Bangkok trip was meant for my family vacation. My big, extended family. We purchased the ticket during the RM1 promotion by AirAsia last year. I thought everyone will go but due to the H1N1 break, only 7 out 0f 14 went for the trip. Nevertheless, it was a great trip and experience for all of us.
Planning
I was the trip planner. Once I bought the tickets, I started surfing for the trips. I searched on the best map, accommodation, transportation and anything that was related. After a few month research, I found out the best for everything was:
Map: Groovy Map for Bangkok
A complete, easy-to-use map that cover everything. My sis bought it from MPH Midvalley.
Accommodation: Samran Place
Budget hotel that near to Halal food, nice staffs and got a high ranking in Tripadvisor.com for its range.
Transportation: A mix of BTS, Boat, Tuk-tuk and taxi.
Shopping: Will be covered below.
The real itinerary
4/8/09:
Our day started with departing to LCCT. Our dear Chu brought us there. My flight was supposed to depart at 6.50 but we arrived at LCCT around 2 p.m. We did not take the same flight as mom and abo was in the earlier one at 4 p.m.
We hang around the LCCT, had a light meal at a very expensive Marrybrown. Although I hate anything that is associated with any celebrity that I hate, I need to put that aside as there was no any other cheap food. (Tips: The celebrity name start with M) If I had the money, for sure I will have my hot chocolate at Theobroma.
Exactly at 6.30 p.m., we boarded our flight. It was Eya's first time in a flight. She was not that excited as she thought it was just another mode of transportation.
We arrived on time and searched for mom and abo. Once I found them, we started searching for taxi to bring us to the hotel. They had public van but we were unsure what they meant by public. So to be safe, we took the airport limousine, but due to our number, they give us van. The van was so great, and it was large. It can fit 10 people, I think. It was called Toyota Kommuter. If they sell it here, my mom was sure to buy it.
The traffic was horrible although it was 9 p.m. The first thing we did after checked in was thinking what to eat for dinner. Although the halal food was opposite of the road, we were afraid it was closed and being just a small lane, maybe we could get lost finding the food.
So, me and hubby being an adventurer, we proposed to have dinner at the hotel. We asked for squid and shrimp fried rice. Mom ate fish and chip. Luckily, it was nice.
5/8/09:
Our first plan was to visit the Grand Palace.There was no bus or BTS directly to get to the pier. So, the best option was to take BTS to Saphan Taksin and from there, we would take boat from Sathorn, the Central Pier. The boat ride only cost 1.30 and we took the orange flag ferry.
The Sathorn pier was N1 and the stop for Grand Palace is at Tha Chang, N10 so it was quite a boat ride from me. I was not a fan of any transport that is related to water. Thats why I stayed near to the life jackets in the ferry.
From the stop, we need to walk a little bit before we arrived at the Grand Palace. We need to pay 35 per pax for the entrance fee. If you took any tour service, it will cost you the cheapest of RM70 for the trip to the palace.
The GP was quite a big area. Due to the hot weather, we just briefly visited some of the main attraction and left the palace.
The next plan, was to have lunch. So, the only thing I could think of, was halal food at MBK. The food was great but pricey. For fried rice, it was 80baht and for something like nasi paprik, it cost 150 baht. Food was expensive here even if you go to stalls. I love the Iced Milo there. It was heaven.
We rest at the hotel before going for dinner at Ali Selatan. The owner is a Kelantanese. All the halal food you find on Zabihah.com can be found here at the street. The food was marvellous and the sirap bandung was great.
The next plan was to go for Suan Lum night market. So we took BTS to Silom but failed to find the market at the Lumpini Park. So, changed plan to visit Patpong night market. It was similar to Petaling Street. If it just the both of us, I would go to see of the night show but as I went with family, I cancelled the plan.
The market is located in the middle of Patpong 1 street, so when you were walking, you can get a glimpse of whatever happened in the bar. I managed to see some pole dancing and girls doing their show. However, in the Patpong rate, it was still considered a decent view.
So, as I read that Patpong night market is expensive, I did not buy anything. Once we arrived at our hotel, we had a foot massage at a place beside it. It was cheap, just 200 for an hour. The guys tried the body massage for just 200 baht.
That was my trip for the 1st 2 days. Will blog the second part of the trip later.
p/s: Pics will be included later.
Bangkok Trip I
Keds and lot of bracelets...
What was the happiest shopping moment during my trip to Bangkok?
Its when I discovered Siam Paragon does sell Keds shoes. I love flat shoes, in fact, now I have 6 of them . Mostly are Nike as they have nice flat shoes. So, once when I was web surfing, I found out that a US brand, Keds produce flat shoes.
So, I tried to ask hubby to persuade his friend in US to buy it from me as the brand is not available in Malaysia. But, his friend will be there for 5 years, so I need to wait for some years before I be able to wear it.
I never thought I could find it. So, during the trip, when I found Keds is being sold there, without any hesitation, I decided to buy it. The choice was not that many but I bought one. Even my lil sis bought one for her. So, now I have an extra pair of Keds.
The two pair of Keds...The other highlight of my trip was to Platinum Shopping mall where I found a small shop selling bracelets. This shopping complex is known for it wholesales trade so mostly everything are cheap. All the bracelets and necklaces is similar quality and look to Diva's and DP merchandise but with very low prices. Usually DP or Diva bracelet cost about RM20 for the simplest bracelet but here you can get one for only RM3. So, I bought every colour of bracelet that I could find. It was such a happy day for me.
Now, I have complete collection of every colors for my bracelet combined with a few from my sis. Even my bracelet tree could not handle all the weight. I need to find a new tree for all those new bracelets.
.......................
I was so shocked when I heard the news of Yasmin Ahmad. And I was sad when I woke up Sunday morning and my mom told me she passed away on Saturday night. At that moment, I felt like something going to be missing from my life.
She was the reason why I watched Malay movies. Although she entered the industry quite late, she did make a big impact to the Malay movie industry.
She was the reason why I started spending my money to watch Malay movies in the cinemas. I watched almost all her movies at cinemas, except for Talentime. I had wrote an entry that I was so frustrated that I couldn't watch Talentime. I even asked my friend to find Muallaf cd in Singapore as Malaysia banned the movie. Until now, I'm still searching for Muallaf cd.
I felt like Malaysia is missing a valuable icon in the movie industry. It is sad to know that there will be no more good Petronas ads, no more good movies to be watched.
This is the first time I ever felt sad when someone in the movie industry passed away. Even when MJ died, I felt nothing. But just hearing the news that she passed away, I was really sad.
Maybe someone like the DT or RM will feel happy that she can no longer make movies but for me, sincerely, I will miss her movies so much.
Now, I can only look forward to Afdlin, Kabir or Mamat Khalid movies. The next one will be setem. Need to make booking a.s.a.p.
At last, we succeed....
We had been trying to potty-train Eya for some time. We knew that she could follow orders but the first time we tried, she was confused when its the small and big one.
When she told us she want to go, then, at that exact moment, she will just let go. I read from somewhere some children, they are confused when they want to let go. So, we did have a few accidents.Luckily, our home are not 100% carpet-covered.
So, I bought her a common, cheap potty. We told her everytime she want to go, just use the potty, instead of going to the toilet. The first few times, she did have accidents and didn't manage to use it on time.
Then, last week, suddenly she managed to use it and we were so happy that we gave her compliments. It turned out she did like compliments and we need to praise her after she do her small or big business. Now, she use the potty for both of her business.
It was a great achievement both for us and her. Now, she do not need to wear huggies in the house anymore. She still wear it when she goes to nursery or for outing as we do not know the nearest toilet.
Now, our next milestone is to transfer her from using the potty to real toilet, although she know how to use it.
A rockstar in the making...
Rockstar in the making...
Abo and adik just bought a PS3 complete with the Guitar Hero set. It includes a guitar, drum and microphone, complete to create a rock band. As for the games, Abo had bought about 15 games from Ebay UK.
Previously, when they played PS2, they also played guitar hero using 1 guitar. So, when they bought the set, the old guitar could not be used with PS3.
I respect that adik and just anyone who could play the guitar as it was really hard for the player to follow all the colours from the game. For those who are unclear of the game, the guitar and drum have 5 colour keys/buttons. They have to follow the color exactly when it is being displayed on the tv.
For me, I could only play the drum set with easy level. The guitar was out of my league, it was quite hard for me to play it.
As for hubby, he become the vocalist of the band. To sing it is quite easy, as you only need to know the rythm and lyrics of the song. You need to match the tempo and lyrics.
As it was hard to follow the key colours, some people who play the guitar, concentrate really hard and was very static when they play it. So, we love watching Eya playing the guitar. She was really cute and act just like a true rockstar. She can sway to the music and move the guitar to the beat. She can do that as she don't play the game. She just follow whatever her Acu did and I did teach her to follow the colour keys.
Now, it become our family pastime favourite to play Guitar Hero.
Eya and Dede
We can sing, so surprising...
Me and Eya having a good timeSo, last Saturday, after my cousin had finished her cupcake lesson, we headed down to Ampang Park. It was quite cheap compared to what Red Box @ The Curve charge. Just RM35 for an hour for a medium room, which can accommodate up to 15 people. So, my whole family including Adib went to have a 'melalak' session for the first time except for my SIL, who was quite a pro.
Along, Kaklong and ZidaneWe booked the room for 4 hours which for me was quite long. My SIL said 4 hours was too short and we might ask to extend the hours. Me and hubby being quite an amateur in this area was quite 'kekok' with this whole karaoke thingy. We didn't know how to choose song and set for it using the karaoke machine.
Me and hubby chose our fav song which includes Hotel California, some oldies for hubby and for me too. My first choice of songs would be N' Sync but their collection contained songs that I didn't really like.
Hubby and me trying our skill in karaoke'ingHubby who was so reluctant to the idea at first started enjoying the singing. He tried to conquer the mic and almost all the songs. The funny part was he is tone deaf. He just follow the lyric blindly without knowing how the songs sounded. It was funny but it was exciting to see how hubby enjoyed the whole session.
As for me, I got to sing my most favourite song, Januari by Glenn Fredly. My Eya sang her Ketahuan song by Matta. Both she and Zidane enjoyed the session too.
Eya n Zidane is starting from youngReally looking forward to have another karaoke session when Abo is here. Okay, guys, start collecting money as it going to be a really long session.
Eya's eating habit...
Eya is almost 3 years old. Only a few months before she turns 3. Her weight always like a yo-yo, sometimes up and sometimes down. For now, her weight is okay, which is about 17 kg. One of my friend told me that her weight was 19kg when she was in Standard 1. A difference of only 2kg. I think it is normal for her to be at that weight for now. The weight is reflected by her tummy. Yes, I do love the tummy. She knew it and when we asked 'perut sapa', she will replied 'perut mama'.
Lately, she eats like an adult. Sometimes more than me or even her ayah. We are not worried about worms as we had given her the worms vaccine.
In a normal routine, she will eat 3 times. These meal usually will be a plate of rice, with a 'telur mata'. She likes her rice to be a little bit 'banjir', just like her ayah. So, sometimes we put her with kuah sayur or kicap. She will finish the whole plate.
As with the milk, she still drinks her milk. She drinks Nespray 1+. So, when the ads with Sheila Majid in it, she will shout, 'susu Eya, susu Eya'. A lot if I might add. If she forget to drink her milk before sleep, she will wake up in the middle of the night and asked for it. Not everyone could prepare her milk. Depends on her mood before her sleep. Sometimes it can be her ayah or me. However, I always wish it will be her ayah.
She also loves Ribena. We introduced her to Ribena upon her paed advice. When she was a baby, she do not like to drink and always got constipation. So, her paed advised us to give her prune juice or ribena. She hated the prune juice but luckily she can accept the ribena. So, its Ribena until now. However, to balance it out, we only give Ribena when she is at home. Outside, we will give her plain water.
The best thing I ever saw of her eating habit was when we ate 'nasi daun pisang' as our dinner. After she finished eating the rice, she folded the daun pisang. Just like what we normally do after eating nasi daun pisang. Someone told me that if we fold the daun pisang towards ourselves, it means we like the nasi. So, Eya did just that. We were really surprised as we never told her to do that. Maybe she watched us do it and learn from it.
My mom also noticed that when she eat spaghetti, she will use her fork to twirl the spaghetti. Only after that, she will put the twirled spaghetti into her mouth. We never taught her this but I think, again she learned from observation. She will twirl even mihun.
She also likes to have roti canai for breakfast. However, she will only eat it if there is kuah dal or kari. She will dip her shredded roti into the kuah, and eat it.
I think she learned a lot by observation and I'm sure she likes to eat. A true AL clan by heart.
