My Travel Diary Webseries Part 10: Oahu Island North Shore Tour, Hawaii, USA (last episode)

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 10: Oahu Island North Shore Tour, Hawaii, USA (last episode)

On the last episode of our webseries, let's experience the countryside of the North Shore of Oahu Island. North Shore is one hour drive away from the busy life of Waikiki. The North shore is famous for beaches, big waves and surfing contests. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Dole Plantation is one of the most popular attraction in the Island of Oahu, Hawaii. Dole Plantation is located at 64-1550 Kamehameha Highway, Wahiawa, Hawaii. Open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m and online booking is available on their website https://www.doleplantation.com/tour-packages/ Dole offers world’s largest maze, plantation garden tour and pineapple express train tour. Inside the plantation you can buy fresh pineapples and souvenirs. Haleiwa Town is located on North Shore of Oahu Island, Hawaii about one-hour drive from Waikiki. Haleiwa and the North Shore of Oahu are known as the surfing capital of the world. The Hawaiian word “hale” means house, and “ʻiwa” means a frigate bird. Waimea Bay is an exhibition playground for big-wave riders and a great destination for swimming, snorkeling and diving. The Hawaiian word Waimea means "reddish water". Lāʻie Point State Wayside offer

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 9: Pearl Harbor Tour, Hawaii, USA

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 9: Pearl Harbor Tour, Hawaii, USA

Pearl Harbor is located west of Honolulu for around 20 to 30 minutes’ drive. Entry to the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center is free including access to two museums and exhibits along the harbor. However, tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis and are issued to each individual visitor. Open daily from 7:00am to 5:00pm           View this post on Instagram                   #pearlharbor #hawaii #usa #oahu #ww2 A post shared by Jericho's Place (@jerichosplace) on Oct 24, 2015 at 12:58pm PDT The Empire of Japan made a surprise attack to Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and that led USA to enter World War II. The total number of people killed was 2,403. From military personnel 2,335 were dead plus 68 civilian people. On Japanese side only 55 men were killed. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Inside the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center, you will see the Pearl Harbor Memorial Theater, Museum and Walk of Remembrance. While USS Arizona Memorial is accessible only by boat. Currently, visitor access is suspended until a projected date of Fall 2019. Here are some photos in  Museum. Here are some photos in Walk of Remembrance. USS Arizona Bell

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 8: Apia, Samoa to Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 8: Apia, Samoa to Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

Samoa is ahead by 23 hours of Hawaii, but its only 5 hours and 30 minutes by flight. It seems I am flying back to yesterday's date just to visit the Aloha State of Hawaii. Hawaii is the 50th state of the United States of America. Hawaii is the only state located outside the continent of North America. I arrived midnight in Honolulu and waited for the airport transfer service. Surprisingly, when I arrived at Holiday Surf Hotel there is no staff available. I tried to call their numbers, but nobody is answering. I decided to search nearby hostel to stay temporarily. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Let’s discover the Cultural Tour of Honolulu or the Red Line of Waikiki Trolley Hop-On Hop-Off, the fun way to see Hawaii! Ticket is available online at https://waikikitrolley.com or you can purchase directly at the driver. The Hawaiian word Waikiki means “spouting water”. Waikiki Beach is popular for surfers and majority of the hotels, resorts, shops, restaurants and bars are located in the area. Waikiki is just a playground for Hawaiian royalty in 1800 but today various tourist around the world are visiting and enjoying the place. The Hawaii State Capitol located in

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 7: Nadi, Fiji to Apia, Samoa

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 7: Nadi, Fiji to Apia, Samoa

From Nadi, Fiji it will take almost 2 hours flight to reach Apia, the capital of Western Samoa. I'm going to Samoa not MOA (Mall of Asia)! It’s a different adventure hitting the ride under ATR-72 aircraft, the propeller type airplane with seating capacity of 60 pax. In case you are not aware, there are two Samoan countries. One is the independent country Samoa or Western Samoa and the other is American Samoa, territory of United States. Apia is the capital city of Independent State of Samoa and the official languages are English and Samoan. It was under German Empire from 1900 to 1914, then colonized by New Zealand from 1914 to 1962 and gained independence in 1962. View this post on Instagram Apia is the capital and the largest city of Samoa. #apia #samoa #oceania A post shared by Jericho's Place (@jerichosplace) on Oct 22, 2015 at 1:41pm PDT Did you know Samoa is one of the first countries to welcome New Year due to its timezone. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); I usually booked standard hotel room during my tour but this time I opted the Samoan traditional bungalow room. Feels like I am in the old days and they provide

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 6: Christchurch, New Zealand to Nadi, Fiji

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 6: Christchurch, New Zealand to Nadi, Fiji

My half day tour in Christchurch has just finished and I requested our tour guide to drop me off at Christchurch International Airport to catch my flight to Nadi, Fiji. Fiji is an independent island country and located around 2,595 km north of New Zealand. Fiji’s official language are English, Fiji Hindi, Fijian and official currency is Fiji Dollar. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); I received warm hospitality from Fiji Airways staff and I almost got drunk on board due to their unlimited red wine serving. There are musicians playing guitars on the arrival hall that welcomes you to Fiji. Tokatoka Resort is the hotel that I booked during my 2 day stay in Fiji. It’s just opposite the airport, so I just simply walk while pulling my luggage. Time to take my dinner and let us try their traditional food made of fish with coconut milk and veggies. Let’s go for my Suva Full-Day Sightseeing Tour from Nadi. Although Suva is the capital of Fiji, but the main international airport is located at Nadi. The distance between Nadi to Suva is 195 km and it will take around 3 to 4 hours drive. Our tour guide is explaining the rich colonial history of Fiji while enjoying the scen

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 5: Wellington to Christchurch, New Zealand

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 5: Wellington to Christchurch, New Zealand

After my short tour, I took evening flight from Wellington to Christchurch for around 50 minutes. Christchurch is located in the South Island of New Zealand and the third most populous city after Auckland and Wellington. The founder John Robert Godley named the Christchurch after his Alma Mater Christ Church from Oxford, England. My tour for Mount Cook was cancelled due to bad weather condition so I decided to go for a 2-day Christchurch city tour. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); First attraction is the Christchurch Botanic Gardens was founded in 1863 with the area of 21 hectares. The garden is located in the city centre of Christchurch, open daily and the entrance is free. Guided audio tour of the Gardens in electric shuttles is also available. The shuttle meeting point is at the museum gate outside the Visitor Centre. Second attraction is Punting on The Avon inside the Botanic Gardens. The fee is NZD 30 for adults and NZD 15 for children and online booking is available on this link. Cruise the tranquil Avon River as the Punter who wears Edwardian will take you a boat ride for 3o minutes.  See the ducks gliding on the water and seeing the beaut

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 4: Auckland to Wellington, New Zealand

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 4: Auckland to Wellington, New Zealand

I woke up early morning to catch my flight from Auckland to Wellington, the capital of New Zealand. Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand, the second most populous after Auckland and located on the southern tip of the North Island. Wellington was derived from the name of first Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley. Nobody assisted from Air New Zealand to check in my luggage since they are promoting self-service. I just printed the boarding pass and luggage tag generated from the machine, put the sticker on my luggage, took the tray, drop my bag and ready to fly. After 1 hour and 5 minutes, I arrived safely at Wellington Domestic Airport. My transport going to my hotel is the shared ride that I booked via Super Shuttle  and the fare cost is NZD 22.00. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); My itinerary for the day is Wellington City Sights and Coast Tour around the city. It is a little bit cold in Wellington and weather seems to be unpredictable. First stop is the Old Saint Paul’s built by the Anglican between 1865 to 1866. It was constructed from native timbers materials and considered as one of the best examples of Gothic Revival architectural in the wor

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 3: Waitomo Caves and ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Hobbiton Movie Set

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 3: Waitomo Caves and ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Hobbiton Movie Set

In this episode, I will join the group tour for Waitomo Caves and 'The Lord of the Rings' Hobbiton Movie Set Day Trip from Auckland. The pickup time from my hotel is 7:00 am and the tour is approximately 11 hours including travel time to the locations. Distance from Auckland to Waitomo is 195 km and travel time is around 2 hours and 30 minutes. On the way to Waitomo, the beautiful scenic views of farmlands and rolling hills enchanted us. Waitomo Glowworm Caves is one of the famous attractions in the North Island of New Zealand. Adult ticket cost NZD53, NZD24 for child and NZD131 for family and online ticket booking is available on this link. Open daily from 9am and the tour departs every 30 minutes. Most of the cave guides are descendants of the Maori chief having wide knowledge about the area. The cave is accessible by boat and tour last for 45 minutes. Unfortunately, photography and video are strictly prohibited inside the Glowworm Grotto. New Zealand glowworm (Arachnocampa Luminosa) can be found only in Waitomo Glowworm Caves in New Zealand. It is a must-see experience to see the tiny glowworms produce natural lights display inside the cave. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogl

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My Travel Diary Webseries Part 2: Hongkong to Auckland, New Zealand

My Travel Diary Webseries Part 2: Hongkong to Auckland, New Zealand

All the way from Hongkong, I flew for 11 hours just to reach Auckland, New Zealand. Auckland is not the capital of New Zealand, but it is the largest city and most populous in the country. There are two main islands in New Zealand; the North Island and South Island. Auckland is located in the North Island; it has estimated population of 1.657 million in 2017 and the largest Polynesian or the Maori population on earth. Upon arrival at the immigration, the officer asked me what I will do in New Zealand. I simply reply that I will go for tourism and he stamped my passport. I already booked my prepaid shuttle going to the hotel via Super Shuttle and the ticket cost is NZD 35.00 for shared ride. Since I arrived late in the afternoon at Auckland, I decided to be on my own tour rather than joining the group tour. Every time I am travelling, I always prefer to book my hotel near the city center so that everything is accessible like restaurants, bars, tourist spots, etc. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); After I check-in at the hotel, I immediately walk for around 16 minutes or 1.5km to reach the Sky Tower. Sky Tower is a telecommunication tower and observation tower lo

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Witness a Kangaroo Tale on Wild Australian Beauty !

Witness a Kangaroo Tale on Wild Australian Beauty !

My bestfriend Jon is planning to take his family on vacation to Japan. Unfortunately, Japan online visa application is still not yet available and requires lots of paper works not only for my bestfriend Jon but also for his family in the Philippines. Since I've been to Australia, I suggested Jon to visit the land down under. Those of you who want to travel, and your destination is Australia then follow the below guidelines for your reference: 1. Application of Australian Visa can be done at http://immi.gov.au by registering and filling up the questionnaires. Upload all relevant documents of you and your family like passports, pictures, bank statements, employment certificate, birth certificate, marriage license, itinerary etc. 2. If you are lodging a visa application in a country included in the biometrics program, regardless of nationality, you might need to provide your biometrics in relation to each visa application you lodge. Information can be found at this link. For applicants in GCC, VFS Global is the accredited Visa Application Center of Australia to collect biometrics. For more information visit their website at http://www.vfsglobal.com/Australia/GCC. As of this moment, P

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