MSS 2011 Day 2: Fun under the Sun @ Smiley Beach Golden Palm Tree Iconic Resort & Spa

For some reason, the beach at Golden Palm Tree Resort is known as Smiley Beach. The first thing I asked myself was why is it called the Smiley Beach?

Perhaps, there are a lot of laughter and fun to be had there and hence the name or it could be the tire tracks left by trucks that forms smiling patterns on the sandy beach.

Whatever it may be, I know that there were definitely a lot of excitement that day. To even make the day even better, Golden Palm Tree was gracious enough to allow us to try out all the activities at the beach for one hour. Awesome!!

Pamela opted for wind surfing while some the other bloggers went kayaking and sailing.

It was a great deal of enjoyment as the bloggers tried to paddle their way into the sea with the waves hitting back at them.

Andi even got cheeky by standing on the kayak and ended up soaking in the water as he couldn’t maintain his balance. His antics certainly got the rest of us laughing.

Here are some of the other candid pictures taken…

The excitement didn’t stop thereas a group of bloggers got down and dirty on the sand by playing beach volley ball.

There were certainly a lot of interactions among the bloggers as they worked hand in hand to gain points for their team.

But in the end, it is not so much on which who actually won but rather the fun that everyone had in enjoying the game.

After getting ourselves soaked under the sun (not to mentioned getting wet in the sea), it was time to take a well deserved rest.

For those people who love water activities, there are certainly a lot of varieties at Golden Palm Resort.

For your information, Smiley Beach offers sailing, kayaking, stand up paddle, windsurfing, cart sailing, speed sail, bocce ball, beach football, beach volleyball, sepak takraw, stretching, ping pong and darts.

The beach is open from 9:30 a.m. till 6:00 p.m.

Golden Palm Tree Resort & Spa Sdn. Bhd.
No. 67, Jalan Pantai Bagan Lalang
Kg. Bagan Lalang
43950 Sungai Pelek
Selangor Darul Ehsan

Tel: +603 3182 3600
Fax: +603 3182 3700

website: www.goldenpalmtree.com

email: info@goldenpalmtree.com

MSS 2011 Day 2: A View of Paradise @ Bila Bila Restaurant

I woke up early as I wanted to catch the sunrise which is reputedly a very beautiful sight at Golden Palm Tree. When I was walking along the wooden plank at around 6:30 a.m., I spotted a location just in front of the Bila Bila restaurant entrance where I could see the sun rise. It was indeed a beautiful sight to marvel as nature beauty has no boundaries. No regrets being an early bird for sunrise watching!

By 7:00 a.m. we proceeded for breakfast at Bila Bila restaurant. The restaurant was beautiful with a nice soft ambient light falling through the circular window roof illuminating the entire area. Located at the Club House, Bila Bila is a buffet restaurant which serves an extensive variety of food, both local and international cuisines to the hotel guests.

Food was obviously very good. I had the cereal for a change and it was definitely a good way to start off the morning with a lighter meal. Notice that the cereals are different from those that you normally seen elsewhere? These are definitely premium cereals available only at Golden Palm Tree Resort.

They also serve Sunglo yogurt which comes in a choice of mixed berry, blueberry, peach, mango and etc. The yogurt is definitely tasty and full of fruity goodness. The sweetness level was just nice.

Beside that, I also tried their baked beans with beef bacon and baked tomatoes. The bacon were thick and juicy as what I expect from a 5 star resort.

It was also a good thing that we got the opportunity to sit right in front of the infinity pool while having our breakfast. Trust me, the experience was unforgettable. With the splendid view of the sea on a clear blue morning and gentle sea breeze blowing onto our face, what can be a better way to wake up to a morning than this?

Suffice to say, it is an experience dining at Bila Bila Restaurant. I took the opportunity to walk around the area and took pictures of the surroundings and food.

Bila Bila (Opens Daily)

Breakfast 6:30 a.m. till 10:30 a.m.
Snack 11:a.m. till 12:00 p.m.
Lunch 12:00 p.m. till 2:30 p.m.
Snack 3:00 p.m. till 5:30 p.m.
Dinner 6:30 p.m. till 10:30 p.m.
Ala Carte 11:00 a.m. till 11:00 p.m.

Golden Palm Tree Resort & Spa Sdn. Bhd.
No. 67, Jalan Pantai Bagan Lalang
Kg. Bagan Lalang
43950 Sungai Pelek
Selangor Darul Ehsan

Tel: +603 3182 3600
Fax: +603 3182 3700

website: www.goldenpalmtree.com

email: info@goldenpalmtree.com

MSS 2011 Day 1: The Tropical Sweetness of Golden Palm Tree Iconic Resort & Spa

Right after the press conference, we were all hyped up as we make our way to Golden Palm Tree Iconic Resort & Spa. Golden Palm Tree is one of the most expensive luxury resort in Malaysia and we were truly lucky to be able to stay there for for free! We were told that bloggers will be staying at the Canary Palm Villas which costs RM 1,620 per night! To find out more about the prices of the rooms, click here.

When we arrived, we were ushered to Sepoi Sepoi Cafe which is a restaurant located near to the main entrance of the resort. Food were definitely tasty though the price was slightly on the higher side. However, the portion was really huge and is worth every Ringgit paid.

Sepoi Sepoi Cafe is opened from 10:00 a.m. till 10:30 p.m. (Mon – Fri) and 9:00 a.m. till 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays.

After the dinner, all the bloggers were briefed on the room arrangements and the itinerary for the next day.

Speaking about the room, it was certainly a pleasant surprise. From the unique architectural Maldives inspired design right down to the room decoration, everything exudes the tropical charm of living besides a beautiful beach.

We stayed in the Canary Palm Villa which boasts 82 sqm of floor space raised on stilts.

The room was huge and divided into three sections. The center area is the common area where there is a LCD TV for movies, music on demand and information on Golden Palm Tree Resort mounted onto the side of the wall.

There are two huge rooms besides the common area with built in cabinets, bathrooms and a ceiling fan.

The bed was very comfortable with to sleep on. They even provide extra pillows for people who love to hug them to sleep.

For photographers like me, it was a good thing that they had a long wooden table where I could place my camera gears rather than putting it on the floor. In fact, the table was long enough for me to use my laptop as well since there are two plug points conveniently located underneath the tables.

The Internet connection was really fast but there was a catch. Since there was no WiFi coverage in my room, I had to plug the network cable into my laptop to surf the Internet. Ah… small price to pay for speedy connection!

It is interesting to note that Golden Palm Tree Resort won the Best Interior Design Award for its Ivory Palm Villas and Best Property Award for its Water Villas under the Asia Pacific Property Awards in the year 2008.

Here’s a comprehensive list of amenities available at the villa:-

• Flat Screen TV
• Multiple Satellite Channels
• Mini Bar
• 24 hour in room dining
• Electronic Safe
• Hair Dryer
• Ceiling Fan
• Air Conditioning
• Day Bed
• Bathroom Amenities
• Coffee and Tea making facilities
• IDD Telephone and voice mail
• High speed broadban Internet (wired in Villas & WiFi in public areas)
• “Select TV” Video-on-Demand Library
• Working Desk
• Private sea view balconies with chairs and table

Check in time: 3:00 p.m.

Check out time: 12:00 p.m.

Golden Palm Tree Resort & Spa Sdn. Bhd.
No. 67, Jalan Pantai Bagan Lalang
Kg. Bagan Lalang
43950 Sungai Pelek
Selangor Darul Ehsan

Tel: +603 3182 3600
Fax: +603 3182 3700

website: www.goldenpalmtree.com

email: info@goldenpalmtree.com

MSS 2011 Day 1: The Launch of My Selangor Story 2011 @ The Mix

On the 28^th September 2011, I participated in a five days trip called the My Selangor Story 2011 or MSS 2011 for short. MSS 2011 is a tourism blogging project created and organized by Horizon Communications to promote the many places of interest in Selangor state through social media. Hence, a handful of local and international bloggers were selected by the organizer to join the tour and more importantly to blog and promote the event throughout the entire five days trip.

The trip kick started at Holiday Inn Kuala Lumpur Glenmarie where bloggers, partners and sponsors congregated for a press conference at The Mix.

The press conference started at around 4:30 p.m. when Amelia Tan who represented Horizon Communications gave a short welcoming speech.

This was followed with a rousing round of applause for YB Elizabeth Wong (EXCO for Tourism, Environment & Consumer Affairs) who addresses the fellow bloggers and elaborated on the objectives behind MSS 2011 which is to promote Selangor’s cultural diversity and rich tourism resource to travelers around the world.

Ms. Dian Azura Muhammad Ghiathuddin was also invited to the floor to share her experience on winning the past MSS 2010.

Here are some of the candid pictures taken during and after the press conference.

And here are some of the pictures of all the bloggers who were qualified for the MSS 2011. Congratulations to all of you!

On this note, I would like to personally thank our sponsors and partners for supporting MSS 2011.

Organizer: Horizon Communication

Official Tourism Board: Tourism Selangor

Official Airlines: Firefly

Official Hotel: Holiday Inn Kuala Lumpur Glenmarie

Official Resort & Spa: Golden Palm Tree

Official Resort: Resort World Genting

Official Telco: The Cube

Official Restaurant: The Mix

Official Camera: Pentax

FOOD Magazine

Two of my articles written about Fei Fei Crab and Big Bowl Cafe were featured in FOOD Magazine September 2011 edition. You can read it online at http://issuu.com/foodmsia/docs/foodmag03

Bloggers and foodies win RM12,000 cash and other prizes

The Star Metro

Thursday September 8, 2011

THE WINNERS of the inaugural Selangorlicious! Foodster Blogging Competition went home with a smile as their entries won them cash and other prizes.

Hari Raya is sweeter this year for full-time blogger Eddie Azman Samsuddin, 42, who goes by the identity ‘Cakap Niaga’ as he was crowned the Foodster of Selangor. The first prize winning entry Ayam Kampung Goreng dan Gulai was mouth-wateringly descriptive.

“Honestly, the winning blog entry wasn’t my effort alone. Cakap Niaga is a team effort and I’ve won this with my co-partner, Otai with the help of a few others,” said Eddie.

When asked, the blogger admitted that they never expected to win, much less winning the first prize.

“The winnings will be shared with my partner and I intend to buy a good camera to replace my old but trusty RM100 camera,” he said with happy laugh. Cakap Niaga takes home RM5,000 in cash and two holiday packages at the Sepang Gold Coast Resort and Hotel Grand Dorsett Subang.

The tantalising food images taken by Nigel Low won him the prize for best photography.

The corporate trainer indulged in his passion for photography for about five years now with 70% of the subject matter focused on food.

“I love food. My friends know I go out to find the best food out there and they also want to know where I go. So I write and put up the photographs in my personal blog,” he said.

Low, who owns one camera with three lenses, won RM1,000 and a digital SLR camera.

Other food on the Selangor menu that made the cut included Pantai Seafood, Mee Udang Nakhoda and Nasi Ambeng.

“Food plays a significant role in our lives, especially us Malaysians. Naturally, we engage bloggers to ‘hunt’ for great eateries and help to spread the word around in a relatively short period of time,” said Tourism Selangor general manager Noorul Ashikin Md Din.

Noorul added that the Selangorlicious portal will be a source of valuable information to local and foreign tourists on the best eating places in Selangor and the competition was the perfect platform to promote Selangor’s identity as a food haven.

The competition, which ran throughout May 2011, was mooted by Tourism Selangor and Storm Studio in an effort to identify the best makan places in the state. It was also a great way to get visitors to check out the delectable food places and generally, get to know Selangor better.

The Selangorlicious! Campaign did not end with the prize giving ceremony. A host of activities have been planned until June 2012, which is designated as the official food month for Selangor.

The public can participate in the planned weekly and monthly mini contests that will run soon. In fact, a Mandarin Foodster Blogging Competition will be announced this month. There will also be regular food trips for bloggers to try out new eateries all over Selangor.

Entries will be compiled into a quarterly newsletter and the best ones will be added into an annual directory.

Both the newsletter and annual directory will be distributed in the Klang Valley, Selangor, Penang and at Tourism Selangor foreign missions.

Restaurants, malls, stalls and eateries in Selangor are encouraged to send their promotion items to be disseminated via the Selangorlicious! portal as well as in the Tourism Selangor and Selangor Shines websites, Facebook fan pages and Twitter.

Original article: Link

‘Selangorlicious’ foodsters crowned!

By KomunitiKini on 29 Aug, 2011

Winners of the inaugural Selangorlicious! Foodster Blogging Competition went home with a smile as their entries won them cash and other prizes.

Hari Raya is sweeter this year for full time blogger Eddie Azman Samsuddin, 42, who goes by the identity ‘Cakap Niaga’ as he was crowned the ‘Foodster of Selangor’. The first prize winning entry ‘Ayam Kampung Goreng dan Gulai’ was mouth-wateringly descriptive.

Top winners (from left) – Hungry Female, Eddie, Rahman Zawawi and Nigel Low

“Honestly, the winning blog entry isn’t my effort alone. Cakap Niaga is a team effort and I’ve won this with my co-partner, Otai with the help of a few others,” said Eddie.

When asked, the blogger admitted that they never expected to win, much less winning the first prize. “The winnings will be shared with my partner and I  intend to buy a good camera to replace my old and trusty RM100 camera,” said Eddie with a happy laugh. Cakap Niaga takes home RM5,000 in cash and two holiday packages at the Sepang Gold Coast Resort and Hotel Grand Dorsett Subang.

Bloggers urged to promote Selangor food

(From left) Winners of the Selangorlicious! Foodster Blogging competition — Hungry Female, Eddie, Rahman Zawawi and Nigel Low.

SUBANG JAYA:Winners of the inaugural Selangorlicious! Foodster Blogging competition went home with cash and other prizes recently.

Full-time blogger Eddie Azman Samsuddin, 42, who goes by the moniker Cakap Niaga was crowned the “Foodster of Selangor” with his entry Ayam Kampung Goreng dan Gulai.

“The winning blog entry is a team effort, with the help of my co-partner, Otai, and a few others,” said Eddie.
“The winnings will be shared with my partner. I will be buying a good camera to replace my old RM100 camera.”

Cakap Niaga takes home RM5,000 and holiday packages at the Sepang Gold Coast Resort and Hotel Grand Dorsett Subang.

Tempting food images taken by Nigel Low won him the best photography prize.
The corporate trainer had been taking photographs of food for five years.

“I love food. My friends know it’s my quest to find the best food. They often ask me where to find the best food, so I blog about these outlets.”

Low won RM1,000 and a digital SLR camera.
Other entries which made the cut included Pantai Seafood, Mee Udang Nakhoda and Nasi Ambeng.

The competition, which ran throughout May, was mooted by Tourism Selangor and Storm Studio to identify the best eating places in Selangor.

Tourism Selangor general manager Noorul Ashikin Md Din said the Selangorlicious portal is a source of valuable information on where to find the best eating places in the state and the competition was the perfect platform to promote Selangor as a food haven.

The campaign does not end with the prize-giving ceremony. A host of activities have been planned until June next year. It has been designated the state’s food month.

The public can participate in the weekly and monthly contests.

A Chinese-version of the Foodster Blogging competition will be announced this month.

There will be trips for bloggers to eat at new food outlets.

Entries to the Selangorlicious! competition will be compiled and featured in a quarterly newsletter and some will be added into an annual directory.

The newsletter and directory will be distributed in the Klang Valley, Selangor, Penang and at Tourism Selangor offices overseas.

Restaurants, malls, stalls and eateries are encouraged to send their promotional items to the Selangorlicious! portal, the Tourism Selangor and Selangor Shines websites, Facebook and Twitter.

Read more: Bloggers urged to promote Selangor food

Other bloggers who wrote about the event.

Link 1

Link 2

My Selangor Story 2011

When I found out that I was selected as one of the thirty international bloggers participating in a five days tourism blogging for My Selangor Story 2011, I was really excited. After all, I love to travel and this campaign will open up my eyes to a whole new horizon to learn about the many places of interest in Selangor.

 

I will be able to meet many new faces along the journey. Hopefully, I will be able to get some good pictures during the trip as I love travel photography. You can see some of my past travel pictures by clicking here.

So watch out for this space as I embark on the five days journey from 28th September till 2nd October 2011. The journey is about to begin…

My journey so far…

It has been a good one half year since I started this blog. It also marks the same time frame that I purchased my Nikon SLR camera.

Some of you may not know that I have an older blog which is now defunct as it was a mishmash of the earlier pictures I took with my first Sony Alpha 200 camera plus a lot of writings about my personal life.

Back then, I had no idea why I bought that camera other than the fact that I wanted to take better food pictures which my camera phone wasn’t able to. I was a trigger happy photographer back then.

Looking back at my photographic journey, I realized how much I have evolved. Instead of merely making snapshots of my surroundings, I have learned what Joe McNally termed as photographer with a purpose.

A photo has to be visually arresting enough to tell a story about the subject. Each picture should eloquently speaks about a theme or a story about the people, the place, the culture in pure visual language.

Admittedly, my ability to express that visual language is still in its infancy stage. I know that to express that language, that vision, I will need to constantly move forward, to learn how to communicate the story as clearly as possible with compelling photography.

This is where I believe MySelangor Story 2011 will be able to provide me with a good platform to chase after that vision. This tourism blogging trip will be an excellent opportunity for me to visually capture the people, places and culture in an all-expense-paid by Selangor Tourism. I hope that I will be one of the lucky participants to capture the many pictures that will inform the mind and move the heart of the people.

This is definitely a trip worth taking. Wish me luck!