Tuesday, February 20, 2007

10 hrs trip up North. Never have been places.

the trip started with a drizzle of the day which apparently became a downpour. it was such a pain to actually be stucked in jams. first was at the causeway bridge which lasted like arnd 1/2 hour and the second one which was along the highway and towards the FIRST Plaza Tol. Goodness! that was like ugh. horrible. and that was just to collect the Tol ticket yo.luckily it was raining but i felt so dizzy anyway who would not? if there were to be a flight from spore to terengganu, i would opt for that mode man! im serious. we had to spend the nite at a hotel at Ayer Keroh area. Since its for a night only, we just settled down for a decent place. its kind of last minute and i found it on the net.

MITC Hotel is located like arnd 10 mins drive from Ayer Keroh Tol PLaza. Thou quite far away from the Melaka Town but if just for the sake of sleeping, i dont see why not.However, the breakfast was quite a spread and their Rendang Ayam was superb seriously. the rest were ok. we had to wake up so early like 6.30am which is definitely NOT a norm for me(like what i have mentioned before hehe),had breakfast and made our way to Terengganu. like NOW(4.29pm Saturday 17 Feb 07), im in the car BLOGGING hehe.

we set off from MITC hotel at arnd 9am and still on the road now wei. we have passed by Genting, through Temerloh and Kuantan(Pahang) and now still in Kuantan area. definitely made a few stops along the way and it happened that i had a very bad stomache that geezz u know what happened and i need NOT explain further. it was terrible(hey, just passed 2 COWS!). ok, sis said that i should LOOK around the area to LEARN hmmm what is there to learn yo? haha. "Er. Kampung??" just blurted out. hehe.

(will continue later...)

time reached at Hotel Seri Malaysia Kuala Terengganu was slightly half past 7. its like FINALLY yo! and i saw KFC and PizzaHut along the road adjacent to the hotel. Junk food! haha. this place reminded me of Bukit Bintang area. not the bustling happening part, but the layout. u know, hotels and branded convenient stores + fast food outlets. besides this hotel im staying in, there are 2 others located nearby. when we were checking in, i was just standing and observing the reception people that i had the time to eavesdrop (KEPO LAH!)a number of conversations of the same disappointment outcome by walk-ins. they actually walked in and the hotel was already so packed. what a pity! if travelling like for almost 10 hours and to reach the hotel without any reservations, that will be so bloody horrible seriously! haha. luckily, we booked. i stayed in and the rest went out for dinner because i dont want to end up in a horrible situation with my forever-sick stomach. luckily mum had POCAI with her and sis had my KFC delivered to my door hehe. i felt so relieved.

Now, 3.26pm Sunday 18 Feb 07. im on my comfy bed. we were too tired and i just woke up from a quick nap. earlier on, we had breakfast and moved on to Pasar Payan, two-storey building which i think its quite rundown. they have local handicrafts, tshirts, local market ,KEROPOK LEKOR(Terengganu food trademark), songket, batiks, barang2 hantaran , tembaga, SWORDS, keris, makcik-makcik stuff and whatever is related to Terengganu. it is a shopping paradise for us, ladies! Keropok Lekor is a must-have here and sis bought a big pack of HOT-from-wok Lekors and we munched them like nobody's business! haha. Teh tarik was a bit sweet and it reminded of teh kampung which i had back in Melaka and their chendol is nice! when i was at the drinks stall, i thought the "santan chendol"(coconut milk) was soya bean and lychee was longan. haha. so clever lah heh. ANYWAY, its not only me wei. others came along and also mistook them the same and i politely told them they are NOT what they think they are haha. it was fun but tiring to shop and we spent 4 hours at Pasar Payan before we headed back to hotel.

(will continue later...)

time 10.10pm Sunday 18 Feb 07. earlier on, we set off for late lunch + early dinner at arnd 5pm to nearby food stalls. its like 5 mins of walking distance from the beach. i just passed by the beach and due to the type of "participants" im on holiday with, kind of didnt have the chance to walk on the beach but INSTEAD shop like nobody's business haha. after eating paradise, we went to a "floating mosque" on a lake which is like 5 mins drive from the food stalls. its white and its nice when u see for yourself there (pics below). and again there are handicraft + tshirts stalls nearby + Keropok Lekor stalls and again, a shopping + food paradise. while i was near the lake at the back of the floating mosque, i kind of felt the peacefulness + fresh air (the beach was just 50 meters way). and plus the breeze, it felt just good with the greeneries around located near the beach.this setup reminded me of the old site of Nanyang Polytechnic at Yishun campus minus the lake. its just greens and more greens plus the large field and the peace which is just priceless. btw, i heard a story from my mum about their dinner last nite, yes the one that i missed bcos of the stupid diarrhoea. mum, my aunt and uncle and 2 other relatives went to this nearby eatery called Sedap Corner. so hilarious about the people who worked there that they addressed my uncle and auntie as CIKGU (teacher) and my mum as USTAZAH (religion educator)! haha. if i were to go there, i think neither one will deem fit for me to be addressed as. hehe. anyway, we are leaving for my suffering + misery place tomoro. so Monash, here I come...!!

Monday 19 Feb 07. had breakfast then we checked out. stopped by this fabulous beach called "Pantai Batu Hitam" along Kuantan and had lunch. THAT is what i call "makan di tepi pantai"(eat by the sea) hehe. shiok seol! haha. we tried their "keropok lekor" BUT it cant beat the ones we had at Pasar Payan in Kuala Terengganu. those were HEAVEN...

Returning back was hassle-free plus lesser "casualties" hehe. it felt faster returning as compared to going. next time, to places in the North, PLEASE..no
more unless i can FLY haha.

this is only after the FIRST leg wei. at MITC Hotel.


i have never eaten mee sup this clear before and its nice wei. Along Kuantan break-stop. Btw, i observed that the kids here seriously like to eat instant maggie.


Visit Malaysia. Splurge all you can haha.


Along the beach in Terengganu where the "kampungs" are by the sea-side. It must be nice to live by the sea BUT BUT when tsunami comes, habis ar!


At Seri Malaysia Kuala Terengganu. A replica of a Terengganu kampung and the hotel won the Best Decor(Terengganu level) for Visit Malaysia 2007.


i tell you, if they dont have the malay-translationS, i dont think so i will SURVIVE in this country. HAHA!


i bet some of you must have eaten those Keropok Lekor in KL Central BUT nothing beats the original wei!


how it looked BEFORE deep-fried.


the "songkets" for men. nice heh but they charged so expensive just because we dont sound "utara" (northern).


tomyam version Terengganu comes with additional "bawang goreng" hehe. taste ok and we concluded that Terengganu = sweet. Teh tarek, sambal, sup kambing all taste abit sweet. i ordered "Air Bandung" and it was horribly sweet yo. ugh. boleh "kencing manis"(get diabetes) seh.


Floating Mosque on the lake in Kuala Terengganu. to be exact its called "Masjid Tengku Tengah Zaharah".


at the other end of the lake, behind the floating mosque.


During "Maghrib".


I LOVE this place. Pantai Batu Hitam. Nearby are eating stalls.


People enjoying the sea, sand, sun and kite-flying.


Gagagagaga. Cantek wei!


Seafood + teh ais + beach. what can i ask for more?


Pantai Batu Hitam, board also Hitam(Black). hehe.


Happy ar. Eat, shit, eat. HAHA.


buih bukan main tapi manis semacam!


Maya Karin convered ofcos because its a very the Islam state. "Jawi"(Arabic letters) also have and dont ask me, i donno what it says. hek hek.


i tell you. on the roads, i see non-malays neither driving nor visible in the shops or wherever. its like so the melayu heh. WATEVER it is, its just something new for moi.

5 comments:

far said...

that mee sup. so clear!!

macam tambah air jarang jer. tapi air jarang berempah. thats the clearest mee sup iv seen in my entire life also.

and the masjid looks sooo nice lah.

jee_@hmad said...

far! haha. y din i think of air jarang. HAHA. buttt tat couldnt be the cause of my diarrhoea OR it could be cos its from their tap! HAHA. MEAN.

Anonymous said...

hi jee still blogging yeah good can keep me company haha..nice photo takings and wonderful scenery..that mosque wow amazing..actually i haven't done reading ur blog yet..bt my eargerness to give comment abt it overwhelming hehe..will continue reading ur blog and looking forward for many more..till then see ya around in ur blog's pagers hehe..

Anonymous said...

jeejee,
are u still interested to eat Keropok Lekor Terengganu again?u can click at my link....hehehe...
BTW,nice writing and of course u had a really nice trip.

jee_@hmad said...

one pakcik outside my campus selling them and seriously delicious when its piping hot! :)