Travel memories

When you have sons, they tend to do their own schedules for vacations when they reach their teen years, especially thereafter.  So I learned to enjoy my own vacations whether with my sister, with close friends or by myself.  I did not take a vacation at all in some years.  My memory of our intact family vacation was when we did a month-long tour of Europe, then London, a year after the college graduation of the boys in 1999.

It is therefore such a joy for me when we have family vacations again -- more so with the little ones who sparkle our days with their antics and laughter.

Last year, we went to the US for our annual vacation -- this time we went back to visit my sister Joy who has migrated to Las Vegas to join her husband Steve Sia.  The little ones missed their Ee-po (Chinese for grandaunt on the mother side) and wanted to reunite with her.

Since I got two Premium Economy (PEY) seats for me and my eldest granddaughter Meg, we all checked in at the PEY counter, avoiding the long lines in Economy. We had 15 pieces of luggage among us - 5 adults and 4 children - counting the boxes for child car seats, excluding the strollers that we checked in at the boarding gates. I had only one medium size luggage among all that! I was not even allowed a carry-on bag by my sons as we had 4 strollers to push and a roller carry-on would occupy extra space in the rented vans. (I sneaked in my extra large Longchamp bag that became an extra carrier for my neck pillow, emergency biscuits, wet wipes, tissues, my diary - which I managed to fill up somehow, a book - wishful thinking, etc.)

Check-in at the Cathay Pacific counter in Mactan airport was a breeze.  We were even upgraded to PEY seats at the last minute.  The parents saw for themselves how hard it would be to let the little ones sleep at their own seats in PEY.  But, at least, we all enjoyed PEY comfort in the short haul from Cebu to Hong Kong.  Thank you, Cathay Pacific, we truly appreciate this!

However, our connecting flight to LAX was a tight one and we literally ran from our arrival gate at one end of Chek Lap Kok airport to our departure gate at the other end! That time, the strollers were our salvation and I thanked God for my soft and lightweight Longchamp bags.

With all our luggage, we had to hire a shuttle van from the airport to our hotel in Costa Mesa City (prepaid through the internet).  The Westin South Coast Plaza is a great venue as it is right next to a huge mall - South Coast Plaza - where we ate and shopped at our convenience.  We could go back to the hotel when our shopping bags became too many to carry on the strollers or when we got tired. And my son got a good deal which he prepaid through the internet - all our hotels were on specials and prepaid through the internet.  Really value for money stays!

After a couple of days, my sons picked up their choices from the van rental company they hired again through the internet.  We saved on two days' rental for 2 vans by staying at a hotel near a mall!  Then we went to Disneyland (Anaheim is near Costa Mesa) with prepaid tickets. No lines, no hassle! What happened later that evening - when I lost my party and my handbag with my mobile phone was on the stroller - was another story best forgotten!

The Holiday Inn in San Diego has spacious rooms at reasonable rates. With our prepaid Go San Diego Passes, we went to the different sights - Sea World, Legoland, etc.  Then there's Carlsbad Factory Outlets, near enough for shopping, and the adjacent flower farms that were starting to bloom in early spring. The weather however had been cold throughout - gloves and full layering, for me!

Las Vegas, Nevada, was no better, considering we were already in the desert.  It was a mild spring with an average temperature of about 25 degrees Celsius, going down as the sun went down.  We stayed at Spring Hill Suites by Marriott, off The Strip, to avoid the smoky casinos. It was one of a few hotels without a casino, right next to Las Vegas Convention Center. This hotel even has free breakfast of eggs (omelet and hard boiled), bacon or turkey sausages, fresh fruits (bananas and apples), cereals, yogurt and really good brewed coffee.

We had dinner at Benehana in Las Vegas Hilton, next door, for my birthday on March 26. Pricey menu but good food in a charming ancient Japanese village ambiance.  To our surprise, our entertaining and adept misono chef turned out to be a Boholano with a definite Bohol accent, despite having lived in the US for many years.

We also had our fill of the best buffets Las Vegas has to offer.  By far, the one at Winn's is the best - and the most expensive @$50.00 (excluding tax) for adult and half price for children 3 - 12 years old.  Obviously, they discourage little diners there!

We returned to California and stayed at Doubletree (Hilton) in Irvine where we were welcomed with cold bottled water and warm chocolate cookies they are famous for.  And you can ask for these warm cookies anytime! This is next to a huge mall - Irvine Spectrum Center - that has a lovely Chinese restaurant that serves dimsum and other dishes cooked like the restaurants here in the Philippines.

By the time we checked in at the Los Angeles airport, we gave ourselves three hours leeway, as the boys had to return the rented vans.  We checked in at the PEY area to wait our turn at the counter.  There was a slack in the Business Class section and a smiling CX counter staff, Ms. Ann Yi, approached us so we could check in at her counter.  It took sometime, as we had to account for all the pieces of luggage with us.  She was gracious all throughout and in no time, we were good to go!

Our family vacation this year was as fun-filled and as memorable as ever.