Hello Singapore! Long time no see...

singapore 15 - 17 january 2009

i have only been to singapore for 3 times.

the first was a graduation trip in my 6th grade in primary school, year 1987. i hardly hold any memory about it, what i remember is i took a lot of ridiculous pictures with my schoolmates in the hotel room. we dressed up like the hong kong superstar in that era - anita mui. anyone who's familiar with hong kong 80's music scene, could have imagined how ridiculous a bunch of 12-yr old would look like when mimicking anita mui.

year 1999, i went to singapore for my company annual dinner because the head office was set up there. it was a very rushy trip. we took the night train right after finishing work in the office, and arrived next morning around 8am. i remember my breakfast was 'nasi lemak', with a dry piece of salted fish and few sticks of french fries (hmm...). and again, i didn't collect much memory from this trip as well. every time i recall this trip, i can only remember that 'nasi lemak' with french fries. and i saw a gigantic woman fell down in front of me in china town, from the moment she fell and stood up, it took about 5 mins.

so when i decided to visit singapore for the 3rd time, i have no idea how to roam around in this city as it was the most spontaneous act i ever done for traveling, it only took me 10 minutes from making decision to buying flight tickets. i only contacted a friend there and arranged where to stay, that's all.

holding the instructions my friend gave me, i stood in front of the mrt ticket machine in changi airport for minutes, my mind went blank. it's not that everything is unfriendly there, i just got nervous the moment i stepped into this city. everything is so systematic, so clean, so organized. the blocks of flats are like lego, very neat. even the traffic jam on the road looks like a car park because all cars line up almost symmetrically. i feel that if i make any mistake there would be an alarm bell ringing and policemen would arrest me from 4 corners.

singaporeans are all disciplined. they just follow the rules government sets. i have no reason to say that is not good. from this short stay i see no vandalism, people willing to walk minutes away to smoke in the designated area, people don't jaywalk, cars REALLY STOP in front of zebra crossing, no littering especially no one will just trash the cigarette buds on the floor...etc. Malaysian like me will take some time to get used to it, but it's not a bad thing to adapt to.

i didn't went to many tourist spots but thanks to my dear friend for showing me around the city. i walked a lot. i believe you'll see more when you are willing to walk, because of the pace, your sight naturally lands on more things. we talked a lot. paused a lot. laughed a lot. ate a lot. and i don't mind to get nervous in this city again.

singapore in my eyes..

clarke quay

merlion

chijmes at night

one fine evening

heritage

good mission

mr. raffles

new found friend

phenomenal

futuristic

waiting to go home

Wet Bali • Dec 2007

Up to the volcano, nearly. Deep into the sea, barely.

Sun shines n rains in Bali, left 2007 in memory.

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bali in december

after a blasting new year eve in phuket, we thought bali wil be another good spot for countdown n welcoming 2008. well, the trip was good, our long bike journey, the food, the places, the culture, the art, n the home stuffs we bought...etc, all good except, the countdown night. bali is hot n humid, but rainy in december, according to the locals, there was a 3day-3night non-stop downpour before the day we arrived. occasionally showered by rain during our 6-day visit there, we experienced a wet n dirty holiday.

balisani padma, an old boutique hotel we stayed in bali.

like any other places we went, we tend to be a local there by renting a bike n make all access between back lanes of local homes tht linked to many places. we were proud to even reached tanah lot with tht small bike, result was we both hav swollen buttocks for the rest of our stay there.

we reached tanah lot in the noon, no sunset, just scorching sun.

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see see look look, n get conned like every tourist experiences

the kintamani volcano.

the only day we spent as a typical tourist was the day we rented a cab, n travel to several places like: kintamani volcano, brief stop at ubud town, sunset at uluwatu, visit the bali coffee plantation n factory, where i was carried away by the selections of coco/coffee/vanilla productss (n oni realised i bought them at ridiculously expensive price there), lastly the seafood at jimbaran. i think it's a must to see places like this in bali. it's not the destination tht matters but the journey, i know it sounds cliche but the fact is, we had the good (ed calls it the best in the word) nasi ayam at ibu mangku, ubud; bought the cheapest bamboo-made wind chimes (probably the cheapest in our whole life) while on the way to kintamani volcano; see many talented artists n art pieces during the brief stop in ubud town; padi field tht jus rushed into our sight endlessly... all these, are not planned in the itinerary but came as a bonus package.

the special chicken rice at ibu mangku restarurant - ubud.

the coffee plantation n factory.

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awaiting for the countdown

hanging out at discovery mall, overlooking the beach.

31st dec 2007. it was a hot day, we parked our bike at kuta square n walked to discovery mall. few roads around kuta area would be closed for the celebration n we didnt want to be stuck in jam, so we planned to spent the whole day there til the countdown. the sun was so hot we had to hide in the shopping mall, til evening we hanged out at the cafe (at discovery mall) by the beach. to be honest it was quite boring, as we both tired from all the driving n walking in d previous 5 days, i guess all we wanted at the moment was a nice new year dinner n a blast of firework, jus like wat we had in phuket...

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good food, good Atmosphere

we never get disappointed with foods in bali, from the roadside stalls to the classy restaurant - Atmosphere, our stomachs got served with loads of good food there. our new year eve dinner was satisfying, tht night could be a perfect end for 2007 but unfortunately it ended with quite a disastrous rainstorm.

nice dinner, very nice.

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last night in bali

firework is sensitive for bali, thanks to the previous bombing experiences so big firework presentation turn out to be a big no-no there. to hype up the celebrations or any big events, the local merchants use some colorful n shiny paper, make into this paper horn. almost every local was blowing it tht night. it really driving me crazy.

can u spot me in d pics?

we wandered at kuta beach expecting the firework finale, but oni saw few small ones. til we got tired n sat by the beach. suddenly someone rang the alarm from far, people started running, first thing came into my mind was - tsunami. the wind was strong, the fear rushed all over my body, ed grabbed my hand n ran to d nearby hotel lobby. soon the lobby was packed by hundreds of people. then, it wasn't tsuname, but a heavy downpour the washed away everyone's new year mood. we were stranded there for about 30 mins, with noise, wet floor, sardine pack people, suddenly we heard a cheer "10, 9, 8, 7, 6... happy new year!" yeah, happy new year. we walked on the flooded street, back to kuta square to get our bike. by the time we were back to the hotel, it was 1 Jan 2008 2am something, we were all wet n smell like salted fish.

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new day, new year

i didn't bother to wake up for the last breakfast. it must be the rain last night, i felt dizzy n sick. my head was cracking. our flight was at 8pm, we had too much time to kill, with not much money left. ed caught the flu by the time we reached airport, he got headache, runny nose n fever. feeling extremely bored in d airport, with a sick n quiet partner who couldn't entertain me much, i walked up n down to see every shops, i couldn't wait to go back to see malaysia in 2008...

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others...

'extra' ingredient in our breakfast.

the beach after 3day-3night downpour (which happened before we arrived)

ducks at tanah lot.

2006 was saddam hussein, 2007 was her...

the holy (more like horny..i think) monkeys in uluwatu.

stone sculpture in kerobokan, the 'dog' looks so real!

peddlers along the street at kintamani area.

watu, our driver & tour guide.

the cliff at uluwatu.

one day, i'll be a vegetarian.

dawn n dusk. it's actually same place same time, jus different camera mode.


guard dog at where we bought the cheapest wind chimes.


my 'signature' panoramic view - tanah lot


peanut club - one of d pubs where harley bikers hang out.

in bali, even the hotel room key is a piece of art.

For You

50th to Malaysia, 1st to us. Happy Anniversary.
Cameron Highland - August 2007

i find there's nothing much to write about this cameron highland trip, it's jus a quiet breakaway wasn't it? we spent most of our time at the tea plantations, admiring the lush of greens around us. i guess our biggest achievement was we made it to the top of gunung brinchang - one of the peak which tags along titiwangsa range, n the road leads up there is the highest road in peninsular.

wat adds it to be a memorable one - we spent our 1st anniversary there. 12 months with ups n downs between us, i hope we have more years to celebrate being together. n wat a coincidence was, we had fireworks right in front of us, in front of the balcony. good.

wat we took upthere

view of BOH tea plantation, taken from the balcony of the cafe.


the cafe & exhibition hall at the BOH tea plantation


roadside vege stalls, brinchang.


...


busy bee.


cabbages growing wild everywhere in brinchang.


a 'self-plucking' strawberry experience.

FO..O..O....O...OD Orgasm! May 2007

the only thing still linger in my memory from the trips in the month of may is the FOOD. it resulted in almost 4kg extra spread on my lower abs, inner thigh, n causing my biceps & triceps lose their shapes n finally messed together forming into a lump of flappy meat... except these unwanted (but expected) outcome, it's a happy holiday after all.

• Penang •

i wasn't very keen to go penang, i jus wanna get out of town n since the other one mention the place, i said: ok. the journey that full of food started way before we even reached penang.

we had breakfast at the rest & relax (r&r) stopover, plenty of fruits picked up at another r&r stopover, then the famous chicken chop for lunch in taiping at yut-sun, a hainanese restaurant. our stomachs was already fully loaded but it seems to be a must-try so we stuffed it in. it worths all the risk to be obese. the chicken chop, which looks humble, indeed a dish to crave for.

before, after. the yut sun restaurant at taiping.

the weather in penang was cloudy n at times there was heavy downpour. we stayed at batu ferringhi for it's nearby the beach. we looked out for a seafood dinner on our first night, we ended up with a restaurant that the food quality didn't impress us much.

so much drama goin on in penang sky.

the next morning we headed to town for penang nasi kandar. everyone knows kayu restaurant which claims to be the original nasi kandar in penang, but i wonder how many people know the one that really rock is line clear (name of the stall).

i wonder y they name the stall 'line clear'? with so much good food offered, the line will never be cleared.

humbly set its business in a narrow alley, with tables and chairs arranged in a practical format that seats around 100 people, line clear offers dishes with original taste of nasi kandar. u gotta trust the old man who handle your plate of food, when u see him scoping different kind of gravy (curry sauce) on the rice, don be skeptical, that makes the whole plate of nasi kandar tastes extra good with rich taste of herbs, meat, seafood and with slightly sour from the tamarine juice normally used in fish curry, it arouse you appetite instantly (i actually hav to pause n swallow back my sliva when i wrote this...)

business is good.

another thing that makes line clear so happening is all the dishes are steaming hot. the moment u step into the stall, the heat jus wrap all over you. i got excited when facing so many choices of smelling good food, i jus picked n picked till my plate was formed into a small hill. believe me, it was food orgasm.

the verdict.

we travelled up to teluk bahang on our second night in penang. it was jus a drive around and sight seeing kind of stuff so it wasnt intentionally to hav our dinner at the tai tong chinese restaurant nearby, but it turned out to be another food orgasm.

the boss mr. niam is a simple minded and honest man, his restaurant serves only the freshest ingredients and the must try is the asam curry prawn. this dish is full of the flavor of penang, the curry mixed with tamarine juice and also the ingredients of penang asam laksa like ginger torch, daun kessom, lemon grass and garnished with mint leaves when served. for 6 pieces of king prawn, each curled up like the size of my fist, this claypot asam curry prawn only cost rm23.00. we "drank" all the gravy till the last drop, till now, it's still my unforgettable dish so far...

we headed back to hotel with stomachs look like 5 months pregnant.

dinnet at tai tong seafood restaurant. dried chilli crabs. the bloody big prawn. the amount of paper napkins
i used for the crabs.

the next morning we went searching for another nasi kandar again. we tried another restaurant, though the stomachs are filled but seriously, nothing can compare to line clear. we left penang around 2pm, had the chicken chop at taiping (again) around 4pm, packed some deep fried snacks to munch on the road and guess what? we had nasi kandar for dinner when we reach kuala lumpur (it's actually quite sickening the way we are so addictive to it).

kuala lumpur was like a huge oven the few days we came back from penang. one morning we woke up and decided to run away from the heat, we went genting.

• Genting •

there's nothing better than having a steamboat under the cold weather. it has almost becoming a ritual whenever i go to hill vacation, steamboat is a must. the ingredients are fresh and soup was fine... if i would pick a flaw to our steamboat in genting, it would be the price. expensive!

besides that we had a steamed talapia with asam paste at rm2.30. it was the restaurant promotion and only limited to one order per table. tht's probably the cheapest fish i hav had in a restaurant for my entire life.

jus another before and after scene.

we came back home after just one night stay there. we looked at our stomach and signed...

• Melaka •

before we digested the food stored in our stomachs from the last 2 trips, we headed to the historical town, melaka.

for foreigners it's about the a famosa, hang lipo's well or the st. francis xavier's church...etc, but for us, it's the hainanese chicken rice balls, chendols , baba nyonya kuih n seafood... it's the melaka FOOD!

the hainanese chicken rice balls is the food u cant miss when u visit melaka. the rice is cook with margarine (some restaurants use chicken fat for more authentic taste), ginger, pandan leave, shallots...etc, it's cooked with more water than the usual chicken rice so it's sticky n then rolled into small bite size rice balls. it's convenient to eat. i guess maybe of its shape the fragrance of the rice is much concentrated, it's solid but tender in texture n the rich taste spread inside the mouth when u chew. of cos the chicken oso plays an important role here, the good one has to be steamed chicken, not boiled, so the original taste of chicken is not lost to the soup but reserved back to the chicken itself. we tasted the chicken rice in 2 famous restaurants during our 2 days stay here, both located at jonker's street, hoe kee n chung hwa r packed with customers, waiting to be seated really challenge my weakness - patience. (i used the links from other bloggers tht i don know, i hope they don mind, many thanks for their wonderful write-up n pics)

again another before and after scene, n this is not the last one....

we strolled along jonker's street n stopped at a small but busy restaurant for dessert. the durian chendol n the mango ice kacang is so good especially under the extremely hot weather in melaka. am sure other options of dessert taste very good too n we wil definately come back for more whenever we r here again. besides desserts there r many local delights like asam laksa, curry noodle, rojak...etc to choose from the menu.

we escaped the hot sun n rested at hotel before we went to portuguese square for the famous seafood. the moment we got down from car, few stall owners greeted us and tried to take us to their restaurants. we looked around n decided to trust the crowd, so we went for the most crowded restaurant. our decision was correct cos even a simple dish like belacan kangkung taste specially good here, the price? unbelievably reasonable! it's highly recommended for anyone who fancies seafood, n it's the first restaurant by the sea on the left hand side (i forgot to take the pic, sorry).

ok, this is the last one, i promise.


Gallery
the trees at taiping lake probably older than my late grandfather.


the beach in front of lone pine hotel, the first hotel established at batu feringghi in 1948.


hurricane katrina came to penang?

dramatic weather in penang.


the long zig-zag jeti at teluk bahang.


market in town center penang.


corner of the garden at han jiang association, also a temple with
great architectural design n full of ancient chinese culture.


taken from the pagoda in genting, cant remember which floor.


nap time.