Jom Jalan Jalan

Kapalai Island Sabah

noreply@blogger.com (Nora) — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 10:28:00 +0000

Hi all...

It has been quite sometimes since the last posting...pls forgive the laziness in me..:D

This time around I would like to share with you about THE TRIP.haaaaaaaaaaa...its my honeymoon!!! We initially planned to go somewhere in the Oceania, but then we thought, hey!letsjalan-jalan in Malaysia and we did make a right choice. To get to Kapalai Island one must first make prior arrangement with the travel agent(mine was this one www.firstborneo.com.my , contact person is Esther) their package will include return airport transfer from Tawau Airport to Sampoerna Jetty, boat ride to the resort, accommodation and meals. Make sure you arrange way in advance to avoid being disappointed because their room is quite limited.

Day 1

We depart from Kuala Lumpur International Airport @ around 9 something and the flight to Tawau took about 2 1/2 hrs. Tips: You can try your luck by getting a cheap airfare from Malaysia Airlines via their get the deal promotions (http://gtd.malaysiaairlines.com/1/hq/en/dest/get-the-deal/signup.aspx).

Our arrival in Tawau was greeted by First Borneo Staff and we transported to Sampoerna Jetty with few others. It took about 11/2 hrs to get to the jetty and we were 'served' with palm oil plantation view along the way.

me at the jetty...waiting for the boat...

Mr. Hubby :)

View from the jetty

After about 30 mins in the boat we can already see the resort...the first thing that pop to our mind was.."WOW"..it is so breathtakingly beautiful...endless view, a resort right in the middle of the ocean and we we greeted by a friendly staff of Kapalai Island Resort

The resort

The jetty and helipad...kid you not, there's a helipad right in the middle of the ocean

We were divided into two groups, one is diver and the other one is non diver(well..that's us), given a registration form to fill up and afterward a little briefing about the meal time and other facilities they have. Meals will be served 3 times a day, Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. In between there'll be juices (more like a cordial not so much of a juice)and other snacks readily available in the restaurant. Its all included in the package...then we have our lunch before heading to the room.

My Lunch

His Lunch

View from one of the doors

Inside the restaurant

In the middle of the restaurant is this!...blue ocean water, school of fish

Endless blue ocean view

sundecks

Outside the restaurant

Good Boy!;D

So after lunch, we were brought to our room...this is the most anticipated part!really cant wait to see the room as I was mesmerized by them when I browsed through their pics in the website...lets the pic do the talking!

view on the way to the room

view towards the room

view from the room

Our room!

Interior of the room

The shower

The coolest part, bathtub by the window overlooking the sea

View from the balcony

The balcony

It is really a beauty and worth every ringgit!:D

After resting for a few hours, its time to go for sunset! aahhhhhhhh ....its so beautiful, I've seen sunsets before but nothing like this...

view of the restaurant from the helipad

The helipad!

and

jeng...jeng..jeng

this is the original pic non edited

We did nothing much for the rest of the night...It gets dark early in Sabah @ around 6pm, so the dinner is served at 7pm....let see what we had for dinner

The prawn on the left hanside is to die for, cooked with cheese and the prawan is so fresh...Yummy!!!

When we are done with dinner, we took a walk around the resort. It is so serene and peaceful, right ambiance for honeymooners. We found their water sports center and really tempted to do the snorkelling, HOWEVER suddenly i remembered this creature

this creature was at the jetty when we arrived, nicely coiling in the water....hell no for snorkeling!

but we did found some other nice sea creatures along the way....

I was told that this is a Garfish..they love the attention and the lights very-very much!

We call it a day after that and headed back to our room...........

Day 2

We get up early today just to catch the sunrise...it was equally beautiful with sunset and head for breakfast afterwards.

Sunrise

This is his breakfast, mine already gone!hahahahha

There's nothing much to do here if you are a non divers and scared of sea snake...you'll end taking a nap in your gorgeous room or walking around taking some more pics....here it goes

On the other side of the resort...since they dont have any beach, I guess this is a great thing to have

Can you spot the fish?

somemore fish

Kapalai........

when the water recede, you will see this and u can actually walk on it...but beware of......

this!

Turtle...there's plenty more

Stingray

Stone fish

Star fish...many kind of fish haaa...

The signboard

We left the next day to Kota Kinabalu @ around 11am and was given packed lunch that consist of a chicken fried rice, mineral water and a banana. You will need this lunch as it will take about hour and a half to get to the airport and there's nothing much in Tawau Airport. This is the end of my trip to Kapalai and I'll be back to venture another island!

BEIJING 2010 (part 2 - 2nd Day - 4th day)

noreply@blogger.com (Nora) — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 01:33:00 +0000

Day 2-4

Lepas dah rehat malam tu....menu dinner tu, kari sardin...perghhhhhhh...syahdu tu, sejuk2, lapar2 gitu layan nasik putih dengan kari sardin.hehehe....Tips: kalau korang rasa korang akan banyak travel, dan almaklumlah kita ni selalu bila berjalan tempat orang, especially yg kita macam tak berapa pasti halal haram makanan tu, kita akan ada sedikit masalah nak makan.Jadi aku syorkan keluar duit sikit dan beli Travel Cooker. Yang kat dalam gambar ni bukan aku punya, aku pinjam sebab model yang mcm ni tak ada jual kat Malaysia (kalau sesiapa tahu kat mana ada jual boleh la share ok...).Last time aku nampak ialah kat Singapore.Tak kisah la mcmana modelnya, as long as sesuai dan boleh digunapakai..jalan jer....:)

Travel cooker jenama Sanyo

Disebabkan aku dh agak lama pegi Beijing ni...aku dh tak berapa ingat dengan jelas, aktiviti apa, dan hari apa yang kitaorang pegi. Tapi korang tgk la gambar2 ni okay...(sorry!)

Makanannnnnnnn.........

ni kat dataran depan Bell Tower...bleh naik beca tu, nanti dia bawak round2...kena bayar of course.....

Askar tgh berkawad kat Tiannamen Square

askar...close up...hahahha

kak aku ader cerita pasai mayat Chairman Mao simpan sini..tapi masa aku pegi tak boleh nak tengok sebab ada official visit dari siapa tah...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mao_Zedong

Entrance to Forbidden City

signboard

sungai yg dah beku...

ni bilik-bilik untuk gundik maharaja....brapa banyak daaa....

tak ingat apa ni...

park towards the exit of Forbidden City..poko2 ni semua berusia beribu tahun.mcm rasa seram pun ada, kalau la pokok2 ni boleh bercakap, harus aku interview...apa la yg jadi dulu...

cherry blossom

pink cherry blossom...so beautiful...

after thousand of years...batu ni pun jadi mcm ni....

fokus kat kenderaan yg petak mcm motor jual roti tu...itu lebih kurang mcm tuk2..nama tak pasti sebab tak paham apa driver dia ckp...Tips:sebelum naik tawar menawar dulu.pastu kalau kasik duit and ada balance sila check betul2.diaorg ni pantang ada peluang, mmg la nak kapur jer...

Kitaorg on the way nak pegi Wang Fu Jing Street.jalan tu ala2 Bukit Bintang area la kalau kat KL ni...high end punya barang2...kat sana ada satu Tourist Info Counter, tapi yg sedihnya..ckp very limited english.nasib baik ada jumpa sorang Singaporean, so dia tlg jadi translator...:D.Kitaorg pun tanya kaw2 semua info, pastu mkn McD, jalan2 area tu, pastu balik hotel and berehat...badan memang tak berpeluh tapi, hingus meleleh2..huhu...

Esoknya kitaorang keluar lagi jalan-jalan...arini kitaorg pegi GREAT WALL OF CHINA..haaaaaaaaa sampai gak aku kat salah satu keajaiban dunia....bangga siot!akakkakaka...tapi banyak dah runtuh, yg kitaorg dok panjat tu dh dibina semula oleh kerajaan China...aku bayangkan, aku yg jenjalan biasa gini pun xtahan ngan sejuk, apatah lagi diorang yg bina tembok ni dulu..tak pakai baju sejuk semua tau..pakai cam ahli sumo tu jer...huhu..tak dapat nak bayangkan...

entrance to Great Wall. kat sini la aku jumpa anjing besar gila, gebu gila, muka garang gila...huuuuu..gerun mak!btw..kat wall ni kira mcm ringkasan pembinaan tembok tu...

tembok yg diselaputi salji

tetiba de unta gunung kat sini...buat ambik gambar

another view from another angle

Basically tour ni akan ambik masa sehari...kitaorg punya start pukul 11am sampai 7pm. Kitaorg gamble ja...jumpa tour ni kat Tiannamen Square, so pegi Ba Daling untuk naik kat atas tembok tu. Tour ni inclusive of lunch, pegi 3-4 tempat, kilang jedm kilang itik peking, pegi makam diraja...harganya dalam RM50 seorang.murah gak kan?tapi kalau korang jenis tak kisah adventure, boleh ambik tour ni, if not booking in advance.After tour dah habis, kitaorg pun balik la otel...jumpa kedai mee muslim tgh jalan, makan dulu..sedappppppppppppppppppp!!!rehat dan simpan tenaga untuk esok...

Esoknya...ke Stadium Olimpik Beijing..yeahhhhh!!!

segerombolan orang menuju ke stadium....masa ni suhu ialah -4 darjah selsius.Bangunan kat belakang tu ialah Water Cube.masa olimpik dulu, ni tempat acara berenang...kalau malam sgt cantik...

ni kalau malam...pas pasang lampu jadi camni la..lawa ek?

entrance to the stadium...tak kena bayar, cuma security guard tu nak scan bag

Stadium Olimpik...agak kabur sebab sandstorm coming...

Media Centre

Hard Rock Cafe Beijing

The Happy Faces!

hehehehe

so the end of our Beijing journey...hopefully korang terhibur la tgk gambar2 ni semua...sorry for the lack of info...again..this is just testing posting...wait for my next posting...it will be about blue sky, clear water, and Mr. Turtle....if ada any question, dont hesitate to ask okay...:D

CIAO!

BEIJING 2010 (part 1 - 1st day)

noreply@blogger.com (Nora) — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 07:10:00 +0000

1st Day

Hai all....:D

Aku pegi Beijing last March....dari 15-19 March...it was sooooooo cold!!!masa ari yg aku sampai tu, suhu nyer lebih kurang -3 darjah selsius...wahhh memula tgk salji dr atas kapal terbang, excitednya kemain..hehehhe..awak ingat awak tough,"cam tak sejuk jer..."ingat bole la nak melawa bagai...rupanya mak aiiiiiiiiiiiiii...masa pintu airport tu bukak, mcm nk tergugur segala organ, bulu, kulit dan sebagainya....

hehehe...bukti okayyyyyyyy......

lepak2 di Golden Lounge (courtesy of kasuri casturi)

menu

So lepas dh go through all th emigresen thingy...my sister almost tak lepas, imigresen officer tu kata muka dia tak sama dgn dalam gambar.."kak..samada hg dh tua atau hg buat plastik surgeri....:P"

Lepas dh selesai semua masalah tu. kitaorg pun pegi la menuju ke keluar...masa keluar tu....fuhhhhhhhhhhhh..sojuknya aiiii!!nasib kitaorg dh arrange transport dr airport nk ke hotel, so tak payah la nak bersusah payah cari transport...masalahnya diaorg ni ckp very limited English, aku xreti ckp cina...jadi dh mcm ayam ckp dgn itik..."belasah jer la labu...janji sampai"....

ni la driver kitaorg...ambik dr belakang jer...takut nk ajak amek gambar...sekali dia bercakap mcm nk gado..padahal dia cuma nk explain apa yg patut..ekekke...

Enjoy the pics...view along the way....

sejuk...salji!

tol

salji lagi

teksi...(saja jer)

cantik eh pokok2 tu?

So lepas perjalanan yg sgt mengagumkan aku...(almaklum la xpernah tgk salji)...sampai la kat hotel. Trip ni is own arrangement...mat salleh kata DIY..Do It Yourself...so hotel carik sendiri...tiket flite beli sendiri...transport arrangement buat sendiri...betul2 adventure...hotel ni xder la mewah..tapi cukup selesa, dan mmg bersesuaian dgn kitaorg yg tak lekat dalam bilik pun....bagi aku as long as selesa nak tidor, bersih dan selamat, hotel biasa pun dh cukup...

ni lah hotel kitaorg...simple jer...Zaoyuan Ju Hotel, Hutong

jalan nk masuk ke otel....hanya pemandu taraf F1 jer boleh drive kat sini

ni pokok, bukan momok

gambar ni diambil oleh aku yg gayat tgk salji

di dalam bilik...abaikan insan2 tersebut...lupa nk ambik gambar sebelum bilik diserang...hikhikhik....

aku sgt particular bab toilet...so toilet ni aku rate kan 7/10...cuma air panas tak brapa nak cukup

Lepas kitaorg check in, rehat sekejap dalam bilik sebab xtahan sejuk...pastu kakak aku pun mula la bukak buku. Frommer's Travel Guide: Beijing. Buku yg berguna dalam proses nak merancang perjalanan. So after kita org bincang2, we decided untuk pergi dekat Bell Tower and Drum Tower, which is around our hotel. About ten minutes walk.

view dekat main road on the way to Bell Tower

deretan kedai

Youth Hostel

houses

More info on Bell & Drum Tower (credit to TravelChinaGuide.com)

"The bell and drum were originally used as musical instruments in China. Afterward, however, they were used for telling time. As early as in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220), there was 'a morning bell and a dusk drum'. Telling the time by bell and drum played an important role in helping people live and work regularly when there was no other means to keep track of the time. As a result, bell and drum towers became public architectures, and were widely constructed in almost every city throughout the country since the Han Dynasty. In the history of their construction, the bell and drum towers of Beijing are the largest and highest. Their layout is unique, in that they were placed fore-and-aft, not as the traditional sense of standing right-and-left horizontally.
Lying to the north of Beijing-south axis line in Dongcheng District, the bell and drum towers are visibly prominent constructions and represent the symbol of this old city. They were built in 1272, and rebuilt twice after two fires. At one period in history they were the time-telling center of the capital city during the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties (1271-1911)."

Bell Tower

This brick and stone towers have two floors: there is an arched door on all four sides of the tower on the first floor, and you can go up to the second floor through stone stairs. The same exists on the first floor. An arched door was also built on the four sides of the second floor. Additionally, there is a stone window on each side of the four doors. Hanging on an eight-square wooden frame of the second floor, the bell in this tower is the largest and heaviest in China. It is 7.02 meters (23 feet) high including the pendants, with a weight of 63 tons (138,891 pounds). The bell was made of copper, and you can hear its round and clear sound from far away. The two 2-meter-long (2 yards) wooden logs hanging sideward are used to ring the bell.

Drum Tower

Located 100 meters (109 yards) south to the bell tower, the drum tower was placed on a 4-meter-high (13 feet) stone and brick base. It is 46.7 meters (153 feet) high, a little bit lower than the bell tower that is 47.9 meters high (157 feet). This tower is also a two-storey building; the first floor contains the China Committee for the Promotion of the Minority Art. The second floor contains the exhibition area. Originally, there was one big drum and 24 smaller drums, but only the big drum remains. The method of beating the drum is to beat it quickly for 18 times and then slowly for 18 times. Altogether there are three rounds and 108 tollings. People knock the bell and the drum 108 times, because 108 times represent one year in ancient times.

Admission Fee :

Bell Tower -

RMB15 (RM7)

Drum Tower -

RMB20 (RM9.50)

Opening Hours: 09:10 to 17:00

Drum Tower

Drum Tower dari depan

Tangga nak mendaki ke atas Drum Tower...so kalau stamina tahap Red Bull silakan...bear in mind, in winter cepat jadi penat(or aku je yg cepat penat sebab tak biasa?huhu)

rupanya aku tak ambik gambar Bell Tower pun...ni mesti sebab dh terlampau sejuk, nak petik kamera pun dh tak boleh...huhu. Tapi buat sesiapa yg teringin nak tgk gambar Bell Tower, sila lah tanpa malu-malu...GOOGLE!:P

Lepas about setengah jam kitaorg kat situ, lepas berusaha dgn gigih melawan cuaca sejuk, kitaorang cekalkan hati...teruskan meronda kat area situ. Pegi jalan2 tgk kedai2 kat situ. Sorilah yer nama jalan dah tak ingat, almaklumlah, dah berapa bulan lepas..post ni pun untuk trial jer...but I promise, there'll be plenty of pics..ok?..:D. Kita org beli snow cap sorang satu, satu harganya lebih kurang RM10.ok la kot....along the way, ada banyak kedai jual baju, makanan dan macam2 keperluan harian. This is where the local shops, and bila kita pergi tempat orang, I would suggest kita visit tempat2 macam ni sebab price lebih murah dan aku rasa this is the best way untuk kita blend dengan culture diaorang...so enjoy the pics..

Bar dan restoran

very busy road

aku yg excited bersama snow cap yang baru...

cool...

So berakhirlah sudah pengembaraan di hari pertama. Maybe ada yg tertanya makan kat mana?ok..makanan kitaorg bawak dari M'sia. So everytime sebelum kitaorg keluar, makan dulu kenyang2, dan bawak makanan ringan sebagai bekal. Bukan kedekut, tapi disebabkan citarasa, fahaman dan perasaan was-was so kitaorang decide untuk bawak makanan sendiri. Terpulang la pada korang sebab kedai makanan Islam ada di merata-rata, cuma perlu ingat perbezaan fahaman mungkin akan memberi sedikit kejutan budaya!

wahhhhhhhh.......

noreply@blogger.com (Nora) — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 05:02:00 +0000

Aku sgt suka pegi jalan2..kalau bole, ari2 nk pegi jalan.....hikhikhik...
kat luar sana ada ramai yg suka travel...itu aku pasti....the only purpose aku buat blog ni ialah untuk share experience...apa yg aku buat sebelum nk travel....apa yg perlu ada dan seterusnya..seterusnya....

nyway...lets start off with dgn places that I've visited in 2010...

CIAO!