Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

Hah! Bet you assumed from the title that this would be another ‘commercialized’ review of a hotel stay. Not entirely. In some ways, yes … the whole of last weekend was spent in Pangkor Island Beach Resort; a famous retreat on the famous island named Pangkor in Perak that is no doubt the star attraction of this silver state of Malaysia, when it comes to tourism activities. Can’t say the same though for my beloved hometown of Ipoh, since 4 stars-and-above hotels are almost unheard of in this part of the city.

And yes, I admit that the accommodation and food were all paid for. Not in the usual manner of a professional review in exchange, but because I was attending a workshop at the resort. More or less like the good old days when we used to spend weekends after weekends cooped in hotel rooms and conference halls attending lectures and such.

Yeah, the good old days …And that horrendously long 14 days spent in Coral Bay Resort on Pangkor Island back in 2008!

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Chapter 1 -Sanctuary Cove – Working in Paradise
Chapter 2 – Harbour Town Outlet Shopping @ Gold Coast

The Waffle with Chocolate fudge and Vanilla Ice Cream, dusted with icing sugar (about AUD10.95 each) – Bound to get you into a sugar rush … but what the heck!

Must Finish All Chapters before the Next One! Motormouth is adamant about this, and I’m stretching my neck, back, arms and all in a most strenuous manner; albeit the eyelids are drooping to an all time low.

I will be back to Ipoh (again?) this weekend, but shall be away for work (again?!!!!!!!) throughout the few days. Talk about tight schedule, the last REAL weekend I had was before this Gold Coast excursion two or three weeks ago. And I have had no rest ever since.

Anyway, here’s a place we accidentally bumped into on our last night in Brisbane city. We knew about this Pancake Manor from a colleague, but with only an hour or so to spare before we had to take a cab to the airport, we did not foresee this opportunity arising. A quickie food pit-stop before the departure, if you will.

And when we came across this sign, we had the same inkling that this MIGHT just be the place SY was talking about …..

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An arranged chaos. You can literally dive in with manners out the windows (or in this case, the lack thereof), OR you can utilize the shiny cutlery and scoop mouthfuls of rice showered in the golden mahogany curries, with interesting clash of textures of being crispy (papadom crackers), crunchy (pickled cucumber) and chewy (mutton varuval – dry curry mutton)

Tell me about banana leaf curry rice, and I’ll sit up and pay attention. Not sure where the allure actually lies; maybe the fragrance from the leaf where your food is served? The sheer appeasing of your innermost glutton by topping up excessive portions of rice and vegetables (of course, the curry too)? Or the desire to dig in in your most barbaric manner; sans any fork or spoon, and create a mess out of the culinary experience?

Raju, off Jalan Gasing in PJ is probably legendary; a name renowned … almost synonymous with good (yet pricey) roti canai (Indian flatbread). But this was my FIRST visit after many trials and tribulations. Why? Read on for the revelation …. Read the rest of this entry »

“Just so you know, this weekend brought back lots of sweet memories to this Motormouth from Ipoh. The good times spent throughout the three years I was in Ipoh; when we scouted around the whole of Perak for good food, the crazy antics of dining 6 (!!) heavy meals a day, followed by incessant sessions of lectures listened with a half-hearted attempt at keeping the eyes wide open, and the thousands of miles travelled ….. for work, to attend courses, and sometimes …. just for the sake of travelling and having a jolly good time …”

Felda Residence Hot Springs – No elevators, just staircase. But then again, only two floors, so don’t complain ….

AGES ago (3 years, almost), if you have been a reader since then, you must have read about our experience at Sungai Klah Hot Springs, when these new blocks of residences (hotels) were not even built yet. We stayed in individual chalets, complete with a personal hot springs pool (yes, kinda luxurious huh?), right outside our villa with two rooms and a spacious living room.

Not bad for RM600/USD200 per night back then, but seemingly, the rate has increased to about RM900 or more …. so we retracted with tails between our legs and foaming at the sides of our mouth after hearing of the new rate.

The relatively new accommodation at Felda Residence Hot Springs in Sungkai, Perak.

But of course, they have these newer blocks with nicely furnished rooms; catering to the poorer souls with limited budget (read : us). If I were you, I’d continue reading the ramblings …. Read the rest of this entry »

#1 – Fried Egg, Hash Brown, Bacon and Toast (AUD4.80/RM14.90) – Back to basics stuff, yet worked exceptionally well after a LONG flight with transit in between. Almost like nasi lemak to Malaysians, can’t imagine breakfast in Australia without some bacon and eggs.

And thus, after the brief solace we found at Hyatt Regency Sanctuary Cove, our tummies started grumbling and off we went in search of good grubs to fill the void. After all, the said resort ain’t a stone’s throw away from town. One thing we noticed was that the cabs there are EXPENSIVE. A one way trip from our hotel to Surfer’s Paradise cost AUD65/RM201.50 (!!), while our trip to Harbour Town Outlet Shopping cost AUD35/RM108.50. Bear in mind that the journey took no longer than 20 minutes at most.

Harbour Town @ Gold Coast – There’s No Town Like It. Okay so that’s the tagline, but here you can seek retail therapy, comfort in knowing that you can find bang for your bucks, and of course …. food round every corner.

Since I projected no leisure time for sight-seeing, food hunting or even souvenir shopping, the first day was thankfully allocated for us to overcome the jet lag (or lack thereof, since the time differs only by an additional two hours) and fatigue owing to the 8 hours or so of flight time.

A quick check with the receptionist at our hotel revealed that even the locals go to Harbour Town for good bargains and of course … I did a tiny bit of preparation before departure; and the same factory outlet shopping haven popped up in more than one resources.

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A far cry from the usual posh, stylish and contemporary Hyatt resorts, Hyatt Regency Sanctuary Cove @ Gold Coast, Australia sets the mood for a laid back, relaxed and rejuvenating experience with its timeless design and classic ambience punctuated with lush greeneries.

So okay, I was away for the whole of last week mainly for work. First portion of the week was spent in Gold Coast of Australia, then the second half back in my home country, but on an island that’s overflowing with hawker delights. But that’s material for another post.

This was my first visit to Gold Coast, and even Australia. Yes, our beloved (ambitious) Air Asia started the Australia routes since God-knows-when and yet there was no urge for an immediate excursion to Down Under. Even when our Ringgit strengthened against the Aussie dollar sometime last year (to an irresistible tune of RM2++ to AUD1!!). This time around, it’s RM3.10 to AUD1, but since work beckoned … there was no choice but to brace myself for a whirlwind journey that lasted a good few days.

Sanctuary Cove @ Gold Coast – A respite for the weary soul indeed, you don’t exactly expect parties, surfers and beaches but instead you get to savour a serene, quaint and tranquil surroundings befitting a royale getaway

Since it was still summer (albeit almost at the end of the tanning season), I was well prepared for a steamy/sweltering hot session at the beach with white sandy beaches stretching to no ends, sun-kissed bodies tanning on the beach, and high waves catching the eye.

To no avail. Since we were put up at Hyatt Regency at Sanctuary Cove to the north of the island; a good distance away from Surfer’s Paradise, my dream of frolicking in the sands was dashed. Somewhat.

Read on for more enticing shots of the stay, and of course … the FOOD. Read the rest of this entry »

#1 – A Beach that was Not Meant to Be. Are we playing God here?

Oh well, so I have made my disappearing act for more than a week now. Wanna have a sneak peek at where I was this past week?

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