Penang

Occupy Lebuh Pantai (Occupy Beach Street) is a fun street fair for families that happens every Sunday.   It is a street fair filled with games, arts and crafts, introductions of different cultural practices, cooking demonstrations and many other fun things to do. Fancy for a cleaver massage?

Since George Town was declared as one of the world's heritage sites, cycling has became a popular activity on the island. Bikes can be rent easily and more and more tourists can be seen cycling around the island.

This is just one of the many wall arts  scattered around George Town. This was done by a local cartoonist Reggie Lee.

One of the many popular childhood memories. "Fighting Fish". They are kept in individual glass jar because they fight if put together, thus the name. There are many varieties out there and each variety is unique and beautiful. Some called it Siamese Fighting Fish and some are referred as the Japanese Fighting Fish, but they are also known as Betta Fish.

Ah, and food, glorious Penang food. Asam Laksa - noodle with tamarind fish soup. Even Anthony Bourdain loves it.

Fried oysters with eggs. Sweet and succulent oysters, but not the type that is commonly eaten raw.

One of the popular cafes in town that serves foam art coffee. Coffee not so great but the foam art is cute! 

Bali

We decided to end year 2013 with a trip to Bali. Since we've been to Bali many times, we decided to go easy on this trip. We spent our days leisurely in the hotel, swimming in the ocean, napping, eating, taking walks and biking along the beach. We had a good deal on the hotel, we booked many months ahead of time and managed to get an upgrade! It was a really nice suite with a beautiful view!

 

Stunning view from the balcony every morning.

 

The pleasure of eating hard boiled egg with some sambal (chili paste) over steamed rice for breakfast! *heaven*

And of course non stop eating. One of our favorites is the Rijsttafel, we ordered it whenever we can because we really liked the multiple dishes that came with the order. It's all about sampling as many things as we can while we can.

One of a must try when one is in Bali is their duck dishes. Roasted, deep fried, baked, pulled, etc.  There was a restaurant that was famous for its duck right next to our hotel, after much contemplation we decided to try (also because they had options such as fish and vegetarian dishes). Not being a big fan of eating duck meat, I must say it was pretty yummy. Meat was lean, tender, well fried and juicy. Not fat at all. They also served one of the best avocado smoothie we've had throughout the entire trip!

We even checked out the local fruit market, the mango - Harum Manis (Fragrant and Sweet) is a must try. So sweet and succulent. Passion fruit, dragon fruit, mangosteen, snake fruit (because its skin looks like snake's skin) and many more.

It was really nice to bike along the beach in the mornings. 

Or just hanging out at the beach, reading, napping or swimming in the ocean.

 

On the days that we were out, we visited temples, and nearby towns. Goa Gajah a.k.a. Elephant Cave is one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites.

 

Mount Batur, and active volcano on the island.

Tanah Lot, one of the famous shrine in Bali for worshipping sea gods. During high tide seasons, the pathway towards the shrine will be flooded making it looking like it's situated on a small island surrounded by vicious waves.

Bali o Bali how we love thee. My family's happy memories are filled with you. Hopefully we will revisit this place again and again in the future.