Arriving at Colmar

After a couple of trips to Colmar in the last few months, we decided to actually stay there one of these weekends and since I will be in Yangon next weekend, we decided to head up there yesterday.

We called the evening before to book a room, but was told to just head up there and talk to the reception as there were plenty of rooms still available and the room rate differs depending on the occupancy. Hmmm! That might be a sign that maybe the place was not as popular as we thought it was.

Staying the night, we were spoilt for choice in terms of which type of room to take. It was mainly a toss up between the family suite - two bedroom with king-sized beds or a one-bedroom suite - one room, a lounge and pantry. We went for the suit instead and it was cheaper the cheaper option as it turned out.

After settling into the room - which was well-kept but was showing its age - it was time to explore the resort. Pity. It turned out that the Japanese and Botanical Gardens were closed for renovations. A vital piece of information I thought in deciding sheathed to come or not! We were left to stay inside the resort - went to the swimming pool, had some food and other activities such as arts before going to the rabbit farm again.

Dinner was disappointing as we opted for the buffet and it turned out that we were a bit too early. The grills were not yet ready and there were not much selection for the kids. We were also not allowed to order ala carte there. Luckily the restaurant manager understood and did not charge the kids for the buffet. We went to our room to order room service.

There were still hive of activities late on at the resort. We went for a stroll after 9pm, had some desert, walk up the towers to get a better view. There were street magicians and fire eater putting up a show there. The games rooms were still open and were packed. There were also a show - a rather lame one by a Russian dance troupe - appropriately called the Russian Roulette. You can't get anymore tacky than that.

It was 3am when I wrote this entry as we were woken up by Idlan as he had a high fever. He was not back to sleep after some paracetamol. He nay have caught a cough from the maids. Luckily it was right after his assessment. It looked like we would beheading back home a bit earlier than planned tomorrow morning, all depending on how he felt first thing.

As I was yet to get the photos looked at, I thought I would sort my entries into a few headings later - the good, the bad and the photos. Watch this space. I need some sleep now.

The first few hours

The investment were really working up a treat. The boys and their iPads were inseparable. Idlan has just fallen asleep allowing Anita to have a chance to surf.

After a couple of hours on the pads, the boys were more taken to the Redshift app, about planets and the Solar System rather the games. It looks like I will have to look for more of those educational apps to get them going, and more games for Daddy.

So the first few hours were as we expected. Excited. At times eager to explore but failing miserably added to the odd tantrums.

Bukit Tinggi Rabbit Park

The rabbit farm is not included in the entrance fee to Colmar. However it only set us back RM3 per person to get in, which to be honest was great value for money. Again with the food provided the boys really had fun feeding the already well-fed rabbits. They were pretty tame, which made the boys even more curious. They can’t stop petting their backs while I was holding my breath worrying about an impending asthma attack. 

The area where children can interact with the rabbits was actually pretty small, and they had to climb up a small fence to get in. The fence was to avoid the rabbit from jumping out of the compound. I counted easily 40 rabbits in the compound for children to play with. They were pretty strict though on the matter of handling.We were not allowed to lift the whole rabbit up. Patting was OK.

We spent a good hour here taking pictures and after that having snacks. There was also a small playground next to it, as well as a small petting zoo. If you were in the mood you can also take up a ride on a pony. It will cost you RM6, but we decided against it. Our boys were more fascinated with feeding the rabbit. There was also a small deer cage, and breeding area for the rabbit that if you can go an have a look. The playground was also well maintained and clean with nice grassy area. You can even bring a small mat and have a picnic there as the weather was gorgeous and it was very cool in the breeze.

Nice houses by the hillApart from the outdoor playground, there were also an indoor play area for toddlers. Parking was an issue however as they were pretty limited in number. The place was packed when we arrived and being only a 30 minutes drive from where we lived, we should go there more often. Irfan swore that one of the rabbit should be his pet, but I don’t think we were able to cope with a rabbit judging from past experience.The rabbit park is only 5 minutes downhill from Colmar. Clicking to the photo above will take you to my flickr site, where it was GPS-tagged. Finding the place should be straight-forward, and if you were staying at Colmar, there were also shuttles available to take you back and forth.

Return to Colmar

The original plan last night was to go to Gohtong Jaya for a spot of strawberry picking, but the boys only woken up after 10 am this morning. I called my Mum to see if she would like to join us, but she already had some visitors at home. We had to go out just by the four of us and at the last minute we changed plan and went up Bukit Tinggi instead. We got there just in time for lunch and after a quick stroll and a trip to the toy shop, we had some pizza at the same place we went to on our last visit. The crowd was surprisingly thin for a Sunday and school holidays. There were hardly any queue and finding parking was easy. Idlan and Anita tried their luck again at the game stall to get some sift toys but clearly they lack skill … LOL! Empty-handed, we were then treated with a power cut at the whole resort. We were lucky that we had some cash on us as we were not able to use the credit card or the ATM machine.

Since we were in Colmar only last month, we felt that we should explore further. Further up the hill from Colmar, lies a few more attractions. You get to go there for free as part of the ticket you pay to get into the main ticket. From the car park at the hotel, you will be provided with transport to take you right up.

Trying her luck. Alas, no talent ... LOL!A couple of explorersRound the blockNow it was Idlan's turnThe main attraction uphill was the Japanese garden. Apart from that, there was also the Japanese restaurant, a botanical garden and a spa. Since the crowd was small, queuing up to get into the transport up the hill was quite straightforward, although the journey was quite treacherous. The drivers were driving at F1 pace, and we were squashed from side to side. Not recommended if you have a touch of the motion sickness! I don’t know how the engine could cope with the amount of rev that they did put on. The eventful journey took a good 10 min and we alighted right in front of a small cafe.

A short climb up the hill took us to the Japanese tea garden. There was a small pond, where plenty of koi strove on the food that the visitors throw to them. To main garden teahouse offer authentic Japanese tea as well as opportunity to sample Japanese outfit to pose for pictures. There was also small hut right next to the koi pond which was very relaxing in the breeze. Further down was a small spa. We did not venture much to there. The boys had a blast feeding the koi with some food we bought at the tea house. This was actually the second time that we’ve been to the garden. I still have a picture of Idlan back in 2005 when he was only 8 month old standing on one of the bench. 

After some photographs we descended down to the meeting point and took the transport back to the hotel. We decided against venturing to the botanical garden as we did not want the boys to be too tired. The quick stop for the restroom and we took our minivan down the hill towards the rabbit farm, which I will blog more on the next entry.

Colmar Part II

For today, as we arrived just after 1 pm, we headed straight for lunch. There was a the main hotel restaurant which did a buffet spread, which we decided to give a miss. The next choice was a slightly more up-market restaurant which only had set menu for lunch. Nope to that as well. Fret not. There were at least four more cafes which did a la cart dining. We took our lunch at a French-Italian restaurant, and ordered pizza, pasta and salad. The food was surprisingly good, although price was a bit on the expensive side. There were entertainers coming to our table, singing Mamma Mia for Idlan and Irfan. Unfortunately, Irfan freaked out to that!

The singers were singing ...... and Irfan don't want to have anything to do with it ....We spend the next couple of hours exploring the main hotel area. The boys stopped for some games at the play nursery, before running around with the clowns who were on hand to dish them some balloon sword. One was blue and one was green of course, being Obi-Wan and Anakin. After his sword pierced, Idlan asked for a red one and turned into Darth Maul. How appropriate. We then walked around to the swimming pool and fed the swan.

Unfortunately it soon started to drizzle, and stopped by at a boulangerie for coffee. The boys wanted to stay for the night, but we did not bring our clothes with us. Even though I volunteered to drive back to pick them up, with the rain and all, we decided otherwise. The rain also meant that we were not able to visit the botanical and Japanese gardens, or the rabbit farm. A good excuse to return I think. Idlan wanted to ride the pony, and I wanted to try some target practice using a paintball rifle. I can see myself reading a book in the room with the windows open letting the time pass by. I can’t really comment about the rooms or the hotel lodgings at the moment. I will hope to be able to do so one day should we spend an night here. So far, the ambiance and the food has been good

Throughout the afternoon, I can see the place as a popular spot for couples to have their wedding portrait done. We sow at least four groups doing that, despite the overcast weather. There were many enthusiast with their dSLR lugged around as well, myself included. A good chance to take out my new lens for a spin. Yes, the photos were sharp as advertised - all the photos on this entry was from my EOD 7D and the new Canon EF-S 17-55mm f2.8 IS. The IS definitely helped the indoor pics, and the 7D seemed to be handling the high ISO very well if needed. 

All in all, it was a grand day out. Yes, the food may be expensive and with a big crowd, it may not be as comfortable, but for a quick day out, it was not bad at all. We wished that the weather was better. Even though the drive up was windy at times, it was well worth it. After all, it was only 45 minutes from home. Please click here for more information about the place.