Ibis Hotel Novena, Singapore review

One thing I like about the Ibis Hotel chain is their array of hotel lines that cater to all sorts of travelers of different budgets and taste. There is the main Ibis, the more business-y end of the hotel line, identifiable with its red logo. There is Ibis Styles, the quirky boutique-like range with its green logo and finally, for the thrifty traveler who still wants some comfort and the basic needs, Ibis offers Ibis Budget in blue.

While I was in Singapore for work, my company had my colleagues and I stay in the Ibis Novena as it was the most reasonable hotel that could accommodate three people in a single room. From Changi airport, it was a S$20 cab ride to the hotel.

Check-in was fast as they only required the booking number and the paying credit card's details to open a tab. Payment of the room was to be made upon checking out. The lobby wasn't big with only limited seats for waiting. The attached restaurant Oopen Grill and Pasta serves as the morning buffet spot but that comes with an additional cost.

Singapore's Cat Museum

Move aside cat cafes because Singapore now has a Cat Museum. Not a building housing dead cats detailing the history of felines though the years (like Malaysia's cat museum in Sarawak) but rather one that is home to real life cats rescued from the streets. 

Having only opened officially in January 2015, this cat museum occupies the upper floors of a traditional shoplot along PURvis street (haha, geddit? Credit to Isabel for that pun). Spotting it from the street can be tricky as there is no clear signboard to look out for but after walking up and down once, I finally spotted the little stairwell beside a lovely red lot leading up to kitty paradise. The walls of the stairs are decorated with cat motifs and quotes from well-known personalities indicating their admiration for the feline kind.

Exclusive Avengers: Age of Ultron CollectIble Figurine by TGV Cinemas

Hello, Avengers fans!

Great news! 

TGV Cinemas is unveiling a series of must-have Avengers: Age of Ultron figurine combo! You can start booking yours today online on TGV Cinemas’ website: www.tgv.com.my from 10 - 15 April 2015. Each Avengers (Thor, Hulk, Iron Man and Captain America) combo comes together with one regular caramel popcorn and soft drink set for only RM19.90 so think of it like a happy meal set at TGV Cinemas.

Follow these simple steps:
Step 1: Visit www.tgv.com.my
Step 2: Select any movie and add Avengers: Age of Ultron combo set
Step 3: Complete transaction and collect items at your selected TGV Cinemas.
Avengers Combo collections starts from 22 April 2015 onwards.

For walk-in customers, Avengers Combo will only be available from 16 April 2015 onwards, and only two characters will be released each week. Like a certain minion craze....

For more information about the Avengers Combo set, visit www.tgv.com.my or follow TGV Cinemas on Facebook, Twitter, Instragram and LINE.

Shokudo Japanese Curry Rice, Seapark review

Hello April! Everyone has been waiting anxiously for you! And not for a good reason, thanks to GST.

In other news, PJ kaki no longer need to brave traffic and crowd for their japanese curry fix because a new restaurant specialising in such has just opened up in Petaling Jaya!

Seapark Petaling Jaya would be the last place anyone would expect to find a restaurant that specialises in Japanese Curry but with the opening of Shokudo, there ya go!

Reebok Spartan Race Coming to Malaysia?

Is Reebok Spartan Race coming to Malaysia?

Quite possibly!

I was excited to hear that the creme de la creme of international obstacle course racing might be setting up right here in Kuala Lumpur because that would mean...not having to spend thousands of ringgit jetting to Australia, UK or America just to get three big-ass medals and one elusive tri-colour medal reserved solely for the Trifecta tribe of Spartan.

Firstly, what is Reebok Spartan Race? It's a series of obstacle course race with three different categories of distance and total of obstacles consisting off Sprint (5-7km), Super (14km) and finally Beast (21km) or for the insane, the ultra Beast (42km). Completion of all three within a calender year will earn you the Trifecta medal. That stupid glorious chunk of tri-coloured metal.

Last year, I flew to Gold Coast (thanks to Airasia X's reasonably priced flight tickets) to take part in Spartan Beast. It was a killer with over 30 obstacles, a challenging terrain and the punishment of burpees for each failed obstacle but I was addicted. Just holding that palm-size medal in my hand...it was the most satisfying thing ever. You can read about my Spartan experience here.

After the recent Viper Challenge, it seems like Malaysians are more willing to challenge themselves beyond just running the distance. However, are we ready for a Spartan Race? Will we actually do the punishment of 30 burpees for each failed obstacles? Will we honour the spirit, sportsmanship and ethnics of this race by not cheating, cutting queues, complaining and giving up? In all honesty, after what I observed at Viper, no. Heck, I saw many people shoving and pushing and cutting queues, I saw people taking short cuts across the route.

So no. Many of us aren't ready for an obstacle race like Spartan. But those who are and/or have done Spartan honorably, well, they are the ones who understand the value of owning one or two or three or all of those medals. So for the sake of those Spartans in Malaysia, I hope Reebok Spartan Race does come here and by God, I hope we Malaysians don't make a mockery of it.

So yeah...With a Spartan Malaysia in the works, my dream of getting the Trifecta medal have just became a step closer to reality. Otherwise...it's back to continent hopping all over Australia for me. And it's bye bye retirement fund.

So Spartans within the region, if you want Reebok Spartan Race to come to Kuala Lumpur, just pre-register here so that the organizers know that you are keen and just dying to do burpees!

Aroo!

Read the update on this topic here.

Luxury Ayurveda pampering at Spa Ceylon, Nu Sentral

Stress goes hand-in-hand with living and working in a city like Kuala Lumpur. So wouldn't be nice to be able to come home and find a spa-like treatment waiting for you at home?

Offering just that, the newly opened Spa Ceylon in NU Sentral KL lets shoppers bring home the spa treatment of their choice to help them pamper and de-stress the day away. All packed up in convenient elegant bottles or boxed, Spa Ceylon offers the natural well-being rituals derived from the royal treatment, rejuvenations and healing rituals of luxury Ayurveda though its variety of products and ranges suitable for the body, mind and soul.  

And when I say variety, I mean all 450 of it. 

Viper Challenge 2015: Wet and Wild

Somewhere behind me, behind those 5 foot walls set up in middle of a plantation in Sepang, I could hear my friend coaxing a pair of girls to use him as a step for them to get over aforementioned walls. Ahead of me, my sister was scrambling over the walls with sheer determination and I thought, "if she can do it, so can I." 

So I did it. Awkward and uncoordinated. Not at all like how my Bootcamp instructor taught us (he would burst a vein if he saw how I did it) but I did it nevertheless. And even though those walls were only 5 foot, it was an achievement for me. 

Taiwan Travel Fair, 1 Utama 25 - 29 March 2015

Hey hey travel addicts!

MATTA Fair maybe over but if Taiwan is on your travel bucket list then swing by 1 Utama from 25-29 March to catch the first ever Taiwan Travel Fair organised by Taiwan Tourism Bureau Kuala Lumpur (TTBKL).

 

With the first Taiwan Travel Fair, you can expect great value travel deals thanks to TTBKL who have tied up with top Taiwanese and Malaysian travel agencies to offer a variety of exciting packages and the most attractive travel deals for all destinations in Taiwan. This also includes customised packages or tours specially-catered for Muslim visitors who has food concerns. 

Frisky Goat Bakery Cafe, TTDI review

After hearing many good things about Frisky Goat in TTDI, I finally dropped by for a lunch. Parking however was a challenge and I had to circle the block three times before I lucked out and scored a parking spot right in front of Frisky Goat.

Upon entering, I was greeted with a cheery 'hello, welcome to Frisky Goat!', was quickly shown to a table and given a menu. It was a weekday and the cafe itself wasn't crowded with a nice upbeat music playing in the background. The chattering of three Australian ladies at the table next mine gave me the illusion of being in Australia. One can imagine, can't she. The ambiance was inviting with a corner offering their pastries and bread and a display of tantalizing cakes and desserts. The seats against the wall were lined with funky cushions and was quite cosy.

Insurgent: Divergent sequel review at TGV Cinemas

Being a TGV Cinemas Movie Club member has its perks. Firstly, I was first in (on)line to get advanced tickets for Avengers: Age of Ultron in April. Secondly, I got premiere screening tickets to watch the Divergent sequel: Insurgent.

Oddly enough, I only just watched Divergent the previous week on Astro (out of curiosity and intrigued) and found out hey, the sequel is coming out this week.