Green Mug Coffee @ ASquare, Kota Kinabalu

Have you ever heard of Green Mug in KK?!

Yes? No? Anyone? Anyway, this brand has been in the market for quite some time and it was one of the pioneer to bring this cheesy layered drink to KK. It has its static coffee shops and it also has the on-the-go stall which moves around KK all the time. But the static ones are at Jalan Gaya (next to Tempurung) and ASquare @ The Containers! If you so happen to drop by at this stall, remember to try this out! CHEESE KOPI O KAWWWWWW............... Though price is slightly above average, the quality and uniqueness are there.

You can never miss this at the counter and find it hard to resist! 

Himbaan Homestay @ Kg Himbaan, Bundu Tuhan

Taking a trip out of the busy city KK is always a YES for me especially going to places which I can get a closer view of the great Mt Kinabalu! As for this time, my friend who is leaving KK soon picked a very nice place in Bundu Tuhan, which is Himbaan Homestay in Kg Himbaan. You may Google this place but the road to this place is bad and you definitely need a heavy duty car to reach here. 

Just something a bit about Bundu Tuhan before I move on. It's just a small town which is not far from Kundasang. It has many small "kampungs" within and most parts of this place can have a nice view of the great mountain. Weather is still cooling and going through the whole Bundu Tuhan road will eventually lead you to Ranau!

And as for this Himbaan Homestay, it is located just slightly below Hounon Ridge Farmstay but Himbaan is a more nature-like place! You may choose to stay in a nice properly built house or you can opt for the tents. Picking the tents (~ RM 90 for a tent for 2 person) is not a bad option because it is well-equipped with mattress, pillows and blankets. Besides, it has a very well-equipped kitchen as well and both sharing-toilets are fixed with heather! Damn.. This is the most luxurious camp that I have ever been to, seriously! And last but not least, it has a Husky which is super friendly and like to run around without irritating your stay there!

Stopped by at a Sinalau Bakas (smoked wild boar) stall while on the way to Bundu Tuhan!

Working Trip to Kuching, Sarawak

Kuching is the capital city of Sarawak and it's also a state with is rich in culture (like Sabah) and definitely food as well. I have been to Kuching once but it was almost 13 years ago and I believe that many things have changed from the time I stepped out from the airport, to highways, roundabouts etc. Though I don't have much time to walk around for this trip as my hospital just send me here for 2 days for a course but at least I managed to cover a bit! =)

** Just a random blog about Kuching!

Sarawak Museum. Located right in the city center. Easily accessible. To learn about the culture and beginning of Sarawak. No entrance fee.

Japan Trip (3-14 March 2017) Part 1 Tokyo

Sorry guys to get this done late because I really really have a lot of editing for all the pictures for my Japan trip back in March. Besides, I need to clear up the pictures from the camera for Susan's trip to Perth! Phew.. Anyway, I have done everything and it's time to start for my whole 12 days trip in Japan.

To travel from KK to KL then to Osaka then to Tokyo really wasted a lot of our time for travelling and we took almost a day just to travel. We were quite regretted that we bought our ticket without a proper planning though there is a direct flight from KK to Tokyo! Anyway, it was all over. 

So, let's start!

When we arrived at Osaka airport, we traveled to Terminal 2 for a budget airline Peach Air to travel to Tokyo (travelling time was about 10-15 minutes). One thing great was that there was a free shutter service to travel between these 2 terminals. If you don't know how, just approach the information counter because they were super friendly and ready to help you always!

Osaka Kansai Airport, Terminal 1

Welcome to the part of the world with lots of vending machine!

Susan's friends without me =) While travelling to Terminal 2

Terminal 2, quite an empty airport and they were really strict on the luggage rules!

If I were to compare between Peach Air and Airasia, Airasia is definitely much much better! Upon arriving at Tokyo Narita Airport, we went and bought our Keisei Skyliner ticket to travel to Tokyo! Just some reminder, get ready with some big cash as the travelling to Tokyo was quite expensive (~ >20000 Yen). 

You can never believe that how clean was the glass panel!

Tokyo Narita Airport! It was quite a small airport and attached to a shopping mall.

Train tickets to Tokyo!

First meal in Japan, burger at McD! Sorry to say that it's non halal.. Though they have quite a limited varieties on the menu but it was worth to try and some of them were not in the Malaysia's McD menu..

Time to hop on the train and sleeppppppp... zzzzzzz

Arrived at Shinjuku station at late noon and time to check in at AirBnB..

Very convenient place to stay. Very near to Shinjuku main station but price was a bit expensive. It was about RM 90 per person per night (total 6 pax)

Complete sleeping area for 6 pax in a very compact space. We can hardly have empty space to open our luggage bags! =)

Basically, day 1 was just for travelling, check-in, dinner and walking around near by places.

First dinner.. Ramen with thick broth at Shinjuku (average price was about 750-950 Yen) For me, it was a bit too salty!

Vending machine for you to buy food coupons!

Fu-unji Ramen Restaurant, Shinjuku.. Place where you can find thick broth or dipping style ramen!

While walking back to our rest place in a very cold weather...

To be continued...

Chopping Block @ Lorong Dewan, Kota Kinabalu

Looking for a new place to hang out? You can find it here at Chopping Block! They are located at the same row with Nook and Gong Cha. They are opened for business from lunch till  tea time to dinner, so it's hard to say that you can't find time to try there. =) As for the menu, they serve mainly Western food e.g. grills, burgers and pastas and the price is a bit expensive as compared to Upperstar but quality wise is definitely better! A very good place to celebrate some special occasions. Quite similar to many other restaurants in the city center, they serve no pork but they do serve alcoholic beverages. So, do drop by and try out their food! =)

Chicken Parmigiana (RM 26).. Everything was good, just wish that there is more cheese.. =P 

Seafood Linguine (RM 26).. Portion is huge and with a lot of squids and shrimps.. I can sense that the others would be as good as these 2!

Total cost for 2 mains with a glass of ice water is about RM 60. I will definitely be back for some other stuff on the menu! =) Just a big problem around that area is that it's hard to find parking! 

Enjoy and have a nice day. =)

Bukit Botak @ Sepanggar (back dated 2 July 2016)

Many friends have been calling me to go and hike at Bukit Botak, Sepanggar but I always do not have the chance to do so. And finally the day has arrived! Ta-daa.. =)

To find the starting point for this place is never easy unless you really have someone to guide you all the way. Even if you have arrived at this place, you would never know where is the exact starting point to hike up as it looks like a construction site rather than a hill to hike. Not even a signage to show you how to go up the hill, so make sure that you bring along a friend who knows the place well or else it will be a wasteful trip for you. And another advice is that never go in a small group but to go in a big group (8-10 people) as there is no one there and danger can be everywhere!

The total distance from the starting point to the peak is less than 1.5 km which will take you about 30-45 minutes or even lesser if you have good stamina. The route is not really a good one especially at the starting point as it requires a bit of climbing. The remaining of the route is just up and down. Bring a touch if you are hiking to watch sunrise and a mosquito repellent if you are staying up there for a long time.

Direction to Bukit Botak; You can park at near the end of the blocked road and walk towards the starting point

Nice lighting view at the town below before sunrise 

We are almost there! It seems that the bushes cleared a lot as compared to half a year ago..

Malaysia flag at the peak of the hill.. 

View of Sepanggar Port from the peak of the hill.. 

 A group of 5 girls and me as the only guy.. Quite risky to go up in a small group! =p

 Mt Kinabalu spotted from Bukit Botak.. Not a good day for sun rise as the sky was too cloudy.. =(

Time to go back down for breakfast! =) Mission accomplished. 

On the way down from the peak of the hill.. 

"Road not taken..." 

Some camera effect testing while on the way down..

 Spooky forest if you are to walk alone..

No proper route, so be prepared..

"One for the road!!!!!!"  You will never realise this steep is the hill when the sky is pitched black..

Between the 2 zones.. Between the rockie and the forest.. 

Jumping post for all the "young generation"

 The new road by the hill.. It is better if you can find the way in!

Time to say good bye!

Enjoy and have a nice day =)

Mengkabung bridge and Bukit Tirig Hike @ Telipok, Sabah (back dated on 5 March 2016)

When you talk about sun rise and sunset in Sabah, there are plenty of places for you to witness them with super natural beauty of the mountains and sea which you can't find it in KL which has a lot of tall high-rise buildings. And one of the place that I would like to introduce is Mengkabung Bridge at Telipok. This place is about 40 minutes drive towards the north from the city center provided that there is no traffic congestion. If you are using Waze or Google Map, search for Jalan Sulaiman (located along the straight road from Jalan Norowot). One thing very nice about this place is that the sun rise will come from different angles from Mt Kinabalu at different part of the year! So make sure that you find out the time for sun rise before you start your journey. =)

Time is roughly past 6 am. The sun is still hidden behind the Mt Kinabalu =)

The moon is hanging beautifully high up in the sky! It remains me the time when I was at peak of Mt Kinabalu watching the sun and moon at the same level.

We are standing exactly at the middle of the bridge because that's the nicest spot to see sun rise!

Mengkabung bridge at Jalan Sulaiman

Still waiting for the sun rise =)

Mengkabung Bridge from the bottom.

The sun is not "shy" anymore and coming out from Mt Kinabalu.

The beauty of sun rise! Just wish that the sky should be clearer.

After spending an hour at Mengkabung bridge for sun rise, we moved on to a nearby village (about 10 minutes drive), Kg Lapasan to hike Bukit Tirig. According to the locals, there are 2 ways of going to the starting point but the easiest one is definitely via the church named St. Flora and this point has more place to park your car. If you lost some where in the village, ask the villagers and they are very willingly to guide you all the way there! =) The trail is slightly less than 1 km from the starting point and it is a good way to start for those who have no stamina. If you plan to watch sunset, remember to bring your torchlight along.

Since the small hill is also used for the Way of the Cross for the nearby Catholic church (St. Flora), so you are expected to see crosses all the way up!

The last station for the Way of the Cross, means the beginning of the jungle trekking.

And we are almost there!

View from the peak! Try to spot Mengkabung Bridge!

View at the other side. And one thing, please wear long pants as you need to walk through the bushes.

Everyone made it!

Never miss a group picture! =)

Post #1 among the bushes

Post #2 among the bushes

One random shot before everyone heads down for breakfast! =)

Moving down..

(Back track of the trail) Before entering the jungle part.

(Back track of the trail) The trail has no steps so it would be a bit slippery and the trail is a bit narrow.

(Back track of the trail) The beginning of the trail. It is all sand only.

(Back track of the trail) The beginning of the trail.

(Back track of the trail) The pond at the starting point.

The place to park your car at the starting point. No many spots so it's your luck whether you get it or not!

And this is the church that I mentioned. Once you spotted this board means that you are almost there.

Enjoy and have a nice day. =)