Showing posts with label berjaya hills. Show all posts
Showing posts with label berjaya hills. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Malaysia Vacation – Berjaya Hills and Genting Highlands Day 2 (1)

Colmar Tropicale Resort Accommodation

A beautiful start to the second day of our Malaysia vacation, we woke up to great weather up here in Berjaya Hills Colmar Tropicale Resort accommodation.

Complimentary breakfast was inclusive with the room rate at Colmar Tropicale. Buffet breakfast was provided at La Blason where we had the international buffet for dinner last night. Breakfast included some local delights such as nasi lemak (coconut rice), teochew porridge with condiments as well as the usual breakfast food such as bread, scrambled eggs, sausages, cereal and cut fruits.

La Blason

Buffet counter

Breakfast food of Malaysian variety

After breakfast, we proceeded to the shuttle waiting area to wait for the shuttle to the organic farm at 0830 hrs as we were informed.

Passing by Colmar Square Fountain

And the clock tower

Trying to strangle the knight in shining armour at the Reception

Le Chateau Spa & Wellness Resort, yet to be opened, this French-themed boutique spa hotel is modelled after the 18th Century medieval 'Haut Koesnigburg' Castle in Alsace, France and features exquisitely furnished rooms and suites.
However the shuttle only departed at 0855 hrs. An interesting visit, we saw many types of vegetables being grown organically, which means that no pesticides or chemical fertilizer are used.

However the shuttle only departed at 0855 hrs. An interesting visit to the organic farm, we saw many types of vegetables being grown organically, which means that no pesticides or chemical fertilizer are used.

Organic vegetables for sale

Vegetables growing at the organic farm

seedlings

tomatoes

brinjal

During the tour, we were given some cherry tomatoes to try. They were very crunchy and sweet. Next, we got to try some carrots, fresh carrots that were pulled up from the ground right in front of us. Again, they tasted very good. Some of the cabbages that had lots of holes due to caterpillars’ infestation would be fodder for some fish as we were informed. Next we got to try some baby cabbage, which was very crunchy, sweet and had a mild taste of wasabe as hubby indicated. This organic farm grows a variety of vegetables including long beans, winged beans, cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes, capsicum, etc… as we are nature lovers, we enjoyed the hour-long visit although we did not purchase any organic vegetables since they did not have what we wanted.

Fresh carrot plucked directly from the ground

Look at the size of the cabbage

And this is the 'fruit'... never ate cabbage raw like this before.. but it was great tasting! Hmmm... Don't mind going vegetarian if we could get great tasting vegetables like this everyday!

Burning away the weeds since no pesticides are used

Organic fertilizer

The shuttle picked us up at 1000 hrs back to our resort accommodation Colmar Tropicale, the French themed resort on Bukit Tinggi, owned by Berjaya Group. Thus it is now known as Berjaya Hills.

Upon returning to the resort accommodation Colmar Tropicale from the organic farm, we checked out of the room and placed our luggage into the car boot before proceeding to the shuttle waiting area to wait for the next shuttle to Japanese Village and Botanical Gardens at 1100 hrs.

Whilst waiting for the shuttle, we managed to get a few more shots of this beautiful resort accommodation.

Viewing tower

The love birds

Carnival games to try your luck

The Japanese Village, approximately 10 minutes away from the resort, is 3500 feet above sea level. It is a quaint and charming garden with a picturesque Japanese footpath that leads you to a waterfall and a bridge. Check out the Japanese Tea House and partake in the authentic Japanese tea ceremony or don the kimono for a photo taking session for a small fee.

Souvenir shop

The Japanese Gardens

Koi pond in the Japanese Gardens

Flowers to admire

The waterfall

Waiting room

Japanese tea house Where you can partake in the Japanese tea ceremony or rent a kimono

All things Japanese

Get a first hand experience of the Japanese art of relaxation at The Tatami Spa, the first of its kind in Malaysia. Try out the furo (spa bathing) or the onsen (outdoor Japanese hot rock bath).

If you are a nature lover, you will enjoy walking around the Botanical Gardens that is situated just next to the Japanese Village. Check out the various plants and highlands flowers spread around the 4-acre garden and enjoy the sights and sounds of nature. What we liked best was that they had names on most of the plants and a description that made for interesting reading.

Here is an example:-


Lovely highlands flowers



A number of professional bird watchers were there with their expensive bird-watching equipment. It looks like this place in Berjaya Hills is a popular site for bird watching.

Here there is also the famous Japanese restaurant, Ryo Zan Tei. Located in the midst of the tropical rain forest, enjoy the beautiful views of the Botanical Gardens whilst having a great meal.

Japanese restaurant - Ryo Zan Tei

We spent 2 hours up here at the Japanese Village and Botanical Gardens. The weather was cool in the shade but when you are out under the direct sunlight, it could be warm especially in the afternoon. When we were ready to leave the Japanese Village and the Botanical Gardens, we waited for the return shuttle at the waiting area at the entrance.

Once back at Colmare Tropicale Resort, we took another walk round the resort.

La Boulangerie

Various kinds of bread

The Arcade for kids

Part of the Convention Centre - but more like a castle to me

Upon saying our goodbyes to this beautiful highlands resort accommodation, we moved off at 1540 hrs. It was a short journey to Genting Highlands, our next stop. On the way up to the resort Genting Highlands, we made a stop at Gohtong Jaya, approximately half way up to Genting.

Map of Berjaya Hills






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Malaysia Vacation – Berjaya Hills and Genting Highlands Day 2 (2)

Genting Highlands, here we come!

It was a short journey to Genting Highlands from Berjaya Hills - Bukit Tinggi, our next stop. On the way up to the resort Genting Highlands, we made a stop at Gohtong Jaya, approximately half way up to Genting.

Here we went to one of the local shops selling Malaysia products and bought the speciality Chicken Biscuit at RM15.50 (USD4.50) per container. There is another brand retailing at RM12.50 (USD3.65) but was not as fragrant tasting.

Some of the goodies you can find in Gohtong Jaya

The shop with the special chicken biscuits

Care for some durians?

Fruits an vegetables for sale

Steamed sweet potatoes and peanuts

BBQ Pork Baked Buns Costing RM1.30 (USD0.40), the pastry was a little hard and the filling a little dry

We also had lunch here at one of the corner coffee shops with no English name. We ordered the bak kut teh (pork rib soup) and sambal kangkong (chilli vegetable). At RM13 (USD3.80) per person, the bak kut teh was slightly pricey and considered as tourist prices. It was not too bad and had quite a good quantity of ingredients although the soup was not refillable, which means that if you wanted extra soup, you would have had to pay for the extra soup which is normally provided free. We loved the sambal kangkong for the great taste. Somehow it was great tasting, nice and juicy. The total cost for lunch inclusive of Chinese cruellers and 2 cans of soft drinks came up to RM46 (USD13.40), a little on the high end

Lunch stop

Big and spacious

Sambal kangkong

Bak kut teh

Whilst having lunch, we were given a small cup of enzyme to try. This enzyme is supposed to be healthy and nutritious. Said to contain the benefit of antioxidant properties, Pitacacti Delight is blended using the red flesh dragon fruit and retails at RM65 (USD18.90).

Some benefits of Pitacacti Delight Dragon Fruit Enzyme :-
*rich in fibre and Vitamin C to enhance absorption of iron from non-meat sources
*iron as a factor in red blood cell formation
*protein to build and repair body tissues
*alleviates tiredness and improves sleeping pattern

Upon arriving at First World Hotel, we took approximate an hour and a half to find a parking space, take a queue number to check in and finally get our room key.

Depending on how you made your hotel reservations, you would need to be at the correct queue.

One of the queues to check in

Waiting for the queue number to collect the keys If you like, you can go to the casino and still check on your queue number...

Tired of waiting? Have an ice-cream!

One of six hotels at Genting Highlands Resort, First World Hotel is the world’s largest hotel with 6,118 rooms as acknowledged by the Guinness World Records and Ripley’s Believe It or Not in 2006.

As our room was complimentary, it was a very standard room with basic amenities and no view. Don't expect 5 star facilities as guests who stay here normally patronise the casinos and do not spend much time in the rooms.

HOLIDAY TRAVEL TIPS:-
If you like to try your hand in the casino, it is advisable to apply for the Genting WorldCard so that you can earn some points whilst trying your luck at the same time. With a promotion on now, you can get a free room night once you have earned 1 Genting Point on your card.

There you go!

Genting WorldCard

First World Genting Hotel

Very basic facilities

The bedroom

To attract more guests to the resort, there are now shuttle services provided from various locations in Malaysia to Genting Highlands.

The last time we were in Genting Highlands, we had missed their entertainment show Dazzle as the performers were off on that day. This time, to prevent us from missing the show again, we went to the booking counter to purchase the tickets. However, the normal seats at RM60 (USD17.40) were all fully booked for the night and only VIP seats at RM90 (USD26.10) were available. We decided to book the normal seat tickets for the next day instead.

Dazzle - 60 minutes of pure entertainment

TIPS FOR TRAVEL:-
Produce your WorldCard to get a 20% discount on ticket price and earn 10x World Points which you can use to redeem when you have sufficient points.

We then took a walk along Asian Cultural Village at First world Plaza where you could find shops featuring products from India, Middle East, Japan, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, China, etc…

Asian Cultural Village

There are other activities at First World Plaza:-

Rock Climbing

Local Delights

Believe It or Not

The Hulk

Genting Sky Venture - a state-of-the-art skydiving wind tunnel designed for the general public. It completely immerses visitors in the world of high adventure skydiving, without ever having to pack a parachute, pull a ripcord, or jump out from a perfectly good airplane in a thrilling, yet safe environment.

SnowWorld

Good Friends Restaurant

Sushi King

Country Tid-bits

Lao Di Fang

Next we bought a double scoop of ice cream from Baskin Robbins for RM16.30 (USD4.70). No discounts here unless you are a staff of Genting Highlands.

After enjoying the delicious ice-cream, we went to Star World Casino in First World Hotel. However, they used a different system here and we could not make use of our Genting WorldCard to earn Genting Points. Instead, we had to apply for a different card here in order to earn any points.

The Casino

That being the case, we took a shuttle bus from First World Hotel to Highlands Hotel and went to Casino de Royale where we could earn Genting Points with our Genting WorldCard. Unfortunately for us, luck was not on our side and we donated some money to the Casino.

When we returned to our accommodation at First World Genting Hotel, we called for shampoo to be sent to the room since there was none provided. To our surprise, they sent an amenity set.

The amenity set

How fast time flies when you are enjoying yourself! It is already the second day of our Malaysia vacation and having left Colmar Tropicale Resort in Berjaya Hills, we made our way to another highlands resort accommodation in Genting Highlands. We thoroughly enjoyed our trip to the Japanese Village and the Botanical Gardens in Bukit Tinggi where we were able to capture the sights of the lovely highlands flowers. A great highlands holiday!








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