As this round PiggyBeng will be on biz trip while we are in KL, I have decided to do some vacuuming one of the day when we are not going out as there are lots of crumbs left on the seats and by Ms G. There are some baby roaches roaming around that really freaked me out! I wonder if there are are disposable car floor mats available here so I can get some and line the floor around the rear seats so I don’t have to do any vacuuming next time.

Therefore, we just stayed within Traders and KLCC area. On the day before we left, this very busy and hot mama came together with her princesses to visit us. Both our younger girls are the same age, only difference by a few months and they were so cute when they first met that day…

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The last time they met up with each other was some 6 months ago so I guessed they grew apart after such a long time and thus being so distant! Glennedine was not that shy but T2 was… she was trying to hide and kept clinging on to her mommy. She is just so cute! Anyhow, they warmed up after a while and became buddies soon after… especially the 2 older kids!

Last shot before they have to say good bye to their little friends…

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P/s: what a co-incidence that both older kids are in white and younger kids in pink!!!!

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If we have one of those steiner binoculars, then we can even see Alcatraz too from the viewing points around the bridge. No, we did not take the ferry ride to Alcatraz as we were in a rush to cover most of San Francisco in a day.

We spent most of the time around Fisherman Wharf and the city so by the time we were done it was almost 8pm and when we returned to the hotel it was almost 9.30pm! That was because we were staying in Santa Clara and the drive took us almost an hour to reach home.

As we are travelling with 2 kids this time, PiggyBeng decided to pay for additional insurance as well. With that we are insured should there any break downs along the way since we are driving long distance on most occasions. At that time we are not aware of any car repairing workshops since we are not locals. It will be extremely troublesome too if our car break down especially when we are in secluded areas.

So, it will be good that you find out about services available such as those offered by some major auto repair sites when planning for your trips. You should check out Repairpal.com as they offered comprehensive services.

Guess what? We decided to stay in Traders again since it is the most strategic hotel around. It is near to KLCC, Pavilion and also all the public transport. Yeah, we try not to move our car out from the parking so we’ll be using public transport.

That means I’ll be loitering around KLCC the next few days! Should I go shopping again??? >.< I’ve bought almost everything for both kids except surfing clothes since they can’t swim yet!

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This time, we got lucky as we got upgraded to the Traders Club City View room which was on the 27th floor. The furnishing is more or less the same as the one we stayed previously though except for some additional gadgets in the bathrooms.

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Just love how comprehensive their toiletries are…

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The last time we were there, Baby G was still very much a non-walking baby so she was oblivious to her surroundings. However, this round she is older and knew that she can have so much fun!

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Of course we can’t leave Darrius out…

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And here is the view like from our window…

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No view of the twin towers though but who cares???

The highlight of our stay is of course having fun at the roof top pool @ the Sky Bar located on the 33rd floor. This is also Baby G’s first time playing in the jacuzzi…

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She was hesitant in the beginning but quickly warmed up and enjoyed tremendously playing in the water. We were lucky again as there were no other hotel guests using the jacuzzi.

After spending about an hour in the pool, we went back to our room to clean up and discovered that the housekeeping staff had brought the playpen into our room…

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We were unsure where to eat as it started to drizzle so we took the buggy ride to KLCC. Almost all the places we wanted to dine at were crowded so we settled ourselves at the food court. While taking a look around, I discovered a new stall selling this yummy set rice…

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This plate cost me around RM10.90 (I think) and it comes with a cup of soft drink. For KL’s standard (KLCC area) this is considered as quite reasonable. PiggyBeng can’t find the stall so he ended up buying from another which was more expensive and with less item @_@

PiggyBeng left very early the next morning to meet his colleague so he did not go for the breakfast. Therefore, I brought the kids with me and we had a ‘blast’ there. In the afternoon met up with some mommies at KLCC for a quick lunch. On that day I received news that Japan was hit by the biggest earthquake and tsunami…

Did not snap any photos that day except when we visited the pool for a 2nd time…

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On the following morning, it was a Saturday and PiggyBeng went to the breakfast with us. He was so happy to find some pure fruit juices being served…

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So far, I still find the Gobo Chit Chat has one of the best breakfast among the hotels I’ve stayed so far…

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Another item that caught PiggyBeng’s eyes was the coffee making machine located at the entrance…

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He called it the Ultimate Coffee Experience.  Hotel guests can choose from the rack the types of coffee that they fancy and put it into the machine. It took less than 2 minutes and you’ll have a cuppa that filled with distinct coffee aroma. I did not even notice this facility before since I am not a coffee enthusiast. Normally hotel guests are given a flask of regular coffee/tea when they are being seated.

We checked out shortly after breakfast and moved to my parents’ place for another night. We drove back to Penang on Sunday morning. This round we did not dine in Saisaki again since my last experience I got the worst diarrhea in my entire life.

Initially I read from the news that the part of Gurney was not affected but when we reached Gurney Plaza, I was dismay that they too switched off their pipes and only opened 1 toilet on each floor. Well, no choice so we walked on…

It was school holiday still and when we arrived it was almost lunch time. As usual, I really know where to go for lunch in Gurney though they have so many food outlets. I have to find places which are suitable for the kids and decided to check out the one and only theme cafe; The Clinic Cafe on the 4th floor which was previously occupied by the Food Loaf.

When we entered we were greeted by some of the staff whom brought us to our seats which I have chosen to sit at where were once sat during our visit to Food Loaf. After settling down, it was photo time and the first shot of the place is their ‘counter’ which they named it as surgery room… which is where the drinks and food were prepared…

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And here is the shot for the main counter and some of their staff at work…

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Not all are wearing those hospital scrubs. The guy who took our order wore a T-Shirt only.

While waiting for the waiter to come take our orders, I caught Glennedine trying to ‘flirt’ with the people on the next table! *o*

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There were not much varieties as most are repeated stuff like what and what on fried rice/spaghetti. I would say the pricing is a little on the high side for the type of food but guess they have to cover the rental since that place is huge!!! And the waiter we had… aiyo! I suspected that he is very new coz he was really bad with his service! He don’t know much about the menu and I have to repeat to him so many times beside him going back and forth the counter to find out! *duh!*

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They were having some lunch specials so I decided to order from there instead since it came with a drink. Had their Prawns Fried Rice which tasted quite ok. The prawns were not fresh though -_- The presentation was ok too which goes well with the theme. So, my fried rice came in the kidney dish!

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And knowing Darrius can’t finish that much food if I order another plate of rice or spaghetti for him, I asked if he would like to have some sandwiches instead? Since we were still in between their breakfast and lunch menu, I ordered from their breakfast set promo menu.

And here is his Ham & Cheese Sandwiches…

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Darrius and his sandwiches and a glass of frizzy drink which was actually Sunquick mixed with soda water. Don’t taste that nice but they have quite a nice name for it though!!!!

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Overall, I quite like the cleanliness of the place. I would say the ambiance was ok too just that they have too many staff walking about or standing there watching you! Food were quite slow to come even though not many customers. And the drinks are so over-priced!

This was not our only time there so will blog about the other visit soon!

On Darrius’s actual birthday after we had breakfast (the famous beef noodles in Taman Tayton) and dropped PiggyBeng at the KLIA Express station, we adjourned to Kidz Sport at Bangsar Village Shopping to celebrate his day with his cousin, Adrian. At the same time I wanted to check out Marmalade Cafe after hearing so much about it from fellow blogging mommies. So, after checking the kids in to Kidz Sport, together with my parents and my brother, off we went to Marmalade.

It was not that crowded when we arrived so we got the bench seat on the platform area. While everyone was checking out the menu, little Ms Samseng do not want to lose out too so kau-fu gotta entertain her…

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I would say the ambiance for the place was quite pleasant… bright and cheery since it was situated at the corner of the building with glass windows around. I was told that there is a children play area but silly me has forgot to check out that place since the kids were not around except Baby G. Anyway, I managed to see the kid’s area on another occasion which I will blog about later.

Since we just had breakfast not too long ago, my dad said he don’t want to have anything which is too heavy so he decided to order from the bakery. He had their bread pudding cake which came with some cream and a scoop of ice-cream. According to dad it tasted quite good.

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Next it was what my mom ordered. For the very first time she had beef lasagna! She was never a beef eater previously but turning into one lately. Must be my dad been telling her that she has missed a lot of great food if she do not want to eat beef!

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The lasagna tasted quite ok too though it was pretty rich with all those cheeses and cream! After all, we had late breakfast that morning! Mom can’t finish on her own so dad helped her (that was why dad did not order any main dish as he knew mom can’t finish her food!)

Next was what I ordered…

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It was some Masala chicken with fried brown rice. Ok, I must say that the fried brown rice tasted a little weird… kinda sticky. However, the Masala chicken tasted quite ok too. It came with a small jar of gravy, some vege and a piece of papadum.

My brother only had a cup of tea as he had brunch just before he joined us.

And here is Ms Samseng with her signature pose…

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Most of the main dishes are less than RM20 so I would say they are quite affordable since the cafe is nestled in a so-called high end shopping mall. The pricey items are their drinks which cost at least RM8/glass (juices) except soft drinks. It is a nice place for catch-up sessions with friends with kids since they also have Kid’s Menu which I did not get to see on that day but ordered from on another day.

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And to add on to the beauty, this year the Kwan Yin’s pagoda which is almost near its completion steal the show…

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The project took more than 8 years and hopefully they can complete soon. If you noticed, there are still scaffolding at one of the sides.

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They have quite a good varieties but due to the fact that I wanted certain ingredients in my bowl, I was left with only limited choice and I ended up ordering their smoked black pepper chicken noodles with their original sauce.

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Darrius had their smoked original drumstick noodles since he has to share it with Glennedine. Like what listed in their menu, the noodles are indeed very springy which I really like but taste wise just so-so. Their pricing is considered reasonable. I would like to try their curry noodles if I visit them again.

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And here is Glennedine looking happily while waiting for our food to be served…

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