22 A Morning At Perdana Botanical Garden

Perdana Botanical Garden is one of my favourite spots to go for walk. It is a place that pleases the soul. There is much peace in the heart seeing well cared for flora and fauna smack in the middle of concrete-infested Kuala Lumpur.

To sit in the shade on a fine day and look upon verdure is the most perfect refreshment.

~ Jane Austen

Taman Botani Perdana, Kuala Lumpur

Parks like these are a side that balances the harshness of city life that is, over at my corner at least and more often than not, riddled with wearisome surroundings like the messiness of construction work on a new highrise or road, and the din of cars and motorbikes zooming past.

Perdana Botanical Garden Waterway

Oo ..A Topiary!

Coffee is the drug of choice for many people needing a boost of energy. Me? My fix is nature but don't be mistaken, I'm not into sporty, adventurous stuff - I just like fresh air and taking in the sights on non-treacherous grounds. Haha, no mountain climbing stuff for me!

Lovely Orchids Along The Waterway

Perdana Botanical Garden is formerly known as Lake Gardens. It was renamed in 2011 to reflect its botanical status.

The Scenic Lake at Perdana Botanical Garden
Formerly named Sydney Lake in honour of Frank Swettenham's wife

Water Fountain

On my walkabout, I saw a some really interesting trees.The one pictured below is a tree with woody brown fruits that resemble cannonballs. Although I didn't see any of it on this visit, I managed to snap its flower.

A Flower of the Cannonball Tree

The Cannonball Tree

This, funnily, is called the Sausage Tree.

The Poisonous African Sausage

The Sausage Tree

Did you know that Perdana Botanical Garden is also equipped with an open-air concert venue? I didn't until this visit! Panggung Anniversari is a neat spot for events, as you can see.

Panggung Anniversari

Water Feature in front of Panggung Anniversari

Guess what else we discovered? At the end of the route beyond the lake is a tunnel leading to the back of Muzium Negara , our National Museum. Hubs and I did not venture any further than a few metres away from the tunnel since we were really sweaty by then. We decided to walk back. 

Tunnel to Muzium Negara

You would think that my many visits to this park would have had me going 'same old, same old' but to tell you the truth I am still amazed by the place and find that there's still so much to explore.

My previous posts on this beautiful garden.

1) Kuala Lumpur : Perdana Botanical Garden's Sunken Paradise
2) Saying Goodbye To The Deer Park In Perdana Botanical Garden

20 Eats : Restoran Triple 5, Bandar Kinrara

Bandar Kinrara quickly turned into our hang-out for food after we became enamoured with the wide range of kuih offered at one of the stalls outside Restoran Triple 5. Local favourites like chicken rice, appam and home-cooked Indian food besides the usual hawker noodle offerings are also sold at the same kopitiam.

Restoran Triple 5, Bandar Kinrara

These pictures were taken from a series of visits over several weekends. It's not that I ate so much in one day, haha!

The kuih stall opens from 3.30PM onwards. I have great love for Hakka Hee Pan obviously but so far I've only ever had the plain ones. It was my first time trying those with filling - one with mung bean and the other, sweet crushed peanuts. Tasty!

It slipped my mind to snap a picture of the kuih stall which sells a good selection of baked goods and sticky cakes but I will one day, and update it here.

Top and Bottom-Left : Hakka Hee Pan
Bottom-Right : White Sugar Cake, Seri Muka Kuih, Sweet Potato Sticky Layer Cake, Fried Nian Gao

The chicken rice stall offers a variety of dishes that are familiar to many Malaysians - braised pig ears, kiam chye boey (spicy, sour mustard greens), braised duck, chicken curry, tofu and boiled egg. The stall was open from brunch 'til evening. I have no idea how early the seller starts his business since I have only ever come here nearing lunch hour.

Kiam Chye Boey, Chicken Curry, Braised Duck, Braised Pig Ears

In The Pot - Kiam Chye Boey, Braised Egg and Tofu

Indian food is sold at one corner, economy rice style. It is mouthwatering stuff. I noticed that they had appam too but upon enquiring, we found out that this is sold only in the early morning and from 5PM onwards. Lunch is about its lip-smacking rice meal. For school kids, a rice meal with one veggie and one meat is priced at RM5.50 flat under the 'student package'.

Restoran 555 Indian Food

We couldn't resist ordering a pandan waffle to try. This made a nice tea treat for us. That's what I like about this clean and airy kopitiam - they seem to open the whole day and there's always enough food to choose from! I don't have to worry about walking in for late lunch or early dinner - there's always something to eat.

Restoran 555 Pandan Waffle

Across the road, is a cendol (coconut milk, palm sugar iced dessert) food truck. We popped by to quench our thirst after a particularly hot afternoon. How satisfying it was to sit under the shade of a tree and enjoy the scenery.

Cendol

Finally, here are a couple pictures of what the places look like.

Left: Restoran Triple 5, Bandar Kinrara
Right: Cendol Food Truck

Does this restaurant name remind you of our 555 note books? I used to write my marketing list in those!

Restoran Triple 5
(Corner shoplot facing SMK Seksyen 4 Bandar Kinrara school)
Address: Jalan BK 5a/1, Bandar Kinrara 5, 47180 Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia.

17 Ipoh : Lost World Of Tambun, Theme Park Pt.2

"Welcome to Tin Valley!  " my aunt hilariously mimicked a tour guide.

Welcome to Lost World of Tambun's Tin Valley!

Tin Valley is part of the Lost World of Tambun, a theme park which I had blogged about halfway due to space constraints:  Ipoh : Lost World Of Tambun, Theme Park Pt.1 . This place takes us back to the booming era of Ipoh's tin mining industry. We were given an opportunity to try our hand at how it's done traditionally here. We had to swirl the soil with water in a dulang (round tray) until tin particles could be seen. Phew, this was not an easy task but on a brighter note, it's great arm-slimming exercise!

Panning For Tin Ore

Further down the path, we saw life-sized elephant sculptures which we could climb up to for photographs. It is said that a pet elephant named Larut played a significant role in Perak's tin mining history - the owner having discovered rich deposits of tin after finding his lost pet covered with some of it.

On The Way To Tin Valley and Adventures At
Bottom right: Needle of Tambun aka Pencil Rock

The view from this spot is stunning and the greenery is what my grandma would say, "Good for the eyes." That tall slim rock in the background is called 'Needle of Tambun ' or 'Pencil Rock '.

Needle of Tambun (View From Swan Lake)

It was already noon when we stepped into Tin Valley. Our stomachs were growling so we popped into Dulang Tea House for food. It's a beautiful kopitiam built under a rock formation of limestone hills. The ambiance is a nostalgic feel of Ipoh's past. The food listed on the menu is said to be a popular choice of tin miners back in the day.

Lost World of Tambun Dulang Tea House

Chiak hami arh, aunty?

Empty tummies do not make wise decisions. We over-ordered but was saved by the waitress who advised us that the portion would be too much for us to take on. She was right. Thank God for good people. 

Kopitiam Favourites

Half Boiled Egg

Love trying something new ..or old, in this case? This rock hard bread is called Biskut Lutut. Not advisable for anyone with false or loose teeth. I was tempted to swing this bread around like a weapon. Best enjoyed softened in coffee.

Biskut Lutut

Well, that's about it on our walkabout in the Tin Valley. It was a fun place to be and I'm missing the food already.

I'll be back with Pt. 3 to share about our adventures at the Petting Zoo. Such a long cerita (story) just for the Lost World of Tambun, right?

Sunway Lost World Of Tambun
Address: 1, Persiaran Lagun Sunway, Sunway City, 31150 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia
Telephone: +6 05-540 8888
Closed every Tuesday, except on Malaysian school and public holidays.

17 Tamarind Square And The 24-Hour Book Store

Tamarind Square is this new beautifully designed office and shopping building in Cyberjaya. It is well planned - I say this because it's built with good air flow and space naturally lit by sun rays. The ambiance is all vibes of inner peace and joy.

In this wondrous pleasing to the eye maze of a building is a 24-hr book store run by BookXcess, the first of its kind in Malaysia and a start of something that should have been done years ago. I mean, how much late night clubbing can a person do in their young life and how many mamaks can one frequent before boredom sets in?

BookXcess, Tamarind Square

I wish we had a 24-hr book store in my younger days - it would have been another place to hang out with friends and my parents would have been thrilled that it wasn't in smoky dance joints. We will, we will, rock you!

"Girl, where are you going at 11pm? "

"Book store la, Ma. Be back after I see the sunrise. Yes, yes, I brought my pepper spray. "

My parents are the great kind. We were encouraged to be independent from a young age and we were responsible for the consequences of our actions. They let us fall and pick ourselves up. We were team 'buy your own house, get your own car, pay your own bills, fund your own education degree' from the moment we hit 21. I have strayed off topic. Lol.

BookXcess Open 24-Hours

Anyway, to get to the book store, drive up the open road beside the building which leads to the uncovered parking lot. I don't recommend the indoor one. The place is still very much under construction. Ground floor parking was acceptable, two floors up was just eerie and dusty. This was the state it was in during my visit a month back.

Tamarind Square Open Carpark

Here's a look at the rest of Tamarind Square. The shoplots on the upper floor are two-storey units with a rooftop garden. It makes a very nice dining spot. Imagine having a drink al fresco with an old friend under a starlit sky in a setting of lush greenery. I was just thinking that I wouldn't mind this design for an apartment building.

Tamarind Square - Up, Down, In, Out

Upper Floor

One side of the walkway are shop units, the other side had balconies overlooking the garden. I'm not sure if this space is available for rent but I can imagine transforming the area into an open concept meeting room. No more dreary office walls, an unconventional business discussion outside, the scenery an encouragement for fresh ideas. Yeah, I'd like that - white IKEA chairs and a table large enough for coffee, cakes and contracts.

Let's Buy A Unit

This is the view below. Those glass chambers surrounded by metal netting would make neat kopitiams. I noticed a Kedai Dobi taking up one awesome unit.

Tamarind Square Is All About Keeping It Green

Tamarind Square Shoplots

Excited to come here? For now, it only makes sense if you live nearby. There are barely any shops open.

Temporarily A World Cup Event Space

View From The Entrance of Book Xcess

Tamarind Square
Address: Persiaran Multimedia, Cyber 11, 63000 Cyberjaya, Selangor, Malaysia.

14 Sundays Are For Food, Friends And Film

Food and Friends
We popped by a friend's house to drop off some art supplies for her kids - watercolour, colour pens, pencils, paintbrushes and rulers. They were my husband's, when he used to do interior design drawings manually. It's all computerised now so it makes sense to give it away.

Anyway, she made us these lovely Kuih Makmur. It's not easy to make this kuih as it can be very dry on the throat if not done properly. Well, Del did it perfectly and it was so addictive that we were stuffing ourselves on the roadside - out of the car since it was messy to eat.

Kuih Makmur

Whilst cruising around Bandar Kinrara to check out the property development progress in the area, we chanced upon a few pigeons loitering around a wide grassy divider in a quiet corner of the neighbourhood. Since we had some bird seeds with us, we parked the car, deciding to spend a little time feeding the pigeons. It was funny.

Pigeons

"Hmm, why are these humans invading our territory? " That was what I was sensing off our feathery buddies. As we threw several handful of seeds towards them, they continued watching our movements cautiously. One brave bird decided to check the 'situation' out. It took a bite and then another - soon all the pigeons flocked to the spot and it was party time!

We bought these cakes for some late-night snacking since we had our meal early.

Cakes From Berry's Cake House

I had dry pan mee for dinner. Eggs are always a welcome addition.

Dry Pan Mee

Film 
Ant-Man and The Wasp was highly entertaining. The action scenes were exciting and well choreographed, there was good flow of the story and I love, love the bits of humour thrown in. We stayed until the very end to watch the post credits too. Worth the wait? Yes and no.

There you go, another fun-filled Sunday for us. How was your weekend?

16 Ipoh : Lost World Of Tambun, Theme Park Pt.1

Sunway Lost World of Tambun is divided into several exciting parks with loads of fun things to do. For this reason, a one-night stay wasn't sufficient for us. We did two! Holidays are meant to be relaxing, right? We planned it in such a way that Day One would be spent exploring Kampar until we could check into the hotel. Then it was sightseeing nearby areas. Day Two involved a whole day and night at the theme park.

Lost World Hotel guests receive discount vouchers to the day theme park and free entrance to the night one. They also offer amazing deals throughout the year - keep a lookout for that on their social media pages! Before you go buying tickets in advance, make sure you've done your research. For entrance and rental prices, click here.

Sunway Lost World Of Tambun, Ipoh

It takes at least a whole day to experience the best the park has to offer so starting the fun as soon as it opens is the smartest way to go about it. That's 10am or 11am, by the way. The rules of the park are simple - No outside food allowed. Bring proper swim wear, or not (Malaysia mahh). Once you go in, you don't leave until you're done because re-entry means purchasing another ticket.

After a full buffet breakfast, we made our way to the theme park carrying a backpack of slippers, swimming essentials and anything we thought was important to protect us from the sun. Our bags were checked for food upon entry. All clear!

The first thing we did was get a group photo for memories. The park assistant helped us snap one on our camera for free. He also snapped one of us on his but whether we purchased that at the end of the day was up to us completely - no pressure, no pressure.

The next thing we did was head for the amusement rides as there was no queue yet. We hopped on this pirate ship that swings back and forth, 180 degrees. When you get on this one, you go, "WooooOoo" as it swooshes down.

Stormrider Pirate Ship

This is a mini roller coaster, Perak's first. It's pretty cool and goes through a small tunnel. Not very scary but it is fun to scream so we let out a mega, "AaahhHHHh!!!". I must tell you that we're only brave and showy with the little rides. Anything more extreme and you'll find tears running down our faces and us walking in a zigzag manner after the ride. Lol, the shame.

Perak's First Roller Coaster

Then, there's the carnival games where you can win soft toys and the heart of your girlfriend. Our men came back empty handed. My aunt and I were determined to beat the system.

"This one guarantee can win? " No harm asking, right?

"Oh, yes! "  Confirmed the booth assistant to my surprise, but my aunt wasn't convinced and opted for throwing balls into a bin which looked easy seeing how close it was to us. We lost at first throw and that was that. It was back to the guarantee-win stall after that, a matter of scooping up ducks and collecting enough points for a prize! In short and poor us, we beat the system at a price. You know the saying, "Don't ask, don't know".

The guys? They were impressed alright. Had they known ...

Carnival Games At Lost World Of Tambun

Argh! We didn't have time for a ride on the Adventure Express.

The Adventure Express

There were so many places to explore from the Tin Valley to the Petting Zoo. Our last stop was the water park for a swim before it closes for the next day.

Lost World Water Park

Kids Explorabay

As you can see, there is no way I can fit everything into one post so I am going with several. Be back with Part 2 soon.

Sunway Lost World Of Tambun
Address: 1, Persiaran Lagun Sunway, Sunway City, 31150 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia
Telephone: +6 05-540 8888
Closed every Tuesday, except on Malaysian school and public holidays.