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Wonderful Malaysia

Touch ‘n Go

It was way back in 18 March 1997 that the first Touch ‘n Go service was installed and it was used at the Jalan Pahang Toll Plaza. Other toll plazas were soon installed with the Touch ‘n Go service such as the toll plaza in Jalan Cheras as well as the East-West Link Expressway. Towards the end of the year, the system was brought to the 848 km North-South Expressway; this was made possible when the northern sections of the expressway were fitted with the technology.

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Touch ‘n Go makes the electronic toll payment one of the longest in the world as travelers will be able to use the smart card and travel from Jitra in Kedah to Kempas in Johor or all from the north to the south without using cash. The launch of the services was held as the Sungai Dua toll plaza where Datuk Dr Ramli Mohamad the then chairman of Rangkaian Segar Sdn Bhd officiated the event.

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Today, Touch ‘n Go is not just for payments at toll plazas and public transport. A number of popular malls such as Sunway Pyramid, Subang Parade, Bangsar Shopping Centre, Sungei Wang Plaza, Tropicana City Mall and Mid Valley Megamall have started accepting payments by Touch ‘n Go for parking. Simply touch your card at the entrance point and your time of arrival will be captured. At the end of your visit, the time spent and subsequently the parking charges will be tabulated and deducted from your card.

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Your Touch ‘n Go is good for dining too. Have some fast food at AW, Japanese fare at Sakae Sushi, dessert at Baskin Robbins or a cuppa at Starbucks and pay with your Touch ‘n Go card. Your card is as good as a debit card now. You can also grab some munchies at 7-Eleven before catching a movie at Cathay Cineplexes, both retailers accept payment by Touch ‘n Go.

All in all, Touch ‘n Go still provides a convenient cashless system especially to those who travel daily on the highways as well as those who commute by KTM, LRT, Monorail and Rapid KL buses. Drivers and commuters need not carry around or store loose change and they also save time from not having to queue at the cash lanes. Touch ‘n Go is indeed convenient to use, on top of having numerous value top-up centers and banks that can perform the reload transactions.

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Travelers love using Touch ‘n Go because of its convenience. You don’t have to get in line for LRT or monorail tickets every single time. Just buy the card and use it throughout your stay in Malaysia. A new card without balance costs RM10. You can immediately add balance to the card, with RM10 as minimum charge. The card will never expire. After your holiday in Malaysia you can always make someone else happy with your card, or you just take it home as a souvenir.

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Read more at the official Touch ‘n Go website.

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Tourism Malaysia

The Mooncake Festival or Mid-Autumn Festival in Malaysia

The Mooncake Festival or Mid-Autumn Festival in Malaysia

The Mooncake Festival in Kuala Lumpur is held in September, the eighth month of the year. Now before you think I’ve been eating too much mooncake or drinking too much moonshine, let me tell you why.

It’s simple. The Chinese New Year begins in February so September is not actually the ninth month on the Malaysian timetable. But whatever your calendar is, it’s a dazzling spectacle, especially at night when the city lights are complemented by the colourful paper lanterns of all shapes, sizes and colours displayed outside homes and shops or in street parades.

Incense coils are a common sight around Malaysia particularly in districts such as Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown. Pic: Joanne Lane

Incense coils are a common sight around Malaysia particularly in districts such as Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown. Pic: Joanne Lane

The festival is celebrated to signify the end of the harvesting season but it also celebrates the overthrow of the Mongol warlords in ancient China. Here we’ll have to take back in time to 1280 AD to explain. This is when the Mongols overthrew the Soong dynasty in China and imposed the Yuan dynasty in China.

Why is this important in Malaysia you may well ask? Well there are a lot of Chinese in Malaysia and until quite recently they were the largest ethnic group. Even though they aren’t any more, that honour belongs to the Malays themselves, Chinese festivals are celebrated with gusto. In fact in multi-ethnic Malaysia festivals of all traditions are celebrated including those of Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist and Christian origins.

Today lanterns form a big part of the celebration, as they are to remind the people of the time they used lanterns as their only source of light. Kids in particular love this aspect of the festival and are often seen roaming around with lanterns in the shape of animals. In Malaysia this particular event is often called the Lantern Parade. There are also lantern parades during the Chinese New Year celebrations, so if you see any such parade advertised just consider what time of year it is. If it’s around February it’s Chinese New Year, if not it could well be part of the Mooncake or Mid-Autumn Festival.

One of the best displays of Mooncake Festival lanterns is the Thean Hou Temple on Robson Hill. In 2011 a lantern parade was held at Central Market in Chinatown.

The best bit about the festival is of course what you get to eat. The round mooncakes are sweet or savoury and often given by younger Chinese to their seniors as an attempt to gain favour. Eating mooncakes in the market place is a delight; biting through crunchy pastry into red beans, ham or creamy egg yolk. Some are also sweet with chocolate and cinnamon flavours. Others have a distinctly Malaysian twist with pandan leaves and durian inside – eek some of you will no doubt say!

Mooncakes. Pic: misbehave (Moon Cakes  Uploaded by Atlaslin)

Mooncakes. Pic: misbehave (Moon Cakes Uploaded by Atlaslin)

The best place to eat them in Kuala Lumpar is Jalan Petaling in Chinatown where eateries display them in brightly coloured boxes.

While you may not be surprised that mooncakes are round, their shape represents the unity of the family to the Chinese. So in Malaysia the Chinese celebrate the festival with family gatherings and prayers.

There’s some tradition to this. In Chinese Halika and Foochow families the oldest women lead the prayers at the moment when the full moon appears. Before you eat a mooncake they are first offered on altars to deities with the customary lighting of joss sticks, red candles and the burning of golden joss paper. Thirty minutes later the eating begins.

Another Chinese festival that is very popular around Malaysia is the Festival of the Hungry Ghost.

If you miss the Mooncake Festival this year, Malaysia has a wealth of public holidays and special holidays. There are 44 public holidays each year largely based on the Muslim calendar or the Hindu and Chinese calendars.

Guandi Temple in Chinatown, Kuala Lumpur. Pic: Joanne Lane.

Guandi Temple in Chinatown, Kuala Lumpur. Pic: Joanne Lane.

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Tourism Malaysia

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Tourism Malaysia

Outback Steakhouse @ BB Park

August 30, 2012 at 6:15 pm

Hanging out at Outback Steakhouse reminds me of everything good about a best friend. It isn’t pretentious, doesn’t scream for your attention and doesn’t cheat you of your money. Like any other ‘real’ best friend, I’m comfortable and at ease and every meeting is a joyous occasion.

Outback Steakhouse at BB Park, a cozy restaurant that serves great food!

The lovely interior of Outback Steakhouse. The ambience and atmosphere really come together to make it such a delightful place

Perhaps I’m being too whimsical about Outback, but I’m sure Wilson Ng of Places and Foods would agree with me when I say that Outback certainly is a great place to unwind after a long day of work, or in our case, to enjoy ourselves during the weekend. We were lucky enough to be invited to a weekend dinner hosted by Outback Steakhouse South East Asia’s Managing Partner, Mr. Rajiv Bharatiya at Outback Steakhouse, BB Park, as part of the Dining with Moola experience. You can check out what Wilson has to say about his experience at Outback Steakhouse right here.

Mr Rajiv Bharatiya, Managing Partner of Outback Steakhouse South East Asia along with the bloggers of Dining with Moola experience

Now, about Outback Steakhouse. It is located at BB Park, right in the middle of Kuala Lumpur’s retail district, Bukit Bintang. The soothing ambience, especially within the cozy restaurant, helps to invoke a friendly and calm atmosphere, when combined with great food, makes for an outstanding evening. Throw in great company in the form of two bloggers with their wives and a warm host, you’ve got yourself an unforgettable occasion.

Alice Springs Chicken Quesadilla – amazingly tasty

Our evening started with an introduction to some of Outback Steakhouse’s lovely appetisers – Alice Springs Chicken Quesadilla, Crispy Chicken Salad and Crispy Fried Mushrooms. The Alice Springs Chicken Quesadilla is a succulent combination of chicken breast, sautéed mushrooms, beef bacon, melted cheeses stuffed in a grilled flour tortilla. This delightful treat is served with honey mustard sauce. It really does its job as an appetiser as it’s simply so good. The Crispy Chicken Salad’s generous portioning makes it a main course for those who love watching their weight. Fried chicken fingers served over mixed lettuce, with tomatoes, cheese, beef bacon, diced egg, and croutons make this salad a dish that can actually be shared. Best of all, you get to select your own sauce to go with the salad.

Crispy Chicken Salad comes with Outback’s homemade dressing of your choice

We were pampered for choice that evening, having three lovely sauces to choose from – Ranch, Blue Cheese and Thousand Island. Every dressing is custom made by Outback Steakhouse and checked daily for consistency and quality. Each dressing was fantastic, offering pleasant surprises to my sauce weary tastebuds. I loved the blue cheese best, but later developed a liking for the thousand island, which has a slightly spicy tinge to it.

Which suits your tastes? Blue Cheese, Ranch and Thousand Island are just some of the dressings you can choose from

The simplest, yet most elegant appetiser that evening for me was the Crispy Fried Mushrooms. Lightly breaded and then fried till golden brown, these mushrooms taste heavenly with the special spicy ranch dressing that comes with it. It’s no wonder why it’s a favourite among Outback’s regulars.

Simple things done best – Crispy Fried Mushrooms with special spicy ranch dressing

But of course, what’s a restaurant without its main courses? And for a steakhouse, that means steak. Outback Steakhouse does not disappoint in that category, serving up four cuts of steak – the Outback Special, New York Strip, Victoria’s Filet, and Ribeye. All steaks come with two freshly made sides, and yes, you decide how well you want your steaks done. Outback also offers combination dishes that incorporate its great meats in them, such as the Toowomba Topped Filet, which we had the chance to sample. Sauteed shrimp and button mushrooms are tossed in a tomato cream sauce and served over a seasoned and seared filet. The result? Very happy diners!

The Toowomba Topped Filet – a unique combination dish offering some of the best of Outback

For those who aren’t that into steaks, worry not, as Outback also has an extensive range of chicken, fish and lamb dishes. Not only that, the restaurant offers pasta as well. Before you wonder what’s pasta doing in a steakhouse, let me assure you that the Seafood Pasta we tried is not there just to round up the menu, it is a dish worth noting. Shrimp, calamari and fish fillet with fettuccine tossed in Outback’s homemade marinara sauce and Parmesan cheese make it a satisfying meal.

Burger? Nope, it’s a Bloomin’ Steak Sandwich. and yes, it is *technically* a burger

And like any self-respecting steakhouse, Outback Steakhouse serves a mean burger! It’s got a mouthful of a name, but then again, it’s a heck of a mouthful of burger too. Meet the Bloomin’ Steak Sandwich – tender strips of sirloin, sautéed with balsamic glazed onions, melted cheese, tomato and finished off with Outback’s signature Typhoon Bloom petals. And it’s served with tomato mayonnaise and Aussie fries.

Look out! It’s the Chocolate Thunder from Down Under!

After a delightful and filling meal, we ended our evening with smiles and dessert. Deciding to share, we tucked into Outback’s popular Chocolate Thunder from Down Under. Built solidly with a fresh-baked pecan brownie as a base, it is topped with an amazingly generous scoop of rich vanilla ice cream, which is then covered with classic warm chocolate sauce AND another scoop of fresh whipped cream. This dessert is topped with chocolate shavings, ours came topped off with a decadently rich chocolate spire!

Great food, Good atmosphere – Outback Steakhouse

So if you are EVER in Bukit Bintang and just feel in need for some great food in a great place, head on to Outback Steakhouse for an unforgettable evening! And yes, they do serve some of the coolest cocktails in town!

This Dining With Moola experience is courtesy of Moola, currently the best-kept secret in town. Be elevated to a totally new and exciting lifestyle when you discover Moola!

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Travel to Melaka

EXPLORASI TEKNOLOGI HIJAU – Pakej Pelancongan dan Pengalaman Pelajar Sekolah 2012 – 2013 di Taman Botanikal Melaka

EXPLORASI TEKNOLOGI HIJAU – Alamilah sendiri bagaimana teknologi hijau boleh diamalkan dalam amalan hidup seharian kita samaada di sekolah dan dirumah. Kami menawarkan pakej-pakej istimewa kepada para pelajar untuk mengenali dan berinteraksi sendiri dengan TEKNOLOGI HIJAU melalui pakej pelancongan TEKNOLOGI HIJAU. Antara pakej yang disediakan adalah:-

Taman Botanikal Melaka

Kampung Buku Malaysia Melaka

 

PENERANGAN PAKEJ YANG DIPROGRAMKAN:-

 

Buggy Elektrik

1. Program kenderaan karbon rendah (Low carbon vehicle program)
Keterangan Program kesedaran tentang pelepasan karbon yang dijana daripada sektor pengangkutan. Pelajar akan menaiki buggy elektrik di sekitar Taman Botanikal Melaka dan belajar tentang bagaimana untuk mengira jejak karbon (carbon footprint) bagi pengangkutan.
Duration: 2 jam program seramai 40 orang.
Caj: RM 7.00 / orang (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hari bekerjaMinimum  40 pax
Keperluan tambahan: Buku nota buku, pensil / pen dan kalkulator

 

2. Karbon sink / Pengasingan program (Carbon sink/sequestration program)
Keterangan Pelajar akan diajar bagaimana prose carbon sink/ Pengasingan kerja-kerja dan membuat pengiraan dalam situasu sebenar. Pelajar  akan bergerak melalui e-buggy ke satu kawasan yang dikhaskan di Taman Botanikal Melaka.
Duration: 2 jam program seramai 40 orang.Minimum  40 pax
Caj: RM 12.00 / pax (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan
Keperluan tambahan: Buku nota buku, pensil / pen dan kalkulator

 

Panel Solar

3. Lawatan sambil belajar Tenaga Boleh Diperbaharui (Renewal energy study tour)
Keterangan Pelajar akan diberi taklimat tentang apa Tenaga Boleh Diperbaharui, kepentingannya dan lawatan ke model Tenaga Boleh Diperbaharui an di Taman Botanikal Melaka. Pelajar akan menaiki e-buggy.
Duration: 2 jam program seramai 40 orang.
Caj: RM 12.00 / pax (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hari bekerjaMinimum 40 pax
Keperluan tambahan: Tiada

 

 

4. Lawatan sambil belajar pensampelan bangunan hijau(Green building sampling tour)
Keterangan Pelajar akan melawat dan diberi taklimat mengenai konsep bangunan hijau dalam Taman Botanikal Melaka. Mereka akan belajar tentang pengukuran penjimatan tenaga dan pengalaman untuk melakukan pengiraan penjimatan tenaga. Pelajar akan menaiki e-buggy untuk melakawat model bangunan.
Duration: 2 jam program seramai 40 orang.
Caj: RM 12.00 / pax (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hari bekerjaMinimum 40 pax
Keperluan tambahan: Buku nota buku, pensil / pen dan kalkulator

 

 

5. Lawatan sambil belajar pengurusan sisa(Waste management study tour)
Keterangan Pelajar akan diberi taklimat mengenai konsep mengurangkan, mengguna semula dan mengitar semula (3R), kepentingan pengurusan sisa, faedah dan pengalaman kaedah kompos di Taman Botanikal Melaka. Pelajar akan menaiki e-buggy ke laman.
Duration: 2 jam program seramai 40 orang.
Caj: RM 12.00 / pax (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hari bekerjaMinimum 40 pax
Keperluan tambahan: Tiada

 

6. Persembahan video mengenai Perubahan Iklim dan Pemanasan Global(Video presentation on Climate Change and Global Warming)
Keterangan Program kesedaran mengenai isu-isu perubahan iklim dan pemanasan global, mengapa ia berlaku?, Cara untuk mengurangkan dan tanggungjawab manusia. Pelajar akan menaiki e-buggy ke bilik video.
Duration: 1 jam program seramai 40 orang.
Caj: RM 12.00 / pax (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hari bekerjaMinimum 40 pax
Keperluan tambahan: tiada

 

 

7. Lawatan sambil belajar pemuliharaan alam sekitar(Environmental conservation study tour)
Keterangan Pelajar akan dibawa melawat Taman Botanikal Melaka melalui e-buggy, menjelaskan tentang kepentingan hutan hujan, hutan biodiversiti, Bertanding untuk menghasilkan gambar biodiversiti terbaik (menggunakan kamera digital sendiri) dan memenangi hadiah istimewa.
Duration: 2 jam program seramai 40 orang.
Caj: RM15.00 / pax (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hari bekerjaMinimum 40 pax
Keperluan tambahan: kamera digital Milik

 

 

8. Lawatan Sambil Belajar Pengurusan air (Water management tour)
Keterangan Pelajar akan diberi taklimat mengenai pemuliharaan air, penting jejak air, pengalaman contoh kehidupan model kitar semula air dan mengambil bahagian dalam pengiraan jejak air. Pelajar akan menaiki e-buggy ke tempat demostrasi.
Duration: 2 jam program seramai 40 orang.
Caj: RM 12.00 / pax (selepas kadar diskaun 50% untuk pelajar)
Syarat-syarat pembayaran: Bayaran penuh di tapak sebelum program mula.
Tempahan: Diperlukan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hari bekerjaMinimum 40 pax
Keperluan tambahan: Buku nota buku, pensil / pen dan kalkulator

 

Untuk menyertai program ini sila Telefon/SMS Cik Hana 019-7257388 atau email kepada hana@worldheritage.com.my untuk maklumat lanjut.