Blogs from Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia, Asia
April 16th 2012
First of all, we slept very long (11am) at the JB Hotel. And first thing we did was checking out again… We just killed the day by walking around (mainly in a huge shopping mall) and finding ourselves a place to eat with Malaysian food. Except for the sour plum drink we actually had a very nice brunch, kids thought differently about this of course. They still need some time to adapt their eating habits. Jesper had a local specialty; Laksa, a heavy curry and Stef some kind of vegetarian dish, all very tasty and colorful. The kids bought themselves a little present and we got ourselves a nice coffee, yummie. Because of heavy rains we prolonged our stay at the mall, to Jesper’s delight ;) When the rain had stopped, we toured a bit in ... read more
April 16th 2012
Around 22h we’re actually seated and on our way, smiling faces. One hour later we change seats because we sit in front in the coach which we thought was nice at first but which caused for some irritation later on. Imagine a sliding door, that slides open and closes all the time, with the movements of the train. Not only the noise was annoying, this was also the smoking area for passengers and there were the toilets of which the door also didn’t close properly etc… Happy we changed. A few hours later an elderly lady in our coupon has a crisis, making a lot of noises and movements. People don’t know what’s going on and move away from her. The train stops in the first station which was very close by. After a few minutes ... read more
April 15th 2012
So plans were to catch the night train at Johor Bahru in Malaysia. Before going to the Zoo the girl at the Hostel in Singapore had phoned for us to the railways because we couldn’t do an online booking anymore… She told us that because of train problems there were no trains departing at Johor Bahru, but we had to catch a taxi to a station 150km futher a way and get the train there ( Kluang) . I had my doubts about this news, but what could we do about it?? We decided to get there around 19h anyway ( departing time of the train ) and then we would see what would happen. So we hurried from the Zoo to the Hostel by taxi, picked up our luggage and continued to the bus station ... read more
March 3rd 2012
Saturday, 3rd March 2012 I wouldn't have the guts to spend a weekend getaway across the crossway if not for SJ's and YP's kind invitation. Still, I managed to book myself a private room given that the prices I paid was about 50% compared to my url=http://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/ShowUserReviews-g294265-d306192-r121855121-PARKROYAL_on_Beach_Road-Singapore.htmlParkRoyal staycation last year. Staying overnight in Johor Bahru wasn't a brand new affair for me even though the thoughts had certainly not resurfaced in recent years. I recounted my maiden attempt way back in June 2004 at the now defunct Grand Continental (Hotel Selesa as it is now known as). Back then, it was 3 of us sharing a triple room and getting on each other nerves. T, P and I gathered over the weekend to celebrate our 25th anniversary on earth. My last staycation in Johor Bahru took ... read more
December 28th 2011
Finally, for the first time in five months I managed to achieve my goal: to be the only foreigner in a town. I came close to it many a time in Cambodia and Vietnam but the entire time I stayed in Johor Bhayru we were the only foreigners (I base this on the fact we saw no other white people and we were out a lot). I should probably say white person as pretty much everyone in Malaysia is a foreigner at some level or so it seems. The thing I love about Malaysia is just that: the combinations of skin colour and religion. Johor Bhayru emphasises all of the colours and the religions in to tiny colourful streets compacting all those wonderful places of worship in to one street. Here you glimpse in to an ... read more
July 31st 2011
Sunday, 31st July 2011 It was fortunate that there were no delays at both sides of the customs when we decided to make our way across the Causeway last Sunday morning. On our way back to Singapore, we decided to check out a traditional Wanton Noodles Stall hidden beneath the suburbs of Taman Sentosa. Uncle was very friendly and the crowds were thin that afternoon. I gathered that his yummy noodles catered mostly to the morning clientele given that the kopitiam was full of people when we passed by earlier. I liked the soya sauce seasoning that went with my noodles. A perfect combination together with the generous portions of Char Siew, Chye Sim and the 3 wantons. A satisfying meal to end our Johor Bahru trip as we quickly made our way back to Singapore ... read more
August 27th 2010
Friday, 27th August 2010 I met up with KW at 12.40pm this afternoon at Kranji Station to kick-start our Johor Bahru (JB) breakaway. Since today was a weekday, boarding service 170 to bring us to Malaysia and clearing the customs formalities were fuss free and smooth. By 1.20pm, 2 of us were already at the City Square Shopping Mall which was connected to the new CIQ Complex via an overhead linkbridge. Lunch Stop: Nando's Chicken @ City Square Each of us ordered a quarter portion of the Peri Peri Chicken which came with 2 selections of side dishes. I took the potato salad and coleslaw. Both sides were more on the creamy side even though the chicken tasted succulent and grilled to perfection. I had reason to believe that fresh chicken was used in the cooking ... read more
June 4th 2010
Friday 4 June 2010 It has been another frustrating few days. We don’t know where the days go but they seem to be taken up by waiting for the good news and getting over the bad news. The good news as I write this week’s blog input is that we are no longer in Kuala Lumpur. We received the good news, finally, on Tuesday afternoon that customs at Port Klang had accepted that we had got permission to drive on Malaysian roads, we had insurance and we had a Carnet that we could use to import and export the car into this country. So Wednesday morning, John and I set off for the final time from our hotel, where we had got to know the staff very well, and headed with our bags to Central Station ... read more
May 22nd 2009
Day 5 Today is the longest travel day of our trip. We travel form JB to Butterworth via Kuala Lumpur on the Exspress Rekayat train. We are travelling 1st Class and we wish the seats on the train could be transplanted onto our Air Asia flight back to Oz. We journeyed up from JB through what was jungle but is now predominantly palm oil plantations, which is one of Malaysia’s major exports. The train left JB about 30 minutes late but the trip has been quite pleasant. Lots of leg room in the seats and they recline very well. We arrived in KL about 2.30 so instead of about an hour and a half break we only had 15 minutes. This was enough time to get some chips and drinks to sustain us on the rest ... read more
May 21st 2009
Day 4 - Today has been a very quiet day indeed. We decided we had had enough of crossing the border to Singapore and just chill in Johor Bahru. We strolled out about midday and headed to a couple of shopping centres. Conveniently close together we visited Tesco and Jusco along with the myriad of specialty stores that you get in a modern shopping mall. I found a Starbucks Coffee Shop in the mall, and of course in Malaysia they provide free wi-fi internet access. In saying that, I did eventually find out that wi-fi is free in Singapore once you register with SG wireless, although you do need a mobile phone for them to SMS a password to you. After shopping we got a cab back to the hotel where we imbibed in some of ... read more
