AtmostFear at FX Senayan!

Still on Jakarta - if any of you happen to go FX Senayan Mall, then you must try this

AtmostFear

The facts abt AtmostFear

These group of boys were all getting ready to go

On your mark, get set..

and Go!

Down the tunnel 7-storeys high!

Its a swirled tunnel, so kalau you suka pening-pening, then think again whether to do it or not!

That's the time on the board - its not in minutes but in seconds, so this guy took abt 9.62 seconds

Done - for 50000 rupiah (S$7.30), you can try this whirling & twirling experience at FX Senayan Mall, Jakarta!


I would love to try it but time tu, tgh lapar sgt, & the q was long, so I passed!


Next time, maybe!!!

3 days in Jakarta..

Oooohhhh kota Jakarta....


I have always love Jakarta coz the shopping & food here are real heavenly treats!


And 1 of my favourite malls in Jakarta is Mangga Dua of course. Some of you dont like it coz its perpetually crowded,its hot, cramped & quite stifling but I find it a thrill to shop here! Gesel sana ahh, gesel sini ahh.... but that's the fun!



Also you may think that the things sold here are all cheap low quality (plus lots of fake) stuff but you may be surprised that you can actually find few good bits & pieces here especially the accessories, telekungs & baju muslimah too at great bargains! As this is a wholesale mall, thats why Mangga Dua is always crowded from 9 am to 6 pm! You just gotta know which shops (all the way from Blk A to D) to hit once you are familiar with the Mall.



However as this 3-day trip was meant to be a working trip for FM, so its also more of a Rest & Relax holiday for us, less shopping & more chillin'! This time, I decided to forgo Mangga Dua (sniffled boohoo!),

Yippee, here were are in Jakarta

Macet (jam) as always!

Pengemis - A common sight



But during night time, be prepared for the transvestites (pondan or banci) to take place, performing their 'acts' along the road & at traffic light junctions!

I chose to stay at Hotel Manhattan at Kuningan as its next to ITC Kuningan Mall & Ambassador Mall.

(I know, not a shopping trip but sikit sikit bisa kan pak!)


Its more of a business hotel rather than a tourist / family hotel, so I could'nt really see how the pool is like.


Also, I tell ya, the breakfast spread here is GREAT! They serve Italian, Indonesian, Japanese, Continental, Arab, Chinese & even Indian food like thosai, naan, prata all freshly cooked on the spot!

The suite is huge, in fact too huge for me & D whereas FM & F stayed at another similar suite.


If we had known, should have just booked 1 suite only for us!

The kitchenette

The bathroom was also really huge, its divided into 3 sections

The vanity

The bathtub overlooking the skyscraper

and the shower / wc

Dinner at Ambassador Mall

Just look at the anorexic chicken - so skinny, I could eat 10 of them!

besides taugeh, terong or eggplant is another of my favourite vege

Pisang Goreng sellers - take note!


See how they cut the banana & shape it like a fan & fry them!

Even Man-U players bisa bicara Indon hokey!

Second day was spent hunting something for a business deal, so we spent most of the day driving around the city & stuck in the traffic jams!

That night, we had masakan Aceh instead of the usual masakan Padang.


Its a bit different (just like comparing malay & nyonya peranakan food) but we didn't really like it, we prefer the taste of masakan Padang.

Also, this triggered a chain of diarhoea for us, esp FM.


So I'd suggest you stick to Padang food unless you wanna know what Aceh food taste like, but dont say I didnt warn you!


That's why on the 3rd day, we were a bit 'handicapped' due to the diarhoea & stayed in the rooms most of the time. Also my FM has some meetings here too so we couldn't really move about town except to ITC to get lunch.


We spent the time watching lots of tv shows and wah wah wah, Princess Manohara (still princess ke?) dah jadi actress ye, saw the trailers of her sinetron coming soon on tv, its on like every half hour I think! So, that kept me thinking now abt what's the truth actually.....doubts.....maybe!)


In the end, we went to the airport 5 hours (at 4pm) before our scheduled time to get an earlier flight back home but looking at the standby list for the next 2 earlier flights, it was like gone case... so we opted to stick to our confirmed flight at 9 pm & stayed in the lounge instead, at least we can eat & surf the net there!




Now I know how those Amazing Racers feel like, on stand-by!


Ok dah, only 3 days in Jakarta & honestly speaking (or writing), I still prefer to hang around Mangga Dua for shopping. ITC Kuningan & Ambassador Mall didnt do it for me lah. I was told, most of the stuff here are brought in from Mangga Dua. That's why I find the prices here a bit higher than I could get at MD.


Also, this time I didnt get to buy 'something' - its a must-buy for me everytime I go MD, so that's certainly a disappointment for me! In fact I am grieving over it!!! huwaarrrrgh...


Its not that I cant get it here or Malaysia, but I've always preferred buying it in Indonesia for the design & of course, the price lah!

(Can any of you guess correctly what it is?)


Oklah, next entry is something I would recommend you to try if you are in Jakarta!

Ps. One tip - If you wanna change US Dollars to Rupiah at the money changers here in Indonesia, please make sure that the US Dollars Notes must be CRISP & NOT FOLDED at all, not even a slight fold at the corner. Otherwise, they will reject it. Thats what happened to me - we left our rupiahs back at the hotel so when we wanted to change our USD dollars to rupiah, some of it were rejected coz there was a slight fold at the corner!

Rest & Relax in.........

A week after the Bali trip, the 3 of us followed my FM on his 3 -day working trip.



This time he decided to bring us along as it is 1 of my favourite place as well as a 'distraction' for me away from housework since our bibik was on home leave back to her kampung for almost a month (tapi dia sekarang udah pulang ke pangkuan kami lor...yoohoo!!).

We went to airport like 3 hours early as we were quite excited abt the trip bored at home so we decided to just lull away our time at the lounge and use their internet services.

D with her favourite pastime - watching youtube!

I managed to do some updates on the Bali trip & an entry for VU

Not only did we cam-whored in the 'Ladies'

I also had time to refresh...

and make up.....

and even blow dry my hair!

Finally in the plane

The lunch was great even thou its fish (not a fish fan)




And did I tell you where were we heading to?

You gotta squint!

Bali...Final!

Ok topic now back to my Bali trip - the final edition!

A good thing abt staying at Hard Rock Hotel, there is a laundry room here. The washing & drying can be done within 1 hour so on the last day, we decided to do the laundry here since we had ample time to spare before checking out! Hence, there wont be heaps of clothes to wash back home!

My niece-in-law tukang ajar how to operate the machine!

After I dumped the clothes, I pun chao lah continue shopping!

And now remember the 'woman' in my room in the previous Bali entry?

Ok, this is the much awaited pic that I was telling you abt!

Lila, I didn't lie when I said its not a portrait coz its really not!


Only when I bring down the blinds then she'll appear, so that will only be at night!

And I consider myself lucky to be in the same room with her. Why?

Read here & here

Friday's Thoughts...

This entry is a slight digression from the Bali & the other short vacation I had in June as I had problems uploading / attaching any pictures with blogger.

So while our favourite littlest VU sister Nadh help me to upload them, I gotta share with you this story I heard over the radio yesterday that sent a chill down my spine. I try to relate it as accurate as possible coz I was listening on & off then.

This couple had just lost their child. So 1 day, they went to the cemetery to visit his kubur. After that, while driving back along the expressway, they had an accident that sent the mother out of the car on the left road shoulder. So in the midst of the panic & pain, she realized that the cars that were passing by, were all slowing down & moving to the right. When she turned back, what she saw simply shocked her. It was her ARWAH anak dia standing on the road, diverting the traffic to move to the right, so that no car will ram thru his parents’ car!!

This story kept me thinking last night – Kalau esok-esok I am gone, takde selamanya, what will happen to my husband, my son & my daughter? Who will take care of them? For my husband, we’ve been together for almost 21 years & married for almost 17 years, can he manage without me? For my son, can he cope without me? For my daughter, can she get by without me?

I want to see my kids get married & have kids & I want to grow old with my husband.

I wonder, if I am no longer around, will I still be able to protect them from ‘far’ just like what this child did to his mother?

I wonder, if I am no longer around, will I still be able to ‘steal glances’ at my family?

I just wonder…..

Ya Allah, jadikanlah aku hamba yang sentiasa redha dengan ketentuanMu,

Ya Allah, jadikanlah aku hamba yang senantiasa mensyukuriMu,

Ya Allah, jadikanlah aku hamba yang senantiasa tunduk kepadaMu,

Kerana kepadaMU aku kembali….

Bali...... more pics!

I have uploaded some pics randomly as I have a time constraint. Also, I have some problems attaching additional pics with blogger !! Aaarrrrrghhhh.......



So I'll just go with the flow of what I did & what I have in mind to write.

(sorry, if some of you are puzzled as to why I have to 'whiten' my FM's face, memang disengajakan - its his request! Coz some of you may recognise him as.... suspense suspense!)

I can say the room is comfortable enough & the view is splendid.

But since we are staying on the same level as the lobby / club, the live music was deafening till midnight. Luckily the music played was my era, mainly songs from the 70s & 80s, so I didn't mind listening to them at all.

But the breakfast was not my cup of coffee - I even skipped them for the next 2 days!

Ok now some pics for 2nd day - Tanah Lot & Jimbaran Bay


Tanah Lot is a MUST-go in Bali.


Its beautiful, scenic & enchanting.


Its my 4th time in Bali but my 1st time to Tanah Lot & why didn't I even think of coming here during my first 3 trips here?





Beautiful right? I mean the scenery, not us!










This lil' gal followed us all the way up to the other side of Tanah Lot with her basket of souvenirs to sell, & then down to the temple in the sweltering heat. Such a pity, so we decided to borong the whole basket from her! Nak bargain too much pun kesian, so we asked for a price which we think was reasonable enough!





The view of the temple from the other side of Tanah Lot





At this point of time when the pic was taken, the water level was low so ppl were still allowed to go inside. But by the time we reached, the water level was high & we cant even see the pathway, so its out of bounds.









1 of the cameramen there - he snapped our photos with a digital camera, then print on the spot (printer in his bag - canggih tau!) & frame it nicely for Rp20000 (S$3). Whereas we took this pic of him for free!



And if you are at Tanah Lot, SHOP here!!!


We realised the things like bags, t-shirts, accessories etc were much much cheaper than anywhere else. Some bags we got were going for Rp90000 but we bargained to Rp30000 (S$ 4.50)! I didn't buy anything from here but the rest did!


Then off we went for lunch & some more sight-seeing & shopping.







NATRABU - My all-time favourite restaurant ever! in Indonesia!






The lunch spread & we finished almost everything of it!


The lunch cost abt $350 for the whole lot of us. Its slightly more expensive than the usual masakan Padang restaurant but its worth every cent!


I cleaned a whole plate of gulai otak & urat kikir!


The best meal of all during our stay coz the basic meals we had there were mainly at KFC & McD!


After some more shopping along the streets of Bali, at the Factory outlets, Matahari mall & the souvenir shops like Erlangga & Krishna, our last stop for the day was dinner at Jimbaran Bay!


Its kinda an over-hyped place to go to but its like a must-go when you are in Bali just to enjoy the beach & sunset.










We just missed the sunset by few minutes & hence only able to capture this!






Kids having a jolly good time here!






Each of us was served this whole palate - A set of grilled fish, mussels, prawns, crayfish & squids with rice, corn soup & kangkong plus fruit juice - Cost us abt S$33 each


Its really a big portion so I suggest if you wanna try this, the perfect ratio wld be 1 set for 2 people!










3rd day - 2 groups

Some of us, mainly the ladies decided to check out Denpasar Town

In my honest opinion and no offense to the Indonesian ppl particularly the Balinese, Denpasar is actually a waste of time for us. We thot we needed abt 2 hours+ here but we were done in 15 minutes. There are just some shops here & there but the prices are really expensive and the things so outdated, so totally NOT recommended to go at all. PERIOD.



We decided to go back to Kuta & shop there at the Pasar Seni instead!




This shop is a must place to visit.


We are quite familiar with the sales staff & the boss as we always make it a point to shop here on all our trips there.


If they open a price at Rp80000, try bargain Rp20000 then go up bit by bit & settle at Rp35000 maximum! The best is, start shopping early - buat pelaris!
Come back the next day early morning at 9 am when they just open (wait outside the door/gate while they are opening if you must & which we did always!). They usually will give you the price you ask for, even lower than the day before! Tried & tested!

Can you believe it, that the big round mirrors above are selling for S$8 each after we bargained hard from Rp230000 to Rp110000 (S$16) for 2 pcs? Thou in the end, we didn't buy them coz of 'logistics' problems - so huge, macam mana nak bawak balik??


But pls do remember that not all shops we can bargain. Some specialty or in-house shops selling hand-made accessories, souvenirs like fridge magnets and bags are fixed price. So there is no way you can get a discount even thou we buy alot but the good thing is, you'll never find them sold anywhere else except in these shops, so its kinda exclusive and unique, which I bought for my frens & colleagues!

Also, dont be arrogant! Don't have the attitude - Customer is always right! They are naturally peace loving ppl so if we are nice & bargain to them in a friendly manner, they may just give the price you ask for! 1 of my sisters has a knack of 'softening' their hearts by singing to them. For eg, if they say no 'Nggak bisa bu' or 'Janganlah bu' then she'll break into an Indonesian song starting with the word 'Nggak' or 'Jangan' & so on. This will simply melt their hearts & its a deal! Some might even throw in free gifts too! So, 1 useful tip - be friendly & learn some Indonesian songs!

So while we were shopping, the other group (minus my FM who had to look after the younger girls back at the hotel / beach) went White Water Rafting.

Its abt USD35 (S$52) including transport & basic lunch

The group - fully sponsored by Crocs!

The rafting experience was quite alright, with a 4 meter fall down the river but after the grueling exercise, they had to climb up back 10 storeys up the slope of slippery rocks to the main port. So that actually killed the whole thrill!


Most of us went for the spa treatments, massages, manicure & pedicure. Even the boys had their virgin experience trying the foot massage.


But for me - I didn't do any of these coz I am not the sort who take pleasure in doing spas, facial, massages etc! I rather be out shopping than resting my face & butt for these! hahaha


Even then, I didn't do much shopping too, just souvenirs for family & close frens only.


As I said before, our meals consisted of mainly KFCs & McDs!






Look at their tagline - lebih besar, lebih kenyang, lebih puas!

Like duh - takdelah besar mana, tak kenyang & tak puas pun!


The portion setotetlet je! Some of us even had to order 2 sets!



Overall, we had a fun time there. Its certainly a good trip for family bonding and a great birthday celebration for my brother!



And wanna know something? Throughout my stay there, every night kan, ada 1 woman in my room staring at us while we were asleep. Kejap-kejap I pusing, I would see her staring a me!


And I managed to snap a picture of her on the last day....


Tunggu eh....

Bali - Part 1

Hi I am back...... safely Alhamdullilah!


Now let's continue abt Bali!


Actually, this is my 4th trip to Bali & I am still loving it.


I must say, the Balinese are 1 of the nicest people I've ever met & they always made us feel welcome. And we are never afraid to walk on our own even at night coz generally, its a pretty safe place.


And becoz I prefer to stay in a more hustle & bustle area, I've always chosen to stay at Kuta, which is the most happening place, thou it may not be the safest place (the Bali bombings took place around this area).


However, my favourite hotel has to be Ramayana. Its at centre of Kuta but yet, nestled in a lush quiet & serene environment, popular with Japanese tourists (who are naturally quiet & polite too) rather than the noisy HRC! Ramayana may not be as upscaled as HRC but at least, I feel more relax & at ease here.

Ok here are some pics on the hotel itself

The welcome by Hard Rock Cafe Hotel

Here is our Group photo before I signed off!


More pics soon - To be continued later as there are 1000++ pics to choose from!


Chiao....

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr...aruda !

Ok everyone! My mood to blog dah up sikit! Suddenly its like boom boom pow & terus start writing & uploading the Bali pics!


Remember this surprise birthday celebration last year for my eldest brother? To recap, there are 7 of us in the family (2 girls then 3 boys & followed by another 2 girls) & I am the youngest. We have long decided that when each of us turns 50 years old, we will celebrate it with a big bang. After last year's surprise party for my brother (the 3rd in the family), we have actually ran out of steam! hahaha, kesian delhoh!


So we have hinted to my second brother (the No. 4 in the family) who turned 50 years old in May, to surprise us instead! Boleh gitu?


Siapa cakap tak boleh????


Bolehlah.........& he did! He sponsored each & everyone (total 29 of us including our spouses & kids) to BALI to celebrate his birthday there! He has secretly planned this with his wonderful wifey. They booked the trip in March during the NATAS fair - a 4 days-3 nights stay at Hard Rock Cafe Hotel via Garuda Airlines!


Digress sikit - Point to note: When travelling lock, stock and barrel whole family like us, we usually book 2 different flights, meaning half travel on this flight & another group travel on another flight. I know its kinda weird but its to protect the family unit. To be realistic, in case 1 plane didn't make it 'safely', there is another half of the family still surviving to keep our family name alive!



We've always have doubts taking Garuda. Got a few bad experiences already when it comes to sticking to flight schedules & confirmations! The service & competition is nowhere compared to our national carrier SIA! I heard even Air Asia has a better reputation in keeping its flight schedules on time! (I gotta try Air Asia 1 day..I will!) And true enough, 3 weeks before our trip, the agent called & said that Garuda has cancelled all their direct morning flights for June & booked ALL of us on the same flight via Jakarta transit for 1 hour! What to do? Tawakkal jelah......

All set!




part of my family

10am flight to Jakarta for transit

When the plane kentut-ted... (so its human after all!)

During the transit, we walked around the Jakarta airport & discovered this

This is for Raf but sorry babe, dah kena ngap by the boys!

Our tired faces while waiting in the transit lounge...


Supposed to transit for abt an hour but due to 'technical' fault, it extended to 3 freaking hours!


See, mcm manalah I tak grrrrrrrreram dgn Garuda coz originally supposed to arrive Bali at 9.30 am but it dragged to 5 pm instead!

to be continued, too many pics to choose from & upload...

I am off for another short vacation, so see you guys soon!


And don't forget to check out www.vogue-u.blogspot.com ! We have so much in store for you!

11... The aftermath!

Tks everyone for the birthday wish for D!


The celebration has to be put on hold as my FM was not around. He arrived only on Saturday morning & after a well deserved rest, all 4 of us ventured to Sim Lim Square to get D's birthday gift! Thereafter, off we went to Vivocity. FM simply loves this place as it has a mixture of shops! Did a bit of shopping for ourselves (including his stuff too - Father's Day mah!) & had dinner at our favourite - The Chicken Rice Shop!

What a coincidence, we were assigned to table 11 for the 11th year old birthday gal!

Part of the the spread we ordered above & taugeh is a MUST lah, tak kan you all tau sey!

A happy D coz she got what she wanted


Not only anak dapat hadiah, the Mama's gotta get 1 too to boost & lift up her spirit to blog

Yep, hopefully I think this should do it!


Hmmmm, ok start writing Mama!!