How to Score Cheap Flights Other Than Waiting for Seat Sales
Posted by Editor on Jan 25th, 2019 in Lifestyle | 0 commentsWe’ve all been there: waiting for seat sales in the middle of the night, only to be faced with a crashing website just before you’re about to check out and your seat is already taken by the time you are about to make the booking again. While airline sales is one of the best ways to get great discounts, there are several other ways to save on airfare for your next trip. Here are a few tricks you should try:
1. Get an app that lets you compare prices
There are a lot of mobile applications you can use to collate and compare prices, whether for local or international flights. These apps will show you different pricing options from hundreds of airlines, as well as get tips on how to and when you should book for lower cost.
2. Go for connecting flights over direct flights
Non-stop flight are usually more expensive than those with layovers. If you have days to spare or you’re not in a rush, try booking a connecting flight with a layover somewhere. It can be an added experience to your trip, having to explore your layover destination if you have enough time. Most of the time, these flights with layovers can save you as much as half of the price of direct flights. Definitely, not bad at all!
3. Book travel packages
Sometimes, a travel agency is your cheapest solution to fix your trip for you. These agencies usually have exclusive discounts from their affiliate airlines, resorts and hotels, which can help to keep costs low. You may also want to check out websites that provides simultaneously booking of flights and accommodations.
4. Pick a mid-week flight
The lowest rates are usually those flights scheduled on Tuesdays. Weekly sales from some airlines also start during this day, too, and are pulled out on Thursdays. If you don’t mind flying in the middle of the week, you’ll surely save heaps. Weekends are naturally more expensive due to the volume of flyers who prefer this schedule.
5. Use a travel-friendly credit card that lets you collect rewards points
When planning to get a credit card and you know you’re a heavy traveler, get one with a partnered airline as this will allow you to earn points, which you can then convert into miles, every time you use your card. So, if you are a frequent flyer who pays bills and does shopping with your card, then use those rewards points for cheaper airfare.
Travelling need not to be expensive, but plane tickets often are. Hopefully, though, with these tips, we were able to help you save from your airfare and have more resources to spend on activities.
The 5 Golden Rules of Posting to Social Media
Posted by Editor on Jan 25th, 2019 in Lifestyle | 0 commentsNowadays, social media has become a bit wild. While most of us are fully aware of the basic etiquette of real-life interactions, we have yet to reach a consensus on what’s acceptable—and not acceptable—behaviors in the virtual world.
Well, friends, now is the time to set some parameters. here are the five golden rules you need to remember every time you’re about to click that “share” button.
1. Follow Political Correctness
Before hitting share, take a pause for a while and ponder whether the thing you’re going to say is racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. Even if you’re proud of your traditional morals, maybe those principles aren’t appropriate to be shared online. It’s okay to talk about it with your friends, but the online community is a rather bigger world. Be nice to everyone. Avoid being too judgmental or you’ll risk having social media friends start unfriending you.
2. Avoid Sharing Too Much
The concept of TMI—too much information—is not only about sharing embarrassing info about yourself. Oversharing can be as simple as posting your every action and thought. Nobody wants to know about your LQ with beau, your sex life or your family issues. We also do not need to see photos of your bills, selfies in the bathroom or your calloused feet. Better posts to share are photos of your cute baby or your beloved pets.
3. Know When to Keep Quiet
When you have nothing good to share, it would be best to just keep your mouth shut. Trust us, this is a trait that most of your online friends would greatly appreciate.
4. Stay Away from Trolls
Any attempt to engage in a decent discussion with a troll is absolutely useless. These conversations almost always end up in a personal and shallow argument. Even if you’re arguing about politics and religion, the conversation will always end up with the troll calling you fat and ugly, and rudely editing your profile picture into a photo with devil horns and fangs in it.
5. Share Things that Actually Makes Sense to Everyone
We all have that friend who shares cryptic posts to her social media—that person who loves to puzzle everyone by saying things like: “Wow… that happened so fast” or “Thank God for another blessing! #feelingblessed”. Here’s a tip: social media is not your private diary. If you are going to share something to the public, make it something they will actually understand. And write it in readable language, too. Keep your post brief and concise to fit into a 140-character limit without omitting half the letters of your post (typng lk ths wnt evn hlp mking ur post undrstndble).
Be a smart social media user. While you can say it is your freedom to share whatever you like, the things you post online reflects your individuality, principles and values; and you wouldn’t want to be misjudged for a single bad post, would you?
What You Need to Know about Having a Micro-Wedding
Posted by Editor on Jan 3rd, 2019 in We Love Weddings | 0 commentsThere are two things about weddings that are universal no matter where you are in the world: they are expensive, and everyone wants to take a break from the stresses of day to day life.
While a micro wedding sounds like a nice alternative that does away with the two problems posed by a traditional wedding, you might be surprised by how similar the two can actually be.
Here are a few things you need to know to give you a heads-up on what a micro-wedding really means:
1. You need to know beforehand if it’s really for you.
Planning a traditional wedding and planning a micro wedding each have their own advantages and purpose. If you enjoy planning a traditional wedding, being the life of a large party, or going all out on the decorations for a large venue, then by all means go for it.
A micro wedding would be more your speed if you and your partner happen to be a little introverted or find that you prefer to not have to spend too much energy and instead opt for something that’s more simple and intimate, and doesn’t take too much time.
2. It takes just as much willpower (maybe even more) as planning a wedding with a sizeable budget.
While planning a micro-wedding certainly eases up on the stress of planning a wedding in general since everything has been scaled back, you still need to plan every detail to make sure it goes as smoothly as it can, be it from the venue, to the decor, to the accommodations (if any guests happen to be out of town).
But with that said, don’t be afraid to let your imagination run wild! There are a lot of settings inaccessible to large weddings that are open to smaller celebrations, and for a sizable fraction less than the price of the former.
3. The wedding is all about the intimacy – and the people who really matter.
Your wedding doesn’t have to be for everyone else – it’s your wedding, after all – but for the people who you personally know and you consider close to you.
What micro weddings offer over traditional weddings that invite from fifty to a hundred is the more relaxed atmosphere that comes from having less than twenty people over and the chance to actually interact with all of them.
4. If nothing else, think about the honeymoon.
If you want to save money for the honeymoon vacation you’ve always wanted, a micro wedding can help you a lot.
However, the biggest thing that you can save is time. While traditional weddings can exhaust both you and your partner, a micro wedding will even allow you a few moments alone together to cherish your first day together as a married couple.
4 Easy, Low-fat Ways to Prepare and Cook Fish
Posted by Editor on Jan 3rd, 2019 in Health | 0 commentsFish is a versatile ingredient that can be cooked in a variety of ways, and can be used as a low-fat alternative to pork or beef, and sometimes even chicken.
However, because fish have little to no connective tissue or fat, they can be delicate when cooked. Here are a few ways that you can prepare it to get the best results:
1. Marinate it.
The process of marinating adds more flavor and moisture to the fish, as long as you keep the fish sitting in the marinade for no more than 30 minutes.
The marinade can vary in ingredients, but they usually include oil and other acidic ingredients, such as chopped tomatoes, and even lemon juice, along with salt and pepper to taste.
2. Bake your fish.
Cooking your fish in the oven can be an alternative to fried fish that still gives you the satisfying crunch without the fat. Just be sure to keep an eye out for how much butter, mayonnaise, and oil you’re using.
When you do cook fish in the oven, always remember to add a small amount of water or vegetable stock just enough to cover the bottom of the baking pan before covering it in aluminum foil.
3. Pan-fry it.
Pan-fried fish is perhaps the easiest to prepare, and the technique always results in food that is both crispy and tender. Most seafood as well as certain varieties of fish with firm meats, such as cod, can be cut into smaller strips and stir-fried by themselves or with vegetables.
Pan-frying fish also takes less time compared to other methods, as each side will take between four and five minutes to cook.
4. Poach it.
Any fish can be cooked gently in any heated liquid, whether it’s wine, vinegar, fish stock, water, or even milk. The best part about poaching is that you can then use this heated liquid to form the base of your fish sauce.
To poach your fish, be sure to add just enough liquid to cover it and cover the pan with a tight lid. For fillets, cook for eight to ten minutes and fifteen to twenty for whole fish.
When it comes to cooking, always remember the principle of residual heat: when you take the pan away from the stove, the heat will continue to cook the food for several minutes.
The best way to achieve the results you want is by cooking the fish until it’s almost done. After that, remove it from the heat source and let it stand in the pan for the fish to cook on its own.
3 Tips Guaranteed to Give You an Edge in House-Hunting
Posted by Editor on Nov 28th, 2018 in Home | 0 commentsWhen you’re just starting out, house-hunting can be really daunting. And there’s a lot of reasons for this.
For instance, the property can be too expensive, or that there’s a problem with the unit that needs fixing, and if you’re looking to rent, no one is renting out because the landlord is questionable.
Other problems may include distance and extended travel time, or that you may not like the neighborhood. And lastly, someone else may have already rented out or bought the unit before you did.
However, this doesn’t have to be the case. Here are some tips that will improve your house-hunting experience in Singapore:
1. Know your budget
Your budget is the biggest factor in house-hunting. This should be enough for you to screen through a lot of listings with ease – no need for that dream house when a modest HDB flat is what your wallet can afford.
There are a few ways to find out your financial threshold, such as the Central Provident Fund (CPF) calculator, where you can key in crucial financial details to generate the maximum cost and the estimated loan you would need.
2. Do your homework
Once you have your budget figured out, it’s time to start looking at the units within your price range – you can find these in listings and recommendations from friends and family, though you will have to actually visit the units yourself.
If you can, you can even visit the neighborhood twice a day to get a feel for the area. Be sure to talk to the landlord and the neighbours in the area and ask questions like, “What’s the neighborhood like during the day/at night?”
And lastly, don’t fixate yourself in one particular housing area or district. While some areas do have their own personalities and may be nicer to live in, being open to other districts allows you more units to choose from.
The same goes for the housing type, space, and the number and size of bedrooms – you’ll be surprised how many bedrooms can fit in such a small condo space.
3. Hire a housing agent
You may have heard about people who have had a terrible experience, but this shouldn’t stop you. A great housing agent has the following qualities:
• Has an in-depth knowledge about the different property prices in Singapore
• Capable of negotiating rental prices on your behalf
• Researches apartments before taking you to them
• Takes care of a good chunk of the paperwork for you
Be sure to find a good agent and take advantage of all of these mentioned qualities, and you will have a smoother experience in your house-hunting.
Whether you’re an expat or a local, there are all sorts of surprises you will find in your house-hunting. If you keep an open mind, you’ll find all kinds of housing units that might just be right for you.
3 Simple Ways to Plan Your Budget for Living Abroad
Posted by Editor on Nov 28th, 2018 in Travel | 0 commentsLiving abroad is a big decision that needs a lot of time and planning. When you do it right, it may just be the biggest experience that could happen in your lifetime, which is why it’s something that’s worth building towards, and that includes budgeting.
When you’re planning to move to live abroad as an expat, here are five simple tips and tricks you should remember to have the budget to move to your country of choice:
1. Keep your burn rate in mind
What is “burn rate”? The answer is that it’s the amount that you will be spending each month in needed expenditures, such as your housing, groceries, rent, transportation, etc.
Food expenses is one that you should especially consider – your budget plan should include enough room to allow you a solid meal plan instead of relying on take-out or eating outside.
Convert your current expenditure amount to the currency of the country you will be moving to and compare the cost of living in the country. This will give you an estimate as to your monthly budget, as well as your initial spending.
Once you have a burn rate in mind, you can easily formulate a budget that will cover your expenses.
2. Spend according to your savings plan
Calculate a target number for how much you need to save after everything else has been deducted from your net income after taxes. This is quite similar to what you would otherwise do in planning an ordinary budget, but with two added factors.
The first factor is, of course, the currency rate. By knowing how much currency A is in terms of currency B, you not only have an initial budget that you can spend, but you can also know how much you can or want to convert, and how much you want to keep.
The second factor is the cost of living. If the cost of living in the country you’re moving to is lower, you will have more to spend, and you can adjust your savings accordingly.
3. Open international accounts
One advantage an international bank account, or an offshore bank account, can offer you is that it offers you added privacy, and is great for participating in investing opportunities all over the world.
It also gives you a greater amount of financial freedom – since you’re dealing with two currencies, you can utilize different exchange rates and international funds, and get better returns for each in the international market.
Be sure to talk to your bank when opening an offshore account, and what advantages this can offer you in different jurisdictions around the globe.