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Category: Penang

Beef Noodles
03.23.11 |Food, Malaysia, Penang| Permalink | Comments Off

I love beef noodles. I missed Pho, Vietnamese beef noodles from San Jose. It is the best I tasted so far. I don’t know how they make the soup to be so tasty. It is best eaten on a cold day. The serving is humongous.

Near to Penang, the local beef noodles also very delicious. I found one along Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, next to Ayamas which is superb. You have to try it. I will ask them to add more vegetables and beef tripe. Now I feel like having a bowl of this. ~~~

Popularity: 1% [?]
Efficient Malaysia Immigration
08.25.10 |Malaysia, Penang, Service, Travel| Permalink | Comments Off

I must say the Malaysia Immigration for passport renewal has improved. Kudos to all the staff there in Penang!! First they sent me a reminder stating my passport is about to expire. I will travel soon so it really helps me to get it renewed. I don’t want to be at the immigration gate only to find out my passport is not valid.

Secondly, I can download the renewal application form from their website. I remembered I used to queue for that form and also need to pay RM1 for it. It is also a waste of time because a number is given only after you filled up the form.

It only took me 30 minutes to get everything done. However it still takes 2-3 hours before I can collect the passport on the same day. I collected the next day instead.

Next is the US Visa application. The online form is driving me crazy. Imagine I filled up half of the form and it all vanished into thin air.

You can download the form here.

Popularity: 2% [?]
Addition To Penang Public Holidays
06.19.10 |Penang| Permalink | Comments Off

Today, in TheStar online papers, the state of Penang announced July 7 as a public holiday to to commemorate the anniversary of the inscription of George Town as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2008.

Penang state of Malaysia already has 17 days for public holiday, now it is 18 days. I believed it is the state with the most public holidays. Please correct me if I am wrong.

Ooh, added another Malaysia Day on Sept 16, now it is 19 days.

1. New Year – 1st Jan
2. Chinese Lunar New Year – 2 days, depend on the Chinese Lunar Calendar
3. Thaipusam
4. Prophet Muhammad Birthday
5. Labour Day – 1st May
6. Wesak Day
7. Malaysia King Birthday – 1st Sat of June
8. Penang Governor Birthday – 11th July
9. Malaysia National Day – 31st August
10. Nuzul Al-Quran Day
11. Hari Raya Puasa (*) – 2 days
12. Malaysia Day – 16th Sept
13. Deepavali (*)
14. Hari Raya Haji (*)
15. Awal Muharram (Maal Hijrah)
16. Christmas – 25th December

Of cause, some companies do not have all public holidays as off days, they limit it to a fixed number of off days. I wonder whether my company accept July 7 and Sept 16 as holidays. I hope there are good news for me

Popularity: 4% [?]
Penang Arch Unsafe
05.19.10 |Penang| Permalink | Comments Off

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/5/18/nation/6277596&&sec=nation

7 million to beautify Penang Botanic Garden, started with an Unsafe Arch. 7 million of hard earn tax payers money go down the drain. Thanks to the Federal Government.

7 million can be spend on many things to benefit the people and what can an unstable arch do? With 7 million, they can build a huge bungalow to house homeless people on the street. 7 million, you can feed a village of people for the whole year. 7 million, you can help many poor children get a proper education or home.

Another sad story.

Popularity: 2% [?]
Hard Rock Hotel Penang
03.16.10 |Hotel, Penang| Permalink | 1 Comment

It was a pretty cool hotel. My family loved it. It was really crowded because of the school holidays. Rooms very fully book. Yeap, there were some walk in guests whom were really disappointed. During the evening, the car park was closed for outsiders.

CheckIn & Check out

Firstly I empathize with the staff working there, the front desk or lobby is non-air condition. Both the staff and the customers have to bear with the heat. It took a long time for check in because there were no rooms available. Funny, the guests’ latest check out time is 12:30pm. I went there at 2pm, still no room. I wonder how long it takes for the room to be clean. Maybe short staffed in the housekeeping area.

Next, while I was checking out, one customer was smoking. No non-smoking sign around, really bad for us non-smokers who has to bear with unhealthy environment. It took long wait for me to check out.

The Room

It has a very spacious room and fun for every age group. I got a room with a good view of the beautiful sea. The room decoration was just ok, nothing to shout about. However the bathroom is a little small and no bath tub.

The Pool

The swimming pool is the highlight for children with 3 slides. For children below 4 feet, it is advisable to wear an arm float. There are rooms by the pool, just like a personal pool. Very convenient for some.

There were dancing at the pool and water ball organize by the hotel. Something to rock their guests there.

Teens Club

There is a teen club room for teenagers or children to have fun with Xbox, play stations and computers. However there is no queuing system. Most children were hogging the stations and left others waiting. I even saw a dad hogging the computer. I saw many disappointed kids there.

TV Program

Lastly, I do wish the put Cartoon Network on. It is a MUST have, especially kids.

Rates

Will I go back there again? Yeah, if they reduce the hotel rate or provide more value for my money!

Cleanliness:

Service:

Facilities:

Overall:

Popularity: 2% [?]
Penang Bridge Marathon
11.20.09 |PP, Penang| Permalink | Comments Off

Penang is having a Penang Bridge Marathon this Saturday 22nd November. The bridge will be closed from 2am – 10am. It is a very big event with 19000 participants running on the bridge. Participants are not just local but from also from other countries. It is truly an International Marathon.

For those participants, it will be the best weight loss diet program for them. I am sure some of them have been training for this event.

Remember those who are coming to Penang or in Penang, take note of the roads closure. Roads that will close are Aziz Ibrahim Road to Gold Coast roundabout, Pulau Jerejak Jetty to Gold Coast roundabout, the road leading to Queensbay mall, the road to Jalan Batu Maung from Bayan Baru roundabout and the junction of Lebuhraya Kampung Jawa leading to Batu Maung.

Popularity: 4% [?]
Penang Sakura
03.15.09 |Penang| Permalink | Comments Off

Ever since this picture had been published in the newspaper, lots of people or photographers came to this street to enjoy the beautiful flowers that blossom. Actually the trees have been blooming beautifully every year. However this year, due to the rainy weather and the right time, it has bloom very beautifully.

Yes, Penang does have a sakura street. Everytime I passed this street, I been asking my the other half to take some pictures. It was like 2 months ago when not many people discover the place. Oh well, due to his busy schedule, it didn’t happen.

For those of you who are interested to know where this is. It is the street from PISA to Pantai Mutiara Hospital called Persiaran Mahsuri. A little word of advice, if you are a photographer, be careful of incoming cars and not too carried away with photo taking. It can be dangerous. There are some silly photographers who stood in the middle of the road to take pictures. It is very dangerous to do that.

Today, I saw a family wearing winter clothing and have their pictures taken. Sorry no snow in Penang yet.

I wished the govt will plant more of these trees and make Penang famous.

Popularity: 3% [?]
Roti Tisu
02.21.09 |Food, Penang| Permalink | Comments Off

I just discovered this in one of the mamak store in Penang called Roti Tisu aka Tissue Bread. It is made from the same dough as Roti Canai but finer. Roti Tisu is crispy with hot margarine and sugar coated on it. It is usually served in a con shape.

Have you seen such a big roti tisu? Oh my children love this! You have to try it if you are at the mamak store. Simply delicious.

Popularity: 3% [?]
Penang Times Square – The Birch Plaza Condo
12.25.08 |Penang, Rental| Permalink | 5 Comments

Penang Times Square will be opening soon! Another shopping mall for Penang to attract more tourists. I hope that there will be more new outlets coming into Penang.

I got a chance to view the Birch Plaza Condo, a condo above the mall. One thing I liked about the condo is that it has lots of facilities like fitness center, swimming pool, children playground, a nice foot reflexology garden, children games area, karaoke, bbq pit, sauna, gym, convenient stores and community hall. The condo will have access directly to the mall.

Location: Dato Keramat, Georgetown. (Town Area)
Type: Condominium
Built-up Area: 1050 sq ft
Total Units: 395
Units per Floor: 22
Developer: Ivory Properties Group
Finishing: Semi-Furnished

If anyone is interested to rent a place there, please leave your email in the comment box.

Popularity: 5% [?]
What Holiday?
08.26.08 |Malaysia, Penang| Permalink | Comments Off

So close, yet so far…

By now, I am sure all of you know it is the Permatang Pauh’s election. Lim Guan Eng said “This is not an ordinary by-election as it is an election to choose the next Prime Minister”. He wanted a full attendance for the election, he declared a public holiday for Penang.

However many companies do not agree with his proposal due to money loss for 1 day of holiday. So it is a working day for me. How sad? Anyway, many companies do give 1 day or 4 hours off for voters of that area to vote.

We should have an election to vote who we want as a PM. That will be so cool. Then it will be power in the hands of the people and not the party. Oh well back to work for me!

Popularity: 3% [?]
Penang Red Bridge
07.05.08 |Penang| Permalink | 2 Comments

I don’t really know what you call this bridge, it is a bridge over the Penang big drain (aka longkang). It was completed a while back but it took years. The purpose is the ease the Penang Bayan Lepas Phase III Free Trade Zone traffic. I guess it did what it was built for.

Getting on it definitely thrill me but only for a short while. What do you expect? It is a very short distance. As I said, it is only to go over the big drain.

That drain is filled with dirty water, at times it is black with lots of garbage flowing on top. I wished the gomen will clean it up. It will be nice to see clear water in that drain.

Popularity: 2% [?]
Branded Durian
05.16.08 |Food, Penang| Permalink | 2 Comments

Durian season is here and it is every where in Penang. Some are cheap and some are branded. My hubby and I went on a hunt for branded durian. We do not know the price of branded durian. We went to this “Durian Cap Kaki”. We asked for a few of the branded and good ones. I believed he said one of it is Ang Heh and 3 other different kinds. One guy, I believe is the boss, wearing gold chain and rings stood there. I guess you can strike rich just by selling durian.

The ah pek (aka uncle) charged us RM30 each. For those durian lovers, is it overpriced? My hubby said that previously he can get 5 for RM20. I believed that the price was expensive because it was branded. Next time I probably will do a market research on where I can get good cheap branded durian.

Night came, invited my FIL and have a durian feast. I love the Ang Heh, it is creamy and sweet. The rest of them were creamy too and fleshy but bitter. The aroma of the durian filled the entire house even before we open the durian. I guess this is the difference between branded and non branded durian.

It was simply satisfying. Next mission to hunt for cheaper ang heh. Tell me what brand of durian is the pic below:

Popularity: 3% [?]
Tao – eGate
04.12.07 |Food, Penang| Permalink | 4 Comments

Our department went on an eating spree again. We had a team building event yesterday. The program was paintball and after that a buffet dinner. I didn’t go for the paintball because the paintball management requests the players to sign a disclaimer. As a mother of 2, I didn’t want to risk that as signing the disclaimer would mean no insurance coverage at all. Yes, I know that paintball is safest game but I just hate signing disclaimers. Pictures @ giddytigers blog.

The best part is not paint ball, it is of coz the FOOD. Tao, funny name for a Japanese fuse with Asian style cuisine, has buffet style, eat all you can. It doesn’t have a buffet table. You order as much as you want and they serve from the menu. You can order endless time as long as you finish all the food. It is RM50 inclusive tax and service charge.

They serve great Japanese food. We ordered so much and I think some guys sat until supper time and were still eating. Imagine we started at 6pm. They have all kinds of Japanese food, you name it, they have it. It is pork free. We had tempura, sashimi, sushi, terayaki, unagi, clams, kimchi and lots more that I cannot remember. Eating in a big group has it advantages because you can order everything and try a little here and there. Drinks are free too. The restaurant is in EGate, near Tesco. If you want to go, do go at 6pm if you do not want to wait a long time.

Look at the pictures and drool…

Popularity: 2% [?]
BBQ + Steamboat
04.09.07 |Food, Penang| Permalink | 4 Comments

Last Saturday evening it was raining cats and dogs which was cooling evening for my family to have bbq with steamboat. I always run out of places to eat in Penang, yeah it is true. If you come here once a while, you probably find more choices. Anyway the bbq was very good. An adult cost RM18. My children were not charged at all. They have marinated fish, chicken, seafood, vegetables, a variety of fish balls, noodles and bean curds. Free flow of barley drink and ice cream for dessert. The place is opposite of ex-Macro, near Pelita nasi kandar store.

They placed the table outside but sheltered, with cooling breeze blowing. The children were fascinated with the bbq plate. However they didn’t eat much, only noodles and fish balls, of coz they wipe the ice-cream bowl clean. After the scrumptious meal, we had to go home and shower, the oily smell really sticks on to our clothes, hair and body.

My 2 favourite dish:

Popularity: 2% [?]
Little Penang Street Market
01.26.07 |Penang, Shopping, Travel| Permalink | 2 Comments

This is NOT a sponsored post.

I got this email from my friend and if you are in Penang, do go and visit little Penang market. It has a lot of local traditional crafts, hand-made stuff, decorations for your home and heritage food. Little Penang promotes Penang’s unique lifestyle & talents. It has a live band to promote local music. It will be interesting for you to come and visit especially for tourist. Little Penang is a non profit organization to promote culture and a platform for local talents in arts, craft, design and music.

This Sunday! 28 January 2007….

Location Map Here

Penang’s trendy arts & crafts bazaar is getting bigger and better!

Programme

10.30 a.m. Kolam presentation by Hindu Sangam

12.00 p.m Teaching workshop on Kolam Drawing

Special Artist: Chinese Caligraphy Spring Couplets for Chinese New Year

Market times 10am-6pm and More than 60 vendors ranging from
Artists ~ Crafts Makers ~ Demonstration Crafts ~ Clothes ~ Scarfs ~ Accessories ~ Jewellery ~ Hand-made Gifts ~ Batik ~ Songket ~ Home décor ~ rattan, Labu Sayong, hand-painted ceramics, mats, tablecloth, lamp shades, flower arrangements, crystals.

KID’S CORNER: Kolam making activity ~ Face Painting ~ Colouring Paper bags ~ Mr. Ee and his aeroplanes! ~ Mr. Wee and his Chinese puzzles!

Info: www.lestariheritage.net/littlepenang

Have Fun!

Popularity: 2% [?]
New Pair of Eyes
01.12.07 |Penang, Service, Shopping| Permalink | 8 Comments

Look at my new glasses, not sponsored by PPP but by my other rice pot company, one of the yearly benefits. My son broke my glasses after I told him not to go near it. He stepped on it. It was partly my fault too by putting it there.

By the way, what do you think of the optician shop out there? Do you think that they charge a fairly exorbitant rate for glasses? Last time I went to this shop, their frame price is always 40-60% above the cost price. The sales person took out the calculator and punched a 40% discount to make you feel good. Or at least he tried to psycho you with a big discount and you will be crazy to reduce it further.

Another shop which my MIL just got her glasses from. She was told that the frame is only RM1. What’s the catch? The lens cost a BOMB.

I know this reliable shop called Intan in Level 1 BJ Complex Penang, the owner gave me a very good price for the above glasses. I didn’t even negotiate with her because she gave me a very good price. It was about 40% less than the broken pair and the new pair is branded too. If any of you is using Biomedics55 contact lens, she is the sole distributor for it. It is really dirt cheap.

Popularity: 2% [?]
Jusco Penang
12.15.06 |Food, Penang, Shopping, Sushi| Permalink | 12 Comments

Why do I love to go Jaya Jusco? One and only one reason that is I can get cheap and tasty sushi. Every Jusco store has a sushi counter. All kinds of sushi or hand roll can be found like nigrizushi, gunkan and norimaki. Yummy. Most of them cost less than RM2 per piece.

Why do my children love to go there? They have a smaller version of kidzsport, an internal playground with fun activities. It cost RM2 per 20 minutes per child. They also have arcade types of ride. I don’t recommend that you take any of those rides, as it will burn a hole in your pocket. RM1 for 1-minute ride.

If you want to avoid traffic to Queensbay mall, go before 10am or 3-4pm or weekdays except Friday. At 3-4pm, the crowd will leave and of cause new crowd will come at 5pm for dinner. It is not as bad as Mid Valley jam though.

Popularity: 3% [?]
Florist II
07.13.06 |Penang, Service| Permalink | 8 Comments

Continuing my story from yesterday, about the extremely unsatisfactory florist. As most of you commented, it will be offensive to tell my kind friend about it. On the other hand, I was very grateful what she has done. I send a thank you message to her, expressing my gratitude. Knowing her, she asked me how was the gift. Oh oh. In the end, I told her about it, in a tactful manner. She said she wants to look at it, so I took a picture and send it to her.

What I got: What was ordered:

She was furious, not with me but with the florist. She called the florist and I suppose bombarded her. They were in shocked when they saw the picture too. They apologized and will resend another bouquet to me. Weird, they should send an apology bouquet to my friend too. They have to send it to my office as I already started work. The bouquet came, a very small one. Peculiarly, it was send to an admin, usually bouquet are received by the receptionist. The admin called me to pass it to me. Casually I asked, why did it land on your desk? You know what she told me? The florist shop belongs to her manager’s (Senior Manager’s position) wife. Oh oh. What a small world?

I blog this NOT because I want to offend my friend or put her in an awkward position. I really thank her for the special gift and the thoughtfulness of her. This blog is to let you know that when you order anything from the Internet, you really have to be careful, especially from people you do not know. There is a case where this guy bought a second hand notebook and when he got it, it was already broken.

As for florist, usually they will use affiliate florist if it is from another state. The affiliate florist will not have a clue or picture what the customer order. It is merely base on descriptions.

p/s The chicken essences are at the bottom of the basket but a different brand. Not sure whether it tastes good, I let you know when I tasted it.

Tracy’s side of the story.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Penang Durian

06.30.06 |Food, Information, Penang, Travel| Permalink | 8 Comments

I received this through email. Drool over it. :drool: I will make my way there to locate them. Yum Yum. :good:

Source: AsiaExplorers

Durians of Balik Pulau

In Penang, Malaysia, the best place to get good durians is in the town of Balik Pulau, on the southwest corner of Penang Island. Balik Pulau is a 30 minute drive over the main range and has a lot of durian orchards.

The following is a selection of branded durians which I photographed during the 2004 and 2006 AsiaExplorers Durian Feasts.

D11

“Number Eleven” is a very popular durian in the 70’s. It has creamy yellow flesh with a pleasant taste and a subtle smell.

D604

The D604 was first cultivated by the late Mr. Teh Hew Hong of Sungai Pinang, Balik Pulau. The flesh is quite sweet, and has some “body” to it as the seed is small.

D600

This durian originates in Sungai Pinang in Balik Pulau. The flesh has a bittersweet taste to it, with a touch of sourness. The one that I documented is a bit hard.

D700

The flesh is darker than D600, like chrome yellow. Also slightly hard. Crispy, but the smell is not very strong.

Ang Sim (Red Heart)

Ang Sim is a durian with flesh which is quite soft and very sweet, and dark yellow in colour. It also has a nice aroma.

Khun Poh

This durian takes the name of the late Mr Lau Khun Poh, who first budded it. Khun Poh has beautiful orangy flesh with a slightly bitter-sweet taste and a heavy aroma.

Hor Loh (Water Gourd Durian)

The flesh of the Hor Loh is very soft, dry and quite bitter. It has a sharp smell to it. Hor Loh was first cultivated at the Brown orchard of Sungai Ara. It got its name from its appearance resembling a “Hor Lor” pumpkin. If the durian hits the ground hard when it falls, the flesh tends to be bitter thereafter.

Ang Heh (Red Prawn Durian)

Ang Heh originates from Pondok Upeh, Balik Pulau, and has a round-shaped husk. The orange reddish flesh is highly aromatic, very soft with a bitter-sweet taste.

Xiao Hung (Little Red Durian)

Xiao Hung, whose name means “Little Red One,” originates in Sungai Pinang, Balik Pulau. The flesh has a bittersweet taste to it, with a touch of sourness. The one that I tasted for this write-up is a bit hard. There are only one or two seeds per section, but the flesh is thick.

Yah Kang (Centipede Durian)

Yah Kang is one of my favourite durians. Although its flesh is whitish, the taste is superb, milky, like very sweet, melting chocolate. The name “yah kang” means centipede, and accounts for the number of centipedes found at the foot of the tree, hence giving it the rather unusual name.

Bak Eu (Pork Fat Durian)

Bak Eu has a slightly acidic aroma. The flesh is whitish while the taste is quite bitter but nice.

The following are some of the durians I tried the first time at Peng Siew Durian orchard in Titi Serong, Balik Pulau, on the AsiaExplorers Durian Feast, 17 June, 2006.

D17

D17 is dark cream flesh. The taste is slightly dry but sweet. It is a tasty durian.

Coupling

This durian is gets its unusual name because it looks like two durians joined together, one big and one small. When split open, you almost thought the two halves belong to two different durians. Coupling has whitish flesh which is slightly dry but tastes good.

Ooi Kyau (Tumeric Durian)

The name Ooi Kyau (tumeric) describes the colour of the bright yellow flesh of this durian. It is very sweet and tasty.

Chaer Phoy (Green Skin Durian)

Chaer Phoy is shaped like a small canteloupe. The skin is bright green, giving it the name which means “green skin”. Chaer Phoy has creamy white flesh which is a bit dry, not too sweet but tasty.

Ang Jin (Red Yoke Durian)

As the name suggests, Ang Jin Durian has deep orange flesh. It is very sweet and tasty.

Lin Fong Jiau

This durian is named after Lin Fong Jiau, aka Mrs Jackie Chan. I wonder whether it is indicative of the relationship of the celebrity couple, for Lin Fong Jiau is a bittersweet durian, for too bitter for my liking. The flesh is whitish and wet.

Popularity: 3% [?]

Penang Tropical Fruit Farm
06.09.06 |Food, Information, Penang, Travel| Permalink | 8 Comments

My department arranged for a Fruity Friday as a team-building event. We went to Penang Tropical Fruit Farm. There is not much to see, only if you are interested in looking at fruit tree. I learn a lot about different types of fruit trees. There is a particular plant that the guide explains it can improve fertility and it is called “dukung anak”. You can use it to make tea and drink. It is a common plant that can be found everywhere. The seeds of the plant are beneath the leaves. Very interesting. Half the time the guide tells us that this plant can cure this and that. Not sure how true.

Fertility Plant/Dukung Anak

Anyhow, this place has plenty of fruits to eat. We went at the wrong time. July to August is the best season where there are lots of different fruits. We had banana, jambu, guava, jackfruit, local durian, pineapple, watermelon, papaya, dragon fruit, mango and honey dew. They also serve refreshing fruit juice. If that is not enough, you can also opt to try out their BBQ lamb, beef, fish, chicken, squid and satay. There are healthy salads too. I really enjoyed the healthy lunch to cleanse my system.

The fees, the BBQ lunch is RM28 & dinner is RM38. If you just want the fruits package, it is RM25. You need to call in to make a booking. More information here: http://www.tropicalfruits.com.my/packages.html .

Enjoy the fruity pics:

The BBQ Lunch

Yellow Mangosteen Tree

Dragon Fruit Tree – It is actually a type of cactus.

The red pineapple for deco.

The View.

More Fruits:

Popularity: 3% [?]