Kids Day Out : Penang Butterfly Farm

This weekend we decided to bring the kids to Penang Butterfly Farm. Yup Kids... Lucas and Company (the Kam sisters, Abigail & Annabelle) :)

We had breakfast together at McDonalds before heading off our lil group trip to the Butterfly Farm.
The farm is open all year round (including on public holidays), that means, their operation hours are from
                 Monday to Sunday
                 9am - 6pm (Last entry 5pm)

Entrance fees are
Adult                 : RM27
Kids (4 - 12yo)  : RM15

If you are a MyKad Holder, fees are as follow :
Adult                  : RM18
Kids (4 -12yo)   : RM10

Upon entering to the farm, it felt like we were at tinkerbell's fairyland. There were hundreds on butterflies roaming freely and gliding gracefully everywhere. Well, a huge butterfly landed on Lucas and he literally screamed his heart out! We had to carry him around then on... @.@

Walking around the farm during mid day maybe quite a sweaty affair... it's so hot, we were practically soaking in sweat. Luckily, there was a mini theatre showing a movie on insects and it's air conditioned. 

After cooling down, we walk around. The kids were fascinated with the insects displayed... 

I thought our pictures were advertorial worthy, don't you think? LOL >.<

Eek, there were lizards too.

We ended the trip with a sweet treat for the kids. They sure had fun.

Kids friendly family activity in Penang *updated*

*updated post with directions to the attractions as there are many who asked how to get there*

I've been wanting to share this for awhile now, but never came to it. Every weekend, we make it a point to spend some family time together. Penang actually has some interesting places to hangout with kids without costing a bomb. :) Nothing beats going out and play!
Here are a list of some of them.

Penang Youth Park (Taman Permainan Mudah Akses)
There's a new park in town and it's at located at youth park. This park has a mini cycling circuit, mock buildings like garage, hospital & grocery store. It has the usual slides and obstacle course & wall puzzles to keep your lil ones busy.

Opens daily from 7am-7pm.
Official website : http://www.penangmunicipalpark.com
How to get there : If you are coming down from Jalan Utama, Turn left to Lengkok Jessleton then to Persiaran Kuari (Junction on the left before christian cemetery), there's a sign that says "Taman Permainan Mudah Akses". Go along Jalan Kuari. The park is on the left, right opposite the Information Office.

The old playground at youth park is still a charm. I didn't capture much pictures though but it has facilities for both young and old. It has some simple Gym equipments where adults can do their exercise and also it has the usual swings, slides & sort for the little ones, it also has a skating track for teenagers. Here I have a picture of Lucas on a stone camel which has been there for ages, since my time. There are so many things to do, one can spend hours there.

I-play Toy Library at Penang Children's Library

I bet many doesn't know this exist. I didn't know too but my dear friend Shu-yin blogged about it and I can't help but to check it out. Registration is RM12/year. Just bring your MyKid card along.

Opening Hours: 

Wednesdays to Fridays 2pm-5.30pm 
Saturdays and Sundays 10am to 5.30pm (Lunch break 1pm-2.30pm) 
Closed on Mondays and Tuesdays as well as Public Holidays.
Official Website (pretty lousy site**): http://www.penanglib.gov.my/en/index.php/en/7-slider/4-i-play-toy-new
How to get there : It's situated on Scotland road. Opposite the Penang Race course.

This place is a toy heaven for the kids. I wish they have this during my time. They have toys like role play costumes, puppets, puzzles & many more.

Straits Quay Water Park
Opens Daily.
Water play starts from 4.30pm-6pm
How to get there : Turn into Quayside junction, but turn left immediately and not right to the condominium. Drive along the road to the back of Quayside condo, the park is situated right behind.

We don't have to pay for ticket entry to get some water play. This hidden gem right behind Quayside Condominium is all about splashing fun. There's a toilet available as changing room after getting wet. The only downside is there are a lot of motorcyclist around which is quite dangerous for the kids. Even though there's a guard there, they are unable to enforce & restrict irresponsible motor cyclist at the area.

Penang Interactive Museum
Opens Daily from 9am-6pm
Official FB page : https://www.facebook.com/MadeInPenang
Entrance fees for myKad holders (Adult) is RM15, children below 2 - Free of charge.
How to get there : It's situated opposite QE 2, beside Via Pre restaurant.

Fun Place for trigger happy parents :) Have a fun time posing with 3D arts.
I blogged about this place in an earlier post.

Occupy Beach Street
Every Sunday 7am-1pm
Facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/occupybeachstreet

Roads will be closed every Sunday morning. Here you can enjoy cycling safely along the streets of Penang. There will be weekly activities as well as a street market for a fun filled Sunday morning. Almost like a weekly street carnival. There are also a lot of boutique cafes blooming around that area, where we usually would stop by for breakfast before we call it a day.

Hope you find this informative and you will spend some quality time with your family this weekend! :)

Treasure everyday moments...

How has your journey been for 2014? Sorry I am kinda disconnected for the past few months. Just last month as i have blogged earlier, DH had a bike accident and was admitted &amp; had to go through some surgery. A month has passed and he's now doing much better. He recuperated well at home. Few days back, my mum was back in the hospital again as well... This is one of those events in life that makes you think a lot and appreciate life each passing day. I am trying to stay positive and I often joke with my friends that I'm now an expert in packing hospital bags. Well, truly, events like this help us grow. I think that I was calm and was able to handle the situation well when I was heard the bad news.

 Last week, we celebrated 5 years as husband and wife. I did a little gift for him. A gift that would be a reminder of the journey and good times. Treasure moments spent together each day.

*photo captured by Asther Lau Photogrpahy*

Maldives on a budget

When people talk about Maldives, what comes into mind first, is the beauty, paradise, gorgeous luxury resorts, & exorbitant bills afterwards... That was exactly what came across my mind. When I googled "Maldives", the first results that was shown was "TOP 20 Maldives resort", Maldives Luxury Resorts & Luxury Yachts... They look so good that you will feel so tempted to click on them, just to find out they are at least RM1.5k per night all the way to RM5k per night. But boy, these resorts are so beautiful, they make your jaws drop just by looking at the pictures.

But, back to reality, we really were looking at more affordable options. 

Accommodation on a budget

Maldives is divided into two categories, Resort Islands & Local Islands. Resort Islands are where all the beautiful over water villas are, while local islands are for local residents but recently, locals have started to venture into the hospitality industry, as more and more hotels/guesthouses are built to cater for tourism. This actually helps the local economy as they use to only rely on fishing as their primary source of income.

After spending a little bit of time, searching around, we found out that staying at hotels/inns/guesthouses at local island, Maafushi, is fairly affordable. Hotel/Inn/Guesthouse prices ranging from RM88 - RM300 per night. We finally decided on booking the Stringray Beach Inn. Price of room was about RM250 per night (USD92) inclusive of breakfast. We felt the price was reasonable, the rooms look decent from the pictures. Now, you may think, if it's so cheap, everyone would just opt to stay on the local island. There's a catch. Being a muslim country, staying at local island requires us to be in modest clothing. No swimsuit/bikinis are allowed. No alcohol is allowed either. These rules however are not applicable if you are staying at a resort island. Well, I don't wear a bikini or drink alcohol so, it doesn't really bother me.

Sunset @ maafushi

Travelling from Male to Maafushi/Maafushi to Male

The tricky part about Maldives is, transportation from island to island via speedboat is quite costly. To get from Male to Maafushi, you can choose to travel via speedboat (about USD220 per boat, it gets cheeper if there are more passengers), or by the local ferry (about MVR 30(USD2) per pax). Speedboat journey will take about 35mins while ferry takes about 1.5 hours. For local ferry, understanding the ferry schedule is one of the vital consideration during your trip. Some of these ferries operates on weekdays (except Fridays), some operates on only Saturday/Monday/Wednesday and only one trip per day. Planning your trip should put this factor into consideration.

We took a ferry back from Maafushi to Male as well... Lucas was FOC but we paid MVR60 for both of us.

About our hotel

So, because we were travelling on a FRIDAY, there are no ferries to Maafushi operational, so we had to take a speedboat to the Maafushi. Upon arrival, we were greeted at the jetty by the co-owner of Stingray Beach Inn & his staff, with his trusty push cart (for our luggage).

While walking to our inn, the owner, told us, he has a surprise for us, we then reach the Sun Tan Beach hotel, where he told us that this is a new hotel owned by the same owners of Stingray Inn, & they have upgraded us to a beachfront family size room (one double & one single bed). At the lobby, we were then offered our welcome drinks, and Ibrahim briefed us on the available activities. 

We then, went up to our room. The size of the room was clean & fairly large, with one double & one single bed. Tiled floors, TV, built in cupboards, Fan & Air conditioned, toilet was not very big but it's clean, equipped with handheld shower head & Rain shower options. Snorkelling gears, beach towels are all available for free. The first impressions were great & We couldn't ask for more...

Daily Activities

I believe all guesthouse/hotels at the local island will provide services such as snorkelling, dolphin sighting, etc... one of the services they provide is resort island excursions. So, even though we are staying on a local island, we can choose from the given list of resort islands, to spend our day at. Each resort will usually charge a fee for entry, & the hotel will provide you transport (with a fee) to that island. Some resorts will charge an entry fee + a minimum amount as spending credit. 

Rihiveli Resort

Day 1, we chose to go to Rihiveli resort, as we were told there are a few people from Stingray Inn joining in as well, the transport fees will be cheaper. The resort also has two smaller islands which we can swim/walk to. Fees inclusive of Lunch (USD60++ (entrance fee) + USD65++ (transport fee)). Trip was 30mins by speedboat.

We were very lucky, upon reaching the island, there were a school of dolphins swimming nearby. Our boat stopped & we were able to have a close encounter with the dolphins. It was amazing!

We chose to have the BBQ lunch & it was quite shocking for us, when we found out, we need to swim/walk across to another island 400 metres away in the scorching sun for our lunch! @.@ We opt to rent the kayak and kayak there instead... the rental for the kayak was USD30. We were not too happy about the rental fee for the kayak as it was written on the brochure, free non-motorise water sports equipment. Apparently, that was some miscommunication between our hotel and their resort to be sorted out. Anyways, we did voice out to both parties but paid for it anyways, because there was no way we will be walking through the waters under the scorching sun to our lunch!

There was a time limit so we had to reach by 1pm. I swear we almost melted on the way to Sunrise Island. Poor Lucas! Lucky he wore my hat. Lunch was just rice, grilled fish & salad (free flow). Since we already worked so hard to get there, we spent sometime snorkelling & Lucas built sand castle while we were there. I must say the water was really clear though. It was a beautiful little island nonetheless. 

Holiday Inn Kandooma Island Resort

For the 2nd Day, we opt for Holiday Inn Kandooma. We were charged USD 150++ (USD50 for entrance fee, USD 100 for minimum usable credit) + USD25++ for transport fees per pax (our hotel gave us a discount of USD 10 per pax for transport).

We absolutely love this place! I think even more than Rihiveli :) There was a swimming pool so it was great for Lucas! All water sport gears are free! Usable credit can be used for food or spa services.

I guess this post right about sums up our mini trip to Maldives.