Theme 47. My Sustainability Efforts. Ampion Solar Energy

As we are going through pandemic and other less widely covered by media catastrophes and ecological problems, I and so many other people on our planet start to wonder what can we possibly do to prevent any more harm done to the world as we know it.

An effort of one person might be small, but if we together as humans start taking responsibilities for our choices, communities and our Earth overall, we can make a difference and might improve the conditions of our world or at least slow down the inevitable catastrophic events that will fall down as a payment for our careless use of Earth. If we start today, now, we can hopefully buy another couple of millennia of prosperous future.

To be completely honest, my efforts have not been huge to this point. Apart from trying to eat less meat, shopping sustainably when I can, donating to organizations such as Ocean Cleanup and recycling, I have not done enough to be proud. That is why this year was a wake up call for me and I am continuously looking for ways to reduce my carbon footprint.

There are many small and easy ways to reduce your carbon footprint:

• Turn the water off when you brush your teeth, conditioning your hair and don’t ever leave water running while you are on your phone or going to another room even for a minute.

•  Unplug!  Leaving your fully charged device plugged in still uses up A LOT of energy. It is called “vampire power” and it drains up to $19 billion in energy every year in the USA alone.

• Flip the switch. Turn off the lights when you leave the room. My mum also taught me that if you leave home for more than a week it is wise to turn off/unplug all the appliances and devices. She would clean out the fridge and turn it off it we were leaving for a long time. I used to think it was redundant, but now I realise how wise my mum actually is.

• Reuse and Recycle. Reduce junk mail in your inbox, including billing (you can easily turn to paperless billing). Bring your own mug to a juice station or a coffee shop.

There is also some big ways you can help our planet “to breathe” - switch to alternative sources of energy!

My parents, for example, use solar energy to heat water for the house. My dad also tries to use well water and small windmills for generators and electricity in some parts of our house. Unfortunately, as I live in a rented apartment in Manhattan I cannot use solar energy just yet (it is all going to change in a very near future, just you watch!), however i discovered through my work with Souler.com and their partnership with Ampion that New York State residents and many other East Coasters can sign up for solar energy FOR FREE, without having to install any solar panels, any equipment and on top of that will get a lot of additional benefits.

If you sign up for Ampion, you will not only:

• Reduce your carbon footprint and start using sustainable energy

• Your electricity bill is guaranteed to go down at least by 10%!

• You will get $100 gift card to spend on Souler.com and buy any fashion, home items and even masks that are so scarcely available right now

There is no downside of trying Ampion, and I am surprised people are not mass subscribing to this solar community. Apart from saving money, it offers a huge opportunity to contribute into better healthier future for our planet.

Ampion is currently available in cities like Boston and Springfield in MA, Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard. Rochester, Binghampton, Bedford, Niagara Falls in New York, Trenton and Princeton in New Jersey, Stamford and Greenwich in Connecticut and many many more.

To check if Ampion is available in your city just click here and enter your ZIP code.

Apart from me, other influencers have been working with Ampion and being active spreading the word about using solar energy, including Survivor TV show winner and famous speaker Ethan Zohn, Love Island contestant, pageant queen and model Aissata Diallo, music videos director and award winning content creator and filmmaker Mackinzie Dae, one of the most influential social media influencers according to Forbes, Rudy Bundini, top Instagram creator Tina Lee and many more.

If you still have questions just insert your Zip code here to find out if Ampion is available in your city and find out more info. Let’s change the future of our world for better!

Let me know what are your sustainability efforts, I would like to learn more!

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Theme 45: EXPLORING ASIA. Hidden treasures of Malaysia

Majestic Hotel Kuala Lumpur’s staff member

The second country on our grand ASEAN trip was Malaysia. I didn’t know what to expect from Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh, so I kept an open mind and heart. Even though the focus of our Malaysian trip was on an interesting historical town of Ipoh, we still had one day to see Kuala Lumpur.

We stayed the night at a very luxurious hotel Majestic, which is documented as a national heritage site. The hotel was built in 1932 and is one of the most glamorous places in Kuala Lumpur and a beautiful example of colonial architecture.

The hotel is favored by Royals like Prince Charles and Camilla, so we definitely felt pampered at the stunning property.

I also was excited to finally see The Petronas Towers, twin skyscrapers. They were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 and remain the tallest twin towers in the world! It is definitely worth seeing them as they are considered one of the new Wonders of the World.

I wish we had more time in the capital of Malaysia, but it was time to have adventures in the countryside and explore Ipoh. There we stayed at a very charming hotel WEIL that I highly recommend if you are ever in the area. The rooms are new, spacious and they have some very romantic suites for couples.

Ipoh is definitely an interesting city to see. In the middle of the 1900s, it used to be the world’s largest producer of tin and its booming success showed. Informally described by locals as the “town that tin built,” Ipoh grew from a sleepy village to a hotbed of cabarets, nightlife, and conspicuous consumption, a city fueled by the fortunes of the Chinese-mining towkays (bosses). But the collapse of tin prices in the 1980s curbed the city’s rise and soon Ipoh faded, leaving a pleasant aftertaste of yesteryear’s glamour surrounded by wonderful nature.

After a quick rest in our rooms, we headed a little bit outside of Ipoh to do water rafting as that was the activity our followers picked over exploring Gua Tempuring cave.

I haven’t had any water rafting experiences before, so I was a little bit worried, but what shocked me, even more, was that on top of water rafting we were surprised by ABSEILING! If you didn’t know, abseiling is the same as rappelling and it is a controlled descent off a vertical drop, using just a rope. We climbed and trekked through the jungle to our destination - a waterfall that we were supposed to rappel from. 

I put on my gear and a brave face on, and despite an initial fear, I channeled my inner Tomb Raider and rappelled down like a pro :)

It was scary to make the first step back off the cliff, but I loved the adrenaline rush of abseiling so much that I went twice!

Feeling like I conquered my fear, I was ready to water raft and navigate the wild rocky river. It was honestly one of the most fun and adventurous days I ever had and I felt really powerful doing so many things that scared me and enjoying them immensely at the same time. If you ever need a female Indiana Jones as a friend, please hit me up :)

Useful Tip:

There are plenty of adventurous activities to do in Malaysia, but if you are going to explore the cities, make sure you wear modest clothes as Malaysia is definitely one of the most devoted Muslim countries I ever been to and you would want to be respectful.

The next day our group was separated for the first time. Angel’s followers voted for her to explore Ipoh and my and Sarah’s followers voted for us to visit one of the biggest Asian theme parks, The Lost World of Tambun. While I enjoyed rides, natural springs, and other great attractions there, I loved getting close to animals there.

While I am not a big fan of animals in captivity, I understand the importance of zoological parks. They provide a haven for endangered species (white tiger in this park, for example!) and share their observations and knowledge to make sure the species are well researched and protected. I was happy to see that animals in “The Lost World of Tambun” were all well-looked after, each had a few specialists observing them and many were in their natural habitat, unbound by the cages as the whole park is set inside the jungle and surrounded by limestone caves!

I fed deer, a hippo, got close to a lot of exotic animals (have you ever seen a bearcat?!) and made friends with the cutest raccoon. I had so much fun at the park and felt like a real-life Disney Princess!

Useful Tip:

If you like thrilling rides, The Lost World of Tambun might disappoint you as it is more of a water park and zoological park set in a real jungle, however it is a must-visit for everyone who loves animals like me.

On our last night in Ipoh, we went to explore the night market and tried some interesting and colorful deserts. They were not something I am used to, but it was really great to try new flavors. What I really got hooked on in Malaysia was white coffee, but the coffee in Bintan, Indonesia was even more delicious…But about that, in my next post!

P.S. Watch all my adventures in Malaysia via detailed Instagram Stories in this Highlight [click here]!

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Theme 45: EXPLORING ASIA. Krabi, Thailand

Wonderful Thai Adventure of Ulia, Angel and Sarah

Krabi, Thailand with AseanTourism

Traveling for work has always been one of my biggest dreams, and in the last few months I was lucky to have fun in Mexico with NKDSKN, party with Amazon Prime and Lady Gaga in California and was sent on an unbelievable, unforgettable adventure by the ASEAN Tourism Board to Thailand, Malaysia, and to the island of Bintan in Indonesia.

The trip to Asia has been so rich in memories and enlightening in every way that I really wanted to share with you more details about my experience in every country I have visited with the team. Shall we begin?

• - ->

When I received an email invitation to join a trip to Southeast Asia, I couldn’t quite believe my eyes. I think I almost screamed from happiness. I was still in a wondrous shock and disbelief until the tickets information hit my inbox and I marked my calendar with the date of my first flight (and oh boy, did we take many!) I have never been to Asia before and it meant so much to me to be able to explore this part of the world as a blogger.

An important thing to note is that all three countries - Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia are quite conservative, therefore we were advised to bring more modest hot weather clothes.

As we had such a long adventure ahead filled with different activities (more about them later! It is the most exciting part!), I, like a typical girl, decided to pack 1000 outfits ‘just in case’. Luckily, I didn’t have to stress about packing, because I got a great gift from Victorinox - an expandable big suitcase.

My Victorinox, in a beautiful red color, proved to be very durable, but the best part of it that the one I have EXTENDS BY 45%! I honestly filled it with so many useful and not so useful things and every time I thought that this suitcase had enough, it would still fit ANYTHING I added. I had my share of different luggage and will do a detailed review of all of them one day, but so far Victorinox is my top favorite. 

Well, after the bags were packed, the goodbyes were said, me and Angel, who also lives in New York, flew to Hong Kong to meet our third travel partner Sarah (Los Angeles). Before I begin detailing all the adventures, I have to explain that this trip was not a regular one…

The main decisions on experiences were made by our followers, and they had to choose what each one of us was going to do and see. All the voting was taking place in our Instagram Stories!

By the time of our flight, I already gave my followers two choices for my first activity in Krabi, Thailand:

1. A visit to Elephant Sanctuary

2. Relaxing Natural Hot Springs Spa

However, an eccentric side of me decided that I should give my followers to pick my food and outfits sometimes too. So, there we were in Hong Kong, haven’t even started our official part of the trip, and I was already letting my audience to pick between me eating a cold fungus soup or some black herbal jelly. As these food decisions had to be quick, it looked like at the beginning the soup was winning, but 10 minutes later people voted more for the jelly… So I ATE THEM BOTH. If you want a good laugh or missed my Stories initially, go to my Asian Adventures Highlights on Instagram and watch that recording :D In short, jelly was not bad, but skip the soup!

Finally, after I filled myself with exotic Chinese food and drinks, our boarding to Bangkok started. Then we waited for another few hours in Bangkok, getting to know Sarah, who is AMAZING by the way, and finally after 24+ hours got on our final plane to Krabi.

USEFUL TIP: I highly recommend to exchange money at the airport as it is not that easy to find an exchange place later. At least change $50-$100. I know that doesn’t sound like a lot, but Thailand is a very pleasantly affordable country!

And there we were.. in Krabi!

When you imagine a classic picture of a paradise, you see Krabi. The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful: clean white beaches that stretch on for miles, turquoise blue waters filled with colorful sea creatures, dense mangrove forests, gorgeous limestone cliffs, and lush green jungle, intimidating and inviting at the same time. The rich, fresh smell of a grand adventure, spiced with the aroma of exotic flowers and wildlife, filled my lungs immediately.

We checked in at Centra by Centara Phu Pano Resort and started getting ready for our first dinner in Thailand, which was at a gorgeous and romantic Ruen Mai Restaurant. The restaurant’s roof is made from bamboo and reminded me of Tulum, and the whole structure, set in the open air is extended over a maze of canals and ponds and surrounded by beautiful nature.

The food and decor of every restaurant in Krabi that we visited on this trip exceeded my expectations. I got hooked on Papaya salad and Tom Yum soup, and hope to recreate some of the local Thai dishes at home for my friends and loved ones at home in New York.

After the dinner, we enjoyed a short night of sleep at the hotel (we really didn’t sleep much for two weeks while we were there, to be honest, but we loved every second of the trip!), and again, were impressed by the breakfast spread at Centra by Centara Phu Pano Resort. I think it was the best resort we stayed at during the entire trip, and the pool view was absolutely spectacular. 

But as much as I would have loved to eat my way through the buffet and then tan by the pool the entire morning, I was MADLY EXCITED for my first activity that was chosen by my followers - A VISIT TO ELEPHANT SANCTUARY!

Krabi Elephant Sanctuary is an ethical experience and a place where overworked and abused elephants find a new home and a safe haven. I was so lucky to get close to these magnificent creatures, feed them bamboo leaves and bananas, play with them in dirt and then bathe them in a river in the jungle. The whole experience was out of this world, and if you know me long enough, you know that interacting with animals is one of my favorite things in the world.

I also learned that you can make paper from elephant poo, and witnessed a few women and a cute little girl going through the whole process. I, of course, bought a couple of elephant poo paper notebooks as gifts and a big roll of paper for my own art projects :)

After the Elephant Sanctuary, the ASEAN Tourism Board and V’explore Tours informed us that after lunch on water (another delicious delicious lunch place, but unfortunately I cannot find its name! I will update this post if I do!), we actually were going to have another surprise. 

They must have read our minds because after the long flights and an active morning with elephants and shoots, we really wanted to relax a little bit and a visit to the famous Klong Thom Hot Springs Spa just made the whole day even more perfect. 

We enjoyed natural thermal springs, scrubs, neck massages and…. an hour-long INCREDIBLE Thai massage in a beautiful hut overlooking the jungle with pretty birds singing their beautiful songs. The whole experience was almost spiritual.

For Day 3, my followers chose between adventurous rock climbing overlooking Phra Nang Beach, Railay West and Tonsai Beach or canoeing Phang Nga Bay and visiting the Monkey Temple - Wat Suwanakuha.

Both of the options seemed extremely appealing to me, but I really wanted to see the temple and canoe, and that was what my followers chose for me to do!

I got to explore more of Krabi’s stunning scenery, fed monkeys, had a quiet moment of prayer and meditation followed by a mind-blowing adventurous ride in a canoe, a boat ride to a 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗺 𝗙𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗲 on the water, and a visit to the famous 𝗝𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗕𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝘀𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱!

Did you know why monkeys are worshipped in Thailand? It’s all thanks to the 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆, where the monkey Hanuman and his army helped Rama to take his wife Sita back, who was kidnapped by the demon Ravana!

That is why there are so many monkeys roaming around temples freely. The official name of the 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝘃𝗲 is 𝗪𝗮𝘁 𝗦𝘂𝘄𝗮𝗻 𝗞𝗵𝘂𝗵𝗮 and it’s home to a magnificent reclining gold Buddha statue and to hundreds and hundreds of monkeys. Not going to lie, but I did not expect monkeys to be so hyperactive and at times a little bit scary to be around!

Useful Tip: Throw food at monkeys fast, otherwise they will snatch it and might hurt you. Also, don’t wear a backpack to the Monkey Cave as monkeys will definitely try to steal it :D

I also was so excited to see the famous James Bond Island and feel like a real Bond girl (of course I took some dramatic swimwear photos!). The island was featured in TWO FILMS about the iconic #007 Agent: ”𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗚𝘂𝗻” and “𝐓𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰 N𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 D𝐢𝐞𝐬”, so the fans of the British agent will definitely enjoy the visit.

All our Thailand days were packed with various fun activities, beautiful experiences, and I absolutely fell in love with Thai culture, cuisine, and nature and with the very soul of the kind and hospitable Thai people. All three of us girls agreed that we would like to come back to Thailand as soon as possible and hopefully explore other parts of this magnificent country… 

But then, we were off to Malaysia, which I will tell you about in my next post!

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Theme 44: BEST SWIMWEAR. Ouisisi via Amazon

Hello dear readers, casual Google searchers and my loyal INSTAFAM, I am kicking off this season with a plan to redesign my entire website and writing more (for the blog and for my novels). There will be some exciting changes. Just wanted to share this with you before I get to our delicious new theme! BEST SWIMWEAR!

Summer 2019 is officially in full swing, and many of us are frantically looking for new bikinis and one-pieces. Let’s be honest, social media has RUINED us and our wardrobes in a way. Have you posted a bikini from your last Mexico vacation on Instagram? Well, for the next destination, even if it is just a quick beach escape to Hamptons, you will probably want to get a brand new piece to pose, I mean, tan and swim in. Because wearing the same bikini few beach photos in a row is almost as bad as wearing the same gown to two weddings (and having pictures to prove the “horrid” fact!).

While you are allowed to splurge once in a while on some designer swimwear, it really is so much better finding a gorgeous quality piece for a very very affordable price. I recently discovered OUISISI brand on Amazon, and decided to try this classy elegant black&white one-piece.

It arrived super quickly as it is on Amazon Prime. I loved how it looked as a top worn with jeans and as a swimsuit.

This swimsuit has a very classic, almost glamorous look to it, but it is also perfect as an athletic swim as it has a very decent coverage, and is very comfortable. I am not going to lie, a lot of my swimsuits usually have MUCH less coverage and I am often afraid to accidentally flash someone whenever I wear my “risky pieces”. There is no such problem with this OUISISI swimsuit, and you can be confident that it will make you stand out on the beach without having to show a lot of skin!

I was actually really happy to discover that OUISISI also has the cutest maternity swimsuits! I know a lot of my readers are young mums or mums-to-be and it feels good to be able to share something that is so cheap and great and worthy to be discovered!

I have linked some of my favorite pieces for you below:

Photography: Alejandro Cerdena

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Theme 43: New Orleans. Royal Sonesta Hotel Review

One of the places that has been on my bucket list long before I moved to the USA was a charming, mysterious city of New Orleans. For some reason I kept putting away a trip to probably one of the most cinematic cities in the world, waiting for some serendipitous moment to arise. This October, unexpectedly, I was invited for a journey to the city of my fantasy-novels-inspired dreams, exactly on the city’s 300th anniversary.

After confirming my flight, I, in a dream-like haze, was saving all the information about haunted mansions, quaint bookstores, houses of famous writers and all the Instagram-worthy locations in Nola. But then I realized I have no idea where we should lodge!

I undoubtedly dreamed to stay in a famous, and, by the way, ridiculously gorgeous French Quarter, but I wanted to steer clear of any loud hotels, filled with people who came to only party on a fun Bourbon street. Some AirBnb properties looked lovely, but when I saw some photos and read about Royal Sonesta New Orleans, I was intrigued.

For me New Orleans is an enclave of a dark and beautiful history, rich with layers of French and Spanish Creole culture and architecture; a magical place where time doesn’t exist and you loose yourself in a time travel fantasy, while listening to the best jazz music you ever heard.

The hotel Royal Sonesta was a perfect choice for such a nostalgic soul like me, and it let me immerse myself into that classy, elegant, yet seductive and mysterious New Orleans dream I imagined for many years.

The grand lobby of the Royal Sonesta hotel looks like a movie set: a big old style wooden hotel reception with keys and neat envelops, hotel porters in sleek royal blue uniforms, vintage and antique items beautifully placed here and there, exquisite chandeliers and candelabras, water fountains, huge flower bouquets lushly blooming and filling the room with their sweet aroma and a soft jazz music playing on the background teasing the guests with the promise of one-of-the-kind stay.

The moment we stepped into the Royal Sonesta, I knew this is my kind of place as it reminded me of small chateaux in France, “The Grand Budapest Hotel” film and some lavish vampire pre-ball (of course! We are in NOLA after all!) setting at the same time.

There are almost 500 newly renovated beautifully decorated guest rooms and luxury suites, and the room we had was so cozy and charming that we loved going back to it and taking breaks between venturing out for long walks with a stop for delicious beignets and coffee at the world famous Cafe du Monde, and getting back out to the most wildly intoxicating and mysterious night air of New Orleans. Conveniently, the hotel Royal Sonesta is located right in the heart of the French Quarter!

The service at the hotel, by the way, was absolutely impeccable and I was able to learn about famous Southern hospitality firsthand. Once, for example, I asked for a steamer, and it was delivered pretty quickly, so I was able to steam my dresses for the city strolls. 

The breakfast and even lunch were included with the Sonesta Travel Pass (it is a loyalty program I recommend you to join as it has a lot of great perks! Learn more here), and even though I am usually pretty picky with hotel breakfasts, I was really happy with the variety and also some of the unique breakfast options Royal Sonesta offered their guests. I got to try grits for the first time in my life, and loved substituting my usual oatmeal with it. Another really sweet, in every sense, detail is that there was a full candy bar with Halloween chocolates, caramels, cookies and gummy worms, along with fruits and tea/coffee available from early morning to late night at the breakfast lounge. I might or might not sneaked some chocolates every night before going to bed to watch “Poldark” (not the most New Orleans inspired show, but I love period dramas, and I finished watching the most New Orleans’ show ever, “The Originals”, months ago!).

The hotel by the way, despite being located in the heart of the French Quarter, felt like a luxury quiet oasis from a bygone era.

The sounds of a bursting with life, Bourbon street, somehow do not travel through the walls of Royal Sonesta. The lush courtyard with a fountain and quaint little tables are welcoming to have a calm little moment with a book or your own thoughts. The pool area of Royal Sonesta is also absolutely beautiful and a great place to relax and enjoy the sunny weather of Louisiana’s most exciting city!

There are so many great little things and charming little details about Royal Sonesta, but I think it is important to note that the hotel is also home to some of the best dining and entertainment venues, making it even more unique! The Jazz Playhouse is arguably the best jazz club in the city, offering incredible live jazz music every evening right in the lobby level of Royal Sonesta. 

Desire Oyster Bar is another dining venue inside the hotel and it was so good that we went there twice for fresh chargrilled oysters, amazing creole food, like jambalaya and gumbo, and a wide variety of fresh seafood.

There is also a Restaurant and a bar R’evolution, Le Booze and PJ’s Coffee Café inside the Royal Sonesta Hotel, which we haven’t had a chance to experience. I heard from other guests that R’evolution serves some of the most interesting Cajun and Creole dishes and original cocktails, so I am looking forward to visit it next time in New Orleans (and I hope to be back for many many times in the years to come!).

This New Orleans trip was special for many reasons, and the Crescent City absolutely stole my heart like no city has ever done before (except maybe London back in 1999 when I visited it for the first time and made a wish to move there one day, which happened years after, but that is another story). I believe that accommodation is so incredibly important and should reflect the mood and aesthetic of your dream trip, and Royal Sonesta with its impeccable service, gorgeous classy 1930s-style-luxury-hotel decor and many charming spots, like a jazz filled ballroom, a courtyard with a pleasant babbling fountain and a decadent dining areas deserves all the stars I can give to it!

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