Singapore Day 1: Where to stay, what to ride, what to see?

Yeay finally I write another story of my holiday.. 😁

Well this is my second visit to Singapore. First visit was with my bestfriends, and this time with my family. These 2 visits have different stories, but I’ll give you the best recommendation for visiting Singapore.

The first chapter of my Singapore trip’s stories is about basic preparation you need to know before visiting the country.

WHERE TO STAY?

After you booked the flight tickets, the next thing you’ll prepare must be hotel room. Where should I stay?

If you planning to go on your own without book any travel agent, so I recommend you to find place to stay near the transportation center. In Singapore, it must be near MRT station or city bus stops. It will help you cut walking time from hotel to your transportation, so you have more times to spend at tourist site.

Since I used to be budget traveller, I choose the budget hotel as well. I decided not to stay in a hostel because it less privacy, even though it’s cheaper than budget hotel. I need hotel room with private bathroom and more spaces to pack things (as expected from shopping master 😂). Unfortunately, most of budget hotel located a bit far from MRT station, the nearest are hostels and 5 stars hotels.

In my first visit, I found the nearest budget hotel to MRT station is in Geylang. There are many budget hotels in this area. I chose the nearest one to Kallang MRT station, The Fragrance Hotel Emerald. The Fragrance Hotel is a hotel group that you can find easily across the country. They has some classification like Emerald, Pearl, Ruby, Royal, Imperial, Rose, Oasis, Riverside, Waterfront, etc, based on the location and what stars the hotel is.

So I finally booked The Fragrance Hotel Emerald in Geylang because it’s the nearest hotel to MRT station. Even though I need to walk about 1 km or 10 mins walking to the station but it’s better than any hotel in the area. I had no problem during the stay at the hotel, it’s quite comfy, but my Singaporean said that it's in red district area! LOL 🙈

I spent IDR 650.000 (USD 45)/night (2 person) for Superior Twin Room at Fragrance Hotel Emerald. It has private large bathroom with bathtub and hot shower water available. But with this price, breakfast isn't included.

The Fragrance Hotel Emerald Singapore

The hotel location to Kallang MRT station

On my second visit, I brought my parent along. So I should find another place that is super close to MRT station. Walking 10 mins to the station seems too much for elder. I thought staying in apartment room will be better, because I found out that in Singapore, local residences are closer to MRT station than budget hotels in the same area.

Yeayyy I found one! Apartment room for 4 people in Chinatown that just a blink away from MRT station..😁

Actually it’s an old Chinese style apartment, but it’s located in the same complex with shopping center and MRT station. Wowww we were so happy..

The name of the place is People’s Park Center. It’s also located at the big crossroads of Chinatown area, opposite the Chinatown Point Mall & OG Building, and just 5 mins walk from the famous Riverside, Clarke Quay..

The building of People's Park Center

The maps of People's Park Center near Chinatown MRT

Chinatown Junction

Me and sister posing at Chinatown Junction.it's below our apartment..😍

The price of staying in an apartment room is a bit higher than in a budget hotel, but you can't tell the different due to its better location. I spent IDR 1.450.000 (USD 100)/night for 4 person, with private and shared bathroom. We also could use the shared kitchen and iron. The apartment contains of 3 rooms, so we're getting to know each other with other guests.

So I suggest you to stay in an apartment room, especially if you bring many people along. You can find apartment recommendation that suit your preference on Airbnb application and booked with your credit card. 

Or kindly contact me to ask more.. 😀

WHAT TO RIDE?

Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) is the best transportation you can have in Singapore. I recommend it because it’s a lot easier and cheaper than any other transport mode. MRT’s integrated system help you move easily from one place to another. The train will arrive every 5 minute, so you don’t need to wait for long time at the station.

Bus also become a common transportation for local people, but the system will get you nuts..😂

You should remember the bus number and the destination point. Taxi and grabs can be an alternative if you have more money or travelling with 4 people at once.

To ride MRT safely without getting lost (even though getting lost is a fun thing..😆), you need to understand the MRT maps well. MRT divided into 5 lines that bring you to different destination. 

Every line has different colors:

Green Line: East West Line

Red Line: North South Line

Purple Line: North East Line

Yellow Line: Circle Line

Blue Line: Downtown Line

The MRT System Map

You only need to know your departure station and find your destination station, so you can choose which MRT line you should take. Some MRT stations also become an interchange station, it means you can change from one line to another. The biggest interchange station is Dhoby Ghaut. It is the interchange point for 3 lines: red, yellow and purple.

Here are some examples of riding MRT:

From Changi Airport to Bugis:

Take Green Line, from Changi Airport MRT Station (CG2) to Bugis Station (EW12), you don’t need to change line because it’s in the same Green Line.

From Changi Airport to Chinatown:

Take Green Line, from Changi Airport MRT Station (CG2) to Expo Station (DT35), change to Blue Line.

Take Blue Line, from Expo Station (DT35) to Chinatown Station (DT19)

Or

Take Green Line, from Changi Airport MRT Station (CG2) to Bugis Station (EW12), change to Blue Line.

Take Blue Line, from Bugis Station (DT14) to Chinatown Station (DT19)

The point is you should change from Green Line to Blue Line that reach Chinatown.

This interchange also applied in another route. You might change from Red Line to Purple Line, from Yellow Line to Green Line, etc.

Another important notes that you shouldn’t miss while travelling on MRT is some DONT’S that you shouldn’t done, instead of paying taxes:

• Eat or drink on MRT
• Smoking on MRT
• Bring flamable goods
• Bring durian on MRT (as it’s aroma might annoys other passengers)

And when you take the escalator on MRT station, please KEEP LEFT. It means that if you want to stand still while riding the escalator, you better stay on the left side, because the right side will be used by people in a hurry of catching the next train.😅

Pay MRT fee using EZ Link Card

I don’t really know if there’s a single way ticket for riding MRT. Since the first time I visit Singapore, I directly bought EZ Link Card to pay MRT fee. You can buy the card at Ticket Counter on every MRT station. The new card cost SGD 12, containt of SGD 5 as guarantee (you can’t claim it) and SGD 7 that you can use to pay MRT fee. You can top up the amount at self counter machine. We topped up SGD 10 more that we can use it until the next 4 days, so the total amount we spent for MRT fee during our 4 days trip in Singapore is SGD 17.

But don’t worry if you have a lot of amount remaining in your EZ Link Card you can redeem it, except the SGD 5 guarantee. I prefer not to redeem the remaining amount, because the card is valid for the next 5 years..😁

The latest EZ Link Card x Gudetama

I’ll show you some pictures of us at MRT station.. 😍

Some stations are designed super fancy..😍

WHAT TO SEE?

We decided to go to tourist spots because this is my parent’s first visit to Singapore. There are many destinations that we can visit in a day only by using MRT for the transportation. For Indonesian people like us, the main things that matter is we should walk a lot during our trip in Singapore. At home, we don’t used to..😓 So it might be a shock to our feet and we were having massage everyday after we came back home..LOL.

I summarize my Singapore 4 days trip itinerary into a simple table below, include the transportation mode we took and the ticket price. You may copy the itinerary or personalize to your travelling plan. I will tell you what destinations we visit in the next blog chapter..Enjoy!

My Singapore 4 days trip itinerary

Penang’s Food Paradise!

What’s the best from Penang? Its foods!😄

Trust me if you ever visit Penang then you will miss every kind of Penang foods! Coz it just too delicious..😍

Penang foods is the combination of Malay, Indian and Chinese foods.

Glad that our hotel was in Penang Road, the main road that close to many hotels, tourists attractions and signature food places. Indian restaurant in front of our hotel is open 24 hours, so we had no worries to find Halal and delicious foods anytime.

What do we want to eat the most in Malaysia? Yup, Roti Canai and Teh Tarik. Typically local breakfast menu but we ate it like anytime we want! 😊 Even if in Indonesia we find it, the one in Penang tastes more delicious.

Okay let’s start our food paradise journey in Penang!😀

   1.  Roti Canai and Teh Tarik

      It’s the best Malay food combination that we ever tried. We had Roti Canai dan Teh Tarik anytime, not only on breakfast, because we just love it that much 😂. We bought it at Indian Restaurant in front of our hotel, but you can find easily in any other restaurant that serves Malay Indian cuisine. The bread made from wheat flour and taste plain. They serve it with rich Indian curry that blend well with the plain taste of the bread. Teh tarik is actually kind of milk tea, they can serve it both hot or cold.

   2.  Nasi Kandar

Another Malay Indian cuisine that well known in Penang is Nasi Kandar. I think it’s Penang’s signature dishes, because when I visited Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, I didn’t find it. Nasi Kandar is rice served with various side dishes that you can choose as you want, but mostly curry based dishes.

Side dishes you can choose for your Nasi Kandar, from fish, chicken, mutton, etc..so many..😯

The most famous Nasi Kandar is located at Penang Road, it is Line Clear Nasi Kandar. It opens 24 hours. They located in small alley but many customers come because of their original taste that become Penang’s heritage cuisine. Make sure you visited the right place, because you may confused by Yasmeen Restaurant next to it that is also serve Nasi Kandar.

 

Line Clear Nasi Kandar is the left one, with green boardsign!

We had no clue what Nasi Kandar is, so they put rice on the plate, pour some curry sauces, some sliced cucumber, 2 pcs of okra vegetables and asked us what side dishes that we wanna eat, then we choose what common in Indonesia, fried chicken. But, it is half chicken! Wow how could we manage to eat that..seems like our tummy will full all day only by eating this Nasi Kandar..LOL.

Look at the big portion of Nasi Kandar and half chicken that we choose! Accompanied by Indian Crackers and our beloved Ice Teh Tarik..😋

   3.  Ais Kepal

Ais Kepal is round shaped shaved ice, poured with various fruits syrup. You can choose your favorite. I was ordering Ais Kepal with strawberry, melon and orange syrup. Its shape is really cute and looks like rainbow ice ball.

Colorful Ais Kepal 😍

You can find it easily in Penang, but we had our Ais Kepal at George Town while we were wandering around looking for street arts.

   4.   Ais Kacang

Besides Ais Kepal, another shaved ice menu that you can try is Ais Kacang. It is shaved ice with various toppings like grass jelly, colorful jelly, red beans and vanilla ice cream.

We tried Ais Kacang at Kek Lok Si Temple along with Muah Chee.

Red beans is the main topping of Ais Kacang

    5. Muah Chee

Muah Chee is Chinese style sticky rice cake, also known as Mochi in Japan or Injeolmi in Korea. Muah Chee that we found is sticky rice cakes covered with soft sweet peanut flakes. It’s super delicious snack. We don’t know where to find it besides the one that we found at Kek Lok Si Temple.

The seller will cut the Muah Chee fresh for you, due to how many portion you want to buy. He then mix it with peanut flakes and wrap it.

Since the seller use motorbike, once the Muah Chee sold out, he will go home, so make sure you buy a lot for bringing home. It's so yummy..😋

   6. Chestnuts, Peanuts and Steamed Corn

Since we are interested in trying street foods, so we found some Halal Penang’s street food that recommended to try. Our favorite is chestnuts, this sweet and tasty nuts is a must-try. We even bought more to bring back home. They cooked the chestnuts in big pan and served it while hot. So yummy..

   7. Nasi Lemak

This is Malaysia national food. Rice steamed in coconut milk, poured with curry broth, served with boiled egg, fried chicken and fried anchovies. You can easily find this menu in most of Malay Indian restaurant.

On the second day of our Penang Trip, we went to Gurney Plaza to ride HOHO Bus. We just found out that next to HOHO Bus Counter there is a food center called “Pusat Penjaja Anjung Gurney”. Woah it’s such a paradise! We can find Penang’s signature cuisine in here!

This food center divided into 2 section, Halal and Non Halal. 

The Non Halal section mostly serve Chinese style dishes that using pork or lard as ingredients. Also some seafood dishes like “Sotong” (Cuttlefish), “Kerang” (Mussels) and Chinese style seafood skewers.

Seafood skewers

"Sotong" and "Kerang"

The Halal section mostly served Malay Indian dishes. These dishes also become Penang’s signature dishes that you should try. Some of the dishes can’t be found in another places in Penang.

So let us tell you what dishes we tried in Halal section:

   8.   Penang Laksa

The combination of sour, savory and spicy noodle blend well in Penang Laksa. Sorry to say that I didn’t enjoy this taste combination, but I think the taste is quite unique. Since this is one of Penang signature dishes, so you should try! 😁 

 

   9.  Rojak Pasembur

Rojak Pasembur is similiar to Indonesian food “Rujak”. It is combination of vegetable, fruits and fried snacks poured with sweet and spicy peanuts sauce. The portion is quite big up to 2 persons. You can choose your favorite fried snacks like seafood based or vegetable based, before the seller cut it into small pieces and pouring the peanuts sauce. 

   10. Char Koay Teow

This food literally has the same taste with Seafood Kwetiaw in Indonesia. It is Chinese style big glass noodle, cooked with garlic and soy sauce, and some seafood like shrimp or squid added into it. Yeah quite good!

Make sure you try all the dishes we recommend when you’re in Penang, or you will regret it later!

Because all of the dishes are delicious and worth to try..Happy holiday.. 😄

Life changes, so do I!

Finally i’m back after very long hiatus of writing travel blog! 

Well, life transition from an employee of multinational company to independent business woman really takes time. I was enjoying life as employee with all of the privilege given by company. My latest job was as Community Relation Officer at China Cement Company. I learned more about cement industry (that I already into this industry in my previous job) especially about how China Cement Company prepare for establishing a cement industry in Indonesia. I also learned Mandarin language since everyday we had daily meeting using the language (I was like stranger lost in the land of China in my first day of working, understood nothing 😓). Life was fun and challenging, I had super boss that support both my job and my progress of learning Mandarin language. He even bought me Mandarin textbooks for beginner, hope that it will help increase my ability speaking Mandarin at office. Xie xie Laopan!

But a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor!

Company didn’t run well. Activities on community and government relation slowly stopped. Some problems occured in the investment as well. Salary wasn’t paid on time for several times. Everyone was panic!

During the reduction of my office activities, I saw a chance on starting a business. My friend was having a project of opening a new cafe in town, I came to offer a new concept of Korean cafe. As I’m a culinary enthusiast and K-popers (Korean Pop Entertainment fans), I used to cook Korean foods during my free time. So I thought I can handle this concept well. And I did it!

The cafe gained so much recognitions and loves from people, especially from Korean food lovers. Some people also tried the Korean menu as they were curious how it tastes. I spent most of my time developing this cafe than finishing my office works. So I decided to apply resignation to my office and focus on my business. I am now open my own Korean cafe, separated from my friend''s cafe that we used to collaborated.

Well it takes a year to make my business run well and autopilot. Past few months was terible because I was on my transition from a comfort zone of employee to a risky life as entrepreneur. But life is better after I decided to be entrepreneur. I could manage my time as I want, I have my team that will handle my jobs and I can have more time with family.

And the important thing is I can start doing my hobby again from now on, travelling!

I will start my travelling stories by continue the latest post about my visit to Penang, Malaysia. Hope the content could help you whenever you want to visit the country. Soon I will write about my visit to another country as I just came back from Singapore and Thailand as well, cannot wait to share the stories with you guys 😁.

Enjoy!

Xoxo,

Kamala