Road trip up North - 15th - 17th March

Daddy and I thought it would be a great idea to drive up North since it has been a while. And we didn't take very long to decide on where to go. We have been wanting to go to Bukit Tinggi for ages but somehow had never found the time to do so.

As it was the school holidays, we took the opportunity to give ourselves a little break. So after we picked up Grand Daddy and Mummy, we headed off.

It didn't take us very long to clear the customs and we were on our way... .

We stopped at Seremban for lunch. C wanted chicken rice and luck would have it that we found this food store which served some pretty neat chicken rice! The food was fantastic!

After lunch, we headed back onto the expressway.

We entered the state of Pahang.

We knew we were getting closer not because of the GPS *grin* but also because the roads also started to look very different. Daddy felt like he was a character in the movie Initial D where he had to drive up mountains.

There! Colmar Tropicale! Our lodging for the night! This is the French Village and it really made us feel like we have entered another country. Our rooms were simple yet adequately equipped. We took the 2-bedroom suite.

This is the view from our balcony.

The streets along the hotel and the view from the Watching Tower.

Us!

We went exploring the place a little and ended up in the Japanese Tea Garden.

We asked C if she wanted to try on the kimono and she very gamely obliged so ...

There, our Precious became a Japanese doll!

There were some visitors from Iran and they had their pictures taken with C as well. Then we headed outdoors for more pictures!

Our dinner at Le Orient, one of the many restaurants there. Grand Daddy wasn't into Indo China food and he didn't eat much, C however, almost finished the entire plate of fried rice.

We retired early as Daddy was tired from the driving.

Day 2: After a hearty breakfast, we headed off to visit the Rabbit Farm.

The thing I like about going for such road trips: Nature always never fails to give us some lessons. I showed C the leaves we use for wrapping her favourite bak chang.

The Rabbit Farm

C plucked up enough courage to stroke the rabbits there.

Next, we went to the Stable where...

... both Daddy and Cheryl rode on the horses. It was a dream come true for Daddy for he was always filled with envy when we took C horse riding in the past.

On our way out, we saw there there was a temple and drove there.

Grand Daddy and Mummy said their prayers.

C took these pictures of us!

Downhill and heading towards our next destination: Malacca.

We entered Kuala Lumpur and drove passed many sights. But we didn't like the jam we were caught in at all!

This was the hotel we stayed in.

The interior of Puri Hotel. Actually there are many hotels in Malacca that you can consider.

Then we went for lunch at Nancy's Kitchen. This is arguably the best peranakan restaurant in town. Even Grand Daddy who is a picky eater agreed that the food was great!

The ayam pedas was delicious!

Look at C enjoying her food!

After that, it was dessert time and where else would we go but this:

Heavenly! :)

Then as Daddy headed back to the hotel for his much deserved rest, the rest of us did a little walking around Jonker Street.

The famous Chicken Rice Balls! But ...

you should really try this. :)

Malacca has changed quite a bit over the years. The river which used to be so filty is cleaned up now and rides on the river are definitely more enjoyable. Puri Hotel is in Jonker Street itself so it made it very convenient for us to walk around and take pictures.

It was Grand Daddy who requested that we have dinner at Newton Food Centre so we did. He must have missed the food here. :)

The next morning, we visited the Cheng Ho Cultural Museum. This was a very fruitful trip as we had a guided tour and learned a great deal about Admiral Cheng Ho and his voyages. Of course, we also learned a lot about the history of Malacca.

C saw many of these wells and even fed fishes.

Some of the artifects we saw. This is a wedding sedan used in the olden days.

History came alive for Daddy! He tried to grind some beans.

We walked through this really narrow path to get to another part of the museum. The museum actually spans 8 shophouses and it is really huge. And honestly, I am not giving the place enough justice because the museum has a lot more to offer.

Part of the museum was made to resemble the inside of the ships that Cheng Ho was on. This is the sleeping quarters. And some ships house livestocks for food.

C sounding the drum. Admiral Cheng Ho would have most probably used the drum to let his fleet know which way to go too.

We also learned that you can tell how old these buildings are just by looking at the bricks. These are known as the Dutch bricks and they were used to build these shop houses way before the British came.

After our tour of the museum, we headed back to the hotel and then checked out shortly after to return to Singapore. Although a short trip, we learned so much! :)