CutiCuti: First Day in Johor

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong.

Kesinambungan from previous entry.

After checking in...we immediately went to the Odyssey office to exchange our voucher with the boarding pass & immigration card. Settled there, we went up to our room. Refreshed ourselves...performed our jama' & were ready to go out for lunch. It's already 3p, no wonder the tummy started singing off tune. Asked the receptionist to call the taxi for us. Few minutes of waiting, taxi arrived...and off we go to City Square. 

Initially we planned to have late lunch at Lat's Restaurant but since booking is needed prior going, we cancelled the plan & proceeded to the nearest mall from TH. 

View outside the hotel's lobby.

Since I booked only the basic room...we have to rent the towel. The rental comes in package with soap & shampoo. But knowing me, soap if forever a foe to my fussy skin. It will become dry & itchy. That's why I always bring my own shower cream when I travel. Anyway, for this towel+soap+shampoo package it costs us RM 6.00 each. That red sling pack is urs to take home. Jadi ulu macam kami, we hesitated at first whether can we take it or not. 

Perlu ok posing di situ...trip pelancong kan. After all, this is my second time to Johor Bahru after 15 years! The last time I went there, I didn't do any sightseeing. Nor did I stopped by to any shopping mall. City Square is just a 10 minutes drive from the hotel. It is situated in the heart of Johor Bahru. Connected with a bridge to the newly built Johor Sentral. Those who wish to go to Singapore can board the bus from the CIQ Immigration building opposite Johor Sentral. Before boarding the bus make sure sudah cop pasport ah. Insya Allah, next time I will try this method. 

We immediately entered the first restaurant we encountered. Obvious enough, huh. Lapar tahap gaban! 

Trio ladies trip it was. Enjoying our scrumptious meals at Season Cafe, City Square Mall. Their baked rice is worth trying! Penuh cheese!

After the late lunch...we wandered around the mall. The idea to visit Hello Kitty world popped out but Bunda straightaway rejected it. She suggested to just go back to our hotel & recharge for tomorrow's activity.

But I don't remember how the idea to go to the Johor Premium Outlet attracted her. We took taxi from the hotel to this place. Quite a distant I must say. JPO is surrounded by oil palm plantations & highways. Harus ada no. taxi because taxi don't just randomly roam around here. Unless kau bernasib baik, ada orang yang memang turun di JPO. Return taxi fare to & fro Tune Hotel - JPO cost about RM 60.00.

Fine, this I have to admit. I've successfully gained extra weight after coming back from this trip. Filling up the tummy was the main agenda. Sekian terima kasih. Pasal tu first place diterjah soon after we reached JPO was the food court. Kununlah minum petang...kununlah!

Cosy juga food court di JPO. Tempted to try the Korean dishes, Lele Penyet Jawa, Tom Yam Thai...subhanallah nafsu nafsu. Worry not, I managed to ignore that ridiculous appetite. Told myself, there will definitely be heavy dinner when we're back from JPO. Macam ndak makan setahun bah gaya. We settled for roti bakar & ice cham instead. Alhamdulillah gaya tembolok ndak berleluasa.

When I reached the hotel that afternoon, my eyes caught the signboard that I couldn't simply neglect. Tanam azam dalam hati akan dinner ikan bakar superb sedap that night. Harus dilaksana nanti kempunan ok. The next day akan cross over tambak Johor, bahaya kalau ndak terampit.

Brownie-us. Sudahlah dari KK matching PINK bersama. 

Superb dinner. Love the ulam²an...and the sambal belacan to the max! I went back to our room with happy tummy. And I hit the sack pretty early; excited kau mau jelajah negara si Merlion the next day!

eryantierdabdulkarim

CutiCuti: From KK to JB

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong.

Alhamdulillah. My recent short getaway ended blissfully. Second out-of-town ladies trip for Yours Truly. Poyo!

I purchased the Air Asia ticket few months before the trip. It was indeed an impromptu decision. Was checking randomly on the promotion tickets offered when I accidentally stumbled upon the super triple cheap fare. I didn't think twice. Clicked clicked clicked, filled the form & made payment. Voila! Two return tickets to Johor Bahru with Bunda. And yeah, Singapore came in mind the moment I decided to purchase the tickets. Main destination is definitely the Universal Studio that I've been meaning to visit ever since it was opened few years back. 

After finalizing the itineraries; I proceeded with hotel bookings, coach & entrance tickets purchasing. Knowing me, Bunda wasn't surprise when I told her that I bought flight tickets to Johor for both of us. All she said was

"Remind me the date so I can arrange the pekerja earlier"

And so...after months of waiting & planning, the day eventually arrived. Syukran Allah for the opportunity. On the 22^nd Feb, we together with a friend of mine departed to Johor at 10a. Arrived Senai International Airport after two hours & a half on board. Out from the arrival hall, I bought the coupon for airport taxi at the counter near the main door. A 20 minutes journey to Tune Hotel, Danga Bay from  the airport cost RM 44.00.

As we arrived early from the 2p check-in time, we wandered around the lobby & outside the hotel killing time taking random pictures. Lucky I've made the payment via online booking; thus we were able to check-in thirty minutes earlier. 

Very helpful counter people they are; answering every ridiculous questions we threw. Not ridiculous as in nonsense lah but there were too many what-s, how-s & where-s questions. Not to forget we asked for maps as well. Talking about tripping tourist? Whatever! Cuba ndak dilayan, harus terus aku cop annoying counter people. 

I chose this hotel despite it's not so cheap price because we have to catch the coach to USS very early the next morning. Sekali harung beli when making booking for the hotel. Excuses! It's more likely that I was too lazy to search for any cheap hotels nearby...which I found out later; there are a few actually. Located only spit away from TH. Offering cheaper rate! Malu bertanya sesat jalan. I have few Johorien friends, also friends who've been to Johor many times before yet I was too snob to ask. Serve me right. 

View from outside of Tune Hotel. Tabah menawaf luar kawasan because girlfriends who will be going to USS via the same method as mine next month requested a brief explanation about how-to-exchange-the-voucher for Odyssey coach to Universal Studio Singapore works. Note the rectangle yellow line...that's where the Odyssey office is. In between the 7-Eleven store & Compass Coaches office.

Zoom in. It's selca session bersama si Err. Sekian. This is the place where u need to exchange ur voucher for the boarding pass to USS situated right next to the hotel's lobby. It's very impossible to miss it. But remember, u could only get ur pass after checking in at the hotel. U will be given a voucher in which u shall bring to the Odyssey's office. Exchange it with the boarding pass & jot down ur details on the form at the counter. Kunun tu untuk book slot time padahal the only available slot time is 730a for departure from Johor & 730p departure from USS. 

Immigration card is also given. Fill in the form the night before...to avoid any chaos early in the morning. Isi siap²lah supaya ndak sawan kena panic attack time orang lain sibuk mau board coach. Sana mau pinjam pen bagai, sesak nafas ok!

One boarding pass is for the members in ur group so please make sure the number of pax written on the pass is correct. Else, kau nangis darah the next morning bila kena deny from boarding the coach. Date tu pun penting. Please double check the boarding pass before leaving the office. As they will close at 5p, any amendment or inquiries shall be made before that. For those arriving Johor after 5p; sila email or call pihak Odyssey for further details. 

The bestie always wonder how the TH's room looks like. Here! Our room for one night; standard twins room. We didn't take the coach back to Johor as scheduled for we booked a hotel in Singapore. Bunda wanted to spend at least a night there. 

And I said...what's the point going there if I didn't take the chance to see the Garden by the Bays by myself?! Ndak kan malar layan syok sendiri through gambar orang lain, kan?

p/s If u plan on visiting Tanjung Puteri Harbour; where the Lat's Restaurant, Legoland & Hello Kitty World are; u can get the information from the Odyssey office as well. Or if u wish to explore the place by urself, u can ask further details at the Tune Hotel's reception counter. But if u're going with kids,I suggest u to take the coach. Less hassle. Less headache; definitely.

eryantierdabdulkarim

Prosperous Feb: It has arrived!

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong.

Gone were the days where I could go out for massage session during lunch hour...or have luncheon date with my ladies. I could reach home early; I don't have to deal with the traffic jammed. Bliss!

And be home early means I could clean the house everyday; vac & mop. Things I love doing. More times playing with the children, too!

I started the day a bit gloomy. Me drama-ing. But my mood instantly turned super bright the moment I saw the delivery boy. Calling out my name & smile...like he always do whenever he enters the office. Nampak sangat semakin addicted with e-shop(s) sampai budak tu pun kenal kau Bie. 

The photobook I ordered from Photobook Malaysia has safely arrived this afternoon. Uber happy. Mau berpuluh kali sudah aku meninguk album tu. I purchased the deal offered in MyDeal few months back...at first I hesitated in completing the photobook. Lack of ideas was the excuse. It's just too time consuming to design the album. Therefore I waited until the semester break started. 

Alhamdulillah, wise choice. It turned out that the more free times I have, more ideas came naturally. I have three sweet weeks to complete two albums. After submitting my orders...regret embrace me. Why did I only purchase two vouchers??? sigh Now that the deal is over...menyesal adalah boleh buang ke longkang. 

I'm waiting for the second photobook to arrive. I've received an email containing the tracking number for the second order. Insya Allah it will arrive before the weekend. Can't wait!

Specially for a dear friend of mine; Ms Aima who requested me to blog about this photobook. Inilah ya hasilnya. Sila berkobar hati untuk membuat juga! 

Purposely chose the photo for the cover...trip artis memang gitu.

Perlu alert untuk deal super great dari Photobook Malaysia lagi. Volume 2 perlu diwujudkan. Ngek.

Memories...please don't fade. Looking at each of the photos in the album, saddened me. How I miss those moments I spent with my darling bestie there. One of the happiest holiday I ever had, alhamdulillah. 

Mau jejak kaki ke sana ndak tau bila lagi...sampai saat ini masih rasa seperti bermimpi. Sekian.

eryantierdabdulkarim

Prosperous Feb: Dot Dot Pimples

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong.

Pimples attack on the forehead! Stomach cramp every now & then. Not to forget, mild dizziness. And yeah, uncontrollable appetite! Long intro short...menses visiting, soon!

It's a relief having menses while travelling...I don't have to worry about having to perform my prayer. One of Allah's most precious gifts whenever I'm out exploring places. Apart from keeping me safe throughout my trip. 

I had my menses on the fourth day of my trip last June...and when I told the bestie it wasn't the time I should be having my cycle; she said to me "Allah bagi kau berjalan puas². Dia permudahkan." Enough to make me stop complaining & be grateful instead. Alhamdulillah. 

Like what had occurred in every trips before...I guess next week's is of no exception. I have more than 5 dots on my forehead at the moment; clearly indicating that menses will definitely come visiting soon.

Initially, I thought of performing my prayer at a place with less people in the theme park. I pray that spot exists. But much to my surprise, after few searching in the web I found out about the prayer room provided by the authority. Syukur. Problem solved. 

Yet like the bestie said, Allah bagi kau jalan. I'm having the pre-M syndrome since yesterday. I know I shall not gripe about this...but I can't hide the fact that I dislike the pimples. The ones that came tagging with the menses. Spoiler big time! 

Pictures say it all. While travelling I paid no attention to the dots. All I know was that I need to enjoyed myself & appreciate the journey. Only when I reached home will I be stressed about them. That is when I look at my photos. Lucky I ain't drama enough to photoshop the dots before printing the pictures. Let them be there; they deserved to be in the pictures. 

eryantierdabdulkarim

Prosperous Feb: Cuti Empat Hari

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong.

Oh yeah...dengan rasmi boleh lekat tanda "Boring Lady" sudah di dahi aku. Cuti empat hari aku kasi langsai sehabis kudrat. Rightttttttttt.

On Saturday, I spent the whole day at home! Bagus jugalah decision aku ndak mau jalan pigi mana² because I managed to complete few chapters of my Hanguk lessons. Kalau merayap sana sini lagi banyak aku melebur duit nanti. Malam tu download few of UKE's latest talks. Yay, ada bahan baru mau didengar dalam kereta.

And on Sunday, I managed to force my lazy bum to go out. Initial plan was to drive to Ranau with Ms Z. But Icha's mom tagged me in IG, informing about Icha's kenduri cukur jambul. Hence, we changed plan. Meriah sikit cuti aku yang hambar sebab kemalasan diri sendiri.

Berbaju kurung untuk attend dua kenduri. Donning the tudung I bought from sugarscarf. Super like the material...also the corak. Ndak pernah meroyan suka tudung express. Ni kalilahhh!

Pagi tu before naik Ranau, singgah dulu tempat Ms. K in Tuaran. Ndak sempat kami join berzanji & gunting jambul semua sebab kesuntukan masa. Yang penting, dapat jumpa sekejap. Update cerita semasa. 

Icha with her aunties; Mak Lang & Mak Uda. How time flies...macam baru jak budak kenit ni lahir bah.

Ummi Err & Ummi Zai with Auni*Nafisah binti Amrin. 

Adat kalau datang kenduri. Before balik, kena jamu perut biar sedikit. Menjaga hati tuan rumah, juga supaya orang yang mau jalan jauh macam kami...ndak kempunan. 

Selesai di Tuaran, we drove up to Ranau. Alhamdulillah selamat pergi & kembali. Albeit the gloomy weather...hujan sekali sekala. Tujuan utama mau jumpa Ms P yang berkurun kami ndak jumpa. Alang² dijemput to his lil bro's wedding reception. Sambil menyelam, minum air. 

Hidangan kami serba unik di sana. Nasi bungkus dalam daun ntah apa...it's purple. Beras pulut + ubi manis. My fav dish pun ada. Memang makan ndak hengat! Aku balun daging dari pagi sampai malam...

As a result, I had to cancel the plan to attend my cousin's wedding yesterday evening. I vomited almost everything I consumed soon after I reached home from Ranau. Cholesterol overload. Sesak dada tahan mual. Belum campur rasa minyak geli² di tekak. Serve me right! Makan ndak pernah beringat. Balun jak semua yang dihidang depan mata. Sudah lemah longlai baru menyesal bagai.

Having said that, yesterday aku berehat di rumah. Detoxified my system. By late evening, sudah beransur sihat. Lepas withdraw berkali² baru rasa lapar gila. Tapi harus makan dengan berhemah. 

To conclude my four days holiday...I went out after Zohor just now. Bawa si Chombee ni melawat Bunda's place in Sepanggar. Dari pagi bising meow non stop depan pintu, gian mau outing lah tu. So I brought him out, ambil udara luar. Sampai kedai...buat perangai mengada ndak mau jalan bagai. Chis! 

Tomorrow kena bangun awal. Fuh betapa malas diri ini! Luckily another three days before the weekend. Next week insya Allah tiba masa cuti release stress! My first out of KK town holiday in 2013. Yiihaa!!

eryantierdabdulkarim

Prosperous Feb: Si Jantungs Hati

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong.

Ada budak tu happy bukan kepalang. Apa ndak, bantal yang dia selalu bawa berebut sama aku sekarang sudah jadi hak mutlak dia. Macam orang kurang akal kau Bie, sama kucing kau boleh berebut bantal ah.

Now kalau Cheeloh @ Debab mau baring di tengah kah, hujung kah, di atas kah...ndak da sudah yang menghalau. Ndak da sudah yang akan angkat & pindah dia tempat lain. Aku pun jadi makin aman. Ndak da lah tiba² aku sesak nafas tengah malam sebab budak tu baring betul² atas muka aku. Ndak lah aku terkejut & terbangun just because budak tu keluar kuku; tolak aku sehabis kudrat. Pastu siap kasi signal aku supaya bagi ruang untuk dia baring juga. Mau sharing tapi melebih2 tu perangai. Hampas! 

Alang² aku pigi 1B kasi puas nafsu yang kebulur cheese cake...coincidentally Parkson pula buat sale; aku pun ambil peluang melebur duit. This is what I called a wise investment. Ala untuk 'malam tanpa gangguan budak debab', pelaburan macam ni memang pulangan beribu nikmat ok! 

*dusyum* Muka proud gila dapat bantal yang telah lama jadi pujaan hati. Kau ndak tau bantal Kakak lagi wangi...siap ada sachet lavender lagi. Untuk tidur yang tenang alkisah tujuan tu bantal dibuat. Apa jaklah kan. Janji si Debab ni ndak menyibuk mau share bantal bagai; tidur aku insya Allah memang aman damai. 

Tapi keriangan dia ndak lama sebab since last night...si kecil ni guna kuasa diktator 'aku bungsu jadi kau yang lebih besar a.k.a tua mestilah kena mengalah'. Being penyayang that he is...terpaksarela dia berkongsi. Bertambah sadis bila dapat adik yang sungguh ndak sedar diri, dicampak si Debab pigi tepi. Sama jak kes aku share bantal sama Kakak; gitu kali dalam hati dia ni kan. At least kalau muka kau kena tindih, Kakak angkat slowly; penuh kasih sayang. Dapat si Chompok ni, haru biru. Perut bah diterkam terus. 

Padahal kalau datang perangai bulldozer si Cheeloh...1 tangan jak dia tindih perut si Kecil @ Chompok. Terus menggelupur ah. Keluar meow paling minta belas kasihan. 

Anak...anak. Despite how stress life could be, balik rumah & nampak diorang terus hilang seteghes. Biarlah tengah malam or pagi buta diorang main police & thieves atas katil...aku jadi fortress, jadi tiang gol...sometimes aku dipijak macam ndak wujud jak atas katil tu.

Aku rela. Aku redha. Having them as part of my life is blissfulness. It's something beyond words to explain. Alhamdulillah for this opportunity Ya Rabb!

eryantierdabdulkarim

Prosperous Feb: Groupon-ing

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong.

Lately ketagih with deals offered at Groupon. Sila tahu aku baru berjinak tapi bau² regret sudah timbul ok. Inilah sebab musabab kenapa aku paling ndak suka akaun bank aku ada isi. Malar online shopping. Kesedaran paling zero. Selagi ndak sampai tahap kesian balance di bank, selagi tu non stop berbelian. Sedih sama perangai ndak da kesedaran ni.

Last Sunday, ada appointment di sini. I made a surprise new year gift to Bunda with a pamper package I bought from Groupon. Kunun release stresslah. But, servis adalah kureng memuaskan hati. Still bersyukur sebab dapat spent masa with Bunda though. 

Instead of the usual ratus² rate, we got a 74% discount for our 2 hours full body massage + foot massage & scrub + ear candling. Perhaps, terlampau banyak discount hence the service. Just my point of view. Suppose 45 mins for the foot massage & scrub tapi dapat less than 30 mins. Same goes with the full body massage. 60 mins reduced to 40 mins. Bunda sudah niat mau komplen tapi aku malas mau bising. Tengok pekerja sana pun macam kurang minat mau kerja, maybe sebab weekend kali kan. Whatever it is, Helen Beauty di CP juga jadi idaman kalbu. Super puas hati with their service. Harga pun berbaloi².

Had another body pampering session this evening. This time berjanji setia sama girlfriend pula. Girlfriend bonding session! Since she delivered her first baby last June, Ms G sudah brainwash aku with the words facial & body massage. She wants to do something to pamper herself. Reward. Aku harus trip menyelit sekali; bab self-reward ni memang pantang aku let go. Nampak jak deal super berbaloi, terus membaja racun. Luckily she bought my words...

Our 2.5 hour full body pamper package inclusive of full body massage + sea salt scrub + mask at Ratu Puri. Selalu aku berbody scrub di rumah; servis sendirian berhad terhadap diri sendiri. This time; for the first time ever...aku bergaya buat di beauty centre. Mainly because its cheap; I got 70% discount for 2 set of package. Talk about being calculative? NOT. It's more to being wise when it comes to financial management. Memang wise sangat! Kedekut tahap itik! Well, peluang harus direbut. Ala kalau bayar harga asal, mimpilah aku mau jejak. Rela aku body scrub di rumah.

Another impulsive purchase, maybe. Fine, yang ni aku memang niat mau beli lama sudah. So bila nampak great deal for this thing, haruslah aku tunaikan hajat. Bukan disposable pun, benda boleh guna lama &  insya Allah berkali². Memang worth it. Favorite color pun ada. Maka kejadian menyambar pun berlangsung. 

For 72% discount, I got my 5-piece travel bag organizer. Honestly, nampak jak Made in Korea in the description column...terus bulat nekad aku untuk beli, ok! Memang penyakit Hallyu aku belum berkesudahan.

Now that I have separate storing for my clothes, toiletries & stuffs...baru confident lebih untuk packing. Padahal before ni ndak da pun problem with the way u pack ur luggage kan Bie. Barang kau bawa jak selalu lebih dari perlu. Never with separate storing though. Makin naik umur, makin malas aku menggulung baju. The one thing I love doing when packing. Fuh!

Hmm...masih akan menggulung. Just this time, my luggage will be more organize. Ndak lah aku susah payah menyelit benda yang patut diselit. Ngek! Alasan untuk justify ur purchase memang perlu panjang menjela. Kan, Bie. 

*credit all pictures to Groupon.com.my*

eryantierdabdulkarim