Author Archives: rob

china mall

Posted by rob on

i have been temporarily assigned here for work in ajman for almost two weeks now.  ajman is about a 45 minute taxi ride to dubai without the traffic, and is the smallest of the seven emirates making up the united arab emirates.

one of the places to visit here is china mall, a 100,000 square meter built-up area with shops that sell china made merchandise like garments, accessories, textiles, household, jewellery, fashion accessories, toys, crafts, and electronics.  i saw fake designer merchandise being sold here which are mostly for women and even an iphone 5 that sells for 300 dirhams! 

i bought some bottled chinese iced tea, haw flakes and some dried seafood snacks from a shop that sells foodstuff then i saw one store that sells ‘crocs’ shoes.  i went inside the store and had a small conversation with the chinese guy selling the items.

me: how much for the crocs loafers?
chinese guy: 30.00 dirhams each, buy two for 50.00 dirhams.
me: huh? 30.00 dirhams?! are these original?
chinese guy: original? what original?! it’s made in china!

i think i got the guy pissed off in my stupid question, haha!  anyway, i bought a pair of khaki-colored ‘original’ crocs loafers and after he saw me taking pictures, i looked at him and said:  “i’ll show my friends”, he then smiled and replied back: “okay.. tell your friend buy”! 😀

a night in a historic hotel

Posted by rob on

one of my 10 things i have not done before that i posted at the start of the year was to spend a night in a historic hotel.  well the oldest hotel that i know of in manila is obviously manila hotel and to take it simply, if it is old its historic, hehe.

established in 1912, manila hotel has survived even the bombing of manila during world war II.  the japanese troops took over and maybe even ate buffet dinners at café ilang-ilang .. lol! 

when i was about to check-in at the hotel, i told the front desk reception that i had the reservation done online but did not received confirmation.  they checked their records and voilà!  my name was not listed and not confirmed!  i thought i won’t be able to check-in and that will be a full embarassment on my part for i have invited a friend for dinner.  good thing they offered to take my card and charged me on the same amount as their internet rate. 

i chose a deluxe room and was assigned at the seventh floor, facing intramuros.  the room has its classic flair of furnitures and a modern marble-tiled bathroom with a water-proof lcd tv.  broadband internet and a fruit basket were complimentary – including nine pillows that almost took the space half of the bed! 😀

buffet meals are served at café ilang-ilang where i invited my blogger friend chyng for dinner.  it’s my advance birthday treat for her for she’s like a little sister to me and is the first person whom i’ve known who has the same birth date as mine.

i’m not really into food blogging but chyng’s post on café ilang-ilang will surely be a feast in your eyes.  read chyng’s blog entry, café ilang-ilang at the manila hotel.

malaysia chronicles: nasi lemak

Posted by rob on

visiting malaysia would not be complete if one will never taste their traditional food, nasi lemak.  when i was in penang, docgelo, together with his wife tina and my godson gabby had our own food trip (see beyond toxicity’s hunger pangs inducer post, food porn: penang).  it included docgelo eating nasi lemak and me finding out that it is served with chicken that i avoid to eat (i have poultry meat allergy). 

when i went to kuala lumpur after my stay in penang, me and my malaysian friend went to suria klcc mall and he invited me for lunch at nasi lemak adik located at the food court.

i thought nasi lemak was only served with chicken but i was wrong.  one can have it also with red meat or seafood.  i ordered nasi lemak sotong (squid).

my plate of nasi lemak sotong was an all thumbs up!  my friend said he eats nasi lemak anytime of the day.

i also had this malaysian dessert they call ABC (acronym for air, batu, campur or simply, mixed ice).  i enjoyed eating this local dessert.

we went to another mall in kuala lumpur, midvalley megamall.  it was about dinner time when we passed by this restaurant serving authentic malaysian cuisine, madam kwan’s. 

i ordered fried king prawns cooked with a special sauce of chili and garlic. 

i also had some stir-fried kangkong with sambal belacan (chili sauce with toasted shrimp paste).

to finish my satisfying dinner at madam kwan’s i had cendol, another local dessert. 

cendol consists of shaved ice, coconut milk, red beans, sugar, and a worm-like jelly made from rice flour with green food coloring (usually derived from the pandan leaf).