Hard Rock Hotel, Penang

So, a couple of weekends ago, we headed up north for a short school holidays getaway. Our venue of choice? The Hard Rock Hotel in Batu Feringghi, Penang! Funny thing is, I've had a few opportunities to stay here via work, but the timing was never right. So this was gonna be my first time along with the fam.

We took a flight on AirAsia which was filled with screaming kids, so thank God the journey was only for an hour and nothing more. We then took a taxi to the hotel for RM69. And really, a BIG chunk of our budget  was for cab fares, but more on that after this. And oh, I actually booked the whole package through airasiago, so it was pretty convenient.

We reached the hotel close to an hour later, but hey, instantly we were greeted by a carnival-like atmosphere complete with running-kids, chasing-parents and cool, loud music. Check-in was a breeze and we then went up to the room to check things out.

The room wasn't exactly huge but they're clever enough to hide the fact with cool decor. It was also well equipped with flat-screen TV, iPod dock and DVD player. And the seaview was pretty awesome.

By then we were also famished, so we headed to the Pizzeria. There are four main makan places here; the lobby lounge, Starz cafe where would have our breakfast buffet, Hard Rock Cafe (duh) and the Pizzeria.

Naturally we ordered the pizza and it turned to be quite good. The ingredients were fresh and it was wood oven-roasted to perfection. If only they had some sort of hot sauce though!

We hung out for a bit after that and had a big dinner at Hard Rock Cafe later in the day, and bought some stuff at the Rock Shop.

After that we just lepak-ed by the pool, looking at the stars with "live" music playing from the lobby in the background.

The next day, it was time to check out the breakfast buffet (which was pretty decent) and the other stuff on offer. The Kids Club had a full program if the young ones want to join, so Tia started the day with an art class. Daddy meanwhile, went to the gym : )

Afternoon came, and we headed out to town for some yummy Penang food. We took a taxi there and told the guy our intentions. He suggested to wait for us and even took us to the beca "stand" for our joyride.

The famous Penang Road chendul was the first stop. There was a bit of a queue but it was well worth it when our chendul and ABC came. Simply out of this world!.

Then it was off to Line Clear nasi kandar. An even LONGER line queue awaited us, so we just had to savour every single calorie-rich dish we ordered. Haha.

It was then back to the hotel, and in case you're wondering, the taxi fare came up to around RM130 while we also paid RM20 for the beca. It ain't cheap, I tell ya.

Pool action was up next. A major attraction here, the pools have a fun layout with slides and tubes for rent. Memamg best lah.

And at 5pm, it was time for the kids' foam party! RM20 to get in, it was great fun that's not usually available elsewhere.

In case you're wondering, the beach nearby is pretty decent but it's not for swimming because of  the less than crystal clear waters and jellyfish. But nice for a jog or a walk.

At night, we walked over to the makan area at Feringghi and tried out one of the restaurants. Still smarting from the fact that we missed out on some great seafood in Kota Kinabalu, I just had to order the lobster. Haha!

The next morning, we took a cab to Youth Park at Penang Botanical Gardens for the Larian 40 Taman. It was the same cab, and this time I had to fork out around RM90. Phew! After that we just took our time to chill and relax.

We checked-out at noon and the same cabbie to us to the airport. Overall, a good first experience at Hard Rock Hotel Penang. It really has everything for a good family holiday, but make sure you have enough moolah for cab fares if you want to venture elsewhere on the island. Will we return? Heck yeah!

Euro 2012 Starts Tonight! Catch The Matches On TV3 & ntv7!

Tonight's the night! 16 of Europe's best footballing nations go to battle to be crowned UEFA's champions of Europe! And you can catch the first game, Poland vs Greece, "live" on TV3 tonight at midnight.

Even better, if you don't have any plans yet, pop by Sri Pentas starting 8pm for the Euro Viewing Party, with loads of games and entertainment, plus a chance to win a trip to Old Trafford, Manchester!

TV3 will be showing 13 "live" matches while ntv7 will have the rest on delayed telecast. You can also catch all the games online, on tonton.com.my.

And specially for Euro 2012, TV3 has invited former Man U and Arsenal player, and the first Black player to play for England, Viv Anderson, to be its guest pundit.

I had the pleasure of talking to Anderson and Abu Bakar Atan yesterday on MHI but the 10 minutes flew by just like that. Tak cukup lah!

But really, Anderson's presence will definitely spice things up for TV3's coverage of the tournament. Here we go!

Welcome, The New Liverpool... Jersey!

So I came back from MHI yesterday and saw this email...

Woot! The new Liverpool jersey I ordered online had arrived in Subang! But here was the catch, we had a 1.35pm flight to Penang, so the question was, will the DHL guy come on time?

From thereon, I was literally at the edge of the sofa, constantly looking at the clock, and praying for a DHL van to pop up in front of the house.

I waited and waited, and declared 11.45 would be the latest we'd leave the house for the airport.

11.45 arrived and still there was nothing. Dejectedly, I loaded the bags into the car and we drove away. BUT...

As we reached the turning into the main road, a DHL van came from the opposite direction. Woot! BUT... the van then made a u-turn, instead of heading for our house. "Kejar, kejar!" said wifey. And so I chased after the van, for a good few hundred metres at that.

The van finally stopped at a furniture shop. I got out and asked if he had a package for my address. And the answer was... YES! Showed him my IC and signed for it and the package was in my hands now. Muahahaha...

They promised delivery on June 1st and they delivered. And for the first batch of online purchases, we also got a GBP20 Warrior Liverpool T-shirt for free!

And of course I just had to change into the brand new LFC jersey once we reached the airport...

Jalan-Jalan Cuti Sekolah: 5 Cadangan Untuk Anda

Cuti sekolah telah pun bermula, hurray! Untuk yang bekerja, hurray sebab jalan tak berapa sesak. Cuba periksa tekanan darah sepanjang minggu ini, mesti tak setinggi waktu-waktu lain. Sampai ofis pun boleh tersenyum. Tapi ya, senyuman itu pasti lebih lebar kalau pergi bercuti meninggalkan haruk pikuk kotaraya dan email yang tak putus-putus masuk mengganggu ketenangan melayan facebook. Haha. Bagi yang mempunyai selambak lagi cuti tapi tak tahu ke mana, ini ada lima cadangan:


1. Johor Bahru
Sudah tentulah bermula dengan kampung halaman saya. Harus diakui, JB bukanlah destinasi utama bila berfikir tentang percutian hebat seisi keluarga (sekurang-kurangnya belum LAGI, tunggulah Legoland buka nanti), dan biasanya "pitch" yang diberikan kalau nak ke JB ialah, "Dekat dengan Singapore lah". Tapi hei, banyak yang boleh diterokai lebih-lebih bab makan; mee rebus, otak-otak, kacang pol, lontong, goreng pisang... ah, baru menulis je dah rasa nak balik JB sekarang jugak (ataupun pergi "lunch" di D'Cengkih TTDI).

Tapi ya, kalau anda tahu mana untuk pergi, percutian makan-makan di JB akan menjanjikan sesuatu yang sudah tentu menyedapkan (walaupun program diet anda akan sedikit terganggu). Untuk cadangan-cadangan mesti-pergi di JB, klik SINI dan SINI.

Oh ya, pengalaman membeli-belah di JB semakin berbaloi dengan adanya Johor Premium Outlets. Lebih 80 kedai berjenama menanti anda dengan diskaun-diskaun menarik. OKlah, kalau anda golongan "elitist" yang tidak membeli barangan dari "musim" lalu, mungkin Singapura destinasi yang lebih sesuai, tapi percayalah, yang diperlukan adalah keyakinan diri yang tinggi untuk ketrampilan yang menarik, bukan sekadar dengan membeli Burberry koleksi musim luruh terkini membuat anda dipandang tinggi. Hehe. Untuk maklumat lanjut, klik SINI.

Bagaimana dengan tempat penginapan? Selain daripada rumah saudara-mara yang anda boleh "crash", banyak hotel di bandaraya ini untuk pelbagai bajet. Di tengah-tengah JB sendiri, saya cadangkan Thistle (dengan kolam renang besar) ataupun Puteri Pacific (dengan kolam renang tak berapa besar). Kedua-dua hotel ini berhampiran dengan tempat-tempat makan yang penting. Kalau di luar JB sedikit, mungkin boleh cuba Scholar's Inn dalam perkarangan UTM.

2. Melaka
Masih lagi di selatan tanahair, Melaka sarat dengan tarikan sejarahnya, fakta yang saya yakin anda semua pun tahu. Cuma perlu bersedia untuk kesesakan di kawasan pusat bandar, lebih-lebih lagi musim cuti ini. Jadi, mungkin saya boleh cadangkan sebuah "resort" yang terletak berhampiran dengan tol Ayer Keroh, Philea Resort & Spa.

Dengan persekitaran di tengah-tengah alam semulajadi, Philea memang sesuai untk cuti seisi keluarga. Kolam renangnya besar dan banyak aktiviti yang boleh dilakukan. Klik SINI untuk maklumat lanjut.

Dan kalau tinggal berhampiran kawasan Ayer Keroh, memang banyak tempat-tempat menarik boleh dikunjungi termasuk Taman Buaya, Taman Rama Rama, Zoo dan yang MESTI-PERGI, Taman Botanikal Melaka.

3. Kuala Lumpur
Buat yang di luar Lembah Klang, KL destinasi yang "no-brainer". Rasanya tak perlu sebut tempat-tempat menarik di KL, semua pun dah tahu. Cuma nak bagi cadangan untuk beberapa hotel di tengah-tengah bandaraya. Dan sebenarnya, warga KL pun wajar sekali-sekala "bercuti" di KL sendiri, pasti anda akan dapat melihat dan mengalami sisi lain bandaraya ini.

OK, yang pertama saya boleh cadangkan ialah PNB Darby Park di Jalan Binjai. Saya diberitahu ini hotel kegemaran Yusuf Islam. Setiap kali kalau berkunjung ke sini, PNB Darby Park jadi pilihan. Di sini juga saya pernah menemubual beliau untuk program MHI.

Pertama sekali, hotel ini memberikan "view" KL yang sangat mengujakan.

Selain itu, PNB Darby Park juga terkenal dengan The 39 Restaurant. Terletak di tingkat (apa lagi) 39, restoran ini juga menjanjikan pemandangan kota yang indah selain hidangan masakan tempatan yang sedap secara konsisten.

Sebuah lagi hotel cadangan saya ialah The Royale Chulan di Jalan Conlay. Menjadi tumpuan pelancong asing khasnya, hotel ini memang di dalam kelasnya tersendiri. Bilik-biliknya dihiasi perabot berkualiti dan fasiliti yang disediakan di sini memang tidak mengecewakan.

Saya pernah mencuba dua restoran di sini, L'Heritage yang menghidangkan makanan Perancis dan Warisan Cafe untuk buffet sarapan dan juga makan malam. Memang puas hati. Lokasinya yang berdekatan dengan KLCC dan Pavilion juga merupakan satu tarikan utama.  


4. Pulau Pinang
Ke utara tanahair pula! Walaupun kali terakhir saya ke sana adalah untuk berlari dalam Penang Bridge International Marathon, kunjungan itu sangat diingati kerana, ya betul, makanan-makanan sedap yang sempat saya jamah, termasuklah nasi kandar, kuey teow, cendol dan lain-lain lagi. Untuk pengalaman penuh saya, klik SINI.

Bagi tempat penginapan pula, kalau anda berkereta, Eastin adalah pilihan yang baik. Terletak bersebelahan dengan Queensbay Mall yang sangat popular, ianya juga tidak begitu jauh dari tempat-tempat tumpuan di Pulau Pinang. Menarik juga dari hotel ini, anda boleh melihat kedua-dua jambatan yang sedia ada, dan jambatan baru yang sedang dibina.

Tapi mungkin juga saya boleh cadangkan tinggal satu malam di kawasan bandaraya Georgetown dan dua malam di kawasan Batu Ferringhi untuk pengalaman Pulau Pinang yang lengkap.

5. Perth, Australia
Untuk yang mempunyai bajet lebih (sebab pandai simpan duit bonus, atau baru mendapat pulangan cukai pendapatan), dan ingin berkunjung ke negeri Mat Salleh, cubalah Perth! Kenapa Perth? Perjalanannya tidak berapa jauh (sekitar 5 jam), boleh dapatkan package menarik melalui AirAsia (pernah dapat tiket "flight" RM1.5k saja untuk dua orang), dan Perth mempunyai pelbagai tarikan dalam dan luar bandar.

Percutian 5 hari 4 malam boleh mencukupi untuk kunjungan kali pertama. Antara yang menarik: Kings Park, Fremantle dan Rottnest Island. Cuma Perth bukan destinasi untuk membeli-belah, kecuali cenderamata untuk rakan dan saudara mara yang kuat berkecil hati. Baca pengalaman saya sendiri di SINI, SINI dan SINI.

Selamat bercuti!

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Sertai program YAY! CUTI SEKOLAH 2016 BERSAMA SELEBRITI & PROFESIONAL. Hubungi 012-3456055 atau layari www.yougotraining.com untuk maklumat lanjut & pendaftaran