Happy Anniversary and We Celebrated It @ Avillion, Port Dickson.

I know, a wedding anniversary with the kids ? Isn't anniversaries a romantic event and should be celebrated in private ? Plus come on, just for a few day, the kids will be all right. Just go, just spent time together. Well, for us , we've never been away from our children, only if it's work purposes. I've never had the heart to leave them behind, and plus for me a holiday is not a holiday without them.
I know that other parents have different perspective, but yeah , we take ours where ever we go.
Being a mother with a career , it makes it tougher for me , knowing that , the weekend and short breaks are the only time i have with them.

I see anniversaries in a different perspective now. I strongly agree that it should be celebrated. It's time to reflect in the life that you have build together , to celebrate the mile stone and to re-egnite your love for each other. For me, if we teach our kids and include them in this important date , hopefully  they will appreciate relationships and marriage once they are an adult. I hear people say,
hey my parents have been married for 30 years now and most of the time, i hear them say it with pride. And they hope to follow the foot steps of their parents.  Some even go the extra mile and organise a surprise anniversary party. So i hope Kaseh and Kefli will throw a big bash on our 25th, 40th, 50th wedding anniversary and so on and so forth. ( Insya Allah).

Well, i did a short video, i thought , i'd like to move forward with more videos for this blog. So here's a quick review.

The last time we were in Avillion is two years ago. I must say that the customer service has improved tremendously, much friendlier staffs and they are prompt when answering to house keepings requests.
I enjoyed the duplex Beach Studio very much. It give us some privacy from the kids and they have plenty of space to roam around. Booked online and with tax it was all in RM600, without breakfast.
But that's all right, cause eateries aren't a problem in PD.

I ordered a small tiramisu cake from room service. The kids retired early that night (Wohoo) , thanks to the pool and running around the beach, thus gave us parents some quite time together.

On our way back , just before entering the PD highway, i discovered a gem ! This stall sells hot Cakoi and some Malay kueh. I love Cakoi and couldn't get enough of it , plus the makcik is super nice.
You can't get 6 kuehs for RM 2.80 in KL ok. The stall is kind off hidden , it's on the main road , so you gotta keep your eyes wide open.

A short but sweet and memorable trip. So here's to more years to come. Happy 6th year Anniversary !

Phuket, Thailand For Kids Only !

Last year, we re-visited Phuket. Thailand is my favourite beach holiday destination since my Uni days. I love everything about Thailand , the food, the desserts, the beaches, the fashion, their quirky art scenes, the parties and it's just about an hour away from Kuala Lumpur.

The last time me and my husband came to Phuket was in 2010. I was pregnant with Kaseh. Phuket
holds a reputation for being an 'adult fun' island. Backpackers and Europeans love vacationing here especially during winter months. But not much promotes the 'kid" side of Phuket. And after much research , i must say that Phuket is very kid friendly , plenty of things to keep them occupy and
yes i get to enjoy the white sandy beach and crystal clear waters and great Som Tam.

The best time to visit Phuket is mid December onwards. During our visit it was absolutely beautiful.
It was practically raining thunder storm every single day in Kuala Lumpur , and i'm glad we came to sunny Phuket.

We stayed in Holiday Inn, Patong. Patong is not my first choice of an area to stay in. I would normally stay in Kata Beach , where it's quieter and calmer, but because of the kids and we wanted to stay in Holiday Inn ( top child friendly hotel in Phuket) , and this hotel reside on one of the end of Patong Beach.

Holiday Inn, Patong offers the family room , with additional two bunk beds. For about RM 500 plus ,
i think this is absolutely fantastic and the kids love playing in this small corner. It's not separated from our room , it's kind off embedded in the Deluxe room. The only thing is that, Kid's suites are situated quite a distance from the main lobby.

Bare in mind that , Phuket beaches are public beaches, thus most of the hotels are not build on the beach bank itself. It's still beach front, but there's a road that separate the beach and hotel. Thus you gotta cross the road to get to the beach. Pros - everyone get to enjoy the beach , Cons- Crossing the busy road with kids.

Holiday Inn, kid's pool is OK , there's two and one fantastic Kid's club. However , if you have older kids , they will think that the slide at the pool is nothing to shout about. Suitable for younger kids.

The adult pool on the other hand, is just what a mom needs - relaxing and inviting. But guess where i spend most of my time ? Bingo ! Kid's pool!

Generally , i think things are quite pricey in Phuket . The food and shopping wise, almost or slightly higher price than Kuala Lumpur. Perhaps it's peak season , that most good's prices are inflated.
So i didn't shop much , i didn't have anything particular to buy. Tip - Thailand is popular for it's cashew nuts and thai silk , be sure to buy some either for your own consumption or as gifts.

Pancake stalls are everywhere. Great filling dessert , the kids love banana and Nutela flavour.
Thailand is also famous for it's massages. Thai massage uses a different technics, unlike the Malay and Balinese massages , Thais uses acupressure and stretching application. We both manage to go for a massage each , taking turn on different nights when the kids are asleep.

Taking turns are the best way , to enjoy some personal time on holidays. Even though the hotel did offer baby sitting service ( RM 20 per hours), but Kefli and Kaseh , are just not use to strangers . So there you go, time management and plenty of sacrifices.

Walking is the best way to discover Phuket. However on this trip we left the kid's stroller at home.
No , i didn't forget the stroller , but it was a conscious decision not to bring it . We felt that , the kids would very much prefer to go on foot as well. Oh my , never forget the stroller , even if it seems like a hassle , just bring it , or you'll end up having to carry them all the way.

This is actually Kefli's and Kaseh's first time to Phuket. We weren't sure at first, because unlike our Singapore trips ,we actually drove, thus we have the luxury of driving and the convenience of a car.
But getting on a plane to a different country , will take a lil bit of effort on your side. The immigration procedures, the flying in and out - but hey , we did it anyways and it was worth while - nothing like having the kids around.

I know that kids vacations can be tiring , and i do feel like i need a holiday from the holiday , but
the love and experiencing the place with them makes it all special and worth while. So moms and dads, don't worry too much, just plan your holiday and just do it!

Thanks so much for taking the time to read my posting. If you think you have benefited from this posting, please, please click the share button. You can just share it on your social media or stumble upon. And if you want to get more Mama's drama and where will we be vacationing next ? My reviews and previews , don't forget to subscribe.

Thanks !

Mee Bandung, Air Sirap Bandung and Nasi Bandung which one really originates from Bandung ?

I can't help to ask myself the above question, Mee Bandung and Air Sirap Bandung are common dishes here in Malaysia. When my husband suggest that we make a trip to Bandung Indonesia during the long Federal Territory and Thaipusam break, the first thing that came to my mind was, i'm sure Sirap Bandung is what they drink there, must be as common as Teh Tarik to us Malaysian. Not so accurate, ha ha ha , instead i got a weird stare from the waiter.

This trip was organised by my husband, my usual choice would have been a beach holiday. I love the sun, sea and sand. So i was a lil sceptical about Bandung. There's no beach , what would we do ? What kid's activities do they have ?

I let him organise , since he did an initial reccee 6 years back before we got married and holidayed with his friend.  I still did the research and book the hotel. We stayed in Bandung for 4D/3N. I opted for a 3 bedroom Condotel - Aston Braga in the Braga area. Not knowing what to expect , i just read reviews and read more reviews and just decided to give it a go.

Bandung Hussein Sastranegara Airport , is really small. Tiny but busy, i totally appreciate small airport like these , saves time on check in and traveling to departure gate. Upon our arrival ,we got a MPV and straight to our hotel.

Bandung is just how i imagine it to be. Traffic is heavy and plenty of small kiosk and small shops along the road side. Street food are apparent every where, selling Bakso and Durian ice cream, they look tantalising but i was warned not to eat by the road side and drink only from bottled water.
My maid felt at home , even though she hails from Jawa Tengah but the city has plenty of similarities to her kampong in Semarang. So i nominated her as our unofficial chaperon, her official tasks is to get us cheaper rates on taxi and haggle for me when shopping.

Our 3 bedroom condo-tel turned out to be really cosy and clean. The deco is acceptable and the pool was refreshing. Bandung, is a city above sea level, thus it's dwellers enjoys cooler weather than anywhere else.

Tip :Staying in a Condotel, offers a spacious area for the kids to roam and play thus does not drive you up the wall. The kitchen is a plus plus, as you'll get to prepare quick easy meals for the family. After one of our excursions, we were too tired to eat out, this kitchen allows me to cook plain rice , stir fry vegetables and sardine. Simple but yet wholesome dinner ! 

Here's my TOP recommendation for kid's friendly places to visit in Bandung

1. Lembang Floating Market
Totally awesome, there's a Rabbit Farm , duck and fish feeding, boat rides and food market all in one place. This is such a great place for the kids and adults too. It's about an hour drive from Bandung City itself, but totally worth it. Make sure it's on your Bandung to do list . You can do the shopping later, but be sure to avoid rainy days. Check the weather forecast !

2. Paris Van Java Shopping Mall - Animal Farm.
Like any other shopping mall , we think PVJ is just like any other mall. But then an again to our pleasant surprise the Animal Farm is pretty awesome. Get up close and personal with the farm animals. Plenty of nice eateries with hipster cafe here. Great for the kids, shopping wise not my cup of tea.

3. Pasar Baru
Shopping heaven and totally cheap. This is the place to get all the local and traditional items such as Batik, cloth, crafts, clothes and much more. It's not your 5 Star Shopping Mall , but Pasar Baru is your one stop centre for almost everything at a wholesale price. I bought "telekungs" ( muslim prayer attire) for just RM 9! What a bargain. Not for kids though, as it is a lil crampy and alleys are narrow. So if you are bringing the family, plan what you want to buy , straight in , attack and out.

4. Cihampelas
Oh wow, another Mall, but open concept with outdoor kiosks and eateries. Need souvenirs ? We got to t-shirts here!

5. Rumah Mode
The factory outlet , which house most of the designer's brand - Zara, Mossimo, Channel, Mango and more. Worth going if you are brand conscious. I totally love the Balinese koi pond and the various nicely decorated cafes and restaurant.

6. Kartika Sari
Our last pit stop before heading to the Airport. Kartika Sari offers you the local cakes and delicacies all nicely pack to take home. I when crazy with the glutinous rice ball ( similar to Malaysia's pulut panggang) , i wish i bought more and the Kerepek Tempe Bakar , is da bomb !

So all in all , i thought Bandung  is an enjoyable family destination. Despite the fact that it isn't a beach holiday , we had plenty to do. Things are also generally cheaper than Malaysia, so that's a plus point. So ya, planning a holiday to Bandung ? I hope this helps!

If you enjoy what you read and found the review useful, do please please leave your comments below. I really would like to know what you think . Or if you would like me to review a family holiday destination , i would love to hear your suggestion. I might just plan a vacation based on your input. For more quick breaks and mommy travel , be sure to follow me on instagram!

Till our next family travel, see ya !

P/s : Phuket is next on our family travel ( teaser....)

It's World Radio Day 2015 !

Just last week, i was invited to BFM to discuss the topic - Youth, Volunteerism and Radio in conduction with World Radio Day 2015. I had an awesome time. If you missed it,
check out the podcast here!

http://www.bfm.my/radio-youth-and-volunteerism-kartini-kamalul-ariffin-rudy-malik.html

Bukit Tinggi Colmar Tropicale & Rabbit Farm

It's end almost end of the year and i just want to go sonewhere! But due to work commitments and coordinating everyone's time is quite a task. Kaseh still have to attend school and hubby
has some projects to complete.

Thus, till our proper family vacation, i pledge to make short weekend trips for the next 2 months, just to break the monotony and keep the kids excited and busy. Most importantly, we spend time as a family.

Last two weeks we spend 2D/1N in Port Dickson. This time around, i have chosen a closer venue, still involves nature, water, animal but thus time above sea level. I'm not a big fan of highlands, cause i can't stand the travelling. The winding roads gives me that uneasy feeling. I think the last time i visited a highland was more than 15 years ago.

So Bukit Tinggi, Pahang it is. After reading a few blogs on the place, i thought let's give it a shot.

The entrance fee is RM 16 per adult and kids under 3 years old enters free. This is the fee to the French themed hotel Tropicale Colmar, Japanese Village and Botanical Garden.

The entrance, as you can see in the above picture is really quite picturesque. But apart from that , this place has not much to offer. There's a few restaurants here, but the price is on the high side. So it's really just "jalan-jalan" for us literally and we finish walking about in 15 mins. I seriously feel that they shouldn't charge us a fee, it's just not worth it.

A small fountain makes a great pit stop for the kids, and it gives you that feeling of not being in the country. Like i could tell people that this was taken in Europe and i might get a way with it .

Ok, the Twin Tower on the horse and the "Selangor Turf Club" sign clearly shows that I'm in Malaysia. Tak pe la bagi chance, saja nak feeling feeling.

The swans to me are the highlight of this place. So charming and friendly. Watch out, Kefli got bitting by one of them. That's because they thought we got food!

We skipped the Japanese Village and The Botanical Garden, i don't think my kids would enjoy it, we straight head on to the animal farm. You've got to exit the French Themed area, cause animal farm is not part the RM 16.

This is the animal farm, further RM 3 is charged to enter , but i thought it's Ok, it's for the animals, in fact i don't mind paying more if the money is used to ensure that the place is well kept and invested in upgrading works.

My kids loved this place and we do too. The cool breeze makes it pleasurable to just hang outdoor. It's not much cooler but , slightly i feel. Unlike trips to say Zoo Negara or Bird Park, KL you either have to go early in the morning or after 4 pm to avoid the heat.

Friendly deers roams freely in the farm.

Kefli's attempt to catch one of the rabbit.

Kaseh's first donkey ride. A milestone for her and she was really proud of herself and we do to for overcoming her fear. Well done sweetheart.

We spent a good 3 hours in Bukit Tinggi. On our way back to KL we stopped at the Genting Sepah Rest area. I never knew that chicken rice there is pretty good. The one served with ayam goreng berempah. I can't remember the name, but you won't missed it - opposite an ice cream stall.

Overall our trip was an enjoyable one. This place is worthy of a one visit just to check out what the fuss is all about. Once you've see the place, your next visit wouldn't be so soon. Yes we would come again, but for the animal farm. Hope this helps.

Family Short Get Away @ Regency Tanjung Tuan, Port Dickson, N9.

Happy October everyone ! And it's Eid once again but this time it's Raya Haji. It's time for another quick getaway, long weekend for us as Monday is a Public Holiday. I honestly did not plan to go anywhere but at the last minute i was itching to go somewhere. Just needed to getaway from KL. Plus for KL-lites like us, where KL is our kampung , this us yet another great opportunity for a family get together.

So, we decided to spend 2D/1N in Port Dickson . It's less than 2 hours from KL and the beach isn't too bad these days and that will keep the kids occupied ! Yay, i was really looking forward for this break.

We were really lucky that there's a few more accommodation available at such short notice. Even Avillion PD has a few more rooms on Agoda. We would normally choose Avillion but just for one night , this time around we looked for an apartment - so that everyone stays under one roof and mom can open her kitchen in PD.

Regency, Tanjung Tuan has a 1500 sq feet 4 bedroom apartment. It's our first time there but from the photos and website we decided to go for it. For me and my sister , there's a pool and close to the beach, enough to keep our kids busy. We are ON darling !

Regency Tanjung Tuan from Avillion Admiral Cove, one of the neighbouring hotel.

Took us slightly longer than usual , 2.5hours , due to the usual jam in Seremban interchange, and we got there , just slightly before 4pm.

The apartment turned out to be quite pleasant . A duplex with quite a large kitchen and dining hall, on the 10th floor, overlooking the sea. Costs us RM 1600 for the whole house , 3 families
( 13 pax) , it's really worth it.

The overview of the duplex apartment.

Nice clean kitchen , there's coffee and tea making facilities , a stove , fridge , washing machine and a dryer !

Master bedroom on the ground floor with King size bed. The rest of the rooms are as follows :
2nd bedroom - queen size bed
3rd bedroom - twin beds with ensuite bathroom (2nd floor)
4th bedroom - twin beds with ensuite bathroom (2nd floor)

2 nd bedroom on the first floor - queen bed.

View from our unit.From the number of people in the pool , you can see that this place is quite popular with holiday makers especially , family with young children.

Upon checking in, we explored the hotel facilities . The food court along the beach called Coconut Groove is quite a nice chillex place. Menu is not too bad,, slighly on the pricey side, but i think the ambience and dining by the beach experience makes it worth the price. What we ordered

ABC - RM 14, bit sweet but portion is good to share with 3 pax
Homemade beef burger -RM 18, generous portion of fries but beef patty so so
Chicken chop - RM 28 , nice , succullent and tasty!

The eatery by the poolside and beach. Good mix of menu, local and western food.

My son, enjoying the sea, he's a natural beach bum.

The lobby of the hotel. Our unit is in block A where all the 4 and 3 bedrooms are. For studios and 2 bedrooms , is situated in block B.

Well, my perspective of PD changed from this trip. There's acctually plenty to do , so perhaps next time we might consider 3D/2N to PD. Things we discovered on this trip for us to do.
1. Ostrich Farm
2. Bouncing castle and horse riding in Teluk Kemang
3. Seafood by the water front ( there's drive thru Mcdonald and Starbucks)
4. PD Mini Zoo
5. Pasar Malam ( night market) only on weekends

Siloso Beach Resort, Singapore!

Oh wow! Raya sakan this year. Raya these days got a lot more exciting for me. Since i got Kaseh and Kefli, they brought so much joy into our lives especially during Eid. This Raya we
did three states in 7d/6n. We did the usual Raya visiting in Johor Bharu my husband's hometown, holidayed in Sentosa Island , Singapore and made a pitstop in Malacca on our way back to KL.

We were in Johor Bharu for for 3 days, Singapore 2 days and Malacca 1 day. My husband hails from JB thus this is where his kampung is, the usual visiting happens around JB, Pasir Gudang and Pontian.

This year we decided to make a trip to Siloso Beach Resort, Sentosa Island ! We got our parents to join us and my elder sister planned the whole trip.

We Malaysian loves to go for holidays in big groups, well as for me , the more the merrier. At least our kids ada geng ! Not many Malaysians are aware of Siloso Beach Resort. Most would probably choose Hard Rock Cafe over this hotel, i personally like Siloso because it faces the sea, and we get to play by the beach.

My daughter Kaseh us no where to be seen because she'll be with her cousins most of the time. This is the main disadvantage of holidaying with other family members, my daughter will most likely choose to hang out with Aidil and Amyrah. Here the three of us hanging out on Siloso Beach. Great coffee but expensive lah and great company. Kefli is a natural beach bum, we start em young.

For us Malaysians, Singapore's strong currency makes this island seems unattractive as a holiday destination. Plus, Sentosa Island is mostly reclaimed , so we feel there's no good reason why we should spend our holidays here. Plus we get value for money holidaying on Islands such as Perhentian, Redang and Sipadan in our homeland.

But i must say that, this Beach Resort is very clean and well kept plus there's so much to do.
If you are looking for a fun filled and pack with activities for kids, this is where you should consider to go. From Aquaria to USSR and water park and sports, there!s si much to do on this Island.

While we were there, we decided to pay the Zoo a visit. I heard so much about Singapore Zoo.

Adults and kids alike will enjoy Singapore Zoo. Malaysian Zoo need no go far to find a case study, this Zoo is beyond expectation and should be use as an example for our local Zoos. I am particularly mazed with the crocodiles sanctuary, the biggest croc i have ever seen in my life!

Flamingos, polar bears, elephants- the Singapore Zoo is divided into different section. Entrance fee is SGD 28 per adult. I highly recommend that you buy online prior to visiting the Zoo.

Siloso Beach Resort's pool is one of the best feature of this hotel. It's huge and is surrounded by trees and nature, a nature sanctuary just within minutes of the hustling and bustling of Singapore city. We had an awesome time , but the exchange rates makes me think twice before visiting this resort again .