Yet, another chapter closed

Wow, I have so much to write, I don't know where to start! I usually try to stray away from being too personal in my blog, but i'll make an exception for today, kay?



Four months ago, I embark into what I call a "new adventure". I chose to do my internship in Penang, a city I have visited endless times but never once based at. A lot of people question my decision as to why I would want to be away from home just for an attachment. My answer is simple. I want obstacles! Doing it at home just make me less independent - a trait I forbid myself to instill.



I've grown to love Penang so much (as I always had) that packing everything and come back home was a little bitter. It wasn't the initial plan but after having seen so much drama during my internship, I decided I wasn't ready to work just yet. All I need is a break, and some time to think through what's in store for me in the future.



The first week of my homecoming totally flew by. It felt like it was yesterday I was counting hours (was hundreds of hours then!) till I am back and next thing I know, I was already waving goodbye to Ben from KFC in the airport and him walking to the terminal.



It's already been ten days since I'm back and only today I felt like I am starting to regain my consciousness and ..stepping on the ground.

I still have a very important assignment to rush, and i'm still trying to find the mood to do it!



p/s : Thanks for the e-mails and comments complimenting the blog! Appreciate it much and do keep it coming! I'll be back once I finish my practical report! :D

Transition

Sorry for the lack of updates ( and improper updates!). Been very busy preparing for my internship, moving to a new place and all.



I arrived Penang two days ago and had finally settled down with all the necessities. Haven't buy the pots and pans to cook though. ;p




Never thought I would say this, but i'm kinda lonely here. Lol. Well, well, true they say the grass is greener in the west. But the sky is blue-er in the east. And blue skies make me happy!



I miss homeeee. Grr.

Honey, I'm home

After spending most of my time sleeping for the past three days, I am back to update the blog! I have to be really honest though, I am still numb for the fact that I have finished uni (literally lah.)



Since I was to bring back my three years worth of junk , i was presented with the horror of having an excess baggage of 11kg! (That is even after me throwing boxes and boxes of things that still function perfectly!) It's an obvious decision that for a poor student like me, I chose not to pay for it. The nice MAS lady asked me to check in my initial hand luggage (it'll still be over by 3kg, but she said she'll give me grace for it) but since I didn't scan it, and the queue was so long , I decided not to.



I used to do weights so I didn't actually think the 14 kg hand luggage was unbearable. It was initially 18 kg - I had a 4kg dumbell confiscated by the customs. hmph! The real horror was when I was in the plane. I could barely walk in the plane with two heavy luggage! I was slowing the traffic and people were irritated by me! I know there are some travelers who travel with multiple luggage on board - but I don't do that. I am used to travel light so I really thought that was a bad experience and made up my mind that by all means, I am checking in my luggage when I touch down in KL.



and guess what, with a little sweet talk aka ass-kissing, I manage to check in all my luggages without paying for the excess baggage fee. Tee hee! :D



It's really, really good to be back home. :)

A chapter is closed

"All my begs are packed, I'm ready to go... " John Denver's Leaving on a Jet Plane.


After spending three years up north, I'm leaving the place for good. Yes, i won't deny there is a tad of bitterness. Not that I like the place, but more like I have accustomed to the place and the people.



I'm still feeling a little numb of the whole i've pre-graduated thing. (still got four months internship!). But ah, it's all good, good, good.

Proper post when i get back home. I need to pack!

p/s : I need a place to stay in Penang for five months beginning June 2010. If you have any friends/relatives/boyfriend/mistress(es) that has a room in Sungai Dua, can you please e-mail me? Otherwise I will be homeless in June 2010 :(

Penang Food Trail

I just got back from Penang yesterday evening! It was a good food trail, and boy was my stomach satisfied!

A sneak peak of my two days noms noms adventure! Reviews will take a while to be posted. Too many old back logs to clear!

Lorong Selamat Char Kueh Tiau


Been to Penang a gazillion times and finally found out how to go to the place.

Kek Seng Durian Ice Cream Ice Kacang


Had a hard time finding the place on the first day (never trust Google Maps!) but came upon it by accident the next day. Hehe.

New World Park Ice Kacang


Just beside where I was staying and pretty much made my friends had an overdose of Ice Kacang. Lol.

New Lane Night Market


Ordered too much that our table look like a buffet spread! :D

Famous Chicken Rice in Penang Road


On peak hours, you need to wait almost an hour for it! But I went on weekdays, at brunch hours so not much waiting. :P

Lebuh Anson's Dim Sum


If you want reasonable priced dim sum, this is the place to go. Opens from early morning till noon.

Loh Bak


We had it in numerous places and by the third day, we were quite sick of it. hahah.

Old Town Breakfast set


Also just next to the place I was staying. Needed a place to kill time while waiting to meet up with my friend.

And then there's leisure in the room! (100% clean leisure *cough*) It was movies , chips and some drinks.



Next day, we ordered Dominoes! :D



The puff pastry pizza isn't so great. Conventional is ze best!

And lastly, revising with beers.



Kidding, kidding. This didn't happen.

The bed was too comfortable so on both nights, I ended up falling asleep even before the movie ended. :)



Had heaps of fun! I'm now rejuvenated but...I am suffering from post-holiday syndrome. T.T

p/s : I will be based in Penang beginning June 2010. I'm looking for an accomodation so if you have any room to rent, please e-mail me at melanieong@gmail.com. Preferably a place in Sg. Pinang or any where nearby Komtar. Would be great if you have pictures (of the place, not the landlord. Lol) attached. Thanks!

Leaving on a jetplane

Good times has to end they say. and more often than not, they seem to end quicker.



I'm in KLIA now (Cafe Marche to be precise), waiting to board my next flight.



The sky was gloomy early this morning. Exactly how i feel now. :(

Sarawak Laksa and Kek Lapis

I went back to Kuching last month , and within less than a month I flew back once again for the Raya holidays! Tickets were so expensive but I am rich, who cares? Ok fine, I cheated. :( I am staying over at my friend's place in Penang for the Raya break! I've been here since Friday noon, and will be back to my hostel tomorrow.



Cooking Sarawak Laksa was part of the intinerary but we only manage to cook it on Monday since the rest of the days were spend with us going to work out in... the shopping mall! ;p

No photos of the cooking process tho' because I wasn't confident if it will turn out to be the way it should be or otherwise.;p



Thankfully, the final product was good and almost similar to the one they sell in the shops. Of course, it wasn't the best Sarawak Laksa I've eaten but considering this is my first time cooking Sarawak Laksa, I think I did quite a fantastic job!


It would have been perfect if we have corriander leaves :P

And what's more, we even have Kek Lapis! Flown all the way from Kuching. Ahh!



Anyway, Selamat Hari Raya! Hope you guys had a great long weekend. :)

A quick update!

Sorry for not updating! I flew back to the jungle (my uni that is) yesterday, only to be shocked when I found out I was changed to another room. Appealed in the office this morning and got my old room back.



The weather is so hot and i've been sweating like a pig. Gulp a few bottles of Gatorade Tiger - One of the best thirst quencher.

On another note, I really miss home now even tho' i've been here for barely two days. =(

Ah. gotta go sleep now. My body is aching so badly from the heavy boxes and two 25 kg luggage. I need a massage. Male masseur please. Anyone? ;p

Food post will resume soon-ish!

TuneHotels.com Downtown Penang Review

TuneHotels.com is a brainchild of the Air Asia Group. They recently opened one in Penang, 1st of April to be precise. It works very much like Air Asia. The price fluctuates over time and if lady luck is on your side, you get the room as cheap as RM 20 inclusive of air conditioned, service tax and what not.



I booked mine prior a month to my stay and got what I deemed as reasonable price. It was only RM 56.23 inclusive of a 12 hour air conditioned credit. That's bloody cheap for a clean hotel room.



The reception area is on the second floor of the building and is very spacious. Receptionist had great customer service albeit a little lack in professionalism. I had a quick chat with one of the receptionist and she told me that the hotel is full occupied every day. Now, that's impressive considering the fact that when I was there, the hotel was only 10-day old.



Instead of the usual classy lounge you get in a 5 star hotel, they have a simple set of regular quadraliteral green and red colored couch in their lobby.



There are also four desktop computers equipped with Internet for you to use for free. Wi-fi in the room is accesible upon purchase of RM 12. In TuneHotels.com, nothing is free ;p



Unlike the usual private coffee house that most hotels have, they vendored out the space to a private proprietor. I didn't have the time to try but I did walk over to have a look at the price. It ranges from RM 5- RM 8. Very reasonable, I would say.



Having my mind set that this is a budget hotel, I foolishly asked the receptionist if there is a elevator in the building. She was quite puzzled with my question because the elevator is right behind me. Hehe.



There are no toiletries provided in the hotel but there is a convienient store that sells all the basics including wide array of magazines (international mostly), and second hand novels. It is not open 24 hours but you need not worry since 7-eleven is just below the hotel. I don't know if they had an agreement with TuneHotels.com but the 7-eleven seems to be selling things cheaper than any other 7-eleven. Funny thing was, this 7-eleven sells no condom but had pregnancy test on sale. Hehe.



They seem to have a hawaiian theme going on in every of their hotels. I thought it was a nice change from the usual dull-uno colored walls in other hotels.



I was quite amazed at how advance the technology is - considering again, it's a budget hotel. You place your room card in the small slot about a step from the door, and there's a small screen that indicates how much time left for the things you had add on.



Advertisement starts the moment you enter the room right to the toilet. A brilliant idea i thought. In case you're wondering the location, it is located in a prime spot in Georgetown. Next to New World Park, that is.



Spacious is the last word I would use to describe the room. However, since I was in a company of a friend, the room was just nice for us.



Credits go to the bed though. They weren't kidding when they promised a comfortable bed. I really had a good sleep. Sheets were really clean too. No stains spotted. ;p



However, if you're a feng shui afficionado, then this is not a hotel for you. Out of the two single beds in the room, one were located in front of the toilet and the other facing the door. And if you notice, they have level 4-also the level I was staying, which is a rare sight in Malaysia.



One of the things they raved about is the power shower. The shower heads were really huge and powerful and that makes your bath really refreshing. They also had glass door as opposed to the normal wooden door. It can be an eye candy if you're staying with the opposite sex but since i'm staying with a girl and I'm only interested in men, no eye candy for me.



The safe box in the room was the most user-friendly safe box I ever come accrossed. It was really easy to use.



My trip was for pure leisure. I thought i deserve a break before the finals. I have made my trip a no-shopping trip and spend most of my time in the hotel watching movie while munching on snacks and some food we brought.



They had a huge mirror on the wall that could be a paradise for cam whorers. I believe it is a way of making the room looks more spacious if we were to speak on architectural term.



A lot of things amused me during my short stay. For instance, these stainless steel waste bins. One question though, who actually throw metal in a hotel? Unless of course, some couple in the hotel is having their SM moments. ;p



I only stayed for a night and had to dread myself up from the bed the next morning to check out. After i finish a speedy (it only took me 3 minutes!) check out , they asked me to fill in the questionaire. The last question was, "Will you come again for another stay?"

My answer was, " Yes, definitely. Very soon."