India Trip: The Pink City

Landed at New Delhi Airport at 2200 hours (local time) on the 2nd of October, we have initially booked our driver to pick us up at the airport, which is included in the package. However, our driver seemed to be nowhere to be seen at the airport. One point to note that the moment you have exited from the airport arrival hall, you won't be allowed to re-enter the building (there were some drivers waiting inside the hall so we thought to go back in to look after our drivers but were stopped by the guard who appeared to be not understanding English much when we tried to explain our situation). We tried to contact the car agency through the phone provided (cost 5 rupee for 1 minute) but was hung up half way through the conversation. There were some kind samaritans who were willing to lend their phones to call the car agency on our behalf as the receiving end apparently had some issues understanding us earlier (and not to mention the line wasn't stable). In the end, the car agency claimed they didn't have our booking which came as a shock as the agency did reply our email earlier that day. Frustrated, we decided to take cab to our hotel. By the time we checked in at Treebo Natraj Yes Please, it was already passed midnight.

Earlier next day, we had our breakfast at the hotel (it's complimentary), and we walked to the car agency which happened to be nearby our hotel to sort out our car. Apparently the guy that has been responding to our email was out of office and his colleague wasn't made aware of our booking. We settled with Toyota Etois and were given slight briefing by the agency on travelling in India, i.e. tipping is a thing in India, avoid eating street food (for tourist), ensure the water bottles are properly sealed before buying them etc. Packed and checked out from the hotel, we headed straight away to Jaipur, Rajasthan which is 260km away.

When we arrived at Delhi late the day before, I wasn't aware of the seriousness of the traffic condition in the city. You shall prepare yourself of continuous honking on the road and the cars on the road are driven along exceed the designated lanes. Our driver told us the golden rule of driving in India, "Good horn; Good brake; Good luck". It's common if you pay attention to those cars on the road, they tend to have dents, even when the cars are still new (considered the plastic covers are yet to be removed from their seats). These are just few of my personal observations on the first day in Delhi on the road. More shall unfold sooner. Speaking of our car, in spite of maxing out the air conditioner, the back seat was still rather warm hence my friend used her portable fan to chill ourselves. You could imagine how hot the weather was. Apparently there's a tax to pay for drivers bringing passengers when crossing the state. This is not toll as there are proper toll gates for this. The tax is paid at a small booth at the road side with no proper allocated parking at the state border (there was one time our driver crossed the highway to pay for the tax). In my opinion, the drivers in India generally seem to have very low regard on safety.

Tax Collection Point by the road side 

The toll station. These people usually wander around to sell things to drivers while queueing. Things like sun shade, coconut, bottled water etc.

Jaipur, Rajasthan

After 5 hours being on the road, we have reached the state of Rajasthan, the state where Jaipur serves as the capital. Amber Fort is located prior reaching the Pink City and hence it was our very first stop for this trip. Declared as UNESCO Heritage Site in 2013, the fort was built on top of the hill. Some part of the fort kinda remind me of Great Wall of China. The cars are allowed to drive up to the entrance of the fort so hence don't fret about walking up the hill. The fort is accessible with 500 Rupee. This is my first fort to visit in India and hence I went in without expectation (or this overall trip in general). There were some maintenance work ongoing during our visit in front of the main entrance. The place is pretty well preserved. Some of the structure are made up of white marble which keep the heat away during the hot weather compared to other parts which are made up of sandstone. One hour is suffice to cover the whole place.

The parts of fort I don't think is accessible. 

This view resembles the view of Athens from Acropolis

 The floating park in the middle of lake is so picturesquely serene, complemented by the green hills.

Entering the hall 

Secret garden within the fort and marble building in the distance

On our way to the city of Jaipur, we dropped by Man Sagar Lake to have a glimpse of Jal Mahal which literally means Water Palace. During our visit, we couldn't see anyone offering a ride to the centre of the lake. I read there used to have gondolas around the lakes but it has stopped for years.

I know cows are sacred to the Hindus. Seeing them on the streets of India is common scene. This also means that you need to watch out for the "inevitable" when you walk on the street. 

Jal Mahal, the "Water Palace", as if it was floating on the lake and can only admire it from far.

Afterwards, our driver brought us to textile shop which is famous for the "pashmina". The guy at the shop demonstrated how the printing on the cloth is done. The cloth could be made into scarf, shawl wearable clothing and several others. Jaipur contributed 70% to textile industry in India. In case you want to know, the shop accepts credit card if you wish to buy any or they also accept certain currencies with the rate fixed at their shop. Next to the shop is a jewellery store. There were some guys doing some polishing work on the mineral stones.

The guy demonstrated the printing on cloth, with the four assistants

The guys work on the stones at the jewellery store next door.

We checked in at Pandya Niwas before heading to Surya Mahal for our dinner. Surya Mahal is located at busy street of M1 and this place serves a good escape for a decent meal. It is entirely vegetarian restaurant and serves mostly Southern Indian cuisine.

Mixed Uttapam - my dinner for the night. 

Next morning, my friend and I had a stroll on the street of Jaipur. The experience was rather different and exotic for me compared to my previous adventures. It was indeed an eye-opening experience to another whole new level seeing the locals live their life, in this part of the country at least.

Never thought that I would see camel in India too.

Before concluding our day in Jaipur at the City Palace, we stopped by Hawa Mahal for this shot. You may enter the site with 200 Rupee. Now you could have guessed why Jaipur is also known as the Pink City. Most of the structures are coloured in pink, in which believes signifies hospitality.

City Palace reminds me a little of Forbidden City in Beijing when the palace is confined by 4-sided brick wall. The largest silver vessels in the world as per Guinness World Record are located at this palace. Sabha Niwas "Hall of Private Audience" (no photo is allowed in this hall) portrays the generations of Kings that ever ruled the region.

The largest silver vessel in the world 

A lady painting mehndi on my friend's hand

There was a guard requested us to take photo with him. Being within the paid site, I thought he was just being friendly with tourists for visiting the place. Been travelled to some other places in the world, these are those kinds of approaches you would wanna avoid because they usually will ask for money. Next thing you know, he did. I need to learn who is sincere or otherwise.

That concluded our trip in Jaipur and next we headed to the city of love.

JAIPUR - Agra - New Delhi

India Trip: Namaste

Taj Mahal is definitely one of the major drives for me to visit India. This has been crossed recently when me and my friends travelled  across the Golden Triangle of India. My knowledge on India is overclouded with their Bollywood scenes. Remembered those days when I was growing up watching Shah Rukh Khan movies, in which they spend a lot of time on singing, one of their movies' signature. Naan, tandoori chicken and tikka masala, just to name a few of Indian cuisine that I get to try locally, in which you will find them everywhere in India.

 Indian Chicken Curry

Visa is required for Malaysian to visit India for tourism purpose for 30 days. This can be done online without the need of going over to the embassy. You won't be able to apply for the visa more than 34 days ahead of your planned day of travel and it costs 49 USD. Remember to have scanned copies of passport and passport photo for the application though you can save the form online and reaccess anytime. From my experience (and so are my friends), it takes only a day for the visa to be granted. The copy of granted visa shall be printed and brought along for immigration verification.

View from Amber Fort, Jaipur

Our visit was during early October 2016 and the weather was rather hot, which is around 35 degree Celcius during day time. I remembered the night we landed at Indira Ghandi International Airport, the heat was immediately felt when we stepped out from the arrival hall. Regardless, it is better to wear decently (long pants, sleeved shirts) as temples will be among the places that you are going to visit. Sanitizers, wet wipes, sun block, mosquitoes repellents, just naming a few of the essentials you ought to bring while travelling around India. Reasons? The cities that we visited are very dusty (oh, this means you might want to bring face mask too) and the conditions there, it would be a good practice to sanitise your hands before any meal. I guess all of us were rather cautious about hygiene issue in the country and it's safe to clean the empty plates and cutlery (with the wet wipes) before placing any food on them. Due to the heat as most of the sites are outdoor, you would want some shield from the sun and you can't risk to be bitten by mosquitoes which go active in the hot climate. Despite of all our efforts to stay eating clean (we completely ignored eating street food), on the last day of our trip, all of us succumbed to our worst nightmare, food poisoning. The trip didn't definitely end the way we wanted. Still, better be safe than sorry.

Entrance to Taj Mahal

The currency used in India is "Rupee" and comes in 1000, 500, 100, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1. It's a culture to tip in India and it's a good tip to keep those small change. Generally a tip of 10 or 20 will suffice. The exchange rate during our time was around 100 Rupee for MYR 6.20. India timezone is 2 hours and a half later than Malaysia's.

Old Street in Delhi, facing Jama Masjid

5 hours flight from Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2, we headed straight to Jaipur on the next day before continuing to Agra and back to Delhi. You can opt for bus or train for the intercity travel. Four of us hired a driver for the entire trip which costs 18,000 Rupee that includes pick up and shuttle to airport, so it sounded like a good bargain (or so we thought). The traffic in India was rather crazy so it takes a lot of courage (for me at least) to drive there or even cross the street. "Tuk tuk" is a common public transport to get you around the city.

Our journey throughout the Golden Triangle shall unfold in the next chapter.

India Trip Journey
Jaipur - Agra - New Delhi

Japan Trip: Kon'nichiwa

Japan has been in my travel list for as long as I remember. Their culture plays a big part of my childhood with their animes. For instance, Dragon Ball, Pokemon and even the famous super heroes team, Power Rangers are inspired by their Super Sentai. Oh, how can one forget about the adorable Doraemon? I believe most of the 90's kids can easily relate! Not to mention, Japanese food tops my favourite foreign cuisine list.

Glorious Tokyo Tower lit up at night, Tokyo

Also known as the Land of the Rising Sun, no visa is required for Malaysians to visit less than 90 days. My visit was back in May 2016, which is right after Cherry Blossom season. So, if you intend to visit Japan for the signature sakura, April is the best time of the year to go, which is ultimately the peak season. The temperature around this period is pretty steady around 30 degree Celcius or lower and hence, thick jacket is not really necessary (different story if you plan to visit Fuji, though).  The sun rises as early as 4.30am, which truly lives its name and sun sets around 7pm. There was no major shower during our visit and oh, there was minor earthquake during one of the nights, in which I actually felt the tremor. My phone even received the emergency alert. What an experience!

Yamanaka Lake, Mt Fuji - I miss this.

Japanese currency is "yen" which comes in domination of 10000, 5000, 1000, 500, 100, 50, 10, 5 and 1. 1000 yen worth MYR 36 during the time of my travel. There is a source telling me that Japanese Yen is cheaper if to buy during October, though further clarification is needed on that. Tip for arcade lovers: you might want to keep those 100 yen coins in your wallet. 

8 hours flight from Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2, we started our journey in the capital of Tokyo before continuing further south to visit Fuji, travelling to Kyoto via Shinkansen and finally concluding at Osaka. Our trip spanned for 10 days and 11 nights, excluding travelling days. It's very convenient to commute throughout Japan with their extensive network and their punctuality is not a myth. Japanese are very well mannered when it comes to boarding public transport, one of their many aspects, the things that we can pick up. 

Iconic landmark of Shinsekai, Osaka

Each city offers different experiences: from exploring the advancement of Japanese urbanisation to embracing the roots of their historic culture. So, it's kind of hard for me to pick my favourite stop. You shall be able to read my excitement through my narration after this.

Me gets excited at Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, Kyoto

(and my friend photobombed at the back)

Follow me through this journey!

Tokyo - Fuji - Kyoto - Osaka (in the works)

Krabi Trip: Khob Khun Kha

Phi Phi Island

After a night of partying at the beach ushering the arrival of new year (didn't really stay whole night), it's the activity that I'm looking forward to ever since I'm certified back in June 2015 - diving. My diving instructor mentioned to me that Andaman Sea is one of the best diving sites she has been to and ultimately this is the major drive for me to tag along in this trip last minute.

We signed up for 2500 baht 2-dive package with Hippo Divers, which inclusive of a wreck dive (I was very excited, at first.) Do be minded that most dive centres don't open for business on new year as one shall not get intoxicated the day before diving and our instructors happened to be not the drinking-party type (most of them are western foreigners). After ample rest in the morning and hearty lunch, we set off to the picturesque blue sea surrounded by green islets.

Blue and green - reminded me of coastal drive in Eastern Taiwan but this time we cruised across it

Excitement dwindles as the weather was not permissible for us to do wreck dive as we weren't able to locate the buoy that led to the dive site - rough sea is diver's enemy too, not only for offshore personnel. We switched to alternative diving sites. There are not much coral reef compared to the ones I went in Miri but big-eyes fish are abundant and here is my first encounter with king crown starfish. Though frankly, it wasn't good dive trip for me and being diver myself, we shall anticipate the change in weather that may change the entire plan and the outcome may not always be satisfying. 

King Crown Starfish 

Blue Candy Nudibranch - commonly spotted species during my dive in our region 

Disclaimer: Action camera performs poorly for macro objects. 

Enjoying the breeze of Andaman Sea and sunset after diving 

Settled my last dinner on the island at the famous Pirate House Restaurant.

Scrumptious Pad Thai 

Christmas decoration on the island lit at night

Krabi Town

Last glimpse of the long tail boat on Phi Phi before heading back to Krabi

The ferry ticket that we bought from our hostel in Ao Nang was inclusive of return trip back to the ferry terminal and also shuttle service to Krabi town (though it claimed that they could fetch to our hostel, apparently, it didn't). We walked for about 15 minutes from the drop off point before checking in at Pitta House.

Settling our lunch at nearby eatery and we started explore bits of the town. We walked along the Krabi River and passing by Crab Statue with Khao Khanab Nam in vicinity. Coincidentally, there was a Muay Thai show ongoing by the river bank with video crew doing their filming. I suppose either the competition was broadcasted live or they were doing tapping. Regardless, we have a taste of watching Muay Thai show for free!

Two Muay Thai fighters in action

Khao Khanab Nam in vicinity - you can go for a cruise that passed by the iconic structure in which we skipped

Cavemen Traffic light in Krabi 

Zebra crossing, literally

Explored the decent Vogue Department Store before continuing our journey to the Tiger Cave Temple via "tuk tuk". We were alarmed with the steps (more than just 1260 steps the signage claimed) that we have to take to get to the top but it was worth the climb which is free of charge.

Tiger statue inside the temple

Sitting Buddha oversees Krabi Province

Sunset from the top

Returned to the town and settling our dinner at Walking Street Night Market. We have our meals at one of the noodle shops and I thought my spicy tolerance was high enough as the lady has warned me upfront. There are a number of gravies available and I have picked the "hot" one. It was spicier that it looks, so beware. I dared myself to finish it all (and challenged my friends to have a taste of it themselves).

The noodle comes with "ulam" which helps to neutralise the spiciness of the gravy and oh, the coconut on the side

For our last day of the trip, we hired a driver to bring us 1 hour drive away from the town (a quick stop at Krabi Outlet Village on the way) to visit the emerald and blue pool with the entrance fee of 200 baht. There were two paths that lead you to the emerald pool from the main entrance, either 800m or 1000m. The pool was swarmed with people and we didn't take our dips. I couldn't see the emerald enough, really. We walked further in to look at the blue pool in which I find is more mystical and appealing.

Emerald Pool

Blue pool - one claims if you clap your hands, bubbles will emerge from the bottom of the lake

As the sun started to set and we concluded our visit with the day returned to town and have a brieftstop at the white temple, Kaewkorawaram Temple. We had our scrumptious dinner nearby the crab statue before having our final stroll at the street market of the trip.

Kaewkorawaram Temple

Last dinner in Krabi

My friends send their greeting from "Crab-i" 

We thought of going on stage at first to sing but for some reason, we didn't. It's free to sing and the song choices are limited to 90's. 

This graffiti marks my last shot in Krabi Town (I lost my lens cap while trying to capture this)

This has to be one of the relaxing trips that I ever had so far whereby one no need to rush through the itinerary. Since we are relying on public transports like taxi or "tuk tuk" to get around, we have to play by the ear. Krabi is worth visiting for those who wish to escape the bustling city life for a relaxing getaway to enjoy the blue and green of nature and to have a taste of outdoor activities - rock climbing for instance. This trip also exposes me to the varieties of Thai Cuisine, not just Tom Yam alone. I guess being touched by "Lady Boy" considered to be an experience too, eh? Not to forget the bone twisting and tickling Thai massage.

For my next visit to Thailand, I'm anticipating for "Thai Girl" show.

Krabi Trip: Sawadeekap

Other than my visit to Singapore in year 2012, I have never been to any other parts of South East Asia. This trip wasn't even in my annual plan at first but when I heard about the possibility of diving, I bought my flight ticket almost instantly. So the planning to have my very step on Thailand begins.

My trip to Krabi was on the verge of new year, so return flight ticket cost me MYR300 from KLIA2. To me it is pretty reasonable (you can get cheaper during promotion and to travel during non-peak season). National language in Thailand is Thai which but majority can understand minor English in the town of Krabi. Currency in used is Baht (100 baht for MYR14 during my travel). No visa is required for Malaysian for a visit that last less than 30 days. I have to say weather at this part of Thailand is quite hot during this time of year. So don't forget your shades and perhaps, sunblock (or just stay out of sun in that matter).

1 hour flight from Kuala Lumpur, my trip spanned for 5 days and 5 nights. staying at 3 different places. The trip kicked off in Ao Nang before moving to Phi Phi Island for new year countdown and finally concluded the journey in the heart of Krabi Town. Since this place is a bit distance from major town, do expect the public transportation to be limited to bus, taxi and oh, their "tuk tuk", human carrier run by motorcycle and sometimes, mini truck.

Travel agents are plenty in Ao Nang and Phi Phi Island, so fret not if you didn't get to book anything prior to your arrival to Krabi. You may get yourself at a discounted price when bargain is not an option when you book thing online. ATM is almost at every corner of the street, so don't worry about running out of cash (still, have to watch your budget). Most places don't accept credit card (including massage centre) so remember to bring enough cash with you, unless you are going to the high end places. Family Mart is abundant so don't worry if you forget to buy your mineral water while you on the run as there is high chance you will bump into one.

Ao Nang

Done with my meeting at KLCC on the 29th of December, I rush to airport to catch my evening flight to Krabi, in my office attire. Upon my landing at the airport, I bought my bus ticket heads to Ao Nang with 150 baht. There will be one lady (or may be guy but most of them are ladies) in charge to tell when the bus is coming and you shall let them know where your hostel is as they will drop you if it's on the way. Unfortunate for me though, there were 2 hostels with almost similar names so the bus driver was adamant that he stopped at the right one in which I was pretty sure it wasn't my hostel because from the map it's 1 minute walk to the beach but there was no beach in vicinity. Though I wasn't 100% sure that I was right so I get off the bus to ask anyway as the bus went off. Expected, it was not the right hostel and I had to have a 80 baht "tuk tuk" to get me to Ao Nang beach. It was already close to 7pm when I reached the place and the sky falls dark. My frustration continued as the driver didn't stop me at the exact location as I realised that the driver drove pass my hostel when I eventually knew the exact location. Bumped into my friends while searching for the hostel and I was off for my first dinner in Krabi/Thailand.


My first trial on pineapple fried rice. Basically it is fried rice served in pineapple shell. Not my favourite Siamese dish but it's worth a try.

My friends thought of going for a massage and I was like "Sure!" After a long day, my feet deserves some indulgence and pampering. I wouldn't call it a splurge to have a massage in Thailand since they are rather cheap. Say, 250 bath for a foot massage? So it is not surprising you are tempted to go massage on daily basis. The feet went ticklish (I am easily tickled) at first but eventually you just kind of getting into it. Sunset Massage is recommendable.


A yummy-licious pad thai to wrap my first night in Krabi.

Railay

Longtail boats 

One of the days that I was looking forward for was this very day as it is the rock climbing day! Had our breakfast at the hostel and we were off to Railay via long tail boat from Ao Nang Beach, which is just one minute walk away. We were greeted by King, our climbing instructor at the beach before heading to his shop to set up our gears. Bringing the ropes and stuff and we faced our rock. Unlike the indoor wall climbing with prominent coloured rocks (which indicates the difficulty), you climb to the top and watched out for any rock that you can hold on to or perhaps, chalk mark to bring you up.

Can you spot me?

I was given a chance to bilayer my friend during their climb. It's quite an experience and I wish only if I have brought glove. Nevertheless, you shall be certified bilayer and hence, hush hush.

After strenuous climbing in the morning, we replenished ourselves by having rejuvenating lunch at Mangroove Restaurant.

Red curry - I like spicy

Mango and sticky rice, my kind of combo

It was rather a late lunch that we had and in order to catch up the last boat back to Ao Nang which is 6pm, we made a quick stroll at Phra Nang Cave Beach, which is famous with the wooden statue and the cliff. Had a dip at the beach to conclude our day at Railay.

Amazing sunset view of Ao Nang Beach. A must see/take.

Our final dinner at Ao Nang before our next destination.

Green curry for dinner - I'm biased towards green than red now.

Phi Phi Island

Our hostel offers ticket to Phi Phi Island, including shuttle to the jetty. Booked ours the night before. Packed light refreshment at the Family Mart nearby our hostel before setting off to our next point of interest.

After two and a half hours being on the sea, we were welcomed by swarming tourists at Phi Phi Island. Additional 20 baht conservation fee is imposed per entry to the island. Under the scorching hot sun, we drag our bag to our hostel away from the crowd of the centre. Since it was peak season, most of the budget hostels were fully booked (Hence, ensure you do your booking in advance and considering the time during our visit is new year's eve). We stayed at a decent resort which costs around 100 baht per person per night. The hostel is located equidistantly from both sides of the beach.



Had a Chinese lunch and strolling around the island. Diving was part of our itinerary on the island, instead of the conventional island hopping. We secured our slots for the next day before starting our hike to the Phi Phi View Point to catch the sunset. The path to the point isn't that obvious at first where we passed by some sort of village before being diverted into muddy trails. Glimpse of hope emerged when we spotted a signage that leads to the view point.

Sunset at Phi Phi View Point. Worth it.

Prior to our new year countdown celebration, we had our dinner by the beach. Series of illuminated night clubs can be spotted along the beach with loud music playing. Fire show were exhibited at some of the clubs. We bought few bottles of Singha to spend the night before club hopping for the new year celebration.

A wild night before 2016.

May be not.

Next post: 2016 in Thailand