Sakae Sushi @IOI Mall Puchong

My boy's school declared a special holiday for Cheng Beng Festival yesterday and being a weekday, it was the best day to go shopping!  We hardly visit any shopping malls during weekends and public holidays as usually these places will be overcrowded not only with people but heavy traffic jams particularly everywhere!

I had to tag my boy along as he desperately needed to update his wardrobe having outgrown most if not all of the existing ones!  I am one lazy mama when it comes to shopping, I'd rather shop online. *yawns*  I get most of my clothing from a wholesaler online if you don't know that already but I have yet to come across any online shops that sell kids' wear my boy's age.  Do let me know if you know of any website ya!

Back to our outing, finding a parking proves a breeze on a weekday!   We went for an early lunch at Sakae Sushi knowing that the place would get packed during lunch time later.  

We ordered green tea, were given a cup with a sachet of green tea each. Hot water was within reach from where we were seated.  I like this self-service concept, so so so convenient.

The arrays of sushis and side dishes on the  moving conveyor belt

They have dual tier conveyor belt, the second tier stores a limited choice but cute designs of sushis.  By the way, can you spot the boy's reflection in the mirror?  He was saying, mommy, quick, quick.. take photo.. the sushis are moving away! LOL.. That's my jakun boy.. That was our first visit to Sakae Sushi, we hardly dine in a Japanese restaurant as no one in the family fancies the food. It's also quite costly but once in a blue moon, ok la. Teehehe..

Mochi.. My boy chose this..

Seasoned baby squids.. I likey.. Yumzz..

My boy's teriyaki chicken with rice.  

He didn't quite like the chicken and only managed to finish 3/4 of the rice. No prize for guessing which tummy those chicken meat went into.  He complained too little gravy was given and thus the rice leftover. :(

My bowl of grilled eel with rice. Yumzz

We ordered through this screen,  a mouse and a monitor are available at the side of each table, just browse through the menu and click on the dishes and your order is sent to the kitchen.  How efficient!

The boy decided he wanted something sweet to end his meal so he went click click on the mouse and voila.. he got this... dragon fruit ice cream. Ouch! Mommy's purse screamed in pain! ;)  This scoop of ice cream set me back RM5.99, excluding service charge and tax)

A happy customer enjoying his single scoop of ice cream.  

The bill came to RM60++.  Though my boy didn't enjoy his main meal so much but it was nevertheless a pleasant experience.

Ala carte Dinner @The Living Room, The Westin KL

We went to The Westin KL again last weekend to utilise the last dining coupon which was expiring end of this month.  We actually planned to have buffet dinner but alas, buffet dinner was not available during weekends.  Since we were already there, we ordered ala carte dishes from its not so extensive menu.

Free flow of iced water on the house

Bread to jump start our dinner  - The buns were a bit hard and chewy though still warm.

Oxtail soup, tasted a bit bland to me, preferred stronger taste of spices

Chicken & pasta soup

Ayam Percik c/w rice and condiments.  The meat of the chicken thigh was so tender, falling off the bone type, I likey.

The boy's Club sandwich.  

He could not finish this and no prize for guessing right which tummy the rest went to.

Mee Mamak.  Father and son shared this.  

Both commented it was a bit too salty to their liking

Hubby's black cod fish that comes with salad and sauce.

The hubs didn't realize the dish was served in a sizzling pan.  He hates any food served sizzling! ^.^  The fish fillet tasted somewhat tasteless and it's flaky, texture wise.  We still prefer fish with firm texture.

Overall, the meal was just okay and nothing to shout about.  I don't think we will go back for their ala carte dishes but for buffet... Hmmmmm.. Yes! LOL...

Sunday Outing With My Valentine

My little valentine. :)

We went to The Big Bookshop Warehouse Sale at Subang Avenue Shopping Complex (beside Carrefour Subang) this morning.   We had this complimentary dessert coupon from TGIF on our last visit so our plan today was to dine at their Subang Parade outlet after the book sale, without hubby as he is on a working trip. 

My boy's 'Kids Eat for Free' meal ~ Chicken Fingers and fries

My order ~ Sirloin Steak (medium well) with mild mushroom sauce 

and side dishes of garlic butter broccoli & Cheddar mashed potatoes. Yumz! 

Complimentary mini desserts

We ordered a glass of refillable Iced Lemon Tea to share.  I got a pleasant surprise when the bill came and the staff congratulated me for being selected to be one of the lucky ones to enjoy a sizzling fajitas FREE on my next visit!  He then explained to me how it worked.  The friendly staff told me the free fajitas is not sample size but real plate size from the menu with beef, chicken or combo to choose from.

All I had to do was to login to their website indicated in the receipt, answer a few questions in the online survey form and when I was done, a code was generated.  This code needs to be copied onto the receipt and brought along to any Friday's outlet to claim the meal.  Ain't that great? :)

My haul from The Big Bookshop Sale.  The book sale is on now until 19 February 2012 (Sun).

Only RM1 each!

RM2 each!

There are loads of fiction novels going from RM5 each only for paperback and for hardcovers, RM10 each, I think. 

RM5 for this pocket size dictionary.  Bought this for the boy to check new vocab while on the go.  He seems to rely too much on this walking dictionary aka yours truly which sometimes gives inaccurate answers.. ^.^

RM6 each

Bought these from MPH Bookstore. 

Introducing to him the Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne.  Hope he likes them as much as he likes Geronimo Stilton

We truly enjoyed our day-out together today!  The poor boy had to do his homework until 11.30pm on a Saturday night as it was a school day at his school yesterday in replacement of the CNY long holidays.  

As I am writing this post, the boy is off to his art class. He loves going there and I guess he finds a way to de-stress through drawing.  He likes to scribble, be it some stick men,  designing 'new' gadgets and whatnots on papers after revision, probably that's also one of his ways to de-stress after sessions of 'grilling and drilling' by his 'perfectionist' mother.  My poor boy..



3D/2N Getaway To Fraser's Hill

Rawang town

We reached Rawang town around 11+am, hubby asked if we were hungry and wanted an early lunch there.  We were still quite full from our breakfast at KFC earlier so I suggested to have Hainanese western food at Nam Cheong in KKB later.  Hubby and I had tried the food there, though nothing to shout about but I was eager to let the boy try out.

We continued our journey to KKB.  As it was the 5th day of CNY, Nam Cheong was still closed so we settled for Yogi Cafe located few shoplots away.

Kuala Kubu Bharu (KKB)

Yogi Cafe

It was a cyber cafe cum food cafe.  The food there was not bad and the price was equivalent to KL's hawker stalls.  KKB  is a small and sleepy town, nothing much to see so we continued our journey after lunch.

We spotted a waterfall along the winding road to Fraser's hill and stopped for photo taking.  Contrary to me who grew up in a 'kampung' environment, my boy and the hubs are literally city kids.  I took off my sandals and soaked my feet into the cooling water with my boy followed suit.  He exclaimed the water was so cooling! :)

Fraser's Silverpark Resort

We checked-in at Fraser's Silverpark Resort around 3pm.  I got discount coupons from an online discount company at only RM58 per night for a studio unit and from the reviews I read online and honestly for the amount that I paid, I didn't put much expectation on the resort, afterall, we just need a clean and safe place for two nights' stay . 

Just a week before we left for the trip, I read from a blog about a family's horror stay at the resort which was labelled 'A hotel from hell'.  Oh, Gosh..  I tell ya, I would be lying if I told you I wasn't bothered by the remark!   It even crossed my mind to just give up on the coupons and make a fresh booking somewhere but what the heck you have to experience it to believe it, right.. I am glad I didn't as the resort turned out to be not too bad afterall!

The first impression when we set eyes on the resort was it was a bit rundown, the walls were mouldy and desperately needed a fresh coat of paint.  The hotel lobby was a bit busy as it was still CNY holidays, it took a while to check-in.  The staff at the counter was friendly and helpful she even took the trouble to give us a map and explain to us the places of attractions around Fraser's Hill when I told her this was our first time there.   I learned from some of the reviews online that we could actually ask for a better/refurbished unit and I made a mental note on that.  We were given a studio unit on the 5th floor with magnificent mountain view.

The interior of our studio unit

The furnishing was a bit dated but acceptable to my standard though hubby complained about the curtains, the one hanging above the double bed in particular, being dusty.  We had some minor problems with the water heater but the maintenance guys came in a jiffy to settle the issue.

The view from our unit

We all love the mountain view from our balcony though the sight of mouldy and paint peeling off from the walls was not so pleasant to the eyes.

We did nothing much on the first day of arrival other than having early dinner at Food Garden, a place not far away from where we stayed, which we frequented the most throughout our stay there.  It's actually a food court with mostly non-Chinese owners except one. 

The Paddock

The next morning, we went for horse riding at The Paddock.  Hubby purchased one ticket each for his boy and yours truly.  As there was only one guy working, we didn't get to ride on different horses at one go so we opted riding on the same horse together instead, more fun!  Hubby then commented that we should have purchased the adult and child ticket for a ringgit saving but what the heck.. 

Horse riding

Storme is the name of the horse that we rode on and this is where he stays when his service is not needed.  Oops.. Was he a she or she, a he? Hmmm...

Archery site

The boy wanted to try his hands on archery too but he didn't seem to have strength to pull the string hard enough so an observer he was...  as you can see from the above picture. ;) ... 

Boating at Allan's Water

We then went to Allan's Water for boating.  It seemed like the weather was on our side the whole day, bright and sunny. Yeah!

I was so in love with the colourful and many species of flowers that I just couldn't stop clicking away.

Buildings at Fraser's Hill town

And I so love the buildings there, so English feel...  I wish I had a bungalow there.  Hubby heard when I mumbled to myself, guess what he said to me ...  Yes, if you wanna stay with ghosts there, those English colonial cottages are so spooky, you know or not? (He stayed in one, hmmm... 30 years ago during his dad's company outing).. What if Michael Jackson suddenly pop out in the middle of the night and start dancing break dance??  Cheh! Scaredy Cat... I am not scared at all.. not a bit! ;)

Buildings at Fraser's Hill town

A peek of where we stay on the top left of the picture.

Puncak Inn at the bottom right.  Just right in the town centre

Biking

I rented 2 bikes from a souvenir shop beside Puncak Inn at RM10 per hour each and we had loads of fun!  It has been like more than 10 years since I rode on one..  The one at home was just too small for me, gotta go get myself one soon!  

Fraser's Hill Golf Course

Food Garden not far from where we stayed

Some of the food we had

The playground

The playground just beside the food court.  Our boy had loads of fun there.  The weather was cooling and just nice for some exercise.

After horse riding, boating and spending some time eating at Food Garden, we proceeded to Jeriau Waterfall.  It took us roughly half an hour just to get to the other end of the 8km narrow and winding road and that's not all!  We had to walk further in to get to the waterfall with muddy water though it was definitely an experience for those who hardly walk the distance!  Fei Lou, hor... nyek..nyek..

Jeriau Waterfall

Pine trees can be seen eveywhere in Fraser's Hill

Doesn't this tree branch look like a dragon tail?!!

Smoke House was our last destination after Jeriau waterfall on the 2nd day of our stay

We ordered Bangers & Mash with onion sauce (RM20) and Devonshire Tea Set for two (RM18x2) 

The tea set comes with 2 scones, a slice each of apple pie, butter cake and chocolate cake and also cream, jam and butter.

The boy posing at The Smoke House

This was the bungalow that hubby and his family stayed during a company outing 30 years ago.  It has since refurbished and converted into different types of guest rooms. 

We spoke to the marketing staff there and it looked like the place was newly refurbished and brochures were not available yet so I snapped the price list pasted on the wall for future reference.

The only chinese school in Fraser's hill.  I joked with hubby about the possibility of moving here.  The school is so small that it almost guarantees no stress when it comes to exams.. Hahaha... There is also a kebangsaan and Tamil school located not far away.  We stumbled upon the kebangsaan school when driving around looking for where the residents could possibly live. Yeap, we had so much time to dispense that we literally drove into all roads passable by cars on Fraser's Hill! Hahaha.. Back to where the residents live, looks like they live in blocks of flats built on a piece of flat land, no landed houses spotted other than bungalows and cottages and that explains how scarce and precious flat lands are on a hill like Fraser's.

Some of the bungalows there, there're a lot more such as Singapore House and all but I just took some random shots.

We checked out early on the 3rd day and it was all the way smooth traffic back to our home sweet home.

To sum up, it was overall a relaxing and enjoyable trip.  I especially love the serenity of the place. Would I want to go there again?  Absolutely YES!!  I would choose Fraser's Hill anytime to Genting Highlands!  This time, I will go for the 'spooky' bungalow as I just found out they rent their properties by individual rooms too.  I know, I know, I am weird.  Hubby commented it was boring there though with nothing much to do. Oh, well..