WEEKEND ACTIVITIES 20-21 FEBRUARY 2010

Saturday. Not much activity to do this week except for Ednel wanting to buy a gift for his upcoming Family Day in Bagan Lalang end of next week. We went to Berjaya Times Square, book our movie tickets for Percy Jackson, the only available time was at 7.00 pm. For lunch, we went to Chee Meng's Chicken Rice in Bukit Bintang, the place we intended to go last week but was closed. This halal restaurant was opened since 1965 and considered one of the best chicken rice in town.

Later we went to Metrojaya, BB where Ed bought the gift there. Still got 3 hours to go before the show, we went to KTV nearby to improve our vocals technique hehe... Went back to BTS and watched Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief. I must say this is a fun movie to watch. For full review, go to Ednel's blog here.

Afterward, we had our dinner at Papa John nearby. Ed went back home to prepare for his journey to Penang tomorrow. He and his family will be attending a wedding there.

I went back home, refreshed myself and drove to Panzer's house in Bandar Putera Mahkota reaching there near midnite. Leo and Amri, Sharul and Wan were there too. We had movies marathon, watching few movies i.e ghost movies, a dance movie and Malay movie not according to that order, I think. I dozed in between movies but I must say Keramat, the Indonesian ghost movie which resembles Blair Witch Project had its scary moments. (read the review here)..Rahtree (Reborn) , a Thai ghost movie with such a confusing tale and Pisau Cukur in which surprisingly is one good movie. Fazura and Maya Karin acted naturally and were fun to watch but I dunno about the ending coz I was unable to watch this movie till the end...peywei lor...

I woke up at 7.30am. Only Sharul and Panzer were there. I was informed Leo, Amri & Wan had just gone back. Sharul and I went back home afterward....

I did not go out that Sunday, staying home watching movies, did a little bit of cooking and was asleep in between the storm...

Two Less Lonely People In The World

FEB OUTING - TANJONG MALIM AND MELAKA

KALUMPANG RETREAT..

It was last Thursday and I was in the office. Tomorrow I will be on leave followed by the CNY long holidays. Since a scheduled meeting was being postponed that day together with the up coming holiday mood, it was a relieved when Is called, telling me that he is going to Tanjong Malim to pick Shah at UPSI and I decided to join in. I applied my half day leave online and then rushed to Is's house in Cheras Perdana afterward. Picked Is and by 1.30 pm we were on our way to Tanjong Malim. Reached Tanjong Malim at 2.30pm, picked Shah and we went to the infamous Yik Mun Restaurant for lunch. Here they served all halal chinese foods and the best of all is off course its delicious 'pau'. There were so many people (non local), mostly Malays stopping by either to eat or take away the delicious 'pau'. I also bought frozen 'kaya pau' for me and 'red bean pau' for Ed. I also bought its Hainan White Coffee sachets to bring home.

It was a hot day... I asked Shah, if there is any nice river to cool us down and he suggested Kalumpang, a nice river with a resort nearby. Even though, I knew quite well, I came unprepared for any other activities i.e only wearing my office attire, I don't mind as long as I had my boxer on. By the way, Shah also had his towel with him for me and Is to borrow.

From Tanjung Malim to Kalumpang took us only 20 minutes. We passed Kalumpang Resort nearby before reaching to our destination, a nicely maintained river open to public...

With my office attire hehe..being adventurous once in awhile...

Ready to go venturing...

A working day, near empty..this place is really, really beautiful..

The serene place...cool and breathtaking..

Time to dip into the cold water..

Refreshing...

There is a deep place to swim too

We explored the place some more

Me swinging, Is trembling hehe..

Nearby, a new resort will be opened in two to three months time..

The waterfall near the resort

We then ventured to the Kalumpang Resort nearby. The resort is neatly done. They have varieties of rooms/chalets and bungalows, even a swimming pool near the river. We even thought of going here again bringing all other friends for this CYN retreat but unfortunately it was fully booked until the end of the week. This resort will off course be in the list of our vacay location later this year...

Is and myself, inspecting the resort..very affordable prices...

The river in the resort

Love the place..

The bungalow behind us is our favourite..

See how it goes.......if it is a done deal...will be here again, God Wiling...

MELAKA RETREAT.

Not much thing to do on Friday. Doing house chores and at night went to Rebung for dinner with Shah, Is and Panzer....Chef Ismail was out by the time I arrived. He was sending Madam Florence somewhere in town but he assigned one of his assistance to make sure we had everything we want...with Chef, we used to hang out together with him here, chatting and did our karaoke together. Later, Is, Shah and Panzer came to my house to watch a tv series which Panzer downloaded from the internet. They left near 4.00 am.

On Saturday, Ednel and I went to Low Yat. I bought a SDRW and a portable hard drive and later had our lunch at Outback Steak House. We then went to watch two movies back to back i.e. True Legends and Wolfman, the later I must say, a movie to watch.

Sunday. Last minute plan to Melaka, only if Sharul gave the thumb up that his parent house in Melaka will be empty that nite. Done, but going there can only be done after midnite. Ed came to my house at 7.30 am, parked his car here and together we went to pick Is and Shah at Is' s house. Together, we went to Cyberjaya and had our dinner at Saba, a famous mid eastern restaurant. This was my second time here and the food is nice and the price affordable. We then went to Panzer's house at Bandar Seri Putra, Nilai to wait for Sharul, Amri and Leo to join us later.

The journey to Melaka started at 1.30 am with my car (Ed driving) and Amri's, stopping at R&R near Seremban. We reached Sharul's house in Bukit Katil near 3.00 am. Near afternoon, our friend, Aie, his son and his friend came and brought us to Melaka town...

First stop, at Klebang for our lunch

Panzer, Aie and his son..

Sharul, myself and Ednel...

Next, Menara Taming Sari...the first Revolving 'Gyro Tower' in Malaysia

Too many people...took pictures only...

The revolving gyro moving up..

Highest peak..

Maybe next time all of us will take the ride ...

Inside Hang Tuah Mall

Ready to be served....

Hang on to that straw.. ermm

The tallest versus the shortest, hehe

Take five for some sweet dessert

Delicious mango, longan whatever its name...

Outside, Hang Tuah Mall

Too short a time to enter the exhibition..

For dinner. Seafood dinner At Pernu Ikan Bakar

Waiting for our food to arrive... lapar deh..

Grill stingray, among others

Can't remember what fish was this, but its yummy..

Waiting for the rest of our food to arrive...

ahhhh..dah abis....

Later, we went back to Sharul's house..By 9.30 pm, Is, Shah, Ed and myself was on our back to KL where Panzer and rest will follow suit a bit later...

For this Melaka trip, I would like to thank Aie and his friend plus his cute son (a big no no to that 'two letter words dear, hehehe) for taking time to come see us and off course to Sharul for 'lending' his parent's house for us to crash that nite...

To the rest of the team mates...cool...planning other place to crash???... Lets....

SAHABAT

My friend email this nice words and I would like to reproduce it verbatim to share it with you...

Apabila kita ingin bersahabat, janganlah kerana kelebihannya
kerana mungkin dengan satu kelemahan
kita mungkin akan menjauhinya

Andai kita ingin berteman, janganlah kerana kebaikannya
kerana mungkin dengan satu keburukannya
kita akan membencinya

Andai kita inginkan seorang teman, janganlah kerana sifat cerianya
kerana andai dia tidak lagi pandai menceriakan
kita mungkin akan menyalahkannya.

Andai kita ingin sahabat yang satu, janganlah kerana ilmunya
kerana apabila dia buntu
kita mungin akan menfitnahnya

Andai kita ingin bersahabat
terimalah dia seadanya
kerana dia seorang sahabat
yang hanya manusia biasa

Jangan diharapkan terlalu sempurna
kerana kita sendiri pun tidak tahu
apakah diri kita sudah cukup sempurna
mengikut kehendak Allah SWT
yang sebenarnya....

Beserdahanalah dalam persahabatan
Kita tidak akan melihat kelemahan itu sebagai kelemahan...

To all my best friends, you know who you are and why I love you. Thanks for being with me through thick and thin, my joyful and pain...the colours of my life..

xoxo...

PART FOUR - LONE TRAVELER - BALI (28 JAN - 1 FEB 2010) - FINAL

DAY FOUR & FIVE - 31 JAN & 1 FEB 2010 (SUNDAY & MONDAY)

Woke up early and went to the cafe in the hotel. Since I have already booked my breakfast online earlier, the hotel had given me a coupon for it. At first I thought, it would be a buffet breakfast, a norm at any hotels but I was surprised that the coupon entitled me to choose between 3 packages, the main dish is either nasi goreng or bakso and other choice I can't remember. I lauded this type of arrangement because you are entitled to eat afresh instead of an already cooked food.

After breakfast, I walked to the Legian beach. Even drizzled sometimes, the sun came out strong.

Here the local boys played footballs and the foreigners jogged...

Nearby the beach, wanna buggy?

Suddenly for a just over 5 to 10 minutes I saw the most beautiful thing of God creation to our mother nature ...

The most beautiful rainbow I have ever seen

Another view of the rainbow

I walked along Legian beach till Seminyak beach and then to the Kerobokan area. Here I saw another procession or holy ceremony took place.

The offering..

The lady in yellow giving holy water to drink..

After the long walk, I stopped at a restaurant overlooking the beach. Sat down, ordered a Coke and started reading a novel I brought. I was here for a few hours and managed to finish reading the book.

The view from the restaurant

Another pic

Yet another pic..

The book I read...love it..

Afterward, I hailed a cab and stopped at Legian road. Here, like Kuta, there are rows and rows of shops selling everything and anything...the weather was really hot and I was sweating..I am sure Carlo of Biggest Loser Asia will cringed with envy of how much sweat I produced that day..hehe.. In one of the shops, I bought one more painting after bargaining hard for a good price. I walked and walked until I reached Kuta beach again.

With a sore feet and sun burned face..I walked into Smart Spa again. Here I opted for a reflexology, hair treatment and off course, facial treatment. The same guy who massaged me the other day did the reflexology on my feet and at the same time another therapist washed and massaged my hair. This time the guy and I had a good conversation. He was actually not unfamiliar with Malaysia, having worked in Johor as a labourer for 4 years a long time ago. He misses Roti Canai and Teh Tarik. He even asked me whether Erra Fazira and Awie were still an item and still superstars in Malaysia?? daaa...hehe By the way, I also asked him, why can't I find any original Indonesian singers' CDs in any shops in Bali? His answer kinda shocked me. Here, people buy songs via online i.e downloading in their handphones since people do not buy original CD's. Ermm..kinda advance, don't you think?

Next, I proceeded with my facial treatment. Unfortunately, since my face has already burned, badly, nothing can be done but to stop it being itcy and dry. Since I have nothing else to do, I continued with manicure and pedicure treatment here and it was done by two girls, one doing the manicure and the other pedicure . While doing it, I saw an old lady carrying big flasks stopped by in front of the shop. Few therapists went to see her and she started to prepare drinks for them. When asked whether it was the traditional jamu drink, I was informed that jamu can only be consumed in the morning and the old woman is preparing either tea or coffee. I was also informed that since there is no small stall nearby, the old lady service is needed for their 'coffee break'. It come to my mind that unlike in Malaysia, there is no mamak stall here, only restaurants of either high class eastern food or most of them, western. Their small stalls are located outside the Kuta urban area.

The cost for all the treatments? Less then RM100.00. No wonder I can see so many people came here to have their spa experince with such a small fee. I was also informed that there are more than 40 therapists here and the owner of the spa gains the profit of RM50k a month from this spa alone and he has 3 other spas nearby...Gosh..

Later, at Kuta beach area, I stopped at an ATM cubicle to withdraw money. There were 2 white girls inside the cubicle before me. When they left, I entered the cubicle and I was surprised to find out that one of them had left a card in the slot machine. It was a debit card. I tried to search for the girls later but they had already gone. I waited for another 5 minutes and still no sign of them. My evil mind was racing..I can buy so many things with this card if I want to... but then again..it is always my principle, when it is not mine, it is not mine. I firmly believe in karma.. all this while things have been fine for me in Bali..and I want to leave it with a clear conscience... My action? Went to the police station nearby and passed the card over to the police there..Case closed.

Later, I walked along the beach again and stopped at the MacDonalds. Had my dinner there and then hailed a cab to go back to Legian beach again. The first time I was at Legian beach, I saw a guy selling second hand novels/books/magazines, so I headed there and bought myself , The Horse Whisperer, a old novel by Nicholas Evan which had become a major movie directed and starred by Robert Redford in 1998.

I then walked back to the hotel..went to the cafe and ordered bakso and something like an ice cendol but tasted different which I could not remembered its name. Went back to to my room and started my final packing before sleeping.

3 am (1 Feb 2010 - Monday)

By 3.45 am, I had already checked out and waiting for another 3 white guys to do so. We were sharing the same van to go to the airport. It was raining heavily and we reached Nugrah Rai International Airport, Denpasar at 4.15 am. To my surprise, the airport was pitch black. It was a black out and the electricity goes on and off afterward.

Waiting anxiously at the check-in counter..it was dark and this pic was taken using flash camera

Had a chat with the counter girl in darkness..with me sitting on the trolley

Surprising by 5.15 am, the electricity was back and soon enough all of us were ushered into the plane according to the flight scheduled time. The plane took off exactly at 6.00am. For breakfast, I bought and ate nasi lemak on board. The plane reached LCCT at 9.00am and from there, I took a bus to KL Sentral. To reach home I took a cab and arrived exactly at 11.30am.

Alhamdullilah..I did it..these 5 days experience is truly an inspiration for me. A proof to me that you can do anything as long as you set your mind to it, with God help too, off course...

PART THREE - LONE TRAVELER - BALI (28 JAN - 1 FEB 2010)

DAY THREE - 30 JAN 2010 (SATURDAY)

8.30 am. I checked out from Tune Hotel, Kuta. Alfian (he is 10 years younger than me) was waiting for me with his car together with his cousin, Farel who will be the driver for my tour. He has just arrived in Bali from Padang and Alfian intended his cousin to learn the road in Bali and act as an apprentice for him. I didn't mind the company as long as I am paying at the same agreed rate and all through out the journey, Farel did a fine job as my photographer.

My first stop was at Tune Hotel, Legian. I dropped the bags (now had become two with all those shoppings yesterday) at the hotel. I was disappointed to learn that, Pura Besakih, the oldest and the biggest temple in Bali is closed to public since Hindus here are celebrating a holy day (which was actually a Thaipusam day in Malaysia). Other than Besakih, two other places I have not been is in Lovina (further north of Bali which is famous for its dolphins) and Uluwatu, south of Bali. Since Lovina was out of the question because of the distance, I opted going to south Bali instead. Going to south Bali, I passed through Udayana University, one of the biggest university in Indonesia. The place is so huge and I was made to understand this university offers 100 undergraduates and graduate degree programs, the expert staff come from all over the world.

My next stop was at Tanjung Benoa which is famous for its water sports and activities such as diving, para gliding, cruises and such. Since I have no intention for that sort of thing, I stopped here to take my late breakfast.

Many boats here going to Turtle Island

Another view for Tanjung Benoa

I had the opportunity to visit the oldest mosque in Bali. The mosque, a Chinese temple and a Hindu Temple (Pura) are located very near to each other marking the religious harmony of its people here.

The renovated Mujahidin Mosque, Tanjong Benoa

Next stop was at the Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park, famously known as GWK. To enter here, you have to paid Rp.50,000.00 if you are a foreigner. Since Alfin declared that I was from Riau (which speak slightly like Malay) I only had to pay Rp25,000.00.

This 240 hectares cultural park is so huge and so many thing to see. The park have a Lotus Pond, Festival Park, Amphitheater, Street Theater, Exhibition Hall, Panoramic Rest, souvenir shops and off course the Garuda Wisnu Kencana statue. At present, 3 statues (Wisnu, Garuda and Wisnu's hands are located at 3 different places.) Once completed, the building will be 150 meters tall with its wings span 64 meter across. Made with 4000 tons of copper and brass, the statue will resemble Lord Wisnu riding on the back of mythical bird, the Garuda.

The way to the statue.

The roof top where the replica of GWK lies.

The replica of GWK

The statue of Wisnu

A huge one that is...

The statue of Garuda, the second piece of the puzzle of the whole statue

Another view of the Garuda..

Another pic..

Another small replica of GWK, imagine how big the complete statue will be, huge!!!

Below are other pictures at GWK..

The fountain near the Amphitheater

The lotus pond

I missed the show, but I managed to see the procession afterward

Met a new unusual "friend"

The nice Festival Park, there will be a show that nite...

Other activities on the park..

The starting of 'the flying fox'...ada berani?

The end of the flying fox route...wonderful view..

I also managed to watch a Hindu ceremony being held near the statue of Visnu..

The priest in front chanting prayers..

The ceremony behind me...

Next stop, Dreamland beach, located in the complex of Pecatu Graha Bali (Kuta Golf Resort Link). It is a huge complex complete with a golf course, a new resort and high end housing project and has now become the new surf spot for surfers around the world.

The entrance to Dreamland

Another pic..

The road to the Dreamland complex

The long walk to the beautiful beach..

Stop for awhile, capek deh..hehe

At last, the beach....

hot weather, nice beach

A few tourist started to surf...

One the way back I saw this advertisement...

Feeling hungry anyone? hehehe

My next destination will be Padang Padang Beach, nearby Dreamland. This once a quiet place has become famous after being selected as a location for Julia Robert's latest movie, 'Eat, Pray, Love' last October 2009. I fully understand why this place had been chosen. Its is so beautiful and exotic and you would probably spend your days just lying here for hours...

To go down to the beach, you need to pass a dark cave

A small cave

Out of the cave at last

The beach..

ermm.. I am here...not them...hahaha, plenty of 'that' here...

One wrong step will be fatal. The rocks here are hard and very very sharp.

An interesting event took place at the beach. One of the important ceremony was being held here i.e. a ceremony to pay respect to the spirits of the mountain. I was informed, a "petanda", one of highest priest in Bali in a rare occasion was leading the ceremony.

I was told not to touch the 'offerings'

The 'petanda' citing prayers with a small bell in his hand.

Another view of the 'petanda'

The group of people, dancing towards the beach and back with the offering at hands

Another view of the proceeding..

The next and the best place of all is of course, the Pura Uluwatu, one of Bali's 6 sacred temple. Its location is on the most south western of Bali and it is believed to be the guardian to ward evil spirit of the ocean. Being sacred, you need to wear a sarong to enter here. One very important tips here is that, its not advisable to wear spectacle, hats or sun glasses. Why? I saw it myself when one of the monkeys here snatched a cap from a young boy and to have it back, you need to 'pay' to someone ( I suspect to be the master of those monkeys) for him to 'persuade ' the monkey to return back the cap. Utter sham..

Nonetheless, the view here is indeed breathtaking and spectular.

Funny sarong..see the sharp cliff?

Different angle..

Another view, one step back I am gone..

This side of the wall.. look at far end of the cliff..

Tada.....I was already there...

Another pic, to show how high the cliff is...

The small pic before was taken from the pura behind me..here I am at the same place..

The sea look so near...it is not...

Later I was in Jimbaran beach for dinner. By now I can't take anymore pictures, I need to recharge my battery. Here, I ordered seafoods and invited both Alfian and Farel to join me. From our conversation, I was informed that Alfian married a Hindu's wife and converted her to Muslim years back. Farel intends to open a shop selling 'murtabak' (here called 'cahaya bulan') a delicacy from Padang once his wife and children moved in from Padang to Bali next month. I was guarantee free dinner by them if I come visit Bali again in the future.

Later, I was sent back to the hotel. After bath, I walked to the Legian beach nearby in about 3 minutes walk. Just like Kuta, Legian beach also has it own charmed and along the beach there are rows of high class restaurants too but unlike Kuta, the place is not as busy and noisy. I love Legian beach better than Kuta. The golden sandy beach and the big waves is just mesmerising. Near 1.00 am, I got back to the hotel and rest.

End of day 3, I intend to rest and relax tomorrow...see how it goes...