Sydney 22 Jan – 28 Jan 09 **Days 6 & 7

Old fashioned bus

Day 6 Vacation in Sydney

Today saw us waking up at 0530hrs as we had two persons in our group who were going for the Sydney Sky diving adventure. At AUD275, you get free return transfers from their office along Wentworth Ave, a full colour jump certificate and an awesome, unbeatable mad minute of freefall from 14,000 ft. If you would like a DVD of your tandem skydive jump, that would cost another AUD99 or AUD120 if you include the DVD and photos on CD as well.

The plane that brings you up

Cramped in the plane

For every additional person who wished to go along to witness the extreme adventure experience of their loved ones had to pay AUD30 just for the free return transfers.



Fortunately, the drizzle stopped and the sky cleared up enough to carry on with the jump.


Being briefed on safety aspects

All ready for the jump!

If you are prone to motion sickness, my recommendation is that you do not do the jump as it can be quite dizzy especially when they spin the parachute. If you have a heart of steel and game for some exciting extreme adventure, then go for it.
Danger - Parachute Landing Zone

Preparing to jump out of the plane

Am I a bird, a plane? Superman!

Admiring the view...

Exhilirating!

Passed with flying colours!

Give yourself half a day for this although getting into the plane and jumping off lasts less than fifteen minutes. It was an exhilirating experience for the skydivers and though it was a heart-stopping moment up there during the jump out of the plane, they all agreed that it was worth the experience!

Walking by St Andrew's Cathedral

Interesting sight

After the amazing experience and the return to Wentworth Ave, we walked past Elizabeth St and strolled along Pitt St where we entered any shops we fancied along the way. Interestingly, it was still drizzling in the city.

As we passed Piccadilly Arcade along Pitt St, we saw Kumfs, the shoe store which has a long history and strong reputation for making women's shoes with style, quality, fit and uncompromising comfort. With its origins as a company founded by podiatrists, Kumfs continues to use in-depth anatomical knowledge of feet as the basis of footwear design. However, we were not able to get the design and size that we wanted. What a pity as they were good buys!

shopping for souvenirs

No worries… As we walked into Sydney Central Plaza along George St, we saw Ecco, another shoe shop that combined their vast experience in advanced footwear technology with an incredible diversity of design tastes, and comfortable shoes in many styles.

Shoes, shoes, shoes....

**Interesting fact:- On an average day you take 15,000 steps and the foot perspires 200ml of sweat. With every step you take the 26 bones, 20 muscles and 112 ligaments in each foot are subjected to approximately twice your body weight. **

A cafe

We had a quick lunch at Hungry Jack’s, the exclusive Australian master food franchisee of Burger King Corporation, and continued on with our shopping before we fly off tomorrow.

We passed by Sydney Tower, previously known as Centrepoint. It was shrouded in the clouds due to the weather today.

Queen Victoria Building

Spiral staircase in QVB

The emblem

Walking along Market St, we entered Queen Victoria Building, also lovingly known as QVB. With its stunning architecture, intricate tiled floors and domed roof, the QVB was build in 1898 as a monument to the reigning monarch. There are jewelers, cafes, antique stores and a wide range of international boutiques in QVB.

Just outside the shops

Passing by George Street, you will come across Myer, a major department store in Australia offering Australian and international designer couture, cosmetics, gifts and homewares.
You will also pass by the Strand Arcade, another Victorian-era shopping hub between Pitt and George Streets, with shops and eateries.

Dinner saw us at Steersons Steakhouse on Lime Street, King Street Wharf. A sleek and stylish venue with spectacular water views overlooking Darling Harbour. With an air of sophistication this modern restaurant offers an elegant dining experience in a tranquil environment.

Steersons

Waiting for the meal

Angus top loin

Angus strip loin - more juicy & tender

We were there before 1800 hrs and the sun was shining into the restaurant pretty strongly at that time. In fact, it was still bright at 2000 hrs. Guess that is summer. Those of us who took the Angus top sirloin found the meat thick and slightly tough. A better alternative was the Angus striploin which was more juicy and tender. You could also have the set meal of Angus beef with a glass of Shiraz, the housewine for less than AUD40.

Water taxi

Beautiful sunset

Next stop was the IMAX theatre which houses the world’s largest movie screen which is more than eight storeys high. This high-tech screen is designed to give audiences the ultimate film experience.

IMAX films are ten times larger than in traditional cinemas and are created specially for the IMAX format in both 2D and the incredibly life-like 3D. Open 7 days a week, the IMAX theatre screens various films from 1000hrs. Most of the films that were screened lasted between forty to fifty minutes and cost AUD19.50 per adult ticket, AUD14.50 per child, AUD16.50 for a concession ticket and AUD56.00 for a family of 2 adults and 2 kids. Full length features lasting sixty minutes or more cost AUD25 per adult. We booked the ticket for Haunted Castle at 2200hrs.

As we had approximately two hours to spare before the show, we decided to visit the Sydney Aquarium and take the journey through Australia’s rich and diverse marine ecosystems and discover over 12,000 all-Australian aquatic animals. Here, we were fortunate to find someone with a 25% discount coupon and managed to buy our tickets together with his at a discounted rate. The Aquarium opens from 0900hrs to 2200hrs.

There were lots of underwater walks and you could see dozens of fearsome sharks and majestic giant rays as they pass overhead. Many interesting sea creatures could be seen including the dugong, a large, strictly-marine herbivorous mammal.

Sydney Aquarium

reef

Nemo?

After the Sydney Aquarium, we headed back to the IMAX theatre to watch the Haunted Castle. Here you are given those special spectacles in order to see the 3D effects. I have to admit that the 3D movie experience was on of the most immersive I’ve been to. The images just seem to leap off the screen and creating the illusion that it is so close to you and that you are able to touch it. A very unique effect. The storyline though could have been better.

With IMAX glasses on


Day 7 - last few hours in Sydney

It seems that our short and enjoyable time in Sydney has come to an end. We woke up late and the youngsters went to the small little arcade in the complex. Check out time was 1100hrs and we did some last minute shopping at Coles, just five minutes walk away. Lunched at the Chinese noodle restaurant in the Star City complex before the coach picked us up at 1300 hrs to the Sydney International Airport for our flight on SQ222.

The lift area of Star City Hotel

Had a walk through the duty free shops and there were some pretty good bargains especially for the cameras where you could get a Panasonic LS80, 8.1 mega pixels at just AUD99 with any purchase.

Boarding time was at 1540 hrs and the flight was smooth. This time we managed to sit on the upper deck. Somehow it seemed to be a better experience than the trip to Sydney. Reached Singapore Changi Airport approximately 2100 hrs and it was a breeze going through the immigration and customs.

Ipoh and Kuala Lumpur 25 Dec - 28 Dec 08 Part 2

The huge & spacious room in Holiday Villa Subang Jaya

Continuing on our Christmas vacation to Kuala Lumpur, we checked into Holiday Villa Subang Jaya. The standard rooms are huge and spacious and a range of recreational facilities for fun and leisure are offered including:-
* fully equipped gym
* steam bath
* games room
* music room
* squash/badminton & tennis courts
* olympic-sized swimming pool
* children's pool
* learner's pool
* wading pool
* outdoor jacuzzi
* 'Pins and Balls' 10-lane bowling alley
* Snooker Room
* Oxford Room Library
* Business Centre
* Florist
* Hair Saloon

Olympic sized swimming pool

A variety of food and beverage outlets are available to suit your taste buds, ranging from Italian to Japanese to Thai and Chinese. If you are in a dancing mood, head on down to La Vida Lounge where the in-house live bands perform nightly. Better still, if you prefer to sing your heart out, then Lifestyles Karaoke is the place to go.

Being a Buffet Club Card member in Singapore, we are entitled to 3 days 2 nights free accommodation in certain hotels, Holiday Villa being one of them. Hotel guests are given free parking.

Made our way to 1 Utama Shopping Centre. It is huge! Anchor tenants Jusco and Parksons are familiar names. However, there are many unfamiliar names like John King's since 1965, Dave's Deli, Caffe 1920, Korean Satay and Yippee Cup as well. Action City, a concept shop is also there. Attractive and uniquely designed jellies can be ordered from Q Jelly Bakery located on the lower ground. They also have a website www.qjelly.com if you are looking to order some specially designed jellies for any special occassion.

1 Utama's Christmas decoration

For dinner, our friends brought us to Tak Fook Seafood Restaurant in Kepong area. It was packed. You not only have to queue for your seats, but due to the fantastic business, we were only allowed to order 1.5kg of crab for the 6 of us. As we were all hungry, we decided that 1.5kg was not enough for all of us and thus walked over to Dim Sum VG across the road. Although this is not a seafood restaurant, it serves fresh seafood. We had fish head curry, steamed prawns, bittergourd, crab and mantis prawn and deep fried cuttlefish. Bill came up to RM110, a price you can't get in Singapore.

Dinner at Resoran Dim Sum VG

Visited Sunway Pyramid where you can see the sphinx at the entrance. Sunway Lagoon and 2 hotels are nearby. A mega shopping centre where you can find lots of interesting shops if you bother to walk around. Lots of upscale outlets and exceptional leisure facilities. For entertainment, you can go to any of the 10 cinemas or 48-lane bowling alley. The Archery is where you can test our skills with the bow and arrow and the ice skating rink, your balance. Tried Sushi King for lunch where you get sushi on the conveyor belt. Price range from RM2 - RM6 depending on the colour of the plates you choose. Pretty reasonable prices!

Sunway Pyramid's Christmas decoration Sushi King where we had lunch

Archery & Ice Skating

After shopping, your aching feet and tired body could use some pampering at Reborn Healthcare at the basement. Here you can destress and pamper yourself as well as reap long-term rewards for your health. Foot reflexology is able to help you:-
* relieve stress and reduce tiredness
* relax muscles and stimulate nerve connections
* improve blood circulation and oxygenation
* improve lymhatic flow and drainage
* strengthen body and improve immune system
* revitalise and increase energy

At the same time, if you would like to experience the oldest form of authentic therapeutic massage, you can try the Tui Na which applies the principles of acupressure to bring the body back into balance in order to heal it. Tui Na Therapeutic massage is a natural and non-invasive therapy and is effective in treating or complementing many medical conditions.

If you are a frequent traveller to Malaysia, be it for vacation or business, you might want to consider getting a J-card from Jusco department store. This card is similar to our credit cards where you can enjoy privileged shopping at over 500 shopping partners around Malaysia including food and beverage, specialty shops, fashion, services, hotels and resorts. Most of the shopping partners offer you some sort of discount or other making it a very worthwhile RM12 that you pay for a whole year. At the same time, when you shop at Jusco, you are able to collect points which can be redeemed for gifts or exchanged for rebate gift vouchers. There are also specially priced supermarket items just for J-Card members. Applications for the J-Card are open to all residents of Malaysia and Singapore aged 18 years and above. A great bargain!

Batam Day Trip 8 Dec 08

Went on a day trip to Batam on our own. Arrived at Singapore Harbourfront Terminal and booked a return ferry to Sekupang Batam at Batam Fast counter SGD40/pax. This included the SGD15 fuel charge and SGD6 passenger departure fee but excluded the SGD7 to be paid in Batam (SGD6 passenger departure fee and SGD1 insurance). There are basically three main carriers to Batam i.e. Batam Fast, Penguin and Wavemaster. Managed to get the 9.20am ferry which was delayed and we finally took off half an hour later.

Upon arrival at Sekupang, we cleared immigration with ease. For those who require a visa for entry, you can apply on the spot. We realised that it was not the correct terminal for shopping at Megamall - Batam Cnetre when we reached the foyer. For Rp70,000 (RP7,500 = SGD1), it took us another thirty minutes drive to reach Megamall by cab. It then dawned on us that we should have taken the ferry to Batam Centre ferry terminal in the first place.

Comparing Megamall - Batam Centre to Nagoya Hill shopping centre where we went to during our last trip, the former is smaller and of a higher class. Lots of well-known international eateries like KFC, Pizza Hut and A&W abound. A limited variety of local food can be found either at the Food City on Level 2. More varieties can be found at the various family restaurants like Ayam Goreng Fatmanati and Pempek Kollecta on Level 1 or Solaria and Bakso on Ground Level.

A&W outlet

We adjourned to Gadeno New York Pizza & Steak on Level 2 for lunch. Ordered the Twin A set comprising a pan pizza, sirloin steak, fries and 2 glasses of coke for Rp90,000. Real value for money. Offering free hot spot if you want to surt the internet, Gadeno offers a cozy ambience, attractive prices and great service with friendly staff. Our sirloin steak came with black pepper sauce and was succulent and tender, cooked to perfection. The crust of the pan pizza is similar to that of the pan pizza served in Pizza Hut.

Sirloin steak................................Pan pizza

If you are not up for steak and pizza, you can go for spaghetti, fruit salad or set meals with rice. Or you could choose from their side dishes like onion rings, chicken nugget, spicy wings or pastry puff soup. To accompany the meal, you could have juice, milkshake, float or smoothie amongst other options. A banana split ended our great meal.

Gadeno.......................... Banana split

If you are feeling stressed out, you could pamper yourself with a royal relaxing massage on Level 2 by a Grand Odiseus Spa professional therapist. Massages start from Rp 165,000 upwards.

Alternatively you could just go for a movie show and relax there or play some video games, all located on Level 2. A few tables and chairs in the foyer area are available for you to wait for your movie to start or your kids to finish playing.

While you are at the cinema area, we suggest using the restroom here as it is much cleaner, brighter and has no short supply of toilet paper.

A simple wash and haircut will set you back by just Rp29,000 at Christopher's Salon on Level 1. You could also have a sixty minute foot reflexology done there at Rp35,000. If you are a little more adventurous, you can try the hour and a half 3 in 1 Reflexology for Rp67,500. This 3 in 1 reflexology comprise foot reflexology, back, head and hand massage. Feels good!

Foot reflexology..........3 in 1 reflexology

Matahari department store spread over two levels and Hypermart on Lower Ground are local brands. You can find some gems in Hypermart. For example, the French bread similar to a baguette was on offer at only Rp5,500 here whereas an actual baguette in Bread Talk was going for Rp16,000.

If you run short of Rupiah, there are two money changers on the ground floor and one in front of Hypermart on Lower Ground. Suggest you check out the exchange rates with the one on the Lower Ground as we found that to offer the best rate amongst the three.

Number 61 on Ground floor had some good bargains too. We managed to get some bermudas for Rp80,000 and t-shirts for Rp65,000.

Bread Talk, a Singapore confectionery, has a good following here. Prices of their items suit the local market, thus explaining the queue. This is comparable with the local brand J Co Donuts & Coffee. Accordingly we heard that the donuts here are 'softer and taste better' than those sold in Singapore. Moverover it costs only Rp 30,000 for half a dozen, Rp53,000 for one dozen and Rp 91,000 for two dozen. The donuts are sold by the dozens. They disappear as soon as they get on the shelves, thus needing to be constantly replenished.

J.Co Donuts & Coffee

If you are going to Batam during the weekend or on a public holiday especially so if it is a long weekend, do ensure that you confirm the timing of your return ferry as soon as you arrive in Batam to avoid getting stranded and not being able to get a ferry back to Singapore which almost happened to us. Fortunately for us, we managed to get the last two out of three available seats on the last ferry back at 9.30pm Indonesian time, 10.30pm Singapore time.

Whilst crossing the overhead bridge from Megamall - Batam Centre to the Batam Centre ferry terminal at 8.30pm to catch our ferry home, we could see lots of cars still in the Megamall carpark. This testifies to the fact that Megamall is also a place where the locals hang out.

By the time we arrived in Singapore and cleared customs and immigration, the mrt station was already closed. Being left with no choice, we had to join the long queue for a taxi which fortunately kept coming in and there was a constant stream. This could most probably be attributed to the fact that the midnight surcharge had already begun.

A word of caution. If you still have some Rupiah left, do get them changed back to your local currency. This is due to the fact that their currency can expire and this frequently happens when a new government takes over.

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