Tag Archives: muslim travel

Medan 2014 : Food-tourism on a budget

Posted in Food and Drinks, Leisure & Travel by

I daresay eating or makan-makan in Indonesia as a tourist is affordable and clean at most places. We are able to have our meals at decent air-conditioned restaurants with a price tag way cheaper than in Malaysia. Imagine a meal set for two in a fast food chain, TEXAS CHICKEN for instance, only costs us MYR 12.

And our most hefty meal at AYAM GORENG KALASAN which included a dessert even, later amounts to only MYR 25. Alhamdulilah.. kenyang. 

AIR ASIA PRE-BOOKED MEAL

We were off to a happy start when our pre-booked meal of Nasi Padang  (MYR12/meal) on the Air Asia flight proved to be delicious. Like pure chewy daging rendang on board the plane! We underestimated how quick the journey could be because as soon as we opened the aromatic, piping hot packaging.. the flight attendants were already bringing the black plastic bag around to collect the rubbish. Argh.. panik. I blom makan.. 

Mr Husband ate, well …  swallowed it all in a jiff. I chose to pack it for dinner later at the hotel. There wasn’t enough time for a quick photo too but we did have a snap of our meals during the return flight from Medan to KLIA2. This time it was Nasi Lemak Pak Naseer and Nasi Tomato with Ayam Percik. The latter dish was Hazeeq’s favourite. He kept asking for more ‘matik’ [read=nasi] throughout the flight. The percik was a bit spicy for the boy but he liked the rice anyway.

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NASI LEMAK AIR ASIA

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And if I heard it correctly.. I think Air Asia is introducing a Kids Meal on board soon.

Great.“With Air Asia, every kid can eat”

Cafe Bang Memeng,

Komplek Istana Maimun

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This was an impromptu breakfast meal. We were secretly scouting for the Halal logo from the few eateries (gerai) available within the grounds of Istana Maimun. Then, jeng jeng jeng.. we spotted one of the cooks in a hijab. So in the spirit of InsyaAllah Halal.. we ordered simple nasi goreng with jus durian belanda.

 

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Fried Rice with Durian Belanda juice

 

JO’S FAMOUS TEA HOUSE,

SUN PLAZA

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Perhaps this is not a tourist-y destination, but we were willing to try anything for lunch. Especially since we don’t have a proper tour guide to consult. Plus we couldn’t find the famous Restoran Garuda most bloggers went to during their trip to Medan. Still, Jo’s Tea House was not disappointing. A very pretty lady came to take our order. Prettier than Bunga Cinta Lestari, I have to say.

Mr Husband tried the Mee Udon Medan. As for myself, I went for the Rawon Setan.Which is beef broth with bits of beansprouts and an egg. For a while, i thought the Rawon looked like brewed Jamu  – pretty spicy looking. Rawon was to be eaten with rice but well.. I just had rice for breakfast. Diet konon. Though I ended up nicking Hazeeqs Monte Cristo Banana Chocolate Bread. He was too busy posing for the camera in sipping the iced lemon tea.

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To be honest, Rumah Hijau’s Banana Chocolate Cake lagik nyaman. And this Rumah Hijau is in Kuching, Sarawak. One of our must eat places when go back Kuching.

77 ES TELER,

SUN PLAZA

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Dessert does not come any sweeter than the Es Nangka we had at this joint. Nangka is Jackfruit. It was overwhelmingly sweet thus we were glad we shared the bowl of Es (ICE). And to wash it down – another sweet coconut drink.

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Medan 2014 : Istana Maimoon

Posted in Leisure & Travel by

Istana Maimoon has got to be the one and only tourist attraction we went to. The fun point of the visit was to play dress up and have our photos taken as the Sultan and Sultanah of long ago.

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It was cheap thrill in a positive way. It costs a mere 10 000 IDR per person per costume and if we choose to have our photo printed out – it just costs another 10 000 IDR.

Total cost : a priceless 40 000 IDR ( = MYR10)

a very sulky and angry little prince

 

There was no entrance fee but we were encouraged to give some donation. Unlike temples or tourist sites in Cambodia, there was no donation box but we trust the nice, elderly man would keep the money for the good of the palace. In fact, he was like a human money exchange as he announced the value of our IDR donations in ringgit Malaysia.

” ini sumbangannya baru 5 ringgit bapak.. mau bagi lagi?’

Medan : The Itinerary and Grand Angkasa International Hotel

Posted in Leisure & Travel by

“With Air AsiaGo, every ibuk can fly”

Finally, I had my birthday trip to Medan last weekend. However, I should mention that this trip has no Brastagi. No Piso-piso Waterfall. Not even a visit to Paten or Hillpark Sibolangit. No Bika Ambon. Danau Toba? Forget it. We think that our dear boy Hazeeq could not stand the 6 hours journey in a confined space. Hence, the mini adventure was limited to just Bandar Medan.. and wow it was still a worthwhile birthday ticket for a party of 3.

1.00 MYR = 3,702.00 IDR

Why Medan you may ask. Why not Bandung or Jakarta. Well.. simply because it was cheap on AirAsiaGo. We were undoubtedly excited about the trip and took much time reading outdated blog entries regarding Medan,till we have overlooked an important fact. The international airport tax in Medan per se has risen to 200 000 IDR fr0m 75 000 IDR starting May 2014. Perghh… nasib jak ada duit lebih. Mun sik.. gine nak bayar yah..

Grand Angkasa international Hotel

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In Medan, we lived like royalty.

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We thought our hotel was a 3 star accommodation because of the price but it turned out to be a 5 star hotel.  They were also kind enough to give us a room with proper double bed instead of twin single beds that we initially booked. Breakfast was not included but what the heck.. makan luar ajalah.. As you can see, our days were liven up by the spirit of food and shopping. We went to every single pajak or mall we could think of with the BETOR (beca motor) as our favourite mode of transportation despite Hazeeq’s frequent refusal, “naik motor burok agi?”

a betor with a door

Here is a glimpse of our itinerary.

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Of course the room was clean, housekeeping was superb. Mr Husband made it a point for them to replenish our shower gels that have been used walaupun pada hakikatnya it has been stashed away.. he he. Beds were comfortable. TV reception was satisfactory. We even managed to catch up on movies like White House Down and G.I Joe during Hazeeq’s afternoon 3 hour nap.

Later, stories of shopping and our culinary adventure!!

Raya 2014 : Salam-salam, jalan-jalan, kenal-kenal, makan-makan …

Posted in Everyday Life, Leisure & Travel by

How do you spend your first day of Eid? 

After the Eid prayers and breakfast, we’d usually start the day with a formal salam-salam ceremony. My parents (who looked like royalty this Eid with their yellow outfit) would sit and ‘bestow’ forgiveness and money to their ungrateful, degil children. Hehe.

Mr Husband finds this ritual kind of humorous as this was his 2nd time having to again, salam and cium lutut. Even Hazeeq could not escape this adat. 

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Then, a couple picture with the royals. With a few selfies along the way.

 

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Later, a mini convoy to our relatives houses for their food and famous layer cakes. My kid has yet to understand the joy of duit raya but that did not stop him from making a collection from the elders and stuffing the envelopes in his little pocket.

Upon bringing Hazeeq berjarah, I learnt of an old adat as well. Adat sambut anak sulung. Intrigued by its name, I asked Father what it was. He said old folks believe that if you bring any eldest child of the family (anak sulung) to any house for the first time, you should spray him or her with perfume and such. This is to prevent the living spirits in the house from befriending and attaching themselves to that young sulung child and cause mischief. Itu kata orang2 tua lah. The good thing is Hazeeq smelled nice for the whole day. He he.

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Highlight of Raya 2014 was when we visited another aunt the following day, who was staying at the house Mr Husband and I rented when we first got married. We couldn’t resist taking a quick picture to wrap up the Raya. Smile.. KImchi!

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Raya 2014 : Homestay Taman Lavendar

Posted in Everyday Life, Leisure & Travel by

People often ask,

“Siapa ada di Kuching?” after knowing very well that my parents have migrated to Semenanjung ever since I was 12 years old. I have lost my grandparents when I was very young which means my parents loss their parents at a young age too. But we still have blood ties who are still alive. Mainly our cousins, their siblings et cetera. And this is enough to make Hari Raya a festive season for all.

This year kita raya ala-ala merantau di bumi sendiri. We do not have our own house in Kuching. Hotel rooms are way expensive hence we chose a neat homestay for the Raya week.

Homestay Taman Lavendar,
No 25, Jalan Depo,
93050 Petra Jaya,
Kuching, Sarawak

Owner : Encik Rahman
Tel : 016 867 3565

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The single storey terrace house had 3 bedrooms with air conditioning in each room. 2 toilets with one in the master bedroom fuly equipped with a hot water heater. A small, cozy kitchen with its kitchen appliances, even a fridge to store our ikan masin and kuih lapis. A front porch that could fit two cars – our Persona and Myvi that we borrowed from a relative. A TV with Astro.

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NO WIFI. But who needs it anyway during Raya, kan?

All this for MYR 250/night. 

I felt it was reasonable for our party of 10 people ( 8 adults, 2 toddlers). My younger brothers slept in the living room which was equally  comfortable because of its nice sofa and air conditioning!!

Overall, the house was clean and most importantly near Matang where all the relatives live.