30052015-31052015 Min's Birthday at Lavish Spa

The dinner celebration for Min was only 1 part to it. I had another plan which I had been planning over 2 weeks, which had me doing a lot of research before finally deciding on it. Of course I had help as well =) I'm so grateful for awesome and supportive friends. As this was the first birthday celebration for her, I had to make it something very special. Something meaningful and also relaxing for her. And so the idea of bringing her to a spa came to mind. I was also in luck because in the month of May, there was a promotion for May babies *lucky me!* =D

Before we do that, we need to get ourselves a brunch. My initial idea having a delightful breakfast had to be postponed to brunch because the night before extended a little longer than I had expected. But it was alright, because everything was going to be fine. I have many backup plans, should either one of them fail. Why? Because I don't intend to fail at this 1st-time celebration with Min =P

Initially, I thought she was being cute.
Turns out she's actually trying to tell me that the filtered water is chargeable, lol!
I ordered two cups of filtered water, RM1 each

Flat White
RM9

I gotta say, J&D really did it right.
I'm no fan of flat white, but I quite like this one!

Spaghetti Carbonara
RM21
Very nice and creamy, just what my "doctor prescribed"! =D

Pork Lasagne
RM25
My first time trying out a lasagne of pork.
Got me wanting more!

Location:

J&D Espresso,

Oasis Business Center BU11,

Lebuh Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya.

Open 1130am-930pm,

closed Mondays.

So after brunch, it was time to head down and continue my plan. She still hasn't figured out what I arranged for her. She almost guessed it, That's because I asked her to bring spare clothes for an overnight stay and a pair of swimwear. When she told me she knew where we were going, I thought for sure she had gotten it right. But when I finally told her that we're heading to Lavish Spa, she did not see that coming either =P

The panoramic view of the city from Lavish Spa's open pool.

If you want to know how the reception and other facilities look like, head on their website.

I'm just gonna be posting about my experience and my time with Min =)

I could clearly see the moon at 5pm!

The panoramic view of the pool

The panoramic view of the Lavish Cafe.

It's actually not big, but it's just nice =) 

At the entertainment room!

There's dedicated PC to each chair.

It's not actually that dark, but I dimmed the lights,

so that it feels much more relaxing at on the chair 

This is also where we'll be sleeping when night falls.

Originally a normal selfie, but I figured I'll take my chances with this.

Turns out it's a good shot! 

❤

We went to the spa first.

No, it's not a shared one (how I wish it was!)

The ladies will go to the ladies spa, and the men will go to the men spa.

After that, we changed into our swim wear and went for short swim.

After our swim, we had dinner.

I then realize it was EAT ALL YOU CAN EAT (ala carte order only).

There was no limit to how much you order, except that if you waste the food, you'll be penalized.

I actually had one round of snacks order before she joined me for dinner =P

As guest of lavish spa, we have to change into their provided clothes

(1 size only for men unfortunately)

Bathing robes are optional, but they're very comfortable to be in.

If you're staying overnight like we are, you'll definitely need it.

Imagine yourself eating and drinking from 8AM to 3AM

OMGosh!

Lamb Chop

Fried Chicken Wings 

Seafood Tom Yam Soup Noodles 

Iced Mocha 

Butter Fish Rice

Following morning, we woke up and headed to the Lavish Cafe for breakfast 

Iced Chocolate Milk & Latte 

Simple Breakfast - of Eggs, Bacon, Sausage and Red Beans

Sausage Roll 

No one's around so we decide to selfie! 

Another attempt at it 

After breakfast, we went for some light exercise at the gym

She wanted to the try to the "Shake, Shake" machine.

I LOL-ed so hard, when I saw her shaking xD

Then, we went on the threadmill together. 

"On the path to happiness"

hahaha super cheesy caption!

Min ever-so-happy on the threadmill =P

After gym, we went for a short swim again!

One must fully take advantage of the facilities given =P 

Then, we went to the spa.

Here's the Sauna room.

I couldn't last longer than 3 minutes in this room,

'cause I'm one person who can't stand heat.

This is the Steam room.

I didn't bother to try 'cause I know t's no difference in terms of heat.

This was where I enjoyed myself most in the spa.

Warm bubbling jacuzzi.

Feeling rejuvenated after I spend several sessions here.

The men's washroom were provided with many men's essential.

No need to worry about toothbrush, shaver or even hairspray. 

I went and look around, and there was a sitting near the cafe

that had Chinese chess provided

There was also the normal English chess!

How cool! 

While waiting for Min to finish her spa session, I had my Earl Grey tea with the pool view.

Very relaxing indeed.

Tom Yam Gong with Rice, Marmite Chicken Rice & Chicken Wings!

We had lunch before leaving for home.

Decided to order an extra plate of Butter Chicken as well

There was a cinema hall on the same floor.

The movie listing changes everyday I think, because the day before, the listing was a little different. 

Location:

Lavish Spa,

Lot 5.02 & 5.06 level 5,
Fahrenheit88, Jalan Bukit bintang
55100 Kuala Lumpur
TEL: 03-21485888
24 Hours

I just couldn't resist myself to create this GIF of us =P

We had a great time there. And I was just super glad that this was a good experience for her. The place was not quite as big as I was hoping for. But it was alright for us. Just a note, if there's many patron that evening, you'll need to find for places to bump in (whether at entertainment room or cinema hall). The downside of the place is that there's a club downstairs with super heavy bass. Min's a light sleeper while I tend to wake up when I (frequently) sense unknown movement. So, we couldn't really fall asleep until about 3AM, because that's when the music went off and people stop moving around us. So happened that the very same night we were staying over, many patrons were there too -they were looking for chairs to comfortably sleep on.

Last but not least I did the cheesiest thing I could think of

- drawn on my iPhone -

Happy Birthday Jasmine aka Supermin!

08052015 Set Lunch at Caffe Roma, QCM

Another new cafe has opened in QCM, and so it's only right for my colleagues and I to pay them a visit! They serve Italian food apparently. So, we decided to see what they have to offer us.

This is what I ordered:

Mushroom Potato with Ice Lemon Tea and Pineapple Meringue Tart.

RM16.90

Iced Lemon Tea (non-refillable)

Mushroom Potato

Honestly, I think it would have been tasted better if the sauce wasn't so diluted

Pineapple Meringue Tart

This needed to be eaten fresh-right-out-of-the-oven,

else it'd be hard and the taste would have faded off

Taste wise - They're pretty decent, there's still room for improvement. My colleagues commented the same for their orders as well.

Environment wise - It's nice and cozy. Nice wallpapers of Rome, making you feel slightly as if you're there. The interior of the place is well design, and they are able to fit groups of 8 pax with some table arrangement.

Service wise - It took them quite a while to serve us our food. And my colleagues waited even longer to have their desserts served. Perhaps they're still new and not used to the crowd size and demand during lunch hour. We'll see again during the next visit.

Price wise - It's the average cafe price. Isn't your budget set lunch type, but it's good for anyone who'd like to try out something different, something Italian.

Location:

Caffe Roma

Lot 2-09, Level 2, 

Quill City Mall

Caffe Roma's Facebook

07052015 May's Set Lunch at Plaza Hotel, KL

It's the month of May, so let's see what's the set lunch menu for Plaza Hotel. 

Roasted Lemon Grass Chicken

RM14 nett, comes with a free drink (but don't drink it, they taste horrible)

Somehow this month's item is sort of lacking in taste.

It's quite confusing when food arrives looking different than its stated name.

The combination takes a while to get used to it, but it's edible.

Nevertheless the portion is quite big, as always.

I managed to finished the whole plate =)

03052015-04052015 Short Trip to Crab Island

A random trip was suggested and without a single hesitation, off we headed to Crab Island (Pulau Ketam). Just wanted to get out of town, and have some fun! Yes, it's not just I, but we - me & 3 girls. LOL. This was a trip that I could finally utilize my Lumix LX5, after many years not touching it!

Extracted from Google Maps

Before we make our way to Crab Island, we made a pit stop at Bak Kut Teh (BKT). What better place to go to for BKT than Klang itself?

Soupy and Dry BKT!

Yummylicious!

Right after our brunch, we headed towards the Crab Island Jetty at Port Klang. However, there were some traffic because it was Wesak day and there was a celebration parading in the streets.

The streets were packed with people celebrating Wesak

I see this pictures and on TV before, but seeing this so up close, sends a shiver down my spine.

Watching the skin being pulled back, I felt as if it was my skin being pulled! Errrkk!

It took us about an hour to get through the busy streets, as we had to make a few detours around the area in order to reach the jetty. Once we were there, we headed straight in and queue for the ferry.

And there were 3 girls in walking in front of me 

There were MANY people queuing for the ferry to Crab Island.

Some people even brought their fishing equipment too! 

Here's a clearer view, with my camera stuck out beyond the fence.

Tadah! Me and 3 awesome girls - Min, Edna & Mimi! 

It took us about 20-30 minutes worth of waiting for the ferry. I thought there wouldn't be that many people going to Crab Island, but I was wrong. There were just too many people heading there! Thankfully Edna made the arrangement for accommodation much earlier, else we're pretty much screwed.

My camera facing the back of the ferry's interior

My camera facing the front of the ferry's interior

After roughly 30-40 minutes ferry ride, we finally arrived at Crab Island. I must say one thing, it was FREAKING HOT! I mean the girls are HOT (LOL), but the weather's blazing HOT!

 It is a must to take a wefie with this sign board!

 Checking in also took some time, as there were many people

So, we chilled first while waiting for our turn.

Once done with the check-in, there was an uncle that guided us to our room. However, before we made our move, the lady at the counter kept asking us if we want to rent the bicycle. We felt that we could come back later, once we settled in, to rent the bicycle. Well, bad move. Read on and you'll know why!

I quietly follow them from behind, as I had no idea where the place is.

The last time I was at this island, was only up to that hotel's check-in counter (only came to eat)

Passed by colorful houses 

Got kampung (village) feel or not? 

How about this? 

 I particularly like the feel of this picture

You getting bored of the village pictures yet?

Here's one with a topless uncle on bicycle!

Did I mentioned how freaking HOT it is??

Min's hiding under her scarf! 

Finally, after 10-15 minutes of walking through the village, we reached the "entrance" of our room, only to find out that it wasn't ready! So, the uncle told us to wait while they prepare/clean up our room. We just chill in the rest area as there was nothing else we could do.

"Welcome to Sea Lion Homestay"

Seriously, I thought the room was nearby the check-in counter.

Now, I understand why the lady kept asking if we wanted to rent bicycles!

*facepalm*

Edna has this amazing perspective of angles to take!

Salute to her!

Mimi was absolutely bored! Thankfully, her iPhone has games! 

The girls laughed a lot as well! 

They're very happy under the hot sun. LOL 

On and off, Mimi poses for the camera 

 Min got bored, and decided to try out the different perspectives too!

 Somehow, Mimi got pulled into it as well

 Mimi's pose! with Edna

 All of them on the swing

 I found more swings by the side way

Everyone's getting restless, and the heat was very stressful too 

What was Mimi pointing too?

The fish! or at least it's what I think

Once our room was ready, we quickly settled in and relaxed a while. By the time we knew it, an hour passed by, and we were feeling very hungry. So, we went out to find food, at the same time to get ourselves bicycles too!

Passed by a small pier where there were some boats parked. 

What a serene sight! 

Shots of boats parked here 

As you can see, Edna is busy with her amazing perspectives again!

Salute again! 

We saw some kids playing badminton.

The wind was strong, I don't know how they can play with such wind.

Edna joined in the fun as well, but I can tell it was tough!

You don't get to see this type of road signs, in urban town anymore I think 

We definitely can't miss the stall that sells Fried Ice Cream!

(And to be honest, we came back more than twice, in two days.. Aren't they lucky for us!)

The process was really quick, I think it's less than 30 seconds only.

Check it out, people!

Yam-flavored Fried Ice Cream!

Here's us with our bicycles!

After some sight-seeing, we stopped for dinner. Guess what we're having?! SEAFOOD! Well, it's an island, so it's not very hard to guess it.

We actually ordered Oh-Chien (Oyster Omelette) and Lala-Chien (Clams Omelette).

But since they look the same, hence there's only 1 picture, lol

Edna suggested we try Roasted Duck too! 

And a must have, butter prawns! 

We need to have some greens to balance up our diet, lol 

They didn't have crab (WTCrab?!) as they claim it wasn't fresh enough to serve to customers,

so they suggested us to go with steam fish instead.

After dinner, we walked a while to better the digestion of our food. We wanted to take picture of the sunset, Edna suggested to go to the pier as there's a better view. She was right on!

 Waiting for the sun to set, I took a trial shot.

I don't know how good this is, but I definitely like this shot the most! 

 This would be the second best picture I had from the several shots I took

 Picture taken by Min.

Min enjoying her bicycle ride as there's hardly anyone at the pier.

She can freely go in circles for the longest time.

Happy girl, indeed. LOL 

We're rather satisfied with dinner as well as the sunset-moments. However, there was still one tiny thing that's missing. Edna filled in the missing bit by suggesting supper. LOL. We found out that there's a place which served very cheap food - from as low as RM1.00. Not many places I know in town which serves at that starting price!

Ice Kacang

Bakkwa (dried pork meat) and pork-balls

 French Fries

Egg-wrapped Cheese Sausage

Lap Cheong (Chinese Sausage)

Classic Burger! 

Ahhh, that was utmost fulfilling! I must say I haven't felt so good in ages! It was one of the best jalan-jalan-cari-makan (travel to find food) moments! Headed back to our room thereafter to end the night.

Before going to sleep, took a short stroll around the area.

Both side ways of the homestay had swings attached. 

There was a particular hut, not too far from our room.

And there was a swing there too!

Couldn't resist taking a picture of Min on the swing.

Next morning, woke up rather early (not super early ya, lol). Walked outside of our room, and waited for the sun to rise. We were in luck because it was only 15 minutes away from the sun-rising moments.

The sun's coming up! 

Here we go! 

I got it! 

Min with the village background shot. 

 A shot of Min trying to get a shot of the sunrise

My attempt of trying out the panoramic with my iPhone's malfuctioning focus.

Seems to be OK.

So I went all out on the panoramic feature to get the shot of the fluffy clouds! 

Alright, so all is done, we got the brunch, dinner, supper done, and we've also covered both sunrise and sunset moments. So, we're all good and ready to go! Packed up and ready to leave for KL! But of course, we couldn't live without completing the cycle. Don't know what I'm talking about? If you noticed in the earlier sentence, I had left out breakfast and lunch! So that's what we need to do before we go home.

Breakfast - Iced Coffee 

Breakfast - Char Siew Siew Yoke Fun (BBQ Pork & Roasted Pork Rice)

Breakfast - Apam Balik (Turnover Pancake) 

 Lunch - Fishball

Lunch - Kam Heong Hai (Spicy Fragrant Crab)

Finally, we managed to order crab!

With that, ends Jeff Ong's Travels to Crab Island! It was only about an hour or so journey back home from Crab Island. Short but definitely satisfying trip!