把我的脚印留在世界各地

Koh Samui trip – Useful links

2012-01-06T23:59:00.000+08:00

Information on Koh Samui:
- http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Samui

- http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g293918-i7560-Koh_Samui.html

- http://www.stayinsamui.net/p/samui-overview.html

- http://samui.sawadee.com/

- http://www.chaweng.com/

Koh Samui airport: http://www.samuiairportonline.com/

Koh Samui map:
- http://samui.sawadee.com/map/maplarge.htm

- http://www.sawadee.com/map/samui.htm

Koh Samui trip – Prologue

2011-12-29T23:59:00.227+08:00

I never expect that I could be on par with the number of record trips last year. I did not plan additional trips after I started to plan my wedding at the beginning of this year. Those trips that I went this year prior to this are all plan last year except the trip to Bali for pre-wedding photoshoot. Hence this trip is a bonus. =) As the destination which I wanted to go for honeymoon is very cold during this period, I decided to defer it till July next year. I ask YQ if we can go for a mini honeymoon first and surprisingly, he agreed. We decided to head to a beach destination for our mini honeymoon. After some discussion, we settled on Koh Samui.

We decided to travel during the New Year period since it would be too tiring to travel immediately after our wedding. All along, I knew that Bangkok airway fly direct from Singapore to Koh Samui. I search for the flight and found that a return airtix cost > $700 after taxes which is way too expensive. I decided to search for alternatives and thought of transiting at Subang airport or Bangkok Suvarnabhumi since there are flights from these 2 airports. Maybe lady luck shines on me and I discovered that Silkair is commencing direct flight to Koh Samui 3 times a week from 27 Sep onwards. The return ticket only cost S$300 after taxes. We decided to travel from 31 Dec 11 - 4 Jan 12. The only thing which I dislike about this flight is the return timing at 9.45am (GMT+7).

Koh Samui เกาะสมุย is also known as "Coconut Island" due to infinite number of coconut trees here. Koh Samui is the 3rd largest island in Thailand after Phuket and Ko Chang. It has a land area of 228.7km2 and is one third of Singapore. Flights to Koh Samui are not cheap as it used to be monopolised by Bangkok Airways. This is due to the fact that Koh Samui airport is built and own by Bangkok Airways. There are more airlines flying to Koh Samui now but is still limited. There are many beaches in Koh Samui and the most popular are Chaweng and Lamai beach. The best period to visit is Jan - Mar and the monsoon period is Oct - Dec.

Location of Koh Samui (from Connies villas)

I seldom spurge on accommodation as it's not worth booking an expensive hotel room when I'm not staying in the hotel room for most of the time. Even though I wish to spurge this time, the rates during the super peak period double or triple the normal rates. =( After researching and reading the reviews in tripadvisor, I decided to stay at Pandora Lifestyle Hotel in Chaweng. It's a very colourful and funky hotel and is ranked #2 in Chaweng. I wanted to booked the top bungalow junior suite but it was reserved. Hence I settled on the best bungalow junior suit which cost THB2,890 a night (normal rate is THB3,400). The rate includes breakfast, free WIFI in the room and two way airport transfer.

While researching on the activities to do in Koh Samui, I discovered that Koh Samui is quite an interesting island even though there is no snorkelling or diving on the island itself. Some of the interesting sights in Koh Samui are: Mummified monks temples, Grandmother and Grandfather Rocks, Rum distillery, Forest canopy adventures, Buffalo fighting, Cabaret show, putting wish paper lantern (Khom Loy).

I mentioned earlier that there are no snorkelling or diving activities on the island itself. Normally tourist either visit Ang Thong National Marine Park or Koh Nang Yuan for day trip island hopping. I was pondering which to go as I only intend to spend one day for island hopping. In the end, I choose Koh Nang Yuan as people commented that it's better than Ang Thong Marine Park. I decided to book with Tours Koh Samui after reading positive reviews from forummers.

I intend to rent a jeep for 4 days to navigate around the island as some of the roads in the central of Koh Samui are quite hilly. Even though renting a bike is cheap, I decided not to rent after the bike accident in Ayutthaya. After researching in tripadvisor, I decided to rent from CH Tours. We booked a Suzuki Vitara which cost THB1,200/ day ~ S$50 from the website (discount given for renting more than 1 day).

Itinerary for the trip:

Day 1: Arrive at 8.45am (GMT +7) & Wat Plai Leam, Big Buddha Temple (Wat Phra Yai), Bophut walking street
Day 2: Overlap stone, Hin Ta and Hin Yai, Wat Khunaram, Magic Alambic Rum Distillery, Nathon beach
Day 3: Buddha footprints, Wat Kiri Wongkaram, Wat Laem Sor, Pagoda Khao Chedi & Laem Sor Pagoda
Day 4: Treetop Tour Cable, Wat Khao Hua Juk
Day 5: Koh Nang Yuan Island hopping
Day 6: Depart from Koh Samui at 9.45am (GMT +7)

Budget for the trip is S$950:
- S$300 for accommodation
- S$120 for rental of jeep & petrol
- S$80 for island hopping
- S$50 for canopy adventure
- S$200 for meals
- S$150 for massage
- S$100 for shopping

>>Day 1: 30 Dec 11

Koh Samui trip

2011-12-28T23:59:00.006+08:00

Koh Samui trip – Prologue
Koh Samui trip – 30 Dec 11
Koh Samui trip – 31 Dec 11
Koh Samui trip – 1 Jan 12
Koh Samui trip – 2 Jan 12
Koh Samui trip – 3 Jan 12
Koh Samui trip – 4 Jan 12
Koh Samui trip – Epilogue
Koh Samui trip – Useful links

Conrad Centennial

2011-12-26T23:59:00.136+08:00

We didnt went for any staycation this year and Conrad Centennial is the only Singapore hotel which we stayed in 2011. This was a complimentary stay which was part of our wedding banquet package from Peony Jade. We have a choice of either Conrad or Swissotel Merchant Court. We chose Conrad since we have stayed in Swissotel Mechant Court before. Hubby was drunk on our wedding day hence I called Conrad and changed the check in date to Boxing day.

When hubby went to the front desk to check in, a butler guided us to our room and check in for us in the room instead. He even gave me a arm size Conrad teddy bear! We were inform that we are able to check out latest by 6pm.

Hotel lobby

I like the spiral chandelier

Conrad bears Xmas tree

Front desk

The bed is super comfortable and cosy but I find it a bit soft for me. There is no free WIFI in the room and free WIFI is only available at the lobby. =( Hubby couldnt find the complimentary mineral water and he thought that the Evian water from the fridge is complimentary. Later, I found the complimentary Conrad water in the bathroom. @_@" In the end, we bought Evian water from a petrol kiosk when we went out for dinner to replace the one which he drank. It's definitely cheaper than the hotel mini bar price.

There's complimentary chocolate and fruits in the room and I couldnt stop eating the chocolate. The consequence is I have sore throat and fever later on. ><"

I knew that Conrad bears and rubber duck are complimentary so we took all back home, hehe... We also loved the slippers and we requested for additional pairs from the housekeeping.

Executive room

Wedding couple bears on such a huge bed

Mini bar

Bathroom

Xmas edition bear

Bear from the butler & complimentary chocolate

Our bear gifts

View from our room

We went to Ikoi restaurant at Miramar hotel for dinner. The restaurant is quite small hence it's full house, we ended up seating at the counter. The restaurant offers Japanese buffet and the price is reasonable. There are complimentary dishes from the restaurant and we ordered lots of sashimi. Too bad I didnt bought my camera along.

After our dinner, we went to pump petrol and bought the Evian water before returning back to Conrad. We rented 2 DVDs which are complimentary and we only watched "Date Night".

The next morning when I woke up, I'm feeling feverish and we decided to check out after breakfast. We packed our belongings and brought to the car before returning to Oscar for breakfast.

The breakfast variety is pretty good, there is a mixture of western and chinese food but I don't have much appetite.

Oscar restaurant

Breakfast variety

We checked out and left Conrad. Here goes my wasted staycation for not utilising the stay until 6pm.

Seoul trip - Useful links

2011-11-07T23:59:00.140+08:00

Korea:
- http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/index.kto

- http://wikitravel.org/en/South_Korea

- http://www.lifeinkorea.com/travel2

- http://budgettravel2korea.blogspot.com/

- http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/1780940

Seoul:
- http://www.visitseoul.net/en/index.do?_method=main

- http://english.seoul.go.kr/

- http://wikitravel.org/en/Seoul

- http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g294197-i8161-Seoul.html

Seoul map: http://maps.visitseoul.net/index.jsp?lang=eng

Incheon airport bus guide to Seoul: http://www.airport.kr/airport/traffic/bus/busList.iia?flag=E

Gimpo airport bus guide to Seoul: http://www.airport.co.kr/doc/gimpo_eng/info/RE03010101.jsp

AREX Train: http://english.arex.or.kr/jsp/eng/index.jsp

Korail: http://info.korail.com/2007/eng/eng_index.jsp

Seoul Express Bus Terminal: http://www.kobus.co.kr/web/eng/index.jsp

Seoul subway: http://www.smrt.co.kr/main/index/index002.jsp

Korea T Money Card: http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/TR/TR_EN_5_4.jsp

Royal Palace: http://jikimi.cha.go.kr/english/royal_palaces_new/Changdeokgung.jsp?mc=EN_05_01

Gyeongbokgung: http://www.royalpalace.go.kr/html/eng/main/main.jsp

Changdeokgung: http://eng.cdg.go.kr/main/main.htm

Deoksugung: http://www.deoksugung.go.kr/eng/index.asp

N Seoul Tower: http://www.nseoultower.net/english

Cheong Wa Dae Tour: http://english.president.go.kr/tours/cwd_tours/cwd_tours.php#none

Bank of Korea museum: http://museum.bok.or.kr/english/main/index.jsp

Everland: http://www.everland.com/MultiLanguage/english

Namiseom/ Nami island: http://english.sisul.or.kr/grobal/cheonggye/eng/WebContent/index.html

- http://www.namisum.com

- http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=637379

- http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/ena/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=309520#1

- http://english.visitseoul.net/en/article/article.do?_method=view&art_id=39982&lang=en&m=0003001004002&p=04

DMZ Tour: http://www.tourdmz.com/english/main.php

Sokcho
- http://wikitravel.org/en/Sokcho

- http://www.sokchotour.com/english

List of hostel:
- http://www.koreahostel.org

- http://innostel.visitseoul.net/en

Rental of phone: http://budgettravel2korea.blogspot.com/2010/09/korean-handphone-is-it-must.html

Free tour guide: http://budgettravel2korea.blogspot.com/2009/07/free-seoul-tour-with-guide.html

Korea VAT tax refund: http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/SH_EN_7_1_4.jsp

Food:

- http://english.seoul.go.kr/cav/do/restaurant.php

- http://english.seoul.go.kr/cav/do/uniquekf.php

10 best performance in Korea: http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=706070

Jump Performance: http://www.yegam.com/jump/eng

Shopping Guide:

- http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/whereToShop/whereToShop.jsp?action=subMain&cid=995906

- http://www.asia-planet.net/korea/major-shopping.htm

Sample of itinerary:

- http://budgettravel2korea.blogspot.com/2010/07/7-days-itinerary-in-korea.html

- http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g294197-s409/Seoul:South-Korea:First.Time.Visitors.html

- http://english.visitseoul.net/en/article/article.do?_method=view&art_id=39982&lang=en&m=0003001004002&p=04

- http://english.seoul.go.kr/cav/do/street.php

http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/transportation.kto?cmd=transportInfo&lang_se=ENG&md=enu&frame=Y&orignName=Seoul&origin_addr2Name=&destiName=Gangwon-do&desti_addr2Name=Sokcho-si&orignCode=1&origin_addr2=0&destiCode=32&dest_addr2=14366&kind

-http://english.knps.or.kr/Knp/Seoraksan/Intro/Introduction.aspx?MenuNum=1&Submenu=Npp

- http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=651225

- http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=817924#1

Seoul trip – Epilogue

2011-11-06T23:59:00.060+08:00

Korea is definitely a more wallet friendly destination compared to Japan! Accommodation, transportation and meals are much cheaper here.

I simply love autumn! The cool breeze and changing colour of the maples leaves make me happy throughout the trip. It's ideal for travelling as one would not perspire in outdoor unlike in Singapore. How I wish that there is autumn in Singapore!

The food in Korea is awesome! There are always at least 2 - 3 side dishes served during the meal. Even though Korean food are spicy but it's managable for me and suits my taste bud.

The cosmetic in Korea is cheap! A piece of mask only cost ₩1,000 ~ S$1.10. I just couldn't resist buying lots of mask back to Singapore. There are lots of cosmetic shops at every street of Myeongdong and free masks are given to entice customer to patronise the shops.

However the clothes in Korea are as cheap as those in Bangkok. Moreover the season we visited are mostly autumn and winter clothings. I still prefer shopping in Bangkok.

Hopefully the new budget long haul airline Scoot will fly to Korea in the future so I wldnt need to transit in KL and save the transit time.

Seoul trip – 21 Oct 2011

2011-10-21T23:59:00.124+08:00

Even though our flight from KL to Seoul is 11pm, we reached Budget Terminal at 4pm to check in for the 5.30pm flight to KL. The check in queue is long as there is only one check in counter open for the flight to KL.

Long queue at the check in counter

Hand baggage allowance of the airlines at Budget Terminal

After checking in, we have teabreak at the Coffee Bean while passing our time inside the transit hall. The cakes here is much more expensive. =(

Tiramisu at Coffee Bean

The flight departs on time and arrive at KL LCCT 1hr later. As I didnt bought the FLY-THRU ticket, we have to clear the immigration and check in again. It took us half an hour to clear the immigration and collect our luggages. For those who are flying to KL LCCT to catch another plane, it's better to buffer more transit time in case the flight to KL got delayed.

When we exited the arrival hall, we were figuring out how to go to the departure hall. To our surprise, it's just few minutes walk across a sheltered corridor. I'm not sure if the arrival and departure hall of Singapore Budget Terminal are link by a sheltered walkway?

The arrival & departure hall is connected via this corridor

We have about 2 hours to pass while waiting to check in for the Seoul flight. We had our dinner at MacDonald and charged our iphone using the sockets at MacDonald. The Filet-O-Fish and fries here are so dry. Ain't the quality suppose to be the same worldwide? There is free WIFI at KL LCCT hence it's not so bored passing our 2hr here. The last time I took a flight to KL LCCT 3 years ago, there ain't any free WIFI at all.

Filet-O-Fish meal for dinner

I checked in using my iphone few days ago and printed out the boarding pass at the check-in kiosks here. Even though self check in is implemented, the queue for Air Asia X check in counter is still very long.

Departure hall

Liquid item are not allowed into the transit area and yet there is no water cooler inside the transit area. There is room for improvement on this area.

Transit area

Boarding area

It was raining heavily when we are boarding the plane. Umbrellas are provided and collected back at the passenger stairs.

Umbrellas are provided during raining days

The Airbus 330 is huge compared to those flights I took previously which were Airbus 320. We were allocated row 15 which is near the 2nd door of the plane. The flight is almost full but 2 of us could occupy 3 seats as one of the seat belongs to YQ.

Inside the plane

Korean immigration card

As it's a night flight, almost all the passengers were sleeping after meals were served. We didnt pre-booked any meals and felt hungry at midnight. We wanted to purchase hotdogs but it was sold out. In the end, we settled for crossiant.

Crossiant for supper

The temperature was very cold and we wore the coats to sleep. I was sleeping in a sitting position while my sis was occupying the 3 seats. We exchanged our position once in a while. The only discomfort about night flight is that I can't sleep soundly in a sitting position. If I'm rich, I'll surely book the business class. =p

>>Day 2: 22 Oct 11

Seoul trip – Prologue

2011-10-20T23:59:00.004+08:00

When Air Asia X (an Air Asia affiliate which fly to destinations which are more than 4hrs) launched their airtix to Seoul in Aug 10, I was very tempted as one way airfare starts from S$40. However the travelling period was from Nov 10 - Aug 11 which doesn't suit my travelling plan.

Why didnt the Singapore government approve Air Asia's application when they wanted to set up their base here years ago and now those people in KL benefited. =@ Now SIA, Singapore's own national airline wants a slice of this lucrative pie.

When Air Asia was having the annual zero airfare promotion in Nov10, I was expecting cheap airfare from Air Asia X too. The promo for Air Asia X was released a week later and one way fare to Seoul starts from S$81. Since I subscribed to Air Asia e-newsletter, I get to know when was the date of the promotion and I started to search for travel buddy. In the end, our group of 4 comprise of me, my sis, YQ and Luxiang. In the end, YQ and Luxiang pulled out and left with my sis and me.

Normally, the booking time for zero airfare promo starts at 12am. Luckily, for this Air Asia X promo, it starts at 12pm. This means that I don't have to sacrify my precious beauty sleep to sit in front of my laptop to book the airtix. As the travelling period for this promotion is from 1 Jul - 10 Nov, I decided to travel from end Oct to beginning of Nov since it coincide with 2 Public Holidays during this period. I also wanted to experience autumn there as I didnt get to experience it in my trip to Japan last year. In the end, I booked the airtix which depart on 21 Oct and return on 5 Nov. Initially, we had agreed to fly on Sat, 22 Oct but the flight on 22 Oct departs at noon and reach Seoul at night. The flight on 21 Oct depart at 11pm and reach Seoul at 6.20am and this means we get to save some travelling time too. However my concern is whether we would fall asleep on the plane and feel fresh when we reach Seoul the next morning. I was quite pissed off as I had to repeat the booking 3 times before I was successful in the booking. Hence I make a mistake on the return date as we intend to return on 6 Nov midnight and not 5 Nov morning. Haiz... this is the 2nd time I make a mistake in booking again. 0_0"

The return airfare inclusive of taxes from KL to Seoul cost S$220 which is damn cheap. I decided to book the baggage allowance and in-flight meals at a later date since my priority was securing the cheap airtix first. As the flight to Seoul which I booked does not include transit flight from SIN to KL, I have to source for our own flight to KL. Not long after I booked the Seoul ticket, Air Asia came up with FLY-THRU destinations to Gold Coast, Melbourne, Perth, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Paris-Orly, Mumbai, New Delhi, Tokyo-Haneda, Christchurch, Seoul, Taipei and London-Stansted from Singapore. For FLY-THRU destinations, passengers can transit inside the transfer hall and don't have to clear immigration in KL LCCT twice. Even though I sourced for my own flight to and fro KL, it's still add up to be cheaper than the FLY-THRU airtix. =p

For the flight from SIN to KL, I will be flying with Tiger Airways as the timing is better. Even though there are many budget airlines flying from SIN to KL, only Tiger Airways and Air Asia fly to KL LCCT. Jetstar flies to KLIA and Fireflyz flies to Subang airport. I paid S$377 in total which includes: Tiger Airway from SIN -> KL & 15kg luggage, Air Asia X from KL -> Seoul -> KL, 15kg for departure flight and 20kg for return flight, Air Asia from KL -> SIN & 20kg luggage & inflight meal. This is less than half of what a full fledged carrier charge.

Map of South Korea (Source: Lonely planet)

A bit of history about South Korea. North & South Korea was once a unified nation but after WWII, Soviet forces occupied the northern half of Korea while US forces occupied the southern half. In 1950, North Korea attacked South Korea which result in the Korean War. An armistice was signed in 1953 splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone, with no significant territorial gains made by either side. But a peace treaty has never been signed, and the two Koreas remain technically at war with each other to this day. Despite initially being economically outdone by its northern rival, South Korea achieved rapid economic growth in the 1960s and is one of the most industrialized and developed country in the world.

Many Singaporeans have travelled to South Korea but majority are with tour group. The main reason is the language barrier as most Koreans find it difficult to speak or understand despite being educated in English since elementary school. Korean is a homogenous country with nearly all Korean speaking Korean language. I dislike joining tour group so I decide to go for a Free & Easy tour despite the language barrier. From my research, Seoul is a tourist friendly city and tourist can nagivate around on their own. This cannot be said for cities outside Seoul but I have about read bloggers nagivating on their own outside Seoul.

Similar to my Japan trip, I shall share my planning for this trip. Contrary to my fear when planning the Japan trip, I am more comfortable now due to the experience gained in planning the Japan trip. Mutli-destinations trip is no longer difficult. =p

The first thing is to decide which cities to visit. Korea Tourism Organisation has a detailed and comprehensive information about South Korea. Brochures from Korea Tourism Organisation can be requested online and will be mail to you. I did so and received a map and a guide book within a week.

Seoul is the main gateway to Korea and the most visited destination in Korea. Seoul is a good base to explore the outskirt too as it is connected to other cities by domestic flights, regional bus, KTX trains (bullet trains) and normal trains. At first, I intend to visit Jeju but after YQ & Luxiang withdraw from this trip, I dropped Jeju as it's not convenient to navigate around by public bus, rental of car would be much more preferred. Even though my sis and I have driving license, we dont dare to drive in Korea. Moreover Koreans drive on the right side of the road. Then I researched on other places and thought of visiting Gyeongju (ancient capital of Korea) and Busan. But in the end, I decided to visit Seoraksan since the period which we will be travelling coincide with the autumn foilage. I shall reserve Jeju, Gyeongju and Busan for my next Korea trip since these are located at the southern part of Korea.

Accomodation in Seoul is much cheaper than Japan. A night accommodation in Seoul's hostel cost around ₩50,000 ~ S$58 but it cost at least S$100 for a night in Japan. Mind you, it's HOSTEL not HOTEL.

Most of Seoul backpackers are located in Jongno (Anguk/ Sinseol-dong) and Hongdae. Myeongdong is another popular choice as it is the largest fashion area in Seoul and you can shop till you drop at night. Popular hotels in Myeongdong includes Metrol Hotel Seoul and Hotel Ibis Myeongdong.

At first, I wanted to stay at Ann Guesthouse in Hongdae but the minimum pax per room is 3 unless you choose to stay in a dormintory. It's not worth paying for a triple room as we will be staying in Seoul for 12 nights. After some researching, I decided to stay at CIARA920. It is a new hostel which is just open this year and is within walking distance to Insadong and Myeongdong. I booked a twin ensuite room which cost ₩50,000 ~ S$58 a night.

For the other 2 nights accommodation in Sokcho, I booked The House Hostel which is within walking distance from Sokcho intercity bus terminal. A double room cost ₩30,000 ~ S$35 a night.

South Korea's six largest cities — Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon and Incheon, all have subway systems. There are 12 Metropolitan Subway Lines in Seoul which are differentiated by colours. Moreover, all directional signs at Seoul Subway are written in both Korean and English. All stations name are also announced in Korean and English, some popular stations are announced in Chinese and Japanese too. A first glance at the Metro map may looks complicated, but after I have been to Japan, this isn't difficult at all!

Seoul MTR has a subway map which can calculate the fare and travelling distance between the stations, it even list down the first and last train from the station. For those staying in Seoul for at least a few days, it is better to get their transportation card - T-money (similar to Singapore Ezlink card). The card itself costs ₩2,500, but you save ₩100 each time when you make a transfer. The T-Money card can also be used to pay taxi fares, bus fares and other conveniences.

Other than 3 days trip to Seoraksan, the rest of the trips will be mainly concentrated in Seoul with day trips to Everland, Namiseon and DMZ.

How can a trip to Seoul be complete without visiting Korea DMZ? It's impossible to visit the JSA (Joint Security Area) without the companion of a license DMZ tour guide. There are quite a number of tour agencies offering day trip visit to DMZ. Some of the popular tour agencies offering DMZ tour are Koridoor and International Cultural Service Club. I decided to join the DMZ tour with International Cultural Service Club which offers a combined tour of 3rd tunnel and Panmunjom. The full day tour cost ₩120,000 ~ S$140 (include lunch). Normally a foreigner can apply the tour one day in advance but those countries under the USFK Regulation need to apply at least 7 days in advance. Singapore falls under the USFK Regulation and we need to email a colour copy of our scan passport at least 7 days prior to the tour.

I also booked a free tour to Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea "White House". Advance reservation must be made at least 10 days prior to the tour.

I decided to include watching one musical performance in Seoul. Seoul ranks 3rd in the number of performance after New York and Paris. The most famous are NANTA and Jump. Others include Sachoom, Baby, Ballerina Who Loves a B-boy, MISO, Fanta-stick and Drawing show. My sis watched NANTA when they came to perform in Singapore. I decided on Jump as I saw the actress in "Hello Stranger" watching the performance and it looks comical.

Itinerary for the trip:

Day 1: Flight from SIN -> KL then flight from KL -> Seoul

Day 2: Noryangjin fish market 노량진수산시장, Coffee Prince shop in Hongdae, Shopping at Hongdae, Yonsei University Street & Ewha University Fashion Street

Day 3: Bongeunsa Temple 봉은사, Kimchi Museum 김치박물관, Bank of Korea museum/ Postal Museum 한국은행 화폐금융박물관, Seoul Central Post Office, Namsangol Hanok Village 남산골한옥마을, N Seoul Tower 남산서울타워, Shopping @ Myeongdong

Day 4: Seoul -> Sokcho, Abai Village 아바이마을, Daepohang Port 대포항포트

Day 5: Seoraksan National Park 설악산

Day 6: Seoraksan National Park 설악산, Sokcho -> Seoul

Day 7: Gwanghwamun Square 광화문 광장, Cheong Wa Dae 청와대, Gyeongbok-gung 경복궁, National Folk Museum & National Palace Museum 국립고궁박물관, Rainbow fountain at Banpodaegyo bridge 반포대교와 잠수교, Shopping @ Dongdaemun

Day 8: 3rd Tunnel and Panmunjom Tour, Shopping @ Sungshin Women’s University

Day 9: Wongudan Altar 원구단, Deoksugung 덕수궁, Gyeonghuigung 경희궁, Shopping @ Namdaemun & Myeongdong

Day 10: Bosingak Bell Pavilion 보신각, Jogyesa Temple 조계사, Changgyeonggung 창경궁, Jongmyo Shrine 종묘, Shopping @ Insadong

Day 11: Namiseom 남이섬, Watch Jump performance

Day 12: Everland 에버랜드 리조트

Day 13: Unhyeongung 운현궁, Changdeokgung 창덕궁, Biwon 비원, Dongdaemun Gate 동대문, Shopping @ Dongdaemun

Day 14: National Museum of Korea 국립중앙박물관, Shopping @ Gangnam Underground Shopping & Gasan Digital Complex

Day 15: Cheonggyecheon Museum, Cheonggye Plaza, Cheonggyecheon Stream, Shopping @ Dongdaemun

Day 16: Flight from Seoul -> KL and KL -> SIN

Budget for the trip is S$1,700:
- $400 for accomodation

- $200 for transport

- $300 for admission fees & DMZ tour

- $400 for meals

- $400 for shopping

>> Day 1: 21 Oct 11

Seoul trip

2011-10-19T23:59:00.017+08:00

Seoul trip – Prologue
Seoul trip – 21 Oct 2011
Seoul trip – 22 Oct 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 23 Oct 2011 (Sokcho)
Seoul trip – 24 Oct 2011 (Seoraksan)
Seoul trip – 25 Oct 2011 (Seoraksan)
Seoul trip – 26 Oct 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 27 Oct 2011 (DMZ tour)
Seoul trip – 28 Oct 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 29 Oct 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 30 Oct 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 31 Oct 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 1 Nov 2011 (Everland)
Seoul trip – 2 Nov 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 3 Nov 2011 (Namiseon)
Seoul trip – 4 Nov 2011 (Seoul)
Seoul trip – 5 Nov 2011
Seoul trip – Epilogue
Seoul trip – Useful links

Langkawi trip - Useful links

2011-09-21T23:59:00.018+08:00

Information on Langkawi

- http://wikitravel.org/en/Langkawi

- http://langkawi-gazette.com

- http://www.langkawi-info.com/

- http://www.abclangkawi.com/

- http://www.mylangkawi.com/

- http://www.asiaexplorers.com/malaysia/langkawi_travel_guide.htm

- http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g298283-i8829-Langkawi_Kedah.html

Map of Langkawi

- http://www.maps-of-langkawi.com/

- http://www.holidaylangkawi.com/maps.html

- http://www.malaxi.com/ShowMap.php?t=Langkawi+map&i=maps/langkawi/langkawi01.jpg

Langkawi link vacation magazine: http://www.langkawi-gazette.com/langkawilink.pdf

Langkawi cable car: http://www.langkawicablecar.com.my/

List of restaurant: http://www.langkawi-gazette.com/restaurants/?section=14&category=71&langkawi_form=1

Langkawi trip – Epilogue

2011-09-20T23:59:00.068+08:00

As Sep is still the raining season, I was keeping my finger crossed and checking the weather forcast before we went to Langkawi. Luckily, it only rain on the 3rd day of our stay and did not dampered our plans. There are hits and misses of the attractions which we went to.

The hits are the 2 waterfalls which we went. Normally, the waterfall aint as beautiful as there isnt much water cascading down. The misses are not able to visit the hanging bridge (I paid RM30 for the cable car ride @#*&%), boring Galeria Perdana Museum, not able to watch sunset, boring island hopping tour.

This is my first self drive trip and I enjoyed the freedom of such trip. The roads are easy to drive in Langkawi, parking is free and petrol is cheap. However self drives tour are quite limited in ASEAN. =( The stay at Bon Ton is really pampering as I seldom splurge on accommodation.

It's a pity that we have to check out so early the next morning to catch our flight. I love the outdoor wooden bathtub!!! If I can have a dream house, I definitely want a outdoor bathtub. =p

>>Useful links

Langkawi trip – 19 Sep 11

2011-09-19T23:59:00.048+08:00

We woke up at around 7am and have our breakfast before checking out. There are breads, banana cakes, orange juice, yogurt and fruits for breakfast. I left the fruits in the fridge and only recalled it when we were at the airport.

Breakfast

We reached the airport within 15min as Bon Ton is located near the airport. I proceed to check in while YQ went to return the car's key and collect the deposit. Most of the shops are not open yet.

Departure hall

As there is nothing much to do at the departure hall, we cleared the custom and wait at the boarding area until the gate is open for boarding.

Boarding gate waiting area

Walking across the tarmac to the plane

The plane departed on time and reach Singapore at 10.20am. At the transit area, I saw this cute Singpost van which sell postcards and mailing items. There is a mailbox at the front of the van for you to mail your letters.

This singpost van is so cute

>>Epilogue

Langkawi trip – 18 Sep 11

2011-09-18T23:59:00.365+08:00

We woke up at 8.30am today but it's raining heavily. We laze on the bed while waiting for the rain to stop. Finally the rain stop at around 9.30am and we went to the Malay eatery beside Casa Fina.

Malay eatery

Prata stall

We ordered one plain and one egg roti prata each. The pratas and drinks cost us RM7.80 ~ S$3 which is relatively cheap.

Prata breakfast

We checked out after breakfast and drove to Oriental Village. The weather does not seems good but we have no choice but to take cable car today since we will be returning back to Singapore tomorrow.

Gloomy clouds

Probably because of the weather today, there are not a lot people at the cable car station. However the hanging bridge is closed due to the fog. This trip is incomplete without a visit to the hanging bridge =(

On the way to the Gunung Mat Cincang

On the way up, we could see Telaga Tujuh waterfall from the cablecar. The waterfall is also accessible by climbing up 300+ steps.

Telaga Tujuh Waterfalls

We reached the middle station within 8min. It's foggy the station and we couldnt see any scenary at all. =(

Hand wax stall

Bottom station

View from the middle station on a clear day

So misty at the middle station

Viewing platform

Inside the cable car

Clearer view on the way down

Shops inside Oriental village

Red bridge inside Oriental village

Hanging bridge at Oriental Village

Paddle boats in Oriental village

We left Oriental Village and on the way back, we drove to the airport to reconfirm the route as our return flight is early in the morning tomorrow and we don't want to waste time searching for the correct route.

Helang Hotel

A plane landing at Langkawi airport

A castle like hotel

We drove to Awana Porto Malai hotel which is at the end of Pantai Tengah. This is one of the hotel worth visiting for it's scenary especially at night.

Awana Porto Malai

Distance of these cities from Awana Porto Malai

Resting at the sundeck

Our last stop before lunch is Laman Padi Rice Garden. It was drizzling when we reached there. From the entrance big signboard, there is a cafe and a restaurant inside but we could only find the restaurant. Furthermore, there is a tour group having lunch at a restaurant inside the Laman Padi Rice Garden. We just took photos of the padi field and left shortly.

Entrance of Laman Padi Rice Garden

Scarecrows & me

The padi field is so small

A Pickup towing a jetski

In the end, we decided to have lunch at Orkid Ria Seafood Restaurant 真浪花园海鲜. Opening hour: 11am – 3pm and 6am – 11pm. Address: Lot 1225, Pantai Cenang, Mukim Kedawang (A stone's throw from Pelangi Resort)

Orkid Ria Seafood Restaurant

Interior of Orkid Ria Seafood Restaurant

Kampg style houses beside Orkid Ria Seafood Restaurant

We ordered 3 dishes - fish claypot tofu and sambal kangkong which cost RM60 ~ S$25. The price is reasonable. We didnt ordered seafood as we dont know if the restaurant would inflate the price or not. The BBQ fish dipped with their special sauce is yummy.

Claypot tofu

BBQ fish

Sambal kangkong

After our lunch, we drove to Bon Ton Resort. It is located further up the stretch of Pantai Cenang. There is signboard at the roadside as the resort is located further in from the main road.

Bon Ton resort entrance

Carpark

Souvenir shop

The compound comprise of Bon Ton & Temple Tree Resort. The first impression I have when I step into Bon Ton is that this is a very laid bck place. I find calm and peacefulness here. We were ursher to the couch and a welcome drink is served. The welcome drink has mint inside which makes it very refreshing. I don't remember who served us and we were asked a couple of question about our trip in Langkawi. Then we were given some brochures such as recommended food and recommended attractions which were self produced by Bon Ton.

Welcome drink

Reception counter

Restaurant dining area

Padi field opposite Bon Ton

We were guided to the Yellow House. The ground was wet due to the rain and there are muddy patches around the resort. Even though there is footpath, it's not link to all the houses. The other thing I dislike is that the cats roam around freely here. I have to ask the staff to help me carry the cat away from the porch.

Yellow House

A cat resting on the porch

The interior of the house is lovely! The Yellow house which we are staying in was originally a 60 year old fisherman’s house. The house is equip with TV and mini fridge but there is no telephone inside the room. The WIFI access is also weak inside the room. But that's not important since the purpose of staying at Bon Ton is to RELAX!

Sarong bathrobe

Mini bar

Interior of the room

I mentioned in my prologue that it's the outdoor bathroom which attracted me to make reservation at Bon Ton. I love the wooden bathtub but the sundeck is quite dirty. The shower water seeps through the wooden planks into the ground. This is so environmental friendly. Imagine bathing at outdoor and listening to wind breeze blowing at the coconut trees.

Outdoor bathtub and toilet

Coconut trees surrounding the resort

In the evening, the staff came to our room and filled the fridge with the breakfast for tomorrow.

Breakfast for tomorrow

Tea or coffee

Other houses in the resorts

Swimming pool

We drove to Sheela's Restaurant & Cafe for dinner. Opening hours: 6pm – 10.30pm, Tue – Sun. Address: Jalan Teluk Baru, Pantai Tenga (opposite Holiday Villa Hotel).

Gung Fu restaurant beside Sheela restaurant

Sheela restaurant

Stairway leading to Sheela restaurant

Alfresco area

Indoor dining area

I'm not sure if it's because of the rain but there was no customers in Sheela Restaurant throughout the time we are here. We ordered Fish & Chips and Chicken Cordon Bleu. The food does not taste good at all and yet cost us RM77.50 ~ S$32.

Chicken cordon bleu & Fish n chip

Night view of the alfresco area at Sheela

We return to Bon Ton Resort and borrowed DVDs from their library. We watched Erin Brockovich before turning in early for the night.

>>Day 4: 19 Sep 11

Langkawi trip – 17 Sep 11

2011-09-17T23:59:00.490+08:00

We woke up earlier today as we have booked a half day island hopping in the morning. There is a prata stall beside Casa Fina reception house. However the prata stall is not yet open at 7.30am.

Prata shop beside Casa Fina

We crossed the road to a Malay eatery shop opposite Casa Fina which sells nasi lemak. The nasi lemak is cheap but portion is too little. We didnt order extra portion since we have island hopping activity trip later.

Nasi Lemak stall

Nasi Lemak & Tea Tarik

Cute pink beetle car

The island hopping agency arranged a van to pick us up from Casa Fina hence we waited at Casa Fina lobby after our breakfast. The van did not arrived at the expected time and we were worried that we were missed out. The receptionist from Casa Fina offered to help us call the tour agency and told us that the driver will arrive later. We were drove to the jetty at the corner of Pantai Tengah.

Island hopping tour agencies at the jetty

The jetty is crowded with people waiting for speed boat. We waited for almost half an hour before it's our turn to board the speed boat. We were given a sticker each to differentiate different tour groups.

Notice the red shirt cameraman?

View of Awana Porto Malai Langkawi & Islands from the jetty

Anybody knows the name of this resort?

Everyone putting on life jacket

Speed boat driver

Islands around Langkawi

Can you see the shape of a pregnant lady?

Within 15min, we reached the first destination of island hopping - Pulau Dayang Bunting (Pregnant Maiden Island). We were told to gather back at the jetty an hour later. I guessed these boat drivers make their earnings based on the number of trips they make. Hence after dropping us, our boat driver drove off and probably to another island to pick up other passengers to another location. There are many monkeys loitering around at the jetty looking for food.

Monkeys at the jetty

Pulau Dayang Bunting (Pregnant Maiden Island)

From the jetty, there is only one path leading the Dayang Bunting lake. The jetty is about 5min walk to Dayang Bunting lake. After the jetty, there is a toilet which is chargeable and is also the only toilet on this island. There are many monkeys along the path waiting for tourist to throw their food away.

Stairs leading to Lake of the Pregnant Maiden

The only activity at the lake is boat paddling. We didnt brought much monies with us hence we just sit at one corner and ate the potato chips which we brought. I read in the internet that cat fishes are presence in the lake and people would sit at the floating platform doing fish spa. But it seems that the cat fishes are no longer found inside the lake now, is it because they are turned off by the smelly human feet?

Activities on the lake

Solar boats

Floating platform

We bought this honey mustard potato chips from Billion supermarket yesterday. We just couldnt stop eating after we started. It's just so yummy! The price (RM7 ~ S$3) is much more expensive than those normal potato chip flavours but it's worth it.

Yummy Honey Mustard potato chips

We decided to walk back to the jetty as it's quite sunny at Dayang Bunting lake and there are not much shade there. We sat at a hut along the footpath while waiting for the time to pass.

After an hour, we left Pulau Dayang Bunting and the speedboat driver drove to Pulau Singa Besar. The speedboat stopped somewhere in the middle of the sea and the driver switched off the boat engines. Then he threw pieces of chicken meat into the sea. Within seconds, the eagles fly down to grab the chicken. I read in the tripadvisor forum that some forumers discourage this activity as it disturbs the natural habitat of eagles.

Eagles roaming around

The last stop of the island hopping is Pulau Beras Basah. We were given an hour of free time on this island. I thought that we could snorkel here but no snorkelling equipment was provided by the driver.

Pulau Beras Basah

There is a hut which rents snorkel equipment. I forgot how much is the rental of snorkel equipment. We didnt rent since we didnt brought much monies with us and the fishes here are not spectacular too.

Renting of snorkelling equipments

Signboard of Pulau Beras Basah

We sat at a bench and continue eating our potato chips. We bought a can of coke from the only food & drink stall on the island. A can of coke cost RM2.50 ~ S$1 and I heard someone complaining that a packet of fried noodle cost RM5 which is really very expensive.

Sole drink and tibit stall

A more seclude corner

There is a well on Pulau Beras Basah

Fishes at the jetty

We reached Langkawi at around 1.30pm and there are photo souvenirs for purchase. Saw the red colour shirt man who was standing at the jetty in the photo previously? He's the cameraman. We waited about 15min before our van came and send us back to Casa Fina.

Photo plates souvenirs

We quickly went back to our room for toilet break and went out. We drove to Telaga Harbour Park which is about 1/2hr from Casa Fina.

Go kart circuit

Road along the airport runway

Overbridge at Jalan Kuala Muda

Yatches from afar

I plan to have our lunch at The Loaf, a bakery and bistro open by Tun Mahathir. There were not many people when we reached since it's already 2.30pm.

The Loaf Restaurant

The bread sold in The Loaf bakery are not cheap and the minimum price is at least RM4 ~ S$1.70.

The Loaf Bakery

A variety of bread

Display on each table

We ordered Southern Cajun Chicken Sandwich, Roasted Chicken set which comes with drink and dessert and a glass of Langkawi sunset. The Cajun Chicken was recommend by a blogger but it doesnt taste good. The Roasted Chicken which is the dish of the day taste much better. The service at The Loaf bistro is a bit slow and we have to remind the waiter a couple of times before he serve our dessert. The bill came up RM80 ~ S$33 which is quite expensive by Malaysia's living standaard.

Our drinks

Southern Cajun Chicken Sandwich

Roasted chicken

Chocolate fudge cake

There are many yatches docking at the harbour but we cant board the yatches. How I wish I'm one of the owner. =p

Yatches at Telega Habour

We then drove to Oriental Village which is 10min away. One of the factor which makes self driving in Langkawi afforable is that parking is free everywhere! There are also ample of carparks at most of the places of interest.

Entrance of Oriental Village

Shops at Oriental Village

When we reached the cable car station, there was long queue forming and the waiting time is 2hr. We decided to return for the cable car ride tomorrow morning.

Cable car station

Long waiting hour at the cable car station

We drove to Air Terjun Temurun which is situated at the Northwest of Langkawi. We failed to turn left into Jalan Datai where Air Terjun Temurun is located and continue our journey on Jalan Teluk Yu. I realised that we have overshot when I saw the Handicraft Cultural Complex.

Danna Langkawi

A cement factory

Langkawi waterfall is a man-made waterfall which is few minutes away from Air Terjun Temurun. However I couldnt see the waterfall from the roadside at all.

Langkawi Waterfall

There isnt much space at the entrance so we parked our car at the roadside. From the entrance to Terjun Temurun waterfall, it only takes 5min walk which is relatively shorter than the walk at Durian Perangin.

Entrance of Air Terjun Temurun

Pathway to Air Terjun Temurun

Air Terjun Temurun is more impressive than Air Durian Peragin as the height is higher. There are few teenagers who climb onto the rocks and jump into the pond. We bought tripod along and is able to take couple photos without asking others for help. =p

Air Terjun Temurun Locals playing at Air Terjun Temurun

Since it's still early, we decided to drive to Gunung Raya. The drive up to the summit tooks about 20min. The roads are winding but manageable. We did not saw many cars along the way up and YQ is a bit worried. ><"

Unique building at the bottom of Gunung Raya

Road leading to Gunung Raya

There is a lookout tower at the summit. Admission fee is RM10. We didnt went in since the view is not very spectacular.

A tower at the peak of Gunung Raya

View from Gunung Raya

A nicer view from the road side

We drove to Tanjung Rhu beach for sunset again. Although it's not raining today, the sunset is blocked by the clouds. =(

Sunset at Tanjong Rhu

Then we drove to Kuah night market. I was quite disappointed with the night market even though Kuah night market is the largest night market in Langkawi. The food variety is repetitive at most of the stalls. Other than the food stall, I wasnt keen on the other stalls. In the end, we bought a burger which doesnt taste as good as Ramly burger and satays for dinner.

Langakawi Boron Hotel which is near Kuah night market

A bridge near Kuah night market

Kuah night market

Burger

Clothes stall

Food stalls

>>Day 3: 18 Dec 11

Langkawi trip – 16 Sep 11

2011-09-16T23:59:00.396+08:00

Air Asia starts to implement counter check-in fee of S$5 from 21 Sep 11. I never heard of any airlines charging passengers for counter check-in, Air Asia is trying every means and ways to earn extra income. Even though our flight to Langkawi is before the date they implement this, I decided to try out their online checking. I checked in using the Air Asia app in my iphone and a QR code was sent to my iphone. Upon arrival at the airport, I just need to scan the code at the kioskand the boarding pass is printed out. Then I bring the boarding pass and passport to the check in counter for verification. Hmm... I really don't understand why Air Asia charge passengers for counter check-in when they still need to allocate manpower to verify the boarding pass.

Air Asia check in kiosk

We nearly missed the flight as we were still clearing the custom when it's "last call" for our flight. The flight to Langkawi is short and we landed safely after 1hr 20min.

Wave breaker

The immigration clearance tooks almost 1/2hr as there are only 4 counters for foreigners. After clearing the custom, there are many car rental companies waiting for us at the baggage carousels area. As I have done my research, I ignored the rest and head straight to Indrah Travel & Tours counter which is recommended by forummers. We rented a Proton Saga for RM240 for 3 days and paid a deposit of RM50 which is refundable upon return of the car. Car rental is cheaper during weekdays and can be as low as RM60 for Perodua Viva Elite. The price on their price list is inflated and the car rental companies creates the impresssion that they are actually offering you a discount. We also booked an island hopping tour with Indrah which we bargained from RM35 to RM30 per pax. We realised that Casa Fina charge RM25 per pax when we check in.

2 baggage carousels at the airport

Tourism office

Car rental counters

Majority of the cars are rented cars!

We waited for a while outside the arrival hall and one of Indrah staff came forward and guide us to collect our rented car. YQ checked the car and tested the engine. He's the driver and I'm the one reading the map and guiding him. No choice cos he's map reading skill is poor. =p

Our rented car for this trip

We were given a map by Indrah which faciliates us in driving around Langkawi. We decided to head to the hotel and try our luck to check in even though the official check in time is 3pm. Casa Fina Fines Home is not difficult to locate as I know that it's opposite the Underwater World.

Entrance to Casa Fina Fines Home

YQ waited inside the car as we are not sure if we are allowed to check in now. It turns out that our room is available hence YQ parked his car at the carpark behind Casa Fina while I check-in.

Casa Fina Fines Home reception building

The rooms are bunglow style

Porch

The room is clean but a bit stuffy as the aircon takes a while to cool down the room. We left our belongings in the room and went out.

Standard King room

The bathroom is spacious

We have a hard time finding our lunch as all the restaurants that I researched are closed. I wondered if they are closed on public holidays? In the end, we have our lunch at Red Sky, a restaurant which is within walking distance from Casa Fina. We ordered a milkshake and pizza. The pizza is lukewarm and awful. This is the worst meal which we had in Langkawi.

Red sky restaurant

Bar counter

Strawberry milkshake

The worst Hawaiian pizza I have ever ate

We drove to the nearest petrol station to fill up the fuel tank. There are no petrol station in Pantai Cenang, the nearest petrol station is at Jalan Kedawang, few mins drive from Pantai Cenang. The petrol station here is self service which means that you have to pay before you pump the petrol. We pumped RM30 ~ S$12 the first time as I read in forum that RM30 is sufficient for 2 days usage.

Pay before you use

Then we drove to Galeria Perdana museum. My plan is to take the cable car ride but we have a change of plan as it is quite cloudy. The ride to Galeria Perdana museum tooks about 1/2hr and on some of the roads, there were no cars in sight. This make it relatively easy to drive in Langkawi.

The houses are very kampong style

No cars???

Shophouses in Kuah

Galeria Perdana Museum

The opening hours of Galeria Perdana museum is from 8.30am - 5pm (Closed on Mon).The admission for foreigner is RM10 ~ S$4 and camera fee is RM2 ~ S$0.80. I found that there are many attractions in Malaysia which charge cheaper admission fee for Malaysians but there is no such benefits in Singapore. =(

Galeria Perdana museum displayed gifts received by Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, and his wife from world leaders, statesmen as well as Malaysians during his tenure as Prime Minister. It's really a brilliant idea of Mathathir to display the gifts here as I doubt that he'll have sufficient space to store all these gifts in his house and yet at the same time, he can earn from the admission fee.

The vase is almost double of my height

Glassware gifts

This resemble Borobudur

Who is the calefare?

This painting is made from gemstone

The museum is huge

I wondered how much does the ceiling cost?

Circular ramp

Red bull car

Guess guess what is this?

It's a painting from art punching technique

The ugly S-shape proposed causeway

I was searching very hard for the gift from Singapore and it turns out to be this painting from our Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong. This gift really pale in comparison to gifts from other countries.

Gift from Singapore

Souvenir shop

Vintage cars

Solar car

Trishaw from Melaka

Next we went to Durian Perangin Waterfall which is few minutes away from Galeria Perdana Museum. The waterfall is about 15min trek from the carpark. The steps nearer to the waterfall are steeper but are manageable.

Path to Durian Perangin Waterfall

Steel suspension bridge

Middle course of the waterfall

The waterfall is not very spectacular but is definitely compared to the dry season. The waterfall dont seem to be a popular attraction as there are only a few locals playing at the bottom of the waterfall.

Hmm... What is YQ reflecting at Durian Perangin Waterfall?

As it is still early, we decided to head to Pantai Pasir Hitam before watching sunset at Tanjong Rhu. Pantai Pasir Hitam actually means black sand beach, the beach is black due to the large amounts of tourmaline and ilemnite. However only a small patch is black, the sands that are further away are not so black. This is not the 1st black sand beach which I have visited, the previous one I have been to is the Hac Sa Bay in Macau.

Pantai Pasir Hitam

White vs Black

The further the beach, the whiter the sand

Jetty near Pantai Pasir Hitam

We had coconut drinks at Pantai Pasir Hitam. Although the coconut is larger, the juice is not very sweet and there is not much coconut flesh, I still prefer Thai coconuts.

This Mak Cik is very skillful in chopping the coconut

Savouring the coconut juice

I have researched that the best sunset is at Tanjong Rhu but when we reached there, the sun is covered by the clouds. =( We left shortly and drove to Kuah.

Tanjung Rhu beach

Cow roaming by the roadside

The Dataran Lang (Eagle Square) was covered with scaffold as it's under maintenance. Hence I decide to skip it and head to Legenda park nearby. I only took photos of the Langkawi map outside Legenda park as admission fee is required and there is nothing much to see inside the park.

Legenda Park

Then we drove to Bella Vista Hotel which is also nearby. The purpose is to take photos of this hotel as the hotel building resemble those Disney castle. I wouldnt recommend staying in this hotel as the review is not very good.

Bella Vista hotel

Sea view from Bella Vista poolside

We drove to Wonderland Food Store, near Bella Vista hotel but it's closed. We decided to purchase liqour and chocolates from Billions (beside Langkawi Fair shopping mall) before returning back to Pantai Tengah for dinner.

Billion duty free departmental store

Langkawi is a duty free island hence the liqour and chocolates are cheaper than elsewhere. It's a pity that I cant buy those liqours and bring back to Singapore. We only bought 2 cans of beer and some chocolates for supper tonight.

Drunkard

Lots of liquor, wines and beers

Chocolates section

Maxi lollipop

YQ eating US$

We drove back to Pantai Tengah and there are road blocks sealing the whole stretch of Pantai Tengah. We were damn pissed off as we are starving. There were no announcements or signage to inform people about the road closure. YQ told the traffic policewoman a white lie and she believe it. Bingo! Our car is allowed to drive in. When we are approaching Casa Fina, another policeman came forward to stop us and we quickly told him that this is our hotel. Phew...

We quickly parked our car and asked the receptionist how far is Orkid Ria Seafood Restaurant from Pantai Tengah as we thought of walking there for dinner. However, we walked pass T Jay's Pizza which was not open when we wanted to have our lunch here this afternoon. We decided to have our dinner here as we are starving! The restaurant is directly opposite Underwater World and we get to know from the waiter that it's close in the afternoon during the low season. If I remember correctly, the restaurant is open for lunch in Nov - Feb but it's definitely open for dinner! (Tel: +604 955 3995)

This T-Jay's pizza signage is at the main road pavement

T-Jay's Pizza cafe

Table layout

We ordered a Funghi pizza and a glass of lemon juice which cost RM30 ~ S$12. Their pizza is those normal crispy thin crust pizza and yet it's the best meal which we had during our Langkawi trip. Yummy!

Lemon juice

Yummy Funghi pizza

Chilli oil which is not spicy at all

There is road procession and gigs at the Underwater world. It almost ended when we were strolling back to Casa Fina after our dinner.

Merdaka day celebration

>> Day 2: 17 Sep 11

Langkawi trip – Prologue

2011-09-15T23:59:00.060+08:00

Among the destinations in Malaysia where the budget airlines fly directly to, I'm left with Langkawi and Miri. I booked the airtix way back in Nov last year when Air Asia was having the zero airfare promotion. I always didnt managed to get zero airfare tickets in the past promotions but this time round, I managed to book zero airfare for the return trip. The ticket inclusive of taxes and administative fees cost S$94. It's a pity that Tiger Airways has ceased flight to Langkawi otherwise I will have a choice.

There are 4 weekly flights from Singapore to Langkawi i.e. Mon, Wed, Fri and Sun. We will be departing on Fri and returning on Mon as spending at least 4 days in Langkawi is recommended. In fact, we only have 2 1/2 day in Langkawi as we will be arriving at around noon time and leaving in the early morning.

YQ went to Langkawi before but I didn't, so he has the chance to revisit again, hehe... I feel that Langkawi has lost the charm that it once possessed a decade ago. It used to be one of the more beautiful beach resorts around the region but Redang, Phuket and Krabi are the preferred beach destination nowadays.

Langkawi is an archipelago of 99 islands with additional 5 islands surfacing during low tide. The chinese name of Langkawi is 浮罗交怡 and I'm puzzled as to why this is the Chinese name?? Langkawi is also known as 兰卡威 which in my opinion is a direct translation of the pronouncation of Langkawi. Pulau Langkawi is the largest island in the archipelago and one of the 4 islands which is inhabited. Langkawi was a sleepy backwater until it was granted duty free status in 1987. This coincides with the curse laid by Mahsuri and was lifted with the birth of her 7th generation descendant.

Langkawi can only be reach by sea and air. Langkawi was granted World Geopark status by UNESCO on 1 June 2007. Three of its main conservation areas in Langkawi Geopark are Machincang Cambrian Geoforest Park, Kilim Karst Geoforest Park and Dayang Bunting Marble Geoforest park (Island of the Pregnant Maiden Lake). The peak season to visit is from Nov - Feb and middle of the year is the period to avoid.

Map of Langkawi

There are a variety of hotels in Langkawi ranging from budget guesthouse to luxury resorts. After researching on the accomodation, I decided to book the first 2 nights stay at Casa Fina Fines Home which cost RM158 a night. I wanted to book Azio Hotel as the rates published on the website is cheaper but I didnt knew that 16 Sep is a Malaysia public holiday hence the rate is RM145 a night. I choose to stay at Casa Fina Fines Home as it is located at Pantai Cenang where there are more choices of eateries than Azio Hotel which is located at Kuah. For the last night, I decided to pamper ourselves by staying at Bon Ton. I wanted to book the Blue Ginger room but it was reserved hence I settled for Yellow Orchid which is the 2nd cheapest at RM590 a night. It is the outdoor bath tub which attracts me to stay at Bon Ton.

I intend to rent a car at the airport to get around Langkawi since there are no public transport on the island. Taxi is expensive and a ride can be almost a quarter of the daily car rental cost. From my research, car rental range from RM50 – RM150 a day and petrol is dirt cheap, RM30 is sufficient to go around the island for 2 days.

While researching on Langkawi, I realised that there are quite a number of attractions there which I don't think that 2 1/2 days is sufficient to explore the whole island. After eliminating some attractions, I come up with the following itinerary:
Day 1: Reach Langkawi at 12.15pm, Telaga Harbour Park, Oriental Village, Cable Car Ride & Hanging Bridge, Tanjung Rhu
Day 2: Island hopping, Galeria Perdana Museum, Lagenda Langkawi Dalam Taman,
Day 3: Laman Padi Rice Garden and rest of the day idling at Bon Ton
Day 4: Depart Langkawi at 8.55am

Budget for this trip is RM1,100 ~ S$450:
- RM450 for accomodation
- RM150 for car rental & petrol
- RM100 for admission tickets and tour
- RM200 for meals
- RM200 for shopping

>>Day 1: 16 Sep 11

Langkawi trip

2011-09-14T23:59:00.009+08:00

Langkawi trip – Prologue
Langkawi trip – 16 Sep 11
Langkawi trip – 17 Sep 11
Langkawi trip – 18 Sep 11
Langkawi trip – 19 Sep 11
Langkawi trip – Epilogue
Langkawi trip – Useful links

Bali trip – 24 Jul 11

2011-07-24T23:59:00.036+08:00

We woke up at 3.30am to catch our 6.20am flight back to Singapore. We check out from the hotel at 4am and surprisingly, the lane outside the hotel is jammed. We have asked the receptionist to book a cab yesterday but in the end, we just board an empty cab as it's pointless to wait for our cab when we didnt even know when it'll arrive. We were stuck in the jam for almost 15min before the cab reach a lane which is a shortcut to escape from the heavy traffic. It's terrible, traffic jam so early at dawn due to those night clubbing people.

Anyway we reach the airport within half an hour and there was long queue for counter check in. I decided to check in using the Air Asia kiosk and then check in our luggage. This queue was short and it save us a lot of our time. Then when we reached the immigration counters, it's long queue again. Finally after clearing the immigration, we have to walk quite a distance to the gate.

The sun has not risen

Ngurah Rai International Airport control tower

Sunrise

I have pre-order meals when booking the airtix which is much cheaper than purchasing on the flight.

Classique Hotdog

Smoked Chicken Focaccia

Bali trip – 23 Jul 11

2011-07-23T23:59:00.093+08:00

Same as yesterday, I woke up at 6am and started my makeup. The breakfast in Tanaya bed & breakfast is not buffet style and only one set of breakfast is served daily.

Balinese feel along the corridor

Breakfast corner

My Make up artist - Kym

Breakfast for the day

The first destination for photoshoot is Uluwatu. There are lots of monkeys there so tourists have to beware of their hats, spectacles and belongings. After that, we went to Blue Point. We have our lunch at a local shop which is much cheaper than those in the hotels nearby. After our lunch, we went to Padang-Padang beach which was shown in Eat Pray Love for photoshoot first. There is a flight of steep staircase leading from the carpark to the beach and it is tiring to climb up the staircase on return. Then we return to Blue Point for photoshoot for the rest of the days.

Blue point

Ketty Warung

Lunch for the day

View of the houses by the cliff

The cliff is so high

This reminds me of Great Ocean Road

Below the cliff

This beach is quite isolated

Hand & foot print

We borrowed a surfing board from a caucasian

Beautiful sunset

We have to change to another room as the deluxe room is fully booked for today. We left our luggage in our previous room early in the morning and the housekeeper moved our luggages to our new room. The superior room is much smaller than the deluxe room and it's near to the road which is very noisy due to the pubs nearby.

Superior room

Bathroom

>> Day 4: 24 Jul 11

Bali trip – 22 Jul 11

2011-07-22T23:59:00.104+08:00

I woke up at 6am today as my make up artist (MUA) is coming over for my makeup. My MUA makeup and curl my hair then we went to the roof top for breakfast. After breakfast, we went back to our room to continue my hair styling and change into my gown. It's almost 9plus and we left the hotel for photoshoot.

MUA styling my hair

The first photoshoot location which we went to is Bajra Sandhi at Denpasar. The admission fee is nominal but for photoshoot, the admission fee is IDR250K and we bargained to IDR200K ~ S$28. Most of the photos were took by my MUA as both of us were too busy posing for my PG.

Bajra Sandhi

Next Ah He drove us to KFC for lunch. Ah He told us that MacDonalds is not popular in Indonesia as Indonesian like fried chicken. The fried chicken set here comes with rice mould into dumpling.

After our lunch, we head to Sanur beach for photoshoot. Ah He mentioned that there is a venue for wedding which is in diamond shape. We walked for quite a distance before we are able to spot the venue. However we couldnt take photos there as someone from the hotel forbade us from taking photoshoot here.

Colourful boats

Beautiful blue diamond wedding venue

A huge tree at Sanur beach

After the photoshoot at Sanur beach, we went back to KFC to change to my short gown and change my hair style.

Changing into my short dress

We passed by a few padi fields and we took some photos there before heading to the last destination - Tanah Lot. It's quite crowded at Tanah Lot as everyone is waiting for sunset.

Tanah Lot

Are you able to spot the surfers?

It's so crowded

So many potholes

Finally the huge waves came

Shades of light

After finishing the photoshoot at 7plus, we head to a Chinese restaurant - Tanjung Pinang (Add: Jln. Raya Tuban No 100 X Kuta, Tel: 0361 751841) for dinner. This restaurant is patronise by Sam, our PG whenever he come to Bali as he's not used to local food. We ordered Cha Keow Teow, Otak, fish cake, prawn roll (hei zhou) etc. The dishes are delicious, just that it's a bit salty.

It's very tired taking photoshoot and we sleep soon after we bath. Zzzzz...

>>Day 3: 23 Jul 11

Bali trip – 21 Jul 11

2011-07-21T23:59:00.190+08:00

We took a cab before 7am to avoid the peak hour surcharge and reached the airport early. As we have arranged to meet our MUA (make up artist) & PG (photographer) at 8am, we went to T3 MacDonalds to have our breakfast first. To our dismay, the MacDonald outlet is under renovation so we took a skytrain from T3 to T2 MacDonalds.

After our breakfast, we met up with our MUA and PG and proceed to check in. The flight departs on time and surprisingly every passenger is given a packet of tibit. Well, this must be sponsored by the supplier as a form of advertisement. The tidbit looks like mothball and not very tasty.

Free tibit from Air Asia

We reached Ngurah Rai International Airport at around 12pm. There is no aerobridge for Air Asia flight and the passengers have to take a shuttle bus to the airport terminal.

Inside the airport bus

Balinese feel at the airport

Clearing the custom is a breeze as most of the passengers are Caucasians which requires visa on arrival hence there is vitually no queue at the custom. It's the baggage arrival which takes a long time. We waited for almost 15min for the first luggage to be loaded on the conveyor belt. Our PG advised us to collect our luggage once we spot them otherwise we have to pay the porter if they pick up our luggage.

So many ATM at the airport

Beware of porter service

Our PG informed us that the driver is coming to pick us hence we waited for him outside the arrival hall. I could feel the sea breeze even though the weather is hot in Bali. The driver Ah He came with his wife and daughter. His toddler daughter is very cute! As it's lunch time, he drove us to Ayam Tulang Lunak Malioboro. This eatery is famous for soft bone chicken (Ayam Tulang Lunak). I didnt knew that this restaurant is so famous until I return back to Singapore and saw a Taiwan travel documentary recommending this restaurant.

Her eyes is so big

See the menu for the address

We choose the outdoor seats as there are 2 huts there. The food we ordered are 2 type of soft bone chicken - one with sesame and the other with grated coconut, Tahu telur and Sambal Teri Pete. The bones are very soft and can be swallowed. However, don't eat too much as you will feel greasiness of the chicken. I like the sauce of Tahu telur, it taste similar to rojak sauce. The coconut drink is nice and very refreshing. The price is reasonable at IDR 514,050 ~ S$75 after tax and service charge for 6 pax.

Kelapa Muda (Coconut drink)

Ayam Presto Madu Wijen

Ayam Presto Goreng 1/2 Ekor

Tahu Telur

Sambal Teri Pete

The rice portion is small

After our lunch, Ah He drove us to Tanaya Bed & Breakfast to check in. Our PG check in and went out fishing immediately. We took an afternoon nap as we woke up very early this morning.

Tanaya bed & breakfast

Reception area

Lobby area

Free computer access

I like the bedroom. The deluxe room is spacious, clean and new. No wonder it's ranked No 1 in Tripadvisor B&B. One thing I dislike is the curtain as it is difficult to draw. The other thing is no bathtub =( but with this price for a B&B, it's really value for money. There is no WIFI in individual room, only the lobby and breakfast area are able to access to WIFI.

Deluxe bedroom

Bathroom

By the time we woke up, it's evening and we went out for dinner. After walking for about 15min from Tanaya B&B, we reached Made Warung. It's full when we reached there for dinner.

Made Warung

Menu

We were given a table on the 1st floor but the ambience on the 2nd floor is better. This meal cost us IDR130,000 ~ S$19 which is not cheap at all and I don't find the food fantastic.

Mixed fruit juice

Nasi Campur special

Nasi Goreng

After our dinner, we took a stroll and walk the other way back to our hotel. Beware that Poppies lane 2 is a very very long lane.

MacDonald's delivery

Nice deco shops

Offerings to the underworld

Entance to Kuta beach

Horse carriages

Bali bombing memorial

>>Day 2: 22 Jul 11

Bali trip – Prologue

2011-07-20T23:59:00.076+08:00

I intend to travel to Bali in Apr this year and I had booked my airtix way back in Jul last year. But I'm getting married and I didnt forsee this when I planned my Bali trip last year. Since I'm getting married, I decided to travel to Bali for my wedding photoshoot as I find that the scenery in Singapore boring.

After some consideration, I decided to cancel the Bali trip in Apr and travel in Jul instead. I only wasted about $110 for cancelling both the airtix and accommodation (I have prepaid both). For the airtix, Air Asia allows refund of airport tax after departure date. I tried to email twice to airporttaxrefund@airasia.com and didnt get any reply for 2 months. =( Hence I tried to send e-form at AskAirAsia and immediately I got a email reply acknowledgement. I got back the airport tax refund a month later. Then for the Tune Hotel accommodation, there is a cancellation fee of IDR8,500 plus tax. The balance is credited into a shell credit which has to be utilised within 6 months. As one of my friend is booking Tune hotel Kuta, I got her to utilised the shell credit for me. For the Tegal Sari accommodation, the amount was credited back into my credit card with few bucks deducted for credit card charges.

I was waiting for airtix promotion as normal return fares to Bali cost ~ S$200. Finally, my wish was answered. Air Asia introduced an additional flight to Bali daily and only this additional flight timing is under promotion. The return timing is not good as it depart from Bali at 6.20am. But what to do as the promotion airtix cost only ~ S$100.

For accommodation, I have some difficulties as Jul is the peak period in Bali. I wanted to book Tegal Sari but was full. In the end, I booked Tanaya bed & breakfast which cost US$55 a night for deluxe room. For the last night, I had to book a superior room US$52 as the deluxe room is full.

The driver which we engaged is someone whom the photographer engaged when he went to Bali for photoshoot. As I don't know the name of some of the scenery, I have no choice but to engage this driver. His rate is IDR500,000 ~ S$72 per day.

This trip is mainly for wedding photoshoot and I didnt plan any itinerary at all.

>>Day 1: 21 Jul 11

Bali trip

2011-07-19T23:59:00.003+08:00

Bali trip – Prologue
Bali trip – 21 Jul 11
Bali trip – 22 Jul 11
Bali trip – 23 Jul 11
Bali trip – 24 Jul 11

Yogyakarta trip – Useful links

2011-04-26T23:59:00.034+08:00

Information on Yogyakarta:

- http://wikitravel.org/en/Yogyakarta

- http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g294230-i9252-Yogyakarta_Java.html

- http://www.yogyes.com

- http://www.talesofasia.com/indonesia-yogyakarta.htm

- http://www.walkaboutindonesia.com/jogjakarta.htm

Map of Yogyakarta city: http://wikitravel.org/upload/en/a/aa/Yogyakarta_city_map.png

Information on Borobudur: http://wikitravel.org/en/Borobudur

Information on Prambanan: http://wikitravel.org/en/Prambanan

Borobudur park: http://www.borobudurpark.co.id/

Purawisata Ramayana Ballet: http://www.purawisatajogja.com/en/facilities/ramayana-ballet-performance.html

Prambanan Ramayana Ballet: http://www.borobudurpark.co.id/en/events/ramayana-ballet-at-prambanan.html

Yogyakarta trip – Epilogue

2011-04-25T23:59:00.147+08:00

Thanks to Air Asia that I get to visit Borobudur. In the past, only Silkair flies direct to Solo (the other nearest city to Borobudur other than Yogyakarta) and airtix is not as cheap as what Air Asia offer. Hopefully, Air Asia and other budget airlines will fly to more destinations from Singapore, the more the merrier.

It's a problem when there is communication barrier. Other than the incident we encountered when we first arrived, it was smooth sailing for the rest of the days. This is why among all the places I have been to, I love Taiwan the most as there is no communication barrier there.

I was awe by the size of Borobudur. It's magnificent, grand and huge. In comparison, Prambanan pale in terms of size. In my opinion, Prambanan is overshadow by Borobudur. But I would recommend everyone to visit both. I felt excited to visit 2 world heritage sites during this trip.

If staying in Pondok Tingal is hell then staying in Rumah Mertua is heaven. I really enjoyed my stay in Rumah Mertua. The rooms are clean, staff are friendly, warm and speak good English. It is one of the best value for money accommodation which I have ever stayed! I'm starting to miss the 2 days there when I'm blogging for this post.

Most of the food which we ate in Yogyakarta are very salty. I wondered if the salt is free here? It doesnt suit our taste at all. The best meal that we had for the whole trip was Rijsttafel at Rumah Mertua. Although not all the dishes are equally delicious, majority of the dishes are definitely better than all the other meals we had in Yogyakarta.

>>Useful links

Yogyakarta trip – 24 Apr 11

2011-04-24T23:59:00.139+08:00

We woke up at 4am in the morning as our flight back to Singapore is 7.30am. When we went to the hotel lobby to return the room keys, our packed breakfast are waiting for us at the lobby couch. It was raining heavily and yet Herman arrived promptly at 5.15am.

Our breakfast prepared by Rumah Mertua

We reached the airport in 30mins and we bid farewell to Herman. The departure area here only allows flight passengers to enter.

Outside the departure hall

There are a handful of check in counters at the departure hall and Air Asia check in counters are located at the extreme right hand side. The staff help us to check in using the check in kiosk.

Check in counters

Air Asia check in kiosk

Domestic departure tax counter

After we have checked in, we proceed to the international departure tax counter which is located at the opposite corner of Air Asia check in counter. The international departure tax is IDR100,000 ~ S$14.50 per person.

International departure tax counter

Shops at the departure hall

Garuda airport lounge

As we still have plenty of time, some of us had our breakfast while some went to browse for souvenirs at the shops. I am really pleased with Rumah Mertua's service that they are able to pack our breakfast so that we can eat it readily at the airport. We don't have to skip our breakfast even though we have an early flight. =)

There is only 1 female toilet in the departure hall and 3 cubicles inside the toilet, this definitely is not enough! I hope the airport authorities will take note of this.

American breakfast

After all of us had our breakfast, we proceed to clear the immigration custom. The check on hand carry luggage is not very stringent as I have a bottle of water inside my bag and yet the custom didnt ask him to take it out. Then we waited for our flight at the waiting area. We waited for about half an hour before the door leading to the tamac is open.

Departure gate waiting area

A plane just landed

The flight departed on time and I dozed off soon. It would be better if this flight is not scheduled so early in the morning.

I wonder if this is Mount Merapi?

Reaching Singapore

The plane landed in Singapore 10min earlier than the estimated arrival time. We went to T3 and had Mac for breakfast before bidding farewell to each other.

>>Epilogue

Yogyakarta trip – 23 Apr 11

2011-04-23T23:59:00.583+08:00

Today is the only day which we don't have to wake up extremely early. We gathered at the common area before strolling to the restaurant for breakfast. While waiting for breakfast to be served, I walked around the compound to take photos.

As there are only 11 rooms in Rumah Mertua, it gives me an intimate feel due to the more personal touch from the staff. The compound is decorated with lots of greenery which makes the environment very relax.

Spa room

Pathway leading to the common area and our rooms

Pathway leading to the standard rooms

Deluxe rooms facing the swimming pool

Swimming pool

Monkey peeing

Flowers and plants creeping around the wooden poles

Lots of greenary

Signboard at the gate entrance

Road leading to Rumah Mertua

Facade of Rumah Mertua

Porch

Lobby

Pond with fishes inside

Hallway leading to the restaurant

Decorations in the restaurant

There are 8 choices in the breakfast menu. All of us ordered American Breakfast which comes with bread, 3 choices of egg, fruit, coffee or tea.

Breakfast menu

Omlette, sunny side up and scramble egg

Kuehs

Jams, butter & toasted bread

Fruits

Herman reached at around 8.30am and we head to our first destination - Kraton Yogyakarta. It took us about 1/2hr from Rumah Mertua to Kraton.

Busker on the road

MacDonalds

Becak (Trishaw)

Police station

Graffiti on the road

Stalls outside Kraton compound

Kraton compound

The Kraton is open from 8.30am - 2pm daily and closed at 11am on Friday. The admission fee is IDR12,500 ~ S$1.80 and there is a camera fee of IDR1,000 ~ S$0.10. Guide is included but beware that some guide may bring tourist to Batik shops. We did not encounter this with our guide.

Admission ticket office

Camera permit

Traditional mask symbol in Kraton

Wayang Kulit

Good & evil guardian at the left and right

Pavilion

Antique clock

The lions and mirrors were imported from Europe

Beyond this part is out of bound as the Sultan lives inside there

Who is stronger?

Another traditional mask symbol

Water dispenser

Such a huge kettle

Umbrella used to shelter the Sultan

The sultan chair

Carriages for the Sultan families

Treasury department

Pigeons

These are real 24K gold!

Work desk of the Sultan

Medals given to the Sultan

Toys played by the Sultan when he was young

Camera used by the Sultan

Different packaging of Aji-no-moto

Military uniform of the Sultan

Tuxedo of the Sultan

Symbol of Kraton

Glasswares

Clocks

Ivory

A wooden drum used to warn danger

Drum made of jackfruit bark

The Kraton lies between Mount Merapi and South Sea. In the mind of the Javanese community, kraton is defined as center of the world that is described as center of the universe.

This painting explain it all

Batik

An interesting that I saw is a photo of a large cage. The guide explain that the child will sit inside this cage to choose what he wants to be in the future. Ain't this similar to the Chinese traditional when an infant turns one year old?

Such a huge cage

The tour around Kraton took about an hour. In my opinion, the display items in Kraton are poorly maintain. They should hire a better curator to attact more visitors.

We continued to our next destination - Taman Sari Water Castle. It is open from 9am - 3pm daily and admission fee is IDR7,000 ~ S$1 and camera fee is IDR1,000 ~ S$0.10. Entrance fee does not come with a guide.

Entrance of Taman Sari Water Castle - Gedhong Gapura Panggung

The pools which the Sultan concubines used to occupy

Bed occupied by the Sultan and fires are burnt under the bed during cold weather

Steep stairs to the tower

The Sultan observe his concubines bathing from here

The pool are quite run down

Gedhong Gapura Hageng

Cendol stall

As I have done research that there is an underground mosque in Taman Sari Water Castle, I couldnt find it after walking around the compound. Then YQ approach a thin guy and the guy told us that he know where it is but we have to pay him IDR3,000 ~ S$0.40 per pax. I thought why not since it's not expensive. He walked through a lot of alleys before we reached the underground mosque. In the end, we exited at the right side of the Taman Sari Water Castle. He make us walked through such a big detour which I'm not very pleased with.

Alley leading to the underground mosque

Entrance to Sumur Gumuling

Walking down the steps to the Sumur Gumantung

What's attracted me is the four stairs which meet in the center. It's really very unique and I told myself that I must visit this place.

Sumur Gumantung

Entrance to another underground mosque

I like the unique dome shaped ceiling

Right side of Taman Seri Water Castle leading to the underground mosque

We have our lunch at Gudeg Wijilan Yu Djum which is near Kraton. It is located at Jalan Wijilan and opening hours is from 6am – 10pm. Gudeg is a curry of jackfruit, chicken and egg served with rice, and is the most famous local dish in Yogyakarta.

As usual, Herman went for prayer while we are having our lunch. Then when he came back, he takeaway Gudeg and have it when we visit the next attraction. He doesnt hold up our time at all.

Gudeg Wijilan Yu Djum

Menu

Sitting on the floor and having our lunch

Gudeg

Black or white?

Our driver, Herman

Dual railway tracks

KFC

Our next destination is Affandi museum. It is located at Jl. Laksda Adi Sucipto 167 which is about 30min ride from Kraton. Opening hours: Mon - Sat 9am - 4pm, closed on public holidays. Admission fee: IDR20,000 ~ S$3. A pencil souvenir and a free drink is given to everyone of us. Photographs are not allowed inside the museum but I secretly took some photos. =p

I'm not those who will appreciate art hence my pupose of visiting Affandi museum is to look at the unique buildings. When I was doing my research for Yogyakarta trip, I saw bloggers visiting some unique buildings and I discovered that these buildings are in Affandi museum.

Affandi is a famous artist and he was given a lot of awards by many universities including a Doctorate degree by NUS.

These are roots of the tree

Entrance to the museum

Space car lookalike

Bicycle used by Affandi

Honours by NUS

Inside the gallery

Does this painting resemble 关羽?

Giant model size of Affandi

Another art gallery

Swimming pool

Banana leaf shape roof

Another building in Affandi museum

Gajah Wong river

Spiral tower

Carriage

Hand print steps

Lizard dustbin

Affandi sculpture

The chairs and tables are made of tyres

We spent about 40min in Affandi museum including consuming our free drinks before we left for Malioboro.

It's not a 3 lanes road but 1 lane for driving & 2 lanes for parking

Bus stop in Yogyakarta

Bank Indonesia

Kantor Pos Besar (Central Post Office)

BNI '46 building

Anyone know what does this symbol represent?

Monumen Serangan Umum 1 Maret

Becaks

Andong

Parking for Andong

Beringharjo market

Jalan Malioboro

Herman parked his car at Hotel Garuda and Malioboro mall is 5min walk away. Malioboro mall is an airconditioned mall with shops that we can also find in Singapore.

Malioboro mall

Today is my sis birthday so we bought a cake from Breadtalk for her.

Breaktalk

The poles are of the shelf is moving and yet the items remained unbroken

Inside Malioboro mall

After browsing the shops, we decided to have a break at a cafe. My sis ordered Kopi Luwak while I and YQ share Irish coffee. I dun find Kopi Luwak any difference from other coffee although it's expensive . All along I wanted to try Irish coffee after reading a love story about it. But it's not common to find Irish coffee in Singapore and when I found it, it's not at the suitable time for me to drink it.

There's a story that Irish Coffee is invented and conjured from a Bartender in Dublin's airport who fell in love with an air stewardess.

He fell in love the moment he was acquainted with the air stewardess. She's like Irish Whiskey, rich and frangant. But each time she walk into the bar, she would order different types of coffee according to her mood that day, but never a cocktail. Yet, the forte of the bartender is in mixing cocktails. To have the girl drink one of his specialties was his greatest wish. An idea was formed and he mixed Irish Whiskey and coffee together into perfection, thus inventing a new drink - Irish Coffee, adding it into the menu, hoping the girl will take notice.

However, the girl was not a person who take notices at small details, the bartender himself never once hinted at her, remaining doing his work behind the counter. Once, during her non-frequent visit, she discovered there's Irish Coffee and became the 1st person to have tasted it. The only reason why she was the 1st person to drink it was that the bartender had created two menus; 1 dark brown, 1 light brown specially for the girl.

It was a whole year from the day the bartender created the drink till the day the air stewardess ordered it. The bartender was very emotional when she ordered the drink, he cried. For fear of her seeing his tears, he wiped them away and use his fingers to run a circle around the glass tip. So it is said the 1st taste of Irish Coffee reminds one the thoughts of yearning for someone and suppressing it.

The girl fell in love with Irish Coffee and would order it each time she landed at the airport. As time goes by, both of them became good friends and she would tell him the sights and happenings of her trips. The bartender would teach her the secrets of making Irish Coffee. Then came one day, she decided to retire from air stewardess and came to say farewell, which is goodbye for good. The bartender made Irish Coffee for her one last time and addded, "Would you like tears to go with it?". He was hoping she could realise what the taste of fermentation represents.

The air stewardess went back to her home in San Francisco and one day she was looking for Irish Coffee in pubs around her area, but couldn't locate any, then she realised that the drink was specially created for her, but she never understood why the bartender asked her whether she want to add some tears to it.

She opened a coffee cafe soon after and began selling Irish Coffee. That is why although the origins of Irish Coffee began in Dublin, but it became popular in San Francisco. The bartender also made available the drink after the air stewardess left, which is why Irish Coffee is considered a cocktail in Dublin, but a coffee beverage in San Francisco.

Kopi Luwak

Irish coffee

Sandwiches

After the teabreak, we walked back to Hotel Garuda to look for Herman and told him that we wanted to go for massage. We went to quite a few massage salons and yet most are full so in the end, we told Herman to return back to Rumah Mertua and ended the day.

Buddha stone plaque at a massage salon

We have enquired about their massage in the morning but their female massuers are on leave today. This is why we decided to have our massage outside instead. But in the end, we still return back to Rumah Mertua for massage. Only the guys went for massage at Rumah Mertua.

We had our dinner Rumah Mertua and I ordered Nasi Goreng Rumah Mertua which cost IDR33,000 ~ S$5. It's tasty and the portion is huge. After our dinner, we celebrated my sis birthday and ate the tiramisu cake.

Nasi Goreng Rumah Mertua

Kwetiew goreng

Sis birthday

I asked the receptionist to give me the final bill tonight since we are checking out very early tomorrow. I also asked the receptionist whether our breakfast can be packed for us and she happily replied "no problem". The service here is top notch even though it's a small guesthouse.

>>Day 4: 24 Apr 11

**把我的脚印留在世界各地**

Koh Samui trip – Useful links

Koh Samui trip – Prologue

Koh Samui trip

Conrad Centennial

Seoul trip - Useful links

Seoul trip – Epilogue

Seoul trip – 21 Oct 2011

Seoul trip – Prologue

Seoul trip

Langkawi trip - Useful links

Langkawi trip – Epilogue

Langkawi trip – 19 Sep 11

Langkawi trip – 18 Sep 11

Langkawi trip – 17 Sep 11

Langkawi trip – 16 Sep 11

Langkawi trip – Prologue

Langkawi trip

Bali trip – 24 Jul 11

Bali trip – 23 Jul 11

Bali trip – 22 Jul 11

Bali trip – 21 Jul 11

Bali trip – Prologue

Bali trip

Yogyakarta trip – Useful links

Yogyakarta trip – Epilogue

Yogyakarta trip – 24 Apr 11

Yogyakarta trip – 23 Apr 11

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