[OK na Road Trip] First Time Backpackers (Malaysia and Singapore - Part 2)

As continued from a previous POST...

Good morning, Singapore!

Day 3 (Lavender Street, Singapore)

* 7:45AM - Up and About

* 8:03 - Departure from Fragrance Hotel - Lavender

(Dumaan kami sa Fragrance Hotel - Imperial para dun iwanan yung mga backpacks namin. Okay lang daw mag-iwan ng gamit doon kahit naka checkout na kami. Ilang hakbang lang ito from their Lavender hotel, kaya nakakapag taka na may same hotel franchises na isang block lang ang layo.)

* 8:34 - Kopitiam (Lavender)

(Breakfast time!)

On the Plate:

• Century Egg and Minced Meat Congee (SGD3.50) - Lugaw na may pork at century egg. Mahilig si Kat sa century egg!
• Satay Set (SGD5.50) - Pork satay served with nasi lemak.
• Kopi Si (SGD1.50) - Coffee with sugar and evaporated milk.

breakfast at Kopitiam - Lavender

Food court ang Kopitiam. The place has stalls for a good mix of Malaysian and Chinese food that comes in really cheap. People come and go on a weekday rush hour like this. Ang sarap sana kumain pa ng ibang putahe kaso mahaba pa ang araw at ayaw namin maging bloated.

Rating (Kopitiam): 6/7

* 8:45 - Search for Golden Mile Complex

(Iniwan ko saglit si Kath sa Kopitiam para hanapin kung nasan ang Golden Mile Complex. It's a terminal for Malaysian-bound buses. Bibili ako ng ticket ahead of time, para hindi maulit yung nangyari sa amin sa TBS.)

(Armed with Google Map, nakita ko kung nasaan yung terminal. From Lavender, I just went there on foot. Hindi naman ganun kalayuan. Konting pawis lang. May mga pinay pa akong nakasalubong along the way.)

* 9:13 - Booked (Grassland Bus)

(Ayon sa research namin, okay ang Grassland Bus. Kaya dito ako nagpa-book ng passage going back to Kuala Lumpur. Nagpapalit na din ako ulit ng pera to Singapore Dollars.)

East West Line

* 9:38AM - Headed to Outram Park MRT Station

(Binalikan ko si Kath tapos pumunta na kaming Outram Park Station para tumalon sa kabilang train line na papuntang HarborFront, kung saan may tram papasok ng Sentosa, kung saan nandun ang Universal Studios, kung saan magsasaya kami. LOL.)

* 10:14 - Sentosa Monorail

(Sa third floor ng VivoCity mall, na nakakonek sa HarbourFront MRT Station, makikita ang tram papasok ng Sentosa. SGD10 per head yata ang bayad. Parang yun na din ang entrance fee ng Sentosa.)

VivoCity

* 10: 21 - Waterfront Station

(Eto yung station na papuntang Universal Studios. This is the first of two other monorail stations heading further inside Sentosa.) 

Waterfront Station

= = Start: Universal Studios - Singapore = =

* 11:15 - Universal Studios (Singapore)!

(Inside USS, we quickly passed through the Hollywood and New York areas to head straight for the Transformers 3D ride at the Sci-Fi City area! We heard that the queue on this one can go as long as one hour. Kaya gusto sana namin makasakay bago mag tanghalian. In all, halos 20 minutes din kaming pumila but the wait is reeeally worth it!)

USS

(Counter clockwise ang ikot namin around USS and we researched ahead on what rides to prioritize or kumbaga must-try kaya more or less may idea na kami.)

* 11:47 to 12:29 - Water World
(We can squeeze in one more show before lunch, said our tummy. So we quickly scanned the Ancient Egypt area and hopped to the Lost World area where the Water World water show is. We loved the stunts and the antics of the casts. Truly entertaining! Ang galing ng set! Umulan pa at the middle of the show. Makes for a good realistic props. Sayang lang hindi kami nakapagpa-picture sa casts. Hindi namin alam na nag-eentertain sila ng photo-ops with the viewers after the show.)

the map

Bee posing for Kat

Lost World

Water World

* 12:38PM - Lunch Time
(We had lunch at Goldilocks on the Far Far Away area.)

On the Plate:

•  Chicken Fingers - SGD6
• Coke - SGD3.90

* 1:04 - Shrek 4D Adventure
(Nakaka-aliw! Parang yung Transformers ride lang din but on a theater setting. Kadiri yung sneeze ni Donkey, may tumalsik talagang laway. LOL.)

* 1:34 - Canopy Flyer
(Dahil wala na kami masyadong hinahabol na rides, we went back to the Lost World area to try this roller coaster. I almost chickened out LOL, pero mapilit si Kath. Sige na nga! Nginig nginig! It was actually fun though, scary but fun! Unlike conventional roller coasters, walang "coaches" ito. Nakaupo lang kami sa upuan with our feet dangling free and that's pretty much it. Iniwan na nga namin yung tsinelas namin. Mahirap na, baka tumalsik! Masaya! Medyo bitin nga lang kasi sobrang bilis.)

a monk from far far away

Kat in Tsinelas and the Cat in Boots

* 2:48 - King Julien's Beach Party-go-Round
(Madagascar area naman kami. Pumatol kami sa pambatang merry-go-round. LOL. I like to move it, move it!)

(After nito, nag Crate Adventure naman kami. River boat ride ito na may narration ng Madagascar story along the trip. Pambata ulit. Nakakatuwa lang yung mga animal)

*3:02 - Monster Rock!
(Aliw ito! Bale nagkaron na kami ng time mag-ikot sa first two areas na nilampasan namin para dumiretso sa Transformers 3D, which are the Hollywood and the New York areas. Nasa Hollywood yung Pantages Theater where the Monster Rock is showing. It's a stage musical with the classic Universal Monsters as casts. Trip namin yung kumanta sila ng "Nobody But You". Very entertaining performance!)

stage-performing monsters

* 3:37PM - Sesame Street Spaghetti Space Chase
(This is on the New York area. Pambatang train ride na may story narration along the way, starring the whole Sesame Street casts.)

* 3:47 - Street Boys Show
(If you're hiding under a rock, the local dance group Street Boys are now making waves as USS's resident hiphop performers. Rockafellas Street Boys ang pangalan na nila at may scheduled street dance performance sila sa corner ng New York at Sci-Fi areas. Wala silang kupas sa pagsayaw tsaka ang lakas nila makahatak ng tao. We can't be more proud to be a Pinoy seeing them with such a huge crowd.)

Street Boys in USS

* 3:57 - Lights! Camera! Action!
(This is a guided tour hosted by none other than Steven Spielberg... on a digital screen. LOL. Bale i-introduce ka lang niya sa mga movie magics. Tapos ang finale ng tour ay mag-simulate sila ng set in New York na tatamaan ng major hurricane. It's like feeling an actual disaster movie set. Ang astig nito. Mahaba haba nga lang din ang pila.)

(That's the last part of our tour and generally, maswerte kami dahil lagi naming natyetyempuhan yung mga opening ng major attractions sa park. Strictly scheduled kasi lahat, kaya mahuli lang ng konti, matagal na intay na ulit para sa next opening.)

we're everywhere

= = End: Universal Studios - Singapore = =

* 4:53 - Sentosa Merlion
(We walked the stretch of the Waterfront monorail station to Imbiah where the giant merlion is. Dito na lang kami nag photo ops dahil yung original merlion sa Marina Bay ay under construction. After that, sumakay na ulit kami ng monorail papunta sa next at pinakadulong station ng Sentosa Express which is the Beach station. Hindi na kami bumaba. Sight-seeing lang, then we headed all the way back to VivoCity.)

lolo ng mga merlions

* 5:19 - Kopitiam (VivoCity)
(Meryenda time at Kopitiam inside VivoCity.)

On the Plate:

• Kaya Toast Set

* 5:30PM - HarbourFront MRT Station
(Our target is Bayfront Station to check Gardens by the Bay. Ang connecting line ng HarbourFront papuntang Bayfront ay Chinatown Station. Sa sobrang mangmang namin, nakalabas kami ng Chinatown Station instead of taking the connecting MRT line to our destination, kaya kelangan pa namin bumili ng ticket ulit to go back inside. Argh!)

* 5:43 - Chinatown Station to Bayfront Station
* 6:01 - Tunnel from Bayfront to Gardens by the Bay
(Like a hobo, naka-upo kami sa tunnel palabas ng Gardens by the Bay. Naglilista ng mga bibilhing pasalubong para sa Pinas. Ang lakas kasi sobra ng ulan sa labas.)

the hobo scribe

* 6:51 - Gardens by the Bay!
(Humina ang ulan. Tolerable para makagala na around the garden. Pero nakapayong pa din kami pareho ni Kat. Kung iintayin pa namin kasi tumigil, kakapusin na kami sa oras na nakalagay sa itinerary.)

(Konting stay lang then tumawid na kami papuntang Marina Bay Sands. Nakakahiya, basang basa kami while walking The Shoppes. Kiber lang. We headed to Bugis via Bayfront MRT to meet Mia.)

 

rainy visit at the Gardens

* 7:34 - Bugis MRT Station with Mia
* 7:52 - Dinner at Xin Yuan Ji
(Sikat daw ito sa Singapore sabi ni local guide Mia. LOL. It's near Bugis Junction, a couple of walks from the MRT station. The street's name is Tan Quee Lan.)



On the Plate:

• Oriental Whitebait Fried Rice - SGD7.80
• Fried Fish Meat Mee Hoon - SGD5.80
• Mee Hoon with Egg Gravy - SGD7
• Deep-fried Prawn Paste Chicken - SGD13.80
• Milo Dinosaur - SGD2.50
• Lime and Plum Juice - SGD1.50
• Iced Lemon Tea

May pila nung pumunta kami at madalas daw talaga may pila dito sa dami ng kumakain. Mabilis din naman kami agad nakapasok. The place is well-staffed kaya addressed ang needs ng mga customers kahit madami. Maingay nga lang dahil halos tabi tabi na ang mga lamesa sa loob. Hindi din masyadong nakaka-intindi ng English yung mga staff so medyo pahirapan makipag-usap.

plai lai

plai fish mee hoon

mee hon with egg gravy

deep-plai chicken

modern drinks

prehistoric drink

Malangis yung fried rice pero ang sarap ng spicy flavor. Yung mee hoon (vermicelli) soup ay malasa. Yung may egg gravy ay malapot, parang lomi ang sabaw tapos mixed seafoods ang sahog. Crispy yung fried chicken pero aside from the prawn paste na sawsawan, it's so so. Tapos, sa wakas, nakapag Milo dino ako sa Singapore! Nothing extraordinary but that's how it's supposed to be. Didn't like the juice pero nasarapan naman si Kat.

Rating (Xin Yuan Ji): 6/7

xin yuan ji

* 8:41PM - Bugis Junction
(Bili bili ng mga pampasalubong. Ang mura ng mga chocolates dito tsaka relo.)

* 9:39 to 10:05 - Bugis MRT Station to Fragrance Hotel (Imperial)
(Bye Mia. Thanks for everything! We headed back to the hotel to get our things sorted and freshened up for the long ride back to Kuala Lumpur. Pinoy pa yung nasa desk counter.)

mia and kat

* 10:38 - Golden Mile Complex
(Taxi to Golden Mile Complex. Yung driver ng taxi ay kamuka ni Mister Wilson na Indian version. Makulit dahil nakakapag Tagalog siya. Nagyabang siya sa amin ng mga Tagalog words niya. LOL.)

* 10:56 - Waiting for Bus
(Massage seat muna si Kat habang umiinom kami ng flavored Yakult! Bakit nga ba hindi ganito kalalaki ang Yakult sa Pinas??)

* 11:17 - Grassland Bus
(Dumating na yung bus. We are sat on the upper level. Maganda ang serbisyo ng bus, binigyan pa kami ng kumot.)

Grassland Coaches

Day 4 (Johor-Singapore Causeway)

* 12:35AM - Back to Johor Bahru
(We went through the Singaporean Immigration then again at the Malaysian Immigration after a short travel over the causeway. We have to haul all our luggage down on each offices and back up the bus again. Medyo hassle.)

* 5:25 - Berjaya Times
(We were dropped at the Berjaya Times and from there, we rode a taxi to KL Sentral. We were ripped off by the Indian driver. Ayaw magbaba ng metro. Faith in humanity, drops one point.)

* 5:34 - KL Sentral
(Freshen up. At this early, buhay na ang KL Sentral at safe. May libre pang wifi.)

* 5:58 - Luggage Lockers
(We put our backpacks on a rented locker on the terminal. We're now ready for our Kuala Lumpur day trip!)

* 6:28 - McDonald's (KL Sentral)
(Breakfast time!)

* 6:48AM - Platform 3 to Batu Caves
* 7:03 - Kuala Lumpur Komuter Train Station 
(First agenda of the day is to go to the Batu Caves. It's eight stations away from KL Sentral via KTM Komuter train.)

entrance to the Batu Caves

*  7:33 to 8:32 - Batu Caves!
(The Batu Caves is a cave system north of Kuala Lumpur which is transformed by the government into a Hindu shrine, mainly for the god of war, Murugan. Just outside the main temple cave is the 140-foot statue of Lord Murugan. Beside it, is a stairwell with 272 steps leading to the Cathedral Cave. Inakyat namin ito ni Kat!)

(Sa paligid ng complex, may mga minor temples. Andami ding unggoy at kalapati. May isang temple na may magaganap pang Hindu wedding.)

with Lord Murugan

kat on her 200-ish-th step

at the top, by the Cathedral Cave entrance... victory!

a monkey god

* 8:47 to 9:24 - Batu Caves Station to Bank Negara Station
* 9:24 - Taxi to Merdeka Square

* 10:05AM - Merdeka Square
(We walked around Merdeka Square. It's the place where Malaysia is declared an independent state. There's a huge flagpole at the end of the huge open greenery that fronts the Sultan Abdul Samad Building which is a government office. Nearby, we also visited the National History Museum and the Kuala Lumpur City Gallery.)

Merdeka Square

Queen Victoria Fountain

one of the tallest flagpole in the world

KL City Gallery

(May nakita kaming Malaysian na nag-ooffer ng free walking tour para sa mga turista. Sumama kami ng sandali sa grupo niya to hear some words, pero humiwalay din kami agad since we're following a strict schedule.)

(Up next, we walked downtown to Jalan Petaling o mas kilala sa kanila na Chinatown. Shopping time! We decided not to push the trip back to Berjaya Times for more shopping time. Kailangan kasi namin makabalik sa KL Sentral before 2PM and we rather spent the remaining time to see the Petronas Tower in daylight.)

Jalan Petaling

* 11:08 - Pasar Seni Station to KL Sentral Station
(Oopsie! Pwede na pala dumiretso ng KLCC from Pasar Seni. Now we have to double back. Dope!)

* 11:30 - KLCC Station
* 11:59 - Suria KLCC
(Petronas Tower in daylight plus more mall-time with Kat. Inikot namin ang Suria KLCC hanggang sa magutom.)

* 12:24 - Suria KLCC Foodcourt
(More nasi lemak action for us.)

* 12:42PM - Wafflemeister (Suria KLCC)
(With nothing much left to do, we jus had dessert at Wafflemeister. May libre kasing wifi at ang sarap naman talaga ng waffle nila, with Belgian chocolate and banana. Mmm mmm!)

our waffle

* 1:41 - Kampung Baru Station (heading back to KL Sentral)
* 1:52 - KL Sentral
(We claimed our backpacks from the locker then bought more pasalubong. Na-interview pa ako ng isang survey guy about this mobile application they are promoting.)

* 2:27 -Aerobus to LCCT
(It's the long trip going back to the airport.)

* 3:25 - LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal)
* 3:40PM to 4:10PM - Check In and Immigrations
(We are now officially waiting our flight back to Manila. Happy tired!)

KTM Komuter

* 4:51 - Meryenda Time
(Beef chowmien for our last greasy food in Malaysia, using our last ringgits.)

* 6:06 to 6:45 - Boarding Time and Flight
(Cebu Pacific Flight 5J0500.)

*  10:05 - Landing in Terminal 3 (Manila)
* 10:45PM - Cleared Out of Immigrations

(Thank you, Lord!)

Bahasa to Tagalog Words - Day 4

• minum = uminom (drink)
• us = kami (us)
• angin = hangin (air)
• tolak = tulak (push)
• kahak = dahak (pleghm)
• buka = bukas (open)
• kutu = kuto (lice)
• masuk = pasok (enter)
   

*****
Acknowledgement:

• Nex, Mia, at Mareng Grasya - para sa pagiging personal tour guides namin at sa major chicha treat! Mia, salamat sa cheaper USS tickets! Push mo ang Mia Travel and Tours - Singapore Chapter!
• All the People we Buggered for Details about Malaysia and Singapore - kilala niyo kung sino sino kayo... pasensya sa makukulit na pagtatanong para mabuo ang itinerary namin at salamat, big time!
• Starmart Quistna - special mention ito, for still having a bus to Johor at 12 midnight... that's a close call for us and our strictly planned itinerary. 
• Shamsul, the Johor Taxi Driver - for the great taxi service.
• Ate Hazel - para sa pag-share ng kanilang itinerary sa Kuala Lumpur.
• Google Map (yung lumang version, because the new one is crap) - para sa mga mapa at direksyon na ginamit namin sa itinerary.
• Our Man Upstairs - for keeping us safe all those time and making the trip a very memorable one... to God be the glory!

not-so-minifigure