Our first day at Rock Spa was actually an included treatment, so we hadn't use up any credits yet. So we scheduled more spa sessions today. I had a 50 min massage (it was a 30 min one last time) that was a lot better. I walked out feeling it did something. This time around, we also checked out the post-treatment services... steam room, jacuzzi and sauna. I probably spent a total of 2 hours in the underground world. The whole spa experience felt like an alien abduction. Once you change in the locker room, you're placed in a waiting area with an oversized tea bag around your neck. The whole time, you're surrounded by flowing water, dimmed lights and metal orbs (like a generic alien mothership). The spa staff are dressed in identical, plain outfits and are super nice (like in V). Before the massage, they make you take 3 deep breaths of some oil that smells like every other liquid in Hard Rock Hotel. Maybe that was a point where we were unknowingly knocked out and placed under alien control!
Even if it was an alien abduction, I felt very refreshed this time even if we did things out of order. Normally, one should eat light, then workout early in the morning. Then get the spa treatment for relaxation and breakfast last for replenishment. But because of scheduling, we did breakfast first, then the spa and then the gym.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
"Normal" Dominican Routine
Breakfast @ Caffeto
My parents, aunts and uncles went to a presentation at 9am that included breakfast at Ciao, so I went off on my own to explore Caffeto next door. It was different that our previous breakfast because it was not buffet style. They had more specialty items and of course, controlled portions! I'll cover this place in an upcoming post.
Lunch & Swimming
After breakfast, I walked around for a bit, taking general pictures of the resort. I'll post those in their own album at the end of the trip because I'll be collecting a little each day. To get more of a workout, I headed back to the room to drop stuff off, then ran to the gym. For lunch, all 9 of us met up again at Ciao. That became our regular eating place during the day. After lunch, I went to the beach with Ifore & Jiselle to one of the swimming pools for the first time this trip. Swimming was actually one of the things I had trouble finding time in the schedule for even though I wanted to do it every day. There are many pools in Hard Rock Hotel... more than one by every building and enough to create a comfortable crowd even for the number of guests checked into the hotel. The pools with a built-in bar tended to be a little more crowded and with dirtier water. So we went for a less trafficked one. Besides the 3 of us, there was only one other group inside. After swimming around for a bit, we hopped pools and I tried out one of the poolside food stands where I ordered a jalapeno & cheese hot dog w/ fries. I was surprised at how good it was after the disappointing burger at La Isla. The fries were also especially good and consistent across all restaurants. They're fried to the perfect level of crispiness and there must be something about the potatoes in DR.
Dinner @ Ipanema
For dinner, we all met up at Ipanema, a Brazilian style dinner place. I'll go in depth with this one later as well.
Sports Bar
We all rested a little bit and then headed out to the sports bar at about 10pm because they were showing the Pacquiao vs. Mosley fight. We stayed there pretty late because the fight went this distance even though it was terribly one-sided... typical of most of Pacquiao's recent bouts.
A Typical Day
This day represents my daily routine if nothing special was scheduled... breakfast, gym, lunch, beach/pool/run, dinner and sports bar for TV (basketball, baseball and/or boxing). If I lived on the resort, that would be my schedule each day.
My parents, aunts and uncles went to a presentation at 9am that included breakfast at Ciao, so I went off on my own to explore Caffeto next door. It was different that our previous breakfast because it was not buffet style. They had more specialty items and of course, controlled portions! I'll cover this place in an upcoming post.
Lunch & Swimming
After breakfast, I walked around for a bit, taking general pictures of the resort. I'll post those in their own album at the end of the trip because I'll be collecting a little each day. To get more of a workout, I headed back to the room to drop stuff off, then ran to the gym. For lunch, all 9 of us met up again at Ciao. That became our regular eating place during the day. After lunch, I went to the beach with Ifore & Jiselle to one of the swimming pools for the first time this trip. Swimming was actually one of the things I had trouble finding time in the schedule for even though I wanted to do it every day. There are many pools in Hard Rock Hotel... more than one by every building and enough to create a comfortable crowd even for the number of guests checked into the hotel. The pools with a built-in bar tended to be a little more crowded and with dirtier water. So we went for a less trafficked one. Besides the 3 of us, there was only one other group inside. After swimming around for a bit, we hopped pools and I tried out one of the poolside food stands where I ordered a jalapeno & cheese hot dog w/ fries. I was surprised at how good it was after the disappointing burger at La Isla. The fries were also especially good and consistent across all restaurants. They're fried to the perfect level of crispiness and there must be something about the potatoes in DR.
Dinner @ Ipanema
For dinner, we all met up at Ipanema, a Brazilian style dinner place. I'll go in depth with this one later as well.
Sports Bar
We all rested a little bit and then headed out to the sports bar at about 10pm because they were showing the Pacquiao vs. Mosley fight. We stayed there pretty late because the fight went this distance even though it was terribly one-sided... typical of most of Pacquiao's recent bouts.
A Typical Day
This day represents my daily routine if nothing special was scheduled... breakfast, gym, lunch, beach/pool/run, dinner and sports bar for TV (basketball, baseball and/or boxing). If I lived on the resort, that would be my schedule each day.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Zen
Location: Hard Rock Hotel, Punta Cana, Dom. Rep.Cuisine: Japanese
Prices: n/a (all inclusive)
Credit Cards: n/a (all inclusive)
Food: 6
Service: 10
Value: n/a
Environment: 10
Frequency: Unique
Dinner at Zen had to be reserved because the restaurant probably had to have an idea of how many staff members were needed. The Zen experience is as much a performance as it was a meal, being a teppanyaki style place. The chef performed fancy moves with cooking utensils and fire for show. Unfortunately, the performance outweighed the quality of the food. The meal was OK, but I'd have to say that fast food Japanese at any NY mall beats Zen. So even though the value is n/a, it can't be good for an all-inclusive resort of this quality.
The nice looking menu is either just for show or for lunch because everyone gets served the same thing... fried rice with teriyaki chicken, beef, shrimp and squid. The chicken was dry. The beef and shrimp were average. The squid, cooked with tequila was very good. Please visit the Picasa album for the rest of the review.
Day 2 Lunch & Afternoon
After the spa, we were deciding on where to have lunch. It was going to be one of the restaurants near the tour booking place... Pizzeto (pizza), Caffeto (cafe/deli) or Ciao (Italian/buffet). Pizzeto and Ciao had similar menus, but many of us had the pizza craving, so Pizzeto won out. I'll cover Pizzeto in a later post because I'm pretty sure we'll be back there and it'll be a more complete review.
After lunch, we hit the beach. I was in the sun for about 2 hours... one hour on each side, watching Transformers 2 on my Droid. I fell asleep for about 30 minutes during the first half of the movie. Even after all that, I only had a light tan. It wasn't even noticeable. The then ran the length of the resort on the beach. to get some exercise in. The distance really shows how large Hard Rock Hotel is. When I ran the equivalent distance in Cancun, I probably passed 4-5 hotels!
After lunch, we hit the beach. I was in the sun for about 2 hours... one hour on each side, watching Transformers 2 on my Droid. I fell asleep for about 30 minutes during the first half of the movie. Even after all that, I only had a light tan. It wasn't even noticeable. The then ran the length of the resort on the beach. to get some exercise in. The distance really shows how large Hard Rock Hotel is. When I ran the equivalent distance in Cancun, I probably passed 4-5 hotels!
Rock Spa
One of the things we had to allocate credits to was spa activities. You can't use up all of your points on tours. Though that's what I would naturally prefer, it was still a good experience to try the spa since I had never done it before. We all had morning spots reserved, ranging from 9:30 to 11:30. The thing I liked most about Rock Spa was the decoration. The place had a very sci-fi look to it, as if you're traveling to some hidden land below the resort. The layout was like a maze, which added to the mystery as I was lead to the massage room. The lighting was relaxing and there was also a fresh grasslike scent all throughout. I didn't think the massage was that good though. It was relaxing, but I've had better. This one was more about the environment.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Arrival in DR
Since we took an early flight, our first day in Punta Cana didn't go to waste. The efficient airport staff also got us through customs and to the resort very quickly. We dumped everything into our rooms and then headed straight to La Isla for a buffet lunch. I already had a light breakfast in the airport in preparation. La Isla is the closest restaurant to our building.
Then we got settled in and explored the area. As it got close to dinner time, we headed to the main building to book some tours and activities that were included in the package. The way it works is you get a certain number of credits. You can use some of them on spa services and others on tours.
Then we got settled in and explored the area. As it got close to dinner time, we headed to the main building to book some tours and activities that were included in the package. The way it works is you get a certain number of credits. You can use some of them on spa services and others on tours.
Heading Out
Airport Security
Because the recent death of Osama Bin Laden, we were told security was stepped up. The limo service recommended we head out 3 hours early (since it's international) for our 8:30am flight. Between that and last night's Bulls game, I really didn't get that much sleep. Since it was way before rush hour, we arrived at JFK in no time. If anything, security was stepped down instead of beefed up. I've never gone through so quickly with all the electronics I carry around in my suspicious looking Alienware backpack. Some notable observations I had were:
1) Passengers had to do a lot of their own work. Usually, you would put your checkins on the scale and a worker would carry it onto the belt. We had to go around the service desk and place it on the belt ourselves. So the guys behind the desk aren't earning their salary. They're just doing nothing. Why not get rid of them to save money for the people doing the real work!
2) The security checkpoint was terrible. My dad put his keys in his bag instead of on the tray. The TSA had to manually search the bag because she thought the keys may have been knives. Is the X-ray machine THAT bad? If it can't show the difference between keys and knives, then that doesn't make me feel safe.
Jet Blue
This is my first time flying Jet Blue and so far they're really as good as what people say. Right from the start, their terminal is spacious and well laidout. They even have FREE wi-fi. I don't think any other airline in expensive NY has that. It was hassle free and fast. All I did was turn on my computer and agree to the terms. Jet Blue also has 1 checkin included, which made for a more comfortable and quicker boarding. Passengers didn't have to rush on board to reserve space in the overhead compartments. Snacks onboard were also complimentary. Jet Blue pretty much follows the pre-recession flight benefits.
Because the recent death of Osama Bin Laden, we were told security was stepped up. The limo service recommended we head out 3 hours early (since it's international) for our 8:30am flight. Between that and last night's Bulls game, I really didn't get that much sleep. Since it was way before rush hour, we arrived at JFK in no time. If anything, security was stepped down instead of beefed up. I've never gone through so quickly with all the electronics I carry around in my suspicious looking Alienware backpack. Some notable observations I had were:
1) Passengers had to do a lot of their own work. Usually, you would put your checkins on the scale and a worker would carry it onto the belt. We had to go around the service desk and place it on the belt ourselves. So the guys behind the desk aren't earning their salary. They're just doing nothing. Why not get rid of them to save money for the people doing the real work!
2) The security checkpoint was terrible. My dad put his keys in his bag instead of on the tray. The TSA had to manually search the bag because she thought the keys may have been knives. Is the X-ray machine THAT bad? If it can't show the difference between keys and knives, then that doesn't make me feel safe.
Jet Blue
This is my first time flying Jet Blue and so far they're really as good as what people say. Right from the start, their terminal is spacious and well laidout. They even have FREE wi-fi. I don't think any other airline in expensive NY has that. It was hassle free and fast. All I did was turn on my computer and agree to the terms. Jet Blue also has 1 checkin included, which made for a more comfortable and quicker boarding. Passengers didn't have to rush on board to reserve space in the overhead compartments. Snacks onboard were also complimentary. Jet Blue pretty much follows the pre-recession flight benefits.
Punta Cana Cast
After going on 2 cruises with the same group of people, we decided to change things up this year and go for an all-inclusive package in Punta Cana, DR. We all had a great time in the Cancun Resort for Reinhard and Marites' wedding. Then my parents went to Punta Cana shortly after and said that experience was even better than Cancun. So instead of doing a cruise again, my family got together and planned a trip to Punta Cana. We have the usual cast...
Me
Dad
Mom
Auntie Remy (Mom's sister)
Uncle Charlie (Married to Auntie Remy)
Ifore (Their son, recently started a fried chicken chain called Chicken Charlie)
Jiselle (Ifore's fiancee)
Uncle Mario
Auntie Susan
Missing this time are Auntie Aida and Edwin because Edwin is busy planning for his October wedding. Emily couldn't make it because she started classes.
This vacation kind of creeped up on me. It wasn't even on my mind because I was busy at work launching websites left and right. So it'll be a good break to get out of NY and catch up with my family.
Me
Dad
Mom
Auntie Remy (Mom's sister)
Uncle Charlie (Married to Auntie Remy)
Ifore (Their son, recently started a fried chicken chain called Chicken Charlie)
Jiselle (Ifore's fiancee)
Uncle Mario
Auntie Susan
Missing this time are Auntie Aida and Edwin because Edwin is busy planning for his October wedding. Emily couldn't make it because she started classes.
This vacation kind of creeped up on me. It wasn't even on my mind because I was busy at work launching websites left and right. So it'll be a good break to get out of NY and catch up with my family.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011
OS X on Windows 7 Desktop (Part 2)
Intro.
Installing Snow Leopard onto Oracle VirtualBox on Windows 7 was a lot simpler than I though. Originally, I read that you had to install a hacked version of Leopard first. Then use that to install a legit copy of Snow Leopard. It turns out, all I needed was the legit copy.
In the photo above, I have OS X fullscreened on my secondary monitor so I can use both operating systems simultaneously on my Core i7 system.
Materials
- Oracle VirtualBox (I used 4.0.4)
- Snow Leopard 10.6.3 DVD
- iBoot ISO image
- A Mac system or Hackintosh... with a dual layer DVD burner
Instructions
1) Using an actual Mac (any OS X should do... I used 10.4.11 on my Mac mini), convert the Snow Leopard DVD to a .DMG.
2) On the Mac, open up a terminal window and follow these instructions.
3) Moving the .ISO is a problem because it will be over 7.5 GB. Most file systems support up to 2GB. So you'll get an error if you try to transfer to a FAT or NTFS drive. The best way to move it is to burn a UDF DVD DL.
4) Boot the virtual machine (see setup in the previous entry) to the iBoot image. You'll see a boot menu with the iBoot disc.
5) In the virtual machine, swap the iBoot ISO with your Snow Leopard ISO. Hit F5 to refresh and then choose the Snow Leopard ISO.
6) Follow the normal steps to installing Snow Leopard. One bug I ran into was I had to do a full install. When I went to "customize" to remove some languages I wasn't going to use, I got a kernel panic with 17 minutes left. When I left everything, things went perfectly smooth.
7) When that's done, shutdown the virtual machine. Put iBoot back in and startup. From the menu, choose the Snow Leopard installation you just setup. And that's it! You have a basic installation of a working Snow Leopard.
That's where I am now. It can be taken further by installing Chameleon so that you don't have to depend on iBoot each time. So far, everything works except sound. But it's functional and fast.
Installing Snow Leopard onto Oracle VirtualBox on Windows 7 was a lot simpler than I though. Originally, I read that you had to install a hacked version of Leopard first. Then use that to install a legit copy of Snow Leopard. It turns out, all I needed was the legit copy.
In the photo above, I have OS X fullscreened on my secondary monitor so I can use both operating systems simultaneously on my Core i7 system.
Materials
- Oracle VirtualBox (I used 4.0.4)
- Snow Leopard 10.6.3 DVD
- iBoot ISO image
- A Mac system or Hackintosh... with a dual layer DVD burner
Instructions
1) Using an actual Mac (any OS X should do... I used 10.4.11 on my Mac mini), convert the Snow Leopard DVD to a .DMG.
2) On the Mac, open up a terminal window and follow these instructions.
3) Moving the .ISO is a problem because it will be over 7.5 GB. Most file systems support up to 2GB. So you'll get an error if you try to transfer to a FAT or NTFS drive. The best way to move it is to burn a UDF DVD DL.
4) Boot the virtual machine (see setup in the previous entry) to the iBoot image. You'll see a boot menu with the iBoot disc.
5) In the virtual machine, swap the iBoot ISO with your Snow Leopard ISO. Hit F5 to refresh and then choose the Snow Leopard ISO.
6) Follow the normal steps to installing Snow Leopard. One bug I ran into was I had to do a full install. When I went to "customize" to remove some languages I wasn't going to use, I got a kernel panic with 17 minutes left. When I left everything, things went perfectly smooth.
7) When that's done, shutdown the virtual machine. Put iBoot back in and startup. From the menu, choose the Snow Leopard installation you just setup. And that's it! You have a basic installation of a working Snow Leopard.
That's where I am now. It can be taken further by installing Chameleon so that you don't have to depend on iBoot each time. So far, everything works except sound. But it's functional and fast.
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