Trip to Medan

 This was my first trip to Medan in Indonesia. This was in May 2023.

I took the MAS flight and it was quite smooth.

I was there to attend the Global Total education fair at Medan today. I delivered a seminar on Social media marketing. Representing School of Business, Monash University Malaysia at the fair.

Stayed at Adimulia Hotel Medan. The hotel was really nice. Did not get the chance to do much sightseeing. Was able to take some pics from the Taxi rides. Medan has some really nice buildings. 

Here are some views from the Hotel

Also experienced my first Grab bike taxi ride - scary, without a helmet but exciting.

Tok Tan's Clan family day at Sarang by the Brook

Last weekend, joined the rest of my wife's extended family (Tok Tan's clan) - all 40 of us, for a get-together at Sarang by the Brook at Kuala Kubu Bahru. It is about and hours drive from our house in PJ.

This is a unique hotel made of used containers in the edge of the jungle with a nice pool in the middle of the compound. As they say, it is not really the venue but the people you are with which matters. We had a great time.

Also learnt a lot of new things about my wife's family background, especially about her grandfather who was once a jailer in Changi prison in Singapore under the British and later under the newly formed country of Singapore. However, he decided to come back to Malaysia and as a result was not able to get his pension from the Singapore Government. 

Apparently he was really strong and a master in silat (the martial arts which originates from the Malay peninsula), Jujitsu and Akido - the later two which he learnt from the Japanese during the Japanese occupation of Malaya. 

It is a nice concept but it could do with a bit of maintenance in the rooms and around the place. Things are starting to look a bit dated and beginning to fall apart. Was a bit worried that it would be a bit hot inside the rooms, even with the air conditioning as there was no insulation but fortunately it rained in the evenings and it was actually cold. 

Most of the cooking was done on Thermomix. An amazing hi-tech cooking tool - will write a review about it later.

End of year road trip

We recently went on one of the longest road trips I have ever driven.

First we drove up to Lumut to pick up my daughter who had been in a camp at Pulau Pangkor. It was a distance of nearly 200 KM.

From there we then drove to George Town, Penang, which was approx. 180 KMs. We stayed a night at The Northam All Suite Penang on Gurney Drive. A "luxury hotel|" which did not really live up to our expectations. Bit dated decor, old TV with bad reception and a jacuzzi that did not work. I don't know why but I did not complain despite the fact that it was one of the most expensive hotels I had ever stayed in. Maybe I was too tired or because it was the among the few places available during the holidays.

On the bright side we did not stay much in the Hotel and the highlight of the trip was a drive to Batu Ferringhi and dinner at Hard Rock Cafe, Penang.  My daughter was quite excited as it was her first visit to a Hard Rock Cafe anywhere.

It was crowded and we did not have any reservations but as we were about to drive away, the guy at the gate directed me to staff parking which had a few spaces. It was packed and we were asked to wait. We left our contact details and went to their shop to browse around. And as usual ended up buying a lot of their branded merchandise.

We then drove up to Kuala Perlis (approx. 180 KMs) and took a ferry to Pulau Langkawi (about 1 hour and 15 minutes) .

At Langkawi, we met up with my my in-laws who had flown there. We stayed at a house together. Not very comfortable but it was OK. Did some sight seeing and also discussed some potential future investment.

The highlight was the boat ride to the Kilim Karst Geoforest Park (Kuah). It was the first time I saw a monkey swimming in the sea (getting peanuts thrown by tourists). A money actually climbed into our boat and the kids were feeding him peanuts. Also saw the sea eagles after which the Islands are named as well as some bats in a cave.

Finally it was time to go back. However, we were way too tired as the traffic back to KL from Kuala Perlis was really bad and at some places we actually did not move for several minutes. We then decided to take a break at Ipoh (approx. 280 KMs). My wife booked online via her mobile phone and we stayed at the Impiana Hotel for the night - again quite dated but quite comfortable.

Called room service and my food was delicious but my sis-in-law was quite annoyed that her chicken was not fully cooked and we complained. The hotel refunded us the cost of that dish when we checked out (but only after my wife had a "long chat" with the lady at the reception.

We finally set off and reached our house about 2 and half hours later - a distance of nearly 195 KMs. Fortunately we set out in the morning and missed some terrible traffic jams later the same day.

I have to say, after more than 1000KMs, 3 hotels and one home stay, it was amazing to be back home and to sleep on my own bed. 

KLIA 2 vs Sydney airport

Just got back from Sydney. I had gone there to attend my youngest sister's wedding. It was a tiring but really fantastic experience and our family is now bigger. It was fantastic that our family was finally together again after decades literally.

Anyway, I was comparing my experience flying in and out of Sydney with that of KLIA 2 (I flew with Air Asia X) and I realised that Malaysian Airports delivered a much more satisfying experience.

Getting through customs and immigration was a breeze, not just because I have a Malaysian IC but queues were much less and the process was quite efficient. Maybe it was because I was flying in the evening when there are less flights. In Sydney, they require you to take off your jacket, belt and remove the laptop (if you have one). I am not sure but wonder whether Malaysia has better scanners.

Once I went through immigration controls, there were ample places to sit down comfortably and have an affordable bite. Duty free shopping is much more cheaper in KL as compared to Sydney on most of the items as well. Wifi signals are strong with relatively fast connections. The wifi in Sydney was dismal. I could not even surf the net properly let alone chat via Skype.

And then there is the paperwork. I had to fill in 2 documents when I flew into Sydney and one while flying out. There were none to and from KLIA2.

Overall, a lot of things that Sydney can learn from KLIA 2.

West Midlands Safari Park - 3rd Visit

This was our 3rd visit to the Safari Park - this time with my sis-in-law and her family.

Not sure why but this time, we saw fewer animals but we had fun.

WARNING: Loads of pictures coming up.

Noah's ark

See how huge that Rhino is

Ostrich

Here you are allowed to feed the animals

You are not allowed to feed the camels. They have a nasty bite. Looks smug, doesn't he or she?

My daughter tackling the wall. Much better than last time.

Hungry Hippo

Two lost kids

Trip to the highlands 2013 - 3: Isle of Skye

Around this time last year, we were driving around the Scottish highlands. We drove from the Great Glen Water Park, South Laggan to the Isle of Skye, a distance of around 101 miles. One of the best drives I have ever gone for in my life. Here are some pictures from our trip:

It was a long journey and even started snowing on the way but the weather improved when we reached the Island.

At Portree,

The Harbour

After eating lunch, we took the scenic route to Struan on the Western side of the island. We only passed about 3 cars on the way and sometimes we were the only car for miles around.

No cars around for miles

At Struan

On the way back, we took the ferry to the mainland.