This is continuation from earlier post Hatyai Day 1.

We checked in to our hotel, Merlin Hotel around 5pm after finished shopping at Nora Plaza.

The hotel is below satisfactory level. The hotel itself is looking a bit worn and is probably in need of a refurbishment fairly soon. Cleanliness is still acceptable but the design all I can say is a bit 'outdated'.


Merlin Hotel
Address: 2 Chaiyakul Uthit 1 Road, Hat Yai, Songkhla, 90110
Telephone: +66 (0)74 230030-38
Rate: 450 Baht


For dinner, we was offered Sky Buffet at Level 33, Lee Gardens Plaza.

The top floor of Hat Yai's tallest building is a restaurant. The views are great; you can see all of Hat Yai and far beyond. They have Thai dishes, salad bar, Thai delicacies, soup, fresh fruits, Thai desserts, ice cream, and beverages.

Tom yam koong

Fish maw soup

Sky Buffet
Level 33, Lee Garden Plaza Hotel
Price: 150 baht
Operation hours: Lunch 1100 to 1400 hours. Dinner 1700 to 2000 hours.

The night view of Hatyai streets. Picture resource from My Story.

YES, I went to Hatyai recently on 11-13 Mar (huh.. 2 months ago). We joined the tour with only RM170 per pax for 3 days 1 night journey. The whole journey takes about 7 hours from KL and I didn't slept the whole night (just can't sleep!!).

First stop: Wat Tham Rou Chang
This temple is located nearby the Padang Besar immigration checkpoint and takes about 20 minutes

It is believed that one traveler discovers this temple that is inside a 'cave'.

The 7 'head' dragon.

Kuan Yin statue and drawings inside the cave.

We then proceeded for lunch at nearby shop at roadside. My fellow blogger, Kelly was furious when we are going for 'chicken rice' and noodles. Maybe it is just too simple and what is difference with our country's version?

I can say it is average and costs us 40 Baht.

Second stop: 

Next stop: Wat Pah Koh Suwanaram temple

Luang Phor Thong (Archan Thong). A holy monk that can foresee people's future, cure black magic, business prediction and many unforeseen power. Even though he's passed away but they said his hair is still growing. His body was over there since 2000 and until now it is still in good condition with no foul smell. Amazing!!

This video show casts the holy monk.

Singapore often referred as tiny red dot of South East Asia but with so many attractions, ethnic enclaves, parks and distinctively different atmosphere to explore. Just to name a few, two world-class Integrated Resorts that recently welcomed visitors - Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa (RWS).

The little red dot history started when Singapore's first names can be found in the 3rd century when a Chinese account referred to it as "Pu-luo-chung". Only until the 14th century, when it was given the newer name of Temasek (Sea Town). Singapore's modern-day name was born when a visiting royal prince mistook what a probably a tiger for a lion (lions were not indigenous to the country) that the island was named "Singa Pura" or "Lion City".

Finally time has called for a visit to the republic last weekend. We started our journey by KTMB intercity train (Train no.25 Senandung Sutera) from Seremban. We had sleeper berth for the night journey with fares of RM36.

By 6am, the train reached Johore Bahru Sentral for disembarking passengers and Malaysian Immigration inspection on board. The train proceeded to Woodlands Train Checkpoint for Singapore's CIQ clearance.


The train stopped at Tanjong Pagar station as final stop at around 8am, and we proceed to Tanjong Pagar MRT (first MRT station in Singapore)



Next, we moved to Bugis MRT station where our hostel situated. We booked Footprints Hostel located at Perak Road.


First stop: Chinatown
> Across Chinatown, where heritage and cultural values immerse. One main attraction is The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum is a Buddhist temple and museum complex located in the Chinatown district of Singapore. The temple is based on the Tang dynasty architectural style and built to house the tooth relic of the historical Buddha. The whole temple consists of 5-6 level, so take your time.

Admission: Free, but donations are welcomed most.

Chinatown has a Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station, called the Chinatown MRT Station, in the middle of Pagoda Street (which is closed to traffic) and serves the vicinity, as well as several public bus routes.

For lunch or whenever you feel need to fill your tummy, do visit Albert Centre Market Food Centre 270 Queen Street, 180270. To read more, click here.

Second stop: VivoCity and Resorts World Sentosa
> Next, we come across to Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), which you can take MRT from Chinatown towards HarbourFront MRT. You will come across VivoCity which is the largest shopping mall in Singapore.

At VivoCity's rooftop, a tall Christmas tree was set up. We proceeded to RWS by Sentosa Express (Monorail) which is same level with VivoCity's rooftop.





Third stop: Merlion Park
On evening, we make a move to City Hall MRT station en route to Merlion Park that is located near Marina Bay, Singapore. We passed through CityLink Mall, an underground mall. Merlion (with the head of a lion and the body of a fish), used as a mascot of Singapore.


Fourth stop: Orchard Road
During the night as in the Christmas month, we went to discover the 'Orchard Road', as I linked it here.

On Sunday, its time to left the "unique" city. Before we leave, we go to shop at vicinity of Bugis, shopping till you drop, name it you will have it. It won't hurt your pocket much!!

In Bugis area (part of city centre), there are handful of shopping malls:
OG Albert Complex, Bugis Street, Iluma and Parco Bugis Junction.

I visited OG and Bugis Street, with crowds flooding the area. Most of malls open by 11am, so time management is important. I advised you to visit the malls after your breakfast and sightseeing around Bugis area.

We left hostel quite early as we are not sure about direction to Golden Mile Complex where we board StarMart Express bus.

I expect  the double dex from StarMart but instead Suasana Edaran  turned up as Suasana Edaran buses that are operated to Singapore are on behalf of Starmart Express as additional buses.

The bus is double decker with the seat configuration of 1-2. Seat pitch is wide with much leg room for taller people and come along with on-board entertainment and seat massage.


Rating: 3.5 out of 5 - I'm satisfied as they kept the whole journey 5 hours and will travel again with them in future.

Accommodation:
This few sites should be helpful for booking a hotel accurately.
> Expedia
> AsiaRooms

This review is all about my 2 days 1 night travel to the Lion City.

For lunch or whenever you feel need to fill your tummy, do visit Albert Centre Market Food Centre 270 Queen Street, 180270.


First one is Angel Horse Teochew Fish Soup. The sweetness and depth of the soup stock is derived from hours of simmering fish bones over a low fire, and not from milk which other stalls use to artificially enhance the flavour of the soup.There's a reason why this stall is so popular, there always seems to be queue. The Sliced Fish Soup ($4 for a medium) is served with silken tofu, tomato, sliced fish, lettuce and garnished with crispy fried onions and seaweed. The fish is unbelievably fresh and smooth. Another attraction is that it serves the unusual combination of salted bean sauce with sliced chili padi, giving the kick but does not overwhelm the delicate freshness of the fish.

But the minus point, I stressed that their customer service is bad, with the aunty serving the food is impolite and brag as she know her stall is famous.


Price: Varies

Angel Horse Teowchew Fish Soup
270 Queen Street, 180270
#01-95 Albert Centre Market Food Centre

Second to be introduced in Albert Food Centre is Teochew Braised Duck - Kway Chap.

At first, Kway Chap is totally unknown to me but mum told me is a Teochew cuisine with duck meat and typical dark soy sauce and others. According to Wikipedia, it is Teochew dish of flat, broad rice sheets in a soup made with dark soy sauce, served with pig offal, braised duck meat, various kinds of beancurd, preserved salted vegetables, and braised hard-boiled eggs.

The queue is unbeatable long as Angel Horse Fish Soup which is just few stalls apart. It serves variety of braised duck meat:- rice, noodles, yam rice, porridge and whole plate.

I give a try on rice and Kway Teow, with a serving of pig offal (internal organs), beancurd and braised egg. Kway Teow come with soup yjat is not too concentrated and the authentic five spices flavour is quite strong which give the soup extra. The Kway Teow used is not the same as Char Kway Teow which is thinner. The flat rice sheets is smooth, and texture is good. I guessed it is hand made by the owner for his stall only.

For the rice, you can see the grain in its shape while the aroma fulfill you appetite to finish the bowl of rice.

You will not satiated to eat again as chili's is provided.

Price: S$2.50 - 12

Teochew Braised Duck - Kway Chap
270 Queen Street, 180270
#01-98 Albert Centre Market Food Centre

Overall Albert Food Centre serves variety of famous local food where it is after renovated and moved back since Dec 2009. But be prepared to clean up the leftovers on tables as the cleaner over there only cleans their identified utensils.

If you don't act on your own, you might have to wait for ages to get the mess off.

Singapore is well regarded around the world as a shopping paradise. It has the ever-famed Orchard Road that has seen great transformation with enhancement done on its streetscape and the opening of new malls.

At these modern shopping temples, you can browse and buy many brands and labels under one roof, and refuel at a huge selection of restaurants and cafes, making it truly "A Great Street".

This year's light-up theme is "A Starlit Christmas", and the road will be lined with star-shaped decorations. Now in its 27th year (my 1st year), Orchard's annual Christmas light-up promises to be bigger and better than before.

Orchard Road received its name from the orchards that used to encompass the area until the early 19th century, when a mysterious disease wiped out the nutmeg plantations. Since this area was surrounded by valleys, floods were also common here.

Lists of malls:

DFS Galleria — This shopping mall located in Scotts Road, it mainly sells luxury item such as Bottega Veneta, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci, Hermès, Loewe and Bvlgari.

ION Orchard — ION Orchard opened on July 21, 2009 and houses six double-storey flagship stores of close to 9,000 square feet (840 m2) each, including Prada, Giorgio Armani, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Cartier and Patek Philippe. Its signature glass façade doubles up as a giant media screen as well.


Ngee Ann City — The mall opened in 1993 and is the largest shopping mall in the Orchard Road shopping belt. It houses branded boutiques such as Vacheron Constantin, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Burberry, Loewe and Chanel as well as Japanese department store, Takashimaya. The mall is also home to Southeast Asia's second largest bookstore, Books Kinokuniya.

Wisma Atria — Opened in 1986, it underwent renovation recently with its trademark blue facade replaced with a glass facade. There is a 900 seat food court on the 4th floor which is run by the BreadTalk Group. The mall is directly connected to Orchard station. It stands on the former site of Wisma Indonesia which used to house the Indonesian Embassy.

Plaza Singapura — Located next to the Istana, the mall opened in 1974 with a now defunct Yaohan department store. It was revamped twice, in 1998 and 2003 with the former having a totally revamped now and the latter with a new tenant mix. It houses a Golden Village cineplex, Carrefour and other shops.

Lucky Plaza — A shopping mall that somehow became the main focal point for domestic Filipino workers to meet their friends during their off days. The place is known to be very crowded on Sundays with many shops selling products from the Philippines.

Far East Plaza — Far East Plaza opened in 1982 with a Metro which has since closed down. Popular with students with its cheap fashion items, the plaza is also known for its cheap food outlets. The mall has since undergone renovation.


Mandarin Gallery — Located inside Meritus Mandarin Singapore housing international high-end brands like Y-3, Bape and Hugo Boss.

The Paragon — The Paragon is a high-end shopping mall selling branded items such as brand like Gucci which open flapship store here and Miu Miu, Prada, Coach and Burberry with a Metro department store and a Marks & Spencer store as well. The place also has a Toys 'R' Us and a number of restaurants. It underwent expansion around 2002, taking over the land once occupied by another shopping centre The Promenade. The Promenade was built on the former location of Fitzpatrick's supermarket.



How to go there:
The whole stretch of Orchard Road is served by three different MRT stations - Doby Ghaut Exchange (CC1/NE6/NS24), Orchard (NS22), and Somerset (NS23).

Christmas Light-up
Every Christmas season, Orchard Road and Marina Bay are lit up with stunning electric light displays that blaze through Singapore's prime shopping and entertainment districts. This, combined with the late mall hours put in place during Christmas season, make nighttime shopping in Singapore way more fun.

I received 19 angpows (510), yes!!


On Sunday night, I went to Langkawi with my family. We reached Kuala Perlis jetty 8.15 am and touched Langkawi by 10.30 am.

We rented a Nissan Sentra for two days, about RM300 with half tank fuel.

First stop: Underwater World
We visited Underwater World, a must visit for all and Coco Valley next to it.

In Underwater World, you can catch/watch fish through tunnel tank, reptiles section, coral reef and also bird park. Most interesting section is where the penguins live and move around.

Underwater World Langkawi
Pantai Cenang Mukim Kedawang,
07000 Pantai Cenang
Contact no: 04-955 6100
Admission: Adults: RM38 (without MyKad)/RM28 (with MyKad)

It has dozens of duty free shops which sell choc, wine, fragrances, tobacco and luggage bags. The price of can beer is RM 1.80 and RM 48 for 3 litre red wine.

For 1st night we went to Pantai Cenang that looks like Batu Ferringhi, Penang which houses many bars and resorts. Most of the occupants are foreign tourists. Over there you can get cheap clothes and accesories.

The next morning, I get to go Gunung Macinchang where cable car located, but didn't enter (RM 30). The surrounding areas have a selling places. Then to (Pantai Kok), Berjaya Langkawi Beach & Spa Resort, with white sands and beautiful beach.

Not much shopping over here, Langkawi Fair Mall and Langkawi Parade is the only we can go. We also went to Makam Mahsuri (RM 5).




Citin Hotel Langkawi
No. 3, Jalan Pekan Kuah
07000 Langkawi
Contact no: 04-966 9000

Trivia:

Exempted from tax and duties are as below:

1 litre of spirit
1 carton of beer
Cigarettes
Luggage bags
Chocolate

Visitors are only eligible to take out after minimum stay of 48 hours at the island.