how to get cheap-ish tickets to see da vinci's the last supper in milan

A copy of The Last Supper.

If you are a fan of Leonardo da Vinci, a visit to see The Last Supper in Milan is a must. If you are a fan of Dan Brown's book, "The Da Vinci Code," a visit to see The Last Supper in Milan is a must. If you have nothing better to do while in Milan, a visit to see The Last Supper is a must.

Unlike the Duomo, which is free to visit (although there are fees to visit the terrace and the archaeological area), the privilege of viewing The Last Supper (for 15 minutes at most) comes with a hefty price.... unless, you plan well in advance. You can view this masterpiece only if you have a ticket. If you can't get a ticket as described below, you may still be able to behold this great work if you pay for a tour... at a significantly higher price. There are lots of places where you can get a tour if you search the interwebs. This post will focus on getting tickets at the cheapest price you can get to view The Last Supper, i.e., buying it through official channels.

travel zen on friday: on a mekong river tour in vietnam

Floating along the fertile, muddy waters.  Legend has it that bathing in the water would make you beautiful... and no, I didn't try it.

more tieks (my bona fide favorite travel shoes)!

Previously I reviewed my very first pair of tieks to determine if they were good travel shoes (see review here).  On my trip to Italy, I found myself wearing my tieks more than even my vibram running shoes because they proved to be more comfortable and much cuter!  Since that trip, I've learned that they are literally the most comfortable pair of shoes in my entire collection (excluding my birkenstocks and Uggs).  And even after 6 months of wear, they are holding up very well evidencing their durability.   So the temptation to acquire more colors was very very strong.

I did manage to resist for over 6 months, but recently I purchased two additional pairs - in matte black and in romantic blush.  And I'm happy to report that I love both of them!  The black is an obvious classic and can easily be worn with almost anything.  The romantic blush is silvery, sparkly, and adorable and can be worn with dressier outfits.  And as expected, they are both wonderfully comfortable.  I can't wait to bring a variety of tieks on my next trip - they take so little room in my luggage that I'll have more room for other important things (such as souvenirs)!

Have you tried them yet?  If you are on the fence, I would recommend going for it!  Your footsies will thank you!  (And no this is not sponsored.  I have no affiliation with tieks other than I'm obsessed with buying their shoes!)

milan eats: luini panzerroti

A Luini Panzerroti.

If you ever find yourself in Milan, I highly recommend eating a panzerroti -- a soft calzone-like snack -- at Luini. In two days, I had three panzerrotis. It was like an obsession.

travel zen on friday: old town riga, latvia

Winter sunset in Riga. A view of old town and Vansu Bridge.

uber vs. taxi from lax

(Los Angeles, CA).  Previously I wrote a blog about my experience taking uberBlack to LAX.  I mistakenly believed that you couldn't take uberX to LAX, which is cheaper than the Black version.  Since then, I've learned that you can  take uberX to LAX; it's just that you can only take uberBlack (and above) from LAX, for various legal reasons.  Unfortunately when I tried to call a uberBlack call at LAX, the wait time was usually quite long so it was easier to hop into a waiting taxi.

Due to the above limitation, my current habit is to take uberX to LAX for longer trips and then take a taxi home when I land in LAX. (For short trips, I will usually drive myself and park at the Park n' Fly.)  I did this on several occasions for business trips in the last several months and the comparison in the service between uberX and taxi drivers was quite glaring which compelled me to write this post.

Simply put, the service from taxi drivers from LAX is generally pretty horrible.  The cars are usually run-down and smelly; whereas uberX cars tend to be pretty new and clean.  The last taxi I was in actually had a broken headlight and I felt as if the entire car was falling apart around me.  The drivers usually have no idea where they are going and/or do not have reliable map apps or gps systems.  Fortunately I always know where I'm going in my hometown.  But can you imagine if you were a visiting tourist? 

But most importantly, and what I find more offensive, is that I always end up paying more for this worse service and experience.  A uberX ride to LAX is probably around $25-30.  A taxi ride from LAX has ranged from $45-75, depending on traffic and the shadiness of the driver.

If the taxi industry truly wants to compete with uber, then it should  improve its own service standards, and not simply try to snuff out much-needed competition.

What has your experience being like?  

restaurant review: batard in new york city

On a recent trip to New York, I was very keen to check out Batard because it has received good reviews from the New York Times, among others. So, I made reservations for Mr. Sazy Rock, two of our friends and me. On the evening we ate at Batard, we we braved a cold winter (I'm from LA so my idea of freezing is about 70F and that night was about 19F) to trek there. My thoughts are below:

travel zen on friday: a daily offering in bali

(Bali, Indonesia)

A daily, fragrant and colorful offering which is commonly found throughout Bali.  There's something lovely and precious about these little treasures, no?

uniqlo - my stop for travel wardrobe essentials

I don't generally buy clothes at Uniqlo - the only exception being what I consider to be 'essentials' for my travel wardrobe.  As I may have mentioned before, I detest checking luggage so it's important to have travel clothes that are versatile, light, durable and do not take up too much luggage space.

My favorite essential at Uniqlo is their bra top (see link here), which is basically a tank top with a built-in bra.  I get them in a variety of basic and fun colors and I can usually pair them with a multitude of bottoms, jackets, and scarves to create a lot of different looks.  They dry pretty quickly so I can easily wash them while I'm traveling  and get multiple wears during a single trip.

My second favorite essential at Uniqlo is their ultra light down jackets and vests (see link here).  They are surprisingly warm for being so light and packable!  You can literally fold them up into a teeny bitty packet which barely takes up any room in your luggage.  I absolutely rely on these jackets when I travel during the winter.  (Note - They probably are not warm enough if you are actually going to be skiing or snowboarding in the snow, but for most city winter vacations, they'll do just fine.) 

Finally, Uniqlo has a series of Heattech clothing that is supposed to help you retain heat.  I use these for layering if I'm traveling to a cold location, but I don't find this series particularly cute, and I'm not sure they are as warm as my silk underwear.  But as layering pieces, they are sufficient.

Apologies that this post is going up in March - but the bright side is that since it's almost spring, the ultra light down jackets are all on sale now so it's a good time to pick some up!  

easter island: travel and debunking alien myths

Moai.

Many of you have probably heard a theory that the Moai (statues depicting the Rapa Nui people) scattered throughout Easter Island (or Isla de Pascua in Spanish or Rapa Nui in the native tongue) were created by aliens. These statues are large and look "alien" in that they do not look like a typical human statue.

One of the many good things about traveling is debunking myths such as aliens creating the Moai. Why are these statues not created by aliens?

travel zen on friday - san blas islands, panama

San Blas

One of the islands in the San Blas Islands (or Las Islas de Kuna Yala) in the Caribbean side of Panama.

restaurant review: vij's in vancouver

We got here a little after 5 and there was already a line.

(Vancouver, Canada).  When I was researching for places to eat in Vancouver, multiple people recommended Vij's - a high end Indian restaurant that was described to me as one of the best Indian restaurants in North America.  I have to admit that I generally am not a huge fan of Indian food, but since this place was universally praised by my friends I had to give it a try.

Was I disappointed?

video: how to communicate in berber - the basics

It'a always a good thing to learn a few phrases when traveling to a different country. If you are traveling to Morocco, below is a short video that teaches you how to communicate basic words in Berber, courtesy of my new friend, Sayid. Enjoy!