Birthday Lunch

As tweeted, the family went out for lunch in Kuala Selangor. Fresh seafood. Sunday afternoon. Nobody would say no to that. Add to that gorgeous weather and smooth drive. It was a pleasure.

Got there in one pieceI wasn't joking when I said freshThis is a frequent place for us to dine, every couple of months or so. It took around an hour and a half to get there. Via Sungai Buloh, then Ijok. 70 km on the clock to reach the place. Kuala Selangor has certainly changed over the years. There are now big shopping areas with Tesco making a big investment there. A couple of brand new highways were also being constructed, one connecting Kuala Lumpur to Kuala Selangor, and another as part of the West Coastline highway between Kelang and Lumut. The road was rather winding once you pass by Sg Buloh but it was well maintained. I kinda enjoy the drive there and I can imagine those on big motorbike would enjoy is as well. The main attraction there is the Kg Kuantan Firefly Reserve. I have never been personally there, but from what I heard, it was well worth the trip to enjoy the fireflies in the early evening. I heard that they were building a resort near there as well.

Condiments .... checkedDrinks .... checked - my mum-in-law's dragonfruit juice that wasHere comes the dishesThe restaurant we frequent was located in a small village just north of Kuala Selangor town, heading towards Sabak Bernam. Just across the river, taking a left turn into Pasir Penambang. It was a quiet village, mainly inhabited by Chinese doing business processing fish and other sea products into dried salted fish and crackers. There was a small fresh fish market but after a couple of trip there, the price there was really expansive compared to if you haggle directly with the fishermen. There was only a couple of big restaurant there. The one we went to was called the Riverview. Simple and understated, but it certainly serve fresh, delicious seafood at a very reasonable price.

All was doneTime to goMy father-in-law did the ordering and we got our favourite sweet and sour crab and steam fish. And did I finish them all? The restaurant was also an antithesis of 1Malaysia. The patrons came from all races, with occasional Mat Salleh thrown into the mix. To get the coordinate of the place, it would be best just to click on one of the photos which will land you onto my flickr page. There, you can find the exact coordinate. It’s highly recommended if you have a spare time for weekend lunch. A nice drive and great food. But beware, there was a long queue for table yesterday as the place can be full during weekend. So, drop by early. We reached there just after noon. Be sure to try the freshly baked bread that goes very well with the gravy of the meal you choose. 

Birthday Celebration

Yeah! 38 today! Should be grateful with everything Allah gave me, family, stability and health. This year, with my colleague returning from Ireland, I have decided to take some time off work, to celebrate the birthday and also the World Cup Finals. It happened to be my father-in-law’s 75th as well on the same day - quick tip, one sure way of getting a father’s blessing in marrying his daughter is to have the same birthday. It was also a sure way to make sure your wife remember your birthday and for the kids to get really confused and started asking - “who’s birthday is it really? Dad or Granddad?”. Worked for me like a charm!

Irfan didn't think much of itWhile Idlan busy smearing his bread ..... la di daIt was a bright start for the day. Gorgeous weather. I had the duty of being a chairman of a session for the Malaysian Society of Transplantation in Subang in the late morning. So I had lunch with a few friends there. Had to rush back since Puan Anita had a date with on Edward Cullen - don’t really know who the hell he is, heard that he is dead ugly! - at  the cinemas. So I was on babysitting duty. The highlight of the day will be dinner at Harrods. We booked a table for eight with one of our auntie coming along. Since we booked for dinner at 6.30, there were hardly any other patron at the restaurant, which was sensible since the boys were in their elements, running around and all.

I went for asparagus as starterEverybody had the beef and Yorkshire pudWhile I had some codCheers eveyoneEverybody ordered beef and Yorkshire Pudding - sigh! I went for the cod instead! Even Idlan finished a couple of slices of the roast. Fat boy! We enjoyed some cakes and pudding afterwards. Thank you Puan Anita for organising the dinner for me and Dad. After all the medical scars he gone through earlier in the year, having to be admitted twice into UMMC, there were course for celebration. It’s a shame that my other two brother-in-laws can't join us. One was abroad, and another had a prior engagement.

A slice of birthday cake to finish things offBread and butter puddingBurp!However the celebration has not finished yet. We were planning to travel for seafood lunch today on Sunday to Kuala Selangor. More food ahoy! I was also eternally grateful for all the facebook messages, tweets and emails I received to wish me a Happy Birthday. Really appreciated them.

Padang Kota

Puan Anita enjoying her lee chee kangI remembered when I was young, I looked forward to have laksa at Padang Kota Lama every time I visit Penang. Laksa, followed by ais kacang. The ais kacang must have a scoop of ice-cream on top! Sometimes we also had some kerang (cockle) or cuttlefish with spinach. A real local delicacy. A must have. Over the years, the beachfront stalls were moved into a more organised food bazaar and to a certain extend, the charm was lost.

Kerang .....For instance, take laksa. The moment you reach the stalls, there will be throng of vendors coming towards you asking what you want. A quick look, you will see at east 4 laksa stalls. You will never know where your order will come from, or more importantly, will in come from the best stall on offer. It can be really intimidating if you were unfamiliar with the place. The second issue was the number of child beggars around. I was sure they were organised in syndicate. The problem was, they kept on coming and pretended that they did not know each other. After giving money to a couple of children, we soon got fed up and ignored the rest. The sad thing was, none of the vendors minded them, much to the annoyance of the visitors.

What to choose?And more ....The squid and cuttlefish I had was really nice, but shame about the laksa. The ais kacang was OK.I guess if I were to go there again, I should bring one of my uncles to take me around. He should know where to order from. Dropping by just like that may not be a good idea after all. If you really wanted to sample good food, get a local fella to come along!

Suffice to say that Idlan did not enjoy the visit since as soon as he arrived, he was swamped by the vendors, and the beggars. We had to finish up fast before the boys kick up an even bigger fuss. After a quick walk along the esplanade, we headed home. The main Padang Kota was transformed into a giant football hall. There was a massive screen beaming the World Cup game live later in the evening, filled with locals. There were also a small fanfare there. Unfortunately, lingering around was a bit too much for the boys.

Gurney Hotel, Penang

World Cup Dude!I had to leave early, and had breakfast at the main restaurant as my transport to G was at about 8.30 am. The boys were still fast asleep then - they had only slept after midnight. I later found out that after breakfast, Puan Anita and the boys spent a couple of hours in the pool! As the lunch break for my talks were a couple of hours, I walked back to Gurney Hotel to surprise the boys. They have just returned from the pool, Idlan was enjoying his ice-cream, while Puan Anita was getting ready to take them down for lunch.

I decided to take my camera out while walking back to G. The weather was really sunny on the afternoon, but the cool sea breeze kept things comfortable. I soon realised that the sea front along Gurney Drive had at least seven Bak Kut Teh restaurant - even more than the whole of Klang I thought! While waiting for the afternoon session to start, I had the chance to have a look around G. It certainly was very chic. The main lobby was expansive and open from one end to the next, giving the impression that it was more of a long corridor rather than a hotel lobby. Right next door was Gurney Plaza, an upscale mall by Penang standard, complete with multiplex cinemas. The banquet and conference service there were definitely state-of-the-art. It was a popular venue for weddings amongst the local upper middle-class.

The main lobby at Gurney HotelThe boys enjoying Shaun the Sheep! My favourite as well.Time for the pool. Nice slides but believe it or not, there was no wading pool.The infinity pool for adultsGym next to the pool, with beach sand of courseHmm! Let's work this one outThe session I had after lunch was quite long. I only arrived back to my room around 7 pm. After a quick wash, we headed for a drive around Georgetown, stopping for dinner at Padang Kota - more about that in the next entry. After dinner, me and the boys had another jacuzzi session before putting them to bed. The next morning, I woke up early in the hope of a quick photowalk around the Masjid Kapitan Keling area. Unfortunately the weather was gloomy. I skipped that instead.

After breakfast, they boys insisted on a session at the pool. Another quick dip, then it was time to pack up and check out. On the way back to KL, we stopped at KFC for lunch, then stopped by at Pahang Road to visit my grandmother. We finally reached Gombak just before 6 in the afternoon.

Penang Ahoy!

Idlan getting settled inEverytime I was invited to Penang for a talk, either as a speaker or just sitting in to listen, it was an opportunity to balik kampung - return home. Such opportunity came last weekend. One of the pharmaceutical company invited me to Penang, and I decided to drive the troupe along.

Morning sunrise from our roomThe main bathroom complete with jacuzzi, attached to the master bedroomI left work right after clinic last Friday, leaving KL just after 3.30 pm. Everybody was already full, so we drove on none-stop. We reached Prai at about 6.45 , crossed the Penang Bridge but only arrived at the hotel to check in just after 8, such was the traffic in Penang. It seemed that everybody was rushing around, either for food, or to reach home as on the night, Brazil were playing the Dutch - Dutch won despite Brazil dominating the first half.

The main living and dining area - I was about to unpack the WiiThe room we checked in was a two-bedroom suite, and the boys were really excited. The attached bathroom had a jacuzzi and a separate shower, hence the first order of business was a quick dip in the tub, while Puan Anita putting the room service order in. The boys were still running around until the end of the football match - which was around midnight. They were full of beans. It was not helped by the fact that the boys were asleep in the car on the drive up.

The suite we stayed in. Up on the 29th floor!We stayed at Gurney Hotel. The room was spacious. It has a main bedroom, with the jacuzzi. The other room was for the maid. She has another bathroom to use. There was a combined dining and living area, plus a small kitchenette. This was the second time we stayed here, the first being a couple of years ago. We specifically asked for this room even though the talk was actually held at the much newer and chic G Hotel, 15 minutes walk away. The round-the-clock room service was good. The best thing was the in-room breakfast. The boys just woke up, ran around and was ready for breakfast. No need to head for shower first. The added bonus was, football was shown live in the rooms.

I will talk about the hotel, and its services and swimming pool on a later entry. The slideshow of the photos taken during the trip can be seen here.