Hello Phuket (Again)

It's been at least 2 years since my last trip over to Phuket. And after that trip I was quite reluctant to return for a second trip. Reason was because I don't found that there's any attraction left for me to see unless I am going out to the beaches again (which I am not that interested). But since babe was so into the trip with her friends, I'd decided to joined in the fun. We arrived quite early that morning around 8am their time. (it's one hour earlier than our time). We checked into our hotel and started off with our walk around town. I was expecting hot and sunny weather over there since Phuket seemed to give me a 365 days bright and sunny skies but I was into some surprises when I arrived. It was non stop raining or at least drizzle for the first 2 days. Since I am not going out to the sea again, so I am not much affected. 

Babe and I woke up late in the morning enjoying our sleeps for the first time during our trip. Normally we would need to wake up early to take our breakfast and rush for the activities ahead of us but this time around, we were really laid back. Nice~! The place didn't really changed much from our last trip over. I remembered Bangla Street to be much crowded than this time around. But maybe it's due to the raining weather, that it deters the partying outside the streets. But you still see a lot of foreigners walking half naked around town as usual. We were bundle up in rain coats for the first two days which really sucks. This time around we managed to do some elephant trekking and also enjoyed some thrilling ATV rides across the muddy roads up hill. Yeah~! ATV rocks!!! (FYI, ATV - all-terrain-vehicles). 

The weather turned better on the last two days and one of my friend hooked up with the local agent to bring us around town for some good food. Richard (the agent) brought us over to this place around town which according to him served the best Thai BBQ buffet and I had to agree. Food was good and it was dirt cheap. More pictures will be uploaded on my food page soon. Since I have no time to arrange them all right now. Went for oil massage the night before we say goodbye to the land of half naked ang moh. The last day weather was really good. No sign of raining at all. We did the city tour which I didn't know existed. haha! We visited the look out point at Karon top. The big Buddha statue on the Nakkerd hill top which is between Chalong and Kata beach. Visited the shooting range and also kart circuit for some drifting action before lunch. Visited the famous Wat Chalong temples but sadly the monks were asleep when we arrived caused I wanted them to pray on my elephants statue. 

Rushed for last minute tour of the old town which is quite familiar to us since it filled with Chinese culture in it. We saw the Chinese temples which resembles the ones over here in Malaysia. Rushed for last minute shopping before headed to the air port. This time around, I didn't really took much pictures during my trip cause I had took most of the pictures before so I am a bit reserved. All of us had a lot of fun during this trip and honestly speaking, I had more fun than I expected to be. Bought tons of cup noodles and also tit bits during the trip. Managed to bought Phuket SB mug to add into my collection. Thought to bring back Chiang Mai, Pattaya and Bangkok mugs but babe worried it would be too heavy so decided to just get one for now. Maybe on my next trip over Chiang Mai or Pattaya I guess. Reached home and settled down around 1.30am. Still pull myself up for work this morning and I felt so refresh after a long holiday.

A Good Holiday

It's a bit late but it's still the festive season so here goes. Wishing my readers a Prosperous & Wonderful Chinese New Year. A lot happened during this few days of festive season. Went back to my hometown, meet my grandparents, cousins and nephews and friends. But didn't really have much time meeting them either. Most of the time I spent at home with my relatives and cousins. And did I mentioned there's plenty of food single day? I do mean tons of cook food all the time. Imagine waking up everyday and having 5 to 6 meals a day. I mean other than eat it's just sleeping and updating our status with the cousins. But hell, we all are connected through FB, even my aunt and uncles. So most of us know what is happening among our family. Came back on Saturday and managed to catch up with my friends before they leave. Catch a CNY movie today and gonna be back to work tomorrow. Already been receiving calls from my boss and customers today for stuff to follow up tomorrow. What a quick weekend rest for me. Now it's time to work again~ Ganbateh~!

Welcome To Taiwan

 Arriving at Taoyuan International Airport on Sunday morning (14 Nov) with a bit of cloud in the sky. Weather forecast for the week is cloudy with a bit of rain. I can accept that.

 First stop, Wufenpu as babe and me wanted to get some clothes for the trip. Cheap? Not really. But there's a lot of choices here for the ladies.

National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall. Windy and a bit of rain but that doesn't stop us from taking a picture or two. The Prime Minister is coming on that day so we can't enter the memorial hall. Sigh~! 

Yehliu's eco-park famous stone formation the Queen's Head. You need to queue up to take picture of the head though. As you can see the neck portion of the stone is getting smaller and according to them will be broken anytime. So better snap a picture of it soon peeps. 

The famous Chiufen mountain view from the top. Totally breathtaking and one of the most windy and coldest place we been in Taiwan. 

Trip over Chiufen old street isn't complete without taking a picture of the 'old stairs' down memory lane. Simply nostalgic. 

 Fisherman's Wharf a.k.a The Lover's Bridge. Another windy place as it's next to the sea. We hold hand in hand all along the bridge. Memorable.

Tamsui Old Street which is famous for their Tia Tan (steel eggs). The best place to buy them as they have a lot of flavors to choose from. Other than that, you can also have a taste of their local delicacies such as stinky tofu and ice cream to name a few.

Martyr's Shrine. You can see the famous guards on duty here by the main entrance. Yes, they won't move an inch but don't try to be silly here as there are other uniform guard at the side to watch over them. Wait for the time when they change shift and you can see some really nifty marching.

The famous Ximenting center. It's busy as hell during night time with movie-goers queuing up to the numerous cinemas over there. The place is also known as cinema city by local. Plenty of clothes and food to choose from. Even had the famous Ah Chung Flour Rice noodle over at this area. Nothing special though. Totally over-rated.

 We were lucky as it they were holding this International Flora Exposition while we were there. Plenty of flowers and others futuristic stuff to see at this place. Entrance fees is TW300 for the whole day. But you need at least 3 days to finish the whole place.

 A must visit place at one of the section in the flower expo, the Future expo. But there's a long queue, so just be patients. It's worth the wait.

The busy busy Ximenting center in the afternoon. Totally love this shot. Gonna rain really soon. Felt like Times Square over at NY or Tokyo~! :P 

You trip isn't complete without visiting the busy street of Shilin night market. Plenty of food and clothes for the ladies. Had my homestay over at this place for the last 3 days. Simply marvelous. Eat and shop all day long. 

The Rainbow Bridge where all lovers fall in love. Great view and memorable scenery with my beloved. 

 Another shot of the busy street of Shilin night market around 11pm on a Friday night. Crazy~! The road and street are pack. Havoc but you got to love this, it's totally Taiwan. 

 We have the twin tower, they have this 101 Tower. Blardy tourist spot. haha~! 

Now you know why there are so many tourist taking pictures outside KLCC right? 

Krabi Trip Day 4

Finally it's time for us to say goodbye to Krabi and head back to Malaysia. Can't imagine that we had already spent 3 days over there and it's now the last day. Really miss their food over there.

Found out that their air port do not have a duty free section for their tourists. Weird.

This is the second time in one week of me eating Air Asia's on board food. My flight over to Krabi was serving Nasi Lemak and now we had opted for their Chicken Rice. Surprisingly it wasn't as bad as I thought. We had pre-booked so it's not that expensive.

Finally we reached Malaysia soil at about 4.15pm. Oh, I miss my bed so much. Thinking back of all the food I had during this trip makes me wanna go to the gym after getting home, which I did. Definitely need to burn off the extra load I had during the whole trip. Totally a memorable trip for me and my babe.

Krabi Trip Day 3

Started off the third day with some massage session after breakfast. We had a Thai massage by the hotel side yesterday after our island trip. Now we decided to try some massage parlor nearby our hotel. So at the end we decided to give this place a try. As the price and the ambiance was really attractive.

After a long massage we were all hungry and I had suggested to try out their McDonald's as they offer pork in their menu. The prices for their value over there is more expensive than Malaysia. But they are having a promotion right now, for buying a value meal we are entitle to get another cheese burger for free. Good deal.

This is the Grilled Beef Burger which was on promo that day. Actually it's something like our prosperity burger minus the black pepper.

This is the FOC Pork Cheese Burger which I had. What's the different? Meat a bit softer compared to the beef we normally have. Nothing much special bout it. Just an experience and having to be able to say that I had no-halal burger at McDonalds. LOL!

We had a long walk from Ao Nang street back to our hotel and going from one shop to another buying stuff and souvenirs. It was totally a hot sunny day that day. That is why no one goes around walking along the street during noon as it was so damn hot.

There is a lot of food stalls along the street which we can choose from. This particular stall sells some chicken on a stick which similar to Malaysia. Did I tried any road side food during this trip? Well just once actually. Not that into their food maybe.

Krabi Trip Day 2

Second day started early in the morning with all of us arriving at the port and heading for our island hopping session. The package includes 4 island and snorkeling with inclusive of one lunch.

Finally Baby Octopus had return to the sea and reunited with his own species. LOL!!!

All of us signed our names on the sand with Kenix being the main artist. What a way to remember our trip to the island.

After a long island hopping and snorkeling, we got back to the hotel and freshened up before heading to town for dinner. This is one of the best restaurant in town called Ruenmai-Thai Restaurant. Food was great and price was reasonable.

Krabi Trip Day 1

Our flight was 12.30pm and we arrived Krabi around 2.30pm (Thailand time). We got on the bus which was included on our trip itinerary.

First stop, Tiger Cave. Well legend has it that tigers roams this caves or mountain and when the monk came, the tigers went away. And now, the place is being invaded by wild monkeys.

I realized that they have Kwan Yin in this temple too. Very nice building.

We were treated with one of the local specialty, Duck Noodle. They breed the duck themselves over there. I can see the group of ducks swimming in the ponds and all, so nice but I can't say the same of the noodle though. LOL!

Went to Krabi town to have a short shopping and look around. Wasn't as bad as I though. There is only one shopping mall over there. Something like my hometown I think.

Then we arrived at this semi government subsidized marine project. Not sure this is what I wanna see as I can see this stuff at Shah Alam too.

Anyway, it's part of the itinerary. And we went back to the hotel and checking in. The hotel room was so damn nice and comfortable. Especially like the face towel which they folded to look like an elephant. There is even a outdoor garden in each of our room. Service was great and it's located at the city center. Nice. By the way, the name of the hotel is La Playa.

Penang Makan-Venture Day #3

The third and final day of our makan-venture. Oh, how time flies. And I was just getting started with the food over here. LOL!! After some confusion of the place to have breakfast this morning, we decided to go with BQ's suggestion. Not really sure where the place is located exactly. It was actually a place where the sisters usually took their breakfast while visiting their grandparents. Curry Noodle was one of the reason why we travel over but it was so good that it was totally sold off when we arrived. So I had ordered their Wan Ton Noodle but surprisingly it was really good.

After the breakfast we drove around town looking for biscuits to buy as gifts for families and friends. But most of the places didn't have any stock available for walk in as we need to pre-book for the biscuits. Yes, business was really that good. After getting all our biscuits, we started our journey back to PJ. There were a lot of cars along the way. Managed to arrived around 5pm and we decided to have early dinner together before bidding farewell. Totally love this makan-venture. I am going down SOUTH next week for work and hopefully I can find something good to eat while I am there.

Penang Makan-Venture Day #2

Early morning on the second day of our Makan-Venture up North, CP had recommended this place along Jalan Jelutong. It's famous for their Curry Noodle? Well, after tasting it, it wasn't that half bad either. I think most of us had ordered the curry noodle from the same stall that morning.

I found out from this trip that, MD's girlfriend had this obsession with one of the local food, Apong. Well unconsciously, I had too a bit addicted on this snack too. After the whole expedition, we had concluded that the Apong seller from Jalan Jelutong here sells one of the best Apong in town.

After taking our breakfast cum lunch, we had decided to try our luck going up Bukit Bendera. But it was totally pack that morning. It was 2pm when we arrived but the next train up was 5pm. So we just took some picture and left for Kek Lok Si Temple after that.

It was about 3pm when we reach Kek Lok Si Temple. Damn it was so hot that afternoon. After 1 hour of venturing in this sacred temple and climbing to the top of the pagoda it was time to go to our next makan spot. But FP's steering lock got jammed. Long story short, I smashed open the lock and we're off to our next location.

Next stop, we drove over Lorong Eng Kwee. Actually it's this place in the alley off the main road. Why is all this nice places, located along the alley? Was informed by MD that they served good Char Kuey Teow, so I had ordered it even though the stall told me that there is a long queue before mine. It was totally over rated. Ordered their Cendol and also Lobak too. After a long day we decided to go back to the hotel to rest before dinner.

We came out after a short rest and drive over Macalister Road for some real local food. It was sad that the weather was a bit wet when we arrived. Scout around the place and decided to order Char Kuey Teow AGAIN. I think it's my 4th plate since the whole trip. There were a lot of food which we all ordered and share during this round of makan-venture. After dinner, half of the people travel over Gurney Drive to buy some Rojak while the rest got back to the hotel waiting for 2nd round. It was raining most of the day so the weather was not that hot.

Penang Makan-Venture Day #1

All of us meet at Sg. Buloh R&R before starting our journey up North. We had stop a few times for freshen up and finally reach Penang around noon. We check into our hotel at Krystal Suite which was located at Bayan Lepas. A bit far from town but it was cheap and available. After checking in and unpacking, we dont waste anytime to start off our makan-venture. First location is Lorong Selamat. I had ordered their Char Kuey Teow and ABC for this round.

After taking our lunch we decided to go over Gurney Mall for some window shopping while waiting for dinner. Had a drink at one of the cafe and had this bad bad experience. Waiter fark up our order and at the end we had to pay for an additional drink. After that we decided to go over Gurney Drive for some light eating. Damn it was so jam. When we arrived, there were already crowded by locals and visitors like us. This round, I had again ordered Char Kuey Teow. How was it? Read my food blog later on.

After early dinner, we decided to have a walk at the night market at Feringgi. It was a long and crowded with foreigners. Some of the girls managed to buy some bags while we're there. After the long and hot walk, we decided to go over Northam Beach Cafe for dinner. Oh! Did I say dinner again? LOL! We got hungry very fast from the long walk beforehand. I had ordered a Extra Spicy Hot Plate Yee Mee. After having a long day, it was time to call it a day. We all got back and rest early. Can't wait for the second day : )

Lost Boy Pt.1

I arrived in J.B yesterday and usual finish up my appointments and went to check into the hotel. I was quite proud of myself as I managed to find most of the places with out any help or maps. Like I said, my sense of direction is really good. Or so I thought. Bath and changed before heading out for dinner and some window shopping.

Finished my shopping at Holiday Plaza and decided to go somewhere else as it's still early. So drove over to Woodlands and saw this place called Johor Bahru City Square. Sounds cool and decided to have a scout. Park my car and managed to find what I was looking for in there. Had my dinner inside which was really a bad choice. Nevermind, since it's just dinner so it's time to head back to the hotel. Now here's the fun part started.

Was exiting the plaza into the main road. Saw few sign boards (i.e Woodlands, Kota Tinggi, Pusat Bandar and Skudai). Which sign do I follow? I can actually see my hotel from where I am at that time. I guess it's just less than 5 km away. But to cut the story short, I managed to get myself lost and ended up at Tampoi which was 10 of kilometres away. Passed by the whole seaside avenue but I did found out where is Danga Bay by now. I think that is the only upside of the whole getting lost scenario. Managed to get back to where I started the whole journey which was the City Square, TWICE. Yes, I was that lost. Finally managed to get back to the raod I am familiar with and were back to my hotel after 35mins although in reality it would only take 5 mins. Finger cross~!!

CNY Cameron Highland Roundezvous

Woke up on the second day of CNY and drove back to KL to pick up my babe. But not before visiting one of my friend's house and getting some red packets. Took my close to 3 hours to reach Banting town around 8pm to arrive. Had late dinner and before the end of the night, got myself into my babe's family trip up Cameron Highlands. OMG, what had I got myself into now.

So the next day, all of us had breakfast before starting our journey up North. Had a stop in Tapah R&R while waiting for the rest of the convoy (4 cars). I used the old road whereas the rest used the new one entering from Simpang Pulai. As I thought, I was the first to make it up the hill. Waited for the rest to arrived and checked into our hotel. Damn this is one hell of a good hotel that we found last night online. It's called Titiwangsa Hotel. RM400 nett for one family suite. It had two separate rooms with living rooms with two queen size bed and one single. 3 bathrooms and 2 TVs. And it's only 15m walk from Brinchang town. Sweet~!

So the rest of the day was filled with hopping around from one place to another looking for souvenirs and fresh vegetables. At the end of the day, we had our steamboat in house and walk to the night market at Brichang town before finishing up the end of the night with Karaoke session in the hotel. Yes, you heard me right, it's karaoke session for all of us. Damn havoc with the kids shouting and all but it was really a nice day. Tiring but enjoyable day.

Woke up the next day (Wednesday) and had our breakfast and checking out of the hotel. Before checking out, they decided to gamble a bit in the room. Well what is CNY without some little bit of gambling right? I just watched as usual as I don't gamble that much. Finished everything and off we go to the rest of the stalls and shops for last minute shopping and all.

This is one of the farm which we went to which grows Sai Yong Choy. Nothing special but since we're from the city and never really did went to the farm before, it's a new thing for me. lol~! Managed to got down the hill around 6pm and decided to go Ipoh for some Kuey Teow soup. OMG~! And we're rushing for dinner at Banting later on. So off we go to Ipoh for some local food.

It was quite jam at the restaurant with a lot of visitors from out of town. But managed to get a place and finished off our meal there. Started our journey around 7pm and finally managed to reach Klang at 10.30pm. There were a lot of cars on the highway that night. Jam for a while and rain in between the journey. Had some stop but luckily her aunt was a good driver and we managed to swift pass through all the cars safely. Rest early (3am) as I got some appointments lining for me few hours later. And here we go again~!