Travel – Page 2

DOUBLE BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION AT JEBEL SIFAH

December 5, 2021 by Little Miss Honey

It seems like a lot of people are born on November, me included. I already know 4 people who shares my birthdate and most of my friends & family members have birthdays on November. When I got assigned in the current hospital I am working, there 3 other nurses who have birthdays on November and 2 of them near my birthday. Last year, the 3 of us celebrated our birthday together but this year, the other nurse moved to UK to join her husband. So it is just Olive and I that will do a double birthday celebration.

We were thinking where we will hold our double celebration. We toss a few ideas and my hubby suggested how about Jebel Sifah. Our family has been there twice already and we really love the place. We are thinking that my coworkers would love to check out the beautiful relaxing atmosphere of Jebel Sifah.

Half of the gang headed there earlier while our family & two nurses who rode with us in our car, followed after we fetched our two elder boys from school. We drove to Muscat and had a stopover at Jollibee Al Khuwair for lunch.

By around 2:30 PM, we were at Jebel Sifah. We took the two nurses to their Airbnb unit they rented. It is such a perfect place to relax and hold a party. It is called Nomad Tours Marina Apartment if you want to check it in booking apps. You can check this unit in Airbnb here. It is a duplex 2-bedroom apartment and 2 bathrooms. It has a wonderful views of the marina. They have a terrace with a gazebo, kitchenette, bamboo bar, large dining table and BBQ area. It is nearby the store too.

After a little tour of their rented apartment, we headed to Sifawy Boutique Hotel to check in. The check in process took longer that our previous visit. We missed the nice efficient Filipina who received us before. She was fast, accommodating and efficient upon checking us in. When we finally got into our room, we did our new family tradition: taking a family photo on the bed of the hotel we are staying, thanks to my new handy bluetooth phone camera clicker and tripod. The room we got was a King Bed Room overlooking the pool unlike the Suite that we got before. But I do prefer this room rather than the suite. The suite is too uncomfortably spacious for my liking with not so comfy furnishing. This room was more cozy with bigger bed because in the suite, we only have a queen-size bed. We also have a balcony with table and chairs. The bathroom have a nice shower head with abundant hot water.

We been to Jebel Sifah twice already and stayed in Sifawy Boutique Hotel once. We didn’t know the hotel have this kid corner amenities near the pool area: a room with a TV, a slide, a cart full of toys, playhouse and a toy ride.

After fixing our stuff, we headed to the pool to swim. The kids jumped in the pool while hubby & I chickened out from swimming because the pool was too cold. Instead my hubby got a bucket of beer to drink poolside while I lie down the pool lounge chairs wrapped in the warm fresh pool towels the hotel provided. Around 5:30PM, we headed to the beach to meet up with the gang. We hang out at The Bank Beach Club for a bit of photo op. Then we said we will clean up and meet up at the apartment for the dinner party.

We changed from wet clothes and spruce up a bit before heading to the apartment. There were a lot of foods! We have Pancit Malabon, Chopsuey, Embutido, Bake Sushi and Lumpia. There was even a sweet corner with chocolates, candies, marshmallow and 4 cakes!

We were so full from all the yummy food. We even had a hula hoop contest. Haha! By around 10 to 11 PM, the kids, my hubby and I were so sleepy already for waking up to early for kids school that we decided to call it a night and say our goodbyes. We went back to the hotel and in a few minutes, hubby & Naj were fast asleep. Then Howell, Zeke and I eventually slept too.

Next morning, we had a morning visit from the nurses in our hotel. They wanted to check out our room. After a quick photo op in our hotel balcony, they continued in exploring Jebel Sifah. When they left, we ate our takeaway food from the party for our breakfast. We, then, headed out to the beach because J promised the kids that he will help them find nice shells to take home.

The kids were so happy to find some lovely shells. We walked around for a bit more under the blazing sun. We even bumped into Olive and Delia who were taking lovely photos of each other

We were all sweaty and slight tanned from the sun after our walk. We went back to our hotel to shower and fix our stuff for check out.

It is always wonderful visiting Jebel Sifah. Until next time! I am sure we will visit again soon….

THREE REASONS WHY NAXOS, GREECE SHOULD BE ON YOUR TRAVEL BUCKET LIST

November 24, 2021 by Little Miss Honey

With its endless natural beauty and easy accessibility from Athens and surrounding islands, it is easy to see why Naxos’ reputation is flourishing amongst holidaymakers. In fact, according to a recent study by Rightmove, searches for Naxos rose by a staggering 80% this year, with more and more foreigners searching for their dream holiday home here.

Though typically classed as a family-friendly destination, there is something to do for every type of visitor in this Cycladic paradise. Whilst you may have overlooked it in the past, now is the perfect time to jump on the Naxos bandwagon and explore all that the island has to offer.

Here are three reasons why Naxos has to feature on your travel bucket list:

Historical value

It’s a familiar story across all of the Greek Islands, but Naxos’ historical and mythological significance should not be understated. Legend has it that Zeus, the king of the Gods, grew up in Naxos, and a visit to his purported birthplace at the Cave of Zas should certainly feature on your itinerary.

Another of the main attractions for culture lovers is the Portara, found on the islet of Palatia to the northwest of Naxos. The imposing marble doorway stands as the gateway to what should have been the Temple of Apollo, but the structure was never completed, and all that remains now is the Portara.

Besides the stunning archaeological hotspots, you can explore the island’s history with a walk through one of its many villages, which have retained their historic charm. The traditional Venetian architecture popular across many of the Greek Islands is still evident throughout the main villages in Naxos such as Filoti and Halki.

Natural Beauty

Naxos is the largest island in the Cyclades group and is home to a variety of different landscapes, from rolling valleys and sandy beaches, to the world-famous marble quarries. Be sure to get out and explore all that Naxos has to offer during your stay on the island.

Mount Zas is a hotspot amongst tourists looking to get off the beaten path and try the stunning hiking trails on offer. A trek to the summit of Mount Zas will take you to the highest point in the Cyclades, and present breathtaking views of the neighbouring islands. This particular hike is also popular amongst birdwatchers and botanical enthusiasts due to the high concentration of flora and fauna found here.

Local delicacies

With some of the most fertile land found anywhere in the Cyclades, Naxos plays an important agricultural role within the Greek Islands. An extensive range of produce is grown here, from potatoes to olives to oranges, and exploring the local culinary scene is a must for any visitor. Head to one of the many tavernas, where the chefs will be all too happy to celebrate Naxos’ local ingredients with a range of tasty creations.

Naxos gruyère is one of the island’s hallmark products, and remains very popular amongst locals and visitors alike. Such is the quality of the gruyère, it has held PDI (protected designation of origin) status since 1996. Why not wash down a portion of the famous cheese with some citron? Made from the locally-grown citron fruit, it’s usually served as a post-meal shot and is very sweet-tasting.

STAYCATION EXPERIENCE AT HILTON GARDEN INN DURING RAMADAN & LOCKDOWN

June 15, 2021 by Little Miss Honey

Since staycations has been our official way of celebrating birthdays in our family, we booked ahead for our sons’ birthdays. Last May, we booked a stay at Hilton Garden Inn for our 3rd son’s 3rd birthday. We, however, didn’t anticipate that there will be a lockdown plus it coincided with Ramadan time. We planned to drop by Philippines Embassy for some transactions but we learned they are closed! Lesson learned that we should have checked the schedule first before dropping by. We also dropped by Oman Avenues Mall to learn that all commercial establishments were all closed. Oppss! We just bought take out from Jollibee before heading to the hotel. We couldn’t eat in the restaurant or even in our car because it was Ramadan. Out of respect for our Muslim brothers and sisters, we should not eat in public until sundown. This practice is not new to me because I experienced that too when I was studying in Saudi Arabia that we should be mindful not to eat in public before sundown even chewing gum is prohibited.

We, then, headed to Hilton Garden Inn which is strategically located in Al Khuwair. It just nearby Jollibee and Oman Avenues Mall.

We were greeted by a nice friendly Filipina hotel receptionist, Ms. Janet. She helped us with the checked in. Check in was swift and easy. We were informed that the pool in the top floor is closed because of the pandemic restrictions. We got the King Connecting Family Room. We was basically two rooms with one King bed in one room and two single beds in the other when our two older sons will sleep in, with a connecting door to both rooms. We got the room at 34 Omani rials without breakfast included.

The design of the rooms are pretty much basic hotel decor with lots of beige colour. The view from our room is the street with a nice little garden park and a playground below. I like best is the lighting streaming inside our rooms.

The bathroom has a bathtub which the kids are happy about. No pool? No problem, as long as there is a bathtub, they are happy. Also their toiletries are from Crabtree and Evelyn which smells divine and feels luxurious on the skin.

Once we settled down, we prepared Zeke’s birthday cake and our Jollibee lunch. We bought again at Isfahan Sweets for birthday cake. We got the Honey cake again which is the same cake we bought for my birthday.

We rested a bit and watched a bit of TV. Since there is no malls open or the pool is not open for swimming, we headed down to the playground for the kids to play. The kids enjoyed playing at the free public playground which my husband and I relaxed at the nice garden park. There were a few people jogging around and some using the public exercise installations at the park.

Since the lockdown was imposed at 7:00 PM, we ordered delivery via Talabat using their easy-to-use app. We choose Yellow Cab for dinner time and the delivery was fuss-free and punctual. We got our food from the Talabat delivery guy and headed up to our room.

We had a very filling dinner. We enjoyed the rest of the night in our hotel room.

In the morning, we woke up a little late. We, again, ordered our brunch via Talabat. We choose Chowking for brunch.

We made sure we had a heavy brunch before check out because we will be heading to do grocery before going back home.

REVIEW OF HILTON GARDEN INN

Service: The reception staff were all very nice and we were able to do a quick check in without any hassle. We commend Ms. Janet from receptionist for the wonderful welcome and accommodating us with our needs. There was just a bit of delay when we were asking for some utensils for our room and we need to call housekeeping several times. However, they compensated by providing us with more water for our room and extra toiletries as well.

Cleanliness: The room was clean and the sheets were comfortable. We saw some rooms that placed their bag of trash outside their room, out in the hallway but it was removed immediately afterward when we went outside the room.

Location: The location was perfected located at the heart of the city with lots of restaurant and malls nearby.

Amenities: Too bad we weren’t to access the pool. Even if we weren’t able to access their pool, it was nice to have the park and playground below near the hotel. The lobby was darkly lit but well-designed. There is the usual digital key and wifi is fast.

In conclusion, we plan to book next time a stay in Hilton Garden Inn . We hope that time we can already use their pool. If we ask the kids how they find our staycation, they just happy with the simple birthday of Zeke. Kids just love hotel staycations. We are looking forward to staying at Hilton Garden Inn Muscat again.

Hilton Garden Inn Muscat

Address: OM, Dohat Al Adab St, 118

Phone: 22 515555