Honeymoon Number Two: 6D5N Hanoi, Vietnam.

with the Muthu. 

on the 6-11 February 2017.

to Hanoi, Vietnam

Few reasons to his agreement on this trip:

• He has never been to Hanoi. I've been there once. 
• He loves Vietnamese food, so do I. 
• He wants to go winter-ish country but with a tight budget.
• Airasia promo shows RM388 only! LIES! 

First thing we did was to secure the flight tickets. Of course it has to be with Airasia because budget ma. NOT! 

By the time we add a 20kg luggage under his name only (means have to pre-decide what to weat and pack wisely all), include the PEN-KUL-PEN flight (because promo means fly from KL only) and pay with credit card, it totaled to RM 588 per person! 

Not so budget please. Pfft. 

We agreed that if a destination requires more than 4 hours of ride, Airasia is out of the picture. Heh. So, this one still okay since less than 4 hours. I don't like Airasia at all to be honest. Commercial airlines for the win. I don't like that they don't have entertainment on board and their seats are very straight even after pressing the button to recline. I have motion-sickness so I need some sort of 'distractions' on board, and also I don't want to feel all bleh when I arrive so yeah. 

It is cheaper I know but I just rather pay extra a little to not have my whole day ruined. And if you notice, Airasia's price isn't that cheap anymore after you add the luggage and the "extra" charge when you pay either with credit card or online banking. 

Anyways, then we went online and searched for hotels. This was not difficult because I've been there so I knew that we must stay at the Old Quarters of Hanoi, near Hoan Kiem Lake. 

I booked the hotel via Expedia (see hotel details here) and also for Halong Bay (click over here to see details). I did all the pre-trip arrangements and his job only begins when the trip begins. 

That includes the itinerary, but actually right, when I did the booking for hotel, Halong Bay and Tam Coc, basically the entire itinerary was done up already. Hah. 

It's like in our understanding already that everytime we travel, he will be in charge of the trip itself and I will assist in all the prior bookings. 

If the role is reversed, we will probably never go anywhere because he would never do all these research for flights and hotels. Hah. 

SIXTH OF FEBRUARY

Penang-Kuala Lumpur

Allow me to brag about this soulmate for a while.

Every time we got on an Uber or taxi or chartered vehicle to anywhere, he will end up becoming friends with the driver. He will always choose to be in the front seat because he wants to talk to them. I love that this man is like this. Something that I'm not. Love you, noob.

Our flight  to KL was at 7:55pm and we finished work at 5:30pm. We had less than 2 hours to get home, bathe and Uber to the airport which was a crazy idea because of the after work jam. 

Imagine our relief when we received a text message from Airasia about our flight delay of 1-hour. That 1-hour made all the difference. 

We got to KLIA 2 and walked around to find food. We had our dinner in Penang already but we needed to eat again because you cannot just ignore nasi-kandar cravings when it comes. 

We asked around and no one seemed to know where we could get nasi kandar in KLIA 2 at 10:30pm. In the end, we found a food court and guess what we had for supper? 

NASI KANDAR FOR SURE.

Our flight to Hanoi is the next morning at 6:05am so we walked around some more to find a place safe enough to sleep. We asked a staff and she pointed to the place that we went. There were other humans trying to sleep to so we tried to be as quiet as we can. 

We didn't realize that we were sleeping next to the place where they decided to gather all the aiport trolleys. G. 

The entire night, it felt like we were lying next to a railway where the train comes and goes loudly. I was too tired to be bothered by the noise, but Koay did not sleep at all. It was super bright too FYI. 

So, if we ever had to sleep in KLIA 2 again, we will find other place that is dimmer and quieter and even if there isn't anyone in that dimmer and quieter place, we would be the first one to start the sleeping trend there. 

We actually found a few place that was a lot cleaner, darker and quieter but we didn't stay there because no one else was there and we thought maybe it's not allowed. Manatau, the next morning when we passed that area, there were people sleeping there so peacefully. 

Lesson learnt: just go for whatever your heart tells you to. Heh.

Oh and the place that we were at was so dirty! I only realized that when I got up the next morning and looked around. Despite that, there were more hotel-less tourists around us at 3am. 

The reason why we didn't want to pay for a night at their container-kind-hotel is because we wanted to save the money to spend in Hanoi. It's about RM99 per person for just 5 hours of rest. We chose adventure. Hah. 

SEVENTH OF FEBRUARY

Kuala Lumpur-Hanoi

We got up at 4am to do the international check-in and make full use of our 20kg luggage purchase. At 4am, everyone else was so awake and happy! We were so easily frustrated because of the lack of sleep and feeling so bleh, but to our surprise, we laughed it off everytime something annoyed us. 

You know that KLIA 2 is really big right?

So, I thought I saw the gate correctly and followed the crowd flow. We walked to the end of the airport and realized that we were at the wrong gate and the correct departure gate is at the other end of the airport. 

I was scared that we will miss the flight. He was just busy teasing me the entire way. Heh. It was stressful fun. 

Of course we were early and of course the flight was delayed a bit so no stress. 

We saw the sun rises and we saw the sun shining up in the sky. I meant I saw since he KO-ed the moment his butt touched the seat.  The journey took about 3-hours so he had 3 hours of sleep and I watched Greys Anatomy on my iPad that I pre-load with the free internet at KLIA 2. 

After that, the struggle begins because I tried to sleep but it was difficult. Heh. 

We arrived at the airport and the boy was ready to start his job. We looked around and decided not to take the taxi because they costs a bomb. 

We asked around and decided to take the local public bus like the locals. 

Bus 86!

When you are outside the arrival hall, the bus stand is on the outer side of the driving lanes. It's best if you could ask a local to direct you there because it's easier. Just say to them Bus 86!

One thing though, when you're in the bus, do ask the bus conductor which is the nearest bus stop to the Hoan Kiem Lake because they wouldn't tell you on their own. You will have to ask. 

We only asked when we saw that he was directing some Mat Sallehs down and we figured that this could be it. 

It's very very cheap so please take the Bus 86 instead of taxi. 

I would love to share with you on the price but I LOST ALL THE DETAILS! 

We bought a local sim card while walking to our hotel nearby Hoan Kiem Lake for his phone because he was still in the working mode although on leave. Get from Viettel because it's highly recommended. 

Life of a Stock Broker. Heh. 

Way cheaper here than in airport. Everything in airport is expensive, that is the conclusion. Expensive but convenient. 

We got to the hotel but we could not check in yet because still too early, so they asked us to walk around and maybe eat a little first. At this point, we were already so tired and hungry. 

We walked out and saw this small shop with so many locals in it. That means must-eat! Heh. 

Go where most locals are and you will find the true yummy local food. 

We had pho and it was still too early, so we decided to expand the walking area and walk further to find more food. Find banh mi I mean. Heh. 

We were so obsessed with banh mi (Vietnamese style of sandwich-like-Subway) that we had )I think) 5 banh mi on the first day itself. Not kidding. 

Then, we spotted a local kopitiam with all these locals drinking coffee and snacking on sunflower seeds, and guess what we did.

We went in, find the perfect mini chairs and table and sat our backside down.

The weather felt like 20-degrees so it was just super comfortable to be seated outside and chilling a Tuesday. Best.

We got back to the hotel at about 12:30pm and settled in.

We decided to rest in the room till evening so that we would get to enjoy the rest of the night outside and not feel like a walking zombie.

Super love our balcony, especially with that kind of weather. The man slept while I used his laptop to transfer the photos and just enjoying the cold breeze. Then I slept too. Best sleep ever.

Our hotel is located very near to this hidden gem and I have no idea what's the name of it. St Paul something if I'm not mistaken. Can you see that our faces still very fresh from sleep? Hah.

We were still a little tired but no time to waste because we need to banh mi some more. Hah.

Dinner was at the ever famous Xuan Xuan BBQ that I had with the gang last time we were there. Then, it's more walking and to our surprise, we were not tired of it because the weather was perfectttt!

One of the best place to experience winter wind will have to be at Highlands Coffee, but not at the seat that we were at. If you really like to challenge yourself, go to the outside corner area. It was ridiculously too cold! 

We watched Hanoi people ride the bikes and walked through the traffic like a boss, like seriously crazy. We witnessed a guy looking at his phone the entire time he walked past the middle of the traffic with bikes going at every direction.

We were worried for him. Hah.

Of course he crossed the road safely and happily.

Like a boss. 

After coffee, the man wants to go some shopping. HE WANTS TO DO SHOPPING.

He is the bigger shopaholic than me people. Know that already.

He got 2 pairs of shoe laces, 3 t-shirts, a cap and a pair of slippers. All this on the first night.

EIGHTH OF FEBRUARY

Hanoi Old Quarters-Halong Bay

We booked the 2D1N Halong Bay tour prior to the trip so all was settled for. We woke up early for breakfast and Glory Legend Cruise picked us up with a mini van and some other tourists.

We stopped once at a 'rest stop' (more like a shopping stop) and then continued our 3-hours journey.

The rest of it just go read there okay. Click on the link :)

NINTH OF FEBRUARY

Halong Bay-Hanoi Old Quarters

We left Halong Bay at about 1pm (lunc on-board) and reached the Old Quarters at about 4pm and  immediately looked for food because when on holiday, we shall never let ourselves go hungry. Hah. So, we ate some more. 

Our receptionist was very friendly and helpful. She gave us all the details of good local food that we should have so that was very nice and convenient. 

Of course everyday we have to have our banh mi! More like every 4 hours! Hah. I miss them already!

One of the things that we struggled with was deciding on what to eat. Every thing looked new and nice. He would decide on one thing and then he would ask me again if I was okay because he wanted me to eat what I wanted, which was Thai food. Tomyam to be more specific but we were in Vietnam. Hah.

I didn't want to eat Tomyam but I wanted to. Get it?

Struggles like this. Pening.

Of course we ended up having Vietnamese BBQ and steamboat! I wanted soup and he wanted BBQ so both win. HAPPY NEWLYWEDS. Hah.

TENTH OF FEBRUARY

Hanoi Old Quarters-Hoa Lu & Tam Coc

Blessed birthday to me!

We booked another 1-day tour to Hoa Lu & Tam Coc before the trip and it was USD 32 per person.

Tour includes:

• Two-ways transfer from hotel to destination.
• Local Vietnamese food, buffet style, excluding beverages.
• Visit the ancient capital of Hoa Lu.
• Local boat ride through the Tam Coc wharf.
• Biking from Tam Coc to Bich Dong (countryside villages).
• All entrance tickets.
• English speaking Tour-Guide.

We reached back to the Old Quarters at 7pm and wasted no time at all to enjoy our last night here. We actually booked a romantic dinner at the balcony of a very nice cafe overlooking the cathedral church but we decided to cancel that so that we may have more local food!

It was one of the best, yummiest birthday dinner!

Before that, we of course had to get the local coffee first!

After all the food and because of our unwillingness to leave this country, we decided to walk around the Haon Kiem Lake and boy, this is a huge lake but he did the right decision.

The view around it was amazing! It was already past midnight but there were still people around and it felt so safe. I don't think I would ever feel this safe in Malaysia at this time in places like this to be honest.

We sat at the park facing the lake and just enjoyed celcius. It was super cold, like about 14-degrees.

It was perfect Hun!

ELEVENTH OF FEBRUARY

Hanoi-Kuala Lumpur-Penang

Goodbye Hanoi.

We left our favorite city at 6:30am via a taxi (USD12) and got home by 5pm. Then it was Converse Service and when we got to our bed that night at about 11pm, we slept like a log.

Like a log.

This honeymoon was better than the first official honeymoon that we had in Bali.

Again, because I lost all the details of money-data on the phone, this post is not as detailed as I would like it to be. Boo. Next time perhaps.

Now got a new excuse to go back there. Hah. 

TOTAL MONEY SPENT/person

For 6 days 5 nights at Hanoi, Vietnam

PEN-KUL_PEN via Airasia: RM147

KUL-HAN-KUL via Airasia: RM441

4D3N stay at Hanoi Gortage Hotel: RM250

2D1N stay at Glory Legend Cruise, Halong Bay: RM518

1 Day Hoa Lu & Tam Coc Tour: RM144 

One-way taxi ride from Hanoi Gortage Hotel & Travel to Airport: RM54

Food, shopping and miscellaneous: About RM500

TOTAL SPENT: RM2,000

(I lost the entire trip spending details so this is just a rough spending based on what think)

Goodbye and Hello.

I didn't think that this year would be another year of life-changing for me. 

I didn't think that I would go through the giant-butterflies-in-my-tummy this year. 

I didn't think I would be daring enough to take this step this year. 

I obviously never thought it would come to this. 

But I did. 

No, I'm not pregnant, if that's what you are thinking right now :)

I resigned. 

Yes, that is right. 

I tendered my resignation on the twenty-seventh of February.

And here's a story I want to share. 

On Sunday night, I was feeling very anxious and disturbed because I knew I needed to do it with my boss on Monday. So, I was just so in-and-out on my own emotions. If I can have it my way, I would have done it via email, but of course not. 

I needed to speak with her face to face because it's professional like that and I respect her so much as a boss and as a person. 

When I went to work in the morning, I was even more nervous because it's just so difficult to tell someone that you quit. 

It's like going through break-up again and I wouldn't recommend that anyone go through it. So kids, think carefully before you start dating everyone you see and like. Anyways, I reckoned that it was harder than breaking up. 

I was afraid that my resignation would upset her and that was the last thing I want to do, but that's for sure to happen. I was also pretty sure that the reason that I was going to tell her (the real reasons I shall kept in my heart forever) would make her even more not understanding and I was right. Heh. 

Just before I walked to her room, I decided to check the 'verse of the day' on my Bible app, and this image came out. 

Mind blown please thank you.

I read it for more than 10 times before I gathered all the courage I have and walked in. Hah.

And so I did it.

I resigned.

I will be working for FGA Centre May 2017 onwards.

I am super excited to go full-time with FGA Centre.

New year, new chapterrrrr.

Till then, bye now. 

SHILLS Purifying Peel-Off Mask.

So, recently when I was social-mediaing on Facebook, I kept seeing videos of different girls with black mask on their face everytime I scroll down.

Talk about effective video advertisement because I actually clicked on the video after many times seeing the shadow of it.

I got very curious and so I went on and purchased it. Yep.

When I clicked on the video, it auto-route me to a page called Nova Stuff and from there, more videos of this peel-off black mask.

The funny thing was when I was in the page, this is how the product looked like.

I didn't pay attention to it before but I did after I received the product few weeks later. There were few differences to what I saw online.

Photo above is from the internet and below is from yours truly.

• Nova Stuff's website shows no brand whatsoever on the peel-off mask product. The one that came in was from SHILLS. They black-out the brand probably because they don't want people to go other websites to compare prices or in my case, if I knew that it was SHILLS, I would have gone to Lazada via ShopBack and get more discounts. 
• They even changed the small caption color below the word Black Mask. 

I paid a total of RM90.13 for this tube of black mask that I believe works way better than all the other blackhead-removals that we've tried over the years. Heh. 

In a way, I felt that Nova Stuff is like trying to 'con' people to buy things in their website, letting users think that this is one of their product and you can only get them at their website. Or maybe I was the only one who thought of it like that. Then again, why do you need to hide SHILLS on the tube? 

I just don't get it. 

Never again on Nova Stuff. 

When it arrived, I got my sisters and mom to try it too. Good things must share right? I really wanted this to work because I just cannot find others and waste more money.

I felt that this was very expensive at first but all the videos and reviews made it so convincing and easy for me to click 'Confirm Purchase'.

And it worked! 

It actually pulled out most (if not all) of the blackheads and whiteheads. I was amazed to be honest. I didn't think I would see so clearly all the heads on that black mask! 

So geli but satisfying at the same time! 

Thank you SHILLS. Now I have a favorite blackhead-removal mask - SHILLS Purifying Peel-Off Mask! 

Can you just look at the photo above? Can you see all that tiny poles-lookalike!? It really works. Worth the RM90.13 okay. Not wasting money because it really works!

It's also very easy to apply. To make it more effective, you can wash your face and then take a warm towel and wipe around the area that you want to apply this SHILLS Purifying Peel-Off Mask so that the pores will slightly be opened. 

Then, just apply on the desired area and wait for it to dry. Don't put too little though because it's very hard to see it and also maybe it won't be able to stick onto the heads. Yeah. Just be fairly generous with the gel. 

I love this product and highly recommend it! 

Till then, bye now. 

My 2017's Birthday Wishlist.

This year is my last year of celebrating being in the twenties (boohoo). Now, you know my real age, fine.

I decided that since next year I will "welcome" the number 3, it's my birthday everyday for the rest of 2017. Heh. So, means I can still have my wishlist and wish that at least one of them will come true. Hah. Nothing is impossible.

And guess what?

Because of ShopBack, I realized that it's more realistic and hopeful now to dream of owning all these items. I mean to owning it. Not dream.

Discounts on top of discounts ah. Please. I don't know why you should not go via ShopBack. MORE DISCOUNTS WHY YOU ALL DON'T WANT!

I have blogged about what ShopBack is and how you can also benefit from it here, and no, you don't have to like pay a membership fee to enjoy the extra discounts. All you need to do is register and set up an account. Then, everytime you want to do online shopping, go to ShopBack first and from there, click on your favorite online shopping brands! 

It is that easy to get your extra discounts! 

Okay, wait. Before I begin on the top 5 items that made it to my wishlist, let me just say this to my husband.

"This is not a "hint" that I'm indirectly dropping for you okay? It's part of the contest that I'm taking, hoping that I will get selected and then win one of the wishlist below. If I want you to buy something from me, don't worry, I will tell you straight. Hah. Love you. Okay bye."

Here goes.

1. iPhone 6/6s/7

This is a no-brainer for those who follow me on Insta-story or Snapchat. Not too long ago, my iPhone 5s dropped and went crazy. I managed to get it fixed but according to the pro, this phone can only last this long. This long means it will go crazy anytime again. And if that happens, no need to send for fixing already. Can straight bury it 6-feet under. Heh.

So yes, I definitely need a new iPhone and I don't mind settling for a 6 or 6s because money is difficult to be earned. 

On top of the discounts that is given by Lazada, I can get extra 1.5% off when I click through ShopBack.

Oh yes please to more money-savings. 

2. Winter Coat

You know that feeling that you have or that thing you tell yourself that when you grow up, you want to own a certain kind of things. 

When I was growing up, I have always wanted to own at least a luggage bag, the kind that you push around and not the carry type. Thanks to Groupon, I managed to own a set of 3 pieces for less than RM300. 

Yeah, it's not of great qualities kind of luggages but I did own it at the end. 

Then, there's this. 

A winter coat. Not any kind but this kind. 

Coldwear - Wool Blend Double Breasted Cocoon Coat (Black)

Thanks to ShopBack, my dream can actually come true or at least it won't be such an impossible dream anymore. 

I saw this on Zalora's website and they are selling it at RM 747! 

BUT GUESS WHAT! I just had to go to Zalora's website via ShopBack, and I can get 3% cashback. That's the kind of extra discounts I like pleaseeee. 

That's savings of RM22.41 (can show this to Koay and tell him that ShopBack is really a no-brainer!) I don't understand why people won't go through ShopBack when it's so easy and you get more discounts. 

Anyways, this is part of the wishlist because I am going to OZ Land in two months' time and I would love to have this before I go! 

3. Refrigerator

Ever since we got married, our house became a party/gathering house and with so many mouths to feed on a weekly basis, I would love to get a new fridge that is slightly bigger and higher so that we can store more drinks and food and mini ice-creams. 

The struggle is really real I tell you. 

I would say that if its just the three of us (husband, myself and mom in law), the current fridge is sufficient but I think that mom-in-law would love to have a bigger fridge because she loves to cook and she cooks amazing food! And we love having humans over for dinner, movie-nights and just for hanging out sessions. 

Quite unbelievable that this made it to the top 5 in my 2017's wishlist seriously. 

I found a few that I think would fit in our kitchen and guess what? 

That's right. With ShopBack, more discounts! For my case, 1.5% because I'm an existing customer of Lazada already! 

:)

4. Hotel stay

So, we were discussing on some of the destinations (locally) that we can cuti-cuti Malaysia to in December with the Koays and Malacca was one of the idea. 

Mom in law had only been there once and I have been many many times and loved that city to the core. It's like my second home. 

No decisions were made but I would think that most likely it would be Malacca because husband is also quite keen on it. 

Satay celup and chicken rice ball, come on! Never say no to that okay. 

Holiday means must stay at a place that is super comfy and super affordable also. Heh. 

With ShopBack of course (there she goes again), I get extra 6% off the total bill (per night stay). OH YES PLEASE.

I've got my eyes on The Pines Melaka (just saying!). Heh. 

5. Heels from Christy Ng

This one is a typical girl's dream of having a pair of branded heels. I'm not the girliest-girl but I still have my fair share of going goo-goo-gaa-gaa on heels too. 

One thing I really like about Christy Ng is that you can design your own shoes (heels or flats or any kind) and have them done for you at a price. 

Of course, with ShopBack, you get 8% discounts, which I feel is quite a big discount. 

I tried designing my own and that already costs me RM480. With ShopBack, I save RM38.40! Winnnn!

No, this is not the shoe I designed. I cannot save the image so I went and googled a navy blue heels. Heh. 

So yeah, that's my take on the top 5 items that made it to my wishlist this year. It will be nice to have all these before I turn three-zero. Hah. 

Before I sign off, here's some information that I want you guys to know:

• Different brands have different level of cashback and some differs according to the type of products you choose. 
• Of course you will enjoy a higher cashback when you are a new customer.
• Sign up by clicking on this link, and you will automatically get RM10 in your account. 
• I am a big fan of ShopBack because it makes me feel less guilty when I online shop whole day. 
• Koay is the biggest fan because he online shops more than me and I am guessing that his ShopBack account is showing a lot more $$$ than me. 
• This post is blogged because I am participating in a contest organized by ShopBack in conjunction of their 2nd Birthday on the 22nd February!
• If I win, I get to choose 1 item from the list (capped at RM800) from ShopBack! 
• Please help me if you love me. Heh.
• You can share my post or just start using ShopBack via my link, I guess.
• Even if you don't, it's okay because I really like ShopBack and I hope you guys will enjoy it as much as I do. 
• No regrets :)

Till then, bye now.