Travel Blog, Itineraries & Guides, Hotel Reviews
I have previously written about cashback websites, or portals that provide rebates for purchases made via affiliates. The previous one I recommended was geared towards an international (i.e. American) audience. For those living within Southeast Asia, particularly Singapore, you can actually look at Shopback which essentially follows the same mechanism but has merchants closer to home and in many cases, higher rebates.
…
Mileslife, a mobile app for both Android and iOS devices that allows you to earn miles in 12 frequent flyer programmes by dining in participating restaurants, has launched in Singapore. The concept is simple and allows users to have their miles posted to the frequent flyer account within 3 to 5 days from date of purchase. So far, MilesLife is available with partner merchants in Singapore, Beijing and Shanghai with plans to grow within Asia.
…
As I am usually on the go, I never really pay much attention to personal care when I am traveling. I just bring my usual face wash and shampoo and that’s it. However, my recent trips this year prodded me to pay more attention, especially with the hair. I noticed my scalp really drying up as I was traversing the arid but bitterly cold conditions of Mongolia. Ditto for my trips around Southeast Asia where the heat had caused some painful acne to appear on my scalp.
As I am no expert in hair, I have collaborated with the folks at Beijing 101 for some hair care tips while on the go. Make sure to scroll down to the bottom for a chance to win shopping vouchers and free hair and scalp consultation sessions.
Prolonged sun exposure can dry your scalp or worse – cause discoloration. Wearing a hat is a great way to avoid hair damage whenever there is direct sun exposure.
beach volleyball by diego david garcia | cc 2.0For folks who have greasy hair, do note that the heat can stimulate your scalp’s oil producing glands and can trigger folliculitis or hair acne. If you prefer to let your hair down uncovered, an alternative is to use sunscreen. Spray-on types work best for the hair instead of cream-based ones. The former is also easier to use.
If you happen to be traveling around a humid and hot country – most places around the region fall within this category – you would do well by washing your hair in the evenings after coming back from a day around town. This can help wash away dirt and excess sebum from your scalp – too much of which could lead to hair loss.
Pool water is often filled with lots of chlorine that can unnecessarily dry up and damage your hair. One way to keep your hair from soaking up pool water is by using a swimming cap. Alternatively, slathering your hair with conditioner / moisturizer before a swim can help protect against the chlorine drying up your hair.
Holidays are experiences to enjoy and cherish but sometimes, unforeseen circumstances could spell disaster. Prolonged periods of stress could lead to hair loss so remember to chill.
Traveling can expose you to foreign bodies or climates which your body is not accustomed to. This can have varying effects on your scalp – from excessive dryness or greasiness. In my case, my recent trips to Mongolia and Russia – places which are very dry – sapped my scalp of moisture. Going for a scalp treatment after your trip, especially when you visit places that are vastly different from Singapore in terms of weather, could help restore your hair to healthier conditions quicker. It will also enable you to identify any serious conditions before they become chronic.
Exclusive Promotion for my readers! Enjoy a Hair Gro Treatment for S$42 w/ GST (UP: S$366) and stand to WIN a Hair Care Hamper worth S$240. Sign up HERE.*
*You will be redirected to a third party site.
This post is brought to you by Beijing 101
With different ways credit cards in Singapore value their points, I thought it would be helpful to spell out the equivalent miles that each credit card reward point converts to (at least for the major banks) in one table for easy reference. For those who are new to the miles game, 1 point in Citi is definitely not equivalent to 1 point in DBS when it comes to miles. Hopefully, this table will enable you to quickly calculate the number of miles you have available (or need!) in your various credit card accounts.
I found myself having to frustratingly refer to the websites of various banks to extract their conversion ratio over and over again. To end all that, this table came to being. Do let me know if you think there are more banks I should add!
…
It’s official.
It was first reported in this Taiwanese news website that Filipinos are able to enter Taiwan visa-free from the 1st of June 2017 onwards.
This report has since been verified by other news agencies with the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Manila. In a gist:
…
The Ministry of Manpower of Singapore just released the list of public holidays for 2018. With more than eight months to go until we ring in a new year, it is never too early to plan for your holidays for the year ahead. Essentially here are some notable points about 2018’s public holidays:
…
While having drinks with some friends recently, I was introduced to a number of practices that people go through when they find themselves staying in a hotel room. Having done quite a number of hotel stays myself, I must admit some of these practices were not new to me personally.
Armed with this curiosity, I then checked around with a few fengshui experts and asked for some do’s and don’ts as well as the astrological reasons behind them. Personally, I am not a superstitious person but among the items in this list, I have to admit I practice #1 whenever I enter a hotel room for the first time. I guess it doesn’t hurt to do so!
Without further ado, here are some hotel room feng shui tips to hopefully bring even better luck to your travels!
…
Ukraine has recently loosened its visa requirements for several nationalities. This follows a similar trend by neighboring countries to allow foreign visitors to enter without a prearranged visa.
From the 16th of April 2017 onwards, nationalities of the following countries can enter Ukraine via any border crossing (including the international airports) and obtain a visa-on-arrival. In order to be granted a visa-on-arrival, travelers need to present either an invitation or a document proving themselves as tourists (i.e. hotel reservations, tour agency letter, etc) or business people.
The new ruling supersedes the previous one which was applicable for fewer nationalities and only for entry via Kyiv’s Boryspil Airport.
In case you are wondering what is there to see in Ukraine, check out my guides here.
The eligible countries for visa-on-arrival are the following (the ones in Italics are effective 16th of April):
…