Travel - Travel With A Butterfly

Discover New York in 6 Days: Skip the Tourist Traps and Dive into Genuine NYC Magic Nobody Talks About! (Part One)

Having been to New York many many times, I find New York pretty much like home. I always tell people New York is more like Hong Kong than other cities in United States; they’re both top financial cities, they’re both melting pots, they both have lots of skyscrapers and extremely high rents, they both have an eclectic selection of amazing restaurants, they’re known for their direct and blunt attitudes, and Manhattan is to Hong Kong Island and Brooklyn is to Kowloon and Queens is to New Territories. The list of similarities goes on.

This year, I wanted to go to New York because I wanted to attend NFT NYC. While the conference itself was happening, the usual events from blue chip NFT communities were not hosting alongside the main conference, apparently because they were boycotting to give a message to the main conference people about feeling used, so this year NFT NYC was not as lit as the two years prior. Continue reading Discover New York in 6 Days: Skip the Tourist Traps and Dive into Genuine NYC Magic Nobody Talks About! (Part One)

Travel

A Perfect Three Day Itinerary in Los Angeles

ByRyan Lee

I’ve been to Los Angeles many times, because I studied college there, and so a couple of my friends are based there, and because it just so happens to be a place that has many events there or nearby, one time in Las Vegas for EDC Vegas, and this time to go to Coachella. It just so happens that we had three days in Los Angeles to spend before going to Palm Springs, so here I will outline a good itinerary for three days in LA. Take note – this post is not for first timers, or maybe even second timers in LA; you’ll probably want to visit more “touristy” attractions and places if that’s what you’re aiming for.

Continue reading A Perfect Three Day Itinerary in Los Angeles

Travel

Meeting Rapper Royce 5’9″, One Half of Bad Meets Evil, in Detroit

ByRyan Lee

Going to Detroit probably isn’t on most people’s bucket list. It wasn’t on mine either. But owning an NFT gave me the chance to meet one of Detroit’s most notable rappers. Since I was going to NFT NYC, I thought I’d take the chance to also go to Detroit, because who knows when the next time I’ll be in US again. Better now than never.

So after confirming that I would go to New York, I also booked my flight tickets to go to Detroit. But like I said, it really was just to visit Royce 5’9″ and his Heaven Studio, so I booked a roundtrip ticket to go and come back on the same day. It was incredibly, incredibly exhausting.

This blog post will be quite short, simply because the only exposure I had of Detroit was my ride to the studio in Birmingham and back. So to say I know Detroit at all would be laughable, straight up embarrassing. Continue reading Meeting Rapper Royce 5’9″, One Half of Bad Meets Evil, in Detroit

Events

One Coachella Is All It Takes (and Tips on Surviving Coachella)

ByRyan Lee

“One Coachella is all it takes, falling in love with you, possibilities, you look like all you need…”

Coachella has always been a part of my bucket list of things to do in my life. Told myself, better to go now than when I start having to take care of children or having to take care of my family or when I start to have more life responsibilities in general. Since I wasn’t really working at the moment, and considering my age, it was sort of a “now or never” kind of moment. Plus, I wanted to go NFT NYC the week before, so the entire sequence of events flowed perfectly.

I for one enjoyed the lineup this year. For me, it felt like Coachella emphasised on Latino artists, international acts, hip hop, dance/electronic/techno, and up and coming artists from online platforms such as Youtube creators. Acts we got to see included – Blackpink, Calvin Harris, Testpilot (Deadmau5), Metro Boomin with The Weeknd, Jackson Wang, Eric Prydz, Kaytranada, Skillrex, and more. Personally would have liked if Frank Ocean was there instead of Blink 182, but unfortunate for the replacement. Continue reading One Coachella Is All It Takes (and Tips on Surviving Coachella)

Mexico

Try To Stay In The Hotel Zone in Cancun

ByRyan Lee

We arrived in the evening to Cancun from a 3 hour drive from Chichen Itza, spent the next morning in Akumal Bay then afternoon and evening at Cancun, and the day after, morning till early afternoon at Cancun until we had to go to the airport. I guess adding it all up, we spent roughly two days in total in Cancun, which gave us a good feel of what Cancun had to offer.

And while most tourists have the option to neglect the main areas of Cancun and only dine, shop, and party around the Hotel Zone, we opted to stay in the Downtown area. We did so not for the purpose of trying to understand what real Cancun is like, but merely just for a cheaper accommodation.

Still, I was glad to get a feel of downtown Cancun because of where we stayed, but I would still recommend everyone to try to stay in the Hotel Zone just because it’s just a much nicer area in general, from hotels to the roads. Downtown Cancun is much more run down than hotel zone.

Continue reading Try To Stay In The Hotel Zone in Cancun

Mexico

I Got Pulled Over By The Cops TWICE Within 15 Minutes in Tulum! (And Other Tips You Should Know)

ByRyan Lee

The first time I was pulled over by the cops, I was paranoid. It was literally my first day ever in Mexico. Even though I only had one cocktail in Arca a few hours before driving, which would have been way below the alcohol limit of .08 in Mexico (equivalent to about five drinks), I was still in fear. Would I need to be in jail? Or would I need to bribe them? They stopped our car, looked around the back, asked for my driver’s license (gave them my international one), and after a few minutes, let me go and said it was a “precaution”. Maybe they were just picking on me for looking Asian and touristy, maybe they were attempting to be bribed but realised I might either be too savvy or too stupid to do so. In either case, I was relieved I was let go soon after without any repercussions.

Driving in Mexico is definitely quite an experience. People are driving twice the speed limit at times, the lines indicating the lanes will sometimes just “disappear” or “merge” into the next one, leaving you little time to react to switch to another lane, and police is rampant, especially at night. Most police were holding rifles, reminding me of my experience in South Africa.

This post will give you all the tips and advice I have researched and experienced so that your time in Tulum and Cancun can be even more smooth sailing. I will talk about the scams in rental car agencies and gas stations, police bribing, and of course driving in Mexico and other tips you should be aware of. So if you’re planning to visit the Riviera Maya of Mexico, read the whole post so that I can help you (and at the end I will talk about my 2nd time being stopped). Continue reading I Got Pulled Over By The Cops TWICE Within 15 Minutes in Tulum! (And Other Tips You Should Know)

Japan

Day Trip to Fujikawaguchiko

ByRyan Lee

After visiting Yokohama and Hakone, we did a quick stop at Fujikawaguchiko. Got there early afternoon, had lunch there, spent the rest of the afternoon there, woke up really early to catch the beautiful clear skies to see Mt. Fuji, and started our drive back to Tokyo in the morning to make our lunch reservation.

We were very fortunate because on the first day we were there, the skies were quite grey and the weather wasn’t very clear. We had to do many things fast because sunset was very early in Japan in the winter – the skies were pitch black by around 4:30pm, so when we got there in the early afternoon, it didn’t really give us enough time to do many sightseeing, let alone see Mt. Fuji anymore.

Anyway, if you want to read more about my hike up to Mt. Fuji from before, you can read it at Let’s Drive: Mt. Fuji and Fuji Five Lakes. This blog post will be a quick recap of what we did for this trip in Fujikawaguchiko. Continue reading Day Trip to Fujikawaguchiko

Japan

Hakone Is Where Jack Ma Lives? And the Amazing Ryokans

ByRyan Lee

Apparently Jack Ma is residing in Hakone, Japan and enjoying lots of uni and toro? And planning to learn about advanced agricultural technology and bring back to China? Or so the media says.

Now that I’ve captured your attention, going to Hakone for my second time was a delight. Hakone is most notable for its ryokans, and there is no feeling that feels more authentically Japanese than staying at a ryokan and being served a Japanese breakfast and dinner, and sleeping on a tatami.

Hakone really isn’t a place for sightseeing and activities. I think the most interesting would probably be the museums, especially the glass museum we visited, but the rest weren’t that impressive. You go to Hakone to enjoy the ryokans mainly. If you haven’t done so already, you can read about my last trip to Hakone at Let’s Drive: Izu Peninsula, Hakone, Gotemba Continue reading Hakone Is Where Jack Ma Lives? And the Amazing Ryokans

Japan

teamLab Tokyo and Why Is Tokyo So Beautiful

ByRyan Lee

Each time I go to Tokyo, I admire it more and more. There’s always something new to be discovered, the cleanliness of the city and the politeness of the locals are impeccable, the Christmas decorations suggest it to be more than just a capitalist city but a cultural landmark and one that embraces liveliness and atmosphere, the list goes on and on. Sometimes I dream about living here.

When I talk to my friends who have lived or are living in Japan though, they see things that we tourists don’t get to see. The rigid office hierarchy, the formality that you have to adopt when talking to others (and you are not exempt from it even if you are an expat as long as you are Asian looking), the difficulty of making new friends, and of course the challenge of learning Japanese. Then there is lack of public transportation during the night, and taxis are expensive not only during the day, but more so during the night. I’ve seen videos from Youtube talking about how it’s different living in Japan than going there to visit. Usually there’s a few months of honeymoon phase, then a few years of depression and detest towards the culture of actually living in Japan, then after the acceptance phase.

If you’re looking for my recommendations on places to eat, you can read my blog post Recommended Places to Eat in Tokyo.

Shibuya Continue reading teamLab Tokyo and Why Is Tokyo So Beautiful

Japan

A Romantic Christmas in Yokohama

ByRyan Lee

It’s a Christmas miracle that only after visiting Tokyo on multiple occasions, do I finally make the less than one hour trip to visit its younger and similar sibling city, Yokohama. Despite arriving early afternoon on the first day and leaving the city prior to lunch on the second day, I felt I was able to get the gist of what the city has to offer.

Continue reading A Romantic Christmas in Yokohama