Monday, October 3, 2016

Riviera Maya Mexico 2016

I went to Mexico with best friends and we stayed at Iberostar Paraiso Beach in Riviera Maya. It's an all-inclusive resort, so food, drinks and non-motor activities were all included. 
Check out my vlog for highlights of my trip:

We flew from Montreal on September 22nd and there was a free shuttle service from airport to our resort. It was about 40-50 minutes away from Cancun airport. The resort was big and nice. The employees were so nice and helpful and we had a great time. Our rooms were small especially since we were 4 in a room and the beds were small for all of us (we had 2 double beds). 
We spent most of the time at the beach. It was so relaxing! We tried kayaking at the beach, which was a lot of fun.  
 
They had free drinks and buffet at the beach including burgers, fries, rice etc. The best part was the self served ice cream machine (vanilla, chocolate and both). My friends and I loved it! It was so good! 
 
We each got henna tattoos at the beach. The prices started from $10 USD and depending on the design, it can go up to $30 USD. 
 
At our beach, there was an area where they had some paid water activities (parasailing, jet skiing). We decided to try parasailing and it was our first time trying it. One of my friends and I went first and everything went well but then when our other two friends went, it didn't go too well. They dropped in water and a guy came to their rescue.
However, our only complaint is the food at our resort. There were a couple of restaurants and we were able to reserve two restaurants. We tried Italian restaurant called Don Alfredo and we really didn't like the food there. They also had free room service and delivered food like pizza, chicken nuggets, nachos, etc.  
Room Service
La Dorada (Mediterranean restaurant) was much nicer though and their food tasted much better.
La Dorada Restaurant 
La Dorada Restaurant 
This was the only time we actually enjoyed our food. They had a lot of seafood options.
La Dorada Restaurant 
As for the other days, we ate at the buffets they had and even though they had variety of dishes, the quality just wasn't there. Their
Breakfast Buffet
Even though we spent most of our time at the beach, we did check out their pools, which were nice.

Overall, it was a nice trip and best part was we got to travel altogether and celebrate our 10 years of friendship. 


Monday, February 1, 2016

LA Vlog January 2016

It was my first time going to Los Angeles and I can't wait to go back! I only went there for 3 nights and mainly for Gen Beauty, so I didn't get to explore too much. Stay tuned for my Gen Beauty Haul! I didn't get the swag bag unfortunately but I did get a couple of beauty products on Saturday.
  • Thursday, Jan 28th: I met Danielle at the airport and we checked into our hotel (The Westin Bonaventure). We had lunch at a Mexican restaurant near our hotel and then went to The Grove.
  • Friday, Jan 29th: Danielle and I visited Hollywood and took the Starline tour bus. Then later that night I went to Generation Beauty Party. I got to meet Marcia for the first time. To end off the night, we went to the revolving lounge at our hotel (Bona Vista Lounge) with 2 new friends we made.
  • Saturday, Jan 30th: I had breakfast with Danielle and Jean and we went to Generation Beauty. I only got to meet Michelle Phan that day! For dinner, we went for Korean BBQ. 
Also check out my friend Danielle's vlog:

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Dubai Vlog August 2015

I'm back in Montreal but here's my last vlog from my last trip to Karachi/Dubai. This time I stayed at Mövenpick Hotel & Apartments Bur Dubai, which was quite spacious and perfect for my family. I'd really recommend it especially for longer stay.

Restaurants Mentioned
  • Bamyan Afghan Restaurant (delivery)
  • Shades - The Address Dubai Marina 
  • Afternoon Tea at At.mosphere Restaurant & Lounge - Burj Khalifa (direct access from Armani hotel lobby)
  • Ladurée - Dubai Mall  
Malls:
  • Dubai Mall
  • Ibn Battuta Mall

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Karachi Vlog

My sister recently got married in Karachi. I did vlog throughout my trip there. I was there from July 30th to August 19th. 



Sunday, August 9, 2015

Dubai Vlog Part 1

I usually make a stop to Dubai before going to Pakistan. I stayed there for 2 nights (July 28th to July 30th). I got to see my childhood friend's baby (she currently lives in Dubai) and I spent most of my time at Dubai Mall. There's honestly so many things to do at that mall. I also made a stop at Sephora, where I bought a pair of Huda Beauty lashes and eyelash glue. 

Sunday, October 5, 2014

Las Vegas

Trip Summary


I went to Las Vegas with my sister for 4 days and got to roam around Las Vegas Strip. There's so much to do and 4 days were enough to explore around. If I had stayed longer, I would have gone to Grand Canyon. We didn't watch any shows or go clubbing or anything like that. We just roamed around and checked out the touristic places.


High Roller 
We didn't take cab or monorail but instead we just walked around. It was very hot during the day but then after 4 PM, it wasn't so bad! They have pedestrian bridges, so people can get on other side of the road. These are great (when they're not crowded) to get an elevated view of the city.


Pedestrian Overpass
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Hotels/Resorts

 
Most of the hotels/resorts represent a theme or city around the world (Paris, Venice, New York, Luxor, etc). We got a chance to visit some of the other hotels/resorts. I've listed them out below.
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Bellagio
This italian themed resort has a couple of attractions: Conservatory and Botanical Gardens,  Fiori di Como, The Fountains. I didn't get to visit the conservatory and botanical gardens and Fiordi di Como. The Fountains, however, are hard to miss since this attraction is found outside of the resort and has several show times each day. Click here for more information on show times.


Here's a short video of the fountains:

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Caesars Palace



This is an ancient Roman inspired resort. You will find many statues inside and outside.



Its has a shopping mall connected to it: Forum Shops.


 This mall has a number of stores including high end stores (Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Christian Louboutin, Fendi, Gucci). Click here to see the full list of stores.



There's also the restaurant The Cheesecake Factory there.


Outside of Caesars Palace, there's also another comfort food restaurant: Serendipidity 3. We went there. Click here read my blog post on it.



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The Linq
We didn't go inside the Linq. We actually went there for High Roller. Click here to read more about our experience there.

Here's a short video of the High Roller:

There are a couple of restaurants at the Linq open-air avenue.


We only went to Sprinkles Cupcakes. Click here to read my blog post on it.

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Mirage


This is a tropical themed resort makes you feel that you're on an island. It has these beautiful waterfalls.
Daytime view of the waterfalls 
Nighttime view of the waterfalls
I'd really recommend you stop in front of the resort at night to see the Volcano eruption, which runs every 30 minutes from 8 PM to midnight.



Here's a short video clip of the Volcano eruption: 
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New York - New York



As we were walking to this hotel, we noticed there were less people. Most people are around the middle of the strip (Paris Hotel, Bellagio, Venetian, The Linq, etc). It took us awhile to get there and we were out the whole day, so we were really tired when we got there. We didn't stay too long and sadly we didn't see the replica of Statue of Liberty.

Here's a short clip of the replica of Brooklyn Bridge:


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Paris Las Vegas

This hotel is located in the middle of the strip and features a replica of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. It's about the half size of the actual one.



We went to the Eiffel Tower Observation Deck to get a 360-degree view of the city. Click here to read more about the Eiffel Tower Experience.


We also went to their restaurant: Sugar Factory, which has its store attached to it as well. Click here to read more about it.


You can get a good view of the Bellagio Fountains from Sugar Factory restaurant:


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Venetian

We stayed at Venetian and we really enjoyed our stay there! We had the Bella Suite. Click here to read my blog post on my stay there.



This resort is connected to both Palazzo and Grand Canal Shoppes.
Palazzo
My favorite part of Venetian is the gondola ride! They have these rides outside the resort and inside Grand Canal Shoppes. We went to the outside one. It's so peaceful! I loved it! I'd definitely go back! We barely had to wait for the ride.



Here's a short clip of gondola ride (outside):



As for the gondolas rides inside of Grand Canal Shoppes, there are often lineups to get in.



Here's a short clip of gondola ride (inside):



Besides foodcourt, there are a couple of restaurants at the Venetian (mainly in the Grand Canal Shoppes). We went to two of them: Canaletto and Grand Lux Cafe.

Canaletto
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Attractions

I went through all of these activities/attractions above. Here's just a summary of those attractions/activities along with the videos.
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Click here to read blog post.
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Fountains of Bellagio
Here's a short video of the fountains:

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Gondola Ride at Venetian 
Here's a short clip of gondola ride (inside):
 
Here's a short clip of gondola ride (outside):
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High Roller at Linq 
Click here to read blog post.

Here's a short video of the High Roller:
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Volcano at the Mirage
Here's a video of the Volcano eruption:
 

Venetian Las Vegas


We had the Bella Suite. It was quite spacious! On one side of the suite, there were 2 queen beds. There was also a flat-screen LCD HD TV as well as a mini fridge fully stocked, couldn't be used for personal use though (we were advised not to take anything out otherwise we'd be charged for it).




Adjacent to the bedroom, there was a separate living area with a sofa set, desk table and dining table with 3 seats.


 The bathroom featured a roman bathtub with separate glass-enclosed shower; double sink vanity, dressing table and a separate toilet room. There was also flat-screen 17 inch LCD HD TV; hotel toiletries (bar soap, shampoo, conditioner, bath soap) and bath robes.


On the dressing table, there was a small box with a some cotton swabs, nail file, sewing kit, etc. There was also a vanity mirror with light. and a hair dryer placed inside the drawer.


The room featured 3 flat-screen LCD HD TVs: one in bathroom, bedroom and living room.


Whatelse was included in the suite: 
Safety Deposit Box
Iron & Ironing board
Remote-controlled Roman shades and curtains
Complimentary WI-FI
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In-Suite Dining

As for their in-suite dining, the food wasn't too good. Click here to see their menu. On one night, we got Vegetarian pizza, which wasn't that good. It was edible but not tasty. However, their fresh watermelon juice was good (I love fresh fruit juice).


On another night, we got Quesadilla (cheese)Caesar Salad and Tahitian Vanilla Crème brûlée. Quesadilla didn't taste that great. As for the salad, it was good but they didn't cut the Romaine lettuce (not a big deal but something I've never seen done before). Luckily the crème brûlée was good. We also got tea that night. 


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Luggage Storage
We had to check-out at 1 PM but our flight was at 11:30 PM, so we wanted to store our luggage. We handed in our luggage and were given a tag that we had to show to claim our luggage.  It was a very simple process.
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Overall Impression

We had a great stay at the Venetian! Our beds were very comfortable and we weren't disturbed at all throughout our stay. The staff for the most part was very nice. During our check-in, the front desk receptionist was extremely nice! She took her time to give us the information of the resort and we had told her about her late flight and she gave us late check-out and told us about the luggage storage.

The main downside to this resort is the internet!!! The internet connection in our suite was terrible! We were barely able to use the internet throughout the stay. However, the internet was very fast in the casino area. Also, I do wish they had a coffee machine or something in the room. Otherwise, we had a good stay in this resort!