Travel . Love 爱旅行

Since 2010, I fall in love with traveling.

I always look forward for the next trip, and it becomes an addiction and also motivation.

打从2010年开始，我爱上了旅行

对那种期待下一次探索的感觉上瘾了，也成了我人生的一股推动力

I'm a forgetful person, but I'll never forget:
The FIRST time I get on a plane
The FIRST time I stepped into a foreign country

The FIRST time I see the snow

The FIRST time I have trip with a group of friends to oversea

The FIRST time I fly alone (And the damn flight got delayed for 4 hours)

And many more FIRSTsssss......

虽然我很善忘，但我忘不了：

第一次搭飞机

第一次出国

第一次看雪景

第一次成群结伴到国外

第一次自己一个人搭飞机 （还给我延误4小时！）

很多很多的第一次

For me, I think life is about exploration.

Travel does not means spending plenty of money
It can be a budget trip, a short domestic trip.

It is about learning and experiencing different things.

If it is a safe, happy and memorable trip, it is all that matters.

人生不就是为了探索吗？

旅行并不一定要花大钱

即使是一趟能省则省的旅行，或者是国内旅行

只要旅途中有学习到，体验到不同的事物，就够了

只要旅途平安愉快，难忘，就好了

For those who never like traveling, are you too comfortable in your comfort zone?

Aren't you interested to know about the world outside?

Is it because you have not found a travel companion?

Is it because you are not financially prepared?

Or you hate packing and unpacking luggage?

那些从没喜欢旅行的朋友，是因为太习惯现在的生活而不想要有任何改变吗？

还是根本对外面的世界没有兴趣？

或是还没找到旅行的同伴？

金钱上的不允许？

讨厌收拾行李？

I'm just curious why there are people who are not really keen about traveling.

Mind to share your opinion with me? Perhaps I could do a research on this topic. XD
I love to travel.
I love the preparation period - book flight ticket, search for places to visit, book accommodation, search for nice food to try, etc etc...
I love the presence of my awesome travel companion as well. Without them, the trip will not be perfect.
Awww..... I can't wait for my next getaway! When is it??
Saving ahead for future travel plan. That's what a travel freak does. =D

很好奇为什么有些人不喜欢，也不期待旅行

可以跟我分享吗？

我爱旅行

也爱旅行前的准备功夫 - 订机票，排行程，订酒店，找美食，等等

最重要的，终究是旅伴。好的旅伴，旅途肯定更加愉快，难忘。

写着写着，好期待下一趟旅行。何时才可以整装出发呢？

存钱旅行 - 旅人必做事物第一项。 =D

WHERE's NEXT??

Kedah: Sabai Dee Cafe

#throwback

TIME FLIES. I've been working for 2 months plus in Alor Star. Life is great here, just get a little bit tired of working. Ah well, don't talk about work. This post is to recommend a nice place in Jitra, about 30 minutes drive from Alor Star. I remember the date I went there, 16th July, as it was my first monthsary in Kedah and also Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah (HSB). 

First Monthsar. Nice Restaurant for Dinner. Good Food. Awesome Company. How to FORGET??

We had Thai Cuisine that evening beside a paddy field. Very Romantic. Now, I would like to recommend -- Sabai Dee Cafe! 

Beautiful scenery -- Sunset @ Paddy Field.

Blue Sky, Green Paddy Field.
Photos taken by phones without any skill can look so beautifully stunning. Can you imagine to see this in real?

Here we are! Sabai Dee Cafe!
It is located at an unpredictable place. Small lane beside paddy field -- that's the entrance to the cafe.

Peaceful place. 

The service is great here. Food was ordered by friends and hence I have no idea their exact names. =P

Only name I can remember is this drink! Lemon Grass Drink. Taste really special.
柠檬草的味道 (Remember this song?)

Taiping: Happy 8 Retreat Cafe & Charcoal Factory Visit

#throwback

If you were to come Taiping for a day trip, I would recommend you to go Kuala Sepetang (Port Weld) for a walk. That is a fishing village and this is where you can get cheap seafood, famous Pau (Chinese bun), famous Curry noodles and enjoy the nature. Port Weld has plenty of mangrove trees and you can go to the Mangrove Forest Reserve to enjoy the beauty of nature. I remember during my last time visiting the Mangrove Forest Reserve, I saw baby crabs crawling out from the mud. So cute!

I wanted to bring my colleague to visit the Mangrove Forest Reserve in Matang but when we reached the place, there are very few humans and hence we were worried about our safety. 2 girls in "jungle" did not sound like a safe thing to do. So, we decided to change plan -- visit fishing village and try out the new cafe (opened early 2014) in Port Weld.

Here is it! The Happy 8 Retreat Cafe, Kuala Sepetang.
Design is quite nice but the food/drink that they serve are quite over-priced. 

We ordered a cheese cake to try. Cakes here are from Free Mori (a cake shop with franchise in KL).
OS in my heart: "Cheh.....Not made in Taiping... I'm asking a friend from KL to come Taiping to eat cake from KL.... ISHHHHH......"

The cake is nice, but too expensive. RM13 if I'm not wrong. X(


******************************************************************************

Next Stop: Charcoal Factory (RIGHT OPPOSITE Mangrove Forest Reserve)

At first I thought we were just going in and have a quick walk around the factory. Who knows, they offer factory tour, with RM3/pax. The owner of the factory is very friendly and good in explaining the process. From tree trunk to charcoal, they need days of burning, with different types of fire + temperature. Amazing! 

Oh! And we bought 2 sweet potatoes from the owner. Overpriced but well, the tour for RM3 is worthy. =D

Ipoh: Stan & Brew Roast Coffee

#throwback

Now, it is time to talk about my first visit to Ipoh Cafe -- Stan & Brew Roast Coffee! I never planed to go there, as there are more super famous ones like Ben & Lynette, Plan B, STG, etc etc.... However, due to randomness (as always), I've visited Stan & Brew Roast Coffee during my last visit to Ipoh. 

It is not too hard to search for but I used a pretty odd road to reach this cafe. How odd?? Nah, just some rocky bumpy road, which I have no idea why I make that turning in the first place. XD

Long waited dinner at almost 9pm! 

Was searching for cafe to visit but most of them are close at 8.30pm or earlier. Thankfully Stan & Brew is one of the "night-owl" cafes. =D

Nice environment -- Romantic but a little dark. 

Starving and hence my friend and I were eyeing on the King's Hamabagu (RM29.00).

It is a burger meant to serve 2 persons and we were interested to try such huge burger. =D

Ipoh: Thean Chun Coffee Shop 天津茶室

#throwback

Ipoh is just about 40 minutes drive from Taiping. Hence, as a Taiping girl, it is not too attractive to me as I can go there every weekend, twice a month, or at least once a month. I never explore those tourist-must-go-and-try shops in Ipoh when I was young. It is because those places are always crowded with super long waiting time, expensive and it may not turn out as good as expected.

However, when I start having road trips with my uni-mates and now colleagues, those shops are the must-visit places whenever we step into Ipoh. And now, I'm starting to act like a tourist, whenever I go Ipoh. Explore Explore Explore. 

Today, I'm going to introduce an ancient coffee shop -- Thean Chun Coffee Shop (天津茶室) located in Old Town Ipoh. I've been there twice and my first time experience was overwhelming. We waited for almost 80 minutes for our Chicken Kuey Teow Soup aka "Kai Si Hor Fun" (鸡丝河粉). My friend, who was the driver of our road trip, turned into black face after waiting and hence this coffee shop always reminded me about his angry face. *Ooppss* Well, the Chicken Kuey Teow Soup was nice but I don't think it worth waiting for more than an hour. 

Second time was with my colleague. This time, we went there for caramel custard (炖蛋) and also some other food. Due to the crowd, we decided to takeaway the caramel custard and asked for our food to be served next door. Yes, you can sit next door and those noodle stalls will send their food over. One condition is that you need to order drinks from the shop next door (Fair enough).

Spotted a stall that sells Fried Durian on our way to Thean Chun coffee shop.
RM2.40 for one and it is NOT NICE yet EXPENSIVE. I remember the one I had at the Yong Tau Fu place was much bigger, nicer and cheaper.

Colleague's Beef Noodle (RM5.00). She said it was alright, but not delicious.

My Chee Cheong Fun (RM3.20 -- if I'm not wrong). It is quite nice but sauce is too little. =S