Road Trip - Day 3

Check out time, 10 am. As soon as we received our deposit, we made our way out of Sri Sayang and onto the next destination. About an hours drive from the bridge would get you to Taiping. This is where we stopped for lunch. As Shawn’s mum is from Taiping, she recommended that we go to Cashere’s Market to eat as it is one of the biggest food courts in town. By the time we arrived, it was just nice to have our meal. Let’s just say that everyone was pretty pleased with the pricing of food and drinks here. Just to give a rough picture… 5 drinks including canned drinks totals up to RM7. A plate of Char Kuay Teow, no more than RM3 and chicken rice not more than RM3.50. As this was personally my second time to Taiping, I still think this town has the cheapest pricing on hawker’s food. After lunch, I took the group to Taiping’s Lake Gardens which is quite a beautiful sight to behold. We spent about 30mins to take some photos before departing for the second last leg of our vacation, to Pulau Pangkor!

We reached Lumut at about 4.30pm and had to take the ferry across to Pangkor Island. We waited for the ferry which was scheduled to depart at 5pm and cost us RM10 each, to and fro. For those who have never taken the ferry to Pangkor, you need not worry too much about timing as there are ferries scheduled approximately every 30mins. Upon setting foot on the island, we hailed a taxi to take us to Coral Bay Resort. There is always a notion that these hotels with 4-star rating would be impressive. But we were truly mistaken were somewhat disappointed with the place. The hotel looked old, run-down and really not what we expected. The reason that we opted for this place was that it offered condo units and we were entitled to discount with the usage of Shiao Teng’s Golden Reservation card. But nonetheless, we checked-in and tried to make the best of the place.

The sun was about to set and we decided to head to the beach. Down the street from our hotel was a long stretch of beach which was quite decent. We found ourselves a spot along the beach and went on to test the waters. By this time, the tide was coming in and granted us the chance to have some good fun with the waves. The guys started off trying to ride the waves as it hit the shore. Soon everyone gave it a go. There was a battle going on and guess who won? Yes. The sea bullied the hell out of us…haha, but we really had a smashing…or should I say…splashing time. As the tide was getting quite high and sun almost set, we retreated to the hotel’s pool…the same routine as we had in Penang. In this hotel too, we got chased out of the pool…oops! Naturally, everyone showered and got ready to have dinner. All the water and swimming got is really hungry which made us pass up the choice to eat at a restaurant with more people. Our f&b studies have thought us that crowds are indications of a good outlet. But our stomachs told us to be impatient and opted for the restaurant with not so many people. This restaurant was located just outside of our hotel. Despite the fact that the dishes were not all that delicious, guess which was the dish everyone favoured? The simplest of all – ‘Sang Choy’ aka Lettuce…because all had problems doing ‘big business’.

After dinner, what do we do? The same thing we did on previous nights but this time with the premium stuff. Some black jack and mushrooms got everyone…in the right mood to have a sound sleep. :)

Road Trip - Day 2

As this was a trip meant for relaxation, you could call this trip a rather lazy one. On the second day, some woke up a little earlier and some decided to sleep their asses off after a rather noisy and disturbing night…(the other 2 blokes on the trip…you know what you did…) After watching some tele and waiting for everyone to get ready, it was time to ‘chiak pooi’ As a recommendation from Kantha’s cousin, we went to Lorong Selamat to find a supposedly exceptional Char Kuay Teow. Apparently, this is no ordinary plate of kuay teow as it comes with ingredients such as mantis prawns and such. BUT unfortunately, we were not able to try it as the stall was closed. On the bright side, it benefited our budget as it is said that a plate of this dish can cost up to RM 7. At the end of it all, we settled for plates of Wan Tan Mee or Wan Than Mee, as how they spell it in Penang. Prior to eating lunch, we stopped by one of the famous biscuit shops by the name of Ghee Hiang. This shop has been in existence for more than 150 years and is famous for their Tau Sar Pneah, Beh Tew Saw and few other varieties. Ghee Hiang is located on the corner of Macalister Street.

Later, we returned to the condo to gear up to go to the beach. We had no clue where to find nice beaches in Penang and decided to inquire. It was suggested that we drive along the road from our condo on the way to Teluk Bahang and we would see some nicer stretches of beaches. It wasn’t the best but much better that the beach we went to the day before. Not too bad but we had the company of ‘man’s best friend’. Not one but two and one in particular was a little TOO friendly…(guys, you know what I mean).

Having had enough of the sea water, we retreated to Sri Sayang’s pool and again had a pretty good time. This time we didn’t get chased out.

For ‘makan malam’, we were to meet Kantha’s cousin at New World Park. We thought we were going to have free dinner…but it was not to be. So we ate in the food court which was quite depressing to say the least. I guess we KL people are so used to stalls being opened till 10,11pm and even after midnight. Stalls here close much earlier and we were left with a few choices to eat. We later went to find a place along the street to buy DVDs. They’re really cheap at RM 4 a piece. I think I need not explain how the night ended…pretty predictable. However, everyone turned in a little earlier due to tiredness and the fact that we needed to clear out off the condo by 10 am the following morning.

Road Trip - Day 1

Despite the fact that we were all supposed to be undergoing ‘internship’, for some reason we all seemed to take it easy and even took time to plan for a holiday. So we planned to embark on a Road Trip. Initially, the people supposedly to go for this trip were Shawn, Kantha, Wan San, Apple, Mimi and Crystal. But once again, somebody decided to ‘take the plane’ instead. So as we had 1 place left, Shiao Teng managed to join us.

26^th May 2008, 6.30am Monday morning, transport had arrived at Shawn’s house before beginning our journey. By the time everything was sorted out like appointing Shawn as the ‘Financial Controller’ we left around 6.45am (first thing in the morning already had to feel like a loan shark…haih).

“Good morning ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard flight 7887 departing from Kuala Lumpur to Penang. Estimated time of arrival to Penang is eleven hundred hours and we will make a short transit at Ipoh town. The weather looks calm and fine. We hope that you will have a pleasant journey and thank you for ‘flying’ with Toyota”.

The drive north-bound to was not too bad as it was a weekday but there quite a lot of road works going on which at one point or another gave us a few scares and surprises (for the ones who were still awake at least). There were some hard breaking and even…workers throwing cones in front of you…while you’re driving past! But nonetheless, we reached Ipoh town in approximately 2 hours. In Ipoh, we made our way to one of the coffee shops to have breakfast. So what’s famous here? None other than their Kai See Hor Fun. The bowls of noodles we had were really nice with soft and smooth kuay teow, fat and crunchy bean sprouts and wonderfully flavoured chicken and prawn broth garnished with chives. Not only were they delicious but cheap too. Kantha and Wan San had Wan Tan Mee but they commented that KL makes better noodles. Having finished our ‘petit dejeuner’, we wasted no time and headed straight for Penang.

It took us about another 2 hours to reach the Penang Bridge and thank goodness for Smart Tag otherwise we would have been caught up in the queue along with everybody else. I think I’ve made this comment more than once on the trip. We are like some ‘super-saavy’ travelers who need no maps no matter where we’re going. Conclusion – we think we know where we’re going but…in the end still need to ask for directions. What a joy-ride. Anyway, we had to make our way to Sri Sayang Hotel and Condominiums which is situated on the north-east side of the island directly opposite the Shangri-La Rasa Sayang Resort.

When we got there, we were in for a little predicament. We booked a condo online the day before and hoped that our request had been processed. Upon arrival we were told that our reservation was not conformed and that the hotel was fully booked. Reason…SCHOOL HOLIDAYS!! With the bad news, we left the lobby and decided to search for another place to stay. As we were about to exit the parking lot, as if he was a drug dealer, the security guard discreetly gave Kantha a piece of paper with some numbers on it. For a moment it all seemed a little fishy. But the truth was that some people had condos for rent and he was the middle man. So, we rang the land-lord and in 20 mins we had a place to stay. Lucky us and thank you Mr…drug dealer?? By the time we went up to our rooms and rested for a little while, our stomachs were telling us what to do next. As we had no clue where to go, we just headed to Gurney Drive to see what was there. As they say, Peneng is another Foodies Galore of Malaysia. It was quite late for lunch but we managed to find somewhere to eat. We had some Char Kuay Teow and Lobak. Let’s just say we weren’t ‘wowed’ by the Penang food. I guess the best of Penang are already all in KL.

Just before dusk, we went to the beach along the Rasa Sayang Resort. The sea was not exactly what you call clear and the sand was very rough. Quite disappointing actually when you’ve been to better beaches like those in Langkawi. It started to drizzle and we went back to the pool at our hotel for just a little while. Fast forward, after everyone showered and got ready, we went to Gurney Drive again to have dinner. By this time, the corner of this road transforms into a night food court with a wide variety of stalls to choose from. We decided to order and share. Of course we had to have some Asam Laksa. We also ordered dishes like rojak, oyster omelet, grilled fish and grilled cuttlefish as well as chee choeng fun. Penang food is usually accompanied with prawn paste of ‘har koh’. We weren’t ‘wowed’ by the food here either.

The night was still young, so we went back to our hotel after walking around Gurney Plaza for a little bit. Oh…just to let you all know that to get in and out from our hotel to the city takes a 15 minute winding drive. So…here’s a question. What can’t a holiday trip do without? Due to the cost factor, we opted for the ‘not-so-premium’ stuff. Some drinks, cards and money. Simple way to end the night ain’t it guys?

7 Months

Man!! It took approximately 7 months for this blog to be updated. But you guys who are reading this would understand that a lot....and I mean A LOT has happened in the past months that explains the reason this blog hasn't been updated since. Anyway, marche-marche cherecher manger finally gets it's update. Despite the name of the blog, I would like to think that the primary subject of the blog has changed. Instead of a foodie blog, it is more of an account of our holidays...which I am sad to say may not happen again . But not to worry, life has to take it's course and I will try to feed this blog whenever I can. Cheers.

Just For Fun

Hey guys!! Take a look a these pictures and have a laugh.

Ain't she just cute?? Someone was watching too much Transformers...now he's TRYING to be a shark.... Doesn't he look like a Japanese tourist? Hmmm...she must have really held a grudge against Gan... She's trying out for SOME magazine...what do you think...good enough?? She must have eaten something REALLY bad or just doesn't like the food. He went to Mother Nature's Hair Salon. Equipment: 1 Hair dryer! Amazing! Aren't they COOL! Even HE couldn't resist the temptations of Langkawi Island!! Eventually, Kimmy and Nicole managed to steal Shawn's IC and the 4 had to leave without him.