Bangkok trip - tips and information

Been a loooong time since my last travel...

This time it's Bangkok!

Just thought I could share this few info with those who's planning a trip there.

Rabbit card

Used for travel on BTS skystrain system or other mass transit network. 

Just like our touch n go card.

200 bht on purchase with 100 bht credit inside.

50 bht - issuing fee (non-refundable) , 50 bht - card deposit (refunded on return of card)

more info: http://www.bts.co.th/customer/en/16-rabbit-step-chg-sky-to-rabbit.aspx

Free local sim card

We got ours from tourist information center at the Don Mueang international airport.

* It contains free data plan for first 24 hrs.

Data plan is really handy for finding your way around and looking up travel info.

more info: http://store.dtac.co.th/en/happytouristsim#responsive-tabs3

Itinerary planning tool

Discovered this website http://www.tripomatic.com/ 

which I used for planning this Bangkok trip. Also available as mobile app.

It offers some very cool features like selecting from available attraction with coordinate, maps, opening hours and adding your customize itinerary if it's not available from selection. 

Bon voyage!~

Vivo American Pizza & Panini @ Aeon Bukit Mertajam

I was scouting out the new Aeon Jusco at Bukit Mertajam and stumbled across this new place - 

Vivo American Pizza & Panini. 

And you're right, OF COURSE I had to try it out!~

Popular Book Fair 2014 - BookFest Malaysia, KLCC

The annual popular book fair is here again!

Still thinking whether to go or not, 

since I've already hoarded quite some books from various book fairs 

this year. Hmmm....

For those who's going, here's information on the Popular BookFest 2014.

When?

BookFest @ Malaysia 2014 officially launches on 25 July 2014. The exhibition will open from 10 am to 10 pm daily starting from 26 July till 3 August 2014.

How much is the entrance fee? 

Admission is RM 2.50 per ticket. 

FREE admission is given to students 18 years old & below and senior citizens 60 years old & above.

Where is the venue?

Hall 1 - 5 (Ground Floor), Grand Ballroom & Banquet Hall, Level 3.

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, KLCC, Malaysia.

* Tips for first timers :) 

1. Bring light food and drinks to avoid going in and out of the hall

2. Carry a trolley or luggage bag if you intend to get LOTS of books

3. If you're travelling light, take the LRT to avoid long queue and looking for parkings.

Happy Reading!~

For more details, you can refer to the official websites:

http://www.bookfestmalaysia.com/

https://www.facebook.com/BookFestMalaysia

Reliving childhood memories at Kamo Homestay 容县七号 @ Sauk, Perak

Kamo homestay is a traditional wooden house located in a quiet village, 

surrounded by nature in their most original state.

Knowing it's on my "want to go places", J brought me there as a birthday trip :D

Kamo homestay has a few specialties: 

sunflowers, bicycles, nature and make your self at home concept.

The owner, Kamo, returned to his childhood home 

and made it into a homestay to share the beauty of his hometown with more people.

Easily spotted Kamo Homestay~ corner house and flying flag with it's logo

Greeted by blooming sunflowers

The owner, Kamo, greeted us and ask us to make ourself at home.

Which I happily did. :D

Dropping my bags, I went off to explore the place with my camera~

Backyard planted with various vegetables

Lady's fingers (okra), egg plant and tomatoes...

Wandering cat

With the blazing sun outside, it's surprisingly cool indoors. 

I think it's because of the wooden structure and super cooling cement floor. 

Reminds me of grandma's house. 

Kamo had quite an interesting collection of books available for reading. 

I couldn't bring myself to stop reading once I started >o<

kha kiak (wooden sandals). SO nostalgic!

Kitchen. 

Later that night Kamo and guests made sweet potato balls 

with the potato harvested from the garden

Shower which leaves a deep impression because there's no water heater.

Can't recall when's the last time I had cold shower bath, plus blowing night breeze.

Ahhh ~ crazy yet fond memory.

Our bedroom for the night. No bed, just wooden floors.

There's actually a mat for us to spread out, but we didn't notice it until checkout. Silly us!

Anyway, I didn't think I could sleep well, but surprisingly did. 

We even took a nap before heading out.

Our window overlooking a garden of wild flowers

Map by Kamo for guests to explore the surrounding by themselves.

And here's the mode of transport, if you prefer - bicycles for guests.

I love the idea of cycling to travel. 

But since I'm really bad at cycling, 

we only cycle around the town and explore further places by car.

The last day of our stay, Kamo was working in his garden.

He shared some gardening tips and tricks and gave us some seeds for my garden.

It was a wonderful stay and we felt at home.

Exploring the surrounding is fun, just staying "home" reading, 

talking with other guests or even doing nothing is great too. 

Can't believe I already missed this place~
For detail directions on how to get there and other info please refer to Kamo's website.

Kamo Homestay 容县七号

https://www.facebook.com/Kamohome

Website http://kamohome.wordpress.com/

Location:   7,Kampung Baru Sauk, 33500 Sauk, Perak, Malaysia

Rate RM30 / night

DIY hemp string hanging lamp

Wanted to make this lamp ever since I saw it on pinterest.

After a looong search, finally found the hemp string needed at Mr. DIY shop.

And so the project begins...

Have all the materials ready: 

1. Glue 

2. Hemp string

3. Balloon/ inflatable ball (It should be the size you expect the lamp to be)

* I chose balloon so I can control whatever size I prefer

4. Newspaper to avoid the mess

5. Something to station the ball ( I just taped it to a basket)

1. Rub glue on the hemp string part by part, and start wrapping it around the ball.

You can also get a disposable plate and dip the string in glue instead of applying it to the string by section.

2. After almost and hour of wrapping, the lamp shade is done!!

In case you're wondering why the balloon colour is different, 

the white 1 burst in the process and I gotta start over with a new one. T_T

That's the drawback of using a balloon I guess....

3. Leave the lamp to dry until the shape is fixed. 

I left mine for one day. Then deflate the balloon. 

4. Pull the light source through the centre and fix it.

(I just tie mine with the remaining hemp string)

For the light, you can get a ready cord set and just fix the bulb, 

or get the parts (wire, socket, bulb) and assemble them yourself. 

Finally, hang your lamp wherever it's intended. 

And voila!! A personalised DIY hemp string lamp is completed ♥ ~

I'm very happy with mine and it all costs less than RM15 

Moustache Houze @ Campbell Street, Penang

There's been a lot of talk about Moustache Houze. A cafe themed with moustaches ~

So we went to see for ourselves what's the hype all about. 

Sad to say, the experience turned out to be below our expectations.

The all too familiar image of Moustache Houze

and pipe shelves...

Private room for large crowd upstairs & swings~

The decorations were pleasing 

and it's nice to see some of the creative ideas I see on Pinterest being applied in real life. 

However, the food and drinks were average and overpriced. 

I hope they'll improve on the food and beverages. 

After all, good ambience should come with good food too :)

Cheesecake was fine but the other cake (the brown one) tasted weird to us.

Orange juice and ice cube kiwi juice.

Ice cube drink is their specialty, which I do enjoy. 

But is was too small and too pricey. Not even enough to quench my thirst T_T

Moustache Houze

https://www.facebook.com/MoustacheHouze

Address: No. 24, Lebuh Campbell, 10100 Penang Georgetown

Telephone: 04-262 2228

Kaffa Espresso Bar @ Green Hall, Penang

The Kaffa Espresso Bar at Greenhall has become my recent favourite place.

Simply put, I love it's atmosphere and food. Plus, it's reasonably priced too! 

Besides the aglio olio which I didn't enjoy because I find it too oily and spicy, 

all the other dishes I've had so far are absolutely satisfying. 

Let the pictures speak for themselves.

Portobello mushroom spaghetti RM20.90
Grill salmon RM20++
Plain water on the house

There's open air area upstairs if you prefer some sunshine ~

Aglio olio RM20.90

Grill chicken sandwich with Swiss cheese & avocado RM17.90

We enjoyed ourself so much that we stayed from afternoon till night.

Below are snapshots of Kaffa at night~

Kaffa Espresso Bar
https://www.facebook.com/keb.greenhall
Address: 22, Green Hall, ,
10200 Pinang George Town,
Pulau Pinang, Malaysia
Hours: Mon - Sun: 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
Phone: 04-262 2822

Cafe Bouchee @ Sunway Perdana, Seberang Jaya

Finally!! a new cafe in mainland... Cafe Bouchee

I was delighted when I spotted this cafe during my visit to Sushi Zento. It's just a few shops away. 

The decoration in front of the cafe caught my attention immediately.

 

Tasteful decoration in front of Cafe Bouchee

Sure enough, I love the interior atmosphere as well. 

The decor and furniture reminds me of Kaffa. Wonder if they're somehow related~

lovely corner

Will menu be added to the chalkboard soon?

The cafe offered some light snacks and cakes besides beverages.

I loved the fact that they serve plain water for free while we waited for our order.

Now we can stay longer....hehehe

I ordered croissant which came which salad and nachos.

The portion is generous and simply yummy. 

The nachos was unexpected, so we're glad we had something to snack on ^o^

The yummy croissant and assorted sauce

Happy with it, we ordered a cheesecake.

Which turns out disappointing because the cake was too hard and dry. 

Maybe I'll try the chocolate cake next time, 

the guy on the next table looks happy with it...

Varieties of cake for selection

 Surprise that I couldn't find Cafe Bouchee's information online. 

But it's easy to locate, just go to Sunway Perdana, it's few doors down from Sushi Zento. 

Enjoy ~