if you are unfamiliar on goa beaches, here’s a map:

on the very next day, we were geared up to head to the beach. according to many tourist websites, the stretch along candolim, calangute and baga are the most popular beach hangouts. we expected to find many, many people there. we just didn’t expect to find this many:

local tourists were aplenty due to the divali and school holidays. as you walk along south or north of calangute, the crowd disperse but there were still many beach-goers.

holy cow! we knew we’d find them sunbathing under the sun.

and here’s a snippet of a very interesting creature. it’s a new breed of kangaroo-dog. try to figure out why:

beach activities like parasailing and banana boat are very popular on baga beach. it is no surprise to see locals dressed in slacks and work shirts at the beach.. what more, parasail. we think he must have a business meeting right after.

up, up….

and away…

since it was just the beginning of peak season in goa, beach shacks were scarce. right before the monsoon season, they would tear down these shacks and rebuild them in the beginning of november.

perhaps our expectations were too high or we have been exposed to more beautiful beaches in malaysia/thailand/cyprus/brazil/usa that we weren’t enthusiastic about the north beaches of goa. we were told that the southern areas like palolem and cavelossim were quieter and cleaner but we didn’t make a trip down south to see it for ourselves. the sand was neither white and fine nor the water crystal clear and blue. if i had to draw a comparison to a local malaysian beach, i’d say this is pretty much port dickson.

instead of being whiny spoilt-sports, we did enjoy the beach especially during sunset which i have to admit was one of the most beautiful moments in goa.

sunset at candolim beach

sunset at baga beach

she’s so gorgeous…

sunset right before a heavy downpour on sinquerim beach…

no matter what, you can always find beauty if you look hard enough…

since we didn’t spend alot of time on the beach, we explored many cafes/restaurants/lounges. instead of coming home with a nice golden tan, we gained a few pounds (ok, actually it’s just ME!) but with a list of our favourite eateries.

to be continued… goa – places to dine on the beach…

nice to know that there are trees in singapore too  

welcome to poison ivy, the bistro that serves organic food right from their funky farm – bollywood veggies. 

did you know that alamanda looks like this: (or am i the only ignorant one?)

pink frangipani. i like.

they have rows of banana trees there. it’s no wonder their specialities include banana loaf and banana cake.

the different stages of a banana tree. first, it grow up straight like how most trees do..

notice how tiny the bananas are?

it’s about an inch long

after a couple of months (i guess), the flower dangles down along with its fruit.

and there you have it.. fully ripen bananas ready to be peeled and eaten…

that’s mr lim behind the counter. they also sell organic veges and the banana cake/loaf that i mentioned earlier along with kueh bingkar- tapioca cake.

dad said (back in the good ol’ days), sugar cane like this only costs $0.30.

the menu

the food was simple because it was low in salt and no MSG — like home cook (ok, maybe relevant to my own home). portions were small so we ordered different dishes to try. i like the mani chye vege (something like paku pakis)

all green!

i couldn’t do without my black coffee…

and then it was dessert. from the top clockwise: kueh bingkar, banana cake and kueh kosui (tapioco with mollasses covered with coconut shavings)

i also heard it was good

that’s the end of my short trip to singapore ta!

was up bright and early while my partner continued to snooze. black coffee. a daily in hand. out in the terrace by the pool. bright and sunny. i am begining to enjoy sundays like this.

even meowmie wants a tan…

an up-close of what tau sah peah is…

we took this…

…to get this…

just minutes before checking out…

guess which bed i slept in?

after checking out from the hotel, we walked across the road to a nearby park.

ask yourself when was the last time you sat on a playground bench, under a big tree and watch the world go by? it has been a very long time for me. i miss it. of course, it also helps when you’ve been craving for a cool coke light for last 48 hours and 7-11 happens to be near a park

stepping on penang grounds…

always busy at work…

since elvin was late, we decided to visit the LARGEST toy museum in m’sia. seriously, i can’t believe i paid RM 10 for plastics i’ve seen aplenty for years

the only sane picture since we had a stranger to take this for us…

i heart M&Ms…

the g-sistazzzz…

just like gollum, we are schizos

rows and rows of figurines… still don’t understand the hobby!

but we make it fun in here…

lucky stich!!

gosh.. aren’t we sickening?

yups.. two thumbs up for our self-photo taking session!

poser moser…

my friend W&W kinda looks like that sometimes…

A VISIT TO THE BOTANICAL GARDENS

(because the two monkeys i was with wanted to visit their relatives. they were pretty ape about it)

unique fruit/flower which was very pretty. it was hard to resist not taking a picture of it.

L-R unbloomed; the mama tree

sitting by the giant longkang (drain)

threesome…

i love this place. it’s so green.. that’s why you need to see the bigger picture…

that malaysia is still very, very green. this is our heritage. am proud

doing a bollywood stint. here’s letchumy and muniandy…

hahahahaha.. i really can’t stand this picture…

… and must they point at the same direction? HAHA.. this is too funny!

after that walk in the park, you need to cool off with…

indian uncle who speaks fluent mandarin and hokkien serves you ice cream in a cone…

elvin wanted his with nuts…

happy customers

leaving penang…

and over to IPOH! a visit to ipoh, which is about 2 hours drive from penang island, is never complete if you miss the hor fun ngah choi kai (noodles with steamed chicken and bean sprouts). ipoh is famous for their hor fun and i suspect it’s because of the water they use. even the bean sprouts sprout differently over here. they are shorter, more plump and juicy.

there’s never an empty table…

the noodle is so smooth that a waiter almost fell when he stepped on it… serious!

SMOOTH AND WHITE….

… and just across the road, we had another episode of…

something smoother and whiter tau foo fah (soft bean curd with either ginger syrup, palm sugar syrup or just plain syrup). this tau foo fah is so good that it taste just as soft and smooth overnight.

if you are unconvinced that we had a fantastic time on the island, then you must be effing blind. albeit a short vacation, i felt absolutely relaxed. laughter, indeed, is the best medicine. this is penang through our lenses. i hope you’ve enjoyed the mini tour of the island with us.

W&W always reminded me about how beautiful my country is. so, for your sake, let’s sing this together…

the mountainsssssssss…

and the seaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa….

it is calling for you and meeeeeeeee…

malaysia, truly asia

life in pink.

woke up to the sight of blooming fresh pink carnations. my favourite shade of pink.

visited my parent’s home to oversee the renovation progress. everything looks good so far. it was such a hot day but pleasantly breezy.

my secret window

i will get up to blue skies and fluffy clouds

the tv; the view from my balcony. railings not fixed yet.

me and shortie. i love my pink sandals. he loves his ‘mimi cooper’.

my nephew with his favourite cars; mini cooper and bmw m3

the ever-so-inviting swimming pool at the club

the succulent coconut flesh eaten cold on a hot sunny sunday

the lotus appears in solitary…

she’s always the center of attention…

la vie en rose

(here’s proof to someone that i don’t just take pictures of food! hee hee)