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Showing posts with label Travel Experience. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Travel Experience. Show all posts

Penang or Langkawi? (By Stuart McDonald)

You’re traipsing through Peninsular Malaysia and have time for just one west coast island and the two most frequently considered are Penang and Langkawi — but which should it be? In an ideal world we’d say stretch your leave form for another week and visit both, but if you really only have time for one, here’s our take on which you should go for.

Are you a beach bum?

If you’re primarily looking for slow time spent lazing on a beach, with some afternoon watersports and the occasional cocktail thrown in, then Langkawi wins hands down. It has, by far, the better beaches of the two islands. Plus it is surrounded by a cluster of other smaller islands that can be visited on day snorkelling and diving trips. Even without leaving the main island there are plenty of beaches to choose from — from Cenang to the more isolated and almost lovely Tanjung Rhu.

This is not Penang

Penang’s beaches on the other hand are really quite ordinary. Batu Ferringhi is seriously overrated and while there are a few other strips of sand on the island, Penang just isn’t in the same league as Langkawi when it comes to beaches.

Langkawi 1; Penang 0.

Are you a food lover?

What’s the point of having great beaches if there’s nowhere decent to eat? Penang, and in particular Georgetown with its strong Chinese influence, excels when it comes to food. We can’t recall ever having an ordinary meal here (never ever have the guesthouse breakfast!) which isn’t something we can say for Langkawi. Georgetown boasts fantastic street food and there are also excellent Georgetown food walks and cooking classes that the culinarily inclined will want to savour.

This is not Langkawi

Langkawi’s food scene is far more a meld of Malay and tourist fare — and none of it done especially well. We’re not saying you won’t have a decent meal here — you will — it’s just that it’s as likely to be a pizza at a beachfront bar as a steaming plate of street food.

Langkawi 1; Penang 1.

Are you a culture vulture?

Langkawi’s history is wrapped in legend and mystery — of which today there is precious little evidence. Skull Sand beach isn’t littered with skulls — though the sand is nice. Langkawi was the first part of Southeast Asia to rise from the sea (some 500,000,000 years ago) but, well, there’s just a big (and impressive) mountain today.
This is also not Langkawi

Penang, on the other hand, is a living museum, with a rich culture you can observe and, to an extent in Georgetown, participate in. While it fights an ongoing battle with culturally challenged developers who’d seemingly like to demolish and concrete over half the old city, the heart of this area is an intriguing area to explore — and that’s before we even get to the real museums. Langkawi has some museums, but Penang wins this race.

Langkawi 1; Penang 2.

Are you an outdoor enthusiast?

When it comes to outdoor pursuits — be it mangrove exploring, jungle trekking, waterfall hiking, snorkelling, diving or even banana boating, Langkawi wins on all counts. Langkawi’s cable car  is simply breathtaking and we’d say that alone makes Langkawi worth visiting.

This is not Penang

Penang has its botanical and spice gardens and Penang Hill of course, but it is not an outdoor enthusiast’s playground.

Langkawi 2; Penang 2.

Are you a honeymooner?

Ahh, this is a difficult call. Both islands have terrific upper-end properties that would ideally fit with a romantic honeymoon. In Georgetown, Love Lane  remains one of our favourites, while for a more resort style hideaway, the Datai on Langkawi’s rugged jungly north coast delivers the goods. For those looking for a more affordable romantic spell, both islands also have options that fit the bill. We’ve covered some of our favourite places to stay in Georgetown here and Langkawi has plenty of comfortable flashpacker options. We’ll call this a draw.



Love Lane: So lovely we wanted to get married again just to stay here.

Langkawi 3; Penang 3.

Are you a budget traveller?

We think that Langkawi unfairly has a “package tourist resort” reputation, when in practice it’s no more resorty than any other popular island in Southeast Asia. That said, if you’re on a tight budget, Penang is where it is at — it boasts cheaper rooms, cheaper food and it’s cheap to get around on. Langkawi costs a little more in almost all respects, but as it is a duty free island, you can pick up some mighty affordable booze. If you’re on a tight budget we’d say visit Penang and save your pennies for a beach fix on the Perhentians (season allowing).

Langkawi 2; Penang 3.

In summary
Overall, the decision really depends on you and what your priorities are. Or just make the whole thing easier and prolong your stay by another week!

By Stuart McDonald   http://www.travelfish.org/

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Anyway ! I really hope you enjoy your stay around Malaysia ! (By Shazie)

HEY!

Your gonna be in my country! Wheee~!

Warning: Be prepared to fall in love with the food. Chinese dishes, Malay dishes, Indian dishes, and western food(what can I say, I like the western dishes here better cuz it is halal)! I hope you appreciate spicy food Big Grin Mind you, if you are a health freak don't overdo it as most of our food (especially malay food) is laden with oil, coconut, sugar and ajinamoto.

Langkawi Malaysia

First, Langkawi is a lovely place to just chill by the beach and take things easy. Personally, the best part for me in langkawi was the fact that its duty free :P Get your booze and ciggies there before coming to KL. 3 days is fine for Langkawi in my opinion. You may like to check out other islands around m'sia though some have become very commercialized and touristy. If you like diving, go to perhentian which is one of the best spots in m'sia to dive at.

I cant give you advice on Sandakan, sorry but I reckon it will have its own charms to offer.

Penang is very nice. A city to enjoy but less hectic than KL. Enjoy the food and atmosphere. A few days there is fine too depending on how much you like it.

Cameron Highlands is great but I am biased cuz I love the cool (by m'sian standards anyway) weather. But it is rural and to be honest I get bored easily so I wouldnt spend more than 2-3 days there.

Cameron highlands

Melaka for me is colourful due to the fact that it does offer a unique slice of malay+chinese+portugese mixture. Heh. Those chinese descendants tortuga was speaking of is known as "Baba Nyonya". They adopted the malay lifestyle and created their own 'line'. Some are still buddhist and whatnot, some are muslims - most dont eat pork despite being chinese and I know some are actually offended when clumped together with Chinese in general. Haha! They are unique. Check out the temples, the colorful Becas (sort of taxi but its a bike with seats for passengers) and the food.

KL has quite abit to offer if you look. Taman Negara is definitely great to go to. There is also the butterfly park, deer park, etc if you like that stuff. There are huge Malls to check out (KLCC, One Utama, Sunway Pyramid, Midvalley, etc). Museums aren't as interesting but I am from M'sia so don't take that to heart. Do check out our Islamic art museum though. I think it is lovely with gorgeous islamic art from around the world (I like the Chinese islamic art :P Dunno if it still there). You can also check out Central market though I advise you not to buy anything as it is overpriced. Nightlife is good if your into that as well. Hmmm... what else...

I can't vouch for the buses here as I drive to most places I need to get to though I think trains are fine. Taxis get you where you need to go as well though they will fleece you by not using the meter when they see your a foreigner(nothing personal, they do it to locals as well). Insist on the meter and if they still refuse... BARGAIN!

Dunno local tours :/ Sorry! Renting a car here is fine (I think it is always fun to get lost while driving haha) but we drive on the left side of the road and the driver sits on the right side of the car so note that if you usually drive in the opposite direction.

Language wise - Speaking english will get you around most places fine though I recommend learning  some Malay phrases such as thank you (Te-ri-ma ka-sih : literally means 'accept care' LoL), I am sorry/Excuse me/I apologize (Min-ta Ma-af : Literally means 'ask forgiveness'), Could you help me? (Bo-leh to-long sa-ya tak?: Can help me not?).

Hahahaha! If nothing else, you will get some smiles and giggles for your efforts. Some people won't be able to speak english fluently if at all but overall you should be fine.

Safety rules apply as usual anywhere. There are pick pockets, purse snatchers, etc here like anywhere else.

If you plan to be in KL for a few nights, let me know!! I would be happy meet you for a meal and maybe I can even put you up while your here for awhile. I have a clean room empty though my home is messy. Erk.

Btw, you can get a train from KL to Singapore if you like. I think it costs more than RM100 though~ I can look it up if you like.

Anyway! I really hope you enjoy your stay around m'sia! >< Some come here and love it, some hate it. Hope you'll be among the former.  (By Shazie)

Langkawi Malaysia (By Melanie)

02 Mar

After our single day and night in Sitiawan with our dear friend Philip, we headed to Langkawi Island. Only it was a bad time to travel, especially from Sitiawan, a predominantly Chinese town. Chinese new year had just ended and everyone had gone home to be with their families for this holiday. So now everyone was now traveling out of Sitiawan back to where they came from – work, school, or whatever. So we were unable to get a bus directly to where we needed to go, Kuala Perlis. Long story short, a trip that should have taken about 4 hours, ended up taking us 12 hours.

We had to first get a bus from Sitiawan to Butterworth, then another bus to Alor Setar. From there the ferry terminal, Kuala Kedah, was not very far away, but of course it took us over an hour on two local buses to get there. Once there, we were told the next ferry would be arriving in 45 minutes. It didn’t show up. We waited almost 2 hours more before it showed up. The ferry was huge (500 person capacity) and the seats were recycled airplane seats. Pretty funny. Also they were BLASTING the a/c and it was so cold. Luckily I had the blanket I had ‘borrowed’ from my Delta flight to keep warm. Once we arrived to Langkawi Island we were able to find 4 other tourists to share a taxi van with to the beach where all the tourists go, which is pretty far from the ferry. So it only cost us $2 each instead of a lot more.

We went directly to Hotel Amani, where Heidi and I had stayed in the Summer of 2011 when we were there. Only this time the price was 45 MYR. $15. Double what we paid in 2011. Way too much. However I was exhausted so I said we’d just stay one night and find something cheaper in the morning. Next morning we went to every other guesthouse on the beach and none were cheaper so we just stayed at Amani, even though our room was really crappy and didn’t even have a sink!!! Prices seem to have risen a great deal since I was there last, so we only stayed 4 nights/3 days.

Our first day we just hung out on the beach all day, it was a hot day and the water was cool. We laid in the shade because the sun was so hot. Hussein met a Moroccan guy when he was hanging out in the water and we ended up hanging out with him and his Chinese friend, a girl named “Jingle”, that night. Hussein was happy to have met someone he could speak Arabic with.

laying on the beach in the shade

our beach, Cenang beach, as seen from the water

Our second day we didn’t do much of anything again, just went to the beach again and lazed around, and hung out with the Moroccan guy (I forgot his name already) and Jingle again in the evening.

The only cheap food options on this beach were Indian restaurants so we were eating a lot of Indian food, but I’m not complaining, it was really good.

Our third and last day, February 19th, we decided to go rent a motorbike and ride around the island to some other beaches and a waterfall. I drove the first 5 minutes but felt too uneasy with Hussein on the back so I let him drive the rest of the day. We rode out to a beach, Pantai Kok, on the northwest side of the island, but the sand on the bottom in the water was really squishy and slimey feeling, probably something to do with all the pine trees on the beach, so we didn’t go swimming there, Hussein was too grossed out by the feel of the sand. We just had lunch there and laid in the shade and took a nap for a while then walked around and took some photos. 
The beach with the icky squishy sand bottom

Next we rode over to the Cable Car, which unfortunately had the sky bridge closed, so there was no point to really go up as it was kind of expensive.We bought a map of the island there though since we kept getting lost, and rode over to a waterfall called Durian Perangin where we went swimming in nice cold refreshing water. However after we got out of the water we noticed a big ‘HEALTH RISK’ sign posted on a tree, warning that the water may have bacteria, parasites, etc. Luckily nothing happened to us.
Durian Perangin waterfall, where we went swimming

the sign we saw after swimming..oops

 
a very broken bridge near the waterfall leading nowhere

We headed back to our beach after that and rode down to the other end of the beach to eat at a different Indian restaurant and then returned the bike. The next morning we got up early to get a taxi back to Kuah to get the first ferry of the morning and head to Cameron Highlands

By Melanie

http://melaniegarrison.wordpress.com 

Cameron Highlands Malaysia (By Melanie)

02 Mar

It took nearly all day to get from Langkawi island to the Cameron Highlands. We got a taxi to the ferry, got the 9am ferry, then a few buses, and arrived in Cameron Highlands around 5pm. It’s up on a mountain top so the weather was MUCH cooler which was really nice. Upon getting off the bus a man approached us about a hotel room for 40 MYR, which sounded good, so we got in his van and went with him. It was only a minute up the road, but as soon as we got there, we got out, he quickly dumped our backpacks out of the van and took off. We then asked about the 40 MYR room, well the woman told us all they had were rooms for 55 MYR. We were so angry and then realized that’s why that man sped off. Luckily it was only about a 5 minute walk back into town and we found another room for 40 MYR (about $13).

We went and ate at an Indian restaurant and had clay pot chicken rice (which is actually Malaysian food) and which is one of my favorite things to eat in Malaysia. They cook it in a clay pot of course, and there ends up being a lot of crispy burnt rice which I love. The only part I don’t love is that they don’t use boneless chicken, which I feel is kind of a hazard. So every time I eat something in Malaysia with chopped chicken, I have to chew the chicken verrry slowly and carefully in case there is a bone in there so I don’t crack a tooth or something.

This was $4 and enough for 2 people.

Malaysian clay pot chicken rice

.After we ate we talked to a tour operator about jungle trekking the following day. We ended up purchasing a full day tour for 40 MYR each. In the morning we got up early and were picked up for the tour around 815am. It was just us and 5 Swedish people. First we stopped at a tea plantation where we got out and the guide told us about how the tea is grown and cut, and we took some photos

me in a tea plantation

Next we drove to the highest point in the area where all the radio towers were, and climbed up a wooden observation tower to get a good view. It was soooo freezing cold and windy so we didn’t stay up there long.

view from highest point in Cameron Highlands (around 2000 meters)

Nearby was the “mossy forest” which we walked through for an hour or so, it was really nice. We were still really cold though. Also we weren’t expecting it to have a wooden walkway built through it but that was better I guess than there being none.

mossy forest


A pitcher plant! I’d never seen one in the wild before. Really cool.

walkway through the mossy forest

After we were finished with our walk in the forest we went to BOH tea plantation cafe and factory where we drank tea with a nice view and then went for walk through the factory which wasn't operating at the time so we didn't get to see much. 

me at the tea plantation cafe

view from the tea plantation cafe

Next we went to a butterfly/insect/reptile farm and got some great photos….

great closeup of a butterfly

this is one of my favorite photos. and I took it with my phone! I forget what kind 
of a lizard this is.

tree snakes! there are so many. we saw a few in Taman Negara in the wild.

After that we went to a strawberry farm where we could have picked strawberries if we wanted but we just had some strawberry cake instead.

Hussein in the strawberry orchard

Lastly our guide dropped us off at a trail head so we could do some jungle trekking back into town. All of us went ahead with that and it ended up being really really difficult. A lot of really hard climbing up and down, I had to keep stopping to rest so we fell behind the Swedish group but caught back up with them later. After a couple of hours we made it back to town.

Jungle Trekking

We went to eat immediately when we got back, at the same place we ate before. This time though we got a traditional Indian meal on a banana leaf. It was rice and various vegetables, chicken (in the bowls) and curries (in the bowls). Really good. $2 each.

Our banana leaf meals

There’s not really much to do in the Cameron Highlands except what we spent the day doing, and it was kind of expensive, so we decided to leave the next morning and head to Taman Negara for more jungle fun.

Melanie
http://melaniegarrison.wordpress.com

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Malaysia Travel Experience

1.   A Day at Penang Hill Malaysia (by Danarif)

Legoland Malaysia - My First Trip for Year 2013 (By Diana Diane Teo)

Boyfie and I just love to visit amusement and theme parks whenever we go. Just like Universal Studio in Singapore as well as Ocean Park and Disneyland in Hong Kong few years back. So when we knew about Legoland opened in Johor, both of us instantly listed this international theme park as one of our wishlist to go. Lucky us where we managed to secure a return ticket KK-JB-KK via AirAsia for only RM15 each, when initially both of our budget was RM50 each. So without any second thought, immediately we booked and here we are at one of the latest attraction in town. And with this, this is my official first trip for year 2013.


#1: Legoland Malaysia - Malaysia's first international theme park and the first Legoland theme park in Asia

 
#2: The entrance tickets where you can keep and bring back home

Just like every other theme parks, Legoland Malaysia has seven distinctive themed area of attractions to cater all ages, whether for the kids, teenagers and even adults who are young at heart.

[Note: By the time we visited, Legoland Water Park is still under construction]

The Beginning

This is where the adventures begin. Right after passed through the main entrance area, this is where typical amenities located - locker rental, stroller rental and ATM machine are available on the right-side whereas the restroom is located on the left-side. There are also a cafe and souvenirs stores available here but both of us intended to save it first and return back by end of the day. There is no any attractions, shows and rides in this themed area. 
 

#3: Ticket counters. I would recommend to purchase the tickets via online to save up to 20% and also to avoid the long queue.


#4: Big Shop - Legoland's largest store selling all kind of Legoland merchandise.


.#5: All of these life-size characters were made from Lego bricks. Impressive!

Imagination

We started with this area first before it was getting more crowded. Most of the attractions and rides here are designed specially for kids. However, there are two rides which attract us here - Observation Tower and Lego Studios 4D.

Available Facilities: Baby care and Prayer room


#6: Imagination Themed Area


#7: Observation Tower - where the guest could have the view of the entire Legoland as well as the areas surrounding it. [Warning: If you are afraid of height, then don't try this]


#8: Studios 4D. There are four appealing 4D shows for the guests to choose from and each show runs every 45 minutes (for weekday) and 25 minutes (for weekends and public holidays).

Boyfie and I managed to catch two of their 4D shows but frankly speaking, they ain't interesting as those 4D in Universal Studio Singapore and Hong Kong Disneyland. Quite disappointed. 


#9: Another colourful Lego bricks creation

Land of Adventure

This particular themed land reminisces the combination of Jurassic Park and The Mummy movie series where both are separate into two different section. The attractions and rides here are designed for both kids and adults especially the Dino Land ride. Unfortunately, we didn't experience this ride cause we afraid of getting wet as we didn't bring any spare of clothes.


#10: Land of Adventures Themed Area. The parrots on the right side were made from Lego bricks as well.


#11: Dino Island ride and prepare to get wet by the end of the ride.
 

#12: Kids will love this Lost Kingdom Adventure - a ride with a laser-blasting
 

#13: Good place for phototaking

Miniland

Situated right in the heart of Legoland, this is where the guests can enjoy some of Asia's notable and well-known landmarks in masterpiece and detailed miniature. This is my most favourite themed area compare the rest and we were also being surprised when the whole Miniland comes to life with the touch of a button. Pretty interesting, right?


#14: Petronas Twin Towers and Kuala Lumpur Tower


#15: Can you name all of these South East Asia's landmarks?


#16: Pirates of the Caribbean boat?


#17: Taj Mahal of India


#18: Singapore City and Merlion

Lego City

Lego City is mainly designed for the little one where they can become a captain of a boat or even drive a car at the very young age. Like really? Passing through this area and Boyfie told me how he wish that Legoland open during his young age so he will able to enjoy this ride. So if you have the little one with you, now you know which themed area you should head first.


#19: Remove Control Boat - where adults can play along. Of course, we didn't miss out this for sure.



#20: The Shipyard - An adventure paradise for the little one to climb and crawl.

 

#21: Legoland Express - Board on Lego train for all sights of the theme park

 

#22: We took a break and ordered lunch in Market Restaurant. A set of chicken rice cost RM23.00 and a small bottle of Coke cost RM5.00 - No doubt the price of the foods in Legoland are slightly expensive cause this is theme park afterall.

Lego Technic

If you are looking for exciting and thrilling rides, this is one of the themed area that offer all; from wild high-speed ride in Project X, crazy spin wheel in Technic Twister or even get wet in Aquazone Wave Racers.


#23: Project X. The one and only ride we experienced here and we indeed love this. It's one of the rides not-to-be-missed.


#24: Albert Einstein Lego bricks
Lego Kingdom

This is where the legend and myths come alive. I personally love the design and structure of this particular themed area especially the looking strong and tall grey colour royal castle. This is also where the whole themed area are filled with dragons and knights which mainly built using Lego bricks. The main highlights here would be The Dragon and Dragon's Apprentice rides (these two are two different rides apparently).


#25: Lego Kingdoms Themed Area

 

#26: Once upon a time...


#27: Royal castle, dragons, knight and is that Joker?

 We ended our fun and adventures in Legoland by visiting Big C which located in The Beginning Themed Area


#28: Couldn't recall how much the T-shirt and keychains cost but the fridge magnet cost RM55 for a set of 3. That's the one and only thing I bought and it was eventually quite expensive right

TIPS:

Grab a guidemap once you enter the main entrance. Never underestimate the size of this theme park cause there is high possibility you might get lost. Bring along spare clothes cause some rides might get you wet; such as Dino Island in Land of Adventure, Aquazone Wave Racers in Lego Technic and even Boating School in Lego City.

Apply sunblock or even bring cap and umbrella along cause firstly, lack of shaded area within Legoland and secondly, Malaysia's weather is always hot and humid. Luckily, I always brought my umbrella whenever I travel.
It's best to arrive early cause besides to avoid the overcrowded, it's also to avoid the unpleasant heat.

Overall, I think the trip to Legoland is worth for a visit although most of the rides are not that as wild and scary as we thought. Both Boyfie and I were indeed fully utilised the amout of the entrance fee we paid by spending our whole day there in Legoland; from 9.45 am until 5.00 pm. Furthermore, we managed to experience majority of the rides except for few where we thought they might be kinda childish rides. As a theme park lover, I noticed there is no any character mascots or even parade in Legoland Malaysia but they don't bother me anyway cause the life-size characters Lego bricks creation were enough to impress me.

If you have little one and can't make up your mind where to bring them during this school holiday, why not plan your holiday by bringing them to Legoland? Trust me, they will enjoy all the fun and excitement here.

How To Get To Legoland Malaysia

For more information especially if you plan to take public bus, check out HERE.

I can't share my previous experience on how my Boyfie and I get to Legoland Malaysia cause I found out the bus number has changed apparently. But from my experience, it is advisable to reach the starting point station as early as you can cause at the late hour, it will be more crowded. If your station is JB Sentral, it takes about 45 minutes to reach Legoland Malaysia.

Diana Diane Teo
http://dianateo-dt.blogspot.com 

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