Selena Li 李詩韻

Linda Chung 鍾嘉欣

Kate Tsui 徐子珊

Since early March these year, we’ve been to many different places most of them were planned over Whatsapp and within just a day. The best was driving all the way up to Genting Highlands one Saturday night, and all I suggested was let’s do something different for a change and not be in KL. Since then, every week is like doing something “planned” at the very last minute and everything we do is out of randomness and different each week.

Here are some things we did which were totally random (and in no particular order):

I brought a Taboo set to a nearby bar and we just played

Our spontaneous night in Genting Highlands

This was a random food binge at nearby Shaw Parade @ Pudu. Herbal Coconut Chicken, Wild Boar Curry, Chicken Feet and Mushrooms and Braised Pork with Pickled Vegetables…

…followed by drinks at Bakita at Changkat Bukit Bintang

Another random food outing…this time to Cheras for Steamed Frog Legs with Ginger.

and later went for Snow beer…beer that has a texture of a Slurpee!

and to finish the night with some freshly caught steamed fish by the lake at Blue Zone Cafe @ Cheras Perdana

Looks fun right when everyone is up for being spontaneous? Look out for more random outings…until then..

The W Hotel Hong Kong, is probably the coolest and nicest hotel I’ve ever stayed in. Situated in Kowloon, and attached to the high end Elements Shopping Centre, you’ll find indulgences fit for an emperor. Living up to their motto of  being “Whatever, Whenever, Wherever” they take personalized service to the next level. From the moment you enter the hotel, the staff are ever friendly and always willing to assist you in every way. The location is very convenient, as it is linked with Kowloon MTR station and Airport Express. Meaning, you just have to hop on the Airport Express from the airport to Kowloon station to get here.

We were there 2 years in a row during Christmas, and both times, they never fail to deliver and live up to their reputation. The first time you enter the hotel, it really doesn’t feel like a hotel at all. In fact, it feels like you’re going to a high end night club because they play chill out tunes in their lobby area and almost throughout the whole hotel. Price of a standard room doesn’t come cheap though, it’s roughly HKD$3,200 per night (approx RM1,200 per night). But let me be the first to assure you, the price is definitely worth it.

Me posing outside the hotel entrance

Digital welcome mat in the elevator! How cool is that?

Walkway to the rooms. Cool eh?

Room No. 2720

The rooms were also really cool in design. There isn’t any bathroom doors, instead there are sliding panels which can are also doubled up as a wall/mirror. So if you want some privacy in the bathroom, just slide the “walls”

View from the bathroom. Noticed there are no doors

an artsy-fartsy lamp shade

What I like about the main light controls of the room is that you can set the “mood” of the room. There are options for “Day”, “Night” and “Dreams”. Pretty self explanatory, but also pretty cool. The LCD TV and mini are also hidden. The large horizontal mirror slides open to reveal the TV, while the desk doubles up as a mini bar when you lift the table top.

The mini bar under the work desk!

You can even watch TV when you are in the tub

Another place a must go is the roof top swimming pool which overlooks Hong Kong island. Very calm and relaxing. And there is also a heated Jacuzzi if the weather gets too cold for a swim.

The pool overlooking Hong Kong island..breathtaking

The heated Jacuzzi

We also ordered room service to give their food a try. I got to admit, their food prices are quite reasonably priced and they are also generous with the portions as well considering the place. Taste wise is food is not too bad either. Definitely not a bad idea to order in if you feel that if you do not want to go out.

Our dinner with wine

Overall, if you ask me again would I come back? I would say MOST DEFINITELY! I would really recommend this hotel to anyone who wants to stay in a top notch service oriented hotel. When they say they will do “Whatever”, they really mean it. Just tell them that you miss your dog/kids back home, and they will do something about that too. :)

We were there for a good 6 days but unfortunately, with it being a company trip, most of the itinerary were already preplanned with a tour guide. Which meant we didn’t have much time to explore the city on our own except during the night. By then, we were all too tired to further walk with aching feet. One advice I would give to anyone going to Beijing…prepare to walk A LOT!  Of course the highlight of the trip was The Great Wall of China, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

These are some of the places we’ve visited during the trip. It’s not in any particular order, but because I do not want this to be a super lengthy post, I would let the pictures do more of the talking.

Temple of Heaven
According to ancient Chinese legend, Earth was represented by a square and Heaven by a circle. This place has several features of the temple complex symbolize the connection of Heaven and Earth, of circles and squares. Oh and it also sits on a hill, which mean closer to the heavens.

Lama Temple
Also known as the “Palace of Peace and Harmony Lama Temple“. I particularly like the entrance to this temple as it looks like a scene in a movie during autumn.

The entrance to the temple

Hutong
This place is actually rows and rows of bars and shops surrounding a large lake. Hutong (胡同) also apparently means “narrow road” in Mandarin. The main transportation in this area is via trishaw. We came here on our first night for drinks, and on the second time (following the tour), we went through the place on a trishaw. I got to say, I’m amazed at these trishaw riders. They are all elderly people and they can maneuver through these narrow roads at high speeds without bumping into others.

On the first night, I had this to drink…bottle told us to PARTY!

Rows of shops surrounding the lake

Pek Fui and I about go for a trishaw ride

Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City
Don’t think these 2 places need any introduction, but the Forbidden City really impressed me. I’m impressed not because of the engineering feat, but because how the Chinese think in terms of security for the Emperor. Back then when you’re riding a horse or on foot, it’s nearly impossible to get through to the main palace as there are layer after layer after layer of security walls with watch towers where they can spot someone trying to get in a mile away. Good thing for the Emperor back then, aerial warfare was non existent.

Inside the Forbidden City

With Yew Fai and See Wei

The Great Wall of China
The Great Wall, one of the Seven Wonders of The World. Again, amazed and in awe that these walls were constructed without machines and only using people power. There weren’t any use of cement either as they used glutinous rice to hold the bricks together…and it’s still standing until today!

Li Shan and I @ The Great Wall of China

Wangfujing
This is basically the area where we stayed. We only had time to walk around during the night.

Here I tasted deep fried baby scorpions for the very first time. It’s not bad really. It tasted like deep fried prawns. If you think that is bad, there are other more grossed looking food. The baby scorpion were the easiest to eat.

Starfish, seahorse and baby scorpions on a stick

Donkey penis!

Fuck…don’t want to even know what this is…

Trying out deep fried baby scorpions..

The Bird’s Nest Stadium & Water Cube
There 3 buildings are all located within the same place. The Bird Nest Stadium, Water Cube (or National Aquatics Centre)and a building shaped like a dragon (Pangu Plaza). Didn’t manage to get into any of these building (no point going in either), but did manage to get some photos taken within these architecture marvels.

Group shot in front of the Bird Nest Stadium

You know I’ve heard so much about the people in Beijing (and entire PRC for that fact) being rude to tourists and not being civilized when it comes to care for public hygiene, and I got to say they are absolutely right. Once you’re there to see their mannerism, you would think people in KL are not so bad after all. Overall, the people in Beijing were not nice, the public toilets are without doors, the food is erm…horrible (or rather bland) compared to KL, and shopping there is expensive. Apart from the weather and having the company of colleagues, Beijing for me was more of an experience and an eye opener. Would I go back there again? Well, no…not unless there is a very good reason to do so.

[Click here for more pictures of Beijing]

Happy New Year everyone!

It was a team building/get away/”get to know one another better” session with all our colleagues. We stayed in this place called Saufiville Resort, which is a villa consisting of 6 rooms. Nice enough to accommodate a group of 30 people. It also came with a private infinity pool which overlooked the mountain view. Well, with it being a team building trip, we also gotten outside help to organize some activities for us during the day.

A word of caution though. While the place promises great scenery and cooler than city temperatures, it has one drawback….BUGS! The place it’s filled with all sorts of insects and bugs as it is located in the middle of the jungle. So if you’re planning a stay there, please remember to bring insect repellent or bug spray.

Here are some pictures of the place

Courtyard surrounded by mountains

The infinity pool

Enjoying the view with a few cans of beer

We were split into smaller groups to perform some task during our team building activities…just don’t ask what the task were..

Awesome team members: Robb, Audrey, Jesrina, Lee Fen, Darren and Yoke Teng

Again did I mentioned about the insects…

Size of bug = size of lighter = SCARY!

And of course we all had fun and enjoyed the trip even more by playing poker, Xbox Kinect, Karaoke and drinking (what more?) during the night. Here are some group pictures..

And finally here we are having Banana Leaf rice after the trip :)

Here is a list of upcoming post:

• Serenity In The City: A getaway in Saufiville, Janda Baik
• Climbing the Great Wall - Company trip to Beijing, China

Until then…stay tuned! =)

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