Category: Travel

Let’s Go Kosovo

OK. I’ll jump the gun a bit and reveal some happy news. I received a booking for a hotel in Pristina, the capital and largest city of Kosovo. Kosovo is a partially recognised state in Southeastern Europe that unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in February 2008.

It became the Republic of Kosovo. War torn Kosovo’s capital is Pristina and it has a strong Albanian community with a very rich historical and cultural heritage.

I am happy not just for the unusual travel destination and the chance to learn and see more of the unfamiliar country. The “booker”, a friend, soon messaged me to tell me it was her who booked the hotel. It made me doubly happy not just for the sale but because she had previously visited 23 out of 48 countries in Europe.

It is gratifying to know such a savvy and experienced traveler has confidence in the system I set up in the form of MyCen Hotels (http://www.mycen.my/). Looking forward to her pics and crediting her when she returns.

Mother Teresa, known in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta. was from Albania, the neighbouring country of Kosovo.

Pic: The Great Hamam of Pristina (an Ottoman era monument) and the Imperial Mosque. (left) The Catholic Cathedral of Blessed Mother Teresa. (right)

Pic by Bujar Imer Gashi (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Al Fresco Dining At Jonker Walk

The curry or laksa mee street food hawker at the connecting road to Jalan Tokong from Jonker Street. So awesome to be at so close to a tokong or Chinese temple built in 1645.

I always request for extra toppings of “tau pok” or tofu or fried soy bean curd puffs when eating curry noodles soup. It is always nice when the tofu puffs soak up the santan soup or gravy and become softly bloated. A sign at the stall proclaimed the dish as “Laksa Mee Hee Kiow Mee”. Hee Kiow might possibly be Fish Mix in Hokkien.

If you want a total heritage immersion in the UNESCO World Heritage City, I recommend staying at the heritage Hotel Puri, which is a short walk from here. Booking link also shown here: Colours Of Yonker.

#melaka #malacca #jonker #streetphotography #streetfood #currylaksa #jonkerwalk #yonker #taupok

My Kokomo

Someone booked the Aman Sari Hotel in Bandar Penawar Desaru recently. I don’t know who it was. Normally, friends who booked will tell me in private but is non-obligatory.

Desaru is pronounced as Day Sar Roo. Coincidentally, I wrote about my liking of the beach recently too. Desaru went through a ‘renaissance’ after the opening of the highway from JB. Unlike Bali, the 22 km of beach here has no rowdy drunk Aussie tourists, as told to me by Rian Maelzer, who visited Kuta after Ubud.

There are no beach bars or peddlers with an ice box here, fortunately. Still unspoiled like how it was when it captivated a handful of Singaporeans in the 80s.

The tranquility may be shattered soon. I hope not. A massive refinery and petrochemical complex is being developed in Pengerang town at the southern Johor tip facing Singapore. Singaporean cycling friends reported seeing heavy heavy vehicle traffic on the old truck road.

There are a dozen other Desaru hotels listed at MyCen Hotels. Kokomo is a fictional place as sung in the hit song Kokmo by the Beach Boys. It supposedly is in the Caribbean or off the Florida Keys. 1st pic: Sun painting shadows on windy Desaru beach.

#desaru #johor #amansari #kotatinggi #kokomo

Beaches For Your Sunset Pics – Part 3.

Beaches For Your Sunset Pics – Part 3.

Port Dickson or PD shall be our third featured beach and the furthest, comparatively. I was there to attend the Rainforest Challenge 4WD competition.

Sometimes you need to rope in a complete stranger to complement the scene. I was lucky to meet friendly Kay Kay Wong and her cooperative dog on the beach. I explained to Kay Kay and she understood what I wanted to achieve immediately,

The pretty and shapely dog groomer ran across the sand and her pet poodle, Pearly, chased her in the way I imagined it. An unexpected bonus was the dust halo (fine sand) kicked up by the dog’s feet with the sunset behind.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 200, f8, 1/320 sec.

If you need to spend a night in PD, see this link to Hotels In Seremban that included a link to many hotels and resorts in PD:

http://www.mycen.my/hotel-in-seremban/

#sunset #dusk #beach #twilight #portdickson #pd #silhouette #dog #negerisembilan

Beaches For Your Sunset Pics – Part 2

Beaches For Your Sunset Pics – Part 2.

Next up on the sunset beaches series is the sneakily named Pantai Redang in Sekinchan. On a part of Redang Beach less trodden, is an isolated corner I called the Graveyard Of Fishing Vessels. Hauntingly beautiful and off the beaten track.

The skeletal remains of retired fishing boats are laid bare during low tide. I love this swampy coast in northern Selangor. When the light and clouds mashed up crazily, the land and seascape exudes a post-apocalyptic feel. Eerie and awesome.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 200, f8, 1/320 sec.

See Hotels in Sekinchan if you need to spend a night.

http://www.mycen.my/hotels-in-sekinchan/

Olympus OM-D, ISO 200, f8, 1/320 sec.

#sunset #dusk #beach #twilight #pantiredang #redangbeach #sekinchan #selangor