Foong Speaks Her Mind

The sarcastic Foong is back from the short trip outta this depressing country full of even more depressing news. Haih….

Anyway, I had a great time and wished the really, really short holiday could stretch on forever! Okay, some of you took a guess at where I was headed….now, let’s see..

From Choonie:

1. Sabah

Good idea…I’ve never been to East Malaysia, perhaps we should venture there for a holiday someday. Nope. Wrong.

2. Phuket

We went there for our honeymoon years ago, way before the tsunami incident and we hope to go back one day, only thing is that it is kinda expensive nowadays…nope. wrong again.

3. Bali

We absolutely love Bali! We went there a few years back and yes, we will go back there again one of these days! So, nope…wrong again.

Sorry, Choonie. Looks like your guesses are wrong…

From Caravanserai:

Phuket - because of the clusters of islands….

Heheheh…actually the clusters of islands are kinda deceiving and as people like to say, it may look like one place but it is not. So, nope, it’s not Phuket!

Eh, Engineer, can you imagine if my swimsuit were to go transparent? People will probably run screaming from the island!!! Lol. I think even if I were to go to the store to demand for a refund, I don’t need to scream ‘pinch my nipples’ at all. I just need to wear the transparent swimsuit and flash the store owner and he / she would probably dump all the money in the cash register at me and tell me to go away before they lose their eyesight and ALL of their customers! LOL.

Momo, if I were to post pictures of me in my swimsuit (not even the bikini!) I think I’d scare away ANYONE who happen to pass by this blog. Now, you don’t want to have nightmares, do you? But, I hope the following pictures should be good enough…

Here are some pictures of where I went  **insert drumroll please**:

Samui First House is pretty clean and quite reasonably priced. It is located at almost the end of Chaweng but you could still walk to the busy streets full of shops and restaurants which is nearby. Otherwise, it is also quite easy to travel via toot-toot (the trucks that goes around transporting people). The costs are around 30baht per person (in the day) and 50baht per person at night, to anywhere.

And no, they aren’t nasty tasting or anything. Just crunchy and salty. I especially like the worms, it has a creamy centre, sorta nutty flavour and damn good. No, it does not taste like chicken at all. It tastes much much better than chicken. Only thing is that it is way too salty. They should let up on the salt! It’s 10baht per scoop and I ordered one scoop each of crickets and two types of worms. I finished the whole thing, every single bit, even the cricket legs. Yummmyyyy…

The Ang Thong National Park consist of a cluster of 46 islands set in a sparkling turquiose sea.

The elephant ride is back in Koh Samui, not in the national park. The tour package to the national park includes snacks and lunch on board the boat, kayaking, snorkelling and sightseeing around the park. The package is RM150 per person. The boat ride to the park from Nathon harbour is about one hour 40 minutes. Luckily, the seas are calm, so no danger of seasickness. We sat outside up front and even manage to catch sight of some dolphins swimming past and flying fishes.

These pretty and dainty flowers are handcarved from palmolive soaps. I bought a couple of smaller ones as souvenirs. The smallest one is 50 baht each, the medium ones is 80 baht each and the larger ones are between 150baht to 300 baht.

There are loads of shops, restaurants, cafes and stalls along the busiest area in Koh Samui, the Chaweng stretch. However, everything is VERY expensive and highly inflated. Do not shop here! Even after bargaining, the prices are way too expensive. If you absolutely must buy something, go to Lamai where it is not as busy, thus it is easier to bargain and get better prices.

What I am especially impressed by Koh Samui is the airport:

But I have to say that they are smart to build it to look more like a resort with loads of Thai culture influences in the architecture.

It may not be air-conditioned but it has a resort feel to it and makes one feel so darn comfortable. The high ceiling and wonderful architecture ensured great air flow, so it wasn’t all that warm without air cond in the waiting area at all.

It’s the airport toilet! It is so clean and with a small landscaped garden inside and….

The toilet is impressively clean, the floors are dry and yes, no smell of any kind at all! I can say the toilet is even cleaner than some of the toilets in the hotels in Penang! And it is not only the airport toilet, almost every restaurant we go to have extremely clean toilets with DRY, CLEAN floors.

Even the tourist places in Koh Samui are clean. We don’t see rubbish and litter everywhere. No wonder their tourism sector is growing and no wonder so many tourists preferred Koh Samui and Phuket than Penang. Heck, I’d prefer Koh Samui and Phuket compared to Penang for a holiday anytime even if it is more expensive simply because it is much, much cleaner and their sea is not filled with unknown floating objects.

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If that does not give you a clue at all…

What about this

That bikini of mine is about four years old already when I bought it from a trip to LA. I got it from one of those big flea markets in LA. The other two swimming trunks belong to the two men in my life lor.

Though I can still fit into it, I have too much jiggly bits (not to mention the millions of stretch marks everywhere) to wear that and strut around in it. Sigh….gone are the days when I can wear bikinis without worrying about some unsightly bit hanging out or mountains of jiggling flesh or the network of silver and reddish stretch marks all over.

Haih…..

A few times already, we had forgotten to pack along our swimwear and ended up not being able to go for wonderful swims in azure seas or buying some overpriced swimwear there. So, just to be sure, the swimwear goes in first.

No, I am not going to wear the bikini. Just bringing it along as a ’spare’ suit. Probably going to hide it under a tent of a shirt, heheh. My old one-piece swimsuit already rosak so I went and bought a brand new one. The new suit is hanging out back drying before I pack it into the luggage, that’s why it’s not in the picture.

By now, you must have guessed that we are going on a holiday to a place with beaches and the sea. I don’t know why, must be the deep-seated islander within me, but I always loved going for holidays near the sea, islands or the coast. As long as its near the sea, I will want to go.

So, where are we going?

Here are some clues….

By the time you read this, I will probably be on my way there with husband and son in tow. Yeah, another time-stamped post…

So, keep on guessing.

Whoever with the first correct guess will win a mysterious prize, a souvenir, from wherever I am going.

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Each time we go traveling by car, I’d end up even more tired from the short holiday than before the trip because traveling with a hyperactive toddler in the car is darn tiring. And I usually don’t even drive as my designated driver (heheheh…my hubby lor…) preferred to be behind the wheels most of the time.

So, I am left with handling the hyperactive li’l monster toddler in the backseat. Yeah, my hubby is really like a driver with us sitting behind and him in front. All he needs is a driver’s uniform…lol…

Anyway, it is not easy to travel with a hyperactive toddler who gets bored easily while being strapped into his baby car seat at the back. For long or short journeys, my son is always strapped into the baby car seat for safety.

How do you keep a toddler occupied in a car journey which may take from two hours to five hours or even longer? Well, here are some of my own tips which I find quite useful…

Tips for traveling with a toddler in a car:

How to keep the hyperactive child occupied

1. Bring some of his favourite toys that demands creative play such as a drawing board, play dough, wooden blocks. These may keep him occupied for at least an hour. Just remember to play along with him otherwise he gets bored easily.

2. If you’d forgotten to pack some toys, use other items you can easily find along the way such as pieces of paper and brochures. Use the paper to fold it into various shapes (knowledge in origami will be an added plus!) and teach your toddler to fold the shapes that you’ve folded (extreme patience also an added plus!). As for the brochures, use it like a book. Point out interesting shapes, colours and pictures and tell your toddler your own ’story’ about it (creativity needed here!).

3. If you have an ultra clean car with not even a tiny scrap of paper, take out your discount cards. Show you toddler how to play snap with it by getting him to hold one in his palm and you holding one in your palm and then tell him to ‘high five’ your palm with his. Whichever card falls face up wins! Of course, you must add some excitement to this game with loads of compliments in the way he is able to control his palm while holding the card.

4. No discount cards? Never mind. Use your hands! I remember how I used to play ‘thumb wrestling’ for hours as a kid and my toddler loves this game too. Although he could not quite control his thumb all that well, he still find loads of enjoyment in it.

5. Sing-along and rhymes. Yes, I know. As mind-numbingly horrifying it sounds, you will need to sing nursery rhymes for hours to keep the child occupied. Even if you have a tape, you will still need to sing along with the tape being played over and over and over for at least an hour or *gasp* longer!

6. Scenery watch - after the first two hours of toys and games and singing, he’d be bored again so the next thing to do is to point out the window and loudly exclaim ‘Oh wow! Look at that car / tractor / lorry / truck / bus’. Then describe to him the colour, the make, how many wheels it has, the purpose of the vehicle and how many people are in it. My son is very inquisitive and usually wants to know the full details! Also, if you are passing country / kampung roads, do point out any animals you see along the way such as cows, dogs, cats, birds, goats, sheep, monkeys, etc.

7.Stand up comedy - yes, you will have to put on a show for your child in the goofiest, funniest way possible for your child. If your child love funny faces, be prepared to put on dozens of funny faces.

8. Tickle time and blowing raspberries - my son simply love it when I start the ‘tickle game’ which ultimately end with me blowing raspberries on his stomach, neck, hands, legs, etc.

9. The rubber band trick - they find it fascinating that we could manipulate a simple rubber band and form patterns with it. You can even let your child try it out but be careful that he does not snap the rubber and hurt himself.

And finally, the one last trick that every parent will love!

10. Nap time! Most young children finds it easier to doze off when traveling in a car, possibly due to the motion. So, after keeping your child occupied and busy for the first half of the journey, remember to keep him well-fed, well-hydrated and then give him some quiet time and he will definitely doze off, hopefully for the rest of the journey!

So, there you are. My very own ten tips on traveling with a hyperactive toddler in the car and how to keep him occupied. Happy traveling.

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