Ramadhan Buka Puasa Time!

It is the start of Ramadhan, and boy, it is that time of the year where a whole lot yummy delicious food stalls are set up everywhere. Just behind my office, as usual there will be this long row of stalls selling all kinds of food from Malay style mixed rice selection, nasi lemak, barbequed chicken, and grilled seafood.

Yes, the ever popular grill seafood guy here is back again! And he remembered me and my wife too! After a one long year of absence, his stall has now been upgraded from the simple giant umbrella shelter to that of a small roof tent! It is a much better shelter than that of a flimsy giant umbrella. Sure it takes a little longer to set up and pack away when the day's activity is over. It makes for a very presentable Hari Raya Buka Puasa stall!

And yes, the sound of sizzling seafood grilling on his hot pan, and the wonderful aroma sure attracts lots of patrons. Me included! If my wife was around, she would certainly 'ta pau' his tilapia fish, giant sotong and ikan pari-pari (stingray). Hey, we are not taking any revenge on the stingray for piercing our beloved Animal Planet Crocodile Dundee guy - Steve Irwin; we Malaysians just love to eat just about anything that's worth eating or allowed!

My wife and I are not the only guys who are fond of his grilled seafood varieties, the long waiting list from patrons standing around for their order to be fulfilled is a tantamount to his great tasting fare. I think it must be his delicious marinating sauce. He applies quite a generous amount on his cooking, sandwiched with banana leaf to give that oo-la-la one of a kind mouth watering taste to his seafood.

And if I pack back the food, my pet cat Casper will be clamoring for a piece of it. He would stare at me and make sad sounding cat meows, and if I ignore him too much, he would jump onto the dining table, resulting in a quick reprimand for his drastic action!

"No, Casper! Down boy!" and of course I will get an earful from my wife about having a cat that just wants his own way and cannot quite be properly trained, and how unhygienic it is for a cat to walk around the dining table where the food is laid and so forth and so on... I think I spoil my pet cat too much! And yes, he will get a few pieces of it and he would gladly munch it all down and having satisfied himself. Will sit around enjoying our company. Sheesh, my cat has it way too easy!

Well, the Ramadhan will go on for a month till the Hari Raya Puasa which falls on the 24th and 25th October. So I will get to savour all the buka puasa delicacy just behind my office for one whole month and yet again!

And as for Cameron Highlands? Well they still have the night market, and they do have lots of food to offer. But you won't be able to find any grill seafood there; perhaps you might want to start one yourself?

Wishing all my Muslim readers and friends a happy Hari Raya Puasa!


See also my last year blog/article:
Buka Puasa Time!

Hotel Equatorial Promotion

As the Ramadan fasting month draws near, there will be a flurry of promotion going on with the various hotels. Hotel Equatorial Cameron Highlands is no different and has tie-in with a Southern Bank Direct Access credit card.

I received this voucher together with my recent credit card statement. And it says here RM388 per room for 4 nights consecutive stay, but as usual there is a limitation, you can only stay during the weekdays from Sunday to Thursday.

These are the low visiting period that's when the tourist visiting Cameron Highlands are few and in between. Still at RM388 per room for 4 nights consecutive stay, that comes to about RM97 per night. That's not too bad considering that if you stayed at the shop house hotels like Jasmine Hotel, Parkland, Kowloon etc in Brinchang or Tanah Rata would be about around this price range already.

But wait, there is more! They are also offering:

• Simpang Pulai Toll Rebate - Enjoy a rebate off your one way Simpang Pulai entry toll receipt. Terms & Conditions apply (yea, yea as usual please read the fine print!)
• Discount for Breakfast - Stay and enjoy a 20% discount on Food & Beverage at Coffee Shop.

But do take note that on the weekdays, the Brinchang night market will not be open except during the school holidays. So if you really enjoy going to "pasar malam", don't be disappointed that it is not available during your weekday stay. But I do know we Malaysians has the "shop till you drop" kind of syndrome, or even window shopping if you just take a look at the crazy traffic at the various giant malls that we have during the weekends!

Well you could carry out other healthy activities instead of just shopping! There are many sights and attractions and things to do in Cameron Highlands.

If you are a Southern Bank Direct Access credit card holder and plan to use your vouchers you can find out more about it at: http://www.equatorial.com/da or give them a call at 1-800-88-1800.

For more info check out Hotel Equatorial Cameron Highlands webpage.

Aw, not a SBB Direct Access credit card holder? Well you could check out the Cameron Highlands Hotels and Accommodation list which I have compiled.

Happy traveling!

Stay for free at Teluk Dalam Resort

Could this be true? Stay for free at Teluk Dalam Resort Pangkor? Not really. There is a catch; it says here just pay RM70 per person per night for breakfast and dinner. So if you are going on a twin share basis that comes to about RM140 per night. Not entirely free if I would say so.

The reason they are coming up with this promotion from 25th September to 20th October, 2006 is because of Ramadan fasting month. I guess it will be low peak season until the Hari Raya weekend begins from 21st till 25th October.

Well if you think this is a good deal you can call them and make a booking.

Oh, you may be wondering why I'm promoting Pulau Pangkor. Well, I'm just taking a break from my usual Cameron Highlands articles. But if you want to find out more about Pulau Pangkor you could check out Peter's Pulau Pangkor website.

But he is not here in Malaysia at this moment. He emailed me to inform that he is now in Laos for a short cycling adventure. Ah, he seems to have all the time in the world to bike around all day long! Well, not all of us mortals get the luxury to go for holiday whenever we like. Hopefully one day I will have the same kind of luxury.

Meantime, I owe, I owe, so off to work I go! :)

Cheerio!

Farms and agriculture in Cameron Highlands

Fama To Build RM10 Mln Collection And Distribution Centre

CAMERON HIGHLANDS, Sept 8 (Bernama) -- The Federal Agriculture Marketing Authority (Fama) is setting up a collection and distribution centre for agricultural produce to help farmers maintain the quality of their products.

Its chairman, Datuk Abdul Rahim Bakri, said the centre would also serve as a training centre to prepare farmers in facing the global challenges in the agriculture sector.

He said the collection and distribution centre, costing RM10 million, would be built on a two-hectare site in Sungai Burung here.

"The free trade agreement with Thailand and Indonesia will bring huge challenges and competition in the distribution of agricultural produce, especially for local produce," he added after a dialogue with farmers' associations here.

He said the proposed centre would also serve as a centre for packaging and grading of the farmers' agricultural produce.

"Most of the farmers here use rattan baskets to carry their agricultural produce and this damages the vegetables, while they also do not have facilities to grade and pack their produce," he said, adding that this resulted in the vegetables not meeting the wholesalers' standards, causing the goods to be sold at lower prices. -- BERNAMA

More info about Kea Farm and Markets.