Going to West Malaysia - Day 2 (14th Apr 2012) Part 1

The hotel we stay in Kuala Lumpur was Sg. Wang Hotel. From the look of the picture in the internet it is very nice and cheap which cost us about RM118 nett per night. When I saw the room they gave us, I was so shock : - No Window?! It seems like a cabinet with a bathroom more than like a hotel room -_-" Oh well, what can I expect? It is really cheap.

The 1st day I had so much fun meeting all those net friends around Malaysia, then we had some drinking session and  we went back to the Sg Wang hotel at about 5am. Since it was very late, we let Caith squeeze in the room aka cabinet with us. I can't sleep because I felt like sleeping in the closet and after that I need to wake up at 7am and get ready to Pudu Sentral and take our bus to Penang. So I just let my eyes rest for a while and when I open my eyes again it is about 6am. Time to get ready and about 7am, Andrew gave me a call and he said that he will be ready to pick us up for breakfast and sent us to the Pudu Sentral.

We had book our bus tickets one week before the exact date but our net friend Wilson from Penang keep remind us to go to the bus station to double check and make sure again that our tickets are confirm. -_-" Not only that but before we go to KL, we received a lot of warning from our other Malaysia friends. They will keep nagging:

" Be careful of your bag. Please do not bring those branded and big bags"

" Be careful of the Taxi driver, make sure they use meters. "

" Please do not wear short pants in Penang."

Bla bla bla.... 

Then I reply to them : " You all make me appreciate more of my country - Brunei." 

Since it was still early, after we took our bus tickets, Andrew brought us to had some breakfast. Andrew is a really weird guy. 

He wears a pair of over size crocs.

1/3 of Andrew's car's wind shield are covered with weird stickers. -_-" He even had a McD sticker, I wonder will McD give him special discount for that?

Since Andrew joined our drinking session that night too and he went home the same time like we do, he told me that he did not sleep and apparently he wait for 7am so that he could pick us up.... Oh! What a nice "weird" guy!

After we took our bus tickets at the Pudu Sentral and since it is still early we went for a breakfast. ( Sorry, I am not sure the exact location. ) The best chee cheong feng that I had ever tried.

This one is with some fish balls, fish cakes and dried bean curb skin.

After the breakfast, we wave goodbye to Andrew and Caith followed us to the bus station as she need to take the bus to go back to her home town. Finally when we reach our platform, Caith gave us a big hugs and a kiss on our cheeks. Even thought is was so hard to say the word "goodbye", but we knew that there is something waiting at the other side of Goodbye - the memories of friends like Fenny, Caith, Jelly, Andrew, John and Vijay that will always keep me smiling =)

Then in Penang we will be meeting another four new net friends, Wilson, Jerry, Charles and Thad. Jerry and Thad are readers from my blog while I know Wilson and Charles thru Jerry and Facebook.  

Pudu Sentral is a bus station and I heard that it was newly renovate and very clean. 

 

So we took a 5hrs trip from KL to Penang using Sri Maju Bus. The seats of the bus is very comfortable and much more better than Air asia's seaters. Best of all there is only 8 passengers. 

Image taken from Connie.

Bus stop for 10 minute at Taiping rest stop. 

When we almost reach Penang, Wilson keep on sms me and estimate the time we arrive Butterworth Bus station. When Connie and I reached there we were so surprise that we were being drop off  by some unknown old street.

Then I ask the bus driver, where is the bus station and he said it's at the back of the shop. When I went there it is just an empty field. -_-". So I called Wilson and I told him that we were " abandoned" some place called Bukit Mentajam  in Penang. While we were waiting for Wilson I saw this mamak stall cooking some very strange dish.

 

I ask him what is that and he mumble some sweet sugar plus coconut. He make it like a Pau at first then make it flat and fried it like Roti Canai. After about a LONGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG 30 minute, finally, Wilson came. 

To be continue....... 

Going to West Malaysia - Day 1 (13th Apr 2012)

Since last year Connie and I had already bought the cheapest air ticket flying from Brunei to West Malaysia - Kuala Lumpur and we had been started to plan where to go in Malaysia. Then we decided to go to Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Cameron Highland. Two weeks before we fly,  we tried to contact all our net friends in Malaysia and hope that we can meet up and had some small gathering.

So that day we reached the Brunei International airport very early and we manage to have a look around the departure hall. I was very surprise because it had change a lot compare to my last visit, about 20 yrs ago? ( Before that I usually flew from Miri, Sarawak ) . It is very big inside and there is some cafe and souvenir shop too. Best of all there is a tourist centre.

But now to think of it, since this is located inside the departure hall and the tourists are prepare to fly, so what info will they want to get at this centre? Hm... I wonder....

Then I saw this air plane - Royal Brunei Airline...

Ahhhhhh... It has been a long time I didn't sit on that plane ever since there is Air asia....  I really miss the comfy seat.

So after a two hours flight, we reached LCC Terminal at around 11.30am, take our bus to KL Centre and meet two frens there. This is my first time meeting Jelly, she is my chatters for almost a year from a social website and FB. Jelly is a very friendly and chatty kind of girl. She and another friend - John who is an old friend of mine accompany us to our hotel using LRT ( KL Monorail) This was my second time taking KL's monorail and I really don't feel comfortable at all because it was very shaky -_-"

So we reach the hotel and met another three friends, Caith, Fenny and Andrew by which these three people  Connie and I never met in real before. We only chat in FB for about less than one year  and and it is amazing that they agree to meet us.

Fenny brought us to Levain Boulangerine and Patisserie for high tea.

Too bad after the long trip I felt very tired to tried anything. So Fenny and Caith just order some dessert for us to try. 

Then Fenny recommend that we should try the Creamy Mushroom soup.

And yes, I had to agree with her that so far this is the creamiest and the most tasty cream of mushroom soup that I had ever taste. 

The other friends also tried these food:

From Left to right : John, Andrew, Caith, Venie (me) Connie, Fenny and Jelly. 

This is my first time meeting Andrew, Caith, Fenny and Jelly. It was surprisingly that day we had so much to talk about and hence this shows a best friend is someone who can be your sister or brother, even from 1445 kilo meters. Ya, maybe being far away does make it difficult to communicate sometime, but when we are together, it just makes every moment special. 

Then later we go to Time Square and do some shopping. I was disappointed with the changes of Time Square compare to the last time I went there. It was so messy and so many shops which repeated selling the same thing. But then I still have some fun shopping around. 

And the poster I like best : Wonder MOM ~ !

And Best of all, taking all these pictures for FREE! lol!

Then later we have dinner at Jalan Alor

I saw one of my friend order this - Hot and Spicy Pan Mee,

So I asked my friend : " Nice or not? " The boss quickly replied me : " If Not nice then you no need to pay." Lol! Of cos it is Delicious!!!!! 

 After dinner we go for some drink session with VJ, another old friend of mine,  and then Connie and I return to the hotel at around 5am -___-"  

To be continue...

Department of Missing Socks~!

=) Everyone must have this department in their house. Another good idea is buy the same color socks so u will never have a missing one! 

Our mother language - Bahasa Rojak

These week is the 1st test of the year for Aple. I am especially concern and strict with her Bahasa Malayu and Jawi. I seldom speak English with my kids because in my opinion my kids should learn how to speak a proper Mandarin because we are Chinese.Thus, for English and Malay they can always learn it in school or with other people.

I remember that last year Aple was having a medical check up at the Rimba clinic ( a government clinic ) and at the same time I want to bring Bryan to see doctor too. Since we are not allow to see the same doctor because Aple had an appointment already and are seeing doctor at the women and babies center I left her and my Mother in law alone and bring Bryan to the other counter to take number. After a few minutes later  I saw a nurse scolding my mother in law with Bahasa Malayu: " Ini  Aple kah? Kenapa aku panggil kau punya nama kamu tidak mau masuk?" ( Are you Aple? Why you did not enter the room while I called your name?" My Mother in law look at her blankly and nodded her head saying in her broken Malay: " Minta maaf, tidak dengar." ( Sorry, I don't hear) Then I quickly approach to the nurse and apologised with her saying that old people don't understand. The nurse just don't want to stop and turn to my five years old girl and scold again in a very hush ton: " Lain kali kalau saya panggil kau punya nama kau masuk saja, Nenek tidak faham, tau kau?" ( Next time when I call your name you just go in. ) Angrily I reply to the nurse: Why you said like that to her? She is only five years old and she only start to learn her ABC. She reply: " Ahhhh... sudah la!" ( what ever.)

I was so mad and thought that I have heard a lot of rude nurses and this is the first time I met one!!!! After that I want to make sure that Aple learn her Bahasa Malayu very well so that she will not get bully again.

A friend ask me : " Why you don't speak English to your kids? My nephew speak English very well, he even know how to sing like the Musical high school." I was like @____@" !!! We are not a Caucasian, we don have blonde hair and blue eyes. Of course English is good to use for communication but if a Chinese speak English very well no one will be impress, but if a Chinese don't speak Mandarin very well a lot of people will look down on us. Hence, if a Caucasian or other races speak Mandarin  very well many will be impress.

When they post in youtube that a Eurasian child speak mandarin alot of people praise and say :that is a clever child. In my mind I thought our Asian children are more smarter because we speak Bahasa Rojak - Malay English, Chinese and some even speak tamil and tagalog or even other dialect.

When I am giving a Chinese tour for the China people a lot of people already laugh at our funny slang but envy that we know a lot of language. And I always tell them that there's is no need to envy because we are only " half bucket of water" - only know every little bits of this and that language.

Human's behaviour is sometime like a dog

1st March, my 5th local tour is to guide the visitors from Germany. They came here with a big cruise ship call Aida.

When I saw the cruise ship in the 1st time I was like ' Wow '. It seems like a big giant shark approaching me. Gulp!!! 

I was glad to meet some of the local tour guides who I am very familiar with and of course by which are the 'beginners'. But it is fun to mix with some of the expertise tour guides who have millions of experience with tour guiding and they are very generous to share all their experiences. One of them even tell the stories about how our local Custom Officer treated the tourists in the airport in some countries. Firstly he told us what he seen in Brunei International Airport. A foreigner was having a transit in the airport and she asked the immigration officer if she can go to the money changer  just behind the officer's counter to exchange some money and the officer said yes. When she finish changing her money and just want to go back to where she belong another officer came and scold her saying that she is not suppose to go out without a Brunei stamp in her passport. She did explain that another immigration officer  give her an approval to go out and that officer just don't accept any of  her explanation. There is some argument and it turn out to be a very embarrassing situation for both parties. ( I think) In the end the most embarrassing of all is the Bruneians.The second stories he told us is  what he saw that had happen in Singapore where an immigration officer use a very rude and insulting words to an Indian and this Indian man said to him loud and clear: " Do not humiliate me because I am an Indian, I invest a lot of money to your country every year!" After that the officer keep apologised to him. 

Before we start giving tour, our Boss will give a briefing and he too share a stories that happen few days ago there is another cruise ship came and the health officers arguing with the officers inside the cruise ship. One want to check the body temperature of the tourists another won't allow them to check. In the end both parties had a very bad day. And worst of all is wasting the time of  the tourists inside the ship and the tour guides outside the ship.

In my opinion. I don't see anyone is wrong. Let see this situation in this way: You are going to visit your friend's house. Your friend's dog is barking at you and sometime it might bite you. Your friend is the tourist, the dog is the officer and you are the owner of the country. So who is wrong? No one. It is not that I am insulting the officer is a dog. What I mean is they are just doing their job by trying to protect their countries and hence sometime they are only over do it. We human are all the same. In our own countries, or own home we will speak and talk loudly and hence when we go outside of our home ( or countries) we will speak softly. Just like a dog when it is at it's owner's house it will bark at you fiercely but when it is at other people's house it will not dare to bark so loudly or will even hide itself like an ostrich.

My 1st US Dollars tips. 

Anyway, I had a great day on that day because my guests of eight people are all happy :) 

p/s: There are words better left unsaid and so are feelings better left unexpressed....