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Cafe Ruba, Gisborne

On a sunny Sunday morning we went out in search of breakfast in Gisborne, struggling to find somewhere open!  We found Cafe Ruba tucked at the end of the street, hiding behind a lovely tree which provides lovely protection from the sun.

Fruity breakfast

Muesli and fruit brekkie

With a delicate tummy from being ill the night before, I was looking for something fresh to eat.  I chose the Muesli with fruit and fruit toast, which turned out to be toasted ciabatta with jam.  The muesli had large bran flakes and lovely dried fruit through it, with a healthy topping of beautiful fresh strawberries, plum and banana on top, with a side of yoghurt – perfect.

The Kiwi went for the cooked breakfast and got a decent plate of food with the usual suspects.  All washed down with a good coffee, seated outside in the shade of the lovely tree this was a great start to our day!

Cafe Ruba, 14 Childers Street, Gisborne

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Fettuccine Brothers, Gisborne

After a long drive from Wellington and two recommendations received from locals, without question we headed for the Fettuccine Brothers restaurant in Peel Street. With a bar on one side and restaurant on the other, at 9.30pm we got a table easily, although with it being the holiday weekend perhaps it may have been more quiet than usual Saturday nights.

Lamb RumpStaff were efficient and the room pleasant.  The Kiwi ordered the Agnello Codrione which is Rosemary marinated Lamb rump with braised cabbage & minted peas, red wine sauce and roasted pumpkin cannelloni ($32).  The Lamb was cooked well and tasted great, the veg was nice although there was confusion on the cannelloni front as the Kiwi thought it was kumara, regardless of that it wasn’t cannelloni as my Nonna made it!

I ordered the Orrechiette Con Manzo, pasta with braised beef in a Chianti gravy with mushrooms & caramelised onions ($26).  It was a good plate of food, although the pasta was overcooked – it seems pasta al dente in restaurants goes in the ‘too hard’ basket – with a nice, rich, beefy sauce but the more I ate the more I got an overwhelming taste of saltiness.

Pasta with beef The dish had a generous shaving of Parmigiano over it – despite my Italian heritage I can’t eat parmigiano – and whilst it may be traditional to have the cheese over pasta, I think it wise to state it will be in the dish so we can say hold the parmesan, if we wish.  Aside from my taste, I wasn’t convinced it really would add to this rich beefy dish anyway.  Parmesan lovers may wish to disagree!

We skipped dessert, opting to finish off the meal with Limoncello – a very light, translucent drink arrived, in contrast to the lemony yellow I am used to, but it was delicious.

I can’t say for sure whether this is connected or not, but shortly after returning home from this meal I was violently sick.  Saltiness.  The Kiwi was fine.

Fettuccine Brothers, 12 Peel Street, Gisborne, New Zealand

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Caffe L’affare, Wellington

Friends were visiting from Auckland and they recalled going to Caffe L’affare on a visit to Wellington 15 years ago, so we took them back there for Sunday brunch.

Bustling as always, we just managed to get a table for the four of us without waiting for a table.  We just had to wait for our coffees.  A 20 minute wait as we contemplated the Menu, ordered and waited for our food thus putting us off ordering a second round of coffee for fear it taking so long to arrive!

The food was worth the wait.  My pancakes hit the spot but in particular the Mince on toast our friend ordered was a hit!  I wouldn’t order such a thing as I always think it sounds so bland but this looked amazing and our friend assured us it tasted fantastic… so next visit to L’affare I will be ordering Mince on toast! Here’s hoping the coffee arrives at the same time.

27 College Street, Wellington

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Smartphoned

I did it.  I caved.  I am now the (proud?) owner of a Smartphone.

Having dismissed the i-phone craze and smartphones with it, the Kiwi and I recently admitted we did need to invest in new mobile phones.  After considerable research we also agreed it was time to step into the brave new world of smartphone technology.

For Apple lovers out there, yes they are well designed, yes it’s even a little sexy and yes, it’s absolutely marketed like a dream and I truly believe that is Apple’s USP.  But I don’t buy into it.  Apple is a wee bit like a religion and I don’t share your faith.  Apple burned their bridges with me years ago thanks to a dodgy i-pod and shocking customer service which saw me throw out my i-pod as it was so useless, turn my back  on Apple and never return to the fold.

So, rejecting i-phones what did we get?  The wonderful Samsung Galaxy SII – vivid, fast, slim.  A few i-phone users have drooled over it, by the way.

Out with the old, in with the new

Out with the old, in with the new

A few frustrating days followed (keeps you young?) as we tried to get used to scrolling with our fingers, texting with either swipe or tapping a screen, making revolutionary discoveries about settings and capabilities and having access to the internet in our pocket! I have been nose to the Gorilla® Glass for the past few months and have emerged a Tweeting-junkie! …hence the lack of blogs 🙁

Yes, I have joined those people with their head down scrolling across the phone glass, flicking through the News apps, checking Twitter, Facebook and ignoring everyone else’s existence on the train into work and that wonderful view of Wellington Harbour as we come down the hill.  At home I watch TV and pick up my phone and check Tweets to see what others are saying, commenting at times on what I am viewing despite the fact I am not really viewing it as I am Tweeting.  My cocktail habit is public knowledge! And with my 8 megapixel camera I am ready to see film stars and snap away, but have yet to see one since the phone purchase, of course!

Everything is now up for photo, comment or relating instantly.  When with friends the phone comes out to search Google or one of the apps relating to the topic of discussion.  Blogging seems so much more effort when I can simply text a thought, observation or image.

A bit of time has passed and I am settling down, regaining control of my life!  Is it good to be this connected, this available, this exposed?  Time will tell.  Interestingly I feel I am less connected to my friends, as I read their emails on my phone and can’t be bothered trying to send a reply on the phone as it will take an age tapping away at the screen, so I feel I am not keeping in touch as meaningfully as usual.  The laptop at home remains off, so skype or Googlechat isn’t logged on, thus cutting family and friends off a bit more.  (Haven’t set up Skype on the phone yet).

I do find it a little creepy, the thought that my phone can easily tell where I am at any time.  So much so, the fabulous GPS remains off! Tweets from people showing where they are freak me out on their behalf!  I read the conditions of apps before installing and a few haven’t been updated as I find their conditions completely invasive of my privacy, so I am not ready to completely yield to this connected world!  Long may this continue.

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Lunch with Orlando Bloom

Welcome to Wellywood, home to Sir Peter Jackson and in turn Weta Workshop and Wingnut Interactive.  This is great for the fair city of Wellington and New Zealand as Sir Peter likes to work from NZ  thus bringing excitement as the stars arrive to work with Sir Pete, currently, on The Hobbit.

Sitting in the iconic Maranui Café in Lyall Bay having lunch with the Kiwi, I noticed a rather handsome man who I recognised instantly. I turned to the Kiwi: “HOBBIT ALERT!  Richard Armitage, aka Lucas from [BBC Show] Spooks [and to be Dwarf Thorin in the Hobbit] is sitting at that table behind me!”
Kiwi casually looks past me…”Hmm, so it is… he looks taller than I thought he would”.
In my head I am thinking “SCHAAA HA he does! Looks more handsome too, despite the beard” 🙂 *Surreptitiously look over my shoulder at regular intervals to check him out whilst trying to avoid him noticing*
A few mins later I notice the waiting staff all getting flustered and I say to the Kiwi “Oh, think the girls have just clocked who he is”.  Kiwi looks past me, turns to me with big eyes and replies “NO, I think they have just noticed Orlando Bloom has just joined Richard for lunch!”
O. M. G!  Turn round and there, not even two tables away is ORLANDO!! Lovely Legolas himself!
Of course, being the cool cat that I am *ahem* I left them to enjoy their lunch in peace, as did the rest of the customers in the Cafe, but sneaked peeks at regular intervals.  Frankly, I think it would have been rude to interrupt their lunch to ask for a photo.  (Have since gone out to buy super dooper smartphone so next time I can sneak a pic with my 8megapixel camera, paparazzi style!)
I was so ridiculously excited, I text friends, I got phonecalls from girlfriends squealing with delight, on Monday I ran around the office telling my tale – but why?  So, I saw some people.  I frequent cafes and see people all the time but it doesn’t cause me to run around telling people. I see good looking people too, again without the need to be so excited.  I don’t know Richard Armitage or Orlando Bloom personally, I didn’t even talk to them.  I don’t even know for sure if they are even nice people – in interviews they seem to be, but I don’t know.  So why is it so thrilling?
I still haven’t figured it out.  But it was! 🙂
Interestingly, my tweet about said encounter got a lot of interest from Richard Armitage fans.  Who knew? He has quite a following of devoted fans. No one asked about Orlando!
By the way, lunch at Maranui was fab as always.  All the sweeter on this visit, though.

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Hawkins Hill Walk, Wellington

The Brooklyn Wind Turbine is a Wellington landmark which sits high atop the city, marking a great panoramic vantage point over the city and it’s harbour and for that reason we have visited frequently to show off Wellington’s geography to visiting family and friends.

Wellington

Wellington

I only recently realised it is also the starting point for a great walk up to Hawkins Hill Radar Station.  The sealed road is private but walkers and cyclists are welcome.  The roughly 4 k walk to the Radar Station (looks like a large, white golf ball) takes you past an Ostrich Farm, a castleated building and then to great views to the South Island.  You can carry on walking for some distance past the Radar Station, although I haven’t yet ventured that far!

across the Strait

Across the Strait

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Berjaya Langkawi Resort, Malaysia

The Berjaya Langkawi Island Resort is an unusual choice for us as we don’t tend to favour resorts, but we considered it a treat.

View to the beach

View from balcony to beach

The Resort is around 25 minutes drive from the Airport so I arranged a transfer, costing 40RM for the two of us (note: whereas the return to the Airport at the end of our stay cost 25RM in a taxi). The resort is tucked away from any village or towns and therefore isolated, which added to it’s charm but also caused us frustration.  The resort is massive but well built so you don’t notice it’s sprawl with chalets built in Malay style, so sympathetic to the surroundings.  When at the beach looking back on the resort, apart from the imposing beach chalets over the water, you would hardly know there is a vast number of chalets up the hillside, which contributes to the Berjaya Langkawi success. Staff were friendly and helpful at all times, always ready with a smile and a “hello”.

jaded room

Superior Chalet

We were told that we had been given a free upgrade of room from our Superior Chalet booking, which was a pleasant surprise but when we got to the room we were both feeling disappointed.  It didn’t meet the mark.  The room was poorly maintained and extremely jaded.  I can cope with jaded as you can’t expect all hotels to be brand spanking new, but if it’s immaculate and well maintained it’s fine.  This wasn’t.  I tried not to let it spoil our weekend, but I was feeling put out as this was our highlight, so I decided to put pen to paper and wrote a note to the Assistant Manager expressing my disappointment.  We then set out to the Night Market.

On our return we found a note under our door from the Assistant Manager’s office, apologising and asking us to allow them to “serve you well for the rest of your staying”.  They are renovating the resort and offered a Rainforest Chalet for us to experience.  When I called the office there seemed to be a bit of confusion then I was told that I was now being offered a Rainforest Studio, so we may wish to check it first before moving.  We were picked up and taken to the Studio to find a flurry of activity with housekeeping staff whisking around the place for us!  Within a few steps we knew we would be VERY happy with this room transfer! Done.

The room was beautiful.  10/10 for customer service.

Beach

Berjaya Beach

The beach is pleasant and there were plenty of umbrellas and sun loungers available, although if you prefer the pool you probably need to be more organised.  The pool areas were nice too.  There are plenty of walks available and you are walking distance from the cable car, which is worth a visit.

Cocktail time!

Long Island Iced Tea

We like to get out and about to see what life is like and eat locally, but instead we were forced to pay international prices at the resort restaurants for Malaysian meals we would pay a fraction for outside the resort.  Had we been there longer hiring a car would have been necessary, in our view.  That said, the cocktails at the Berjaya were reasonable! 🙂

Resort holidaying is not for us but if we were to do it the nature of the Berjaya Resort would be my choice.

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Malacca, Malaysia

A Unesco World Heritage site, Melaka (Malacca) is a lovely but strange old town who regularly remind you of it’s Unesco status whilst giving me the impression of not really being sure what that exactly means for the city.

Riverside walk

Riverside walk

We stayed in the Chinatown area of the city, near the river and some of the main sites Malacca has to offer.  We enjoyed wandering around the streets taking in the beautiful architecture and searching for our next fabulous meal 🙂

Highlights

We loved the tour of the Baba  Nyonya’s Heritage Museum, a House which is run by the owner’s decendants. This impressive home, originally 3 homes which were combined for this successful family, has a cafe in one of the buildings.  For the tour, you need to ring the doorbell and ask to do a tour.  Walking through various beautiful rooms with impressive silk tapestries, imposing furniture and lovely and sometimes quirky architecture, including gold-leaf fittings and a lockable staircase, you get a sense of the lifestyle back then.  Unfortunately you can’t take photos inside.  Opening times – 10am – 12.30pm, 2pm to 4.30pm.

Baba Nyonya Museum

Baba Nyonya Museum

Cafe 1511

Pai tee

Pai tee

Next door to the Baba Nyonya Heritage Museum and part of the original family home, Cafe 15111 serves a mix of food including Nonya cuisine.  The Kiwi had a rather hot curry but I was intrigued by the pai tee and wasn’t disappointed – looking like little cup cakes they are made of rice flour and filled with cooked turnip, shallots and egg accompanied by a chilli sauce they were delicious!

Istana ke Sultanan

Istana ke Sultanan

The dark timber Sultan’s Palace is built on stilts, looking down on lovely gardens, and a reconstruction based on the original 15th century istana.  The fabulous timber building is made without nails and has the classic Malay sloping roof tops and contains a colourful display telling the story of Malacca’s famous warriors Hang Tuah and Hang Jebat.

River Cruise

We like to walk everywhere when we are on holiday but with the heat and humidity the enjoyment evaporated quickly!  So, a river cruise helps take a load off and still allow you to see stuff.  It’s hardly a trip up the Seine but helps you get your bearings, hear some history and have a race with the Monorail!  Most interesting was sailing past the wooden stilt houses of Kampung Morten.

Sam's Pattissier

Whilst wandering around we came across Sam Patissier, which is a bit of a shock to the eyes.  The European confections in the windows caught our eye and as we were taking in the irony a friendly chap came out to ask us if we would like to have coffee – actually that’s exactly what we were wanting, so we thought we should reward his friendly approach and accept the deal they had for coffee with cake, …and it was air-conditioned!  Coffee was actually a disappointment but the cakes were not!  We had two Macarons each which were lovely, although being kept in the fridge probably dries them out a tad.  We were slowly being revitalised by the air-con when another cake arrived, with compliments, to try.  It was a Lemon Souffle Cheese Cake and the chap was keen to know what we thought.  It was lovely, it had a light texture and yet you could taste the cream cheese and made for an interesting taste sensation.  The passion, care and attention taken at Sam Patissier was a joy to watch and worth a wee detour to experience!  Jalan PM5, Plaza Mahkota

Food

So many places, so little time!  We liked Limau-Limau Cafe, a cute space with a beautiful selection of chandeliers!  They specialise in juices and my Mango Lassi was just the thing to cool me down one morning.  The food is all western, unfortunately.  It’s fine but I would rather they had some more local fare.

Curry and Naan

Pak Putra was a great experience.  Spilling out across the pavement, this bustling restaurant is nothing flash but filled with locals and for good reason!  With a Tandoor out on the street, waiters dash here and there bringing plates of freshly cooked Naan and wonderful curries spiced to raise your body temperature.  Fabulous.  Jalan Laksamaia 4

Chinese Temple

Colourful Temple

Out at 8am to beat the heat, we wandered through Chinatown to the Chinese Temple and found it quietly busy with worshippers.  Beautifully restored it was covered in amazing, colourful detail.  Apparently it’s the oldest Chinese Temple in the country.  We enjoyed the peaceful ambience and interesting architecture.  Of course, that morning we had been woken at first light by the call to prayer, for Malaysia is also a Muslim country.

Oldest Chinese Temple

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Hangout@Jonker, Malacca, Malaysia

Hangout@Jonker market themselves as a “no frills, just fun hotel”, giving travellers a fuss-free stay with great beds, clean rooms and bathrooms and places to hangout with the right amount of attention from staff.  I can happily report Hangout@Jonker does exactly what it says on the tin and does it very well!
Double Room at Hangout

Double Room

Fabulously located, we received a friendly welcome on arrival.  Our room was fuss free with a comfortable bed, a pleasant, small en-suite with towels and a soap dispenser by the shower all spotlessly clean, desk and chair, air-conditioning, TV and wi-fi access from the room.  Great security is provided using your access card to get into the hangout area as well as the floor for your room and the roof top.

Dinky en suite bathroom

En suite

At Hangout@Jonker along with the variety of rooms/dorms sizes they offer a Look Out – a rooftop terrace; Veg Out – in the kitchen area are complimentary tea, coffee, hot water dispenser, cold water dispenser and microwave; Time Out – three PC’s with internet access and tables and chairs; Wash Out – token-operated laundry.

Staff were friendly, helpful and kind.

We loved it! Great concept, well executed and at the right price. Fabulous.

Roof Terrace

Roof Terrace

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Tune Hotels, KLIA-LCCT Airport, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

As we would arrive in Malaysia on an Air Asia flight at 11pm we booked a room at the Tune Hotels which is by the Kuala Lumpur International Airport LCC Terminal  (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) , Sepang.

Tune Hotels are limited service hotels at affordable prices, their concept is to provide 5-star beds, power shower, central & convenient locations, clean environment and security.  Any additional facilities you require come at extra cost so guests only pay for what they will need/use.

Teeny tiny Tune Room

We booked a double room and chose add ons of 12 hours of air conditioning and towels (yup, towels are not provided as standard) and free essentials toiletries kit, which including taxes came to MR212.95 (NZD$84, GBP£44), so pretty cheap.

The room was tiny so it was just as well we were really just laying our head for the night.  I think my photos are quite flattering to the hotel, as the room was tired, with scrape marks on the walls and the sheets weren’t as spotless as I would like, there were dirty marks on the loo and the floor hadn’t been properly cleaned in the bathroom and there was a pool of water outside the shower which hadn’t been cleaned away, so the cleanliness promise was broken right from the start.

Tune Bathroom

The bed was comfortable, if somewhat teeny tiny and the shower was decent, although not clean enough.  We were in the hotel for no longer than 9 hrs and I feel that was just as well!  It is handy for the terminal, you can walk it if you wish or there is a shuttle which runs every 15 mins and costs RM1 per person, but based on this stay I won’t rush to try any of the other Tune Hotels out there.

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