Traveling is just another sort of thing that I love to do. Sometimes traveling is not about just wanting to travel, but it is all about sharing my thoughts and my ideas and what can be done there so that others may know what is the best thing to do there.

One such place that I think it will be great to go would be Cancun (wait…. what is this place name?) in Mexico (pronounced me he co). Just have a look at how Cancun looks like with the Cancun web cam and you will see why this is one of the places that I am putting on my travel checklist.

Well, that is the wanderer in me, looking for places to travel in the future and places which usually people hardly mentioned. What intrigues me the most, as a scuba diver, this place is definitely one great place to dive.

Every diver’s dream, to dive with the whale shark. For those who hear the word shark, the whale shark is not really a shark, it is more of a whale while looking like a shark hence the name it was given to itself. Travel to water places is definitely something have to do with me as these are places that intrigues me more as the world below is really a vast place to visit.

Enough of diving, what about what is around the area of Cancun?

Now who would have thought the above was Cancun? A place surrounded by the ocean. This reminds me of Maldives but that is another post though. Surrounded by corals and sea life, this is a diver’s (scuba diving) paradise. It is also a perfect place to have one’s honeymoon rather than other usual honeymoon spots. All these time, depicted on the movies, we always thought Mexico is all about in the field, the gachos but never about the beautiful place like Cancun. 

Definitely a place to consider for my honeymoon.

So where to stay in Cancun if you were to ask me? Maybe perhaps Sunset Royal All Inclusive Hotel. Why? Imagine going all the way there only to stay at a budget hotel? I would seriously not enjoy my stay there. I rather stay at somewhere that I can enjoy my holidays and my honeymoon with my love one.

Seriously, time for some money savings to do and to try to get me and my partner a flight ticket there.

Pssst guys out there, if you are single that does not mean you should not think of going to Cancun. What other things you can see in Cancun where there is beach and water? The next picture should help you.

I told you so…

Visiting Kuching has always been great. For someone who lives in Peninsular Malaysia most of the time, and hearing about tribes like Iban, Melanau, etc existed has always made me fascinated during my school days. Well, enough nonsense and time for some things that Daniel the blogger got to do in Kuching.

If you are thinking of staying in Kuching with an affordable price (you can opt for a maximum 3 star hotel), you may explore the below banner for those cheap hotels. I got mine online too, besides Sarawak Rainforest Music Festival is upcoming so book them fast.

Since I am not a Kuchingnite, let me show you the 10 things you can do in Kuching as a traveler/wanderer! (Rather some 10 self define things one can do)

1. Visit natural wonders

Blue Lake

The blue lake is indeed not just any lake. It is highly toxicated and only a few species of fish live in this lake due to its high arsenic content. Well, speaking about blue lake, it really brings back memories of the time I had a chance to visit another blue lake in Tibet. If you have not been following my adventures, Tibet would be one of a kind.

Wait, why is there a highly arsenic lake in the middle of the state? Why? Beats me. Anyway there are local children who do play in the lake even though it is mentioned not to. I guessed they are already used to the contents of the lake.

Fairy Cave

Fairy Cave is a beautiful cave, not because it has a Fairy in its name, but the view was magnificent. As can be viewed from the photo posted, the cave is big. In order to get to this place, one has to climb up a few stairs (that’s like going up to the 4th floor) and then go into the small tunnel with a stairway leading up.

The Fairy Cave got its name due to some of the structure there looking like fairies guarding over the caves. There are also some carvings and also sculptures and dolls in the cave. It might be eerie to some so I decided not to put those photos here. You can ask me for the photos though the next time you see me.

The cave is a magnificent place to capture cave scenery, with some sun beam shining through the cave. Unlike the last time I visited Fairy Cave, this time one can go a little bit deeper into the cave. The place is quite scary the deeper one goes, but what sort of a wanderer if I did not explore further. Beautiful place, there are bats around there too.

In a natural place, there are bound to be species of the natural habitat roaming around the floors of the cave or around the entrance of the cave. Guessed what we found, a milipede (looks like one), but this is definitely a centipede.

As to what genome or to what species or type of centipede it is, I cannot seem to find out from the Internet. Any expert out there? It was about 15 centimeters in length.

Another viable cave to visit would be Wind Cave which is about 2 to 3 km away from the Fairy Cave. Do visit this place too if you would like some simple caving.

Note: Do bring a torch light and prepare to get a little bit wet in Wind Cave. (Did not get to go to Wind Cave due to heavy rain)

2. Visit the Beach

Damai Beach

Damai Beach is indeed a private beach. I still remembered way back in 2009 when I first visited this beach, I was amazed at how beautiful this place is. How far is it from Kuching town? I think it will take about 40 minutes drive. Photographer enthusiast flocked around this place during sunset to capture the sunset scene.

What is different this time is that this is now a private beach, so gaining entry to this beach needs you to be a hotel guest with either the hotel partner or the resort itself. Of course, if you are planning to stay here, this is a great place to be.

Feast your eyes on the scenery and happenings from the beach.

Families, couples and friends go to the beach to enjoy. This photo summarizes what I would like to present. The time was 6:38pm.

Not forgetting the group we were in also would not want to miss this rare opportunity to get some photos of this place. What a great time to go on a holiday after retiring from work.

A group of photography enthusiast patiently waiting for the sunset for their photo shoot. The time was 7:20pm.

As always, going to the beach is always a great time to catch some shots of people, be it solo, group or people having fun. This time around, found a solitary girl walking along the side. Who knows what she was doing? (Maybe she was waiting for my brother to go and greet her.. heehehehe)

If you’re wondering what were the wordings, it is a song titled “Lady in Red” and was released on June 1986 sung by Chris De Burgh. I guessed some readers here were not born during that time too.

Wait…… before we go off to see what else to do in Kuching, Sarawak. I here have something which I did at Damai Beach Resort. Though please do not try this if you’re not used to it.

3. Visit Historical Sites

There are many places in Kuching which are historical. Of course, the crash course is to visit the museums around the town. One such museum is the Chinese Museum.

Sarawak Chinese Museum

The Picture File above was around 2009. Time passes by and now it is already 2013. This photo was taken at the Chinese Museum Kuching. It depicts how the Chinese first came to Sarawak and what each tribe were doing then.

If you are Chinese, can you find your family name in here? Mine is easy, why not tell me how to address you?

Charles Brooke Monument

Another old file of the year 2009. Time passes by so fast. Go ahead and visit the Charles Brooke Monument. Alongside it is the building where it used to be a courthouse. Fast forward to 2013, this is the monument right now.

Yes, the monument is still standing and who is that? That’s my pa… oh historical places.

Other places to note are Fort Margherita, National Museum of Sarawak and other such museums.

4. Photo with Iconic Cat Statue

Actually the town Kuching means CAT in English. Kuching is a malay word for cat. Well, as to how this town got its name, might have to dig up some history. Well, since the town was named CAT, it is also good to find those cats (or rather those cat statue around town).

Here is one of those, frequented mostly among travelers and for visitors to Kuching, Sarawak. This cat statue is one of the biggest with a few cats on the rock. It is only 5 minutes walk from the Kuching Waterfront. If one is hungry, just walk towards McDonald’s (visible at the background) and have your food.

This cat statue was taken during the year 2010. Hair was longer then. This cat statue can be found somewhere around the entrance of China town in Kuching.

Do note that there is 1 or 2 more cats to be found in Kuching town itself.

5. Visit Sarawak Cultural Village

For first time visitors, you might opt to drop by Sarawak Cultural Village to learn more about the many tribes and races in Sarawak. Amongst them are the Iban, Melanau, Penan and many more. For non East Malaysians, the price to visit this place amounts to RM60 (including foreigners and Peninsular Malaysia). If you are a student, remember to bring your student pass/visa to gain a great discount though.

One of the dance being performed in the Cultural Village Sarawak.

Experience first hand how a man from the Penan  tribe goes fishing and his original clothing before modernization came into their world.

6. Board the 40 Cents Sampan

This is the one chance of a lifetime. Board the sampan to cross the river from one side of the town to the other side that leads to Fort Margherita. Walk along Kuching Waterfront and you will see sampan(small boats) ferrying people across the river.

The last time I remembered it was only RM0.40 (which also meant 40 cents). This photo was taken during the year 2009, but the price has not changed yet. So experience this ride while you still can. The ride takes about 2-3 minutes to get to across the river.

7. Eating at Chong Choon Cafe in Town

Trying the all time favorite Sarawak Laksa here, try it once then later you can try it elsewhere too. Most people benchmark the quality of Sarawak Laksa from here first.

Maybe you would love to try something else rather than the usual of the famous food in Sarawak (Sarawak Laksa, Kolo Mee), the fried carrot cake also was indeed delicious.

There are many varieties of food over here which include Kolo Mee (I think I mentioned this) and also the special toasted bread.

Do remember to drop by early as they are only open during the morning and could be sold out within a few hours. If you are driving, you may park on the road opposite facing the shop rather than along the road of the shop.

 8. Drink the ‘Teh C Special’ (3 Layered Tea)

One should not miss trying the Teh C Special (3 Layered tea) when in Kuching too. For a guy like me, whenever I order a Teh C Special in one of those specialty shops in Kuala Lumpur, the tea taste so different. In Kuching though, the taste is superbly different and better too. Here are some of those places you can go and get your tea.

Teh C Special basically comprises of 3 different layers in a tea.

a) Tea
b) Milk
c) Sugar/ Brown Sugar/ Gula Melaka (Malacca Sugar)

Had the one above in Taman BDC (BDC Park). When you see a row of shop houses, there are few stalls in the middle of the shop houses. The Teh C Special here taste kind of sweet and the sugar level is a bit darker. Good for those with sweet tooth though.

The above is the one found while driving along the road towards Fairy Cave. Stopped to have lunch at Serian and ordered the usual Teh C Special. The same old layer but the sugar used is kind of brown and light. Not that sweet, but good milky taste.

Now this, this is a bit special. If you know where the Hills are located, you will not miss trying to locate this place. Situated opposite the hills and near the 7 Eleven convenience store (the same row with Tune Hotels), this Teh C Special is a bit different. It has a green texture like sugar on the bottom layer. Felt like it was a mixed with some pandan flavored sugar. Tried this while watching the Liverpool match (which somehow Liverpool lost).

See, there are so many different varieties of Teh C Special in Kuching, Sarawak that you have got to try them all (Do remember to not go overboard with this sweet drink or your sugar level is gonna rise).

9. Seafood in Kampung Nelayan (Fisherman Village)

Have you tried the local vegetable, Midin?

A local vegetable delicacy that is way crunchy compared to the usual ‘paku’ plant. It is the same type with the fern species. Delicious and for someone like me who does not really eat vegetables, this… I have appetite for.

Seafood is indeed a must, imagine dishes with prawns, bamboo clams, fish, midin, bean curd, fried eggs with oyster and with a total of 9 people the food only cost RM140 (that is like USD45). Definitely worth paying  a visit to this place. Why is this recommended? If you try eating seafood in Kuching town and if you compared the food, you will know the difference. Trust me, we did that and we regretted eating seafood in town and we had our dinner again in Kampung Nelayan two days straight (even if it was like 45 minutes drive away from town).

10. Walk along Kuching Waterfront and get your souvenirs

I have visited Kuching about 5 to 6 times as of day of writing and would hope to visit there once again. Every time I was there, I would buy back some token or souvenirs back to Kuala Lumpur. Few of the things that I have bought are Sarawak Laksa paste, cat keychains, layered cake (kek lapis – comes with assorted flavors), postcards and many more weird and exciting stuffs.

Photographers out there, if you are lucky you would get a perfect day to take your photos. Taking the scenery during the night time would also be great for your shoots too.

You can try shots like the above with the photo of the State Court House at the background of this photo.

Taking photos along the Kuching waterfront usually signified you have visited this small town but quiet and peaceful place. Imagine walking this place at night without having fear of being mugged like it is in Kuala Lumpur.

Summary

If you have not visited Kuching yet, I am telling you to do so. If you are from Kuching, I am sure you have lots of other things to recommend to do in this lovely city too.

Writing this piece of material took a lot of my time, and I would appreciate feedback. If this is great for your reading, then I might start writing more articles like this. Until my next travel and adventures, till then signing off.

Ninetology appeared to be the prominent player in the telecommunications industry with the signing of Synergistic Strategic Alliance between Ninetology, TuneTalk and Qualcomm at Grand Dorsett Hotel, Subang Jaya, Malaysia, recently.

From left to right: Mr. Sean Ng Chee Heng (Chief Executive Officer, Ninetology Marketing Sdn Bhd), Mr. Jason Lo (Chief Executive Officer, Tune Talk) and Mr. Mantosh Malhorta (Senior Director of Business Development Country Head Philippines, Singapore & Malaysia, Qualcomm Incorporated).

Welcoming you at the entrance of the hall was a state-of-the-art Lamborghini Gallardo accompanied by sexy models. Guests also can enjoy the massage chairs or massage by personnels of thanks to Relax Time. There are also posters showing the event’s theme. There is also a performance by Koujee, the winner of Malaysia’s Tag-Team Beatbox Battle 2011.

Another important highlight of the event was the launching of Ninetology Pearl Mini with the theme “Experiencing Differences with The Youth’s Spirit”. Pearl Mini is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.

The good news is that Pearl Mini will be packaged with Tune Talk’s prepaid service. Pearl Mini is now available in all Ninetology and TuneTalk retail outlets and the RRP is RM399 which is very affordable for our youths.

The packaged plan include RM50 FREE Talktime (comes preloaded with SIM) and RM100 Airtime Rebate (RM10 x 10). To get this rebate, one needs only to reload RM20 or more in any denominations each month. For more information on the Tune Buddies SIM pack, visithttp://www.tunetalk.com/my/services/tunebuddies.

Another tablet on display on that day included the Ninetology Outlook Pure, which cater to the needs for bigger size screen touchscreen device. The RRP is RM599 and would be very affordable for the general public.

As part of its on-going Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, Ninetology also presented a GOLD Cheque worth RM50,000 to Yayasan Bakti Khidmat Masyarakat Malaysia (YBKMM), Tzu Chi Foundation Malaysia (RM30,000) and Pusat Penjagaan Kanak-Kanak Cacat Taman Megah (PPKKCTM) (RM10,000).

Please also take note that Ninetology would be announcing its branding and marketing direction via Malaysia’s largest Basketball Tournament, Ninetology All Star 2013, organised by XBallerto, to encourage more youths to be fit and healthy. This tournament shall take place from May till November 2013. Details of this tournament can be found at www.xballer.com.

Finally, the 13th General Elections has ended, time for some breather from the hype around the elections in Malaysia. Time has passed by so fast that it is now the year 2013, and I realized I am not getting any younger (recently… how long did it took me?). The time has come (or actually it has been) for me to make some big decisions in life and to ensure that I am in a stable condition in terms of finance, health and career.

We all agreed that these 3 are usually the main conditions one look at in life. Without proper financial background, your health will deteriorate, your career most probably not your future. With ailing health, you must have used quite lots of money and you cannot focus on your career. If you have a bad job and you thought the company was right for you (even if it is not), you worked your health out only to receive small gains/monetary value.

Newly Built Gaya Condominium in Taman Melawati

Pushing this aside, once we go past this stage, it is time to move on to the next stage of getting a house or a property for investment and also for the future. Like some famous guy who said, “It is never too late to invest.”

Pre-general election, most houses that were put on sale had crazy prices. If you haven’t join the bandwagon yet, maybe now this is your lucky day.

Wait, what does property have to do with the 13th General Elections in Malaysia? The picture below explains it exquisitely.

Created by Iproperty MY, the number one website in Malaysia. Whether you have a house for sale or are looking to buy.

Hello and welcome back to my preview of night scenery in Legoland Malaysia. Before that, Legoland is launching at Kuala Lumpur. Yes, there will be a soft launch and we got to visit Legoland in Kuala Lumpur. Believe your eyes when you see this.

No kidding, Legoland Malaysia is launching their second theme park at the heart of Kuala Lumpur as depicted in the photo above. Wow!!! Now wouldn’t that be good news? Well, sad to say, if only it was really true. The picture is real alright, but why?

Have a look at another angle.

Here you can see both KL Tower and the Petronas Twin Towers. Hmmm… still fishy? I guessed you need more convincing proofs.

Finally a 1Malaysia building and the ever familiar one of the iconic landmarks in Kuala Lumpur. How is that possible?

Look closely and you will be amazed with all the Lego pieces needed to create the necessary buildings. Yup, they were all made of Lego. I enjoyed taking the photos even without a tripod. Good thing I have my trusty old Nikon D300 and a steady hand.

So anyone can guess where is this place next?

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Night time in Legoland is definitely a place to take those night scenery and you will be awed with the lights and colors it would emit. So is it all morning and no night activity? That is definitely not the case, the night is more or less for photographers and also for tourist to get their photos taken.

Imagine being in Thailand. Sawadeekap!!! Such beautiful lights and sky settings.

Last but not least not all rides were close. If you have a kid or a couple, one can try the Pharoah House as it is a game in a ride where you aim with your plastic gun and fire it towards different targets using their laser. Amazing!!

So guys and girls, if you really think that it is not worth it to spend one big whole day at Legoland Malaysia in Johor, think again. There would be many things one missed and then cannot wait to go back there again due to regrets. Go in the morning and back by night would be the best remedy.

(Finally a post without any humans in it right? (What a relief….)