Guest Blogger Edith - Best Sushi at Sushi Zanmai

A special appearance from guest blogger Edith from ApplesOnSticks.com! If you are wondering who Edith is, below is a short introduction to get readers excited! Ever wonder how a Hungarian would feel about sampling sushi in Kuala Lumpur? Read on to get to know her!

She always liked to write and has an opinion about almost anything; therefore, it only occurred naturally that she started up her own blog, with the latest being applesonsticks.com. Here Edith posts about random stuff about her broad interests. Right now, she is working in KL, Malaysia, and therefore has a lot of new thoughts to share, especially about food. Read more below to get to know more about a Hungarian's view of food in Malaysia! Stay tuned in the future for more of her appearance, and definitely should visit her blog to get updated feeds!

I was never really fond of sushi, and where I come from, it’s usually just coupled with some kind of meat like seafood or chicken, which limited my choices by 98%. Before tasting sushi in Asia, I literally only had cucumber and avocado sushi as vegetarian ones, and that got pretty boring at one point. With Sushi Zanmai however, this old experience turned into a completely new amazing experience. Now I love sushi, and I definitely love going to this place!

First of all, the wide choices of sushi they serve is pretty impressive. When I ordered my dishes last time I was there, I over-ordered because I couldn't choose. I ordered four, and ended up with eating a little bit of everything, I was full by the end, and still couldn't finish everything. All four were vegetarian, surprisingly enough, and there were much more choices, if only I could've taken them. Here are some of the sushi me and my friends ordered:

Travel Malaysia 2013

Missing NATAS Travel Fairs deal does not need to be a heartache, for there is still Travel Malaysia Fair 2013 in November. With the year end Christmas holidays approaching, holidaymakers can now consider travel packages to various destinations in Malaysia! And the good news is that unlike the semi annual NATAS fair, the entrance is totally free! Head over to EXPO to get a look at potential Malaysian destinations!

Note: This fair is only available in Singapore.

Date:             1st (Fri) - 3rd Nov (Sun) 2013

Entry fee:      free

Location:       Singapore EXPO, Hall 6A
Website:        Main website and Facebook page

Singapore Food Blog - Breakfast for Dinner @ Wild Honey

Location: Orchard, Central Business District (CBD), Singapore

Note: This piece was written base on the dining experience in Scotts Square's outlet. Experience may differ from those in another branch.

It would be odd for me to admit this, but having breakfast for dinner feels real good. Let me get the picture clearer by sharing how I came to be in this situation. I did not oversleep nor did I missed breakfast all the way until dinnertime. What I did do was to drop by Wild Honey after a day's work for their all day breakfast. After all, breakfast was the only main course they offered.

Wild Honey's storefront in Scotts Square, a mall which oddly sees less visitors and shoppers than most of Orchard's contemporaries.

Travel through Philately - Old Maps of Singapore

Google Map and GPS undoubtedly changed the way we viewed our world - through satellite captured images digitally rendered and overlaid to show different information at the beck and call of a click. Looking back at history, the digital world did not come into the household and consumer's hand before the 90s, and most household could not afford one until the turn of the millennium. To see how our predecessors read a map would be the reason I collected this particular FDC, one which showed the old maps of Singapore as drawn by cartographers of the past.

This FDC has an antique look about it, trying its best to simulate the feel of old parchment with those brownish patches randomly placed on the cover.

Travel through Philately - Battle of Jersey

The Channel Islands are an interesting place in the geopolitical sense. Situated close to the European mainland and off the coast of France, historically they had been a thorn and a threat to the French government. One of the islands, Jersey was of strategic importance in any war between England and France due to its proximity to the French coast. And so there would be little surprise that the French would like to take the island away and pack into their own pocket. However the English were aware of that as well, and fortified the island heavily, packing heavy punches into the defenses of the island in order to disabuse the French of that very notion, which is why in history, this Battle of Jersey was the only major attempt by the French to invade the island.

The FDC commemorating the bicentennial victory of the Jersey troops against the French invaders 200 years ago. The stamps are taken from a partial copy from John Singleton Copley's oil painting, The Death of Major Peirson.

Travel through Philately - Marina Bay Skyline

Stepping on the soil of Singapore, the trio of vertical pillars of Marina Bay Sands would be a sight to seek out for. The photogenic hotel cum shopping mall cum casino was thus named because of the bay it sat on, a piece of land that did not exist prior to the 1970s. While the famous building seek the most attention, it did not dominate the skyline alone. This recent issue of FDC featured three other buildings which shared the same fame with Marina Bay Sands, and which all are in the vicinity of the bay.

The FDC issued in May showed 4 featured buildings of Marina Bay, each one of them dominating one of the stamps.

Travel through Philately - Chen Wen Hsi

Sometimes you do learn from philatelic collections. I do not know how to appreciate art the way the experts do, judging a work with abstract lines and unseen patterns, all hidden behind patchworks of color, to be a work of art. And if left along that line of thought, I may have missed one of the great artists of Singapore - Chen Wen Hsi (陈文希). An FDC I purchased introduced me to this master of the arts, commemorating the reception of a posthumous Meritorious Service Medal by the deceased master. 

A 1993 FDC commemorating the award of Meritorious Service Award to Chen Wen Hsi posthumously.

Singapore Food Blog - Mini Snowskin Mooncakes of Park Palace

Location: City Hall, Central Business District (CBD), Singapore

Mooncakes - what started originally as a way to defeat the Mongols by the Chinese evolved into the colorful and flavorful varieties we now see in the market. The traditional conservatives would choose the lotus paste mooncake with their distinctive baked brown skin, but snowskins had been our favorite for a long while. Those attractive colorful skins attracted our attentions, a lure to the younger generations.

With Park Palace promoting their snowskin mooncakes in our company near the end of the Mooncake Festival, we bought a box of 8 assorted mini snowskins, allowing us to mix and match between the 4 flavors they were offering. This article may come late past the festival, but for those who missed the mooncakes that they had devoured, here are some photos to rekindle your passion and appetite while waiting for the festival to arrive next year.

A box of 8 assorted mini snowskin mooncakes (SGD50.00) with 4 flavor variants, allowing customers to mix and match between the flavors. The empty spot there was due to a greedy and hungry photographer...

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Final - A Final Look at the Lobby

Location: Batu Ferringhi, Penang isle, Malaysia

Note: This article was written base on experience of staying in Lone Pine Hotel's Deluxe room in January 2013. Experience may differ with other rooms of the same hotel.

Experience of my stay in Lone Pine Hotel can be accessed through the list below.

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 1 - A Room for A Night

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 2 - Good Morning Balcony

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 3 - Breakfast @ The Bungalow

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 4 - A Walk on A Manicured Lawn

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 5 - LEPAK and a Hidden Wonder

Our wedding photo session took the whole day, extending into the night for shots after dark. By the time we got to our room at the end of the day, we were too exhausted to explore the hotel further, choosing to surrender ourselves to a rejuvenating night of sleep. 

Please clean up the room, but leave my heart intact on the bed...

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 5 - LEPAK and a Hidden Wonder

Location: Batu Ferringhi, Penang isle, Malaysia

Note: This article was written base on experience of staying in Lone Pine Hotel's Deluxe room in January 2013. Experience may differ with other rooms of the same hotel.

Experience of my stay in Lone Pine Hotel can be accessed through the list below.

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 1 - A Room for A Night

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 2 - Good Morning Balcony

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 3 - Breakfast @ The Bungalow

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 4 - A Walk on A Manicured Lawn

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Final - A Final Look at the Lobby

Wandering around the building of Lone Pine Hotel, we explored the surroundings like kid explorers hunting for treasures. And a treasure did we found. Hidden between the block housing our room and the one facing the beach was a lobby converted into a game and recreation room with the word “lepak corner” describing the place. The name itself employed an apt local term to describe the recreation area as “lepak” meant “to loiter” in Malay, educating and endearing foreigners with our national language.

"Lepak Corner", essentially a place for loitering.

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 4 - A Walk on A Manicured Lawn

Location: Batu Ferringhi, Penang isle, Malaysia

Note: This article was written base on experience of staying in Lone Pine Hotel's Deluxe room in January 2013. Experience may differ with other rooms of the same hotel.

Experience of my stay in Lone Pine Hotel can be accessed through the list below.

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 1 - A Room for A Night

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 2 - Good Morning Balcony

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 3 - Breakfast @ The Bungalow

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Part 5 - LEPAK and a Hidden Wonder

A Wedding Photo in Lone Pine Final - A Final Look at the Lobby

After a stuffed breakfast in The Bungalow as was shared in my last article, a walk around the hotel proper would be highly recommended, both to explore the grounds as well as to relief a full tummy. After all, a brisk walk under the trees and on the manicured lawn would be an excellent way to implement the tropical flavor of Penang isle and Lone Pine Hotel.

The verdant of the lawn and the turquoise from the pool complemented each other, one offering a flavor of the warm tropics, the other hinting of cool soothing sensation. Choices of beach chairs allowed patrons to choose the way they would like to enjoy their morning.