Postcards from NZ

Palm Beach, Waiheke Island

Auckland City (taken from ferry to Waiheke Island)

Pohutu and Prince of Wales Geysers

Simmering Mud Pools

Champagne Pool, Wai-tapu Thermal Wonderland/Area

Champagne Pool

Artist's Palette

Devil's Bath

(Special Thanks to dear hubby for taking the marvellous pics)

Back from NZ

My family and I just came back from NZ . It was awesome! My kids loved it. (They were extremely talkative the whole vacation). On the first day, we stayed at Auckland CBD and it was quite depressing there, with glooming, dark and boring looking buildings. However, the next day we managed to venture out to the harbour and caught a ferry to a beautiful island named Waiheke and met a friendly local bus driver who gave us a wonderful private tour of the island's beautiful coastline. It was a public bus btw but we were the only people on the bus at the time. Then, we went to Rotorua to see mudpools, geysers and boiling, steaming rivers and pools.
NZ is a terribly scenic country subhanallah, with rolling hills, cattles and sheep roaming around and green pine forests on top. Dh kept asking me to take moving photos of the scenery while he drove. (He might as well have the digicam continuously on 24 hrs). And there were so many European tourists in Rotorua, I could swear I was in Europe. We plan to go to NZ again sometime to explore more of the country, godwilling ( coz one week isn't enough). Meanwhile, please excuse me while I take to a more important and *glamorous* task of doing the laundry for the one week of soiled clothes...

Langkawi Trip

[I really don't have much time to do this since kid's holidays coincide with Ramadan. I'm afraid they spend quite a lot of time in front of PC (more than me) now while I still have to churn out more food and food for their tummies.]
So I think I'll do it point form. Check out links below for more info.

• Day 1 :Arrived at Langkawi Airport. Before landing saw a mountain peak that looked like a man's face from the side view. Found out later it was Gunung Machinchang. Rented a car at airport and headed to Hotel.Check in hotel and dh and kids went straight to frolic on the beach. In the evening, ordered expensive room service food as everyone was too tired to go out. Holiday Villa
• Day 2: Had a quick breakfast at the buffet . Left dh and ds to have an extended breakfast while dd and I and toddler got ready to jump in the pool. The hotel had a ladies only indoor pool but we opted for the outside pool so that I could swim backstrokes while looking at the clouds above which was awesome. Then we got ready to go out. Specifically , to visit Underwater World. The first part of the exhibit , a lush tropical jungle room was the only thing I liked there. The seals in their tanks looked bored and sad. One was spinning continuously in the water. I exited while dh brought 2 older kids to the 2D show. Toddler and I waited at the cafe at the exit for them but they took ages and toddler accidently fell asleep on the table after his meal. I didn't eat anything there. It was oily and unappetising. I was surprise it was managed by the same restaurant famous for great seafood and steaks.
• Went back to Hotel to freshen up and had a quick lunch at a surprisingly tasty place called Restoran Haji Ramli. Barbecue fish and cockle salads were great. It would be added bonus if the staff could smile a little for their customer even though it was a hot and humid day.
• Went on a cable car ride at Gunung Machinchang. The view was awesome. Dh discovered that the mountain was the 3rd mountain created 500 million years on earth after the tectonic plates shift. I'm afraid I can't elaborate more as I left my book detailing the thingy in KL. (Dh inquired about this from a vendor selling drinks at the top of the mountain). The mountain is now a UNESCO heritage site since June 2007. Perhaps they could have written it down on a poster and stuck it somewhere for visitors to read. Langkawi Geo Park
• Went back to the Hotel after take away KFC for dinner . Dh commented that the KFC restaurant had the best harbour view in the world.
• Dh and kids went swimming at the hotel.
• Day 3: Went on a wild goose chase looking for batik sarong for MIL. Finally, found a place where they print exclusive batiks at 4 times the price of batik indon. Bought some in case can't find any cheap ones for MIL.
• Went to Mahsuri 's grave/tomb site or commercially known as Kota Mahsuri. Dh wanted to teach some history lessons to our kids. Learning the sad story of Mahsuri from their dad , our kids were a bit scared to go as they were afraid that the villain in the story, an evil prince would still be there. Learnt from the old lady who is the maintenance worker/keeper of the toilets, that Mahsuri's grave was moved from it's original grave site to the current so that they could develop the site further into a little complex. (The pretty Mahsuri house wasn't really her original house too).
• Went to Pekan Kuah for lunch and bought the elusive batik sarong for MIL.
• Headed to Sungai Kilim for the highlight of the vacation. A boat trip on the river to see Gua Kelewar (Bat Cave), Gua Buaya (Crocodile Cavern) , Floating Seafood Restaurant and fishfarm and also, possibly see eagles feeding on the river.
• Had dinner with our boatman cum tourist guide at the floating restaurant. Nice guy and the lad was quite well informed of his stuff. Hole in the wall Restaurant
• I would advise people if they were to take a boat ride on the river to wear the life jackets even it is not compulsory. Our boat hit a jutting stone cliff as our boatman was sms-ing somebody at the crucial time. Dh had to tell him at the last seconds before it hit. He stopped the engine so the impact was lesser than it could have been. Otherwise , it would have made greater damage to the boat .
• Dear son was afraid to go into the Bat Cave initially,however he braved it in the end. There were many bats inside and they were all sleeping fortunately.
• In the Crocodile Cave, the boatman was really enthusiastic telling dh that one of the stones looked like a crocodile ,that everyone was leaning on the port side of the boat. I had to tell them that the boat was almost tipping before they realised it.
• We watched Brahminy eagles/kites feeding on chicken skin floating in the water. All in all , it was an awesome spectacle. There were 40 or more of them . The boatman said if we went in the morning , there were more eagles around, possibly in 100s.
• Day 4: Caught our flight back to KL. It was delayed for more than an hour as torrential rain fell. Dh managed to capture images of Ajaz Ahmed, one of the tallest men in the world as he arrived at Langkawi airport.
• Arrived back in KL.

More info on Langkawi places of attraction , go to Langkawi Geo Park

The Perfect Family Vacation

I met blogger Tasmiya and her family on Sunday. She is such a sweetie and her sons are too cute! She was telling me about her vacation with her extended family of sixteen to Malaysia. I was like in awe that they could actually work out an itinerary that suited everyone's taste buds.
For my family , I mean for my dad , the perfect vacation would be going to the jungle, camping out and hunting deers whereas dh will be contented to bask in the sun at the beach all day. However, dh is rather an obliging person, the perfect son in law and my dad somehow convinced us to go to Taman Negara/The National Park a few years ago. So we went in 2 cars, my dad's 4wd rangerover and our beaten up proton. It was 4 hours drive from KL to Taman Negara. Phew.
The resort at the national park was almost fully booked and there was only 1 chalet available. My dad did not want this to spoil his vacation so we all stayed in one big spacious chalet, my mum, dad , me , dh , and 2 small kids under 4. Luckily, my dad brought a tent along so dh camped outside in the verandah so there was somehow enough beds for us inside. Poor dh! He said he could hear all kinds of sounds coming from the jungle at night but I think he rather likes camping as he camped out in our aussie backyard once or twice with our 2 older kids.
We had to wake up real early, ie before dawn the next day so that we could watch the deers from the lookout hut near the saltlake in the jungle nearby. My mum babysitted the kids who were asleep while dh, dad and I went out. My dad was sure to give us a pet talk us before hand on how to walk in the jungle as not to startle any wild animals/tigers if we met any. Easy for him to say. Thankfully, we didn't meet any wild animals but we did see some deers at the lookout with the aid of flashlights. Their eyes reflected the light and looked somewhat red. Since it was the national park , hunting was prohibited so those lucky deers were not afraid of hunters hunting them down. Even when the sound of the azan broke out via the loud speakers from a mosque nearby, they were unperturbed. This was one of the highlights of the vacation.
We also took a boat trip up the river. I brought a life jacket for dd to wear and dh held baby son on his lap. (They just provided life jackets for adults). We saw some Malaysian tourists having fun in the river floating on rubber tyres downstream. There were also many Western tourists out and about. There were restaurants afloat on the river and also orang asli settlements. My dad said he could smell a tiger in the jungle nearby when we passed a certain section of the river. I hope he was kidding. Thankfully, we did not see a glimpse of any! They are really quite elusive animals .
All in all, it was a great family holiday and something new to experience !

The Courteous Bus Driver

Sometimes I will take the bus to get from point A to point B. Public transport is quite efficient here and I can check the bus schedule on the net. Last week I took a bus. I sat in front of the bus as I was carrying baby and a stroller.
I like to observe people coming in or out of the bus or look out the window when I am on the bus. On that particular day, there was an old woman who wanted to get off the bus at one stop but she had difficulty bringing a large shopping bag on wheels down the steps. I wished I could help her but I could not leave my baby on the seat alone. Fortunately for her, the bus driver offered to help and the old lady managed to get off without a hitch after he turned off the bus engine and carried the black trolley bag down for her. She thanked him and remarked to him, "What will I do without you."
A few stops further, a student with deep blue eyes and an American businessman in a yellowish tan colored suit came on board. The student wanted a discounted fare. The bus driver explained to him that he would have to apply for the student card first and showed him the poster about how to apply behind his driver seat. The American wanted to go to the city somewhere and the bus driver said they were headed that way. I knew he was an American from his accent and he was phoning somebody on his mobile about his frequent flyer points what have you, and probably everyone on the bus could have heard his whole conversation of wanting to upgrade to a business class. Then a woman came on at another stop and asked the bus driver whether she is on the correct bus route and which bus should she take after that. The bus driver said she should take bus 333 after that but wasn't sure which side of the road she had to wait for it so he called someone on his phone to confirm before he gave her a definite answer. I was quite impressed with the bus driver's level of professionalism in helping his passengers (not to mention he did offer to help with my stroller down the bus). Bus drivers could be helpful and yet be quite punctual. Hence, being helpful to people isn't an excuse to be late. I don't know if the bus drivers in KL help people in this way at all as I am not a frequent commuter. The buses in KL seems quite crowded especially during peak hours and the safety and well being of passengers are not their utmost priority as the doors are sometimes left open and the bus driver will start driving even if you have not found a good seat to sit yet.

A Taxi Tale

The kids have started their new school term this week and it looks like they are settling well in their class. So I decided to go out for some shopping today instead of staying in. I took a taxi instead of going by bus as it was raining heavily in the morning. Usually, I would call my normal cab number and they would come right away but today I thought I'd try the alternative cab co. It took quite a long time for the taxi to arrive as my number was linked to another address on their database . Finally, when the taxi arrived, I huddled my baby and stroller in the car while the driver looked on. Normally, they would help me put my stuff in the boot.
When we were in the cab heading to the destination, the driver asked me what religion I was. I said I am muslim. I asked him whether he is muslim or sikh. He said he is Sikh. Then he asked me why muslim men can marry 4? This is one of the favourite questions I get asked by cab drivers when they know I am muslim. So I usually answer it by giving some logical explanation that came into my mind. Honestly, I think a man could rationalise and be able to answer this question himself better than a woman! Today I reasoned that there is only one very very short sentence in the Quran (which contains >6000 aayah/sentences) that mentions men could marry more than one. (So why the fuss?).
Anyway, this particular cab driver was asking me a lot of questions. Eg Where are you from? I answered Malaysia. Before you went to Malaysia, where were you from originally?? Malaysia. I thought I answered that already. Do you speak Urdu? No I don't speak Urdu. More qts. How old are you? How many kids? Are you married ? Are you happily married??? Gosh! He was bombarding me with some personal questions and I wasn't ready for the onslaught. My mind was on other things like when would we arrive at my destination! I am sure he was driving slower... and slower...
At last, when we were almost there, he said "Actually, you have a beautiful face, especially ...." When I heard that, I had to laugh and I said "Gosh , I haven't heard someone said that to me for a long time". And then he went on to say "If you were not married, I would offer you." ??? ?? Me think , OFFER ME WHAT??? But I rather not know the answer. To that, I just hurried myself and baby out of the cab after I paid the fare . He said that he hoped to see me again. No way, jose is all I can say. I am sticking to my old cab co next time.

The Scent of the Sea

I like to try the perfumes and room sprays whenever I am at the shops. One of my fav, Crabtree and Evelyn has room sprays call Waikiki and Salt Air which I have not tried before. I wonder if they really smell like the air near the sea though I feel no matter how many perfumes and sprays we make, nothing could beat the real thing.
We are planning to go to the beach less than an hour drive from here soon. The coastline in Oz is so beautiful with its golden sandy beaches stretching for miles and miles. And so are the beaches back home. They each have their own allure... To me, there is nothing more delightful than walking on the beach, looking at the waves breaking and collecting seashells ( and in my kids case , building sand castles and hitting the water ). Will the Salt Air spray smell like the true scent of the sea in the crisp morning air? Oh, I wish... so that I can have a part of the sea with me when I am at home in the city.
I can still remember the scent of the sea at Sydney Harbour when we were there last month. The wind was blowing strongly making it quite cool though it was a sunny afternoon. I went to the river side next to the Botanical Gardens to look at the view there while dh and the kids climbed up the stairs of the Opera House to take pics . I inhaled and smelled the rather pungent salty scent of the saltwater lingering in the air. It made me realise that the sea was not too far away from the harbour. The Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge looked quite grand and stunning that day.... but grander still was the harbour with the white sailboats, yachts and ships sailing through its river mouth.

*Update* Dd collected some stones and shells from a beach on the Gold Coast and I said she could make a potpourri with it. She washed her shells and stones and put them on our back deck to dry them under the sun. I had to bring them inside when baby raided them. The bathroom where I laid them suddenly bursted with the scent of salt air from dd's homemade potpourri!

Travelling whilst Muslim/Malaysian

A brother who has been an Aussie citizen for almost all his 20 plus years of his life told me he was detained for about 2 hours when he came back from his hols to Malaysia last year. The airport personnel asked him why did he choose to go to Malaysia? He told them that he likes Malaysia! He told me that he probably got detained coz he wears a kufi/kopiah on his head. So I guess they do some racial profiling on muslims especially supposed young single muslim men sometimes. The bro is married with 4 kids. This year if he gets detained by airport staff and if they ask him why Malaysia, he can say it is Visit Malaysia Year 2007!
I have some airport tales but not as dramatic as the brother's story. I lost one of my kid's metal spoon (why on earth did they confiscate that?) at heathrow airport once and a small penknife at the airport in Oz . I sometimes like to bring a swiss army victorinox penknife to cut open food wrappers for my children. My sister bought me a pretty flowery swiss army penknife from Switzerland when she went there in oct of last year and when I wanted to travel to Bangkok a few weeks ago, my dad being ever security conscious, asked me to surrender all sharp objects to him before boarding the plane. I gave him the flowery penknife and it is still in my dad's possession as I forgot to take it back. Anyway, I managed to buy 2 nail clippers at the airport terminal before I boarded the plane. My nails were bugging me. I had to cut my nails on the plane.
Well, the customs at the airports in Oz are more interested in the food products you bring in their country than anything else. We declared that we were bringing some food as usual when we came back from KL. Dh forgot to buy plastic wrappers with bubbles and so he stored some of the soya sauce bottles in our baby's clean nappies so that it would withstand the impact of bag handling at the airport. He was really serious in bringing the bottles of kicap/soya sauce as the ones sold in Oz were quite bland by Malaysian standard. However, it wasn't the bottles in the nappies that caught the attention of the custom officer. He immediately zoomed in on 4 packets of our 3 in 1 instant teh tarik and 1 packet of 3 in 1 instant nescafe and took them out of our food bag and stacked them outside. We hoped for the best when we saw this but in the end the whole 5 packets got confiscated as it had milk/dairy products in them. Dh was a bit stunned to learn that milk/dairy products processed in Malaysia didn't get to be on the list of countries that follow Oz's perfect hygiene standards. If only the 3in 1s were manufactured in Singapore. I bought the 3 in 1 teh tarik packs for dh knowing he loves teh tarik, the hot cup of very sweet frothy milky tea fare in Msia.(As for me, I don't drink coffee and I prefer tea with milk and no sugar). Poor dh, I guess he has to drink the normal bland aussie fare for the coming months.

A Break in Bangkok

Dh, baby and I had a short break in Bangkok. Initially we wanted to go somewhere in M'sia but thought it would be difficult to get a hotel room at popular destinations like Langkawi, PD etc at short notice. My dad recommended that we go to Bangkok through one of his associate's tour package. I had not been there for years so we thought we'll give it a try. Overall the experience was pretty awesome and dh , baby and I thoroughly enjoyed it, alhamdulillah. Bangkok has grown into a big metropolitan city with a population of 10 million and it was amazing to see the development and difference since I spent a few year there when I was a young kid . In general the Thais are a very friendly lot and they really like babies. Our baby son was very popular amongst the people we met because of his cuteness and his little antics. I'll write about Bangkok when I have more time soon , insha Allah. Today , my kids have to attend their cousin's birthday party at Mac D.

Back to hectic KL

I haven't had time to post an entry since now I am back in Kl for a visit. It is rather hectic in KL as I have to do some chores and settle some outstanding bills for my old flat. I even received a summon for illegal parking in PJ written for my car which was normally parked at my in laws house and used occasionally by my youngest and responsible 17 year old brother in law when he goes home for breaks from his pre uni studies. My dad and I went to MBAJ (PJ municipal council) to sort it out. It was an obvious error on the council's part. The description of the car and road tax registration number did not tally with my car's. So we had to sign their petition form to rectify their mistake. I have never received summons or speeding tickets related to my car which was due to my fault (so far). I think I am a law abiding driver insha Allah. A defensive driver (as my dh calls it ) as oppose to all those offensive drivers in KL. Hehehe. Tis hard to be on the defensive whereas many drivers out there just wanna break the rules when they get the chance. However, I aspire to drive with the coolness of my dad's. Dh said that dad remains very cool even when people cut into his lane or queue. The way people drive in KL are a stark contrast with that in Oz. Some drivers in KL think they own the road and they could suddenly turn left or right from their lane without giving the proper indication or signal. Another common offense is that they don't even stop properly at T junctions and look in both directions for oncoming cars. I could write down an endless list of offenses committed by people on the road daily. Double parking, stopping at a yellow line/zone, cutting queues and overtaking in the left lane or at double lines, using a mobile phone while driving etc . These do not include offenses by motorbike riders who are even more prone to accidents if they or others do not abide the road rules.
Pedestrians are the sure losers in KL. Whereas drivers in Oz would sometimes give way to pedestrians at junctions where there are no pedestrian crossings, KL drivers hardly give them a second glance. I was honed at by a driver behind me a couple of times after I decided to give way to some scared looking young pedestrians who wanted to cross over to their car at One Utama's carpark (a very popular, busy suburban mall during the weekend and public hols). Drivers would only slow down in carparks if they think your gonna vacate a parking lot. Why are KL drivers so impatient, selfish and stressed up??? Big question. Can there be a day in KL when people drive and abide by the law for their own safety and ours? Well, at this rate, I guess not in the foreseeable future. One can only dream.