Bukit Merah Laketown Resort

At last, after much postponing we finally arrived at one of the largest eco-tourism destination in Northern Peninsular Malaysia, Bukit Merah Laketown Resort on the 24 Mac 2011. We left Pasir Mas, Kelantan at 9.30 am and took a relaxful leisure journey along the lush green Grik-Eastcoast Highway where we stopped at the highest point in Banjaran Titiwangsa to savour cold fresh air, then a quick rest at Bukit Banding Resort (also owned by MK Land). At Gerik, we had a delicious lunch at one of the stalls near Gerik Bus Station and stopped for prayer at our favourite mosque in Kg. Kenayat. We took the `jalan lama' upon reaching Kuala Kangsar exit and thankful that we did because it was durian season in Taiping.  We stopped for roadside durian feast at Bukit Gantang and the delicious, creamy and  aromatic `kampong' durians were worth every Ringgit paid. We finally reached  the resort at 5.00 pm. Since its our first time there, immediately after checking in at Laketown Hotel, we went around the resort for initial survey . We want to be ready for tomorrow's activities.

The next day, by 10.30 am we're at the Ecopark already. It was really fun walking along the walkways erected mid-way above the forest bed where each park is separated by walk-in enclosures. It was very educational and intresting because we can interact with the friendly animals. Pets Park is the most fun while at Nature Trail, we get to be up-close with the deers, peacoks, ducks and see Japanese carps and huge Arapaime fish. There are also Reptile Park and Tropical Trek to venture where iguanas, cobras, mangrove snakes, crocodiles, palyful otters, gibbons and many more can be seen. Later on we took the Skycyle, a hand pedal 200 m mid-air tour across the tropical rain forest and along the lake coastline. Its definitely not for the faint hearted. I was frozen with fear and pretend to enjoy the ride for my children's sake. There were butterflies in my tummy (throughout the ride) and each time Muaz  stopped peddling to rest his arms, my heart almost jumped out of my mouth. Despite saying he was afraid of heights, I am amazed at how cool and composed he was at handling the ride!!

12.30 pm, we entered the much awaited Waterpark.  Here, I let the photos justify the fun my kids had there. I had to bribe and use threat to get them out of the water for lunch, which was around 3.00 pm. The cheese burgers, french fries and chicken nuggets bought from Bubbles Family Restaurant, never tasted so good and gobbled down in record time to. Again, I had to use threats to keep them from jumping immediately into the water after lunch. I know the 10 minutes rest I imposed on them seems liked a lifetime ... and when I finally gave the `green-light', they took into the water like ducks!! Haha ..
By 4.00 pm  I think they area 3 tone darker and had made many friends by then. They are almost everywhere, darting from one pool to another, now they're on the slides, next they're off to playing water cannons at the Sandy Beachfront. By the time I got there, they're  chasing the waves. Then they run to the Activity Pool enjoying the Jumbo Shower, Water Pike, 'Mandi Timba' and cruising under Waterfall Bridge. Its been so long since I last exercise this much. Finally and reluctantly (the boys), we left at 5.00 pm. We stopped at Ripples Hawker's Center since I still had 2 roti canai worth of coupons bought earlier ( it had to be spent on the day of purchase). By 9.00 pm, both sons were sound asleep, totally exhausted from the day non-stop activities. 

We left the next day at 10.00 am, but not before the boys try out the hotel swimming pool. My sons gave a 10 to the park, and we will definitely be back. This time round, no more Skycycle for me but we'll sure be visiting Orang Utan Island, maybe try some Fishing and do a Lake Tour & Sunset Cruise. Of course, the Waterpark will be a must!!

Me & my feeling ...

Most of the time ...
I always feel ... 
Like an elder sister,    
when I'm with my older kids ...
and ... he!he! act like them too
when I'm with my youngest two ... 


But ...
when I'm with my dear hubby ... hmm!
I'm 23 forever ... in love & happy


I always feel ...
I'm my mom's favourite daughter ...
when I'm with her 
And,
with my sibblings ... !!
I'm the strong-headed no-nonsense big sister 
.... but then,
when I'm with my in-laws
I'm the youngest ... always


I feel elated,
when people said ...
I don't look my age!
only to be jolted ...
back on my feet,
when the shop assistants ... called me 
`makcik'!!!


Lately,
I always feel lonely ...
I flare-up and despair easily ...
feeling down ocassionally ...
When,
it hits me hard that ... 
age is catching up with me ... finally!



Thus ... I turn to Allah snw
for I know ...
He will never lets His servant down
and I only have just to ask ... 
for His Love and Guidance 

" Certainly Allah never changes the condition of a people unless they themselves change what is in themselves "     (Ar-Ra'd 13:11)

Cerita Lucu 1

Hari ini terasa nak kongsi cerita lucu. Lucu bagi saya tapi mungkin tidak pada orang lain. Tapi nak jugak cerita sebab rasa nak ceriakan hari yang mendung ini. 

Al-kisah, seorang suami tanpa pengetahuan isterinya telah berkahwin satu lagi. Kes poligami curi la ni ... Hendak jadikan cerita, pada satu hujung minggu, suami secara curi-curi (susahnya ..) telah pergi ke rumah isteri baru (no.2) dan membawanya keluar bersiar-siar, setelah memberitahu isteri pertama (no. 1, tak sedap sangat bunyi isteri tua) dia perlu ke pejabat sekejap, ada hal mustahak (biasalah, bila kahwin curi terpaksa jadi pembohong...!). Sebelum itu dia telah berjanji hendak membawa isteri pertama membeli belah setelah selesai urusan dipejabat. Sebaik saja hampir sampai ke rumah no.1, si suami telah terpandang sepasang kasut wanita di tempat duduk sebelahnya. Apalagi, kelamkabut dan berdegup sakan jantung si suami. Tanpa berfikir panjang, si suami  memberhentikan kereta di tepi jalan,  dan terus membuang kasut berkenaan melalui jendela. Dengan perasaan lega dan senyuman dibibir, si suami meneruskan perjalanan untuk mengambil isteri no.1 yang telah sedia menunggu di luar rumah. 

"Lama tunggu sayang?" kata suami dengan pandangan penuh kasih. Sambil tersenyum, si isteri menggeleng kepala sambil mata melilau seolah2 mencari sesuatu di dalam kereta. Hampir meloncat suami apabila si isteri tiba-tiba berkata, " Abang ada nampak tak kasut yang saya baru beli semalam?"  

Siakap senohong, gelama ikan duri,

Bercakap bohong, lama-lama mencuri.

** Kepada sesiapa yang telah terjumpa sepasang kasut, ketahuilah anda bahawa ianya masih baru dan telah menjadi mangsa silap faham poligami. Gunakanlah sebaik mungkin!! ^_^

At The Playground ...

Playground, a magical place where I always feel free and at peace. As a kid, its the place I enjoyed most. When I'm on the swing,  I pretended I'm a princess, singing softly as I flew above the clouds. When on the see-saw, I pretended I'm like Joan-of-Arc, galloping on a horse to save a kingdom. I can be everything when I'm at the playground and I miss that now. 

Now, the feeling is still the same. I enjoyed going there with my family. Sometimes I joined  my kids playing and at other times I just sit and watch them enjoying themselves. But lately, I found that if I look around, I'll noticed other things as magical and beautiful as well. And I'm glad I did, because there you noticed ....

1. when kids first arrived with their  family, they are shy and had to be encouraged but later, you had to almost drag them to go home.

2. kids easily mingle and play together regardless age, sex and race, while parents keep to each other.

3. grandparents who came along with their grand childrens are enjoying themselves too, taking pictures, applauding and laughing over them while the kids parents are more tensed and worried that their children might fall & hurt themselves. 

4.  a young father who single-handedly managed 3 young kids (my guess they are below 7 years old) entertaining them playing and later feeding them. The kids seems to adore him and vice-versa. Until I went home, I didn't see the mother of the children ... could he be a househusband? A rare sight indeed but I salute 
him for he seems so at ease and enjoying himself too.

5. a family having a picnic. 

6. an elderly couple holding hands, walking together around the tracks.

Ahh ... I never tire going to the playground be it early in the mornings or evenings. There are so many things to see and learn from each trips apart from making your kids happy and bonding with them. So, wherever you are, stop and look around you, even for a while.

Its like ` killing two ducks with one stone'.

In Malay proverb " Sambil menyelam sambil minum air"

Parks that I enjoyed going;

1. Taman D.R. Seenivasegan, Ipoh, Perak

2. Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands

3. Taman Tasik Titiwangsa, K.Lumpur

4. Taman Gelora, Kuantan

(and other countless parks & playgrounds that I've visited)

Breakdown ....

We were on our way to visit my sis-in-law, who had lost her mother the night before. We calculated that by 3.00 pm we'd reached Kuantan and head back home again by 6.00 pm because tomorrow is working/schooling day in Kelantan. That's what hubby & I planned, we didn't expect otherwise. Big mistake!!

About 15 minutes after entering the Sg.Tong en-route to Jerangau/Jabor trunk road, when suddenly our car engine died!!! I really meant what I said, the car's engine simply died, ran out of power, kaput ... breakdown precisely in front of JPJ roadblock ... rending JPJ officers to push our car to the roadside. Luckily, underneath a shady durian tree from nearby orchard. The car simply refused to start and few minutes later, the JPJ left after their job is done. Great!! Now, we are in the middle of nowhere (wait, there a sign board saying Kg.Tayor, and a milage stone indicating we are 82 km from Jerteh). Although vehicles buzzed by every now and then, there's nary a house/building in sight. Beside us, as I mentioned earlier, is a fruit orchard while infront and the rest of the  surrounding areas, only palm oil tress. 

lunch never tasted so good

Frantically, my husband made calls here & there asking for help ... but we're far away from proper civilian thus there will be considerable delay. Then, a small lorry stopped by, offering to help find nearest mechanic. A sigh of relief indeed and at 2.30 pm, Syaarie appeared. After prodding here & there, he made a diagnosed and went to KT to buy the necessary spare part  ( later I found out that KT is roughly 45 km from where we're stranded ). Hungry and thirsty,  I asked Syaarie to buy us lunch and water first, which he did. Alhamdulillah .... 

By 5.00pm, Muaz & Amar started to complain. They had been running here & there, created many new games to fill times, and even completed some homeworks. Now they are simply weary and hungry again. The sun had shifted and the shade are slowly disappearing. We had read the 3 newspapers twice and help is still far-away. To make the matter worse, the mechanic left his handphone in our car .... We've already given him a considerable amount of cash to purchase the spare item. The `what if' syndrome began to invade us but we dismissed the thoughts and began to say otherwise to lift our already depleting spirit. Using nearby small pools of clear stagnant water, we took our `wuduk' and perform our prayer. Syaarie returned with bad news, no stock and the spare part had to be ordered from KL which will take a few days since tomorrow is Sunday. While we ponders on next steps to take, a police patrol car stopped by. Taking their advices, we agreed to tow the car to KT. They called a tow-truck and stayed until the tow-truck arrived since its already 6.30pm and the road is now almost deserted. For safety reason, they said. Thanks a million to police officer Anuar & Zahari, a true "Khidmat Mesra" indeed.

7.00 pm, the tow-truck arrived,  the policemen and mechanic left but we're still `not out of the wood yet'. How are we going to KT? The tow-truck operator made few calls and later, we are safetly on our way to KT in  a car belonging to Sayed, a self-employed 22 years old who happens to be going to his father's home in KT. We arrived in KT at 8.30 pm, tired, hungry and sleepy!!! Lo and behold, my college friend, Hariff and his friend already waiting. After settling the car at designated place and paying the tow-truck chap, Hariff whisked us to nearby eatery for a hearty fried rice and satay. Later, chauffeured us to a nice beach resort and promised to meet us again at 9.30 am tomorrow.

As early as 7.00 am, we are up to savour fresh morning air to lift our spirit. Early morning shower had made the air cool & refreshing. We saw boats busy going out to and coming in from the open sea and few early risers, walking along the open beach. A sign of a good day ahead. After a simple breakfast, Hariff came and off hubby went with him to do whatever need to be done. By 10.30 am we are off home, this time through the warm and kind offer from my hubby's former schoolmate, Wahab. He sent us right to our doorsteps. 

We thanks Allah snw for His Kindness through these kind and helpful people, who, some are total strangers and others are long time friends. Thank you all, and we pray that Allah snw will blessed you all with the best possible rewards. Alhamdulillah, throughout the unfolding events, our patience and faith did not waiver. How? We kept reminding each other that what we are facing now is a test from Allah snw and small compared to what others are facing. From it, we learned a lot and we know that around us, there are still abundance of kind helpful souls in our time of needs. To Intan and family, `takziah and Al-Fatihah' .... 

 Our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) has told this hadith once:

" ... If anyone fulfills his brother's needs, Allah will fulfill his needs; if one relieves a Muslim of his troubles, Allah will relieve his troubles on the Day of Resurrection ..." 

(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)