My Trip to Ipoh, Perak

PART 1
(A bit of diversion from this Blog's main theme, this is a detour to the Nrothern Peninsular Malaysia.

THE ETS - The Journey to Ipoh
Upon arriving by airport bus from Lcct at KL Sentra, I went upto the entrance, left my luggage at the coin luggage storage for RM10 ( just the thought of dragging the bags around with me really don't appeal to me!), and roam around for food, shopping.
Then at 1:30pm, I took my bags and went up to the 1st floor, turn left to the ETS ticket counter to meet up with the rest of the guides council members from all over Malaysia.
We boarded the electric train at 1:50pm


The train is a sure delight and so much more comfortable than the earlier flight from KK!
The seats are spacious and comfortable.






And the stewardess are really friendly and pretty too!



The train can reach speed of 160km/hr but only allowed upto 149 km/hr for safety reason. The speed is shown on the LCD for those curious!



The toilets are spacious, modern and much better than the airplane 's.



Moreover, there's even a small cafe cornet with light snacks. Or you might prefer to just wait and get your drinks or food from the pretty stewardess.



Then, finally arrival at the historical railway terminal after 2 hrs 16 mins only for the 200km journey!






And that was a really neat little journey and I had truly enjoyed it.

- Posted from my iPhone

Location:Jalan Sultan Abdul Jalil,Ipoh,Malaysia

Sinalau Bakas / BBQ Wild Boar !

If you have the extra time and have the adventurous spirit and strong stomach, remember to stopover at the row of stalls selling the authentic BBQ wild boar or 'Sinalau Bakas' as it is commonly called among the KadazanDusun along the roadside on the way to Kinabalu Park .

There are couple of roadsigns along the way. Buy only the fully cooked meat and not the half-cooked. Then put some of their homemade chili sauce with soy sauce! Gosh..... Yummy......

- Posted from my iPhone

Sedco Complex / Selera Kg. Air

Located at Kg. Air and opposite the well known 'Sri Melaka' restaurant .





This Food Paradise opens around 3pm till 1am in the morning!
4 Seafood restaurants, Japanese food, local delights like satay, oyster omellette, BBQ chicken wing, fried dumplings, , coconut pudding and even deep fried ice cream are all waiting for you to indulge in!



My favorite restaurant


Irresistible coconut pudding


Simply yummy oyster omellette

Why not give this place a try while you're here in Kota Kinabalu!

Posted from my iPhone

Location:Jalan Albert Kwok,Kota Kinabalu,Malaysia

EATING OUT AT GAYA STREET

Gaya Street is the famous venue for the Gaya Street Sunday Market where every Sunday morning the whole street is closed for traffic and instead stalls upon stalls with their arrays of food, handicraft, antiques, attire,souvenirs, pets and the list goes on are on colorful display.

However, on normal days, Gaya Street is an attraction on its own with its varieties of food selection.  Not sure what to eat in Kota Kinabalu?  Go no further.  Just drop by Gaya Street and you’ll find something to your liking.  Below are some good selections:

View Full Album

The photos are self explanatory and choices are just yummy.

KAAMATAN IN SABAH

Kadazandusuns, Muruts, Rungus, Lundayeh celebrate harvest festival or as they called it “Kaamatan” during the month of May.  All districts throughout Sabah will hold their own celebration on different days of the month.  The normal activities during the celebration includes traditional sports competition, singing competition, the Unduk Ngadau “Beauty Queen” contest, traditional dances performances and just merry making with flowing rice wine continuously………..

View Full Album

The Sabah State level celebration is held on 30th & 31st May every year at the Kadazan Dusun Cultural Association  Penampang.  This year, I brought 2 bloggers and another guest to the event and we had a cultural extravaganza which I bet will linger in our mind for a long time to come.

We went visiting some of the stalls which showcased the traditional food, desserts, cookies, etc and the  several traditional houses with traditional dances performances, rice wine tasting..…..

Inside the main hall, there were singing performances, traditional dances and the appearing of “Unduk Ngadau” from the various districts.  Wow, really a handfull and not enough time to do so much.

The grand finale falls on 31st May with the closing “Magavau” ritual performance by the High Priestess “Bobohizan” and also the “Unduk Ngadau” Contest and final.  I actually had my buttocks glued to my seat from 11am right until 5:30pm!  What a day!

It was definitely an eye opener for my guests as they witness the unique multi racial harmony during this special festive occasion when hundreds of all walks of life converge at this venue for merry making.

THE LEGEND OF UNDUK NGADAU
Legend had it that the Kadazan Dusun God, Kinoingan had a beautiful daughter, Huminodun.  During a famine, Kinoingan had to sacrifice Huminodun with her consent and changed her body parts into various food so that people has food to eat.  Her hair was changed into padi, head – coconut, knees – yam, fingers – maize, etc.

During the harvesting of the padi, Huminodun’s spirit appeared and instructed the Priestess to perform a ritual so that the people will have a bountiful harvest the following year.  The ritual was to take 7 best stalks of the padi and tie them at the end a bamboo and put it in the centre of the field during harvesting.  After harvesting, the bamboo with the 7 stalks of padi was to be placed inside the rice/padi container. 

It was till this day, the ritual continued and the people choose among the fair maiden among them to represent this iconic Legendary Huminodun.

Drop by to witness this unique Kaamatan and schedule your visit to coincide with this auspicious event to enjoy a cultural extravanza at its best the next time you come A VISITING SABAH!

Le Meridien Hotel

 

Looking for a very nice 5 star hotel in an excellent location and yet affordable?  Look no further……..

Le Meridien is located along Jalan Tun Fuad Stephens and is directly facing the Handicraft centre, the food night market and also the South China Sea as well.

Two shopping centres, Warisan Square and Centre Point is just opposite the road at the other side of the side road. 

It is also within walking distance to the central market and the famous Sunday Gaya Street Fair.

Price  :  For the normal twin bedded/Double room  :  RM360
             Executive room  :  RM500

Capital Hotel

This hotel is situated in an excellent location along Jalan Haji Saman and directly facing Wisma Merdeka, a well known shopping centre.

Food is not a problem at all with the famous ‘Little Italy’ at its ground floor, lots of coffee shops behind at Jalan Pantai and Jalan Gaya!  And if your stay falls on a Sunday too, the Gaya Street fair is just behind too!

It is also within walking distance to the handicraft centre, night markets and central market and not to forget to catch the fantastic sunset at the water front.

The hotel though old, had recently been refurbished and is clean and yet comfortable enough for those budget conscious travelers.

The cost :  RM159 - RM180