Cuti Raya Day 7 - In Sungai Petani

Irfan having a temperatureAs mentioned, Irfan has a temperature. We had to postponed some of the plans for today until tomorrow. Tomorrow is better anyway since Julia will only reach Sungai Petani today. At least we can hit Penang tomorrow together.

We had breakfast at the resort - since it was included in the room fee. I must say that we got there quite late and the bulk of the crowd have already came and left by then. It seems that everything was finished, even the eggs. We had to cook breakfast for the boys later at Julia's house, but not before doing some groceries.

Julia's house at Taman Puteri JayaJulia arrived at around 1. I went to buy some lunch with Mum and got Teh to come over at Julia's to join us for lunch. Irfan was asleep at the time in the hotel room and we had to wake him up. He was well grumpy.

My favourite dish for lunch as prepared by TehIdlan at the CarnivallIn the late afternoon, we took Idlan and Julia's children to a water theme park right next to Cinta Sayang. It's called the Carnivall. It was actually surprisingly good. As expected it is family-friendly and the admission fees include snacks, which is a change. The layout is simple. Upon entering, there is a canal at the perimeter of the park. Within the canal are a few water pool for kids, with waterslides and all suitable for the less than 5. Idlan and his cousin had so much fun that we had to practically pull them off the pool.

In the evening the whole family had steamboat dinner at the resort. Anita booked for a table for 12 but when we arrived we were surprised to learn that firstly, they did not provide a table for all 12 of us, and secondly, they did not have the table ready for us when we arrived. Complaint? None of the waiters speak Malay or decent English. They were all foreigners! Finally we grumpily split into two adjoining tables. The meal itself was just about OK. There are stalls that serve better food than those, but we were hungry anyhow and it was Syawal.

The Journey to Sungai Petani - Cuti Raya Day 6

On the way to Sg Petani 1, originally uploaded by Haris Abdul Rahman.

Woke up early this morning to get everything set up for the trip. Got the car ready, got everything hauled in, but only one thing missing. Well two actually - Idlan and Irfan! They are still asleep!

Wake up!All packed up!We had a tough time getting them ready and all set to go. They went to sleep just before midnight last night as they were so excited. We finally managed to set off at 9.30. We went over to pick up Dadi (my Mum). She was coming along with us, with Julia, my sister bringing my Dad the next day.

The traffic was light and we were all but cruising. We did not actually stop as all the R&R are full. We reached our destination at 2pm and was already in our room by 2.30. Time for lunch then.

View along the wayI hate to go all environmental on everyone but when I was young, the hill was whole. Unfortunately the money men have other ideas.We went over to my Auntie - Teh's house for lunch. All was done by 4 when we managed even to do some shopping at Tesco. Then we realised that Irfan had a temperature. We stayed in an rest in the evening.

I managed to explore the resort during my late afternoon walk. The resort has been on the map for almost 20 years. I remember staying here once back in 99, but not much else. The resort is actually pretty basic although it claimed to be much grander. There are a few cafes a full-sized 18-hole golf course complete with an academy and driving range. On the website, they advertised 'chip-and-putt'. This has however been turned into a member only practice area. Idlan was disappointed.

Finally arrived at the destinationThere are of course facilities for weddings and conferences, gym, swimming pool and squash courts. All available for us as guests. The pool was particularly nice, with separate areas for children and changing facilities. As Irfan is having a temperature, we decided to give this a miss for the day.

We checked in, then Idlan and Irfan checked out the roomI went to one of the local Mamak restaurant with my mum to get some take-out later that night while the boys stayed in. To our surprised, all the cooks were Indonesian. I had my Mee Mamak prepared by one, and I wonder if it was any less authentic?

Happy Hari Raya

Lemang, originally uploaded by Haris Abdul Rahman.

Wishing all a Happy Hari Raya. Maaf Zahir Batin.

Sorry that this entry is a couple of days late. You will have to excuse me as I was busy with the festivities, and the planned holidays and all. We celebrated this year as usual in Gombak. I attended the prayers at the mosque near our house. It was packed as expected and most of the dwellers were planning to hit off to their kampong right after the prayers.

Idlan - balik kampongAfter prayers, we had some ketupat and rendang - the must-haves for the Eid here locally - and had our family photos. We then head off to my parents' at Bukit Antarabangsa. We stayed there for a couple of hours, mainly having food. My sisters had left for Melaka - to her in-laws - the day before.

Irfan showing his silat skills in Baju MelayuBack in Gombak in the afternoon, we received visits from friends and cousins. One of Anita's close cousin, Ros came over with her family. Chit chat, more food. Unfortunately, I was then reminded that I have to nip out to the supermarket to get some stuffs for tomorrow's journey. Fun's over.

I was so surprised how many people were there at our local Jaya Jusco at Alpha Angle. The Jusco staffs were all in their Raya wares, which is a change from their usual uniforms. The queue was rather excruciating though checking out. I then had to rush back to watch the Manchester Derby. Time to put City in their place this time.

Stopping over at McDonald's to get chips for the boys on the home from Bukit AntarabangsaThe game started where we expected with Rooney netting within the first couple of minutes. Unfortunately City came back. In fact, United went ahead again twice, both times being pegged back with equalisers. City got their third equaliser thanks to Ferdinand's mistake on the 91st minute. I thought the game was over. Then Owen stepped up and got the winner late on, on the 96th. I can understand why the City manager is furious, but then again, that's what make ManYoo strong. The game is only over at the final whistle.

I went to bed just before midnight as I will be doing some driving the next day. Everything was packed up by then. Looking forward to the trip.

Malam Raya - Day 4 Cuti Raya

Malam Raya 5, originally uploaded by Haris Abdul Rahman.

It is almost here. Last minute shopping was done, but unfortunately my Dad took up smoking again during Ramadhan. His bronchitis is back and he started to cough badly in the last couple of nights. The night before, he needed nebulisers at the local clinic. I decided to get him checked out at UMMC this morning. Thought of putting him on short-term steroids. Then we found out that his blood pressure was sky high.

We put in down to his diet and the fact that he stayed up most nights for prayers during Ramadhan. He needed to chill and most importantly, give smoking up. He may not be able to drive with us to Penang on Monday. He may have to catch a lift from my sister.

On the way back from UMMC, we drove past Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman. The road leading to it was well empty, but oh my God! Were we wrong? The entrance to Chow Kit was gridlocked. Mostly by foreigners. I bet the locals have done their shopping and has already legged to their respective kampongs. We had to skip our plan to stop and have a look.

Initially apprehensive

Irfan soon warmed upIdlan getting groovyLater, I brought the kids to visit their Grand Dad, where we had to stay an extra couple of hours due to haevy rain. The rain was severe enough that apparently there were reports on another landslide in Bukit Antarabangsa. It was close to Iftar by the time we reached home.

A lot of chores needed doing that night. After clearing and cleening, it was time to treat the boys with some fireworks and sparklers. They stayed up until almost 11pm. Initially Idlan and Irfan were intimidated by the sparklers, but later they warmed up. Grand Ma done all her cooking during the day. The rest of the troops spend the evening decorating and preparing the main tables, cookies and all. I was really tired by midnight, hence can only punch in this entry the day after. Happy Hari Raya.

Cuti Raya Day 3

MidValley Raya Decor 2, originally uploaded by Haris Abdul Rahman.

Hey! Nice tree!It was raining when I got up, which is a pain since I have to go to UMMC this morning, taking my Uncle to see my Urologist colleague. The appointment was at 9.30 and since there were some issues about his scans and what not, we only managed to get everything sorted by 11.30. There will be follow-up after Raya and it is more than likely that he will have to undergo an operation.

On the way back, I decided to drop by at MidValley after hearing a alot about their Raya decor. I arrived there just after mid day and the crowd has already started building up. Apparently it was worst yesterday. A lot of the crowd has already left for their balik kampong ritual. I look forward to an empty KL in the next few days.

More Malay Kampong touchesThe decor was as sweet as what was described. It cartoon replica of a traditional Malay kampung, made of wood. And they are actually functional. Some of the decors were used as stalls where you can buy cookies and other Raya goodies. There is also a big stage in the middle, presumably for music and fashion shows I must say that compared to Lat's work in KLCC, this was on a smaller scale. They are also a lot more predictable, with elements of Malay kampong. I found it lack 'character' and spirit. If you were to ask school children to design a set around the theme of kampong, I am sure they will come up with something similar to this. It lacks originality and innovation. I found it to be too functional.

Lat's work in KLCC is more colourful. You can relate to it a lot more with characters from his Kampong Boy repertoire. You can tell that the designer actually comes from a kampong. It did not try to hit it over our heads that this is what a kampong should look like. It was more involved and evolved. At least that was what my take was.

I reached my home just in time for Jumaat Solat. After Solat, felt tired and decided to take a power nap. It was fine until the power nap actually took a good 3 hours! I was really knocked out. When I woke up, at least my sore throat was gone. I was more than likely carrying a virus, hence the reason for the lethargy. We therefore had to skip Idlan's music class.

From aboveI had to run a few errands after berbuka and drove past Alpha Angle. Can't help but to smile when I saw the queue into the car park. Plenty of people were out to do last minute shopping. I went by to buy some Tandoori, and now back home. Drizzling outside. Maybe it's time for another power nap.