A Rockin' Good Dinner

Hard Rock Hotel opened in Penang a couple of years ago and when it first opened, I dragged Hubs there just so I could get a Hard Rock pin.

I've a tiny collection of Hard Rock cafe guitar pins of different cities, each guitar is shaped from an iconic feature of the city, eg: Penang's one is formed from a beca (trishaw). When Hard Rock cafe started operating in Penang, we had lunch there and it was disappointing. The food wasn't at its best and so not worth its price so we put Hard Rock out from our minds and haven't been back until ...........

It was the closest place that had kid friendly meals (read: hygienic) since we were at the beach and we were starving so with a bit of misgiving, we went to Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. And I'd to eat my words! Both the food and service were amazing this time around.

We were greeted warmly and the staff went out of their way to made us feel very welcome. They got Bubs a balloon and I loved that they gave mini packets of crayons so your kids could scribble on the kids menu. Kids meals are a standard RM18 with a (one time) refillable soft drink/milk or you could pay RM22 for an upgrade to a milkshake and the cup can be brought home with you. We opted for the mac & cheese with a choc milkshake.

Bubs's food arrived super quick which impressed me - I mean you could argue that kids meals take little to no time to cook since it's usually simpler and the portion's a lot smaller but still, it makes us parents happy that little tummies don't have to wait long to to be filled. Bubs was unusually enthusiastic about his mac & cheese so I sneaked a few bites myself. It was really good that I kinda wished I ordered this for myself! I've eaten quite a few kids meals mac & cheese at restaurants and they usually taste pretty plastic-y or over salted to death but the flavor of this one was really well flavoured.

My Pulled Lamb (vinegar flavoured) sandwich, pay an extra RM8 to change from fries to onion rings and Hubs's Classic 10 oz Burger. The lamb sandwich was fantastic! The vinegar-y tang complemented the soft, shredded pieces of lamb served on burger buns very well though the portion was ginormous, I really struggled to finish this but gave up. Hubs's verdict on his burger was a thumbs up and again, a very generous serving.

Bubs and I matched each other in denim.The staff that night were incredibly friendly and even went the extra mile with their service. I wanted to bring back the empty milkshake cup but didn't want to chuck it into my handbag and I asked for a plastic bag. The wait staff did even better than that - she went to the kitchen to wash the cup and lid for me before placing it in a bag.

Would we go back again? A resounding YES from Hubs, Bubs and me :) 

Island in the Sun

Fairy Godma was back in town and was conveniently staying at a beach side resort. She offered us the use of her hotel room to wash off the sea water and sand in exchange for spending time with Bubs. How could we turn down such a generous offer? ;)

We reached the beach close to sunset and it was a gloriously hot day. It's been a loooong time since we'd last been there and I loved everything about it. From the feeling of sand between my toes, the salty tang of the seawater, the roar of the waves slapping the sand. That part of the beach was slightly deserted, there were a few couples strolling about but it wasn't packed with people.

It was Bubs's first time walking on sand and he didn't really like it at first because he kept sinking into it, LOL. It was also his first time being that close to the sea and it slightly freaked him out. We had to lure him closer to it by using his beach ball (best RM5 I've ever spent at Daiso!)

 After he got comfortable with sand, he loved it to bits! Being the cheapskate mummy, I didn't get him any beach toys but made full use of plastic bowls and kitchen ladles. He kept scooping the sand with the ladle into the bowl, pouring it out, smacking sand around, flinging it everywhere. He got sand everywhere, over his face, in his hair, his legs and arms were all covered with it. Didn't help that it stuck to the areas where I vigorously applied sunscreen. 

Hubs was trying to build him an island to maroon him on it but gave up after realising you'd need buckets full of sea water to fill the trench. Fairy Godma sat next to Bubs to help him build sand structures (not castles because those piles of sand looked nowhere near to being castle like)

It's pure bliss to have Bubs occupied by digging and digging and digging so I could take photos non stop. He was probably ecstatic that for once, his parents didn't care that he's getting all dirty and grimy. You can't leave the beach without at least wading in sea water so Fairy Godma and I coaxed Bubs to join us right at the edge of the water. Bubs initially looked worried at the sound of the sea rushing to shore and the waves that lapped over his feet but grew to enjoy it.

If it took a lot of persuasion to get Bubs on the sand earlier, it darn took even more honeyed promises to get him out from the beach and back to the hotel grounds. Surprisingly he got on so well with Fairy Godma's mum, they were, well, having a ball (pun intended) playing barefooted on the grass. He raised his arms up high to throw the ball over his head but didn't realise the ball fell behind him and was trying to look around for it,

He also went splashing with Fairy Godma in the kiddy pool (no photos because yours truly went wading in with him) - he did a cool version of mimicking swimming, arms moving up and down above his head and a half crouch walk in the pool.

Again, more dragging him out from the pool tantrum-style and this time to his very first bath in an adult bath tub. And sorry yet again for the lack of photos as by this time, we were so tired and hungry, we just wanted to go for dinner asap.

Fairy Godma - thanks for inviting us to the beach and to make use of your hotel room. You've no idea how much fun Bubs had that day, sand, sea and bath tub, probably the kiddie version of striking the lottery! The next time you come back to Penang, you know who to look for ;)

Shan's Children Home

My mum used to be a member of the Pearl Jaycees (that was really popular back in the 80s) and we were used participating during charity events, particularly children's homes like the Salvos. So when a few colleagues organized a trip to Shan's Children Home, it brought back many memories.

Penang Shan Children's Home caters towards orphans and disadvantaged children and relies on donations for their daily needs. The location is in a slightly eerie place, you have to drive through an old grave yard to reach it but once you reach the home itself, it's a very clean and cheerful place.

 

Dr Chandran, the Home's administrator, brought up a couple of very good points. When they first stayed there, they were a little frightened but they came to feel that there's nothing scary or macabre about being surrounded by our ancestors, the people before us and it's a reminder that sooner or later, we will all rest peacefully there. He also mentioned that in this age of pleasure and leisure, it's good for us to take out time to help them. It made me think ... when I'm gone, do I want to be known as someone who had a wardrobe bulging with clothes or as someone that helped put a smile on others?

We spent the afternoon playing games and chatting with the children there. It took a few games for them to really get into the spirit and to start having fun, giggling, laughing and just being themselves. Can I tell you how well behaved they are? Seriously, they are so disciplined and self restrained in a way that had all of us amazed. When goodie bags were handed out to each child, they lined up patiently without shoving or rushing to the front. During tea time, before they ate slices of cake, they prayed fervently, mouths moving silently to prayers, hands firmly clasped together. 

The part where I nearly had tears was when they were given bottles of Vitagen. You could see the delight in their eyes over an unexpected treat, being able to choose what flavour they wanted and even when they wanted a second bottle, they were shy about asking and when we gave it, they were just so happy. It made me realized how lucky we've been when we have so much and others that are less fortunate have so little. It's so richly rewarding to give and see how joyous the children are.

If you're keen on helping them out, you can contact them here:
Penang Shan Children's Home
679-D Jalan Mount Erskine,
Tanjung Tokong, 10470 Penang
Tel/Fax: 04-2292186 / 016-4127711
shanchildrenhomepg@yahoo.com

The Bedtime Ritual

As much as I love being a mummy and spending time with Bubs, I crave for a little slice of "me time" every night when he's asleep.

The bedtime ritual starts like this ...

After a satisfying bath with demands for me to make MORE buh-bels (bubbles) and covering most of the floor with soapy suds, Hubs brushes Bubs's teeth and trust me when I say it's a chore to brush all 12 of his milk teeth. Bubs squirms away whenever he sees the toothbrush coming, says a very loud "MAI" (no) and shakes his head very firmly. It takes a lot of cajoling, threatening and pleas for him to open his mouth for us to brush. Even then, whenever we try to brush his lower teeth, his tongue covers them tightly and refuses to budge.

It takes a few tries to get him to bed. Sometimes he'll demand to be rocked to sleep, sometimes he say "kot! kot!" wanting Hubs to put him in his cot and pat him to sleep. Othertimes he'll go sing a few bars of "ABC" which means Hubs then has to sing the alphabet song over and over as a bedtime lullaby.

When he's finally asleep, I need a little wind me down :) My poison of choice? Ice cream, particularly Haagen Dazs green tea or Baskin Robbins chocolate peanut butter. And lurrrve a good scented candle and a even better scented body oil.

Wandering About Town

Have you all been enjoying this recent slew of public holidays? So have we!

We wandered about one of my favourite areas in town: the colourful heritage area near Little India after dinner at Woodlands. This is me dressing the part in my white boyfriend-ish kurta-like top complete with heavily jeweled sandals.

 An old school pedal bicycle plus a pay phone: two things that you don't see often nowadays, let alone together!

Spotted this incredibly cool vintage Morris Minor complete with a green rubber horn at the side of the car. I was so tempted to squeeze the bulb just for the heck of it.

Bits of crumbling paint on an old house. If you look closely, you can see a small plant beginning to grow on the top of it. It struck me that this house was probably brand new during my grandparents time but might not last through when I become a grandparent myself. This is why I love snapping photos of these areas, to preserve whatever memories there might be left of Penang long gone by.

It was a beautiful evening. This building houses both the Eng Loh kopitiam and a budget motel. Mum told me that before swanky hotels were commonplace in Penang, visiting relatives would stay a night or two at these motels.

The Baba Nonya mansion nearby is a gorgeous and vivd hue of mint green. This was filmed for the Singaporean hit series Little Nonya.

And if you're looking for even more colourful treats as cheap as chips, try the Indian costume jewelry shops around the area. They have rows of rainbow coloured bangles, bindis and other accessories.