toyota Corolla Altis
Hey Bear
Wefie with LQ
My Canon S100 lens won't open fully.....
We had a fun time looking at the different animals at the conservation center. On top of that, there were plenty of great spots for photography. LQ is the professional one with a Canon DSLR. I'm too lazy to carry a bulky camera whenever I go overseas so I don't think I'll ever buy a DSLR, unless someone is willing to carry it for me. =p Anyway, Canon S100 is good enough for normal photography (but not for stargazing, northern lights =/).
Byron Glacier Trail
Address: Byron Glacier Road, Girdwood, AK
As recommended by the lady at our resort's concierge, we drove to Byron Glacier, parked our car at the public car park (free) and began the trail. She mentioned that it's an easy trail and we could see or even tough the glacier at the end of the trail.
There's only a small tiny path, enough for 1 person to walk at a time, surrounded by leafless plants. Midway through, we did not see any human being at all and were really freaked out by the fact that there could be wild bears around. Thus, we chickened out and went back to our car. It's the end of the winter, the bears must be really hungry after a long hibernation! 2 girls was just ain't safe. It would be okay for a group of 4 and above. You can read up at TripAdvisor on what you can expect at the end of the trail.
Double Musky Inn *HIGHLY RECOMMENDED*
Address: 3 Crow Creek Rd, Girdwood, AK 99587, United States
Opening Hours: Tue-Thu 5pm-10pm, Fri-Sun 4:30pm-10pm; Closed on Mon
Contact: +1 907-783-2822
Website: http://www.doublemuskyinn.com/
This restaurant was super packed with a long waiting list. They do not accept any reservation. If you wanna dine here, you got to wait. Yes, we waited. While waiting, we walked around to explore the restaurant. It was full of vintage items with many objects hanging on the ceiling or the walls. We finally grabbed a seat at the bar to have some appetizer once someone left the bar table. It was not easy to get a seat at the bar! They have free WIFI too! That really helped to provide a distraction (Whatsapp/Instagram/Facebook) to 'shorten' the waiting time.
Sitting at the bar
Sitting at the bar while waiting
Double Musky Inn Appetizers Menu
Half Pound of Alaskan Red King Crab Leg with Drawn Butter
OHHH THE FLESHHHH WAS SOO SWEET!
I always thought that bigger crabs only have more flesh but less tasty. I was wrong. The Alaskan King Crab Leg was not only gigantic, its flesh was very fresh and sweet too! Together with the drawn butter, it was omgggg-so-yummy~!
We finally got a proper table about 2 hours after LQ put her name into the waiting list. What a long wait! As I read review on Swarm (after checking in) that all of their meals are big enough for two, we only ordered one medium-rare French Pepper Steak (USD 41) to share. And, it turned out to be the BEST steak I ever had in United States.
Double Musky Inn Menu Page 1
Double Musky Inn Menu Page 2
Free Bread =p
French Pepper Steak - 'Best Steak in America' says Jill Cordes of the 'Food Network'. A 16-20 oz New York steak, crusted with cracked pepper and covered with a spicy burgundy sauce. (USD 41)
Omg... I CAN'T
I LOVE THE CRUST OF THE STEAK. IT WAS SO GOOD, SO SO GOOD.
"Desserts for you?" No, we declined as we were really too full after having both the crab leg and the steak.
What a fantastic meal! If you ever come to Anchorage, you MUST visit this restaurant!
Our House Smoked Salmon (USD 15) & Alaskan King Crab (USD 16) Egg Benedicts!
King Crab Egg Benedict (USD 16)
Thumbs up for the Egg Benedicts! That was some awesome breakfast!
We headed to the concierge after our breakfast to find the same friendly lady who helped us yesterday, hoping to find something to do this afternoon before our flight at late night. She recommended us, again, to take the helicopter flight to the glacier. As we haven't seen any glacier yet and we were at ALASKA, it's just something we had to do, albeit EXPENSIVE as hell. OKAY, LET'S DO IT.
She kindly extended our check-out time from 12pm to 3.30pm as we were going to take the flight at 1.30pm and Alpine Air was picking us up at 1.15pm at the resort's lobby. It cost USD 385 for 60 minutes of flight + glacier landing. OUCH. But this was definitely going to be the second HIGHLIGHT of our trip! First being the encounter of Northern Lights at Fairbanks.
I volunteered to sit at the front, next to the pilot!
Our very first helicopter ride in each of our life! So thrilled! When the pilot asked 'who wants to take the seat at the front', I immediately raised my hand and put forward my interest. Hahaha. Trust me, if you aren't afraid of height, take the front seat and you'll get a full panoramic view. Please bring along your sunglasses as you'll be blinded by the reflection of the snow at the glacier! If you do not have sunglasses, Alpine Air have plenty for you to choose from. LQ's sunglasses was provided by Alpine Air. I was happy to stick with my own polarized Raybans which I bought last year at Las Vegas Premium Outlets. =)
Wefie before the flight commenced. Clockwise from my left - Pilot, Guy who joined the tour with us, LQ and me.
Let's fly~ Up up here we go~
Above is a video of our helicopter flight gliding through the valleys!
Such pretty blue glacier!
4 mountain goats spotted
Can you spot the wild Moose?
Alright, here it is.
<3
Above is a video of the majestic glacier taken with my iPhone! IT'S REALLY SPECTACULAR!
Landed! Happy us!
Pilot helping LQ to take her jumpshot
I ALMOST TRIPPED AND FALL INTO THE GAPS BETWEEN 2 GLACIERS. SO SCARY!
=D
On our way back, I took the back seat and LQ took the front!
LQ with the Pilot
Perfect for Skiing
Good Bye Beautiful
Looking at the map while our pilot pointed our flight path to us
IT WAS AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE. WORTH EVERY $$. If money can buy you experience and you can afford it, BUY. Such awesome memory will definitely stay with me as long as I'm alive. Thank you Alpine Air Alaska for their great hospitality!! <3
We had our lunch at Aurora Bar & Grill in our resort before we set off and drive to the airport. Shall not elaborate much as the food was mehhhhh.
On our way to the airport
Yummy yogurt at the airport
Start of our 30 hours journey back to Singapore
This trip to U.S.A. was splendid. I had many firsts - Watching baseball game live at the suite, flying a propeller plane from Fairbanks to Anchorage, witnessing the Northern Lights at Fairbanks, flying the helicopter and seeing the majestic glaciers. Lastly, it's my first time flying first/business classes on United Airlines back home!! I flew Business Class on British Airways in 2004 when I was still young (I got a free upgrade as I was flying alone) and couldn't enjoy the full benefits. Thankful for what I have today. I'd really advise you to travel the world and discover what you can never imagine. Seeing is believing. =)
I just came back from my trip to New Zealand in May. Will blog about it soon! See my Instagram @lynne_chua for more #lynnetravels photos. Cheers, Lynne.
