Not All Who Wander Are Lost

Yangon to Bagan, Myanmar. 

My sister and I planned this trip on a whim, booked a ticket and only had eight days to prepare. We’ve been yearning to go to Bagan long before but the cost of airfare isn’t cheap as there are no direct flights from the Philippines to Yangon. You have to fly to Singapore first, then Yangon then a nine hour bus trip to Bagan. I love adventures so hopping from one place to another would be a delight for me no matter how exhausting it would be. My sister booked our plane ticket whilst I booked all our hotel accommodations and bus ticket to Bagan, call it division of labor, each should have a dedicated task so we’re not in disarray. We’re just gonna back pack, no check in luggages just couple of knapsacks, shoulder bags, neck pillows and that’s it.

JJ Express VIP Bus 

photo courtesy of JJ Express

Our plan is to stay for one night in Yangon, take an overnight VIP bus via JJ Express to Bagan the next night (which I have already pre-booked on Facebook over messenger), stay in Bagan for couple of days, then, take another overnight bus back to Yangon on the third day. Speaking of JJ Express VIP bus, it was a breeze reserving a bus ticket online, all you have to do is search for their Facebook page and make your reservation over FB messenger. They will  send in a photo file of the available schedules, ask you to take your pick, send in your seat number then advise you to pay for your reservation at the designated gate once you’re there in Yangon/Bagan. I even requested a seat right next to each other for my sister and I and it was no problem. Btw, I also opted for a roundtrip reservation so all we have to do is to pay for them once we reached the bus station on the day of our trip Yangon-Bagan and vice versa. 

Tigerconnect

This is an optional service offered by Tiger Airways for connecting flights with a layover of over 8 hours which you may pre-pay or pay as you go at the airport. It is already included in your airfare btw if your layover is within 8 hours. We decided to also pre-booked this because we don’t want to go through the hassles of clearing through immigrations every time. If you availed Tigerconnect, all you have to do is head off straight to Transfer Lounge E and skip immigrations. However, you’re not allowed to leave the airport premises as you’re still in transit. Technically you just swing by in whatever country your layover is thus need to pass through immigration if you want to explore the country which is not allowed if you availed this service. With what I’ve read as well, if you have Tigerconnect you need not collect your check in luggage as Tiger will automatically transfer it to the next plane you’re boarding. All you need to do upon arrival at the airport is head straight to Transfer lounge E, collect your boarding pass (check in at a transit hotel/lounge if your layover is too long say 12hrs or so, explore the airport etc.) otherwise wait for your next flight. In my sister and I's experience though we got all our boarding passes all at once as they were  handed to us before we fly out (Manila-Singapore flight) so when it's time for our connecting flight, all we did was find our boarding gate.

Some of my carry-on essentials: Macbook filled with movies
(sorry no inflight  movies for economy flights), medicines, snacks, 
candies in case you feel dizzy, make-up kit, point and shoot camera, 
wet tissues, coin purse, power bank, mobile phone of course, 
ipod, ear phones, a pen and notebook, sunnies in case you fly 
during the day. 

Anyways, In the mean time, let me share my carry on essentials:

• Laptop💻 - this is the best solution if you're traveling on a shoestring budget since most economy flights do not offer inflight entertainment. I usually store my favorite movies in my Macbook in case I'll be flying night time and I don't feel like sleeping. 

• Mobile phone 📱 - you're mobile phone is pretty much useless without wifi and network signal that's why I make sure to store as many of my favorite eBooks to keep me preoccupied or in the event boredom strikes. 😩  And oh, I also use my phone by the way to easily tell the local time in my destination. I often add the city where I'm headed to my phone's clock app so I can easily tell what time it is back home and locally. If you're an iPhone user just simply tap on your clock app and go to world clock > tap on the + sign (upper right) > select the country/city and you're done. 

• Medicines Kit - we do not anticipate diarrhea, dizziness or catch a cold hours before landing but who knows right? It's always pretty convenient to carry along your prescription drugs and other medicines with you. 💊
• Snacks🍫 - it's good to carry along snacks with you such as candies or energy bars in case you get hungry anytime (i.e. long queue in the check in counter, sudden flight delays etc.)
• Camera 📷 - I always carry a back up camera with me in case my camera phone malfunction or worse case scenario I lose it which of course we are not anticipating.
• Make-up/Vanity kit - I make it a habit to do some last minute touch ups first before the plane lands. You wouldn't want to look haggard and unkempt after a flight.
• Coin purse/Wallet - No money, may it be cash or credit card, you're doomed. 
• Passport Holder - best way to keep your passport of course, boarding passes, receipts etc. it's such a shame to rummage through your purse at the boarding gate and you're already running late. 
• Power Bank - charging your electronic gadgets made easy and convenient in case you do not have access to a power port which usually the case is once you board the plane unless you travel first class. 😉
• iPod and earphones 🎧 - It's always best to keep your favorite music handy during flights. The engine noise can be quite annoying especially when you're trying to catch some sleep that's why I would rather listen to music until I fall asleep. 
• Sunnies😎 - I cannot leave the house without my sunnies because they protect my eyes from the sun's glare. If you happen to travel in the morning and picked a window seat, it's always handy to wear  one especially when the sunlight is at its strongest. 
• Wet and Dry tissues - Touched something dirty or a drink spilled on you? No problem when you carry with you both wet and dry tissues plus it's always sanitary to bring one in case you want to wipe the toilet seat first in the lavatory before you use them, just saying. 
• Pen and Paper📝 - I  use this to write anything important whenever I feel lazy fishing for my phone. 

Read More

Don't Judge The Book

Jagger at four months old. He loves the front door
so much.

My sister and I decided to take Jagger, our Dad’s dog for a walk this morning just around the village since we kind of noticed he’s turning limp lately probably due to lack of exercise which is really bad for dog his breed. Jagger just celebrated his one year with us last November and he’s grown surprisingly big which is not supposedly a wonder since German Shepherds seems to have growth spurt, one day they’re cute and tiny then the next few months they turn into giants.

My Dad and my other sister bought Jagger from a local pet shop inside the mall when he was just a four month old puppy (he's now one year and two months old) in lieu of our ten year old GSD Brandon who passed away few days after Christmas back in 2015 which I also wrote about here on my blog. They were just supposed to have a look at Jagger and not bring him home but his sappy character melted their hearts so they ended up buying him instead. We were heart broken with Brandon's demise so we told our Dad many times to not anymore own a big dog as it’s no joke to care for one. Brandon was really special to my Dad, he even enrolled him to a canine academy to train him and even had a certificate for finishing the course when he was few years old. A canine academy is a training school/ground for future bomb sniffing dogs or police dogs basically. I know how silly it may sound but yes GSDs are highly specialized dogs being trained for such purpose. Brandon was entirely different from Jagger because he went to a canine school: he was disciplined and doesn't hate cats, does not bark for no reason nor eat anything thrown at him by strangers other than his owners and he could care less about any feline passing by our house, Jagger was the opposite. During Jagger's first few months with us we wondered eventually how come we never heard him bark until one fine day he did so our worries dissipated afterwards. It was our first time to have a GSD puppy as well because Brandon was about seven months old when he joined our family. 

Jagger the GSD, he's turning
two this year. I took this photo
of him inches away from
my face 😂

He sounds like a trombone every time
he howls 🎺

Anyways, going back, while walking Jagger, this couple turned up and I saw how alarmed the woman looked after she saw Jagger from afar which I totally understand since many people have this german-shepherds-will-always-bite impression every time they see one big of a dog like ours. Totally scared to her wits, the woman asked does it bite? (pertaining to Jagger) before she went ahead and pave her way which of course we said no. Jagger isn't really interested with humans to be honest and he's too kind for a GSD.

My sister and I have been talking why such stereotype is attached to dogs his breed that they either will bite, maul/tear you apart, attack people while in fact, with proper training, GSDs aren’t really vicious but are highly intelligent dogs and won't hurt anyone unless they are provoked or sense any threat. When Brandon was still alive, never was I've seen him attack any of our other dogs at home. I know, I know, it’s not easy to not get scared of pit bulls neither so I guess it also applies to huge dogs like German Shepherds.

Jagger’s crime so far? He’s dug up and eaten some of our house plants, chewed on a front yard wall outlet (the plastic part) and my niece’s bike (one of the pedals) but we love him dearly no matter how he love food like crazy and seemed possessed come eating time. I’m just hoping that someday, people will eradicate these common misconceptions that GSDs do not do anything but attack people and bite whilst they can even serve the army and happened to be a very reliable house pet to guard your homes. They just cannot stay put though because they are curious dogs and love to learn, think thus gets easily bored when they’re stagnant. 

Much ado about nothing..

Breakfast of Champions 🤘🏽

Moving on, I had rolled oats with apple chunks, raisins and blueberry syrup for breakfast which I totally enjoy because I don’t crave for food that much whenever I eat oats in the morning.

Selecta's new ice cream
sandwich is oh so good 🍦

By the way, let me also just share how I love Selecta's new ice cream sandwich in chocolate vanilla as it reminds of Orchard road in Singapore where they sell those cool treats for 1-2 SGD each. Actually they sell them everywhere in Singapore ‘cuz I also found their stalls in botanical gardens and parks. Why do I keep on talking about Singapore lately? I guess I miss their chicken rice and Makansutra’s Aglio Oglio. Maybe I’m homesick to a place I don’t know where. 

Related Post:
http://musingsofabatgirl.blogspot.com/search?q=german+shepherd

Read More