Over the past few years, my friends and I had the luxury of entertaining friends from college who were on a stopover in KL, even if it was for a night. I love it when friends come for a visit, but I have to admit that when it comes to food, I am the last person you should ask where the best "char kuay teow", "assam laksa" or any sort of dishes are. *chuckle*
Alli, a friend of a friend, is the latest of the bunch to make it to Malaysia. But her case is different than that of the others, because she's on an internship (tied to a non-profit organization) as part of her Southeast Asian post-grad studies. Since she's here for a couple of months, I'm not being pressured into cramming in a makan-and-travel itinerary within a span of several days.
Gene was the first one to step foot in Malaysia, as he was returning to the States from attending a friend's wedding reception in India. Little did he know that he wouldn't even see a hint of KL, because we 'kidnapped' and flew him to Azi's hometown in Kota Kinabalu (KK). *lol* We had asked for his passport number beforehand, so we were able to book him return plane ticket to KK, along with ours. We spent a night at the Kinabalu Park lodge, experienced the canopy walk and hotspring in Poring, snorkeled and stayed overnight at Pulau Manukan. I don't know about Gene, but I had a great time! Bila la nak pergi lagi ni?
When Stef and Cynthia came at the time of the 2004 tsunami, we pretty much stayed within Klang valley. Well, it wasn't because of the tsunami but it was due to their short stay. Their only request to me prior to the visit was to checkout the rainforest. Knowing that Taman Negara would not be a viable option, FRIM was the next best thing. We had opted for a guide, so it made the tour of FRIM even more eventful. Besides FRIM, it also marked a few more 'firsts' for me - Going up the Twin towers' skybridge, climbing up the steps of Batu Caves, visiting the Royal Selangor factory, having dinner at the rotating restaurant of Menara KL.
There was a flurry of visits in 2005. Josh and Faiza were in KL for a day, so I was only able to meet with them for lunch at Putrajaya. Thanks to Azi for looking after them.
Shade and Marina came to KL after they had had their wedding receptions in Pakistan and Sri Lanka, as well as honeymoon in Langkawi. It was a laid back trip for them so Putrajaya and Petronas Towers' skybridge were the two main things on the menu.
The day after Shade and Marina left, the void was quickly filled up by Kate. She was in town for a couple of days since KL was the next destination in her Southeast Asia (SEA) backpacking trip. I have to take my hats off to her after hearing all of her adventure stories. While in Borneo, she stayed at a longhouse in Sarawak, danced her night away at the Rainforest Music Festival and made it to the peak of Mount Kinabalu. The 3 things I have yet to do. And it is an endless list :P
A few weeks later, an Italian colleague came and stayed for a couple of weeks. Although our office was in Cyberjaya, his hotel was in the heart of KL. It was definitely a good choice. So, on one of the weekends he was here, we took him sightseeing in KL - Merdeka Square, Masjid Jamek, Petaling Street, Central Market, Batu Caves, the towers' skybridge, KL Tower, those kind of places. Where else right? :-)
In between then and the present, we had Willow visiting KL from Singapore in '07. She was on a school trip, so we could only meet up over dinner. Instead of the customary dinner at Saloma restaurant, we opted for Restoran Seri Melayu so that our guest could try out a selection of Malaysian dishes at the buffet table. One might argue that the food may not be great, but you could watch a simulated Malay wedding while you dine. :D
Okay, back to Alli... so, are you bored yet? He he he.
With Alli, we did the obligatory visit to Putrajaya. I must say she's very independent, so she had already ventured to Batu Caves, Chinatown, Bukit Bintang on her own.
Last weekend, coincidentally a friend from her grad school was in town for a visa run; he's interning in Jakarta but unlike Malaysia, a tourist visa is only valid for 30days. Thus on Sunday, we took the opportunity to go on a quick trip to Kuala Selangor. The last time I was there (which was also my first) it was in 2002 (if I could recall correctly). Back then, the "firefly tour" was the only thing in the agenda. This time around, we wanted to expand the itinerary to include Taman Alam (Nature Park), Bukit Melawati and seafood dinner.
Everything was fine and dandy, but the sky opened up as we were having dinner. It seemed that mother nature had other plans. I was a bit disappointed that we had to do without the firefly boat tour. Nonetheless, it was still an awesome trip with fun (and funny) friends. Yay!
Next up is Penang. Err, where are the makan places ek?
Alli, a friend of a friend, is the latest of the bunch to make it to Malaysia. But her case is different than that of the others, because she's on an internship (tied to a non-profit organization) as part of her Southeast Asian post-grad studies. Since she's here for a couple of months, I'm not being pressured into cramming in a makan-and-travel itinerary within a span of several days.
Gene was the first one to step foot in Malaysia, as he was returning to the States from attending a friend's wedding reception in India. Little did he know that he wouldn't even see a hint of KL, because we 'kidnapped' and flew him to Azi's hometown in Kota Kinabalu (KK). *lol* We had asked for his passport number beforehand, so we were able to book him return plane ticket to KK, along with ours. We spent a night at the Kinabalu Park lodge, experienced the canopy walk and hotspring in Poring, snorkeled and stayed overnight at Pulau Manukan. I don't know about Gene, but I had a great time! Bila la nak pergi lagi ni?
When Stef and Cynthia came at the time of the 2004 tsunami, we pretty much stayed within Klang valley. Well, it wasn't because of the tsunami but it was due to their short stay. Their only request to me prior to the visit was to checkout the rainforest. Knowing that Taman Negara would not be a viable option, FRIM was the next best thing. We had opted for a guide, so it made the tour of FRIM even more eventful. Besides FRIM, it also marked a few more 'firsts' for me - Going up the Twin towers' skybridge, climbing up the steps of Batu Caves, visiting the Royal Selangor factory, having dinner at the rotating restaurant of Menara KL.
There was a flurry of visits in 2005. Josh and Faiza were in KL for a day, so I was only able to meet with them for lunch at Putrajaya. Thanks to Azi for looking after them.
Shade and Marina came to KL after they had had their wedding receptions in Pakistan and Sri Lanka, as well as honeymoon in Langkawi. It was a laid back trip for them so Putrajaya and Petronas Towers' skybridge were the two main things on the menu.
The day after Shade and Marina left, the void was quickly filled up by Kate. She was in town for a couple of days since KL was the next destination in her Southeast Asia (SEA) backpacking trip. I have to take my hats off to her after hearing all of her adventure stories. While in Borneo, she stayed at a longhouse in Sarawak, danced her night away at the Rainforest Music Festival and made it to the peak of Mount Kinabalu. The 3 things I have yet to do. And it is an endless list :P
A few weeks later, an Italian colleague came and stayed for a couple of weeks. Although our office was in Cyberjaya, his hotel was in the heart of KL. It was definitely a good choice. So, on one of the weekends he was here, we took him sightseeing in KL - Merdeka Square, Masjid Jamek, Petaling Street, Central Market, Batu Caves, the towers' skybridge, KL Tower, those kind of places. Where else right? :-)
In between then and the present, we had Willow visiting KL from Singapore in '07. She was on a school trip, so we could only meet up over dinner. Instead of the customary dinner at Saloma restaurant, we opted for Restoran Seri Melayu so that our guest could try out a selection of Malaysian dishes at the buffet table. One might argue that the food may not be great, but you could watch a simulated Malay wedding while you dine. :D
Okay, back to Alli... so, are you bored yet? He he he.
With Alli, we did the obligatory visit to Putrajaya. I must say she's very independent, so she had already ventured to Batu Caves, Chinatown, Bukit Bintang on her own.
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| Perhaps it's just me. Everytime I look at the PICC building, it reminds me of the tripods in War of the Worlds movie :D |
Last weekend, coincidentally a friend from her grad school was in town for a visa run; he's interning in Jakarta but unlike Malaysia, a tourist visa is only valid for 30days. Thus on Sunday, we took the opportunity to go on a quick trip to Kuala Selangor. The last time I was there (which was also my first) it was in 2002 (if I could recall correctly). Back then, the "firefly tour" was the only thing in the agenda. This time around, we wanted to expand the itinerary to include Taman Alam (Nature Park), Bukit Melawati and seafood dinner.
Everything was fine and dandy, but the sky opened up as we were having dinner. It seemed that mother nature had other plans. I was a bit disappointed that we had to do without the firefly boat tour. Nonetheless, it was still an awesome trip with fun (and funny) friends. Yay!
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| Good to know :) |
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| Two tourists lost in the woods? |
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| Not too sure what was going on here. |
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| View of the lighthouse on Bukit Melawati |
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| Tide was coming in rather fast. Btw, they need to do something about the washed up litter in the mangrove |
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| Walking on the mangrove trail |
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| Say "Smile", monkey |
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| The Rhesus and Silver leaf monkeys. Correct? |
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| Feeding time |
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| Surprisingly, the babies are orange in color They'll sure make easy targets in the wild. |
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| Eh, ambil gambar sapa ni? lol! |
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| Fighting over a plastic bag. Of all things! :D |
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| You ought to move, monkey |
Next up is Penang. Err, where are the makan places ek?
pi penang kena pi makan pasemboq kat tepi pantai tu lah cheq ooi !
ReplyDeleteNow I know whom to call for recommendations lah lol. Good on ya walking msia wiki!
ReplyDelete@kak June: err, bukan Penang byk pantai ke? mana satu ni? :)
ReplyDelete@Yim: haha. kalau Malaysia tu, I'll fail lah. btw, write something lah about GC or HK. I also want to be jealous ;)
nasi kandar imigresen, laksa teluk kumbar (kalau ada lagi la). i miss penang. used to be there every year for mountainbike jamboree.
ReplyDeletegambar tu boleh larger sikit, sedap sikit mata memandang...ni kecik, aku dah la rabun..
ReplyDeletegreat one tsar, been waiting to go Firefly's den at K. Selangor....
Huih bro, ramai kawan mat saleh ye? Gi bawak makan deroyan bro, bior berpeluh diorang!
ReplyDelete@Diket: haha, i have no idea where those places are. *googling as we speak* lol!
ReplyDelete@Ijam: noted, bro. okay dah besarkan. sebenarnya, boleh click untuk buka saiz original.
yeah, i wanted to see it again but weather not permitting. lain kali lah nampaknya.
@Zaki: sempat le buat kawan-kawan sikit semasa merantau carik ilmu dulu. hehehe. durian? baru cium bau, sure dah lari. :D
feringghi beach lah heheh, sori lupa nak habaq! and they have endless pasar malam stalls along the road ...
ReplyDeletewheeee! did you tease the monkeys? eh i thought tak boleh feed them - how come they're still being fed?
ReplyDelete