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Showing posts with the label roadtrip

Catholic Qing Ming 2022

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2022's All Soul's Day trip happened on the 29th of October. In a departure from past years, we did not have breakfast at Lorong Maharani, but went to Kedai Kopi Ah Wah instead. Lorong Maharani has already declined to a state where there's not much to eat there anymore. But we still go there to buy Nasi Kunyit for dad. Also stopped by the wet market to get flowers.  Years of rain and shine had eroded the gold paint on dad's tombstone, so we had a touch up this year in addition to the regular grave sweeping, incensing, and prayer recitals. The weather was so hot during the end of October that we actually hid in a Starbucks for a couple of hours. Once we had cooled down, we headed to my maternal uncle's place. Big Monster was elated that my uncle had miku in stock. Lastly, we visited my paternal aunt, and by that time, the kids were already depleted. Before leaving Teluk Intan, BIL suggested that we make a stop at Glutton Square for the famous yutiao at Stall 52 .

Trip to Taiping II: Traipsing

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When your hotel is just beside Taiping Lake Gardens , there is no excuse for not waking up early and having a nice walk around it. The historical park offers beautiful landscaping, and wonderfully fresh air. The old raintrees ( some so bowed down that the town council support them with steel crutches ) really give a distinct character to the place. Most people go jogging around it, some pull out a book to read, sitting on one of the many benches overlooking the lake. While others have a picnic on the grass with their family, and the select few dress up their cats in dresses and let them roam around ( not sure if pets are allowed actually ). After a round of strolling and camwhoring with the aunties, it was starting to get sunny. Retreated back to Medan Selera Tai Hu for breakfast. Breakfast there was even more disappointing than dinner.  Checked out from the hotel and headed to the Church of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart , which was actually under extensive renovations. They let us in

Trip to Taiping I: Splendid Sepetang

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Covid put a two-year damper on my BEC outing plans. On Malaysia Day 2022, we were finally able to organize a short 2 day-1 night trip to Kuala Sepetang, Kuala Sangga, and Taiping. Surprisingly, two of my neighbours joined because they were intrigued by the itinerary. It didn't take long for our registration drive to fill up one express bus. On the morning of the 16th, we left KL a little late due to some stragglers, and encountered some congestion on the highway. An expected situation considering it was a long weekend. Lucky for us ( some would disagree ), our tour guide was a chatty fellow, so he could really talk and talk and talk. When the tour guide wasn't talking, we had onboard rosary prayers and KTV.   Arrived at Kuala Sepetang at 1 PM, so the bus directly dropped us at Xin Seafood Restaurant . Strategically located on the banks of Sungai Sepetang, we got to a great view to go with our seafood lunch. Once we had our fill of fish, cockles, prawns, calamari, crabs, and cla

High BP II: Departure

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Early the next morning, Mei followed KH and I to Church of St. Henry ( St. Henry the Exuberant, Holy Roman Emperor ) for 9:00 AM mass. Her last visit to the Catholic church was during her godmother's funeral. Many years had passed in between. The architecture of the church is really quite unique, with a bell tower rising in the middle. Frankly, reminds me of a surau. The congregation was small and very friendly. Coincidentally, the parish priest was celebrating his 60th birthday, and we were invited to join in the fellowship. As we had plans to eat with Mei's parents, we politely declined. Breakfast was at Sin Tian Tee Food Court , but Mei also bought a packet from dry duck noodles from Restoran Ledang for us to try. Super spicy, and I don't have any recollection on the taste of the famous braised duck.   Our tour of Batu Pahat continued with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, a grand historical building in the middle of town. All white with beautiful balconies and balustrad

High BP I: Arrival

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Mum's pilgrimage buddies from East Malaysia planned a trip to Cameron Highlands, and she joined them. KH and I took the opportunity to go on a little road trip of our own. Batu Pahat was our choice I had never been there ( KH went there with some guy years ago ), and it was a great opportunity to visit Mei and MiniMei. Before leaving KL, we had breakfast at Cotta , Bukit Damansara. Perhaps you can guess that their specialty is ricotta cheese. The owner's morning energy was a little painful for me to watch, even with a long black in hand.   The drive to Batu Pahat was pretty smooth, but we were a bit spooked by a route that Google Maps chose for us-- a single lane road with palm oil trees all around. Our timing was pretty good because her class had just ended when we arrived at her doorstep. She gave us a short tour, and she drove us out to lunch at Kampung Segenting, a fishing village nearby. Parked outside, and walked in. The main attraction here is the Lover's Bridge, whi

Durian Drive

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Not long after my run-in with COVID-19, KH organized a trip to his friend's durian orchard in Melaka. Both our mothers joined us, so it was an interesting bonding session. Located at Durian Tunggal, the orchard was pretty easy to get to as it wasn't far from the highway exit. The durian trees are planted sporadically, interspersed with other fruits like rambutan. More a retirement project than a commercial undertaking, there's plenty of flowers on the grounds too. Also spotted some bee houses, probably to aid in pollination. Freshly-gathered durians were collected at a shed, and we made our picks there. Well to be exact THEIR picks, I was just there to watch.  Another interesting thing about the orchard was the three-storey homestay that was built on crest of the hill to tap into the ecotourism market. The top floor provided a great view of the surrounding terrain. Got a few lunch recommendations from the host, and we left for Melaka town. Once we had cleared the hundreds o

Suddenly Sekinchan

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On a whim, KH and I decided to go on a road trip to Sekinchan, with my mum in tow. Being the first day of Raya Puasa, the roads were quite clear. Mum suggested our first POI-- Kuil Sri Maha Mariamman, a Hindu temple at Bukit Rotan. Unlike the the typical Hindu temples, this temple is not painted in multi-coloured hues. Everything is in a pale yellow. In the evening, the spotlights are switched on, and that gives the temple a golden hue. Even in the day, it is beautiful with its intricate details. During our visit, a Hindu prayer ceremony was ongoing, and in the background, a Raya Puasa sermon was blaring from the surau beside it. A few doors down, was a Methodist church.  At around 10 AM, we had arrived in Sekinchan. Looked for a breakfast spot near the morning market. Restoran Sing Ming Kee  looked really popular among the locals. A hot mess. Unfortunately for KH, the curry noodles was sold out. We settled for some wantan noodles, and fish head noodles. Nothing to shout about. Good t

BahBoys V or Sabah Celebrities: Sabah Stan

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Time to bid our farewell to beautiful Sabah. A pretty short trip, with not enough time to eat everything, haha. First breakfast was Beaufort Noodles at Restaurant Beaufort . Basically stir-fried noodles with thick gravy, minus the egg drop. Second breakfast was ngiu chap at Kedai Kopi Cheng Wah . Wasn't impressed. Drove over to KKIA to return the car. While KH was settling the grown up stuff, I got to cuci mata with  Sabah Stan . Pretty hairy legs. He was the best thing at KKIA.  All in all, it was a great trip. Easy to get around. And lots of attractions. Will return to visit the other parts.  

BahBoys IV: Jalan-Jalan KK

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The next morning, we did some exploring around Jalan Gaya. Grant recommended that we try an old pastry shop called Keng Wan Hing that was famous for its buns. Most of the customers were senior citizens who probably live nearby. Eat, kopi , chit-chat in Cantonese, then leave with several plastic bags filled with old school buns, probably for their grandkids. After breakfast, KH bought more 4D at Diriwan, another local brand.  We took a long link bridge from behind our hotel to the wet market. Typical PasarPride stuff. Outside, near where the boats pull up was the seafood market. Some exotic stuff like sea grapes, Moray eels, and parrot fish. Typically, tourists come here to pack frozen seafood in styrofoam boxes to hand carry back to West Malaysia. Back at the hotel, KH and I put on our swim trunks and went swimming. Truth be told, my first swim after 2 years! Really helped us work up an appetite. Fish noodles is a famous dish in KK, and Fatt Kee is one of the famous shops serving it.