Amy W.: 11.09

The fabulous grounds of Hyatt Kuantan

Thank you, Mr Weatherman, for the great weekend weather at the East Coast! I had an absolute blast :)

We started off from home at 8am on Saturday, stopping at Pan Heong Restaurant in Batu Caves for a fantastic breakfast of the most delicious wat tan hor in the world and pai-kuat-pei-dan porridge. Sorry no pics, been there a few times but each time I prefer to fast-fast dig in rather than snap pics :P And they sell the best chicken biscuits I have ever eaten. Breakfast came up to RM17, excluding RM20 for the biscuits.

Then at 9am we were going on our way along MRR2, hitting the Karak highway and then the East Coast Expressway. I noticed that MTD Prime owns the entire stretch. And I wouldn't have noticed that if not because 2 days ago I'd read a KLSE announcement that MTD had sold Bangunan Shell in Damansara Heights for RM101 mil. So the name stuck. But I digress.

Karak Highway was winding, as always. The ECE was straight and easy to drive. It was a different landscape to the one we were used to on the PLUS highway. Plenty of oil palm estates and mangroves and of course, the majestic Banjaran Titiwangsa. We exited at Kuantan exit, got slightly lost in town, before finding our way to Teluk Cempedak.

Hyatt Kuantan is awesome. When I stepped into the lobby, there was this awesome view of one of the hotel pools set against the mighty South China Sea. I was in love with the place already. And, having been upgraded to the "Club Sea View King" room, I was anticipating a really nice weekend. I mean, complimentary hotel stays are always nice, but being bumped up is super awesome :)

View from our room

The tub that we did not use because the taps spewed yellow water

Good power shower

I liked the timber flooring. Pillows were too thin. Air-cond too cold (stuck at 18 degrees whole night). But nice room set-up.

We dumped our stuff in the room, and went looking for the Regency Club lounge - for Club room guests only, hehe. They had free flow of juices, coffee, tea and some cookies. We didn't stick around long. KF decided we'd go to Mexica Garden Restaurant in town for lunch. We had a huge plate of squid fried in salted egg, yau mak, and a plate of imperial noodles. The captain gave us a complimentary coconut custard (jelly in a whole coconut), which was very nice of him and ended the meal very nicely for us. Lunch came up to about RM50.

Then we went back to hang out in the comfy room. And while I was vaining in front of the mirror, oh horror of horrors, I discovered not one, but zillions of white hairs! KF helped me pluck them out and I lined them properly for a memorial.

Count the white hairs!

KF had to go out to meet some hotel executive (yah, he was there for work, and yes it is the reason why we were staying there). There was Star Movies on the TV, so I settled down to watch When Harry Met Sally - "I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." - awww!

My movie marathon aid - Panasonic Viera LCD

KF came back from the meeting, and then left again to have tea with an ex-colleague. I didn't really want to go, preferring instead to luxuriate in the room with the TV all to myself. I settled down to watch "Butterfly in the Wheel" starring Pierce Brosnan, Gerard Butler and Maria Bello (it took me some time to figure out she was the bar owner from Coyote Ugly).

The card is really handwritten - and not by the secretary!

You know, staying in a Club room makes you feel a bit like royalty. You get stuff like handwritten cards from some hotel director and a yummy box of chocolates. Plus use of the exclusive lounge - which was filled with ang moh people during the free 2-hour evening cocktails. They served some finger food i.e. scallops and fruits and cakes, which all made a very good dinner for us, haha. And also beer and wine. Nice.

Pralines in a box

It was about 6pm when we decided to head to the beach. We walked until we reached the Boardwalk, which was filled with monkeys. Then we went back to swim in one of the hotel pools till it was dark. And then went to bed early - my eyes couldn't stay open for National Treasure : Book of Secrets which was supposed to show at 10pm. Yah, this is a real holiday.

The next morning I got up at 6am. Haha. So I decided to wait for sunrise, since our balcony gave us such a good view. But, whadaya know, Mr Big Fat Grey Cloud decided to plonk his ass right in my line of sight over the horizon. Ah well. I read until KF decided to wake up at 8am.

He wishes he had a Ferrari to sell too

We went to the Club lounge for a continental breakfast - comes with the room. Apparently we could pay RM15 per person to upgrade to a buffet breakfast at the Kampung restaurant, but we didn't. And I'm glad too. They served cereals, smoked salmon, salad, scrambled eggs, ham, fruits, breads, pastries, and even had a coffee machine serving excellent cappucino. And with the sea breeze and pounding waves, I didn't need anything else.

View of the Teluk Cempedak beach from the Club lounge

One conversation at the cappucino machine did stand out. This English lady was there with her little boy, making him a "baby-cino". I asked how old he was, she said 2. Then she asked if I had any of my own. I said no. Then she said : "You know, when I was younger, I did all kinds of things and travelled everywhere, searching for that something before wanting to settle down. Then when I had him, I realized I'd found what I was searching for - and it's him!" Wah, so profound, I tell you. Only an ang moh can strike up such a conversation with a stranger.

After breakfast, we went back to the room, and I settled in for another movie (haha) : Because I Said So, starring Diane Keaton, Mandy Moore and Piper Perabo. This was fun to watch. And it was the last of my movie marathon weekend. We checked out at 12 noon. Contemplated eating at the McD's / KFC drive-thru outside Hyatt, but we drove all the way to Genting Sempah's instead.

On the way home we stopped by at Selayang, to buy fresh live prawns (1/2 kg for RM25). KF had a craving for angelhair pasta with prawns. Yummy yummy ending to a good good weekend :)

[another long overdue post]

Why my birthday was fabulous this year:-

1. We ate so much food in Singapore and the bills cost KF quite a bit, but he did not complain - at all! We even met up with a Korean friend at Tony Roma's and had yummy pork ribs, after which she bought me a Bakerzin cake - yummylicious! And then my uncle spent us to a Japanese buffet as well. It was a supremely filling weekend.

The cousin recommended carrot walnut cake at Cedele in Orchard, and wow, it was pretty good!

2. The Singapore Flyer adventure was pretty cool - free tickets courtesy of Jetstar. We had great views of the F1 track and the ongoing Integrated Resorts World and Marina Bay Sands developments, plus pretty awesome views of the Singapore skyline.