Siem Reap, Cambodia 2016: Overview

Hello! Here we are again. Looks like I've been traveling much lately hehe but no worries this is going to be my last (overseas) trip for this year. Peak season is coming and thus my annual leave is frozen till next Feb. Sobs.

So let's cherish every moment from now!

A month after returning from Australia, I packed my bag and fly again. This time to Siem Reap, Cambodia. The ticket has been bought way earlier than the Perth one (yea I told you my Perth trip was last-minute). Sarah, a friend I met in Twitter whatsapp-ed me with "I've bought Siem Reap ticket already. I'm alone. Join me?" Damn girl is damn. What kind of question was that? Haha.

This trip was a bit different from my past trips. All these while I've been staying in hotels, with a hand-carry luggage all the way. But this time I backpacked, and stayed in a box! It was literally a box, no kidding. And no wardrobe/cupboard or even hanger to hang your clothes. There's a square locker to keep your stuff so yeah happy sardine-ing in there.

But it was clean, good enough, and totally satisfying with its price.

I was with Sarah from KL, and then we met our another Twitter friend there, Tira. Tira was with her sister and they've been in Phnom Penh (another town in Cambodia) for 4 days and then made their way to us in Siem Reap by bus. 

Yes we were all strangers :)

Traveling with someone you don't know might be risky, but you have their social media so go stalk!! Haha. Well social media is undeniably a good place to picture someone's personality, but please don't go beyond that. Just get yourself an insight of their interests, how they dress and how they communicate with friends. And then you meet them and get to know them better from there :)

Alhamdulillah all the girls are as fun as I could ever wished for. They're all avid travelers anyway so we got no problem getting along with each other.

Talking bout the country. Well, Cambodia is not a beautiful destination. It's hot, it's dirty, and most travel reviews brought you to bad stuff like scams and pickpockets.
But it taught me something I can't really explain here. Seeing poverty right in front of your eyes, child beggars, sellers sold everything at bargained price (because it's better than not getting any money) - it hit you. It made you want to help them once you got back to your country.

I lived a hard life too as a kid. Mom's a housewife, and dad only worked as a driver and we have 7 siblings under my parents' liabilities, all at one time. But we never got out of foods, we attended schools and we always have clothes to wear - even new clothes every Raya (festive day). Cambodians don't get those.

My mother - she came from a very poor family. All these while I've been hearing mom's stories about her difficult childhood life, and in Cambodia I witnessed myself how it's like to actually live in poverty. I admit there are even Malaysians who still poor, but it's not the same. Malaysia got a lot of helping bodies (gov, non-gov, and those generous people) but I don't think Kingdom of Cambodia has it. Even if it does, well I can't see it!

They owe Angkor Wat big time. That's the only reason tourist came to their country. But I'm telling you know, if you want to travel and do something good in your life, come to Cambodia and carry some extra bucks. Donate to them, tip them, help their economy. A little good deed goes a long way, insyaAllah.

I'll be blogging about this 4D3N trip soon. Stay tuned.

Perth WA 2016: Day 5 (last day)

I woke up early today because I had to return the car by 8.20am (any later will cause additional charge). So I got out from the house right after Subuh. Yes when everyone was still sleeping and the air was very still. I started my car and pull on the wiper to remove the dew on the mirror, but then it shrieked out. Wadahek?

Oww man it was actually iceeeeee on the mirror! Tskkk. I turned on the heater (it got heater that can heat up the outside of the car) and waited for a little while for the ice to melt.

Freaking 4 degC! I was dying.

Just a random lemon tree near my stay. The lemons are sooo big in size. I should've asked from the owner to bring back some! Hehe.

I dropped by at Coles Express to fill in my car tank. The tank must be in full during car return or else you'll be charged AUD2 per liter lacked, so you better fill in! Fuel price in Perth was around AUD1.20/liter. For these 2 days rental, my total fuel cost was AUD61.65.

I also grabbed a cup of hot coffee here cost only 80 cents!

After returning the car at Adelaide Tce, I enjoyed a 1.5km morning stroll from there to Elizabeth Quay. Walk along Swan River for some view! 

From Elizabeth Quay I walked back to the main road to take a bus heading to Kings Park and Botanic Garden (free ride). Sorry too tired to walk for another 1.8km hehe!

A compulsory shot for everyone who visits Perth :p 

Well guys thats me in the 10-dollar hoodie I got from Freemantle the other day!

Kings Park is a very nice place to chill out with your friends or to carry your toddlers for some morning/evening walk. Such a nice view of Perth city skyline from here.

Playing with the camera stand, since I was alone and got nobody to take my full photo hehe!

Anyway, this SJ4000 I've been using was not my camera. I got it from my junior who provided camera rental service at a very purse-friendly price! I didn't even think about camera initially, but this girl started up this business just in time I guess. Haha. When I saw her new IG it made me think that an action camera would be nice for my Aussie trip. Well it is!

Visit her Instagram page at @tsfproject .

I took a bus back to CBD, grabbed a kebab from Ispa Kebab cost AUD10, and walked to Hyde Park. IT WAS A 3.5KM WALK BECAUSE I LOST MYSELF ON THE WAY BACK. My internet had exceeded the limit so I had no choice but to walk as far as I remember, and later asked around for direction. I reached home at 11.15am (that was a 45-mins walk!). I rest a little, chatted a little with my host and checked out at 12.15pm. They advised me to take Uber to go to the airport but because I was such a cheapskate (lol), I refused to and took a bus instead. Hell ya I needed to walk (again!) about 800m to reach the main street and got myself a bus. The ride from there to Perth airport cost AUD7.60 - that's wayy cheaper from Uber! Uber will cost you around AUD20. 

Just make sure you're fit enough to walk!

I arrived at the airport around 1.45pm. Found a spot, got some coffee cost AUD5. To my surprise, Perth airport actually provides a Muslim prayer room! I met a lot of Malaysian at the airport, and a lot too, asking me "are you alone?" "are you a student here?" Haha.

But still I didn't meet bae. #lifeisunfair

My friend had such a bad experience yesterday at the check-in counter where she had to pay AUD59 for her over-weight cabin baggage. But luckily for me, they didn't even weigh my bags. My advise is just be careful and don't over-carry as you might stumbled upon a strict officer at the airport. Huhu.

I had a great time in Perth! The only thing that broke my heart was my missing Ray-ban. I lost it on the day I arrived - I think the night I walked to Perth Mosque. I iz veryyy sad isk but life must go on...

That's all for my Perth trip! Overall, my total damage for this 5d4n trip was RM2,860.50 (I got everything jotted on excel, hence the precise cent).

And just to surprise myself and everyone who's reading, I spent RM108.50 on coffee alone T_T  Daym high maintenance. Need to get rid of this addiction...

Well I hope my writings help. See you in another trip!

Perth WA 2016: Day 4 Part 2

Nira's flight was at 4.40pm but I sent her off at 1pm. I spent just a little time with her at the airport before I made my own way later to Perth CBD for lunch.

I had myself Malaysian food! Nasi paprik guys... cost AUD13 hahahahaha.

I laughed because this hella menu cost less than AUD2 in my hometown! I know we shouldn't compare but I can't help ittt hahaha. [Captured with Mi 4i]

Oh this is from Insan's Cafe. Perth City was a little busy during lunch hour. I parked my car at Wilson's parking (it's a building/parking bay) with fee of AUD3 per hour. Insan's Cafe is just across the block.

After lunch I headed to Hyde Park, my new place till tomorrow. It was a 2-storey house, priced RM156 per night for a single-bed room. 

I found this house at Airbnb.com . The room was cute! It's in a nice, peaceful neighborhood, and my host appeared to be a very nice Italian lady :)

I just stayed a little while at the house for meet & greet and solat. Around 3.45pm I drove myself to Point Peron Beach at Rockingham, located 50 minutes away from Perth.

Now let the pictures talk.

[Captured with SJ4000]

[Captured with Mi 4i]

 [Captured with Mi 4i]

[Captured with SJ4000]

[Captured with Mi 4i]

Welcome to Point Peron guys! 

The most beautiful place throughout my visit in Australia.

The serenity, the beauty,.. I just didn't want to move from this place. It was so calming. I spent almost 2 hours here alone and didn't feel bored at all.

A lot of locals hang out here too. They came in a group, played guitars and just enjoyed themselves. Some jogged, some other walked with their dogs. Such a nice place :)

Later on I headed back to Northbridge, Perth for dinner. Actually I just imagined Nando's all the way because I was so lazy to think of other halal restaurants, but after I parked my car I saw a Papparich not far from the Nando's. I straightly googled if Papparich is halal because it's obviously a Malaysia brand. Alhamdulillah, it is halal!

When I got inside, there were manyy Malaysians there haha. Felt so welcoming. I got myself kuey teot soup and a cup of white coffee. Total was around AUD17.

After dinner I just drove straight to Hyde Park and had a good rest that night.

Perth WA 2016: Day 4 Part 1

The apartment where we stayed did not provide parking for guests so we just parked our car by the roadside last night. It was legal and free at night, but the road must be cleared before 7.30am the next morning, or else you'll be fined AUD200! So we had no choice but to wake up early today and shoot anywhere we can.

I'm telling you the authority was very strict. They came at 7,30am SHARP and started towing those unmoved vehicles. 

So we made our way in that very early morning, to Crawley Edge Boatshed which also known as Blue Boat House. It was windy and the temperature dropped to 9 degC that morning! Chilled to the bone.

This place is just by the roadside. You will see it as you drive along Swan river in Crawley. Drive a litte further to park your car in the provided parking area. [Captured with SJ4000]

Please forgive our after-bed faces. Haha. [Captured with SJ4000]

Didn't you hear the hype about this place? Hehe. It's just an Insta-friendly place to be honest. Everybody came here to pose and upload on their IG, I swear. So... here's mine! XD [Captured with iPhone 5s]

After that we headed to Swan Valley, located about 26 minutes from Crawley.

Our first stop was at Yahava KoffeeWorks. Yahava provided the finest organic coffee and they brewed it live! So refreshing. You can come here to drink, shop souvenirs, and also experience a coffee-tasting session. [Captured with Mi 4i]

And enjoy your coffee in this view! MasyaAllah. Such a great place to chill.

But no thanks it was too chill out there. Hihi!

My coffee cost AUD5 and I also bought a muffin that cost about the same.

Just a little further from Yahava is The Margaret River Chocolate Company. 

Weh.

They labelled and displayed the ingredients for each of the chocolates there. So you know which ones are alcoholic, contain nuts etc.

Free tasting whattt??

They served dark, milky and white choc for tasting. All of them are damn gooddddd! I recommend this place as one of souvenir shopping spot for you. Because they sold these nibbles and variety of other chocolates in small packs, cost as low as AUD5. They are all good you should bring back some for your loved ones!

I got myself a box of Macadamia Cluster because it's my most favourite nut! A cluster of macadamia nuts coated with milky chocolate, how can you resist thatt.

This place also got its own cafe, if you want to have drinks or some light foods.

Swan Valley is a very laid-back region. Grape vineyards are everywhere here! Just across this Margaret River was a grape vineyard with nice view so we paid a visit there hehe. 

No grapes in winter but this is still beautiful!

Nira called this alley "Winter Sonata".

After we were done with photoshoot (haha) we headed to Mondo Nougat and Mourish Nuts. These 2 shops are also amongst the popular ones in Swan Valley.

They are just next to each other!

Mondo Nougat. This is also a great place for souvenir-hunting. I got myself 3 bars of mixed flavours nougats from here.

Later on I drove to Perth airport, located just 10 minutes away from Swan Valley to send my friend off.  Will continue my day 4 in Part 2.

Perth WA 2016: Day 3

We started our third day by visiting Bayswater for car renting. Our hosts suggested Bayswater for car rental with good insurance coverage. A 2-days rental cost us AUD155. We added GPS device cost AUD5/day so the total was AUD165. On top of that we needed to add AUD100 for deposit. This deposit was then returned as we returned the car in good shape.

We got ourselves a white Toyota Corolla Hatchback. 

Info: 

1. Australia is a right-hand driving country, same as Malaysia. 

2. A Malaysia's driving licence is valid for use in Australia.

 3. All payments must be made via VISA/MasterCard. No cash accepted.
3. Additional payment (around AUD20/day) is required for additional driver (in case you want to switch-drive with your friend). But why pay when you can do it illegally... kahkah (no this is not ad advise).

Tips from most travelers: Book online. It's cheaper compared to walk-in.

Our first destination was Yanchep National Park, located 50 mins from Perth City. Entrance fee was AUD12 per car. The same ticket can be used to enter The Pinnacles desert at Cervantes on the same day, so don't lose it.

Yanchep got less hype compared to Caversham Wildlife Park. We did not go to Caversham because the entrance fee was expensive (AUD27 per person). Girls not gonna pay that much just to touch a kangaroo.

Kangaroos! I came here for you. [captured with Mi 4i]

A baby kangaroo. [captured with Mi 4i]

A koala bear! But it was far from reach. [captured with Mi 4i]

I think we just spent about 15 minutes at the park because we had a long journey ahead.

We drove north to Lancelin Sand Dunes, 1 hour from Yanchep. Because I was sleepy (I need a dash of caffein every morning), we stopped at a coffee shop along the way. 

I don't remember the name but there were a number of signboards pointing to this cafe. Perhaps because this is the only place for some refreshment along the highway. Got no RnR in Perth. Yawn. [captured with iPhone 5s]

A regular cup of coffee cost me AUD5. We didn't eat here because..... we got leftovers from Kaili's! Chilled fries were damn good hahaha. Anyway, this cafe sold ham so we doubted if we can have any of the foods here.

Continued our journey to Lancelin.

Info: There are a lot of signages showing "Speed-trap cameras are used in WA" so mind your speed!

But we still speed because, who cares kahkah.

Nice weather. [captured with SJ4000]

We did sandboarding here. Our first experience! Yuhuu. [captured with SJ4000]

Info: We rent the sandboard at a pump station located just before you reached this place. It was AUD20 for 3 hours. We just rent one, and took turn sandboarding. 

We spent about 1 hour here, before headed up north to The Pinnacles Desert at Cervantes. The journey took 1 hour. Remember, use the Yanchep ticket upon entering The Pinnacles. 

You can drive your car inside the park. No need to park your car at the visitor centre.

Bring your car inside the park, like this. Gagaga. Actually you cannot park this close. We moved the rocks that surrounded the area (sorry Australia!) [captured with SJ4000]

I like it here because we don't have pinnacles in Malaysia. It was a beautiful place. [captured with SJ4000]

They say do not climb the rock..... [captured with iPhone 5s]

Washroom is provided at the visitor centre area. There's also a small shop selling souvenirs and drinks there. If you prefer, find a spot and solat here (or at the parking area).

After we were done here we drove south to Cottesloe Beach at 2.30pm. The journey took 2 1/2 hours. Yeah it was a long drive and we were hungry, but we didn't even look out for restaurants at nearby towns because we needed to hurry to Cottesloe for sunset! (Sunset at 5.30pm). Just grabbed a Snickers for lunch.

I would like to say something to you; be strong in the car haha. Because WA radios are a bit boring. They got a very few international songs so they kept repeating the same songs over and over again. We listened to "One Dance" like a hundred times that day. And USB could not be connected idk why.

 The view along Indian Ocean Drive was so beautiful we had to stop. This is a sheep farm. We even saw wild kangaroo playing in the bushes here!

We arrived Cottesloe at 5pm. 

 

There was a changing room near the washroom so we solat there. Very last minute and in rush, that's why I advised you to solat at The Pinnacles earlier.

After sunset we had dinner at Nando's Subiaco. It was 13 degC and the restaurant got no heater pfft. My dinner cost AUD14.85

After that we drove to Perth and took a night stroll in the city for a while, before we went back to our apartment at Adelaide. Shops here closed very early. 8pm and dead already. Only a few cafes were still open.