#kayleentraveltips (U.S)

Hey all! I've recently spent a couple of weeks overseas, and I wanted to share with you guys on some tips I've picked up along the way :) I'm also peppering this post with random images from my trip cos I realised it's just a huge chunk of text LOL.

The iconic Universal Studios Hollywood entrance

So I recently made my virgin trip to the U.S of A! It's been a dream of mine to travel there, but there was always the problem of budget/time. When I graduated from uni, I thought it'd be best to take this opportunity to travel while I can.

I camped on www.skyscanner.com for a few weeks. Mind you, I did book my ticket WAY in advance. I flew to LA on 26th Feb, but I got my tickets in Oct 2014 LOL. So, planning ahead is always great.

I love skyscanner! Basically, it scans most sites for the cheapest tickets. I also did a little research, and what they say on the Internet is true guys! *sarcasm intended* HAHA but srsly tho. Tuesdays/Wednesdays/Thursdays are really the days with the cheapest flights.

I paid $1,180SGD for my two way ticket from SIN > LAX, laying over in Narita, Japan. My carrier was Delta airlines, a U.S carrier. The flight wasn't too bad, it was a full service* flight.

*full service: meals are included. Unlike budget airlines, which most teenagers/young adults (sigh having to add that part is killing me a little lol) in Singapore are used to, budget airlines basically don't even serve you water. You have to bring your own water. This means bringing an empty bottle into the boarding area and refilling it at the gate #cheapotips #notpaying3bucksforwater

Anyone would tell you 1.2k is a really cheap ticket. Also, my flight times weren't out of the blue. I departed SG at 6am and reached LA at 10am. My return flight was also departing LA at 11am and reaching SG at midnight. (of course, the time differences apply).

I'm at Central Perk! Coffee, anyone?

I really hate 2/3/4/5am flights. My Bali trip in November was a 3am flight that got DELAYED :( So basically we spent our sleeping hours awake at the airport. Thank goodness we were trapped at Changi Airport, which is also one of the nicest in the world (we make the lists for a reason).

The Universal movie lots!

So, for long haul flights, book at least 2 months in advance, camp on skyscanner for at least 2 weeks before buying. Skyscanner also provides updates to you via email, so that if the price drops/rises, you'll be updated by email.

I camped from mid Sept - Oct (for about a month cos I was still deciding my dates) and decided that I wanted the Delta flight for a couple of reasons - laying over in Japan = Japanese food! :D and the timings were great.

There was a cheaper flight, only $980 for China Air, but I didn't want to cos the timings were bad and also, laying over in Guangzhou. Then you'll be boarding the plane with (you-know-who) (not Voldemort, worse people) and I am biased and I don't wanna. *kicks feet* HAHA yeah so I camped till Delta was at it's lowest which was the price I paid.

Also, camping for awhile helps you make a better decision on how low the prices would go!

Accommodations-wise, for my New York leg of the trip I would be travelling with my friend who lives in LA (I also roomed with her so no recommendations on cheap accommodations in L.A, sorry.) I booked our flight + hotel (Ameritania Hotel on Times Square, 230 W 54th St, New York, NY 10019, United States), each of us only paid $600ish for our flight + 4D3N of hotel!!! SO DAMN CHEAP.

Hey Spongebob! Why are you taller than me ._.

HOW DID I DO IT? Expedia. HAHA.

For domestic flights, I really recommend Expedia, because there's a further discount if you book your flight + hotel thru them. Plus, if you download the mobile app, it basically includes everything inside. You don't even have to print out your itinerary if you don't have to! Most airlines are now paperless, all you have to do is show your passport and they'll process your booking. (I realise this doesn't apply for budget airlines because you don't have to input passport details when you book, but to be on the safe side, screenshot your booking reference/details)

Expedia also has really fast response rate. Here's my example:

My flight out of JFK on the 5th of March was cancelled due to bad visibility (the snow), my friend and I didn't even know till she got a text from her friend asking if our flight was affected (on this note, American Airlines (AA) suck cos they didn't send me any notification at all). On my Expedia app, my original flight was still present, but there were 2 other flights that were below the original flight that isn't supposed to be there. It was a flight to Boston on 6th Mar and Boston to LAX (Basically our rerouted flight).

Snow in Central Park!!!

I was at MoMA, the walk from MoMA back to my hotel on Broadway, the American Airlines helpline in U.S were still putting me on hold. Annoyed, I called the Expedia in Singapore (I bought a SIM card that allowed me to call back to Singapore for free) and they picked up almost immediately.

To give them credit, I'm sure most of the people who were scheduled to depart JFK on the 5th were calling them to check if their flight was cancelled (U.S efficiency is really bad, one thing I missed the most about Asia). They should have a notice on their website saying that flights were cancelled! Instead, they put a list of cities experiencing bad weather (which was like 10+ cities) and indicated that if we were one of them, please call the hotline to confirm that our flight is still on. That's really dumb. Can't you just put a list of flights that are cancelled?! NO. *sighs*

#selfie in front of Rockefeller Centre (the skating rink is behind me!)

So Expedia managed to get ahold of AA and confirmed that our flight was cancelled, and that we were rerouted on to another flight the next day. This meant that we had to book another night of hotel stay cos it was the next day ._. (and this is also why you should get travel insurance! I managed to claim for flight delay as well as my hotel stay)

Just FYI, the additional night of hotel I paid was 174.47USD = 237SGD (the exchange rate was 1USD = 1.36SGD) *also claimed from travel insurance yay! Personally, I try to get travel insurance for my travels, mainly for the peace of mind that if anything happens I'm covered (I'm not selling insurance, just personal experience here guys) I try to get the ones from banks, and submit the claims myself. I paid about 90SGD for my one month of insurance for worldwide travel, and claimed over 600SGD for expenses incurred etc. There was a 40% sale in December and I utilised it.

SGD237 a night?! Imagine that x 3 nights + flight and I only paid $600ish *sheepish smile*

So that's it for booking your hotel and travel. I hope this helps you in booking your travel adventures! Remember to always shop around before booking. This is especially important if you're booking online! ;)

I'm gonna do a post on shopping in the states next, stay tuned! :D
P.S I'm not paid by any of the above companies to mention them. I just find it really useful, so sharing the love ;) All currency mentioned is in Singapore Dollars.

Cheers.

#kaytruffleventures

So... not to be too mainstream, but truffle seems to be all the rage recently. Truffle fries, truffle-infused products, etc. Due to the staggering amount of good food I've had lately, decided to do a truffle post.

The first time I had truffle anything was at TWG, their truffle infused scrambled eggs are still the best I've ever had hehe.
(P.S the prices are not nett unless otherwise stated, there's usually a service charge of 10% and GST of 7%)

Scrambled Eggs

TWG

S$19

Okay this is not the photo of the first time but it's the same thing!

There's also a small roll of smoked salmon behind that I didn't manage to capture.

[update: I found the photo of the first time I had it! A much better photo haha it's the 2nd one]

Truffle-worthiness: 

Price:

Mushroom and Bacon in Truffle Cream Sauce

Lola's Cafe

S$14

As I've mentioned in an earlier post, this is one of the best pastas that I've had. The issue (that I'm sure most people face) is that cream pastas get a little overwhelming (or jelat, as most say) after the first few bites.

But, NO. This doesn't happen. I'm not sure if it's cos of the truffle or the way they balance the cream sauce, but it's done perfectly.

Truffle-worthiness:

 Price:

Truffle Fries

Lola's Cafe

S$12

This cafe doesn't disappoint, the truffle fries wasn't overpowering but you could still taste the truffle. My only grouse is that the serving is too small for the price that I'm paying! Haha. But good to share with friends.

Truffle-worthiness:

Price:

Truffle Chicken Bites

Table Manners @ Changi City Point

S$10

This was a total disappointment, the chicken bites were overly oily, and not truffle oil, but regular cooking oil. I couldn't taste any truffle at all, and not for a lack of trying.

This was included as part of a Groupon 3 course set meal I got, perhaps because it's Groupon, hence the quality of the food isn't as good? I was still disappointed, cos I heard that it was a restaurant worth trying.

I won't be returning.

Truffle-worthiness:

 Price: NIL cos part of Groupon 

Truffle Fries

Table Manners @ Changi City Point

S$7

The cheapest truffle fries that I've heard of, but at the same time, also the most non-truffle tasting fries that I've tasted. I actually thought that they served us the wrong fries by mistake, only to look at the menu and realize that they only serve truffle fries, and no regular fries at all.

Perhaps the type of truffle oil that they use is of a lower quality, and therefore, WE CAN'T TASTE IT.

Like the emperor's new clothes, only the 'smart' people can taste it? Just a theory.

Truffle-worthiness:

(after like 5 fries I tasted a slight hint of truffle...)

Price: 

(for truffle fries, its quite cheap, for regular fries, it's overpriced)

Truffle & Mushroom Fries

Eggs & Berries @ Changi City Point

$9.90

The taste of the mushroom overpowered the truffle after a few bites, which was disappointing cos I'm not a huge fan of mushroom, I'm a bigger fan of truffle. Nevertheless, it was an effort made. If I had the choice, I would request for the mushroom garnishing to be served separately, so that I can adjust the level of mushroom on my fries.

Truffle-worthiness:

 Price:

Truffle Fries

Arbite @ Serangoon Gardens

$12.90

This wasn't too bad for the price point, however I feel that Truffle fries should be served with shoestring fries, and not chunky fries such as these, the potato would overpower the truffle taste. Nevertheless, the dip was also infused with truffle, which helped to back up the taste.

Truffle-worthiness: 

Price:

Baked Potato Wedges with Truffle Mayonnaise & Pesto Mayonnaise Dip

Bakerzin @ Tampines One

S$8.90

The pesto dip was not to my liking, but the truffle mayo dip was super awesome. 

I think overall, I'd prefer dips over infusion cos I can control the amount that goes on each serving.

Truffle-worthiness: 

Price: 

Truffle Fries

TWG

S$10

I had this quite some time back and it's not on the menu as a ala carte item. We saw this dish being served and we were curious as to what it was so we ordered it. It turned out to be truffle fries. HAHA.

The presentation is one of the most unique ones that I've seen, so thumbs up for that. 

Truffle-worthiness: 

Price: 

(for the serving, it's too little!)

Truffle Mashed Potato

Poulet

S$5.80

Had this quite some time back, pretty sure I did a blog post about it but LET'S TALK ABOUT IT AGAIN COS ITS AWESOME.

I love how the mashed potatoes are blended so finely and infused with the truffle, every mouthful is worth having!

Truffle-worthiness: 

Price:

Truffle Fries

P.S Cafe at Paragon

S$15

How can I write a blog post about truffle without including these fries from P.S Cafe?! It's been highly raved about.

Personally, I feel that they should provide serving sizes, as I dined with only one other person and the portion was too huge for only two of us. Otherwise, there was no issue with the dish overall.

However, during my dining experience at the Paragon outlet, I was seated next to a cupboard. In the middle of our meal, I spotted one small cockroach and apparently there was a baby roach as well. While I was eating...

It took me about a minute to get ahold of a waitress (it was about 4pm on a weekday afternoon, not busy at all) and staring at the roach for the entire minute while hoping it wouldn't come near my food was a minute too long, imo. Because of this, and no apology offered for the unpleasant experience other than offering to switch us to another table, makes me feel that I won't be returning to P.S Cafe anymore. There was no, "I'm sorry, do you want to switch to another table?", it was a "Do you want to change tables?" and of course the answer was a resounding yes. Who would want to dine next to a cupboard that apparently houses cockroaches?

Truffle-worthiness: 

Price:

Dining Experience: thumbs down

I hope my loooong blog post has been illuminating thus far, and has helped you make a decision if you wanted to try any of the places I've mentioned!

Do let me know if you have any suggestions for even better truffle stuff & I'll try to check it out :)

Cheers

These are a few of my favourite things...

Felt like recommending some of my few favourite (and inexpensive in some cases) foods that I have discovered either by chance, or via a friend's recommendation. Of course, good things, must share! Haha. In no particular order, here're some of my favourite foods:

Dad's Duck Noodles!

Yummers, grew up eating this! For the kway chap lovers, it's available too! You can find this at:

Blk 724 Ang Mo Kio Central
#01-19
Opening Hours: 11/1130 - 9/930PM daily.

Price Range: Starts at $3!

Day offs are ad-hoc, if you're headed down specially and have a way to contact me, do ask before heading down! The day offs are random and as and when they need a break :)

SUPPORT MY DAD hehe, I love the gravy the bestest.

Japanese Salmon Mentaiyaki!!

If you follow me on instagram (@bitesizedkay), you'll have seen this appear on the feed countless times hahaha. To the point that my phone auto-capitalizes the word "MENTAIYAKI" and followers have commented "again?!" hahaha.

Price Range: depends on where you're dining at. The above picture is from Nihon Mura ($8.90), and you can get this at Sakae Sushi, Ichiban Sushi and Sushi Tei as well! I've ranked them based on expensiveness haha. But my fave is also the one from Sushi Tei ($14)

Krispy Kreme Red Velvet Doughnut

Eating this equates to a full meal, but it's totally worth it. Expect to run at least an hour on the treadmill after consuming this calorie-laden delight. But once it enters your mouth, you'll have no regrets.

I still find the Krispy Kreme in Singapore overpriced, but once in awhile it's alright. At the same time, you should also be having sweet treats once in awhile, and not everyday!

Price Range: Starts at $2.20 for original and $2.90 for assorted.

Krispy Kreme Tangs Orchard
Tangs Orchard Basement 1
310 Orchard Road
Singapore 238864
Opens from 9am to 10pm daily, Fridays till 11pm.

(Image Credit: chipsandcrisps.com)

Marks and Spencer's Full-on Flavour Chips

My Go-to flavour is NOT this, it's roast ham and honey, however I can't seem to find a picture of it online :(

It's supremely flavourful, I finish a bag in like four sittings. The price for this went up recently tho, from $4.50 - $4.70. I find it a tad overpriced, so I don't buy it often. You can get this from any Marks and Spencers with a food hall!! 

This is the MUST-ORDER dish at Swee Choon. Haha. It's called thousand layer something, I can never remember the name. Nor the price. But this is a MUST-TRY.

And remember, Swee Choon only starts operations at 6pm.

My favourite macarons from TWG

CARAMEL. There is no better flavour.

And the best part is that it's only $2. Please don't ever price hike these.

It's actually caramel infused with Napoleon tea that TWG has, and it's faaaabulous.

You can get them at most TWGs around town! My favourite outlet is the Takashimaya outlet.

Hope these made you hungry! *evil smiles*

Cheers,