Category: Travel

With A Little Help From My Friends

With A Little Help From My Friends.

These are some of the hotels near and far booked by traveling friends. Not to brag but to remind other friends that the page can handle any hotel in any city. These are from of the people who voluntarily let me know that they supported me but I can’t name names to preserve their privacy. Some bookings were done anonymously and I can only thank those unknown, anonymous kind strangers in general. Appreciate it, all the same.

It is always heartbreaking when someone respond by saying they just booked rooms at so and so place moments earlier but will remember me the next time. Well this serves as a reminder for those who are planning to reserve rooms online. I need to reach the critical mass before it can help me pay bills. every little bit counts. Not there yet but with a little help from my friends, hopefully it can. Have a good trip ahead, all traveling friends.

In no particular sequence or order:

1. Best Western Chinatown Hotel, Yangon, Myanmar.
2. Holiday Inn Sukhumvit Bangkok, Thailand.
3. Imperial City of Hue, Vietnam.
4. Nhat Li Hotel, Da Nang, Vietnam.
5. Jinjiang Inn Shanghai, China.
6. 7 Days Premium Guangzhou, China.
7. V Garden Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
8. Palm Garden Hotel, IOI Resort, Putrajaya, Malaysia.

Pictures from Agoda.

Book or check rates from my page here:
http://www.mycen.my/agoda/

The Orang Asli Of The Gold Coast

Me and Alex tried to enter Pantai Cunang beach in Tanjung Sepat and found the sandy track accessible to only motorcycles. While looking at the map, we saw an Orang Asli Village (indigenous or aboriginal people) nearby. Further reading revealed they are of the Mah Meri tribe and many are fishing people like the town folk.

Not too long ago, I met a Chinese man in Morib who is married to an Orang Asli woman with a daughter in tow (inset). When the woman told me she is Mah Meri, I instinctively asked if she is from Carey Island. They told me they are from Sungai Pelek near Tanjung Sepat. Thanks to the friendly chat with the couple, I found out there are many interracial marriages between Orang Asli and the Chinese farmers in the area.

According to them there is a big Orang Asli community in Sungi Pelek and the modern Orang Asli town has a fried chicken outlet in the middle now, as I was to discover later. Sad. Hehe.

Sungai Pelek has a checkered history with British Field Marshal Sir Gerald Templer accusing the residents of supporting communist insurgents at one time and the town’s pig farming industry was tragically wiped out by the JE virus epidemic in 1989. The town is back on its feet.

I hope this Orang Asli family by the roadside near Cunang Beach were not walking back from Sungai Pelek. It is quite a distance by foot.

#tanjungsepat #orangasli #mahmeri #goldcoast #sungaipelek #rural #smalltown

Seaside Cats

Morib Beach is sort of bizarre. I saw wild monkeys and stray cats on the same day. The sunset was dull and cool at the esplanade on that day but I saw something heart warming. Hard to see in this pic but some of the of the human visitors were sharing their snacks with a couple of appreciative homeless cats.

The A7R camera’s resolution is so massive I can crop in (on another shot), recover from the shadows and show the close up as an inset.

Sometimes, seeing a sunset can cheer you up, sometimes seeing a simple act of kindness can too.

Sony Alpha A7R, ISO 2000, f10, 1/60 sec.

#morib #cats #strays #beach ##sea #homeless #sunset #silhouette

Meestery Of Chai Loong

I was traveling back from my Gold Coast, Bagan Lalang and Morib adventure with Alex Wong MF the other day. Since Alex was feeling a little sleepy, I suggested we stop at The Chaiwalla Restaurant in Banting for dinner and coffee.

Chaiwalla is my favorite restaurant in Banting since my first visit many years ago. I discovered very good western cuisine there and asked for the Chef to compliment him. This a tiny town and was surprised they serve Bangsar quality food. The Malay chef told me, and true enough, he used to work at La Bodega in Bangsar!

Wanting to try something different this time, I flipped through the menu and saw an intriguing Mee Chai Loong. I have eaten all kinds of noodles but dont know what is mee cha long. It is also spelled as chalong or calong in some places. Google didn’t reveal much except it is popular in the Kuantan and Beserah areas. No historical info or etymology of the name can be found. Maybe sister Jehan Bakar from that parts can shed some light? Or anyone who can help unravel the mystery. Thank you.

It was soupy and was pretty tasty. Yumz.

Sony Alpha A7R, ISO 2000, f10, 1/60 sec.

#banting #chaiwalla #meechailoong #meechalong #meecalong #foodphotography #localfood

Around Bentong

Around Bentong.

Once upon a time, I went to the National Park and took an hour long chartered boat ride. The boatman stopped suddenly upriver and said. “This is it!” I asked what? He said “The waterfall!” I asked where? Another 45 minutes by jungle trek, he explained.

Few months later I want to Bentong to check out famous Kow Po ice cream. The friendly boss’s son recommended I visit Chamang Falls. It was a long winding drive and I finally ended up at Chamang Falls. I can hear the roar from the car park. I got down and there it was , the most beautiful waterfall that was incredibly easy to access. It was a walk in or drive in waterfal like Niagara. Amazing. Only down side is the car park is choked with cars on weekends and on public holidays.

The reason why photographers prefer accessible waterfalls is because we need to carry our heavy tripods to create the silky blurred water effect.

On the way to Chamang waterfalls, I remember seeing a sign to a remote hotel. Good thing, because a few months later I was driving from Negeri Sembilan at night and wanted to use the back way to Cameron Highlands. It was late at night and I decided to put up at this hotel for the night. It was long and torturous drive from Kuala Pilah. The hotel is nice in that there was a convenient Old Town White Coffee Cafe downstairs.

My travel partner thought the room was haunted the next morning, she claimed I kept ending on her side of bed. LOL.The explanation is simple. It was one those shophouse hotels with a window facing the road downstairs. Every time the car alarm goes off, one would instinctively climb up on the bed to look down. Park strategically and hope you get a street view room if your car has valuables.

There are so many things to see, to eat and to do in Bentong. I recommend this hotel since I stayed there and found it satisfactory. Book from link given below:

http://www.mycen.my/tras-mutiara-hotel-bentong/