Application for U.S. Visa & other legalities

Planning my next vacation...

It seems the rules have changed a little since the last time I traveled to America. Nowadays, I can still travel Visa free for 90 days or less (about 3 months) provided I have ESTA authorization on my passport and the airline I am using is aware of and approves of me travelling Visa free. How do I check with the airline on this when I book the ticket through a travel agent or online. ESTA is the Electronic System for Travel Authorization and online applications are only USD$14, if denied approval then it only costs USD$4.

The most common type of visa to apply for is B-1/B-2 for business or leisure (including medical treatment). For this type of visa, you're usually staying for 6 months to 2 years and it costs USD$160 to apply for. There is a validity period of 10 years but that is not relevant to us as we need to specify the departure and return dates on the visa application.

image from acedrive.sg

Driving a car or atv in America requires a Driver's License. Our driving license is valid in the U.S. for only the first year as an international driving license. Any stay longer than a year requires you to sit for and pass the State driving tests. This local U.S. driving licence allows you to drive only in the State the license is issued in. To obtain an all-state U.S. driving licence, you need to give up (confiscate) your home country driver's licence. 

Anniversary Birthday

Got my dad something from LV this year. It's his 70th birthday celebrations.

Dinner @ Four Points by Sheraton. There is a Chinese herbal restaurant there so this dinner menu is a real treat.

My sis ordered custom macaroons as door gifts, each parcel came tied to a balloon. I always thought you had to order through the hotel's wedding/party planner. But, you can actually order it from somewhere else and have it delivered to the Hotel Function Room, balloons too.

Longevity Buns!

Dinner menu has plenty of Chinese herbs and includes the chef's specialties.

Renovations Update

The toilets are already done, thanks to HDB upgrading the entire estate. It's all standard stuff inside. My dad had to get new faucets for me coz the new ones take up too much space in the bathroom. It's meant for much bigger showers than this.

The kitchen was hacked up by the contractors and re-tiled nicely in what looks like marble. The kitchen cabinets are also done up in marble laminate to match the walls. We were deciding on what stone counter-top to use, I really like light green but it looks like jade and is too premium for a HDB flat. In the end we went with black marble composite with silver-ish glitter inside. The new kitchen sink is much bigger and comes with a drying rack on top of it. The only thing I am not sure about is the removal of the breakfast counter that has been replaced with a tempered glass panel.

New gate got installed, along with the new door, both from HDB upgrading works. The painters came around and I got a real headache coz the place is a mess and they wanted to confirm colours and dates.

In the meantime, we've been eating a lot of takeaways.

Trying out this instant hotpot available in 2 flavors, beef or vegetarian. Just add water and wait 15-20 minutes before eating. It's 麻辣火锅 all right, authentic and delicious, except it costs over $20 each. The price includes potato noodles, various mushrooms & root veges, quail eggs, meat. 

That's real steam coming out of the lunchbox. It goes on for another 20 mins or so. I want to drink all that soup down coz its soo delicious, but my mouth was numb by then.

Qoo10 Auctions Haul

Qoo10 is kinda like Taobao and it even has an auction section that is not necessarily cheaper than the regular price. Explanations are vague and there are lots of pictures to go through. I feel like I am looking at a wholesale catalog, only I am ordering 1 item and only 1 item. I used to leave this site as my homepage coz everyday there are new products on sale and I look out for cartons of drinks or food items.

Pantene Shampoo, 3 for $20, free delivery. The retail price is about $10 each.

Can of Dry Shampoo $7.90, this is something new that the various haircare brands have come up with. No need for water, just spray onto the hair to get it clean. They should come up with something similar for body.

Wine Lip Tint in burgundy colour $3.90. You can find several novelty lip glosses on Qoo10 and this is one of them, it's about $15 for one and comes in wine themed colours.

Morinaga Cocoa powder, usually around $12, I paid $3.50.

Pom pom keychains, the new pompoms have preserved flowers inside. Not sure if that's for real, even on Qoo10 its $30 to $50 each.

Astrology water bottles. I wanted to get the whole set of star signs but for now its just Aquarius and Pisces. These bottles are made to be heat and cold resistant so you can drop it into a pot of boiling water or throw it in the freezer.

Rilakkuma Bourbon Torte tin of cookies, usually around $12, I paid $7.50. The tin comes nicely sealed in a box, really creamy cookies.