A weekend in Batam: Day 2

None of us could sleep very well on a strange bed and we were up by 7 the next morning. We went down to the Wangi Melati cafe for a buffet breakfast, that was included in the hotel accommodation. There was a decent variety of Western, Chinese and Indonesian food and the service was really good. Their pastries and coffee were very nice and the egg station was quite popular.

After enjoying a long breakfast, we went for another walk along the beach. We were too lazy to go for any water sports and decided to hang out by the pool for the rest of the morning before check-out.

We were waiting at the lobby after check-out for the shuttle bus to the ferry terminal while one of the hotel staff informed us that the ferry leaving at 13:20 was full and we would have to take the next one, which was 2.5 hours later. I insisted that I have booked 3 seats in advance and was given confirmation by the ferry company weeks ago. It took us 15 minutes to persuade him to call the company, which confirmed our seats to him over the phone. It would not have been a big deal to delay the return trip but we did feel that he was a bit too pushy.

We managed to get a seat on the upper deck this time so the ride home was a lot more comfortable. 40 minutes later we were back to reality from a really relaxing weekend.

Batam is quite a big island and transportation is quite inconvenient so picking the right hotel is important. The hotels in the central area are cheaper and suitable for people who want to go to the mall, the outlets and the spa and have more choices for food. Most resorts have direct access to the beach and have better views of the coast. I think there are nicer and cheaper places for water sports so I would not recommend Batam for it. But being so close to Singapore, its beautiful weather and affordable resorts make Batam perfect for a short weekend getaway.

A weekend in Batam: Day 1

The idea of going to Batam started when we saw various travel packages being sold on the deal websites. Most of the offers were for hotels in the city area whereas we were looking for a beach resort. In the end we made the booking on Agoda for a mid-range hotel called Batam Beach View Resort, located in the north-eastern part of the island called Nongsa. A 3-bed room cost us SG$183.

Ferries leave for Nongsapura Ferry Terminal from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal in Singapore almost hourly and return tickets can be booked ahead for SG$42. We arrived at the terminal an hour ahead for the 11am ferry for immigration clearance. There was no indication of the destinations from the different boarding gates so we had to asked the people who were already lining up. Our ferry had a slight delay of 10 minutes and had limited seating on the upper deck. We had to sit on the lower deck with no view from the windows. Luckily the journey was only 40 min and we slept through most of it.

Batam's weather was glorious and the sky was stunningly blue. Once we were at the terminal we were greeted by staff from Batam View Beach Resort, who collected our passports for safekeeping and showed us the way to the shuttle bus. We passed by a golf courses and a few houses on the hills before reaching the hotel in about 10 min. We were given our room right away even though check-in was supposingly at 2pm. The room was spacious enough for 3 people and included a balcony facing the swimming pool and the beach.

View from our balcony

Each guest was offered a glass of fruit punch at the bar next to the lobby upon check-in. After our drinks near the pool, we decided to explore the hotel before lunch. We walked down to the private beach of the hotel and along the seaside where where the villas were located. They were either 1-bedroom or 2-bedroom chalets built right by the beach and all faced the open sea.

From the hotel to the private beach

Meal options at the hotel were quite limited so we took the hotel shuttle bus to a shopping mall in town for lunch. For the first 30 minutes there was not a single traffic light on the road and we passed through scattered wooden houses on the hillside, small local shops and some really nice housing estates.

40 minutes later we were finally at the MegaMall. We decided to try an Indonesia restaurant called Cobain, which seemed to be popular among both local families and tourists. The menu was in Indonesian but we managed to order with the help of an English-speaker waiter. We shared a few appetisers, fried rice and some noodles, which we all enjoyed. We then walked around the mall and did a bit of shopping at the Hypermart. Paying with Indonesian currency was initially confusing because everything cost thousands of Rupiah. I soon realised that HK$1 = ~1000 Rupiah and learnt to ignore all the zeros at the end.

After a few hours in the mall we were picked up by the shuttle bus. Back at the hotel, the sun was starting to set so we immediately changed into our swimmers. I headed down to the beach while the girls enjoyed a swim in the pool. The sand was a bit scratchy and uncomfortable to walk on but the water was very clean. The beach was rather small but there were hardly anyone else in the water so I was able to have a good swim.

For dinner we went down to the hotel seafood restaurant, Kelong, by the seaside. We were given a table by the window and we could hear the soothing sound of the waves through the night. There were only 3 of us so we only ordered a steamed sea bass, some prawns and a vegetable dish. Being the only restaurant open for dinner in the hotel, it was surprisingly inexpensive. We ended up paying SGD$25 per person for a satisfying meal. We had a walk along the pier, where we could see the lights coming from Singapore and Malaysia and planes flying frequently into Changi Airport, before heading to bed.

Singapore: Kampong Glam

Today is the first anniversary of my stay in Singapore and I thought that it would be appropriate to start a series of blog entries on Singapore. Frankly it does not feel like I have been here for all that long. I may have learnt a few Singlish slangs but I don't think I have changed much at all (I hope!). I still prefer spending a day off out in a park rather than in a mall and I would choose spaghetti over chicken rice on any day. There may still be a lot of places in Singapore yet to be discovered but here is one of my favourite spots on the island.

Singapore is known for its multiculturalism and Kampong Glam is one of the different ethnic quarters. This Malay-Muslim district is made up of several narrow streets that are lined with shophouses painted in vibrant colours. I like visiting Haji Lane for the independent designer and vintage boutiques. There are many middle eastern restaurants in the area serving Egyptian, Turkish, Lebanese, Moroccan cuisine as well as Shishah. Shishah is just as bad, if not worse, for your body as cigarette smoking but I would certainly recommend the food here. A number of eateries have their upper levels decorated into a cosy floor-seating area. Customers are invited to take their shoes off, let their hair down and relax on their cushions and couch, making it a nice place to chill out and catch up with a friend.

The quirky Haji Lane:

Weekend Getaway at Kukup: Day 2

Breakfast was ready before we got up on Sunday morning. The house owner cooked us some more local food, such as nasi lemak, "ang ku kueh" and porridge. After getting fed we headed off to the Pulau Kukup National Park, one of the largest mangrove islands in the world. We got on the boat from the pier in town, which took us to the Pulau Kukup, located about 1km offshore of Kukup.

Fish farms on the sea

After a short boat ride we arrived at the island and walked up the jetty to the national park reception. There were displays on the history, ecosystem and the abundant vegetation and wildlife of the island but we were too eager to explore the wetland for ourselves to take much notice.

Jetty of the National Park

Mangroves covering the island

The most prominent structure on the island was the suspended bridge over the river. It was quite wobbly but gave a beautiful view of the island and the sea if you managed to stay steady on it. We followed the boardwalk that led us deeper into the forest. There were signages along the way bearing information about the different plants. At the end of the boardwalk was a 3-storey high tower that offered an awesome panoramic view of the entire island. As we followed the boardwalk back to the national park reception, we saw a group of 4-5 wild boars that looked like a family. They kept pushing their noses into the mud and appeared to be looking for food. They kept making funny noises and were totally adorable!

Suspended bridge over the Sg Ular

View from the suspended bridge

Mangrove roots

Boardwalk

The adult wild boar was a bit darker in colour while the young ones had stripes on their trunk.

From the mangrove island we boarded the same boat and headed to one of the fish farms. There were rows of them built on the water and they were all made of wood. Once arrived we were joined by a few other tourists and were greeted by the owner of the fish farm. He shown us the separate nets where the fish were kept and the other types of shellfish that they kept.

Fish farms

Baby shark and some more marine animals

After visiting the fish farm the boat took us back to the Kukup town. We picked up our luggage from the chalet and had lunch at an open-air seafood restaurant in town. The seafood was nicer than dinner on previous night and the coconut pudding was delicious! After lunch it was time for home. The same driver from yesterday picked us up from the restaurant and took us all the way back home to Singapore.

Weekend Getaway at Kukup: Day 1

I first heard of the place Kukup when my colleague wanted to organise a weekend trip there and my first reaction was "what kind of a place would have a name like Kukup?!"

Kukup is a Malaysian fish village on the west coast of Johor. Because of its location and its reputation for cheap seafood it has become popular among tourists from Singapore, including our group!

The 2-day trip included transport, accommodation and all meals and cost us SGD88 each. On Saturday morning, half of us who were lucky enough to have both days off were picked up by a van in Singapore. We went through the immigration check point at Woodland and stopped for breakfast at JB. I slept through the rest of the journey to Kukup, which took about 1.5 hours.

The first thing we noticed after getting off the car was the smell of the town! It was coming from the water by the restaurant where a lot of people disposed of their rubbish. But once we started walking away from the town centre it was not noticeable any more.

Our accommodation was at one of many "floating chalets", houses supported by stilts over the sea. Some of them were the local people's homes while some have been turned into chalets for tourists. The walkways linking all the houses were quite narrow and were shared by pedestrians, motorbikes and bicycles. Our chalet had a large living area, three bedrooms and a balcony outside the kitchen overlooking the sea. There are 3 bunk beds in each bedroom, dining tables and chairs on the balcony and a karaoke set in the living room, which turned out to be the biggest entertainment in this trip!

"Floating chalets" next to ours

Once we picked our roommates and our beds, we headed back to town to have lunch at a seafood restaurant. The food was OK and the seafood was probably not the best I've had. After lunch we had a walkabout around the shops, the schools and the residential areas of Kukup. We were waiting for the rest of the group to arrive so the afternoon was spent on playing cards, Monopoly Deal and Mahjong!

We decided to take a walk before dinner. The town centre was getting busy and crowded as it was the night of "Hungry Ghost Festival" 鬼節. A huge stage was set up for performance and hawkers were selling food and drinks at their stalls. We got a few skewers to share before returning to the chalet. Dinner was prepared by the house owner and included grilled sting ray, prawns, otah and other local dishes.

While some returned for more Mahjong and karaoke a few of us went for a stroll downtown. The performance for the festival has already started and was probably one of the most embarrassing (at the same time funniest) shows I have ever watched. The choreography and the costumes were really tacky and the music was way too loud. But the place was packed and most people seemed to be enjoying themselves. 15 min later we decided we have seen enough and went to explore the rest of the town. It was mostly residential houses, most of them built on stilts. We also saw people lighting floating lanterns and fireworks.

Back at the chalet, it was more Mahjong and playing cards before bedtime.

Day Trip to Desaru

A while ago a colleague of mine bought a tour package from a online deal website for us and it was a guided tour to the Malaysia coastal town Desaru. It is a resort area in east Johor but this time we went there for something other than its beach.

In the very early Sunday morning of 9th Oct 2011, the three of us met outside the Golden Mile Complex and boarded the very spacious and comfortable coach with the rest of the tour.

After crossing the Malaysian border at Woodland check point, we were joined by Shirley, the tour guide, and a bus assistant. She is a Chinese lady from Johor and she shared with us a lot of her knowledge about the city of JB (probably a bit too much knowledge...) The first stop of the day was for breakfast. We went for the roti canai and teh tarik.

Then we were taken to the first shopping destination, a chocolate shop called Cocoa Rich. We were given a brief presentation of chocolate manufacturing before we were offered to sample their chocolates. Frankly I am surprised that people were still buying the chocolate after the tasting! When everyone got back on the coach with their packets of chocolates, we started our 1.5-hour bus ride to Desaru.

Cocoa Rich chocolate shop

Scenery along the journey to Desaru from Johor Bahru

As soon as we arrived in Desaru, we stopped at a seafood restaurant for lunch, which was included in the tour package. We shared a few courses of fish, prawns, vegetables, fried rice, 龍眼糖水 (longan dessert) and the star of the meal, baby lobster. An old man was selling 豆腐花, 豆漿 (soy bean dessert and drink) and grass jelly drink at a trolley outside our restaurant and I couldn't help but got myself some 豆腐花. It was rich in soy flavour and so refreshing!

Beautiful coastline facing the South China Sea

The next destination was the herb & flower garden. There were a wide variety of plants, including some medicinal and edible species. Small wooden boards detailing the magical healing properties of the different plants were put around the nursery. But I was too engrossed in photographing the interesting-looking plants to read any of them.

The fruit of the cocoa tree, which tasted NOTHING like chocolate! The flesh was a bit bitter and bland but very smooth.

Beautiful flowers and orchids with monkey faces

Temple next to the garden and foot-sucking fish... No, I did not put my feet in there.

From the nursery, we were brought to another food store. It was a bakery selling freshly baked pastry and biscuits. But it was so crowded that we decided to take a walk around the neighbourhood instead.

Bakery

Streets of Desaru

Our next stop was the ostrich farm. At least two dozens ostriches were kept in a fenced area and some were freely walking around the farm. The strangest thing was that most of the ostriches had a bare back. Is it normal for ostriches to pluck feathers off each other? The staff of the farm also gave us a talk about the life cycle of ostriches, the usage of different parts of an ostrich and a demonstration on how to crack an ostrich egg with a drill.

Next to the farm is a kitchen offering dishes such as ostrich bugers, stir-fry and omelette. We ordered some satay ostrich skewers. The meat was red, lean and quite juicy but its natural taste was overpowered by the satay sauce. Apparently it is a healthy meat option low in fat and cholesterol. Decorated eggs and kaya jam made with ostrich eggs were also on sale at the souvenir shop.

A male ostrich with black feathers and a female with grey feathers.

Baby ostriches, befere they turned into uglies creatures

Leaving the ostrich farm, we headed to the Desaru Fruit Farm. It was 100 acres in size and planted with a large range of plants. Our guide led us through the farm and pointed out the different produce and exotic fruits to us along the way.

After the 45-min tour we were brought into a room to learn about bee keeping and the endless health benefits of the honey they were selling. At the end we were given a fruit pack and feasted on the tasty tropical fruits such as rose apple, jack fruit and lychee.

Entrance of the Desaru Fruit Farm

Flowers of dragon fruit and banana

Passion fruits that I bought from the fruit farm. All these for RM3.2 only!

Leaving Desaru behind, we went to Jusco at Tebrau City to grab some dinner. We had a delicious Thai meal at Black Canyon and walked around the mall before the bus took us back to Singapore.

By the time we got dropped off at Golden Mile Complex it was past 10pm. It was a very long day packed with activities. I have not been on one of these day tours for years so it was fun to have a silly day out. I enjoyed strolling down the lazy streets of Desaru and exploring the fruit farm.

But I was really appalled by how the animals were treated. Although the ostriches were allowed a large space to run around, the other small animals kept there were all kept in cages. A monkey was locked in a cage so short it could not even stand up in it. Things were similar in the mini zoo of the fruit farm. Another monkey was tied to a pole on a platform and the chain was so short that it could not even take one full step away from the pole. It was plain animal cruelty and so heart-breaking to witness.

I would like to return to Desaru if I have the chance. But it will be for the beach and the resort!