Summer 2012 South East Asia Bucket List

Day dreaming about being here ♥

Still not done with my summer trimester. There is still about 2 and a half weeks left and in the meantime, I'm day dreaming about all the wonderful things I will get to do once I leave. Since there has been so many ideas whirling around in my mind, I thought I would compile a list of what I look forward to and what I really want to do, a sort of bucket list I guess you could say.

I simply cannot wait to start packing and enjoy the sun, the sand, the beach and the foods there. To this day, my trip to South East Asia remains my favorite and I'm beyond excited about going back now that I have more traveling experience!

Since it's not my first time in South East Asia, some of the things on here are repeats, things I have already done in the past. I've added them on there because I enjoyed them so much that I cannot see myself not doing it again :)

By the way, sorry for the recent lack of makeup looks recently, I got eczema around the eyes again and can't wear any makeup at all (plus it looks horrid :P) Hopefully it goes away soon!

What's your bucket list for Summer 2012? Let me know in the comments below!

Hostel Balboa Bay - Panama City

Hostel Balboa Bay review and description! Hope it helps :)

Although our stay there ended up being just fine, this wasn't our first choice. In fact, we rode a cab to over 4 other hostels which were full before we settled on this one.

Price : 35$ Per night for a private double (with a double bed and a single bed), with private bathroom, cold water, television, air conditioning and free breakfast cooked for you upon request.

Services/amenities : 5$ wifi, 2 computers available for free in the lobby.

Rooms : One thing you can safely say about the hostel Balboa bay's rooms is that they are was very spacious and clean. The bed was quite comfortable and the bathroom was clean (although it did have a second door leading to what appeared to be a second room which was a little odd - there was a lock on the door to make sure no one could get in though). The main issue with the room was that there was a big gaping hole in the ceiling, about  one and a half foot wide. Although there seemed to be nothing coming out of it, it still made us pretty uneasy.

Staff : The staff was polite, but not particularly chatty.

Overall, we enjoyed staying at Hostel Balboa Bay. It was a nice place and a pretty good deal considering all that was included in the price. The location, near the city centre was near shopping malls, but not in a very scenic neighbourhood. We could walk around just fine though, which is more that you can say about most Central American capitals.

Hostel Casa Verde - Bocas Del Toro

 Hostel Casa Verde is probably the coolest hostel we've stayed in so far. It has tons to offer and is relatively cheap :D

Price : 33$ per night for a private double, including shared bathrooms with hot water ( I never had hot water while I was there), air-conditioning and mini fridge in the room. Free wifi.

Services/amenities : Waterfront, deck, tubes, grill, hammocks, restaurant/bar, full kitchen, cheap laundry service.

Rooms : The rooms were pretty bare apart from a couple drawings on the walls, but clean enough. The bed was comfortable and the linens very clean. The walls are definitely not very thick though, and we could hear conversations (and by that I mean a screaming drunk girl in the middle of the night making a scene) very clearly. Also since there is music from the bar right downstairs it's not the ideal place for an afternoon nap. The party moves on to nearby bars pretty early though, so it's not really a problem at night.

Staff : Friendly and quite helpful for the most part, they always answer our questions and even chatted with us a couple times.

Restaurant/bar : The restaurant at hostel Casa Verde was pretty expensive, but the food served was high quality. The choices were pretty limited too. Their BLTs (5$) and burgers (6$) are very good, but the grilled cheese (4$) tasted a little bland.

Bathrooms : The bathrooms always appeared very clean, with ample supply of toilet paper.

We loved staying at the hostel Casa Verde and would definitely recommend it! The atmosphere was nice and laid-back, the perfect spot to spend some time just relaxing near the sea.

Casa Max Hostel - Bocas Del Toro

Casa Max Hostel is the first spot we stayed at in Bocas Del Toro, here is a review of what we thought about it :)

Price: 25$ US for a double room, including bathroom with hot water, fan and a balcony.

Services/ amenities : Free wifi, restaurant and bar.

Room : The room is a good medium size, pretty clean (although the walls could use a scrub), comfortable overall. Cute decor (paint and wooden furnishings). The mattress was hovewever very springy and somewhat hard, which was quite uncomfortable for a side sleeper like me. Also, the mosquito screen had holes in it.

Bathroom : One thing I really enjoyed about Casa Max is the spotless bathroom. The bathroom was really tiny, but very clean. The floor was tiled and the separate shower had blue-tinted glass door. Hot water was working well which was a very nice bonus.

Staff : Not particularly attentive or friendly, but they were nice nonetheless.

Restaurant : We didn't try it, it seemed to be empty/closed most of the time.

Overall, the atmosphere at the Casa Max Hostel was very quiet and comfortable. There was, however, two parrotts kept in a cage at the reception which would screech extremely loudly early in the morning. It was a little bit annoying, but nothing we couldn't live with. It was a nice place and the private bathroom with hot water was a real treat.

Hostel Pangea [Travel Review]

Hostel Pangea was our very first and last stop of this Central American trip. We have stayed here three times, on three different occasions, every time we were in transit in San Jose.

Price : Double room with a shared bathroom and cold water, no air conditionning is 32$ US. The dorms were only 13$ per person though.

Location : Near the city centre, only 1 km away from the bus terminals.

Amenities/services : Pool, roof-top bar and restaurant, free wifi Internet, computer room, TV room, travel agency.

Rooms : The rooms are tiny, barely big enough to contain a queen sized bed and nothing else. Bare and undecorated, they are simple, but still clean and comfortable. Basically, you pay more for the ambiance and services here than for the room itself, which has nothing more than a bed to offer.

Restaurant/bar : Beer 2.50$, burger a little over 5$, plate of fresh fruits 4$. The food at hostel Pangea is not cheap in comparison to other spots in Central America. The quality is good though and they claim that they serve the best burgers in San Jose (I would hate to see what the worst one is =p) The atmosphere was laid back and pleasant and there is free coffee in the morning.

Staff : Very friendly and helpful.

Pool : It seemed very clean and well-kept, but we didn't go for a dip since it was raining.

Bathrooms : The bathrooms are shared so of course, you would expect them to be slightly less spotless. However, it was not the case and everytime I had to use the bathroom it was very clean. The showers were also very clean.

The hotel also arranges tours and offers a shuttle to the airport for only 10$ per person (we took a taxi and paid 27$, so it's a good deal!)

Hostel Pangea is a great place, if a little expensive (but everything in Costa Rica is more expensive). We might return on our way back home! ^^ We came back two more time because we liked it so much!

Astoria Hotel Review : Fairfield Inn Marriott

Price : We got a great deal for our night on Priceline.com we paid 62$ US for the night.

Location : Ten minutes by car from the La Guardia Airport in New York City.

Amenities/services : complimentary continental breakfast, free airport shuttle, free wifi Internet.

Rooms : the room we had was not very large, but big enough to fit everything comfortably. It included a work area, a comfortable lounge chair, queen size bed with foam mattress, flat screen television as well as  a coffee maker, an iron with ironing board and hair dryer. In other words, it is equipped just like any standard 2 star hotel. The room was spotless, fresh and cutely decorated.

Staff : The personnel was very professional, attentive and friendly. The lady at the reception desk gave us tons of information and offered to give us maps and menus if we needed them.

Breakfast : there were quite a few breakfast options available. We had cold cereal, but everything else also looked fresh and yummy ♥ There were wsffles, sandwiches, bread, yogourt, fruits, juices, coffee and much more. The breakfast starts a 6:30 and we needed to be at the airport for 7:15 which was a little tight, but we made it! =D

Shuttle : Quick, on time and efficient but incredibly bumpy. It looked like the driver was in a hurry! XD

Overall, we had a great experience at this hotel and would probably return!

Travel Review : Fairfield Inn Mariott Astoria