TH: Krabi Trip Day 3

Morning!! Again, need to find a place for breakfast :-) actually last night, we have decided to do cycling around the town. Since our target place for breakfast is Starbucks, we planned to rent the mountain bikes and cycle to Starbucks. Then from there, do another 1 - 2 hours biking.

We forgot that time in Thailand is one hour later from Malaysia. So, 8am there is 9am in Malaysia. Guess what, the sun already shined above us and felt like our skin is burning! Not to mention the path we took, which tested our endurance....

After 1.5 hours, we were done and back to the hotel for a rest. After few hours, we went out venturing the same Ao Nang place again. Wonder when I am going to get tired of the same place..... we walked towards the Ao Nang beach, the area where the hotels facing the beach are. We found couple of massage places and this one attracted us... BF Massage. On daily basis, they have 50% discount on massage between 10am - 2pm. Good bargain. The massage shelter is by the beach and the wind blew from the sea makes it a relaxing moment. The only complain is the masseurs! Can't they stop talking to each other ... it really disturbs us...

After massage, we went for a lunch at the hawker stall near our hotel, and in the evening, spent time at the hotel spa. It was a good bargain, but unfortunately for me, in the room, the air-cond is blowing at its fullest couple with hot steam room and the cold rose body scrub made me feel uncomfortable.

It was 2.5 hour spa and when we finished, it was nearly 9.30pm... gosh.. need to fill up our stomach.. too a tuk-tuk towards McDonald's area and found out quite a lot of stalls were closing. We just wanted a street food and tried fried noodles and fried rice. Again, unfortunately for my fried rice, it was a bit spicy and was not cooked properly - I ended up with diarrhea the whole night! What a way to spend the final night at Krabi.

There is no photo since my friend forgot to bring the charger for his camera... the battery ran out and sorry, no photo to share...

~ MT @ Thailand
~~ Mercure Deevana, Krabi

~ To Travel Is To Discover Oneself ~

TH: Krabi Trip Day 2

Day 2 starts pretty early. We were told to be at the lobby for transfer to the jetty by 9am. Since we did not have breakfast as part of our hotel stay, we need to find breakfast somewhere else. The problem is, no restaurant open this early here, except hotels. We walked few hundred meters towards Ao Nang beach and lastly, saw Burger King 24hrs service. Yeah! Walked in, glance through the menu and ... aargh... something there that prevented us from ordering here. Walked out and few steps ahead, 7-Eleven... yeay.. breakfast time :-) Spent equivalent to RM5 for a pineapple pie, coffee and yogurt drink. Had a breakfast on the bench at Ao Nang beach.. nice ...

While enjoying our breakfast, we didn't realize it was nearly 9am. Sh**.. walked as fast as we could back to the hotel, change and zoomed to the lobby. Alas, the pick up only arrived at 9.10am. With us, there are another 6 guests going for the same trip. 4 from the UK and 2 Singaporeans.

The tour agent used is Ko Phi Phi Tours. We noticed other hotels such as Sheraton and Ao Nang Villa also use them. So, i guess it must be trustworthy.

At the jetty, we have to wait for another 30 minutes for other people to arrive and the speed boat to get ready. Our boat can accommodate 30++ pax and it is full.

Our first stop is Ao Maya then snorkeling and proceed to Phi Phi for lunch. Lunch is just so-so, and PhiPhi island is just another local island like those in Malaysia. It is good for the local to make some money from the tourists.

After PhiPhi, another snorkeling and back to the mainland. By 4pm, we are back on the shore and our transport to bring us back to hotel are ready.

Tips: Make sure you go to toilet whenever you have chance and before you board the boat. If they stop for snorkeling in the middle of the sea, you will find yourself uncomfortable holding onto your bladder :-)

The jetty

Walking to the speed boat 

Inside the speed boat - best seat, towards the corner. Do not recommend sitting near the engine

At Ao Maya Beach

Welcome!

Lunch at Phi Phi - full board

Take a short rest at the hotel, and we went out discovery Ao Nang for the second time. For dinner, we stopped at Bamboo Special Seafood. The ambience is nice and the arrays of seafood in front entice us to have dinner here. Unfortunately, the service is very slow and the food is not so great. Couple of tourist next to our table ordered clams and once delivered, apparently nearly half of clams are not cooked. At least the restaurant took it back and deduct from the cost of meal. That is what I called customer service.

Bamboo Special - where we have dinner

Prior to our dinner, we had a reflexology at the Seaview Massage. it is situated at the corner of the Ao Nang road towards the beach. Although the price is competitive, I got the old masseur... and the results - do not feel anything! She even admitted that she is old and cannot press hard enough... what a waste!


~ MT @ Thailand,
~~ Mercure Deevana, Krabi

~ To Travel Is To Discover Oneself ~

TH: Krabi Trip Day 1

It has been a while since my last vacation. In 2011, my original plan was to travel on a monthly basis, unfortunately time and money seldom be on my side. I did travel end of 2011 to Bandung, visiting my brother and his family. For 2012, January went by and in February, I managed to get myself the sun (in which I can get plenty on it here :-)) and sea.

Actually, this trip was planned in August 2011 (that when I bought the tickets). Couple of days prior to the trip, I scanned through the itinerary and notice there was a service fee paid for "SKYB" costing RM28.80. Can't remember what I have booked, I attempted to contact AirAsia. However, the number listed on their website is the premium number which they will charge RM1.95 per minute. There is no 1-300 number or even local number. ....

A friend and I took a bus from KL Sentral to LCCT at 10.30am. Reached LCCT an hour later and proceed to departure hall. The departure hall for Krabi is at Y gate which is next to domestic departure, unlike other departures utilizing Gate T. This used to be part of the domestic and there are only two gates, Y1 and Y2. The area is partitioned from domestic side with 2m wall. Very cramped when you are in there and there is no toilet inside. No wonder they won't allow passengers to get into the hall until at least 1hr from departure time.

Departure Hall for Gate Y1 & Y2

Boarding started at 12.50pm. Full load. Our heavy today is 9M-AHP. Few families and those travel in groups were split (in terms of their seating arrangement), unless you have paid extra to secure your group seats. .The flight was uneventful and we were flying at 36000 ft above sea level over Penang, Langkawi and direct into Krabi. Landed at 149pm local time on runaway 14.

A short 1hr flight and we were in a place hotter than Kuala Lumpur.

Landed Krabi

Immigration was smooth although the officer seemed to take a bit more time to admit a Japanese family of four in front of me. My turn, it was fast and within minutes we were at the bus counter. There are choices to get from the airport to the Ao Nang beach, where we will be staying. The cheapest mode is bus transfer. It costs 150 Baht per person one way. A taxi with maximum of three pax cost 600 Baht per taxi. Since we were not in hurry, we opted for the bus.

Krabi Airport

The bus transfer is operated by Pichet Transport Co. Ltd. It is a white bus outside the arrival hall. Since the only arrival at that time was AK flight, all 12 passengers were from the same flight. One Caucasian couple, another one none Malaysian couple and the rest were Malaysians. On the way, the driver dropped the Caucasian couple first and then turn back to stop at this one travel agent. Hmm... pretty fishy...




Then, the travel agency manager came on board and told us to get down since they will arrange another transportation for us - except for this one non-Malaysian couple (the bus driver will drop them at their hotel)... now it smells fishy...

We were asked to wait, and then the travel agency staff trying to sell us the packages.. damn! luckily we did not take any since it was very expensive compare to the hotel excursion packages and those travel agents down at Ao Nang. When I asked why we have to change transport, I was told the bus could not get to the hotel due to its narrow street at Ao Nang.. LIAR..LIAR...LIAR --> the next day, I saw the same driver drove the airport transfer bus right to the street where our hotel is!

After 15mins, we were transported in the Thai-style pick up truck. Reached the hotel at 3.30pm. Check in was a bit slow. Read more about my review on Mercure Deevana Krabi here.

After one hour relaxing, we walked towards the main street of Ao Nang. Just at the junction of the main road, there were hawkers in tri-cycles selling varieties of seafood which are halal! Great! Spent 100 Baht eating the seafood skewers. Not bad. Apparently, a lot of tourists sampling this great cheap Thai fare :-) We walked for couple of hours and had our dinner at Chaba Thai Seafood restaurant. Apparently, it is easy to get halal food here. There are quite a number of Muslims in Krabi and there are few mosques as well. Quite a big mosques like those you see in Malaysia. So, the food is not a thing to worry.

Walked back to the hotel and called off an early night. Tomorrow is Phi Phi Islands day :-)

~ MT @ Mercure Deevana
~~ Krabi, Thailand
~ To Travel Is To Discover Oneself ~

MY: KBR-KUA via Coastal Road

My friend, BH came to KBR for Eid and we decided to return to KUL via TGG. Our plan was to use Coastal Road or Jalan Pantai from Jertih to Kuala Terengganu. We were to meet Abe Zu and his family at Cherating and spent a night at Kuantan. This time, our choice of hotel is the newly renovated Swiss Garden Resort & Spa at Pantai Balok. Originally, we wanted to stay at Hyatt Teluk Chempedak, however, BH got a better corporate rate at Swiss Garden.

We left my parent's place around 10.30am and drove to KB Mall to meet BH friend. Then, around 12pm, we left KB Mall and drove towards Pasir Puteh, then continue to Jertih. At Jertih, we turned into an alternative road to Kuala Terengganu, Jalan Pantai. The drive along the Coastal Road brought us along Penarik, Merang, Batu Rakit and we reached the town centre around 2:30pm. A bit longer than usual, however since we were not in rush, we decided to enjoy the scenic view along the way.

At Kuala Terengganu, I bought a batik for Sha's birthday celebration and another sampin songket for myself. We were a bit disappointed because we could not find a decent restaurant opened for lunch. At the end, we ended up having K-F-C at Pantai Batu Burok for lunch. :-))

We continued our journey towards Kuantan soon after our late lunch and met up with Abe Zu and his family at Chukai (Kemaman). Abe Zu was staying at Impiana, Cherating, 10 mins away from Chukai. BH suggested a Chinese restaurant for soft shell crab, however, Abe Zu and family was a bit was-was since the restaurant is a Chinese restaurant without halal certificate :-) We ended up having dinner at Selera Timur restaurant.

We reached Pantai Balok at 10:30pm and checked in immediately. This is my first time at Swiss Garden Kuantan.

The weather was not really nice with rains intermittently. Looking forward for the next day trip from KUA to KUL.

~ MT @ Malaysia
~ Pantai Balok, Kuantan

~ To Travel Is To Discover Oneself ~

QA: A Dip in Salt Water

After nearly three years in this country, I finally decided to have a dip in a blue Persian Gulf. With few other friends, we decided to have a picnic at Messaied Beach, south of D0ha. This is the area where tourists come for a Desert Safari. However, driving a non-4WD vehicle only allow us to reach the beach near the resort. Further into the desert, you need a 4WD and good driving skills to maneuver the sand dunes.

Driving from D0ha to Messaied takes only 30 minutes and utmost 45 minutes - unless you are harrassed by the brutal drivers in 4WD who think the roads are theirs.

Messaied is a refinery area, if I am not mistaken and a home to Qatar Endurance circuit. Our current King, Tuanku Mizan participated in the Qatar Endurance race before and was featured in the local newspaper. His Majesty has to withdraw from representing Malaysia in Asian Games last year since it coincided with the oath taking ceremony. Well, if he was here during thegame, I would not be able to watch the endurance race. Hehehehe.... don't have a pick-up truck or 4WD to follow the racers 80km into the desert. And it started at 6am in the morning..... :-)

Messaied is the nearest beach for the urbanites from Doha. There are more beautiful and secluded beaches up north and west, but these are quite far. The one at Fuwairit (north of Q4tar) is nice and beautiful. Another that local frequent is Wakrah Beach, just situated at near the end of runaway 14 of DOH international airport. Messaied on that day was a bit crowded too - with beach buggies zooming on the sand near picnickers spurting sands into the food :-(

The weather was nice and we had only 1.5hrs of day time when we reached there. During this "summer" season, it is too hot to do any outdoor activities before 4pm. In fact, the best time is around 5pm, but it will shorten your day time enjoyment since the sunset is at 6pm.

Had "fried beehoon" and KFC for our late lunch. What more satisfying after the deep in the salt water than a hot KFC... hehehehehe.... thanks KM for "sponsoring" KFC... :-)

Enjoy some photos... guess which one is me ;-)

~ MT @ Qat4r
~~ Messaied Beach

~ To Travel Is To Discover Oneself ~

QA: Weekend

Since Zals arrived in Doha, he has been very active in keeping in touch with other Malaysians here. He really practiced his PR skills... :-)) I have distanced myself a little bit, not that I hate it, but to avoid politics within the community. However, since Zals is new here and he is very eager to get to know Malaysians here, I believe it is good for me to rebond again with the community. After all, we are Malaysians... [maybe I should thank Zals for this...]

Friday
Friday afternoon, our friend KM (who Zals met during sembahyang raya at the embassy) came over and together with AI (another Malaysian who will be joining Zals at the broadcast company) we went for a lunch at Turkey Central restaurant. Turkey Central restaurant is a well known restaurant within the expatriate circles, especially Americans. The restaurant is listed in the introduction leaflets or CDs for expatriates. The price is very reasonable. We ordered a kilogram of mixed grill and cost us only QR70 (around RM73).

After lunch, err.. a late lunch, around 4pm, we drove to Wakrah beach, a small town south of Doha. This is a small fishermen town and only 15 minutes from Doha down town. We have only less than an hour to sample day light at the beach before the sun sets at 4.49pm...










The weather was nice and the beach was full with Keralites. Maybe their day out at the beach :-))

On the way back, stopped by at a local joint, Halul Cafe by the Corniche. Had some tea and a shisha. For dinner, Zals volunteered to cook. He cooked ayam masak kicap, telur bungkus and sayur kacang. That was gooood!

After dinner, we went to another local joint at Souq Waqif for a tea/juice and shisha (again.. second shisha within three hours). Stayed there until 11pm only since KM has to work on Saturday. Poor him :-)

15mins to 1am, sent AI to the broadcast company to join his wife (who was on night shift) before going back to their compound. I went back home for a short sleep - since the next morning I planned to attend this Thai Cooking class at Moevenpick Hotel.

Saturday
Woke up a bit late on Saturday morning. Took a mug of my usual ginseng coffee and drove to Moevenpick. What a dissapointment! The class cost QR105 and it looked like a demo. So, Zals and myself decided not to waste our money to watch a demo. We decided to find an Asian breakfast, however the Indonesian restaurant nearby did not open for breakfast. Drove to The Mall nearby and at the end, we had brunch at Chili's.

After brunch, balik apartment and relax...










It was a tiring weekend... need to go to work early next morning for a meeting! aarrghhh... Sunday blues....

~ MT@Qatar
~ Ibn Mahmoud, Doha

~ To Travel Is To Discover Oneself ~