Friends who made it complete.

I was bored and figured that I needed to spend my time with some activities. So I asked my friends for a trip to Penang and because they're oh so obliging, we went for our trip to Penang last weekend.

On the first day, after checking in into the hotel, we went to Batu Feringhi for some Baywatch-esque activity, minus the slow mo actions.


A bad imitation of Titanic.


On the next day, we went for a sightseeing around the town of Georgetown, including the Masjid Melayu Lebuh Acheh Pulau Pinang,




and also Masjid Kapitan Keling.

We also went to the Toy Museum, Gurney Drive, Gurney Plaza, Fort Cornwallis and Queensbay Mall.


From left : Ijan - the most clueless guy during the trip, Haris - the newbie of the trip, guard at the Fort Cornwallis, Taufiq - the driver who likes to SMS while driving, Husin - the Kedah lad who was as clueless about Penang as we were, and last but not least, yours truly who booked the hotel and managed the financial stuffs.

Being unemployed, for the time being, is tiring. But to have friends who will jump and say yes the moment you ask them to join a vacation trip, really makes it all worthwhile.

Kuching escapade.

I got a call from my dad last week.

" Do you want to go to Kuching?"

The last time I was on a plane with my family was when I was still in primary school. Considering that I like to travel, I did not hesitate to say yes.

So here are the snapshots from the so-called holiday there.

We stayed at Grand Margherita Hotel which is quite nice, facing the river with a nice view.


For the food, I only got to taste the breakfast buffet. Other than that, I bought the foods outside of the hotel.



Notice the halal trademark there. Maybe they should have stated that the food is halal but the wine is not. It's rather confusing to some. Halal wine anyone? Horrendous.

In front of the hotel, you can see there's a cats statue, as a symbol of the city.



Outside of the hotel, they have set up many booths offering so many varieties of food.



I got to taste Laksa Sarawak though I prefer the normal laksa. Maybe that's because my taste.



Not only that, I got to eat grilled stingray which tastes really fresh and the price is so cheap, compared to the shops here in Semenanjung. The one you're looking here only costs RM16. If you found any cheaper than that, please tell me.hehe.




When you are in Sarawak, you must taste kolok mee, a specialty food in Sarawak. It's almost the same like fried mee or Maggi mee, but better. Trust me.



The booths setup there are in conjunction with the Sarawak Regatta 2009. I never got to experience watching it live so I consider myself lucky to be at the right place at the right time.





It was Friday so we went to a mosque in the centre of Kuching. It's quite cheerful, with the pink paint. We accidentally met with my dad's MCKK schoolmate. His friend is the Imam at the mosque and my dad recognized him by his voice as he was the one giving the sermon for that day's Friday's prayer. This Imam is someone who has a very good skill in language. He can speak standard BM, Kelantan dialect, Sarawak dialect, Arabic and fluent English. I know someone who can speak good English when I see one. The next day, he brought us to Serikin, Bau. There you can buy many stuffs that are imported from Kalimantan and the price is quite nice too. But be sure you know how to bargain. But if you have the money to go to Bandung or Jakarta to buy stuffs, I guess that's a better option. I didn't buy anything except some belinjau crackers.



Here are something for the ladies.



The baju kebaya here is quite cheap too, the price is almost the same if you buy from Pasar Baru Bandung. The price for this piece right here is around RM50-60. Maybe you can get better price by bargaining.



After all the walking under the hot scorching sun, what better to buy than a cold drink, especially one made by a good looking girl.Hehe.



Then we went to Satok market, which has the famous ikan terubuk masin.





You can also ask them to wrap the fish so that they can be put into the cargo area thus eliminating the need to bring the fish into the cabin area.

Like this.



Not only that, you should have a look at the new DUN Sarawak building which is located near the waterfront. It's so huge and I'm sure the inside interior is even better.



All in all, it was quite an experience. But being in the middle of the town, I couldnt really experience the true local culture there. Maybe if I ever go to Sarawak again, I should go to Bako National Park or the Bario Highlands there. That would be wonderful.



"Sarawak nang best gilak!"

The brothers I never had.

Ever since my 1st year at the university, my friends and I have been gone to many trips around Malaysia. It is like an annual programme for us. For this year, we went to Kemaman, Terengganu. One of our classmates, Healmie aka Burn lives there so we stayed at his house for 3 nights which really saves alot of money than staying at a hotel.Hehe.

Day One.

We went around Kemaman and ate like mad. First we went to Hutan Rekreasi Paya Bakau, watched the mangrove trees there. Then, we went to Pantai Kemasik and watched the scenery there. The place has many big rocks that you can climb and watch the sea with a spectacular view.




After that, we went to the stalls there and ate keropok lekor with coconut water while facing the beach. Also, lemang and serunding that we bought on our way there. Then, we went to Burn's fruit orchard and ate durians that just fell the night before.



Right after that, we went to a stall nearby and ate sata. Sata, for those who dont know, is made of fish paste and grilled on hot fire. If I'm not mistaken it originates from Terengganu.



Then we went to Pantai Mak Nik or as my friend said, Monica Bay. The scene is just like any other beach. But what impressed me the most was the toilet. The toilet is super clean. It is one of the cleanest toilet that I have ever been to and it doesnt cost a bomb like at KLCC. Maybe all toilets in Kemaman are as clean as that, I assume.

During the night, we went to watch fireflies at Sungai Yakyah. That was my first time watching fireflies though I studied near Kuala Selangor which has the Kg. Kuantan fireflies. The fireflies are abundant and some of them even came to me and I got to watch them on my hands. Like the advertisement on the tv, isnt it?Hehe. Then, we got a call that a turtle just landed at Pantai Mak Nik to lay its eggs. So we went there and watched the turtle laying its eggs. There were many tourists too but we were told by the ranger not to take any picture while it was laying its eggs. So no picture to show here. But it was a very unique experience indeed.

Day two.

Day two is the day that was spent entirely at Kuala Terengganu. Before we went to K.T., we went to Hai Peng kopitiam which has the best coffee in Kemaman and some say Malaysia.



For me, the coffee has something unique that you cant simply get at other high end coffee shop like Starbucks and Coffee Bean. You have to try it and you wont be able to forget the taste.



Then, we went to Taman Tamadun Islam which has the Crystal Mosque.



The place also has miniature mosques from all over the world. There are so many mosques there that we had to rent a bike and took two hours to complete the tour there.

I look like Godzilla, right?Hehe.







Then we went to meet Ikin who lives at K.T. The food at Ikin's house is delicious though she didnt cook the mihun goreng tomyam that we diligently ate.Hehe. After that we went to Masjid Terapung, one of the attraction at Kuala Terengganu.



Going for a trip with my friends is indeed an enjoyable experience. We didnt go to Paris, London or New York yet we still had our share of fun. Maybe it was because of the place, maybe it was because of going there with the guys. I was watching Nur Kasih the other day and the two brothers in the drama are playing football together. Suddenly, it strucked me. How does it feel like to have a brother? To play around with a brother and grow up with him. It is not that I dont love my sisters, I do. Maybe I just want to know how it feels like to have a brother. I thank God that I have my friends here who are like my brothers, that at least I can have a bond of brothers between us.

And I never stop thanking God for the brothers that I never had.




From left: Me, Boo, Burn, Ijan.

Tanjung Tuan Tranquility

I'm not working right now.And that's a good thing.After 4 tiring years,I should at least get some rest, shouldnt I? So off I went to Port Dickson with my parents as my dad had some course going on there and I just followed them to kill my time ( and because of bored staying at home). We stayed at PNB Ilham Resort which is quite ok la. The price rate for the room is not bad too. When I arrived there, I realized that next to the resort is the Tanjung Tuan Sanctuary where the famous Tanjung Tuan lighthouse is located. What a coincidence, I thought, as I brought my tripod along for that trip.

So the next morning I went up to the hill to get to the lighthouse.

Before you climb the hill, you have to register at the entrance should anything happen and they need to trace you.



Then, the trail. It is quite steep at the beginning but it got better when you are almost at the top. It can be quite tiring, so bring proper shoes before hiking, dont use slippers like I did.huhu



On the way up, you will see a signboard stating that the place is a migrating place for raptors. If you really like birds and want to watch the raptors, head there in March.



When you almost got to the top, dont even think that your climbing has ended. There are stairs there you would still have to climb to get to the lighthouse.



Then, the lighthouse. It's quite big and modern, unlike the one that was built five centuries ago. But visitors are not allowed to go into the lighthouse for security reasons.



Though it was tiring, the view from the top of the hill overlooking the sea is really breath taking. Looking at the endless sea is so amazing.




Staying at the resort : RM300 (though it was paid for by the government)

Toll and gas: RM50 (though it wasnt me who paid)

Drinking water: RM2 (though it was a complimentary drink at the room)

Getting to the top of the hill, drenched in my own sweat and looking at the spectacular view: Priceless.