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Elena Murzello

NYC Double Tree for RESIDENT Magazine

October 9, 2017

Here is a quick review I did about the NYC DoubleTree by Hilton West Midtown. This is a placeholder as I’m unable to attach the link at this time.

ELENA:)

Labels: News & EventsTags: community, DoubleTree, family, Hilton, hotel, magazine, midtown, new york city, nyc, RESIDENT, review, travel, travels

Jaya River House Park for BELLA LA

July 13, 2017

Here is the piece that was published on BELLA LA for the cute boutique hotel I stayed in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

ELENA:)

 

 

Labels: News & EventsTags: BELLA, BELLA LA, Bella NYC, boutique, cambodia, hotel, Jaya River House Park, magazine, review, siem reap, travel, trip

Jaya River House Park for RESIDENT Magazine

June 27, 2017

Here is a piece I wrote especially for the hotel we stayed at in Cambodia for RESIDENT magazine entitled, Sweet Siem Reap.

ELENA:)

 

Labels: News & EventsTags: asia, breakfast, buffet, cambodia, hotel, Jaya River House Park, lotus flower, Resident Magazine, review, siem reap, Spa, swimming pool, travel

HGU and INNSIDE New York for Behind the Scenes NYC

November 22, 2016

InnsideNewYork-SuiteViewsDetailInnsideNewYork-LobbyBarTerrace

 

My post about Hotel Grand Union NYC and INNSIDE New York ran on Behind the Scenes New York.

ELENA:)

 

Labels: News & EventsTags: behind the scenes, boutique, HGU, hotel, Hotel Grand Union New York, INNSIDE, new york, NoMad, nyc, review

Bali (Sept 11-Sept 21)

October 8, 2016

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Where do I begin? This was literally a last minute (two week turnover from decision to flight) to depart to Bali. My cousin had invited me to go back in July when I went to SF. In Aug, I made I quick trip to NY and when I came back the opportunity re-presented itself and I decided to take it.

You would think that 2 weeks before a trip 15 hours away would be at a huge cost. In fact, it was half price thanks to China Southern Airlines. So on Sept 11 I left Vancouver on a 19-hour trip and finally on Tuesday Sept 13 at 2am I arrived in Denpasar, Bali.

A quick 25 min taxi ride to my hotel, Tijili Seminyak. 15 years ago, I had stayed in Kuta but now Seminyak was the place to be. A 5 min walk to the beach, Tijili Seminyak is a colourful and well-designed hotel not even a year old. The breakfasts were yummy and I wish the sun came out while I was there so I could have taken full advantage of the pool.

I stayed at the Tijili for two nights while I roamed around and finally got my bearings. I managed to kick off the trip with a spa treatment at the Praya Spa where I had the Bali Mystique treatment. It included a footbath, full body scrub, full body massage, warm yogurt masque and then rose and frangipani bath. It was the perfect activity to kick off the trip. After making my way back to the hotel, I thought I was only going to take a quick nap – but ended up sleeping the majority of the night.

The next day I headed north to Ubud where I met up with a coworkers brother at his shop (Jamusara) and checked out some local fare before I had a short Flytographer photo shoot amongst the traditional Balinese temples. The Ubud market had some great finds and I knew I would have to be back later in the trip to pick up some finds.

The one thing I forgot in 15 years was how long it takes to get from A-B (almost everything takes 1-1.5 hours) due to traffic.

Thursday-Saturday was spent in Nusa Dua, which is an area on the eastern side of the island filled with resorts. The Ayodya served as the home base as we did some touristy visits on Thursday (Kintamani volcano, a coffee plantation, a traditional Barong and Kris dance).

Friday’s visit to the northern Bali, Munduk Moding Plantation was my favorite visit though. The 6-hectare plantation was beautiful and I learned a lot about the species grown: coffee, flowers, spices and fruits. Fun fact: you can actually stay at the plantation in a suite/villa and they also have an onsite spa. I would definitely recommend the informative visit and if you can, stay a night or two.

The wedding I attended was on Saturday and the reception was in a beautiful coconut grove. Sunday, we headed over to the neighboring island of Lombok. I was really excited to stay at the Puri Mas Boutique resort and spa and it definitely did not disappoint.

My beautiful Jacuzzi villa was massive complete with a four post bed, soaker tub and cathedral ceilings. I loved that although it was a villa – the bedroom was enclosed allowing the A/C to work affectivity. Also, I would have freaked out if I were night bait for mosquitos.

On our first day we took it to the seas as we explored the Gili Islands. The Gili Islands are a group of 3 tiny islands – Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air. I got over my fear of snorkeling (thanks to my cousins lessons) and saw huge schools of fish in vibrant colours. Lunch was BBQ on the beach, which was the end to a great day.

The following day after breakfast I was able to grab a last minute massage and coconut hair treatment at the spa at the Puri Mas Boutique Hotel before I left for the airport. 24 hours later and I was back in lovely Vancouver.

ELENA:)

Labels: News & EventsTags: bali, barong and kris, BBQ, coconut grove, coffee plantation, denpasar, Flowers, Flytographer, footbath, fruits, gili ilsandss, hotel, jacuzzi, jamusara, kintimani, lombok, market, masque, massage, munduk moding plantation, nusa dua, photos, praya spa, puri mas boutique, resort, retreat, review, scrub, snorkeling, solo, Spices, suite, tijili seminyak, traditional dance, travel, trip, Ubud, vancouver, villa, volcano, wedding
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About

Elena Murzello 2021 Photo

Who is Elena Murzello? I’m a multifaceted multi-tasker, certainly a “go-getter”. Growing up in the small town of Wetaskiwin, Alberta. I’m a nurse, an actress, a writer, a traveler and a MBA grad.
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elenamurzello

“Just walk and I’ll take your photo” @eye_b_ “Just walk and I’ll take your photo” @eye_b_nice @mylifes_moment says. 

This isn’t in order. But, I wanted to post something with sunny weather, because #Vancouver is getting a dose of summer weather finally. 

This was taken on the descent somewhere between Namche Bazaar and Lukla wearing clothing that definitely needed a good wash. Hahaha. 

Hope you’ve had a great week and take the time to recover from all the recent current events. I’m still working on my final piece about my Everest adventure. Wrapping three weeks into three articles is definitely a challenge in itself but I’ll get there and can’t wait to share the journey that took 3.5 months of preparation.
So since I kind of glossed over my three and half So since I kind of glossed over my three and half week trip in just a few posts, I figure I should back track a bit. Now you get the pleasure of re-living the trip through single shots and thoughts. 

The best value for our money was renting a driver (essentially a taxi driver in a very old VW Rabbit with no AC) to take us around. 

No one told us that places value cash over card which was slightly annoying when it came to payment of things. 

Prayer wheels are a thing (these are at the Namo Buddha Temple and can vary in simple to elaborate designs. Our entry and exit of each town/village was marked by turning the many prayer wheels until the next. I ended up purchasing a small one for myself at the Boudhanath Stupa on our last few hours in Kathmandu. It has the Sanskrit mantra ‘Om mani padme hum’ on it. 

If your wondering if my leather jacket came on the trek, it didn’t. That outfit stayed in the city until my return.
So here we are in #singapore - this is from the fi So here we are in #singapore - this is from the first full day which was Wed. It was sunny, humid and stopped by @bellsandbirds at @raffleshotelsingapore before heading over across the street to have some #chickenrice @singsweekee.sg #chromenails by @agnesg.nailsjambox cleaned up the Everest dryness and dirt before more shopping around Payar Lebar Quarter.
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