Zoo Negara Ulu Klang

Getting started:

Our very own Zoo Negara is located within a sprawling 110 acres of land in Ulu Klang, just north of Kuala Lumpur and situated in a somewhat mixed jungle-concrete landscape. For Malaysians, the Malaysian Zoological Society will charge you RM20 for adults and RM6 for kids (Zoo only and includes the animal show); and RM25 adults and RM9 kids to add extra entrances into the Insect Zoo and Butterfly Park.

click to enlarge

Remember to show your MyKad (everyone in your group must show) to prove you're Malaysians, so if you're in a large group and only one person is queuing, please collect all MyKads to avoid being turned away at the ticketing counter or worse, being asked to pay the foreigners' rate (almost RM10 more expensive).

F is for FOC

You will get to wear wristbands which you have to verify at the entrance gate, which is quite cool and contemporary. And if anyone is celebrating their birthday on that day, also inform the ticketing counter to get FREE admission. Our daughter turned three during our visit, and she got in free!

Also, disable people get in free and senior citizens get a big discount. So get everyone in your family to join in the fun and educational trip to Zoo Negara!

There are also ample parking at the Zoo, with two parking areas (at Gate A and Gate B) - so do not park haphazardly outside the area. The parking fee is also minimal, and there will parking attendants to guide you on where and even HOW to park, during peak hours.

There are two entrances to the Zoo, Gate A and Gate B. If possible, try to enter via Gate A as it brings you straight into the Zoo's main area while Gate B will bring you to the Aquarium and Animal Show Theater. The best hour to visit Zoo Negara is as soon as it opens, that is at 9.00 a.m. There will be enough trees and gazebos to provide shade and shelter, but as the day goes on, you will feel tired.

The Zoo is home to almost 5000 animals from 400 different species, and most them are placed in spacious exhibit areas. The Zoo compound is large too, so be prepared to walk a bit, and bring a lot of water especially if you have kids in tow. Our advice is also to plan where and what your family would like to see and visit the most, and which exhibits and attractions to skip. Plan your trip around the Zoo as soon as you enter the gates.

Attractions:

Once you enter, immediately buy tram tickets, costing RM3 adults and RM2 children (again, with MyKads). You can start by taking the tram ride as it will make two stops along the Zoo at designated tram stations. Alternatively, you can do it like us - we walked around the Zoo first and then took the tram for one complete round before going home. It is better this way during peak seasons, as the tram stations will be packed with tired people waiting for trams to take them back to the main gates. 

If you decide to take the tram at the end of your trip, now you must decide where to go in the Zoo. It very much depends on what you'd like to see. If you want to see the Aquarium, Animal Show, Children's World or Penguins - the take the right turn. But if you'd like to see the giraffes, elephants and the Lake, then turn left. The main stars of the Zoo, the lions and the tigers, are also much nearer if you follow the path on the left.

We took the path on the right, and was greeted by the many monkeys and apes. The magnificent horn bills are next on the exhibit enclosure area. Then we reached the Animal Show Theater, which had already started, but being the school holidays, was so packed we couldn't get a peek at all. Unfortunately, the shows are also limited to only two shows per day, at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Next, we found the Penguins' aquarium, before entering the Tunku Abdul Rahman Aquarium. You can skip this, as the old aquarium's building is quite small, cramped, suffocating, stuffy and unsuitable for children. Walk a bit more and you will discover the Bear Complex, and see the bears having fun and relaxing under the sun. By this time and distance, you should already be feeling the heat, so take a rest at the kiosks.

When you do continue, try not to miss the Savannah Walk, a large open concept exhibition area created like the safari, which is home to giraffes, zebras and antelopes. But some of the animals might be lazy and would prefer to sleep anyway, but you will appreciate the unique Savannah area which makes you feel the animals are close by, instead of them being in cages.

When you approach the Cat Walk area, if you're lucky, you might hear the roars of the tigers and the lions. Naturally, this is the main attraction of Zoo Negara, and the exhibit area is so crowded. Take your time here, be patient, and you will find a nice spot to view the tigers and lions, or wait for them to come near (if they're not sleeping). The big cats are truly majestic animals, true kings of the jungle, and you might want to spend more time here. 

We ended our journey in Zoo Negara with one tram ride around the zoo, which we felt was a better way to appreciate the surroundings after a tiring walk. The Zoo might lack the modern facilities and need more attractions - but the kids will love it here. It will be a rewarding educational trip for them, and perhaps for the whole family.

Tips:

- Bring lots of water

- Wear comfortable shoes

- Make sure everyone has MyKad/ MyKid

- Buy tram tickets

- Arrive early and see animal show at 11 a.m.

- Do not miss Savannah, tigers, lions, elephants - kids love 'em the most!



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Senandung Malam Seafood at Bagan Lalang

Craving for some fresh seafood in the 30 - 40km radius of Bangi, we decided to head to Bagan Lalang, the world-renowned bird watcher's paradise and sleepy town off the coast of Sepang. The Bagan Lalang coastal area was a well-kept secret but when the Swiss Belhotel's Golden Palm Tree Sea Villas and Spa Resort (rates from RM500 onwards) opened at the Sepang Goldcoast Beach last year, the place has quickly gathered recognition as a tourist spot.

So be prepared for a packed beach and heavy traffic on weekends, public holidays and school breaks.

long Q

There are many restaurants along the beach, and each boasting fresh and cheap catches of the day. The trick is to find out that is tasty. Reading reviews from prior visitors to Senandung Malam, we decided to get there, and again, our group will be a large one consisting of 18 adults and children.

Reservation:

Contact: 013-384 9368 and 019-259 7356.

There are no specific method to make reservations. We managed to find and call a few contact numbers, but do not expect friendly greetings from the other side. Perhaps they are busy preparing the restaurant, as they open as early as 5.30 p.m. You should inform them of your entourage size and time of arrival. On busy periods, they might not be able to entertain you, if you plan to come after 8 p.m. You can also order the menu straightaway if you know what and how much to eat.

Our recommendation is to come early and enjoy the beach, then make your way to the restaurant as soon as they open.

Food:

Of course, seafood, and fresh too. As it is with other eateries of this type, you order at the counter where all the fishes, shrimp, prawns, squids, pepahat, clams and what-nots are. Make your choice, and then have them weighed and tell them how you want them prepared - fried, grilled, steamed, etc. All the items are fresh and are of satisfactory sizes.

But the downside was, the waiting time here was almost two hours. The queue was long, and at the beginning, there was only one person weighing, and taking and writing your orders.

Our advice here is to work together in your group - assign someone from your group to get a table, and someone else should just head straight to the ordering counter. And make sure to double check your order - they might get it wrong.

So for our group, we had bawal (grilled, but actually we ordered it masak 3 rasa - that's why we recommend you to double-check), pari (grilled), squid (fried), prawns (fried), clams (boiled), siakap (grilled), kailan ikan masin, rice and 3 jugs of sirap limau.

The grilled items were delicious and not over-burnt, and the sambal a bit too spicy but went well with the fishes. The fried squid and prawns, being fresh, was juicy and mouthwatering that they were the first items on the table to be wiped out. The fact that the seafood were fresh probably helped them being delicious as well.

Service:

As we said before, the staff aren't too friendly and they are extremely busy running around anyway. But, they will always try to find you a table and adequate enough to seat your group. Our tip is to grab someone, ask nicely, and they will surely help you out.

Conclusion:

So was it worth the long drive and wait? Yes, the price certainly was, though not exactly cheap, but it is still one of the cheapest in the Klang Valley-vicinity area. The drive would be tolerable if you skip the highway and take the leisurely route through Bangi, Bandar Baru Salak Tinggi, and the small towns and villages along Sepang, Salak and Sungai Pelek. The long queue at the counter could be made less painful if you plan early and smartly, and of course you must have the patience for it. 

We thoroughly recommend this restaurant if you crave for fresh seafood,  a beach front restaurant and going in a large group. Eight and a half out of ten for Senandung Malam.

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Restoran Al-Abraj, Bangi

 

Location:

Al-Abraj, Seksyen 9, Bandar Baru Bangi.

We are not really fond of Arabic/Middle Eastern cuisine, but decided one night to try out what the fuss was all about. Joining us, was almost the whole family, totaling 12 of us, so finding a spacious eatery was top on our list.

Joining the many, many food outlets in Bangi is the Al-Abraj, specializing in Arab and Yemeni cuisine. Find your way there (via your SatNav) at No. 40, Jalan Medan Pusat 2C, Seksyen 9, Persiaran Bangi.

Ambience:

Moderate but clean and tidy. Spacious and suitable for large gatherings. The Arab decor was minimal but just nice enough to set you on a mood. There is also a surau for your convenience.

Service:

The staff was fast, efficient and friendly. The waitress who attended our large group was so helpful, that she explained the items on the menu and made some recommendations too. She was patient too as she had to make the explanations a few times. Two thumbs up, and big thank you to Abraj's wonderful staff.

Food:

Being somewhat unfamiliar with Arabic cuisine, we took some time to digest the quite extensive menu. Typically, the main menu consist of lamb and chicken served with rice but only the cooking/serving style differs. Choose from Zurbian (cooked inside the rice - Abraj's specialty), or Haneez (steamed), or maybe you'd try the famous Mandy (oven-cooked). Our recommendation is, always go for the lamb - it is a standard rule when you're in Middle Eastern outlet anyway - and Al-Abraj cooks the lamb tender, moist and juicy and it goes nicely when you have some trouble with the dry rice.

Another thing which makes this main course worthy of its price, is its large serving. A plate could easily satisfy two moderate-eating adult.

My wife went for the dry lamb Akdah, which is tender lamb meat floss cooked with potato and tomato, served with Lebanese bread. This dish was fantastic as the spices blends well and gives you a myriad of tastes. The rest of group had kebab, sandwiches, fool (kacang pool) and Yemeni bread. Again, the Yemeni bread was so large it could easily feed two adults too.

As for the beverages, you could try the Yemeni lime if you could take the extreme sourness. But you must try the bottled non-alcoholic malt drink which comes in a lot of flavours.

Overall:

There are plenty more items on the menu which looks appetizing, and perhaps the more adventurous among you would like to try the equally adventurous items. The lamb is a must-try, and if you can skip the dry rice, try to have the lamb with bread instead.

Moderate ambiance, clean environment, large portion and tasty food makes Al-Abraj a recommended place to visit, even if you don't really like Arabic cuisine.

A definitive eight marks out of ten.



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Review: Tiara Beach Resort, Port Dickson

This is our second visit to the Tiara Beach Resort, with the first being in 2007. Even though the gap was a mere three years, but the once-proud Resort looks like it has aged thirty years. From its worn-out furniture to its lacklustre rooms, the Tiara is like a crown losing its gems and diamonds, bit by bit.

Reservation and check-in:

We tried our luck on the Friday, and luckily, we got ourselves a room. The reservation informed us that we booked for a one-room apartment, but upon check-in, it turned out that the rate which we paid was for a studio room only. It was poor communications and a serious error by the management, but no amount of complaining was going to rectify the situation. We double-checked our reservations, but my tip to you is, triple check if you want to reserve rooms at the Tiara.

The check-in process was chaotic. I have not seen anything like it before. There was a pre-check-in counter to get your confirmation slip and a queue number, before we can proceed to the real check-in counter to get our keys. the queue number was so long that it was worse than at the Immigrations Department. The Lobby was so packed that it looked like the market and the toilet was so filthy. The staff was made up of trainees and clearly lacked experience and courtesy.

Imagine my irritation, when at the pre-check-in counter, the staff could not find my name and blankly stared at me and said, "Sorry encik, nama encik tiada..", much to my chagrin and annoyance. She didn't even try to double-check. Finally, her colleague next to her came and help, and of course she found my name, as it was right there all along. And my queue number was a good and solid 70 persons ahead.

while waiting for check-in

If it wasn't for the entertainment provided at the Lobby, I would have lost my temper. Being Christmas, the Tiara had Santa Claus, the Teletubbies and two clowns (one of them was on stilts, which was cool) to keep the children occupied.

So a misinformed reservation department, chaotic check-in and lazy staff, we would like to proudly rate 1 mark out of 10; and the single mark is for the entertainment.

Room:

We were given block F (the last block), which was okay, but we had to make one big turn around to get there, and the parking were full. The annoying thing was the parking bays were full because the management of Tiara deemed it fit to fill about 10-15 bays with kiosks and stalls to make more profit. Maximizing the profit but depriving the paying customers of comfort and convenience.

Our room was on the 3rd floor (all blocks have 6 floors with about 20 units on each floor); but there was only one small and miserable elevator to serve them all. The management would like their clients to use the stairs but, in all their stupidity, forgets that people who come to Tiara do so in large families and carry lots of luggage. The notice at the elevator lobby reads - "Strictly for unloading baggage only" - do you think children and senior citizen would be able to climb the stairs all the way to level 6?

Anyway, upon entering the room, that's when we realized we got the studio room. Calling front desk would be useless, because they insisted that the rate we paid for was really for studio room on weekends, but I was informed otherwise during reservation. It was miscommunication but I still blame the management for giving inaccurate and contradicting information.

As for the room itself.. where do we start to complain. The furniture was so worn-out it looked like it came from a government rest house. The curtains were so dirty and looked unchanged for eternity, they were so decayed and torn apart. The toilet was not clean too. And the room was dusty like it was not cleaned for a long time. We had to pay deposit if we wanted the remote controls to the air-cond. And nobody from housekeeping showed up when we requested for.

Disappointing and a shambles, totally unworhty of our money. 2 marks out of 10.

The Water Park:

The one and only reason people still come to Tiara - the massive pool and man-made beach and water park. Since the 13th of December, entrance to the Water Park area will incur entrance charges of RM20 per adult and RM15 per children, but when you book a room, you get complimentary entrance according to your room types. For studio, you get complimentary entrance for 2 adults and 2 children, and you get to wear wristbands according to colours designated for the day. But we saw that the implementation was not strict yet, but at least bring the wristbands along to the water park because there will different prices to pay for other facilities, if you have the wristbands (like renting a bike, foot masage, fish spa and more).

The massive pool was really big enough and we still managed to find a spot for our little family to soak and splash. However the much smaller kiddies playground pool was packed and the water looked murky. Anyway, the whole park has enough water and inflatable slides to keep everyone happy and enjoyable. There were enough lifeguards on duty too.

As for the bike rental, it was RM8 for 30 minutes for single rider (with wristband) and RM10 for 30 minutes for twin (the bipeds). A bit expensive but you can cycle around the vast Tiara area, and we don't think they're too rigid with the time. Other facilities available are gymnasium, games room, indoor playground, sauna and karaoke.

The Pavillion Area:

At nightfall, the Pavillion area comes to life with its brightly decorated and colorful trees. A giant screen monitor was showing cartoons as early as 7.30 pm. Kids were safely running around the area, and playing the UFOs (of course, sold at the area). There were stalls selling toys and snacks.

Then the stage hosted a magic show and an acrobatic performance from China. For the more relax-inclined people, a live band played at the restaurant, where you can also test you karaoke skills. In short, there are many activities to keep you occupied until your bedtime.

The water park and pavillion are the only saving grace left for Tiara, but there are now many up-and-coming water parks. And some of the facilities should already be included in the entrance fees. We give the pool and pavillion combo 8 marks.

Service and food:

The temporary staff was, like stated above, lazy and unhelpful. However, the more experienced permanent staff at the front desk was friendly and courteous. Don't expect concierge service though.

Breakfast was no longer included in your room rates by default anymore (replaced by the entrance fees), so we never had the chance to try the food. There are a number of restaurants in Tiara. Or else you could head for PD town or down to the Melaka border for seafood.

We didn't try the food so we can't rate it, but we can give the Tiara staff 5 marks out of 10.

Overall:

The Tiara could boast of its unique attraction a while ago, but with so many other similar-themed resorts, why should we come back? A total refurbishment of the accommodation facilities should be on the resort's priority list, as well as a total revamp of their reservation and check-in mechanism. The water could do with some updating too. The entrance fee will prove unpopular in the longer term.

A disappointing place to have your holiday, we will decline to recommend Tiara to people looking for a value-for-money vacation in PD. An overall mark of miserable 4 for this miserable resort.

Cendol Durian

Lepas rasa tak puas hati minum cendol jadian hari tu

Terjumpa cendol sebenar di Sweet Chat

Cendol Durian!

Mantaplah!!!

Hilang kemaruk 2 in 1

~kemaruk cendol dan kemaruk durian~

Cendol Klang

 Sanggup wooo meredah hujan cari kedai ni

 Nak makannya semangkuk jer

ada cendol biasa

cendol aiskrim

cendol pulut

cendol durian jer takde!

 Ni landmark dia

aishh.. tak nampak pulak nama jalan tu yer

haaa..

Cendol Klang

Jalan Nanas, Klang

jumpa masjid ni, jumpa la kedai tu

Fofularrrr beb!

Hujan-hujan pun tak putus-putus orang keluar masuk

kira kedai 1Malaysia lah!

Cina, Melayu, India, Bangla (eh!) semua masuk pekena cendol!

Hasilnya..

cendol memang mantap

tapi santannya pekat sangat kot

so cepat muak

makan semangkuk, TAK terasa nak tambah lagi!

hahaha

Kedai ok.. spacious

tapi nak dapat parking agak payah sikit!

err.. ataupun mungkin sebab hujan kot

hurmmm...

.

Lontong Klang

Salah satu signature dish di Klang

kat sini gerai dia 2 lot

sebelah untuk lontong, nasi lemak dan air

sebelah lagi tempat untuk prepare roti canai

Lontong Biasa

Nasi Impit

Serunding Kelapa

Tauhu goreng

Telur rebus (setengah biji)

Tempe goreng 2 keping

Begedil

Sayur - Kacang Panjang, Kubis dan Sengkuang

Sambal

RM 3.00

Lontong Sotong

Sama macam lontong biasa

tapi ada tambah sotong sambal

RM 4.50

Lontong Special

Sama macam lontong sotong

tapi tempe dapat 3 keping

nasi impit ekstra

ada telur goreng

RM 6.00

Kedainya kat sini...

Opposite Jusco Bukit Tinggi Klang

Buka setiap hari kecuali Isnin

Sedap!!!

tapi budak-budak tak boleh makan sebab pedas

kalau nak makan jugak, kena mintak asingkan sambal

=)

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