• girl facing back with anello bag red coat solo travel beijing china agirlnamedclara
    Travel

    I Joined a Cheap Beijing Tour. This is How It Feels

    Inspired by the Chinese New Year that just ended, this week I’ll share my experience joining a cheap Beijing tour. If you’re a Malaysian or have been living in Malaysia and love travelling, MATTA Fair – an annual travel fair organized by the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents, is something we always look forward to. There are huge selections of local, Asia and overseas tours at the fair. If your destination is somewhere in Asia, you’ll find many cheap packages. However, I have to agree with the saying “you get what you pay”. If you’re thinking to take a cheap tour to Beijing or China, this post may…

  • australia grassfed ribeye with rocket crispy onion mashed potatomaria's steakcafe malaysia agirlnamedclara
    Life,  Money

    Turning Thirty

    I turned thirty last week. Finally, this petite girl is thirty! I should make sure that I keep petite and not gain a lot of weight during MCO 2.0 (Movement Control Order) hahaha… Originally, I planned to celebrate it with my family at the newly-opened Maria’s Signature at KLCC as they’re having a Buy-1-Free-1 Wagyu promotion. Alas, our prime minister announced MCO 2.0 a few days before my big day. However, I feel grateful and blessed that I and the ones I loved are healthy. Furthermore, it would be my first (and hopefully, the last) birthday during the pandemic. I have a story to tell to young people when I…

  • agirlnamedclara thank you 2020 grateful blessing
    Health & Beauty,  Life,  Money

    Thank You 2020, You’ve Been a Blessing

    This year, nobody can escape the impact of the arrival of Covid-19. As you may have read in the news, some have it very tough, some not so, and the rest may be even richer than before (hint: Zoom, Amazon, the 1% society). I myself find the year 2020 a blessing. Compared to the lockdown and no travel this year, I feel that God opened the floodgate of blessings to me. I’m sorry if this isn’t the case for you… I treat my blog as a diary, hence I always write a yearly review as the last post of the year.  Blessed 2020 — Career I landed a new job…

  • asian girl tourist pink jacket hush pose with santa claus helsinki finland travel agirlnamedclara
    Travel

    Helsinki Travel: from Rock Church to Contemporary Arts

    Some of you may have planned for a year-end trip or winter holiday. Although now most of us can only dream about travelling, this week I’ll take you to a far, far away country where Santa Claus is residing – Finland. We’ll have a virtual tour of Helsinki: The Rock Church, Sibelius Monument, Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art and Suomenlinna. I may only spend two days in Helsinki during the autumn of 2017, but whenever the end of the year is approaching, I would look back at my Northern Europe trips. Well, let’s start our virtual tour! Helsinki Travel: The Rock Church The Rock Church isn’t a regular church. It…

  • girl tourist smile trastevere cobbled stone rome italy summer agirlnamedclara
    Travel

    Trastevere, a Hidden Gem in Rome

    I’m sorry that recently I only update this blog once every two weeks. I don’t have the mood to share travel stories when many people are tired of the lockdown (like me) or facing financial problems. But! I realized that I feel happy when I recall summer trips when the sun shines so bright and the air feels light. Therefore, this week I want to share with you my lovely experience in Trastevere, a hidden gem in Rome, Italy. Finding Trastevere, a Hidden Gem in Rome I reached Rome in the afternoon and had a quick lunch at the airport (something that I regret). By the time I put my…

  • woman sell glutinous rice stick rectangle sweet street snack in houhai beijing agirlnamedclara
    Travel

    Houhai, Beijing: A Charming Travel Spot You Must Visit

    These days I’ve been eating Chinese food because I found a new favourite restaurant. Hence, this week, my memory takes me back to Houhai, a charming lake and travel spot in Beijing. Houhai, a lake surrounded by willow trees and neighbourhood, has been there since the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). It is one of the famous spots to relax and hangout for the locals, especially the nightlife. But to me, the place is most charming during sunset. The willow trees surrounding the lake will steal your heart. It’s so picturesque, straight from a storybook! Besides the beautiful scenery, there are many shops, bars and of course street food!! Alright, I don’t…

  • girl smile gabriella cruise deck stockholm to finland sea background agirlnamedclara
    Travel

    M/S Gabriella – What Overnight on a Cruise Feels Like

    Now that we have new hopes that the Covid-19 vaccines might be rolled out in November, December or Q1 2021, we can continue our travel dream. It’s not that I’ve stopped dreaming, but I had no mood (and inspiration) to write about my travel experience seeing the cases are increasing. This week, let me share with you my experience boarding a cruise when in Europe. We’ll be boarding M/S Gabriella, a cruise ship that departs from Stockholm, Sweden to Helsinki, Finland. My Room and My Favourite Spot on the Gabriella Cruise I love travelling but I never dreamt of boarding a cruise. Luckily, I was able to have the experience…

  • Putumayo CD collection CMCO music playlist agirlnamedclara
    Life,  Travel

    Clara’s CMCO Essentials – Try It!

    I thought I had my life back. I went to the gym regularly, started to adapt to the new office, planned my next revenge trips then BOOM! CMCO is back. If you’re living in Malaysia, I’m sure you feel the same. So, in this week’s blog post, I’m gonna share with you what calms me down and makes me happy. Here are my CMCO essentials: The CMCO Playlist to Destress – Putumayo My #1 playlist that I recommend to destress when drinking or taking a break is Putumayo. If you love travelling, this playlist will take you around the world with its world music, living up to the tagline “Celebrate…