Scoop Airport/Hotel/Travel Thread

[Galway Eagle]

After doing the North Market, East Market (the speakeasy below there), Columbus Brewing, Antique on High Brewing, Zaftig brewing, Pretentious Brewing, Wolfs ridge brewing, a cute coffee shop, two fantastic restaurants in Plas & El Lugar, one mediocre Irish pub to celebrate the Six Nations, and a very meh old world fine dining restaurant in Lindeys... I would 100% come back to Columbus. Super impressed by the food, beer, atmosphere, friendly people, etc not so much the scenic views but whatever.

[PointWarrior]

Ugh - one hour traffic ride in Uber from airport to hotel.  Driver lost 10 mins and there is zero traffic.  Cars honking at him for going too slow. He is anticipating yellow lights and stopping before they turn yellow.   

[Babybluejeans]

Any restaurant suggestions in Paris? I'm there now and keep returning to my old haunts, but would like to explore something new.

[JWags85]

Any restaurant suggestions in Paris? I'm there now and keep returning to my old haunts, but would like to explore something new.

Where are you staying?

Unfortunately my favorite European restaurant, Balagan in Hotel Vendome, has recently closed.  But their sister restaurant Shabour in the 2nd Arr is excellent, if you could can get in.

[lawdog77]

If you are in the 17th arrondissement, Jacques Faussat is a must go.

[pbiflyer]

Two recommendations.
Frenchie's To Go. A take away with a few tables from a Michelin star chef. Great lunch. http://www.frenchie-ftg.com/
Paname brewery on Canal St Martin. Locals place with a great view and good beer. The stroll down the canal is cool. https://www.panamebrewingcompany.com/
And Amorino Valmy for ice cream in the area. https://www.amorino.com/en-us

[pbiflyer]

One more off the wall suggestion in the Canal St Martin area. Right near the brewery.
Le Pavillon des Canaux. A funky house on the canal with some unusual seating.
https://www.pavillondescanaux.com/

[pbiflyer]

If you guys are looking at going to SLC do it soon.  With the quickly drying Great Salt Lake the city is going to be ruined.

So the lake level has risen two feet of late. Hopefully the extensive snow this year helps too. But yeah we visited and it was sad how much is ruined.

[warriorchick]

So the lake level has risen two feet of late. Hopefully the extensive snow this year helps too. But yeah we visited and it was sad how much is ruined.

Record high snowfall in the mountains this year.  Alta with over 800 inches and the area in total at 195% of average for the season.

I'm optimistic.   

[pbiflyer]

Yeah Brighton hit their record while we were there. Thankfully we opted not to go the next day, as it took 5 hours to get out of Big Cottonwood Canyon.

[tower912]

Kudos to whomever recommended the Smithsonian Air and Space museum out by Dulles.    A very enjoyable day.

[Herman Cain]

Have been in Alaska for the last few days. Very beautiful place and surprisingly a lot of great restaurants.

[Scoop Snoop]

Kudos to whomever recommended the Smithsonian Air and Space museum out by Dulles.    A very enjoyable day.

That was me.

Standing so close to a space shuttle is an experience that I will never forget. Also, walking underneath the Concorde. Wow! And seeing the stealthy Blackbird-holy crap! The entire museum was absolutely great- just pointing out a few highlights.

[panda]

For me, the rules seem to be all over the place and change depending on who is working.  I had to trash an almost new tube of toothpaste because it was 3.4oz or something ridiculous.  Before they threw it out they asked if I wanted to go run it out to my car.  I guess they weren't worried about it that much since at that point if it were an explosive, it would have been a car bomb in their lot. 

Sometimes remove shoes, sometimes remove electronics, sometimes remove liquids.  Great federal agency we have here, huh?

This may be the most small baller complaint of all time

[Hards Alumni]

This may be the most small baller complaint of all time

Sweating me now?  Five months later?

God, you're a strange one.  Used to be kind of normal, but maybe it's time to get back on the meds, homie.

[panda]

Sweating me now?  Five months later?

God, you're a strange one.  Used to be kind of normal, but maybe it's time to get back on the meds, homie.

Yet another small baller response

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

LaGuardia is probably me new favorite airport. Beautiful airport, super easy to navigate.

[Galway Eagle]

Just rebooked my Asian trip from before Covid. Doing Kuala Lampur for the wedding, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh, & Tokyo. Anybody want to resuggest restaurants?

[4everwarriors]

Don't eat da "chicken," hey?

[Hards Alumni]

Don't eat da "chicken," hey?

casual racism

[4everwarriors]

Nah, go ahead and eat da fookin' pigeon, hey?

[Skatastrophy]

Just rebooked my Asian trip from before Covid. Doing Kuala Lampur for the wedding, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh, & Tokyo. Anybody want to resuggest restaurants?

Sorry this is rambling a bit, I'm sick. Lmk if anything is unclear.

Singapore
Visiting singapore is like visting NYC. Everything is at your fingertips if you have money and everyone speaks pretty good english. We usually start our trips to asia in Singapore because it's such an easy place to begin.

In Singapore I had better food at the hawker centers (food courts) than I did at high end restos. Singapore is a melting pot as far as cuisine goes, so their food is often fusion. Seek out specific foods like chicken rice (no joke, sounds boring but it's a staple at our house), laksa, satay, and chili crab. Congee for breakfast is great.

Singapore resto recs -
Lau Pa Sat - https://laupasat.sg/ - Wonderful hawker center. Buy a pack of kleenex from someone walking around to save your seat (nobody will take it), and either pay someone to source you food or go find your own food. Watch a youtube video of how hawker centers work they're a bit chaotic
Zam Zam (required to visit, imo) - https://zamzamsingapore.has.restaurant/ - their Murtabak is crazy good and so is their Mee Goreng
Candlenut - https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/singapore-region/singapore/restaurant/candlenut - coursed menu, the only Peranakan resto I've ever eaten at, wonderful service and culturally important food

Consider spending 1 night at the Marina Bay Sands so that you can chill by the pool, it's worth it to say you did it.

HCMC
Challenging city tourism-wise due to the lack of english speakers.

We popped into HCMC for 1 day at the end of our trip to VN because we had wedding obligations in the south of the country. Didn't have the opp to visit any restaurants that were memorable, but the Niko Saigon hotel was spectacular... especially after living in rural vietnam for 2 weeks. Here is some general travel advice:

Get in the mindset of having hot, spicy soup for breakfast. Mien ga is great.

I started seeking out bun bo hue at restaurants with little plastic chairs. Any place that was busy, we went to.

The water is not safe to drink so bring pepto, imodium, and go to a travel clinic to get a z-pack before you leave the USA. You will get food poisoning, it's inevitable. Take the pepto every morning prophylactically, once you bust through that you know it's time for imodium.
Because the water isn't safe to drink, Vietnam has an alcoholic problem. Join in, imo. We drank mostly Tiger beer (owned by Heineken) or 333 (ba ba ba) which is locally brewed. If you want to let everyone know you're rich, then drink Heineken. Seriously lol.

The seafood in vietnam is out of this world. Their shrimp and tiger shrimp are a huge export so hunt down shrimp dishes and be prepared to shuck them by hand when they're delivered to you whole (a sign that the resto isn't using bs fake shrimp for your dish).

Speaking of shucking shrimp, if you order crab there's a 90% chance you'll have to dismantle it by hand and suck all of the meat out. The Vietnamese are really fast at this and I am not. It's really messy and it took forever to eat enough meat to get full. I had a friend help me, but if you're not travelling with vietnamese people I don't know what to recommend here.

Really good fruit. The pineapple dipped in their chili/garlic/salt mixture is wonderful.

Keep an eye out for birds eye chili, they'll sneak them onto your table thinly sliced. 1 or 2 opaque slices is enough to turn your bowl of soup into something really spicy.

Bo luc lac is also something worth seeking out. Shaking beef in english. They serve beef over a bed of lettuce, onions, and tomatoes. A little dish next to your plate with salt and pepper in it, into which you squeeze a lime to make a slurry for dipping the beef. Super super good.

[JWags85]

Singapore
Visiting singapore is like visting NYC. Everything is at your fingertips if you have money and everyone speaks pretty good english. We usually start our trips to asia in Singapore because it's such an easy place to begin.

In Singapore I had better food at the hawker centers (food courts) than I did at high end restos. Singapore is a melting pot as far as cuisine goes, so their food is often fusion. Seek out specific foods like chicken rice (no joke, sounds boring but it's a staple at our house), laksa, satay, and chili crab. Congee for breakfast is great.

Singapore resto recs -
Lau Pa Sat - https://laupasat.sg/ - Wonderful hawker center. Buy a pack of kleenex from someone walking around to save your seat (nobody will take it), and either pay someone to source you food or go find your own food. Watch a youtube video of how hawker centers work they're a bit chaotic
Zam Zam (required to visit, imo) - https://zamzamsingapore.has.restaurant/ - their Murtabak is crazy good and so is their Mee Goreng
Candlenut - https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/singapore-region/singapore/restaurant/candlenut - coursed menu, the only Peranakan resto I've ever eaten at, wonderful service and culturally important food

Consider spending 1 night at the Marina Bay Sands so that you can chill by the pool, it's worth it to say you did it.

This is pretty spot on.  Singapore is one of the few places in Asia where you can eat any sort of street food with zero worry and repercussions...and it is other worldly.  Such an amazing combination.

Sentosa is a cool little spot for a few hours.  There is a great aquarium and a few theme parks, but also an incredible food court.  There is a shuttle that takes you there from the main island that is a nice air conditioned break.

But as for Marina Bay, as scene-y and well known as it is, is absolutely a must do.  If you're there on a weeknight, the restaurants upstairs are usually fairly open to go up and grab a drink.  Absolutely unreal 360 degree views.  The pool is as incredible in person as it looks in pictures.

HCMC
The water is not safe to drink so bring pepto, imodium, and go to a travel clinic to get a z-pack before you leave the USA. You will get food poisoning, it's inevitable. Take the pepto every morning prophylactically, once you bust through that you know it's time for imodium.

Can't recommend Cipro (Ciprofloxacin) enough.  Most GPs will prescribe it if you're traveling somewhere with lots of waterborne bacteria.  Its remarkably effective.  Knocks stuff dead.  Ive been really lucky with stomach issues, but my Dad has had lingering stomach issues from an India trip in the past and Cipro is a lifesaver.  I recommended it to a few friends who did their first trips there and it helped immensely.

Also, everyone knows about water, but BEWARE BEWARE BEWARE of ice.  You can drink bottled water all day long but then have a soda or cocktail with ice and you're hunched over in no time.  Chilled glasses are your friend if possible.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

This is pretty spot on.  Singapore is one of the few places in Asia where you can eat any sort of street food with zero worry and repercussions...and it is other worldly.  Such an amazing combination.

Sentosa is a cool little spot for a few hours.  There is a great aquarium and a few theme parks, but also an incredible food court.  There is a shuttle that takes you there from the main island that is a nice air conditioned break.

But as for Marina Bay, as scene-y and well known as it is, is absolutely a must do.  If you're there on a weeknight, the restaurants upstairs are usually fairly open to go up and grab a drink.  Absolutely unreal 360 degree views.  The pool is as incredible in person as it looks in pictures.

Can't recommend Cipro (Ciprofloxacin) enough.  Most GPs will prescribe it if you're traveling somewhere with lots of waterborne bacteria.  Its remarkably effective.  Knocks stuff dead.  Ive been really lucky with stomach issues, but my Dad has had lingering stomach issues from an India trip in the past and Cipro is a lifesaver.  I recommended it to a few friends who did their first trips there and it helped immensely.

Also, everyone knows about water, but BEWARE BEWARE BEWARE of ice.  You can drink bottled water all day long but then have a soda or cocktail with ice and you're hunched over in no time.  Chilled glasses are your friend if possible.

Wags,
Same here.  I've got stomach sick twice on travel and one was stupidly self-inflicted.
I was exhausted from two days of late arrival early rise travel and ate "dinner" at the Manager's Reception at a Embassy Suites in Mexico City.  Should have never eaten several mini sandwiches with shredded lettuce.  I knew it.  I broke my rule of "no fresh vegetables or fruits" and "no tap water" and "no ice".  Yikes!
The ESPN Zone in Anaheim gave me food sickness of all places.


My travel clinic where I go for shots before Asia trips gave me shots for Japanese Encephalitis & Typhoid and some cocktail for Cholera.
The same travel clinic also referenced a CDC phone App called "Can I Eat This?" I recommend it.  You choose the country and it breaks down things from restaurants, street vendor, food types etc. as well as drinks and goes into details for each country.

[WarriorFan]

Just rebooked my Asian trip from before Covid. Doing Kuala Lampur for the wedding, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh, & Tokyo. Anybody want to resuggest restaurants?

Singapore... lived there twice...  Don't go for the posh places, they can drain the wallet and easily disappoint.  Bar Bar Black Sheep / Lewi Thai at 887/889 Bukit Timah road is a small food stall that caters to the local expat population and probably the cheapest place in the city to get a few beers and a good feed.  Like all the good places in Singapore, doesn't look like much.  My favorite thai place was closed last time I was there...  I prefer to stay at the JW marriott on Beach road.  Sentosa - as mentioned above - is good for a few hours.  If you're at a hotel with a good concierge and have $$$, charter a boat and tour the islands... St. Johns, Sisters, Bukom, Hantu.  Lots have piers that you're not really supposed to use, but you can drop off and hike around a bit.  Next, one must go for Indian food and choose between Banana Leaf Apolo or Muthu's - and you MUST go to the race course road location, not the "new" ones.  Since this is not a political board I'll not say that I prefer Banana Leaf.  If you like a good Rock cover band and a good party, find out where Shirlyn Tan & the UnXpected are playing...  Finally, Muddy Murphys has, forever, flown in a dozen fresh barrels of Guinness every day.  When they run out, they stop serving it for the day... won't serve the local stuff.  Good place to get "below the G".  Don't bother going across the street... not worth it.  (only a few will know to what I refer, the 4 floors etc. etc.)

KL:  My least favorite Asian city.  All about shopping.  Average in every way.

HCMC:  too long since my last visit