One August day, Bb and I found ourselves with a pair of RM100 Holiday Cards, compliments of Genting Resorts World which is valid up to the end of August. The holiday cards themselves can be purchased at Genting at a discount and comes with face values of RM100 and RM300, which you can buy for around RM85 and RM255 respectively online. You can use it like cash in most restaurants and many more places in Genting.
We left Sunway at 10am and here is where our string of unfortunate events unfolded.
For the love of the environment and the dread of driving, we decided to use the buses to Genting.
Mistake No. 1 - Took KTM
I'm usually disinclined to show more feelings than necessary but here is what I feel about Kereta Api Tanah Melayu Berhad: Fuck them. FULL STOP.
Avoid the KTM Komuter at all costs during the balik kampung seasons at all times because it will be filled to the brim with illegal immigrants, all 2 million of them... What about the ladies coach?? I was shoved in the coach with the rest of human tuna fish.
After the sweaty ride to KL Sentral, we made our way to the bus stop..
Mistake No. 2 - Wanting to take the Bus up Genting.
It seems that Genting Resorts did not provide backup buses during the Hari Raya/Merdeka holidays... What about the people who wanna go gamble?? Arrgghh! When we arrived there at 11am, we were told that the buses were full till 3pm!!
Mistake No.3 - Left my car next to the KTM station!
Crap! So in that case, it was time to get back to plan B, take the LRT back to Kelana Jaya and get my bro to drive back to Subang Jaya to get my car :(
By the time we got the car back, we were back at home just to start our journey at 1pm! Thats 3 frigging hours because we made the mistake of trusting public transport!
So, it was back to driving...
Mistake No. 4 - Heading towards kampungs during Raya.
Note the massive amount of cars (75% percent of them heading back to kampungs towards Kuantan).
It was utterly difficult to avoid tolls yet traffic towards Kuantan was at a crawl! When we reached Genting, traffic eased a little until we reached another stumbling block.
Mistake No. 5 - Making mistakes 1 to 4 to arrive at almost 3pm!
That means parking is a total nightmare.
Time to drive to Genting: 1 hour 30 mins.
Time to find parking: 30 mins.
Yes, the whole resort was a total parking lot with cars parked at every nook and cranny. We almost gave up and Bb and I were on the brink of arguement because we made mistake No. 6...
Mistake No. 6 - No food in the car.
Oh yes, after missing our bus and not having anything to eat 6 hours after breakfast, we were hungry, impatient and disgruntled and the endless labyrinth of P5 carpark was killing our patience.
We drove to a dead end and Bb frowned at me with a pissed voice, "So, what do we do now?!" At that point, I snapped and said, I'll drive and got out of the passenger seat (Bb was driving). What was I to do? So I got out and saw a hint of a parking lot just behind us. Was it a mirage caused by those pesky Kancils that make you think that you found a spot? It was not! I was almost in tears as I jumped for joy! Finally!
...and after some free appetizers at the Bakery, I was content! Two donuts: RM 9 @ the Bakery
By now, the inside of the resort was stuffy and so we decided to get some fresh air outside!
Mistake No. 7 - What fresh air?
Unlike an ordinary day, the whole hill was filled with cars and their exhaust gases. The surrounding temperature was not as cold and even with our outfits,
I feel we were over dressed as it was frigging warm up there! So keep your jackets for the night!
Okay, time to find some lunch.
The resort itself was like a maze, we had to look at signs and find our way to someplace I was searching for...
Past all the people...insanely a lot of them...
and the buildings... which were either too dull or too colourful...
we managed to reach the entrace of the Casino. We were looking for the New Orleans Barbecue, which was located INSIDE the casino. No cameras allowed from here and we only had our mobile phones with us. Keep your belongings with security.
Mistake No. 8 - Not bringing gas masks into the Casino Old Folks Home.
The place was a smoke house! Any longer in there and I would have the texture of smoked bacon or salmon. The other thing I noticed was the average age of the people in the casino, way past retirement! What a good senior home Genting makes, free drinks, toilets, accomodation, and entertainment. Also sharpens the mind mathematically!
A group of grandmother of gamblers next to our table. Who knows, they might have Ferraris and a taste for young guys. Anyway, we were ushered to our table and ordered the Sirloin steak...
and I had the Fish and Chips!
For its location and the view of the highlands, I would say that the price is really affordable plus freeflow salad bar and drinks (Plain water and drinks from the casino), though the portions might be a lil small.
Despite the small portions, we were happy. Now with our tummies filled, it was about RM70 for the meal, and we still got a lil more to spend! So off we went to just get some shots... Time to get out of the casino old folks home.
Smile people!
Yeap, the arcade has many nice things to get your picture taken with!
Optimus Prime!
Genting Man!
Okay, next stop was the Snowworld, a giant freezer where the temperature drops to -7 degrees celcius. For those who are wondering, it is frigging cold!
No camera's allowed either, so keep them in your pockets! As for your stuff, they provide lockers at RM1. Here, they will also provide you with Shoes, Jackets, and Gloves. Only thing you shud worry about is your ears! Get a balaclava or ear muffs cause your ears WILL go numb!
Once you are done dressing up, you enter the freezer doors and into a snowy place! It has a wooden cabin, ice scluptures, huge chillers and an indoor slide with those plastic donuts! Along with some fake snow and children slides, you can chill out there for around 45 minutes (if you have the balls).
Hahaha, so I jumped ship and had enough of the ice after around 20 minutes. Time to get out.
At the exit, the will reward you with a tub of vanilla ice-cream each!
Weeee! We just spent RM20 each (More expensive for non MyKad holders).
Next up, it was to the arcade! Always wanted to go play there and get those gifts!
Mistake No. 8 - Playing at the Arcade During Holidays!
Yes, don't do it! Firstly, you will have to queue up to buy a touch card... something like a credit card which you used instead of tokens. WAIT...
So many people and so crowded! Fine, after paying RM15 (RM10 credit and RM5 deposit) for the eZ card, we went to play some games there. OMFG! One game, RM4! RM3!... Thats like 3 games max.
Boo.. still, that was not the worst part! Like noobs, we swiped the card on the scanner... Nothing happend.. Swiped again... nothing happened... Balance remaining RM4!!!! FUCK!!! We just got conned of our credit...
So off we went to the service counter where a fat technician will help you out... WAIT...So fine, he got the machine to start... but only ONE game! Fine, keep our cool, and went to reload another RM10.. WAIT....
Okay, at least we still managed to play some games along the way. In total we got around 83 tickets, nothing compared to the thousands the regulars bring in... So I took it to the counter and the attendent at the counter said I needed to go to the machine to count 83 tickets... I can understand counting a thousand... but 83?
Fine fine, go to the ticket counter machine... the people in front had bags of tickets!! This guy had over 2000 tickets! so... WAIT....
I was not alone... if you wanna count your tickets... WAIT!!!!
Bb went to claim the deposit for the eZ card which was the same counter (manned by one woman) for reloading (Where are the machines!!??). WAIT WAIT WAIT... that is what you can expect!
Anyway, we spent RM20 and almost 2 hours to get 83 points to change it for this! A plastic keychain! IMHO, those people with thousands of tickets must be frigging loaded!
Anyway, me no likey! It was already way past sunset and we still had a little credit left in our pockets and batteries in our cameras. So out went for some air!
We decided to take away some sandwiches from the Bakery @ Genting. Was like a subway and will set you back RM17.50 per sandwich.
A bottle of Esprit raspberry soda, RM9.90..
and a chocolate mousse cake that looks more like a piece of art, RM4.80! for my bro back home...
Wow, what a wonderful night it was! I sloppily got out of bed and I realized something was different... I wasn't in my room... I was in Genting First World Hotel! Oh Yeah... Day 3 of MSS starts now!Wasting no time, i got up and got ready. A long day lies ahead as you can see in this video!
Breakfast at First World Lounge
Breakfast was at the tallest point in Genting. Situated on the 28th floor, the view was second best in the resort highland. The best view is coming up soon!
I decided to see what the Pentax X70 can do and I was in awe.
The First World Lounge is only one of the many places to eat in the world's largest hotel. There is one restaurant on the 8th floor of tower 2 and the big terrace on the 3rd floor. Breakfast was delicious in the private lounge! Eastern and oriental quisines were lined up in a buffet!
Word of caution: do not eat too much before you descend Genting or you will lose your breakfast faster than you ate it! After breakfast, it was down to the lobby and off we go with Mr Phillip and Ms Amelia sending us off. We even managed a group picture! Smile all you fresh faces!
Bon voyage to Genting Resorts! Really had a bomb there!
Pray for Fortune @ Chin Swee Temple
Only a few minutes into our journey down the peak, my eyes caught sight of our next destination. The best view at Genting is supposedly here:
Down the hill was the majestic Chin Swee Temple where Lim Goh Tong had has vision years ago. Our bus parked by the grand archway that welcomes you in.
The story goes:
One day while Goh Tong was up in Genting, there was a storm. As a contractor developing the roads up, he and his crew seek shelter in a cave nearby. That night, he a a dream of Chin Swee, a diety from China. In his vision, he was told to develop the area and it would prosper.
Following his vision he developed genting and made his success there. As a tribute, he built the Chin Swee temple at the very spot he had the dream. Construction took 18 years because of the rocky nature of the area, where most of the temple was built without heavy machinery. To date, the temple has hotels or anyone looking for a more spiritual visit to the highlands and is a popular place for people to garner luck from above.
Lets see, if you did not know, this is a Buddhist Temple, and for any proper temple, it must have 3 things,
1. A pagoda
2. A statue of Buddha
3. A Bhodi Tree (The tree that Buddha meditated under)
Hmmm.. did not have time to find it... but it would be interesting to see such a tree grow here. Do tell!
We did have some time to pose around though:
Our visit there was too short indeed. In a matter of minutes, we were in and out of the temple. However, we were lucky that the view from there was unobstructed by the thick clouds. Must go again!
For more information contact:
Amelia Anne Martin
Executive
Public Relations and Communications
Genting Malaysia Berhad
amelia.martin@rwgenting.com
+603 6105 9427
Today, We will be having a more rural experience. We will be heading north west to the shores of Sabah Bernam close to the border of Perak. But first, we took a short visit to the forest!
Kanching Forest Reserve
Welcome to Kanching Forest Reserve. This park, run by Tourism Selangor, has several hiking trails that overlooks the scenic waterfalls.
Good to be one with nature! Here, the top 30 bloggers took a 10 minute hike up the trail and we immediately recognised the sound of water churning. Just 500m from the carpark, we have reached the base of the waterfalls.
Here, some of the bloggers prefer taking photos while others prefer just enjoying the ambience.
Indeed, it was a scenic route that invites you to hone your nature photography skills. A good time to try out the Pentax X70
Luckily no one was skinny dipping. All kinds of flora and fauna still exist in the pristine forest, albeit the occassional pieces of litter.
Indeed, Kanching would be a great place to enjoy the cooling waterfall breeze or to dip in after a good hike up the soring waterfalls. It's tall, trust me. After being one with nature, we adjurned to the riverside for lunch. Under the cloudy sky, we enjoyed out lunch with a little bit of sunlight. It was quite stuffy and if there is any thing that could be done, I would recommend having better facilities for people who actually visit the place. Toilets and canteens included!
One very stark problem was the amount of rubbish around and I discovered why after we disposed of our stuff in the bins provided:
They are many and they are hungry! These monkeys have turned scavengers and were behind the mess in the reserve. The bins should be removed and signs reading "Take your rubbish home" should be in place. That way, the monkeys would not scavange for leftovers and return to the wild whilst keeping the reserve clean.
Time was short and we moved on to our next destination as an afternoon drizzle followed us to the waiting bus.
For more information on Kanching, contact:
Tourism Selangor Sdn Bhd
Address:
Lot P7, Jalan Indah 14/12
Section 14
Shah Alam
Selangor
40000
Malaysia
Driving two hours, the 30 bloggers became witness to the changing of settings. The cityscape transformed plantations to forest and eventually we ended up in the middle of a paddy field! As reached, I could already see a welcoming party for us! We have been expected and we were treated to a selection of traditional kuih-muih and some coconut juice! Yummy!
After that, there was a traditional performance - the Kuda Kepang - means horse dance - which was performed by the youths of the village.
Man you should have heard the whip snap! Scary!
Our bloggers even joined in the fun and went to learn how to do it! In my opinion, the reception was great! The only thing that was amiss was the performance after the kuda kepang. It feature four guys behind scary masks and two more in a makeshift tiger suit. I feel that the impression less than pleasing and one should do your best in a performance. Recommended reviewing the tiger thing!
Anyway, we were grouped and assigned to our foster family for the night! Abang Ben, a lecturer at University Teknologi Petronas, and I were assigned
to En Azizan, a retired police officer:
The crowd disbanded and I was heading to my home for the night!
Was more modern than I expected but oh well! The inside looks surprisingly cozy. The wooden floors were lined with rugs and the windows were softened by curtains shielding the afternoon light.
If you did not know, kampung houses are built raised. This allows any flood waters to pass under and it also acts as a natural air conditioner for the house by keeping a reserve of cool air below!
Seeing me interested in photography, En Azizan suggested that we go for sunset at the beach! Why not! It was a 10 minute bike ride from here to the beach!
At the end was the jetty which fishermen would sail from. There were also chalets at the edge of the water. The sun was fast setting as I got one of the best shots of the trip.
Heading back, I thought to myself, "Isn't this peaceful? The village, the beach, no civillisation, no traffic jams, no polluted air. I'm a kampung boy for a day and I am enjoying it. The sunset and dinner was served! Could not get any better! Beef rendang! Sorry, I thought it would be rude to take pictures of the food in front of my foster family! Oh well, I enjoyed the meal as I recalled how i got here.
Time to freshen up, kampung style. Don't worry, you still get piece of civillization:
PS. You might need to bring your own toilet paper! Another thing to be aware of:
After dinner, we gathered to see some of the most amazing bugs in the house!
To find out more or to experience the Homestay programme here, contact
56 kilometers from Kuala Lumpur lies one of the only places left in Malaysia to see fireflies! In actual fact, fireflies are beetles! These beetles live on the berembang trees which span the river. When the adults come out to mate, they will emit light from their tails to signal potential mates! Wow, one light stand! To actually see the firefles on the river, you need to get on a sampan! Fireflies don't like the noise and the light. I mean would not want a huge human making noise and shining lights on you when you are trying to get it on would you? Off we go to the boats!
Unfortunately for us, the moon was bright in the sky
and so only a handful of fireflies were out that night:
Walau wei! So dark one! With 3 girls on the boat better not touch touch later let Bb smack!
Nonetheless, we were happy that we got to see at least some fireflies!
There is also a visitor center there that teaches you about life as a firefly!
The centre is well organised and looks clean enough. However, the most obvious thing that is wrong around there is how the jetty is lit up like the brightest firefly in the river. Even with banning construction at the river, the jetty should be darker to attract more fireflies! Also, silence should be observed! We left the place and headed back to our homestay!
In a surprise gesture, out sponsors took us to Satay Hut for a midnight snack!
Its an okay place so me and Bb decided to take some pictures!
The satay was amazing! There were so many people that they had two grills!
For me, I thought it would be a good time to try out the Pentax X70 and it was awesome!
For more information on fireflies, contact:
Zulkifly bin Samad
Pegawai Pembangunan Mampan
zulkifly@mdks.gov.my
+6 012 285 1103
Majlis Daerah Kuala Selangor
45000 Kuala Selangor,
Selangor Darul Ehsan,
Malaysia
www.mdks.gov.my
