26 Apr 2008

Amy and I decided we need a really short, and super cheap, break from Singapore, and since she was so interested to check out Danga Bay in Johore, we decided to have a little stay just across the border. It probably sounds crazy to everyone, but it was one of the best travel decisions I've made.

So packed our bags and got through customs without a hitch, even while we had our kidnap victim in Amy's bag. After settling into the room, we tucked the bear into bed while we head out to explore the area around the hotel. We were thinking of having a drink at the poolside bar, but after sitting there for 10 minutes without anyone bothering to ask if we'd like anything, we moved on thinking they were closed. 

Good thing we spotted some activity from the tiny are across the hotel and found a little bar tucked into the corner of some building with the clock tower. Other than the bar, the whole building itself was dark, and it looked like it was going to be torn down in a few months. Anyway, had our drinks, bitched, flirted, laughed, and went back to our room to end the day. 

 

02 Feb 2008

There is a place we've been having our breakfast at for a few days and have forgotten to take a photo as we were usually too hungry to stop and shoot. Finally, I stopped for a minute to snap a few pictures of our favourite breakfast place, right on the roadside just in front of the apartments. The choice of food would change depending on what the lady would be able to get at the market, but the sambal belacan she had was awesome and that got us hooked. The best thing about it was that she left it out for us to scoop as much sambal as we wanted!

After a great breakfast, we headed out for more shopping starting at Berjaya TImes Square, the shopping centre with an indoor roller coaster. What I was interested in was the giant lion head decoration they had. It's eyelids and mouth even opened and closed, but really slowly. After getting bored with this, we decided to head to some market near by and that had much better shopping. We managed to get some food there and headed back to the hotel and stayed in, packing for the next day. 

01 Feb 2008

We're back at the twin towers again and it was to meet up with Michelle this time, who was also in town as they're all having their school break. We met at Chinoz for our own tai tai high tea session with some yummy cakes. Since no one was driving and it's a holiday, what better way to get things going than fruity, alcoholic drinks? However, it seems like Michelle might have started before us...

After we parted with Michelle, we went on to get the stuff front he food fair and headed back for another round in a pool. Feeling a bit lazy, we decided to just went for dinner at NeroTeca, right next to the lobby of the apartments. I managed to get a shot of the appetizers and a horrible picture of the dessert. The rest of the dinner went into my belly without a screening by the camera.

31 Jan 2008

Time to be a bit more touristy and we decided to head to the twin towers and check out what is on offer. My sis also brought me to Madam Kwan's for lunch of assam laksa and the wait was worth it. Think I was so hungry I forgot to actually take pictures, but I got some of the landscape while we waited. 

After lunch, it was basically shopping around the tower and we found a food fair which had some nice stuff that I wanted to bring home. Thinking it might be a chore to carry around, we headed to KLCC Aquaria and I was so happy snapping away that I forgot about depleting battery (which I forgot to charge the night before).

Sis then decided to head to Chinatown for more shopping and so we decided the food fair items could wait. Chinatown was in full CNY mode at the time and there was so much goodies, we had to pick some interesting ones to bring back. Dinner was bak kut teh and claypot chap chye from a roadside stall. The bak kut teh was more herbal than the kind we have in Singapore, but it was refreshing, and a lovely way to end the day.

30 Jan 2008

Next day started out with shopping at the nearby places, checking out the decorations they had up for the coming Lunar New Year. We were walking around one of the shopping centers when we spotted a fish spa but didn't have to wonder too long about how it was done. It looks a little gross when you think about; dipping your feet in the same tank of fish, for these very fish to eat off your dead skin. 

Once we had enough of shopping, we headed back to the hotel for some fun in the pool to test out the new waterproof camera I got. Finally ended the day with a visit to Zouk, which I found quite boring. However, there are definitely people who are enjoying themselves there. 

29 Jan 2008

Sis and decided to make good use of accumulated miles and head to Kuala Lumpur for a few days. The last time I came here, it was really short and I didn't have much time to even explore really touristy spots. This time, with my sis as a guide, I was in for a whole different experience. Arriving there by plane was already a different start, and the last time we were at the KL airport was in 1993!

Dad got us a stay at the Somerset Seri Bukit Ceylon which was partly because my sis had stayed there before. Location-wise, it was great. Not right in the centre where the towers were, but right next to shopping and good food. That was why we decided to map our location with a night walk around the area with a very obvious landmark for a marker.

05 May 2007

Woke up once again in time to check out. As we drove back towards home, we noticed a nasi padang stall at the corner of a block of flats and decided to get our "breakfast" there. I guess I was too hungry to remember to take a picture, but that was the best meal I had on the trip.

Psycho Drivers Everywhere.

Reaching Singapore, I was glad for all the trees lining the roads, making them much cooler than the roads in Malaysia. It felt like I was roasting in the car on the way back and was thankful for the first blast of cool air.

Overall, the trip was interesting transport-wise, but the time was too short and the plan was messy. Never going to make such a hectic trip again if I had the choice.

04 May 2007

We sleep till noon and it's soon time for us to check out of the room and start our journey to Malacca. On the way there, we take a wrong turn and end up at Beryl's chocolate factory. Not one to resist the call of cocoa, Mark stopped the car and we took a quick look through the factory, getting a stash to keep us going for a while longer. Then it was time to head to Malacca, hoping to make it there much earlier than we got to KL.

Day View.


KL Convention Centre.


The Hotel's Pool Right Below Our Room.




Tiny For A Kingdom.

Good thing the trip from KL to Malacca wasn't as long as the trip up, but still I got some weird cramp attack in my left leg. It felt as though I twisted my leg getting out of the car and it gave me quite a bit of problem from here on. Could it have been DVT? (Well it's cleared up so I can't tell.)

Anyhoo... We got to the hotel and after getting refreshed, we headed out to look for a hair salon that would braid our heads. After searching through 3 shopping centres, we finally find a lady that did it and gladly welcomed us in although they were about to close. They got our heads braided and we were set to party tonight.

We had our dinner and later met up with Jason at the club he was supposed to be playing at. Jason had miscommunicated the details of his gig and we basically got there a day too early. Well I guess we weren't supposed to hear his sets just yet. So when the club closed it's doors, we headed back to the hotel aand called it a night.

03 May 2007

Finally the idea was put into motion, the speedy quest for my driver's license was so that I could go on a road trip with Mark through Malaysia. The day came when Jason asked if I wanted to check out his set he was going to play in Malacca. So the idea popped in my head to finally visit KL and then drop by Malacca. The car was rented and gassed up, the bags were packed and off we went to KL.

We took the Tuas checkpoint and travelled for about 3 hours before Mark needed a break. He pulled into on of the pit stops along the highway and we had some Ben & Jerry's before heading out again. Even though he was traveling as fast as he could, we still couldn't make it in before it got dark. After getting confused by the strange criss-crossing roads, and crappy map, in KL, we finally made it to the hotel in one piece.

Stepping into our room, we were relieved at the spaciousness of the room and excited about the cool shows we would be able to watch on a rather huge tv. We refreshed ourselves and were out of the hotel for my first exploration of KL, as well as to get dinner. After stopping to get some Ramlee Burgers, something which I've got no idea what the hype is about, we ended up at a steakhouse as we were both craving a huge chunk of beef.

Peppery & Yummy.

After dinner, we came back to the hotel as neither of us were interested in partying and I took photos from the room while Mark made some coffee. We then settled down, making a small picnic with the burgers and each having a warm cup of coffee as we enjoyed a marathon session of cable shows till we got too tired.

Night View.

07 Mar 2007

Our journey continued way past midnight (12 hours of shopping) and we spotted a few tourist spots that we had checked out on the internet before our trip, making a good excuse to stop Amy rushing from one shopping mall to another.

The Colourful Ogansumun Gate.


Notice The Colour Change?


Doosan Tower.


The Shopping Terrorist.


Street Shopping Under The Hundred Yellow Tents.

Somehow both of us got hungry at almost the same time. I guess the reason was because the adrenalin died as most of our shopping was done. We headed down to the night bazaar and looked around for something to eat, hoping to try something new. Somehow we ended up just having Ramen with pickles and corn tea in a little tent. I am getting hooked to pickles by now.

We also decided to get a bit mad and have some cold stuff while we were already freezing. Good thing about having ice cream in the cold is that it doesn't melt that fast. Bad thing is that I get that pain in Sensodyne advertisements. But that ice cream was yummy... green tea and chocolate... interesting combo.

Having An Ice Cream In Cold Weather? Yum!

Finally when we decided that we got everything we wanted and possibly couldn't carry more, we headed out to get some food before we headed back to our room. As we got our food to go, we were amazed at how some people could stand by the cart, in the cold, to eat instead of hiding themselves in somewhere warm and comfy to enjoy their food. Weird. We ended up getting a buffet from 2 stalls - a bunch of assorted sausages and kebabs, rice rolls, some dumplings cooked in the spicy red sauce and a small bit of blood sausage. We then got a cab and got to our room to enjoy our buffet.

So what do I think of the blood sausage... it needs to go with something. This one simply had the intestines stuffed with rice noodles and blood. The taste of the blood was rather strong and brought about the memories of the blood cubes I used to have with my congee. Amy didn't know and had a rather bad reaction upon finding out what it was but I couldn't finish the whole bag myself and it was just a bit too much to consume on it's own. Think my dad would love it though.

Corndogs, Hotdogs, Satay...


Rice Rolls, Blood Sausages, Spicy Dumplings...

After packing all the purchases, it was already bright and sunny outside, leaving us little to no time for a good sleep but I managed to get 2 hours of nap time while Amy surfed the internet. Before we left the hotel, we managed to take a few videos and photos of the gadgetry in the place, as well as the sign I couldn't help laughing at. Looks better on video but that went missing along with a lot of my files when the comp died.

Room Temperature & Lighting Controls, And Electronic Peephole.


Room Key.




Door Bell/Peep Hole Camera


Electronic Door Lock.


(1st Red Line) Don't Think I Intend To Leave It Here.


We left the hotel and took a cab to the Sofitel to board the shuttle that was a cheap way to get to the airport. It took about an hour to get from the city to town, but that included the different pick-up locations around town, which gave us a mini tour as well as the opportunity to take pictures of Seoul.

We finally get to the airport and we rush in to check ourselves into our flight, taking a few pics before we pass immigrations. Immigrations' check was rather bothersome, we had to remove our shoes and then get a physical pat-down by their officer, then we had to struggle to put our shoes back on while hopping on one foot because all the seats were taken up by the old people there, just sitting down, and most likely getting entertained by the struggling-one-legged hoppers around them. They should just put a rail there for support, then again, I can wear simpler shoes, but I don't like my shoes loose enough to slip on anyway. The departure lounge is rather open and bright, rather clean, like Changi, but it didn't have enough simple stuff available (like a 7-11, which would have a bottle of diet coke maybe?). Then came the last store I go to at almost every airport leaving for home, the dute-free store or something on that range. The shop that would be selling almost every product that's simply made or a reminder of that country. So in we went into one such store and I bought the whole store back. They were nice enough to pack it neatly and even packed it in a trolley bag that mom would just love.

Proving We Were @ Incheon Airport.

After making some last minute calls to home, the gates opened and we boarded the flight home. Seeing that the flight was rather empty, everyone seem to be taking the opportunity to occupy a window seat and that left the one before me empty, giving Amy the opportunity to occupy both seats. Once Amy got comfy in her stolen seat, she started taking pictures of that bear again. Once we were in the air, the boredom began after photo opportunities ended and my iPod came in really handy. While we were taking pictures of Korea from our plane, the stewardesses gave out some peanuts that were really nice. Not sure if it was altitude, lack of peanuts or if the nuts were just yummy, but somehow I could eat a bigger pack, or 20 of those tiny packs, while listening to music and challenging myself with Sudoku puzzles.

Candid Shot Of Xiao Pui While Posing For Amy.






These Were Especially Yummy @ High Altitude.

Our meals came slightly later and if the choice wasn't beef stew, I would've tried the bibimbap. The stew was alright, but I wouldn't rave about it, plus I really couldn't tell what was in that salad. However the desser... although I don't like strawberry ice cream or artificial strawberries, the dessert was still nice and simple as it really tasted like a frozen cheesecake with bits of strawberry. However, if it wsa blueberry, I'd have been in a really happy place.

Beef Stew


Bi Bim Bap




Red Velvet Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream For Dessert.

After the meal trays were cleared, it was back to doing our own things again, and I guess Amy really enjoyed her dessert so much, she was in dreamland.

Sleeping Satisfied? OK This Pic Was Posed For - Just Look @ The Smile.