Getting High with Fridge Magnets

A package of fridge magnets came in the mail on Thursday. I quickly opened the package and the contents blew my mind!

First there was this one from the state of Florida: 

Reminds me of SpongeBob SquarePants :-)

I was curious why these 2 had the word Margaritaville on it:

This magnet is one of my all-time favourite. It's big and shaped like a bottlecap cover. But can someone please tell me what's the purpose of the rectangular and round hole at the back? 

So I did a Google search and discovered that Margaritaville is the name of a song written by Jimmy Buffett about a drink. The song was released in 1977 and became a hit.

Isn't it amazing what you can learn from fridge magnets!

When Florida is mentioned, another name comes to mind - Universal Studios!

I like the white glow that illuminates the logo.

It's all about movie making!

And if you want to make the recipient of these fridge magnets feel like a princess, get her this:

I feel oh so special already!

In the package was also this magnet about the The Mighty Eighth:

The Mighty Eighth Air Force is one of the greatest air armada in history and you can read about its history here. I'll make it a point to visit this museum if I ever go to Georgia.

Thank you Art for these lovely magnets and especially for a quick lesson in Margaritaville and The Mighty Eighth!

Madrid to Toledo by Bus

Toledo is an easy day trip from Madrid which you can do on your own by taking the efficient public transportation.

Buses leave from Plaza Eliptica which is on Line 6 of the Metro subway (didn't I mention that public transportation in Spain is one of the best!).

Plaza Eliptica is made up of different levels and I navigated my way to the correct platform with help from digital screens like these:

Almost all signages in Spain are in Spanish or Catalan. Here it means that Route 402 is the direct bus to Toledo that leaves from Platform 7. 

When I reached Platform 7 ...

... the bus was about to leave and I didn't have a ticket!

The bus driver pointed to the ticket machine beside the platform ...

... where I bought a return ticket to Toledo for 8.88 Euros: 

Then I checked the screen and the next bus was at 11.30am:

Not too bad since I only had to wait for another 20 minutes for the next bus.

Soon I was on my way to Toledo which took about 45 minutes because traffic was clear, yeah ! 

Click here for Part 2: Getting Inside the Medieval City of Toledo

Nepal, Here We Come!

After 2 years of talking about it, Angie and I are finally going to Nepal for trekking adventures.

We'll be going end October which apparently is the best time to visit the Himalayan region and walk in its magnificent landscape. But no, we're not going to attempt to conquer Everest, or even get to Everest Base Camp. We're just going to do easy, non-strenuous hikes and enjoy our time there. Being able to see Everest and the Himalayas with my own eyes is enough for me.

Coincidentally Air Asia and MAS have started flights to Kathmandu. And for travellers like us, the bigger the price war, the better. We'll be flying MAS because prices are similar with Air Asia during our travel dates.

I've climbed Mount Kinabalu and Mount Bromo before, but what will adventures in the Himalayas be like? Well, there's only one way to find out ... get there!