Monday, November 22, 2010
Ipod Touch
Friday, November 19, 2010
Day 1 in Penang on 6 Nov 2010 (Mixed meat at Chulia Street)
First, courtesy of my CEB wanting to put the results of his research to good use, we took a bus (no, I am not kidding) from the airport to Komtar which took us about 45mins (no traffic jams). The bus was packed and we had to stand most of the way. With our luggage. Now if that was not bad enough, my CEB insisted that we take the free public bus (yet another "gem" he had unearthed in his research) from Komtar to the hotel. Instead of a taxi which would have cost less than RM10 based on the map that we had. Because I had (most regrettably) entrusted the entire Penang leg of our trip to him, I had no choice but to keep reminding myself of that fact and hold my tongue. So, we waited half hour (standing of cos) at Komtar for the public bus which was of course packed with those who could not afford private or paid transport. And the public bus dropped us a distance from our hotel which we had difficulties locating...because, I guess my CEB forgot to Google Earth that bit. Ended up relying on directions from kind hearted strangers (some of which were wrong) and having to drag our luggage in the blazing (man, was it blazing!) sun trying to find the hotel.
And when we finally did, we could not check in because they told us the room was not ready at 1pm. So we left our bags with them and went for lunch at this place they recommended as one of the places to eat at Chulia Street - just two shops down from Yeng Keng Hotel on its left (left if one is walking out from the hotel).
And indeed the coffeeshop was very packed with meat-loving tourists and locals (more locals than tourists). Although the food did take some time to arrive (the people standing around are waiting to get theirs packed), when it finally did, I was all of "Huh? Why would anyone queue much less wait for so long for this?" The Slog Reviews: 7/10. The dish of mixed meat was not oily despite its high fat content. The roasted meat was also tender and fresh but nothing quite exceptional to justify the long queues. Also, the portion which we had ordered (For 2 of us) was really just enough to fill one person's empty belly and we were served soup which we had not ordered either. The damage was minimal - less than RM20 for the 2 of us but I would not recommend going to this place with an empty stomach or if one has limited time in Penang.
Day 3 in Langkawi on 5th Nov 2010 (Champor Champor at Pantai Cenang)
My CEB had the beef rendang while I ordered lamb stew with rice. My CEB said that the beef was slightly overcooked and hard but I had no problems with my lamb stew or the pieces of beef he shared with me for that matter. Presentation of both dishes was decent enough with the rice serving being uniquely cyclical-shaped but what really sold me was the ambiance - the rugs, the tables set-up and flags draped across the ceiling lent the entire restaurant both a cozy and oriental atmosphere that I've not seen before. There is also a bar corner at another section of the restaurant where one can grab a beer to chill out and have a gab fest with the friendly bartender.
The opening hours of Champor Champor are 19:00 – 01:00 but if you wish to be sure before going down, you could always call this number first 604 955 1449.
Day 3 in Langkawi on 5 Nov 2010 (Power Laksa)
BUT...just after I had engaged gear and had reversed slightly to drive off, my CEB turned to me and said, somewhat wistfully "It can't be that bad if that many locals are eating there - let's try the laksa". Given that it was about 4pm and we hadn't had lunch, against my better judgment and a slave to my hunger pangs, I re-parked the car and we hurried over to an empty table. We each ordered one bowl of the Power Laksa as recommended by the friendly uncle (Encik) at the store. Although from the pic below it doesn't look like very much, the Slog Reviews: 9/10. Power indeed -1 of the most deliciously sour laksas that we've ever had! The soup/gravy seems to have a bit of canned sardines blended in. My CEB, as with most guys, typically eat the noodles and leave the soup/gravy of most noodle dishes untouched but with the power laksa, he drank up every last bit of gravy too...and, ordered another bowl which he proceeded to demolish in like fashion!
I alone ordered chendol dessert and I have to confess that it was such a milky delicious thirst-quencher that I had two bowls of the same. Instead of ground ice, there were big longish cubes of ice, and the ingredients were a curious mix of sweet corn and sweet raisins. Nothing like the chendol sold in Singapore. The Slog Reviews: 8/10. At RM2 per bowl, well worth a try for those with a sweet tooth but do mix the sugar in well and take out the big ice cubes before slurping down this unique concoction.
After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick
A friend of mine who had met my CEB told me to go hang out with my CEB because that "Bag of Nonsense" would make me laugh again. And indeed, despite my best efforts to bemoan my current situation, my CEB cheered me up considerably in no time at all, enough for me to burst out laughing even. We also went to Kong Kong Taison Seafood Restoran and needless to say, the RMB164 meal revived my spirits. Nothing to put a person in a better mood than food! We had 2 large crabs (more than 1 kg each) cooked in 2 different styles
Chilli sauce:
Black pepper:
So when I read the book After Ever After a few nights ago , a book which was obviously meant for a different target audience (teens), one part of the book stuck with me. Ok, context first - the book is told through the eys of a young teen who is a cancer survivor (Jeff). Jeff has a best friend at school who isnt past the 5 year mark for cancer (Tad). When Tad has a relapse (and yes, he eventually dies), Jeff beats himself up for it and his school's guidance teacher asks him for his application form. Jeff is suitably puzzled (as was I). The teacher explains that the application form is the one he filled up to get cancer. Obviously there isn't such a form. The teacher then explains to Jeff that one doesn't always get to choose the cards one is dealt with by a higher power - one just has to play one's cards as best as one can, even if one is dealt a lousy hand. (As my friend, The Slug (not The Slog, mind!) would say "Go down fighting always rather than roll over and show your belly").
So this timely reminder that life is indeed a series of accidents and choices (both of which can be either good or bad), together with my CEB and my beloved boss's advice/plan, has set me right back up on my feet again instead of scrabbling at rock bottom. :)
I am The Slog, hear me roar...:D
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Day 3 at Langkawi on 5 November 2010 (Eagle Square at Langkawi)
A tablet at the entrance of the Square (or rather, the long walk) explains to those who bother to read, that Langkawi means reddish brown eagle. The tablet also states that the majestic statue is strategically placed to welcome visitors to the island. And I have to agree that the statue really does look rather majestic and makes for a good couple of shots.
However, other than taking various shots of the statue, and avoiding a man soliciting tourists to take pictures with one of the snakes around his neck, there is nothing else to do at Eagle Square. Unless taking in the views of the jetty and sea counts (see pic below).
Nonetheless, if one has a spare bit of time in Langkawi and is at the Kuah Town area in a rented car, I would say that Eagle Square is worth a visit at least for some photos. (I especially like the shot of the Eagle Statue I took below heh) The Kuah Ferry Terminal is within walking distance from Eagle Square and there are several shops at Jetty Point (like Watsons, Guardian etc).
There is also a garden, called Lagenda Park on the other side of the statue...according to a similar looking tablet, this is a 20hectare landscaped theme park which stretches from the jetty to Kuah Town. The weather had gotten rather hot and I am not into horticulture so we gave that a miss.
Day 3 in Langkawi on 5 November 2010 (Temurun Waterfall)
So we decided to make a stop at Temurun Waterfalls. Temurun Waterfalls is allegedly (that is what 1 of the signboards there says but I'm not too sure about the truth of that) the highest man-made waterfall in Asia and is located along the road to the Datai, about a 15min drive from Taman Buaya in the direction of the Datai Bay.
There is a relatively small parking area (for about 5 cars max) near the entrance to the waterfall but one would do well to keep the doors of one's cars securely locked, and the windows wound tightly because of the fearless monkeys around! If one minds having monkey prints over one's windscreen or having to shoo a bold monkey off one's car, then it is worth the trouble of parking on the opposite side of the road instead (near the wooden hut in the pic below).
As I said, there are loads of monkeys at the Datai Area. Within mins of walking along the trail to the waterfall, we were treated to a display of monkey business per the pic below.
There were various signboards in English around the attraction, like the one below. 1 of them claimed that the water had healing properties...but this is strongly doubt given the lack of pp queuing to bathe in or take home bottles of water from the falls.
One must be warned that the path up to the waterfall can be treacherous and one would do well to hold tight to the handrails. The steps are uneven, high and haphazardly placed. It is certainly not advisable for the very young, very old or those carrying infants to navigate the steps up the the highest point which is where the yellow hut is in the pic below. And there is even less reason for one to climb those steps if one is into taking photos because the magnificence of the watefall is best viewed from its base as per my pic taken below.
There were surprisingly few tourists at the waterfalls - only one group of 3 actually who had a local friend so I would think this attraction is one of those that should only be visited if one has absolutely nothing else to do in Langkawi.
Day 2 in Langkawi on 4 November 2010 (Nasi Haji Kandar and Wonderland Seafood Restaurant)
As I'd forgotten the location of the restaurant, we stopped to ask for directions at the petrol station at Kuah Town. The pump attendant didn't know where it was but a very friendly Malay chappie on a spanking new BMW motorbike did, and also suggested that we try out the nasi kandar at this Malay coffeeshop nearby called Nasi Haji Kandar. The coffeeshop is easy enough to spot, being near the traffic junction and having a prominent signboard. The Slog Reviews: 8/10. Maybe we were starving, but in any case, my CEB proclaimed that this was one of the best nasi kandars he ever had. I thought it was pretty good grub BUT I thought that RM16 for our meal (see below) and a diet coke was a bit of a rip off - that's almost SG price or more like, tourist price. It's hard to conceive the locals having to pay that amount for such a simple meal. In any case, the coffeeshop was pretty packed, even at 4pm in the evening.
Now, I wish to set the record straight about Wonderland at Langkawi, even if the rest of the world may disagree. Wonderland sucks big time. It doesn't deserve the reputation that it has the least. I'm not talking about the service which was just slightly below mediocre, but about the entire experience there. The Slog Reviews: 3/10. Go spend your money at GLK which is just next door. Y?
We were the second group of customers at Wonderland (about 6pm) and although there were some staff standing around, none made the effort to show us to a table or make us feel welcome. So we took an empty table under the fan, waited a good ten mins for the lone server who was taking the orders from the first group to come over, and well, waited some more because she never came over to give us the menus after she was done with the first group. I had to get up, go the kitchen (where the rest of the staff who were equally customer-oriented NOT ignored me) and ask her to switch on the fan and give us the menus. As I didn't want any spit or dirt in my food, my tone was polite (despite my first negative impression of the place) and she came over in a bit with the menu, quite apologetic about the delay.
As I do not eat oyster or squid, our seafood options were limited to fish, prawns, crabs and clams. And being a fisherman, I'm pretty adverse to having pay for fish that has been dead for a while since my own catch is always fresh and tastiest heh. (Wonderland does not have ANY fresh seafood at all - no tanks of lively prawns/fishes or struggling bound-up crabs). So we asked for crabs and were told they only had soft shell crab. Eeks. I asked if I could order crabs from GLK to bring over and the server was okay with that but sadly, GLK was out of crabs too. Crap. So we ordered lala and were told that they didn't have any of that either. So it was down to just prawns and fish. My CEB ordered assam prawns at the server's recommendation and kangkong per the pic below. The Slog Reviews: 5/10. Both veg and prawns were disappointingly mediocre and bland. The assam prawns tasted nothing like the ones I always have at this restaurant in Muar (click here), being cooked in a thick soy like sauce. Eeks.
My CEB also ordered a red snapper. The Slog Reviews: 5/10. We had the fish steamed per the server's recommendation and the result = a waste of a good fish. The meat was tender and fresh (as fresh can be for a fish dead and kept in a freezer) but the cooking was so bad that there was hardly enough gravy to go over the flesh and sauce was not absorbed by the fish meat. Disappointing.
And so, that's our RM60 first and last time experience at Wonderland food store at Langkawi. If you want good FRESH seafood in Langkawi that doesn't include oysters and squid, this restaurant is definitely not the place to go to.Tuesday, November 09, 2010
Day 2 in Langkawi on 4 November 2010 - (Oriental Village, Langkawi Cable Car and The Datai Resort)
In the cupboard near the left of the windows is the mini-bar and in the cupboard near the right is the safe. We had a rainforest view and were advised by the staff to keep the windows shut at all times so that the monkeys in the rainforest would not be able to get into the room and wreck havoc! The balcony outside the windows was clean but the thought of monkeys and mosquitoes quite detered me from sitting there to enjoy the sounds and sight of the rainforest. The toilet was extremely spacious with a rain shower area, a WC area and a large bathtub. Separate sinks for him and her, as well as separate wardrobes behind each sink. Very nice! What I liked more than anything else though about The Datai (including the complimentary juices and soft drinks available in the mini bar) was the quality of toiletries provided - Molton Brown shampoo, condition, bath gel and body lotion! We went for a stroll at The Datai's private (stretch of) beach and I have to say that the hotel puts a great deal of effort keeping its beach clean! No litter at all, and lots of beach chairs strategically placed for one to enjoy a view of the ocean/hear the sounds of the waves crashing on the beach. The children/family pool is located at the beach level and seems rather basic and unimpressive for a hotel like The Datai (see pic below) - I would have expected at least a waterslide. Maybe The Datai's target crowd isn't families with young kids. One can either call for a buggy at the lobby to take one to the beach or walk the 10min way down several flight of stairs (not recommended for the elderly and weak) and through the rain-forest. The same options apply for getting back to the hotel. For us, we took the buggy to the beach as it was still drizzling and walked back up the path to the hotel. The walk took us through the rainforest and past some of the villas, the Datai's spa and a little creek. Thankfully we didn't spot any monkeys (the Datai area seems to be teaming with them). The Slog Reviews of The Datai: 9.5/10 for luxury and comfort but 5/10 for location esp if one is into visiting attractions and popular restaurants. Definitely rent a car from the airport or even town, if one is going to stay at the Datai given its location and exorbitant car rental prices (RM280 for a 24hr rental of a Myvi from the hotel). As for internet connection, there is free wifi throughout the hotel but the signal at our room was really weak and we kept geting disconnected. The American buffet breakfast for one person at The Datai is RM96++ and so we decided to put our rental car to good use and have our daily breakfast at The Loaf instead. The Loaf which opens at 8am daily has a breakfast menu and a breakfast set is approximately RM30+ per pax. However, one also has the option of selecting the bread items that one wants from the wide spread available. And that is what we did. The friendly staff at The Loaf who recognised us from last night's dinner, cut the various pieces of bread nicely and served them on a plate to us. My CEB was aghast though that all that bread cost RM30 but well, as I said in my earlier entry, at The Loaf, one pays a price for the ambiance and service.