1 Day Train Trip to Kluang

When planning for Europe trips, most people will visit the different European countries by taking the Eurostar. Do you know that from Singapore, you can do something similar? There are KTM trains from Singapore that travels to different towns in Malaysia, or even up to Hat Yai in Thailand. Although the conditions of the trains are not as good as Eurostar, it is a cheap get away option where you can visit Malaysia without facing the dreadful jam at the causeway.

Kluang, a small Malaysian town, is 1 of the railway stops about 2 hours away from Singapore, and is an ideal destination to make a 1 day trip. 

How to book the train ticket

The KTM website is not very user friendly, so you can either check the train schedule online and go down to the train station at Woodlands to buy your ticket 24 hours in advance or on the day of your travel. When travelling during school holidays or public holidays, advance booking of the ticket is advisable. 

Suggested Itinerary

Upon reaching Kluang train station, it is important not to leave immediately. Visit the Kluang Rail Coffee at the train station and try the nasi lemak, toasted bread, and half boil egg. It might take a bit of time to find a table, but the wait is definitely worth every minute. My personal favourite is the toasted bread, where the butter will ooze out of the bread with every bite you take. The nasi lemak is also very addictive. As it comes in a very small pack, you may end up eating a few without realising it.

After a satisfying meal, walk about 15 mins to Kluang Mall for some shopping. Visit Padini for clothes , Zen Xin Organic Food to buy cheap organic food items, Pacific Supermarket for grocery shopping.

Next, walked about 11 minutes to Chop Foo Chow which specialize in making dim sum for more nice food. Alternatively, there is a beef noodle shop nearby which is famous among the locals. Opposite Chop Foo Chow is a Wo Lai Ye shop, where you can savour one of the best bak kwa you can find in Malaysia.

Instead of taking a train back, you can head to the bus station (known as Pusat Pengangkutan Awam Bandar Kluang on Google map), which is just a 10 mins walk away, to take a bus ride home. You can either choose to take 1 of the buses to Larkin (bus frequency is 30mins) and transfer to 170 to head back to Singapore, or take the Five Star Express bus which heads directly to Singapore (Woodlands or Boon Lay).

See also: Weekend Trip to Kluang

Weekend Trip to Malacca - Part 2

We initially wanted to have our dinner at the Peranakan restaurant at Hotel Equatorial, but it was closed for a private function. Instead, we had our dinner at another Peranakan restaurant, Ole Sayang, which is a 10mins walk away from the hotel, and this was the best meal we had at Malacca. We ordered the Chap Chai and braised chicken in salted bean sauce (since there were only 2 of us), and the boyfriend couldn't resist eating 2 big bowls of rice as it goes very well with the salted bean sauce.

Next, we walked to Jonker Street, which is bustling with people who are visiting the night market.

We were still full so we gave the Lok-Lok a miss.

As we were too tired and still feeling guilty for eating too much rice at Ole Sayang, we also gave the famous satay celup a missed. We vow to come back to Malacca again to try the satay celup.

The next morning, we had our breakfast at Zhong Hua Dim Sum restaurant, since it is near the hotel. 

The salted egg yoke bun was great, and the rest of the food is average.

After breakfast, we proceed to do some shopping at Mahkota Parade. Dataran Pahlawan is a bigger shopping center than Mahkota Parade, but as we are running out of time, we choose Mahkota Parade as it houses the famous Nadeje. True to many reviews, the crepe cakes were fabulous. We ordered the gula melaka & double chocolate crepe cakes, and these cakes marks a sweet end to our weekend trip. 

We went back to the hotel, checked out and board the 2pm 707 Inc bus that pick us up at the front of the hotel for our journey back to Singapore.

Back to: Weekend Trip to Malacca - Part 1

Weekend trip to Malacca - Part 1

If you are looking for a cheap weekend getaway from Singapore, Malacca, which is a 5 hours’ drive away from Singapore, is a good choice. Even if you do not own a car or do not want to drive your car there, there are many coach options which you can choose from, and you can also choose to drop off at one of the major hotels in Malacca. We booked our tickets from Easybook.com, and the 707 coach departs from Queens Street at 7.45am, stopping at Yong Peng for a short lunch break, before heading on to Malacca. Unfortunately, due to a bad traffic jam along Malaysia's North South Highway, we reach Hotel Equatorial Malacca only at about 2.30pm. After checking in, we walked (~15mins) to Chung Wah Coffee Shop to savor the famous chicken rice ball. Although it is almost 3pm in the afternoon, the queue is still long, and we had to queue for about 10mins to get a table. 

The chicken & the chili sauce were great, while novelty rules over taste for the rice ball.

Chung Wah Coffee Shop is just next to Jonker Street, and after our meal, we walked along street to hunt for the famous chendol at Jonker 88.

The gula melaka was boiling hot, and when it meets the cold ice ball, it produces 1 of the best dessert combination.

Jonker 88 also sell other local foods such as laksa, and there are so many people that we had to stand along the corridor to finish our chendol.

Jonker Street is famous for its hand-made pineapple tart, and the shop is located in the middle of Jonker Street. There are also many other food stores and shops selling traditional craft works and clothes along the street.

After some shopping, we spent some time taking photos along Malacca River, Christchurch, and A’Farmosa.

Since we are holidaying, we decided not to drain ourself too much, and headed back to Hotel Equatorial to watch some movies at the comfort of our hotel room before going for dinner.

Up Next: Weekend trip to Malacca - Part 2

Bali, the Land of the Gods

If you think that Bali is just about sun bathing, you are absolutely wrong! There are so many other things that you can do in Bali, and here are 13 reasons to keep this city in your to-go list if you've not been there.

Why do people visit Bali?

1. Religious sites

The main religion in Indonesia is Islam, but the main religion in Bali is Hinduism. As a result, Bali hosts many beautiful Hindu temple, such as Ulun Danu Beratan, Taman Ayun and Tanah Lot. These temples attracts thousands of tourists each year, whom (like me) are drawn to them by their unique architecture. 

2. Dolphins
We've seen enough of captive dolphins, what about going out to the sea to spot wild dolphins? Catch a boat before sun rise at Lovina, located at the north western side of Bali, to enjoy the trill of spotting dolphins swimming pass you.

3. Volcano

Bali houses 2 active volcanoes - Mount Agung and Mount Batur. There are many sun rise trekking tours to these volcanoes where you can experience watching sun rise on top an active volcano, or alternatively, you can simply take a car up and enjoy the view while having lunch at 1 of the restaurant around the area.

4. Cycling along the rice paddy fields
Due to the volcanic activities, Bali is primarily an agricultural city. Instead of seeing rice paddy fields from a distance, what about cycling pass one to have a close up look at how one of our daily staples is grown?  

We took up a cycling package from Bali Eco & Educational Cycling Tour, and spent 1 fruitful and educational morning cycling downhill along rice paddies, enjoying the countryside scenery, visiting plantations and entering a typical Balinese house before ending with a delicious lunch beside a paddy field.

5. Dirty Duck
Although it does not have a fanciful name, people flock to Bebek Bengil for a taste of this famous deep fried duck. The gado-gado is equally delicious; do not miss it out when you visit the restaurant.

6. Babi Guling
The Balinese loves babi guling, essentially suckling pig, and Ibu Oka Babi Guling is probably the most famous babi guling (suckling pig) warung in Bali. Join the locals and tuck in to their favourite food at this road side store on your way to the Ubud Market.

7. Coffee
Visit a coffee plantation in Bali to learn more about coffee and be spoilt for choice by the different kinds of coffee available.

Do not miss out the famous Kopi Luwak! The coffee seeds are actually defecates of Asian palm civets, which feeds on coffee seeds. Although it sounds yucky, its taste is far from being yucky and definitely one of the most aromatic coffee I've ever drank.

8. Cheap massage

There are plenty of cheap Balinese massage available for you to pamper yourself everyday, and on our last day at Bali, we had our spa done at Bali Orchid Spa which I highly recommend due to their good services. Bali Orchid Spa also provide free transport to and fro your hotel if you are staying at certain areas.

9. Yoga

In the book / movie Eat, Pray, Love, the main female character went to Bali to seek for spiritual harmony through yoga, and eventually found true love there. If you are tired of urban living and hope to have a few days of peace, stay at Ubud to take up some yoga lessons from The Yoga Barn (http://www.theyogabarn.com/) and seek your spiritual harmony.

10. Markets
Although people criticise the Ubud Market for being just a tourist trap, I enjoyed my trip there, as there is no other places (to my knowledge) that host such a large range of arts and craft works in Bali, and the prices here are cheaper than those sold in Kuta.

11 Beaches

Of course we have to include sun bathing in this recommendation list, which is Bali is famous for. Have fun sun bathing, building sand castle or doing water sports just like everyone else at Padang Padang Beach, Semiyak, Legian, Kuta Beach. 

12. Chill out

Other than chilling out at pubs around Kuta and Semiyak, do pay a visit to Rock Bar at Ayana Hotel to enjoy drinking at the top of a cliff with a sun set view. Do make your way there earlier to avoid the queue as this place is super popular.

13. Weddings
Having your wedding by the sea is something that most girls (at some point of time) dream of, and Blue Point at Uluwatu can make your dream into a reality (at a cost of course). Even if you cannot fulfil this dream, they are open for visit for you to take a glimpse and get you close to your dreams.