PROCESSION

What a hectic week for me. Being working like a poor slave the whole week and that’s the reason for my absence from blogging. Finally finished my project and thought of sharing something I saw on my way back from work two days ago. There’s a small procession going on just near to the place I lived. The whole road was jammed up because of the people passing by for the procession. Apparently, the whole thing was to celebrate the opening of a new Taoist temple just in front of the place I lived. There’s the usual lion dance, people carrying giant joss stick and colorful flags.

lion dance

colourful flags

The thing that caught my attention is the people who have long steel rod pierce through their cheeks just like those you see during Thaipusam celebration.

izzit painful?

looks painful to me

Couldn’t take any nice shoots because I was grounded in my car. Nevertheless, enjoy this.

CASA DAVIDE

Buon giorno! From Japan we flew to Italy, we drive actually. Went to this new Italian restaurant located at Jalan Padungan. It’s kinda new to the neighborhood of hip restaurant and pub recently sprouting up along the China Town of Kuching.

welcome to David's home

The meaning of Casa Davide is David’s home since the owner’s name is David. It’s a little nice quiet restaurant with dimly lit lighting and Italian inspired painting adored the wall.

the lamp just feel negleted being in the corner of the room

Everything was going well when a group of dinners brought some “siew mai” into the premise. What makes it even more annoying was they talk as they owned the whole place. Such a let down since we wanted to enjoy a nice quiet dinner. We ordered what Italians are famous for, pizza and pasta. The pizzas are prepared freshly and cooked in a traditional clay oven you always seen at an Italian restaurant. The best part about the pizza is, it comes with four types of cheese toppings and it’s the thin crust type. We ordered the chef’s special pasta which is a baked with fresh seafood. Different from the normal fare we have at Pizza Hut or any so called Italian restaurant. Not too creamy or rich too make you bloat or feel sick of it.

appertiser

cream of wild mushroom

four cheese pizza

baked pasta

Overall, it was a nice dinner except for the group of ANNOYING people. Bon Appetit!

TOMOE

“Ogenki desu ka.” I felt like revisiting the Memoirs of Geisha one night, so I head down to one of the many Japanese restaurants in town for my dinner. The place is situated at Jalan Mendu behind what used to be Spiderweb pub. The name Tomoe means turning or circular, referring to the motion of earth. It’s a small family Japanese restaurant that serves traditional Japanese fare like sashimi, sushi, tempayaki and other delicacies. The interior is simple yet cozy. Nothing in it really resembles a typical Japanese restaurant except for the sushi counter.

sushi counter

We ordered some set meal which comes with rice, soup and fresh fruits and also some sushi as side dishes.

set meal

The sushi here are prepared fresh by the Japanese chef and one bite, you’ll be asking for more. All the ingredients used for the sushi are fresh and only the best. With each bite, you can taste the freshness of the salmon or prawn that is wrapped around with the rice and other condiments.

what's left of the sushi platter when we finished with it

We also sample some of the tempura dishes and not forgetting the miso soup. The meal just makes you feel like you’re having a nice home cook meal in Japan. After a nice hot meal, what better way is to wash everything down with a nice hot cuppa of Japanese green tea.

tempura set meal

It’s a very worthy place to go considering the price that it comes with. Not as expensive as the other Japanese restaurant in town yet as delicious as those prepared in Japanese home. So until next time, “ki o tsukete and dewa mata”

CHRISTMAS CAME EARLY

a frozen christmas tree

Christmas came early this year. Well… theoretically speaking, that’s what happens in Kuching. Everywhere you turn now in the city, you’ll see Christmas tree and Frostie the snowman greeting you with a jolly smile. All this gave me a sudden jolt in the brain juice. I GOT TO SPEND AGAIN! Well, I have to start buying Christmas present or at least start to think of what to buy. That’s the most difficult part actually, thinking……. Hmm…….. For anyone who wants to give me a Christmas present, please do so. I’m glad to receive it. Hehehe! “bei pai seh” (no shame…)

even wall lights are not spared from christmas spirit

PEOPLE

Life is full of up and down, just like sweet and sour taste when had everyday. Human beings have been identified as a very complex and mysterious creature among all living things known. Until today, we still can’t really explain why we have all this emotions and why we acted the way we act. Very intriguing indeed. That’s why we have people who think they are more superior to the rest. They think what ever they do is far better than others and look down or ignore those below their level. They even go to the extend of making the lives of other miserable in order to get what they want. Some even claimed to be a very religious person and what he preached is higher than the rest. These people are actually the lost souls searching for a reason to cover or make up for whatever they lack or lost. It’s a pity that they use the wrong method to be a better human being. Just hope they will eventually realized that we are all created equal in this world and if they still continue to be the person who they are, let’s stomp them like insects! Just kidding! Let us pray and hope they will find the light to be a better person.

BESTBERRY

There’s a new kid in town among the restaurant and café crowd. The place is tucked away in the far corner of the new shop houses near Pertanak Market. It’s at the opposite end of Kaya & Toast. Look carefully at the signboard because the name is not the prominent feature of the signboard. In fact, the colour black is the main character of the signboard.

cosy place

nice and airy

They specialized in Hong Kong style food and beverages like ramen (instant noodle), porridge, snow ice, sweet desserts, ice fruits and also some local delights like nasi lemak and chicken rendang.

drinks to soothe you down

chicken rendang

ramen mee

chicken masala with toast

Environment wise, the place is airy and decorated with simple stools and tables to makes one self feel comfortable and wants to linger on for a while. What really stand out here are their ice fruits. It’s basically a fruit cut into half and all it's juicy part scoop out. It is filled back with your choice of tropical fruits like pineapple, watermelon, papaya and honeydew on top of a bed of ice and milk. It’s better if you got some one to share it with you because the serving is half of the real fruit it self.

honey dew platter

watermelon platter

Some of the other interesting items in the menu are only going to be available in December, thus making me to go back there again to try it out. All in all, it’s a good place to have a nice simple meal and chill out over a tall glass of orange tea with friends. Enjoy!

RESCUE ME

I saw this fish while having lunch the other day at Popular Corner in Bintulu. One look at the fish, you’ll be marvel by the beautiful blue colour on its head and body. A friend of mine who is a fish expert told me that he never saw this kind of fish in blue colour. Amazing isn’t it? The fish is also very playful, keep on lifting up the oxygen tube at the bottom of the tank. One thing that makes me sad was to know that the fish is up for sale for dinner table at RM16.00 per 100 gram. Such a beautiful fish will be wasted in someone’s stomach. Sad world we live in. Just let’s hope that he will be rescued by a good man out there somewhere.

help me!!!

RED TURN REFRESHMENT

This is the second part of my little journey up to the border of Indonesia. This little place was discovered by us during our way back to civilization. It’s a restaurant that looks like a cave or a cave that looks like a restaurant.

welcome to my lair

comfy little cave

a lair with a view

Who cares anyway, as long as they got FOOD! The place is situated just behind the Wind Cave at Bau and you can’t miss it if you are on your way back to Kuching. The place is set on the magnificent background of a cliff. You can admire mother’s nature art work here. The lime stone cave and the river flowing through it can really rejuvenate a person after all the traveling up and down Serikin.

wondering if i can find Batman in there

cliffhanger's playground

There’s a mini zoo whereby varieties of monkeys and other wild life are kept. There’s even a family of goats living at the sanctuary, roaming around freely and helping themselves to the abandon species of flora and fauna found there.

bek.....

With all these beautiful living things around the place, you just can’t help by blowing up your entire memory card on your camera. That’s what happens to me. Last but not least, let us not forget about the FOOD! They serve varieties of local and western delicacies here. They will be delighted to cook anything you bring to them like wild boar and other catch of the day. We ordered some fried ‘bee hoon’ with cangkuk manis and fried bidin with sambal belacan.

fried Bidin with Sambal Belacan

fried bee hon with Cangkuk Manis

It’s just a quick snack before we head home. Nevertheless, we were all satisfied with the scenery and manage to fill up our stomach along the way. Next time when you pass by, don forget to stop by RED TURN REFRESHMENT.

MY SON & DAUGHTER

I think its time for me to introduce you guys to two of my most precious love. They tend to be naughty sometimes but that’s what they do when they seeking for attention and affection. They do things that really don’t make sense but you just can’t be angry with them and even burst out laughing at them sometimes. They have been around with me for 4 long years. Through hardship and laughter, we manage to create a bond that no others can break. It is them that make me want to go home each day no matter how tired or stressed I am. I present to you my son and daughter.

aren't they cute

aren't they cute

SERIKIN

If people from the Peninsular Malaysia goes to Thailand to have their dose of imitation and cheap goods, we here in Kuching aren’t left behind for CHEAP stuff. We do get our dose of cheap shopping galore at border towns of Sarawak and Kalimantan. One particular town is Serikin. It’s very famous among folks in and around Kuching because of its proximity to Kuching it self. It takes around 2 hours drive from town and along the way you can enjoy the serene surrounding of the mountains bordering Sarawak and Kalimantan.

peaceful surrounding

The first stop for the journey up is a small settlement where you can find exotic plants, fruits and vegetables. There are rare orchids and fern leaves that you can’t even pronounce their names properly.

market

If you are lucky, you might even find some exotic animals and worms for your table for dinner. Sounds gross but those who ate those crawly worms swear by their exquisite taste.

tasty 'Sago' worms

After finishing your nature studies here, a journey of another hour will take you to the town of Serikin it self. It’s a small town where you can find tons of useful and useless stuff.

the town of Serikin

There are imitation shoes and bags of any international brands you can find in Paris or Milan. If antiques are your norm, you’re in luck here. For the ladies, the Baju Kebaya here is a bargain if you know you way around. Basically, you will enjoy your shopping experience here and remember to drive a van or truck here. Trust me; you’ll need it for all your purchases.

endless shopping experience

Prada and Gucci anyone?

beautiful curtains

Lastly, don’t worry about bringing your passport because you can basically walk in and out of the border freely. Happy shopping!

border of Kalimatan