Tubes

Okay, it seems that we are quite serious about going to the beach again. 2 days after our last trip to PD, Rach and I were at Tesco and we thought we'd better get at least 2 floating tubes for the kids.

We got the green and orange ones first. I went home and inflate the orange one to check the size and to see how sturdy it was. Looks good. :)

Then two days ago, we found ourselves at Tesco again. We thought "ahhh must as well get the blue one and a beach ball".

You know, this is the 2nd set of tubes and ball we bought. Two years ago, we bought 2 tubes and a ball. We used them for at least 2 times. Then they went missing. Hmmmm. :)

Granny turns 92

Wow! Talk about long life. My grandmother celebrates her 92nd birthday this year.

Okay, I admit, I had to count the candles. :) We weren't sure what was her actual age because not only she was born pre-war, she also follows her Chinese birthdate which is always 1 year extra.

My grandmother bore 15 children. Amazing!! :)

Climbing Apek Hill for the 1st Time

It's been quite some time since I last went for a hike. Early this month I went for a get-together dinner in the La Bodega, Pavallion with my hiking friends. One of the topics discussed was climbing Apek Hill in Cheras. We had a show of hands to see whether to set the date on the 25th June or the 2nd July. Most of us were free on the 25th June, so we blocked of the date mentally. Oh, I'm certain that ALL of us did not set it in our appointment books or electronic devices because ALL the KL friends had some form of excuse not to climb when the day drew nearer.

We made Kang Bee to leader that time because she has been to Apek Hill before but a few days before the 25t h, she emailed to say that she sprained her leg. After that another KL friend said he couldn't make it and then slowly one by one everyone gave their excuses.

Now Danny, a friend from my hometown, was a bit anxious. After the email from Kang Bee, he asked if the trip would be cancelled. I told him that it was still on because I've asked Johnny, another friend who has been there before to lead us. And it was a plus that Johnny stayed very near Apek Hill.

So, I set my alarm at 5AM. We were supposed to meet at the Lobak food court at 5.30AM. Based on previous climbs to Nuang, I remembered eating noodles at 4.45AM there. But this time, non of the stalls were opened. We saw 2 stalls cleaning up though. We ordered our drinks and our only option for food was bread and eggs. Danny said it was a poor choice of place for breakfast. Right, next time I will ask him to suggest!!.

We left the food court at about 6AM and reached Johnny's place at about 7.10AM. It was like a 5 minute drive to the foothill.

7.21AM - We parked at the playground and took about 4 minutes walk to the foothill. There were 5 of us - Johnny, Danny, Minch, Rach & I.

7.25AM - The foothill and one of the many entrances in this hill.

It was an easy hike I would say. :)

Johnny passed his responsibility as a point man to this lady called June because he wanted to accompany her husband who was walking much slower.
So June was telling us that this tree has got some medical value and people are slowly breaking off the roots from this tree.

7.42AM - Soon we reached Station 1. A tent from the Pasar Malam KL. Now if only they relocate the Cheras Pasar Malam to this spot. :P

Crossing a little stream at Station 1.

We didn't have to use the ropes because the ground was dry.

7.53AM - At Station 2, you can either go left or right. June usually use the left trail. If I'm not mistaken, she said that the left trail goes to Apek hill and the right, to Saga hill.

Oh, there's a clock here at Station 2, with a message written on it, "Don't take away please".

8.04AM - We reached station 3. Obviously this is a popular spot for small chats and gossips because many of them stopped here for a longer break. June said she would not go any further than this point because she had a dinner to attend in another state that night.

We waited for Johnny here for about 10 minutes at the Golden Station (That's what the Chinese words on the trees says). There was a little bench in between 2 trees and a boy was sitting there for quite some time. We noticed that this boy was sort of waiting for us because after a while everyone either went up or down the hill except this boy.

When we made signs of wanting to continue our hike, this boy went ahead of us but soon, we lost track of him.

Oh, there's a left trail at this Station which says "to station 4 & 5" if I'm not mistaken.

Apparently, this trail goes straight up to Station 6. It wasn't a strenuous hike and we reached Station 6 in no time and was greeted with.......................

" Come! Come! Have some watermelons," said one of the hikers who was there first.

Oh, at first we didn't know that they were inviting us to have some, but they repeated again. So without being shy, each of us took a piece. It was really juicy.

We reached station 6 at 8.35AM. There were some interesting stuff hanging just below the tent- the 2 Chinese jugs, a cup and 2 hula hoops. Also, someone was kind enough to donate a 4 or 5 liter water container for hikers to refill their water bottles.

It was at this point where we were deciding whether to go to the waterfalls or turn back. Actually, all of us wanted to go to the waterfall but none of us knew the way.

We made up our minds in less than a minute. :) All of us were gamed for it. We weren't sure when will be our next trip here.

8.47AM - We headed off to the unknown.. :)

8.55AM - The 7th station. Only 8 minutes from Station 6. I supposed we could have been faster than this.

At this point, we could see a trail after the tent and another one on the right. We recalled one of the hikers asking us to go ahead. They didn't mention a turning to the right so we decided to ignore that turning.

After walking for like ages (less than 15 minutes actually), we thought we took the wrong path.

We backtracked for less than 1 minute before we saw a group of hikers and asked if they knew where the waterfall was. It seems we were on the right track. We decided to follow them.

The trail to the waterfall was very steep. There were ropes along the way to help and guide us.

Even those with long legs were very cautious.

By now we could hear the waterfall..

First impression.... "WHATTTTT.. we hiked all the way here for this??"

It was a mini waterfall. We now knew why the regular hikers weren't keen at all to lead us here.

Anyway, since we were here... must as well spend some time admiring the waterfall right? :)

We were here for a grand total of 9 minutes. :)

Some people just don't know how to read. -.-

I kept my camera in my backpack when we were climbing up the steep trail and only took it out when my hands were free. :D

10.24AM - Station 7

10.32AM - Station 6.

We didn't stop at Station 7 and only rested for 1/2 a minute at Station 6.

Going down was a breeze. :)

11.02AM - Back at Station 1 again.

Rubber trees at the lower part of the hill.

Ahhh, a bit steep here.

11.19AM - Oh,, and we are out. :)

I was so hungry when I reached the foothill and was glad to see people selling food. Everything looked yummy but I had to restrain myself because we planned to have a good lunch after we have showered. I bought some curry puffs to keep my hunger at bay.

We went back to Johnny's place to shower and had a light meal before going out to have dim sum at Taman Connaught.

All in all, I enjoyed this short trip very much. It was not too strenuous and the company was good. :)

What??!! PD again??

Yes!! PD again. This time I went with Rach, En, Bri and Arn. :)

This is also an impromptu trip. I was bored with work and today was too beautiful not to go out. You know that kind of feeling? :). Okay, I admit, I was lazy. :D

Having been to PD less than a week ago, I was day-dreaming about it and a thought came to my mind. Since the kids are having their mid term school holidays, why not bring them out for a swim? I send a text message to Arn to see if he was interested. He was non-committal. I told him I had to finish my quota of work first before going out. So at about 2pm, I started firming up the plans with Rach. We called Bri's grandma who confirmed on behalf of him. The we called En who said that she would only go if Bri goes. So that settled it. The I send a text message to Arn to tell him that we would pick him up at 4.30pm.

We left for PD at about 4.45pm. I told Rach that we'll take them to Teluk Kemang. She was like "uh, where's that?" :D

We took the highway, so it was much faster. The instructions from Rach's friend was, "at roundabout turn left and you'll reach Teluk Kemang in no time." True enough after the roundabout, not 5 minutes later we reached our destination. :)

So here we are. It was already nearly 6pm. The sea was calm, unlike the other day.

At first we rented 2 tubes at RM5 each for Bri and En because they can't swim. Later, En gave Arn her tube and went to get another one for herself. So sweet of her. :)

I don't know.. but it seems as though that a trip to the beach is not complete if you don't do the following -

a) Swim in the sea

b) Build a sand castle or attempt to do one

c) Walk a certain length on the beach collecting seashells

So yeah, the three of them attempted to build a sand castle, but I guessed the sea was calling out to them. They went back to swim again.

Ahh.. a deep heart carved out by Arn. :)

We walked along the beach looking for seashells. Much to En's disappointment, there weren't many. We gave up after 10 or 15 minutes and the kids went to swim again. They were having so much fun and time just slipped by so fast that soon it was time to leave. At about 7.30pm, Rach was quite concern that it was getting dark and there weren't many people on the beach. She asked us all to take a shower and pack up. Oh well. :)

We packed some otak-otak back home. We found out that Bri loves otak-otak. He was begging for them in the car but we told him that he could only eat them once he's back home.

It was truly a fun evening. I guessed all of us were quite satisfied with today. We were back home by 9pm. Tiring but fun.

I wonder when will be our next PD trip. :) Looking forward to it. :D

Spanish Dinner

"Anyone tried La Bodega before?" asked Danny 2 months back when we were at the Bangsar Shopping Centre (BSC). None of us had. So he suggested, the next time we come up to KL for a meal, we have to try this.

Right, so here we are, not at the La Bodega in BSC, but in Pavillion because ONE of us wanted to shop before dinner.

We had 3 hours of shopping before meeting the KL gang. I was wearing high heels and it hurt so much after an hour of shopping. :(

The entrance of La Bodega.

Danny ordered -

Paella Valenciana Mixta - tuna and chicken

Queso de Cabra Frito Con Miel al Limon - Deep fried goat's cheese with lemon sauce

Gambas al Ajillo - prawns in olive oil and garlic.

Albondigas Sant Climent - Lamb Meatballs in rich brandy sauce.

Salchichas al Diablo - Spicy chicken sausage sauteed with onions,chilli & tomato

Not forgetting the Sangria which he said we MUST try.

There were 12 of us this time. My brother came late. He's not in the picture. It was during this dinner that we talked about wanting to climb again. Someone suggested "Saga Hill" and we all started discussing the dates. We finally fixed it on the 25th June. KB said that she will lead as she has been there before. :)

We left about hmm... almost 10pm?! :)

Another Impromptu Trip to PD

It all started when I saw RW online on FB.

Our conversation went like this : -

Me - Where are you?

RW - at home

Me - tmrw spanish food?

RW - wanna go lake garden now?
2molo got dinner wor... i see u no invite me :-(

Me - now? Im at home weii

RW - if 4pm, we talk, maybe still ok? now too late?

Me - yeah... want to lepak or smtg?

RW - when? where?

Me - now... anywhere.. go pd? :p

RW - just 2 of us? who else? now? serious?

Me - now lah, yes lah

RW - i can pack and go now!! fetch u from ur house?

Me - come..

RW - i log off now lor...

It was late. I didn't intend to swim, so I wore a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. We left my house about 5.45pm?! We took the old way to PD. It was a pleasant drive and we even saw a beautiful half circle rainbow. What a treat. :)

Of all days for an impromptu trip to PD, we had to chose this day, a public holiday!!.

The trunk road was narrow and full of cars. Even the proper car parks were packed with cars and we could see long rows of cars parked at both sides of the road.

We were driving aimlessly, not sure which beach to bum. RW said that her mom suggested to go to Teluk Kemang. I honestly had no idea what and where is Teluk Kemang. We just followed the signboard and after quite a distance, we reached Teluk Kemang and I don't know what made us think that it was THE place, but we saw so many cars there at the parking lot and we went in to look for a parking space. Fortunately, a car was pulling out just as we came in.

Ahh, two signboards confirming that this is the right place. :)

One of the most beautiful sunset I've seen for quite sometime.

Like SERIOUSLY!! It was nearly 7pm at that time. The tide was coming in real quick. The waves were unexceptionally high.

There were lots of people. Oh how I wished we came earlier. It was a nice day for a swim.

The waves kept rolling in. This little boy was having the time of his life.

RW's shoes. She took them off and kept it at a safe distance, but soon the waves came sweeping her shoes off. She put them on a higher ground again, but the waves kept coming. Finally, she placed them on a much higher ground and began snapping pics of the sunset.

We decided to have dinner here. Too bad the stalls weren't at the seaside. We had satay, otak-otak, mee goreng and mee bandung.

RW was so hungry that she nearly ordered a burger while waiting for her noodles to arrive. Fortunately, she didn't because by the time we finished our food, we were full. :)

After Teluk Kemang, we went to other public beaches, but the waves there were not so high. We took some photos and left PD at about 9.45pm.

It was an interesting outing. We should do this more often. :)