Category: Travel

• Breakfast With A View

  03.23.09 |Travel| Permalink | 1 Comment

  
  
  

  On Saturday, I had breakfast with a view. I must say that it is really refreshing. Away from the hustle and bustle lifestyle. I was enjoying my delicious nasi lemak with a lake view of Bukit Merah. A short journey of 45 minutes driver from Penang Island.

  Bukit Merah Resort is famous for its waterpark where children go there for splashing and water play on a hot summer day. Besides the waterpark, you can enjoy the nice lake scenary or visit the Ecopark where a small zoo of animals resides.

  I booked myself into the Laketown Resort. It is a 2-3 stars hotel. The rooms are spacious for a family. One thing lacking there is good food. They do have a variety of local Malay’s stores, offering local delicacies but most of they are spicy food. The food was just ok. Lots of room for improvements. All I can say, I did enjoyed myself there.

  
  
  

• Beef Tripe Noodle

  01.26.09 |Food, Travel| Permalink | Comments Off on Beef Tripe Noodle

  I miss this! If you are in Hong Kong, you must try the Beef Tripe Noodle. It is very tasty and the noodle is superb. It is very different from the Vietnamese style. The soup is made tasty with boiling the beef tripe or brisket in it. It is almost like a beef stew.

  One thing that is missing is that the shop does not provide a good chili sauce to go with it. It will be absolutely perfect with chili sauce. I wonder when I can have it again.

  
  
  

• LCCT Improvement Required

  01.01.09 |Service, Travel| Permalink | Comments Off on LCCT Improvement Required

  I am surprised that there are so many flights going into LCCT but there is no expansion being made to cater for the increase. There are only 3 conveyer belts for incoming flights. 2 incoming flights shared one station.

  I had to wait an hour to pick up my baggage. It takes longer than my flight from Penang to KL. Not to mention, another hour to travel to KL from LCCT. In total, 3.5 hours from Penang to KL. That is the same amount of time if I drive and cheaper too.

  Lots of people were complaining about the late arrival of their bags. Penang airport did a very good job as my bags came out within 5 minutes of wait.

  Another thing I found it is very stuffy and air condition does not cater for the amount of people in there.

  If you have a connecting flight, you better plan hours in between for delay, baggage claims and travel from LCCT to KLIA.

  
  
  

• Kiasu People

  12.30.08 |Travel| Permalink | 2 Comments

  I just got back from KL taking an AirAsia Flight. The flight was delayed. AA did text me to inform that the flight will be delayed for 30 minutes but no reason stated. The flight departure time was at 5:15pm.

  I checked in and went into the boarding place at 4pm as I wanted to surf the Internet. However, I was amazed that people started q-ing at 4pm. All because one lady got up and stood at the q. Everyone else joined in and there were about 40 or more q-ing. People who came join in.

  My goodness! I looked outside, the airplane hasn’t even arrived. Anyway I sat down with my notebook, surfing and downloading TVB series. Yeap I am chasing The Gem Of Life and on Episode 50 now.

  At 5pm, still no sign of the airplane. Poor people, they stood there for 1 hour. Look as though they were punished by the teacher for being kiasu. Announcement came stating the flight will be delayed until further notice. 70% of the people q-ing sat down. 30% still q-ing.

  At 5:45pm, this was a very strange one, the announcer said the flight will be delayed until 6:30pm. 5 seconds later, he came on to ask us to q and board the plane. I am really confused. Anyway I stood up and q. Within 5 mins, I was on the plane. Home Sweet Home!

• Hong Kong Hollywood Disneyland Hotel

  12.05.08 |Hotel, Travel| Permalink | Comments Off on Hong Kong Hollywood Disneyland Hotel

  
  
  

  I must say that I had a pleasant stay with Hollywood Disneyland Hotel in Hong Kong. The only thing that is a setback is the rooms are very pricey. I guess that is Hong Kong, most hotel rooms rates are pricey. The rooms are very spacious and great for a family of four. The twin beds can be share with 2 persons.

  
  

  
  

  Service was superb. You can leave your luggage with the concierge if you arrive early, so that you can first enjoy yourself at Disneyland park.

  I had an opportunity to dine in with my family and enjoy the buffet. There was a variety of food there with my favorite sashimi, seafood, roast beef, roast goose, Chinese dim sum and plenty of dessert to go around. They even have a chef to cook special sauce pasta for the children. Do try the seafood sauce pasta, it taste great. Not forgetting the chocolate fountain.

  A tip to get good savings in the hotel is to get the child annual pass. You can get discount rates on hotel room rates and dinning in the hotel. However there is a quota with discounted room.

  I did enjoy my stay there. My children loved the sauna heated pool. Too bad it was fairly windy outside, if not we could have soak a little longer.

  Cleanliness:
  Service:
  Facilities:
  Overall:

• Service Improvement In Hong Kong

  11.28.08 |Travel| Permalink | Comments Off on Service Improvement In Hong Kong

  
  
  

  Hong Kong customer service has improved tremendously. People are so friendly as compared to 10 years ago. I remembered I was scolded a couple of times for no reason in Hong Kong. I being a banana, not knowing how to read Chinese had difficulty ordering dishes in a restaurant.
  However I could speak Cantonese. The waiter upright told me to read the menu when I ask him for recommendation. If I took too long to order, the waiter will ask me to go away.

  However all that has change now. They are so polite. One of the waitresses even helped me to find a English menu for me to select what I wanted. As I was shopping in SASA, one nice lady came and started to help me with my shopping stuff. She is so friendly and told me a lot about promotions and offers. She didn’t follow me around, allowed me to take time to browse through what I wanted and told me where things were. No wonder SASA was awarded with the Best Customer Service.

  One funny thing happen while I was walking down the street, there was an old man in his security uniform. A westerner approached him and asking where the nearest MTR was. The old man didn’t understand any English. The westerner look lost and I just directed him to the nearest MTR. The old man asked me what he was asking and I told him the MTR. Later I asked him for direction to go to a shop. He was very friendly and told me how to get there.

  I must say that speaking in Cantonese does have an advantage, they cannot tell that I was a tourist. You must speak the right Cantonese and not Malaysian Cantonese. I learn most of it from watching TVB series.

  Ha! However a shop owner spotted that I was a Malaysian because I didn’t wear any warm clothing and I was in my short sleeve shirt. I didn’t feel cold although it was below 18°C, maybe too much walking. Any how he gave me a good price for the dried scallops and abalone strips. Frankly speaking, I don’t mind going back to Hong Kong again!

• Hong Kong Disneyland

  11.25.08 |Children, Entertainment, Theme Park, Travel| Permalink | 2 Comments

  Hong Kong Disneyland is divided into 4 main sections: Main Street, USA, Adventureland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland.

  
  

  

  

  

  
  

  You can visit the website for the daily schedule of the events, parade and fireworks. It changes from time to time. You can also get a schedule at the ticket counter. When I went there, the parade was at 3:30pm and fireworks were at 7pm. Park hours are from 10am – 7pm.

  If you stayed in any of the hotels in Disneyland, you can get 2 days park ticket for the price of 1. You can also purchase Annual park ticket to get about 30% discounts on hotel rates on weekdays.

  Last tip, never get those over priced big balloons. Even if you have to get it, purchase it at the end of the day. You do not want to carry it around and you may not take it with you at certain rides. You cannot bring it on any aircraft too unless you deflate it.

  Main Street USA
  Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad – A train ride that will bring you round Disneyland. You can get an overview of the entire Disneyland. It will make a stop at Fantasyland. I found that the queue in Fantasyland is shorter than the Main Street. You can ride as many times as you like.

  Main Street Vehicle – It is a double-decker mini bus where you can cruise up and down Main Street with it.

  Shopping area – Most of the souvenirs shops are at the Main Street. You can get glass with a cartoon character and craft your name on it.

  Adventure Land
  Shows: Festival of the Lion King – You must watch this. It is a superb musical performance of the story of Lion King. Great singing, dancing and filled with action.

  Rafts to Tarzan’s Treehouse – You can ride the raft to cross the river to Tarzan Treehouse. There is quite a queue to ride the raft.

  Tarzan Treehouse – Climb up on top of the Tarzan Treehouse to get a good view. There are interactive musical instrument that you can experiment with. Of coz you need to ride the raft to get back across.

  Jungle River Cruise – Cruise around the river and discovered many surprises. You may get wet or burned in this ride. Watch out for the long queue. There are 2 queues, one in English and one in Cantonese. I found that the English queue was shorter. Must ride.

  Tomorrowland
  Show: Stitch Encounter – An interactive show with Stitch. We went twice because my gal wanted Stitch to ask her name. Both times she was disappointed. You will be asked to help Stitch to escape. It is very fun. Not much of a queue but it is a great experience.

  Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters – An arcade type of ride where you are given laser guns to shoot at target points as you ride around. You can even adjust your seating to twirl around. At the end, you can check out your scores. It is a very exciting ride and I almost reach ranking L4. We went a couple of times as there was no queue.

  Autopia – Electronic cars ride that you can stir on the track. Even my four year old can drive, how cool is that. Watch out for the queue. We have to wait 20 mins.

  Space Mountain – A high speed ride like a roller coaster. Minimum height must be above 102cm. Not for folks with heart conditions.

  Orbitron – A flying saucer ride where you can adjust your height as you go in circle.

  UFO Zone – Water play to cool off. Good for younger children. Beware of getting wet.

  Fantasyland
  Show: The Golden Mickeys – The show was alright with cartoon characters dancing.

  Show: Mickey’s PhilharMagic – 3D show that you must see. It is a magical journey. Try catching the jewels and food with your hand. Watch out for water spray too and flying Donald!

  It’s A Small World – This is my favorite ride and it is new! You can see many culture, costume and colors. It is very well design. Must ride. Beside the beautiful dancing dolls, you can smell the nice fragrant too. The only part I didn’t like was, it is a long walk from the entrance to the ride. There is no short cut, bad design. I think I made 7 to 8 turns.

  Dumbo, the flying elephant – Similar to Orbitron where you ride on a flying elephant.

  Cinderella Carousel – Merry go round

  Fantasyland Train Station – You can hop on to the train to go around Disneyland.

  Sleeping Beauty Castle – Here is where you take beautiful shots of the castle and where the firework display is. Try to get a good spot away from the castle for nice shots of the fireworks.

  Fantasy Garden – Photo taking with your favorite Disney cartoon. We got hold of Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Winnie The Pooh but missing Donald. Where is Donald?

  Mad Hatter Tea Cups – Riding on a cup and going in circles. You can twirl around faster by turning the table. I would suggest that you do not get up and walk immediately. You may fall down after the turning.

  The Many adventure of Winnie the Pooh – A journey to help Pooh find honey. Children adore this ride. Remember to smile as you approach the mirror as Winnie will take a picture of you. The picture will be display at the exit where you can order.

  Here are some videos on the fantastic time I have in Hong Kong Disneyland. Hope you enjoy it too!

  
  The Parade
  

  It’s A Small World
  

  
  

• Mashinun

  05.08.08 |Food, Travel| Permalink | 1 Comment

  That’s delicious in Korean. I loved Korean food especially the different types of side dishes called banchan. Side dishes such as Kimchi, spinach salad, glazed potatoes, cucumber pickles and others.

  I went to a nice Korean Restaurant called Arirang @ 11-G-1&2 Jalan Gottieb (aka new Bob Center) Penang. The atmosphere of the place is good with a small room of toys and books for the children to play while we dine.

  My family ordered the Kimchi soup based vegetables set, bbq pork, the fried glass noodles and the ginseng chicken. The bbq pork was really tasty. They provided a free flow of Korean tea. You can also ordered the beef where they bbq on the spot. It has lots of side dishes that come with what we ordered. The Kimchi soup was a little too sourish and spicy. It can be very acidic to your tummy. My advice, eat some rice to fill your stomach before attempting the Kimchi soup.

  I will recommend this place to anyone who is visiting Penang. The owner is a Korean and you get authentic Korean food. It is simply delicious. Enjoy the pictures.

  
  

  

  

  

• Singapore Airline Reduces Check-In Baggage Allowances

  04.10.08 |Travel| Permalink | 1 Comment

  One thing I like about SIA is that whenever I fly to US, I can loot 32kg x 2 stuff back. Recently I received a memo from them, for US trip the weight allowance has reduced from 32kg (70lbs) to 23kg (50lbs). Any excess baggage will be charged.

  More info about this here.

  I guess the recent change is due to oil price hike. I heard that it takes more fuel to carry more heavy baggage. AirAsia took the excuse of saving the environment and encourage passenger to travel light. AirAsia is also charging extra for baggage. However how can I resist the temptation of buying stuff from US? Oh well, spend less and save more for me.

• Toilet Bowl Restaurant

  04.07.08 |Food, Travel| Permalink | 4 Comments

  
  
  

  Tbowl has an extraordinary interior deco for its restaurant. Most people will not use a toilet bowl concept to decorate an eating place. But not for Tbowl. They have successfully attracted customers with toilet bowl. No joke.

  Yeap, the seats are all toilet bowls and even the food is served in toilet bowls. The tables are sinks which is covered with a piece of glass. You can see walls with shower outlet. My little gal wanted to shower there too if the shower works.

  As for food, there is not much specialties. I was quite disappointed with it, as many food choices that were in the menu are not available. It was very pricey too from RM10-RM15. If you have not eaten out from a toilet bowl before, you should try. Believe me, there isn’t a tint of toilet smell at all. It is in Penang Queensbay mall, next to Golden Screen Cinema.