Category Archives: Reviews

Grand Seasons Hotel, Kuala Lumpur

Posted in Leisure & Travel, Reviews by

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Good location, comfortable room, delicious food.

That would be my heading for a review on Agoda.Com. We stayed there over the weekend. I had a conference about Old Age. Which means Mr Husband and the kids get to roam the city as local tourists. They went to Zoo Negara without me. Hmph.

But I joined them for the trip to Petrosains KLCC the next day. That will be another blog entry.

Generally our stay at GSH was great. Its near the Chowkit Monorail which can get you anywhere in KL once you reach KL Sentral. Hotel facilities are modern and up to date with a bit of Indian touch to it when it comes to food. Very nice. Plenty of legal parking space.

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There are however a few things of concern. More of to highlight so guests could make preparations in advance;

  1. The toilet has a bidet. Which may not be kids-friendly. Kids might have difficulties to adjust their bum and what not hence could be off target in most cases and you end up with a puddle.
  2. The lobby toilet is only available for hotel guests of if you’re a customer of their very own Avenue Cafe. Weird. Even Ee was like commenting ‘tandas bawah ni pun dia nak kunci?”
  3. Its a popular hotel. In the heart of Kuala Lumpur and a popular venue for conferences. If you’re like me, who decided to check in late, just be prepared that your extra requirements may not be met due to the huge number of guests. I did not get my large bed. And my non-smoking room. The reception said, “I’m sorry, but this is all we’ve got for now”. And he forgot to give me my Wifi password and inform me where I’ll be having my breakfast the next morning.
  4. Speaking of WIFI. It is free BUT it has a limit. Like maybe just 2 slots per room? Cause when Mr Husband and I wanted to do our work on the laptop – we couldn’t log in because we had initially used the free WIFI on our phones. And even if we had logged out of the service on our phones – the WIFI won’t connect with our laptops. So.. penat je kan angkut benda alah tu. Geram I. 

I guess that’s about it. Breakfast  is wonderful . Fresh fruits. Delicious nasi lemak sambal with chicken percik. Rich banana cake. There’s even tosai for those tosai lovers.

During our stay , there was a minor renovation going on at the swimming pools floor. The pool is still open to public. There is a gym on the same floor and also a dodgy looking spa. Grand Palace Spa. I dare not enter as there was a man sitting at the reception. Perhaps it is too under renovation in the inside. I was dying for a Reflexology Foot Massage.

Overall, it was a pleasant stay but I would choose to book there on a weekday. And not on a school holiday. And if it has to be there because of a conference or something.. then I’ll check in early.

Langkawi 2018 : Grand Continental Langkawi Hotel

Posted in Leisure & Travel, Reviews by

I was taken by surprise the number of foreign tourist at this hotel. China tourist. How is it that I have not come across them before? Then I realized that its got to do with the type of hotel I chose this time round, Grand Continental Langkawi HOtel. And what an interesting lot they are. HA HA.

GCL Hotel is a 3 star hotel located in Kuah near a small shopping mall which you could go to by foot in 53 seconds. A reflexology and massage service is also located beside the hotel at the same building.

I booked a Standard Triple Room which has 1 Double Bed and 1 Single Bed which costs me RM875.32 including tax for a 5D4N stay. It has a mini fridge which I liked. With its complimentary coffee and such. The toilet has both a shower and a bath tub. But I did not feel like soaking in it because the tub was old and it felt icky. My son however loved the tub and he managed to come up with a mini movie in it while playing with his figurines.

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The facilities are OK. 1 restaurant. 1 swimming pool. No gym. The staff were super friendly and helpful. The only thing that puts me off was the presence of a particular group of tourist. 2 buses of them at one time, at least. With a change of group probably every 3-4 days. They are not mean. Or evil. But they are robust and rowdy. Which can appear selfish?

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However, since they are bringing business to the hotel and also Langkawi – it is something perhaps we local tourist have to accommodate or make adjustments. Or complain. 

They can be very loud in the hallway early in the morning or late at night. To some of them, it is of a normal decibel. It is their way of communication. We learnt to shut our ears. HA ha.

Our little family also  learnt that it would not be a good idea to go for the breakfast buffet too early in the morning. We initially went down at 700AM and the crowd was just overwhelming. Thankfully there are still sensible queues at the Roti Canai and Egg Station. The slices of bread however were gone in minutes as the guests loved to pile lots of them in one plate at one go. Maybe they really like the jam.

Pushing and shoving can be normal to them so since I’m quite small sized, I avoid the crowd. After all, we were in no rush to do any activities early in the morning nor did we sign up for any tour excursions – so we could wait for them to finish before we help ourselves to the buffet. We started going for breakfast near 900 AM.

I really want to applaud the staff for they were very patient with the mess, the frequent orders by theses tourists to top up the food etc. They had smiles plastered to their face and kind words (always) when in contact with both local and foreign guests.

Despite its wonderful location and great price for facility, I might reconsider staying at his hotel in the future. For the above reason. My sister told me the situation would probably be the same for other 3 star hotels. This would mean having to choose a homestay, a boutique hotel or small resort like Tok Senik or a 4 – 5 star hotel next visit.

I look forward to suggestions.

Review : Anggun Ayu Spa Royal Bali, Bukit Katil

Posted in Everyday Life, Reviews by

I walked out of the spa feeling like a battered fish. Nearly served with fries. Dahsyat kan perasaan tu? Ha ha ha.

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I found this spa on Instagram. And then an old blog review which praises mountains of the place. Indeed, the place is pleasing to the eyes especially with the sound of Gamelan music in the background. The scent was mystical. Everything felt magical.

Until the masseuse stepped in.

I have had a Balinese massage before. In Bali itself. It was what I remembered as very relaxing, very soothing and pleasant experience. The pressure on your body was just nice and you don’t feel violated. Hence I was expecting a similar experience in this spa. Unfortunately it wasn’t as nice on the massage part.

I understand that you need to engage with the client. It is very comforting to know that you are asking if the pressure was alright with me but once I say, “It’s a bit too hard” – please take note and lighten the pressure instead of saying “It’s because your body have not had a massage for a very long time, it’s angin“. And it doesn’t help with the repetitive question of “sakit tak?” if you know that my answer will be “yes, sakit” and still keep that sort of pressure on me. I almost had doubts if the person massaging me was an android or something cause everything sounded so monotonous and scripted.

I was hoping to just you know… sink in my thoughts but she started asking me about the election. And what startled me most was when she asked me Who I voted for’. That is just overboard.

The Scrub on the other hand was a better experience although at times you feel like your modesty is being violated a bit. Terpampang susu kantung kat depan. urghhh.. Perhaps I need to try more spas to ensure whether this is a common practice of otherwise. It felt weird. After the scrub, I get to soak in the jacuzzi for 20 mins. My 1 hour 30 mins session ended with a lemongrass drink. The package cost me RM200.

WILL I GO THERE AGAIN?

I will think about it.

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Review : Bukan Sekadar Homeschooling by Khadijah Gani

Posted in Books, Reviews by

There are certain books that I need to read in Bahasa Melayu so that meaning dia sampai. First is the Quran Tafsir cause I’m not that urban like that. Second being the Hadith related books and the rest such as Parenting Books especially the ones which are written pertaining to the local climate. Rasa macam tak dan je baca parenting books omputih but you find it hard to relate to the Malaysian setting.

Hence chancing upon this book was a rare find. Especially when I’m not looking for it.

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It was one of those days when I decided to have a look at our local bookstore which is not as popular as MPH or POPULAR or BORDERS. Kedai jual alat tulis biasa je.. when I came across this book on the shelves. The title enticed me to explore the book because it has ‘homeschooling’ on it.

I was expecting a book that outlines syllabus of homeschoolers and what not. Instead it offered more than just that – to me, it was a book about Parenting along the lines of Islamic teaching. And of course I had to find out who Khadijah Gani is. And what a lovely person she turned out to be. And she has other books too – which is WOw. I will look for it later.

It was a great read with a motherly tone. It was not condescending. Meaning as a young parent yg tgh belajar kita tak rasa bangang bila baca buku tuh. Ha ha ha.  It was a very humbling piece. It felt like Khadijah Gani was there with me  – teaching me dengan lemah lembut from her personal experience of raising 4 children of her own. I read it religiously. I have been tagging tips, special doas and public figures to follow up on in the book. It’s not that neat but now that I’ve learnt how to tag books more efficiently and kemas from Ayesha, I believe the outcome would be neater once I re-tag it all again.

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I liked how Khadijah Gani was able to connect Science with Islam. It was very enlightening. Sometimes people need to hear about healthcare advice from another mother, not a doctor to justify –  why a child needs to wean, why vaccines are a safe bet and why as mothers we need to take care of ourselves (mental  health). Because if as health practitioners we try to impart some knowledge, sometimes, within an Islamic community we are labelled as pro-Zionist and other hurtful names. Whereas if it comes from a mother from a similar religious background – perhaps members of the community can take a moment to reflect on the matter and make an informed decision on what is best for their health and their children.

I would recommend this parenting book to anybody who is willing to learn the Islamic perspective in raising a child. It has duas, recommendations on what further reading we parents can pursue. It touches on sometimes the most simplest things in life that we encounter as parents when we deal with children. I bought it for RM 29 which is a bargain especially when you gain so much from the things you can learn from the book. InsyaAllah.

#sayasuka

Review : Bedrock Hotel, Ipoh

Posted in Leisure & Travel, Reviews by

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We booked a room at this boutique hotel for 3D2N in an Executive Deluxe room that has a SuperSized King Bed through Agoda.Com . I did not want Mr Husband to book our hotel because his taste can be horrible.I paid a total of RM 538.63 including breakfast for our stay.

It was actually a choice between Ritz Garden Hotel and Bedrock. I was hesitant at first as I could not find legit reviews written by Muslim travellers regarding the place. Thankfully enough, Bedrock Hotel appeared on the Have Halal Will Travel (HHWT) website which means InsyaAllah the place will be clean and the food served is Halal. So, I guess I could say HHWT website gave me that vote of confidence to choose this hotel over The Ritz Garden. And I think I made a good choice.

The hotel was very easy to find as we navigate our way with WAZE. It also has a very interesting design and I couldn’t help chuckling as I enter its main door as an inside joke come in mind. It was very Dynasty-ish. Macam nak pergi jumpa Emperor kat dalam hotel. If my siblings were here with our mom – we’d probably be acting out the ‘wansui wansui wanwansui‘ part. (that was the inside joke thingy).

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My expectations of a good stay were not only met but Bedrock Hotel provided more with a big big WOW

  1. We had complimentary snacks upon arrival – mini popcorn with a can of coke and two cartons of Iced Lemon Tea drinks! I guess it would depend on what they have to give at the time. And there was a mini orientation of how things work in the room such as the Coway and the Nespresso machine by the employees. Which was fantastic.
  2. A very spa-like bath tub experience as Epsom Salt was also provided for an exfoliating soak and what not. That was like wahhhh.. I want to rendam inside the tub until I become kismis. Not only that, I was also impressed with the bath gel they gave. They actually make good bubbles that stay on the surface of the water. You know how in movies the bubbles cover your chest and all? Yup, these bubbles did just that.
  3. An exquisite display of stones! Who knew they could look so pretty and interesting!
  4. A very muslim friendly room as it showed the direction of the kiblat. 20180414_204717.jpg
  5. The American breakfast was surprisingly delicious. macam dimasak dgn penuh kasih sayang.

 

As a mom, I loved how I don’t have to repeatedly boil water to prepare my kids drinks and milk. I felt very hydrated drinking as many glasses of water that I want to without having to ration my drinking water like in most hotels. Or having to buy extra drinking water outside.

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I still cannot get over my relaxing bath tub time at night when Mr Husband and the kids are asleep. I’d just put on the Goblin OST on my Spotify and immerse myself in the calmness of the situation. Gitew. Very ratu-like. It won’t be long before I re-enact a similar experience at home – but of course I need to find the Epsom salt first and not use garam bukit ke apa rite..

It was a pleasant stay especially after tiring days at Tambun Park and Cameron Highlands. If only they have in-house reflexology services. Ha ha ha.