Our journey started at 6.45am from our home in the East. We took the East Coast Parkway route and arrived at Tuas Checkpoint at 7.20am. The queue was already forming and we took slightly more than half an hour to clear immigration. We had to pay S$4.60 for toll charges.
Once into Malaysia, it was quite a breeze getting through the Malaysian immigration/custom at Sultan Abu Bakar Checkpoint..
As there are many toll booths along the North-South Expressway (Lebuhraya Utara-Selatan), it is advisable to be prepared with a 'Touch n Go' card as this would save you a bit of time getting through the various tolls. You can even use this card at some car-parks.
We finally got onto the North-South Expressway and it was a total of 330 km from Johore Bahru (JB) to Kuala Lumpur (KL). It is a straight road all the way with many Rest & Relaxation stops along the expressway. No worries about running out of petrol or needing to use the restrooms. Very convenient. Speed limit is 110km/h for most parts of the expressway and we recommend that you keep as close to it as possible as there are many speed traps and police ambush along that stretch.
We took a short break at Ayer Keroh R&R, and arrived at our destination Crowne Plaza Mutiara at 11.45am with the help of our Garmin GPS on our mobile phone which was installed the last time we were up in KL two weeks ago. That indeed helped a newbie like us a lot. We parked in the hotel carpark as we feel that it is much safer there.
As it was still early, we decided to take a walk to Bukit Bintang area which is like the Orchard Road of Singapore. Shopping places like Lot 10 and Bukit Bintang Plaza were places where we did some of our shopping before proceeding back to the hotel for our high tea buffet which starts from 12noon to 4pm.
High tea buffet at Crowne Plaza Mutiara costs about RM52 ++ per person but we had a complimentary voucher for two. The spread consists of salads, breads, soup, dim sum, satay, teppanyaki, yong tau foo, noodle, laksa, kebab, meat and vegetable dishes with white or butter rice, cakes & desserts including ice cream, crepes, waffles and diy ice kacang. It was very filling and the food was good. Since we patronised the hotel outlet, we only needed to pay RM10 for the carpark charges.
Again, with the help of our GPS, we found our way to Holiday Inn Glenmarie, which is close to Subang Jaya area, where we stayed for the night. We had a voucher for a one-night weekend rate of RM170 nett inclusive of 2 breakfasts. As the hotel was experiencing full occupancy, we were upgraded to the Executive Club for the stay.
The room was spacious but not that impressive given that it is supposed to be the Executive Club. It overlooked the golf course and that gave it some greenery. The chair cover was stained. bathtub had paint peeling and overall the room smelt of cigarette. Definitely needs some renovation soon in order to keep up with the competition.
Check-in staff were friendly and helpful. The lobby was very spacious and airy. It looked very much like a resort with the huge open space. What intrigued us were the fan-shaped fans hanging from the ceiling as seen in the picture below.
Had a late and leisurely breakfast at The Kites at lower lobby, which is the same level as the Executive Club rooms. Being a Sunday, there were quite a few guests having late breakfast and the staff took some time to replenish the buffet breakfast items although there were a few items which were not replenished at all.
Some breakfast itemsThe Kites Restaurant 
Although the standard check-out time is 12 noon, we checked out at 10.30am. We drove to Subang Parade which is approximately a 5 minute drive away. This is a newer building with more up-market retail shops and food outlets as compared to the building next to it where Carrefour is the main tenant. Cold Storage, Parkson, Reject Shop, Factory Outlet, Bata, Kenny Rogers, Coffee Bean, Esquire Kitchen and Swensons are some of the shops and food & beverage outlets that you can find in Subang Parade.
After shopping to our heart's content, we started on our homeward journey at 2.45pm. During our last trip to KL two weeks ago, our new found warrior friends brought us to a restaurant in Seremban and we had their baked crab specialty as well as crocodile meat. This time round, we decided to see if we could locate the same restaurant. The ride to Seremban took approximately an hour and we drove around the town before we finally managed to find the restaurant, Seremban Seafood Village at 3720-3724 Jalan Tuanku Munawir, 70200 Seremban, Negeri Sembilan.
After shopping to our heart's content, we started on our homeward journey at 2.45pm. During our last trip to KL two weeks ago, our new found warrior friends brought us to a restaurant in Seremban and we had their baked crab specialty as well as crocodile meat. This time round, we decided to see if we could locate the same restaurant. The ride to Seremban took approximately an hour and we drove around the town before we finally managed to find the restaurant, Seremban Seafood Village at 3720-3724 Jalan Tuanku Munawir, 70200 Seremban, Negeri Sembilan.
Since we were there specially for their baked crab speciality, that was a must on the menu. We had sambal kangkong and deer meat served with white rice and two refreshingly cold coconuts. The crab dish alone cost RM43 for one kg which was the minimum they had. It was yummylicious and the meat of the crab was sweet and juicy. Total cost for the whole meal was RM76 for two persons, not that cheap but considering the tasty crab, it was worth it.
In fact, even while we were there, we could see that every table that was occupied had a dish of this famous crab. The baked crab dish is definitely a must-have when you are there.
The homeward bound journey was smooth until somewhere near Yong Peng where there was a 3-car collision which almost caused a standstill in the traffic. This could be due to the heavy rain as well as the darkness of the night as there are no street lights along the North-South Expressway.
We did a short stop at one of the R&R just to stretch our legs and empty our bladders before making sure we topped up our almost empty petrol tank just before crossing into Singapore. This is something you should do to take advantage of the lower petrol price as well as the favourable exchange rate. Overall, we spent approximately RM130 for toll charges both ways as well as parking charges at Subang Parade.
We arrived at Sultan Abu Bakar Checkpoint at about 8.45pm and the journey through the Malaysian immigration was smooth. However, we were in the queue at Tuas Checkpoint for approximately half an hour. Again there was a S$4.60 toll charge coming back into Singapore.
Look forward to going back for more crabs........... ; )
No comments:
Post a Comment