Having just gone to Genting only a few months back in May, I wasn't too anxious about the trip this time. This would be my third time there in two years. I reused the list I drew up the last time to pack the stuff for the trip, leaving or adding stuff based on past experience. Most troublesome is having to pack the kids' milk powder and remembering to bring a hot water flask.
It was my sister's idea to go to Genting to coincide with my niece Olivia's 5th birthday. We have three families going this time, our family, my sis' and my neighbour's. Going in a group is more fun, especially for the kids, but it was a little harder to coordinate and communicate. We set out about 9.30am after our breakfast. Right after going through Malaysian customs via the second link, we stopped briefly while Cheryl went over to Sean's car. As with the previous trip, Sean and her watched Bob the Builder dvds on the way there. We "synchronised" our walkie talkies to the same frequency. We and our neighbours had bought one set each for this trip. Previously we had used a friend's set and found it very useful for communication on the roads and up at Genting itself.The trip was quite smooth except for a slight hiccup - my neighbour's car got stopped by the traffic police, apparently for speeding. So they made a "donation" of RM50 and was let off. Our first rest stop was at Ayer Keroh. The kids played at the playground there while the adults had some refreshments and lunch.I had packed some sandwiches. After that it was straight to Genting and Isaac slept most of the way there, so it was quite uneventful.
There was a slight jam at the exits of KL and Cheras, but it was mostly smooth. We reached Genting Skyway around 4pm.The plan was to have the kids and the wives take the cable car up and the guys drive the cars up to Genting Highlands. We would meet at the First World Hotel lobby. There was no queue at all and we boarded the cable car almost immediately after buying our tickets. Isaac has been looking forward to this cable car ride and has been talking about it since our last trip. As expected, the kids enjoyed the ride and view up to Genting Highlands, excited about being in the clouds and the stone animals along the way up. Compared to Singapore's cable car ride which costs $12 per adult, this one way trip of RM8 per head was really value for money.
Once up there,I put Isaac on the pram and we made our way to First World Hotel, which was quite a distance from the cable car station. Since it wasn't our first time, we had little trouble finding our way there, we just followed the signages. Our timing was perfect... by the time we reached the lobby, the guys were already checking in at the reception. We had booked our reservations via the internet. My neighbour got a World Club room while my sis and our family managed to book deluxe rooms because the world club rooms were booked up. We didn't mind even though it's much smaller because it costs half the price. Because we had different types of rooms, my neighbour was at Tower 1 while we were at the newer Tower 2. The deluxe rooms were indeed much smaller than the world club room we had the last time, but it was ok, since it was just nice for the 4 of us with the 2 super single beds.
After settling down, it was almost time for dinner. We had some hot noodles and rice. After that we walked around the area and the kids played some of the kiddy rides. The guys took the kids for the monorail ride while the ladies went shopping. My sis' kids were tired, so they retired to their room earlier. Later that night, after the kids were in bed, the guys went out to watch soccer and visit the casino.
DAY 2
Breakfast was complementary at the hotel's gigantic cafe, but it was really bad. Maybe because it had to cater to such large crowds.
After breakfast, we bought 1-Day Indoor/Outdoor passes for both kids and adults. Unfortunately the weather was rather wet and very chilly/cold, so we retreated to the Indoor theme park. We took the Ferris Wheel and Antique Car rides. The weather got a little better and so the kids went to the outdoor theme park to take the Flying Jumbo, Astro Fighter, Rodeo Rider and Teacup rides. Cheryl felt rather queasy after the teacup ride and had little appetite for lunch - porridge. After lunch, Isaac took a nap in his pram while the rest of us took the Venice Gondola and Ferris Wheel rides.
Later in the afternoon we went outdoors again and took rides on the Double Decker Carousel, Ferris Wheel(outdoor), and the Rodeo Rider (see picture) again. The smaller kids also enjoyed the Busy Bugs and Circus Carousel. Then we went indoors again to take the Flying Dragon ride (a slightly thrilling roller coaster ride), Ride de Paris (kiddie ride around the Eiffle tower), and the indoor Carousel (the best of all carousel rides). Then we had a hearty dinner at Pizza Hut. After that it was more rides for the kids - Rio Float, Reindeer Ride (both agonisingly slow rides traversing within the indoor mall) and more Carousel rides. By the time we went back to our rooms, Isaac was already asleep and so we didn't bother to change him to his pyjamas.DAY 3
I packed up our stuff in the morning as we needed to check out by noon. We decided to skip the free breakfast at the cafe and just ate some tuna sandwiches my sister made. The kids were still keen on going for the theme park rides, so we bought 1-day indoor passes for them. So they took ride and after ride the whole morning: Ferris wheel, Tour de paris, Reindeer ride, Carousel. Unfortunately the fun had to end around noon and we proceeded to check out of our room and we went up to my neighbour's World Club room to have a quick lunch of instant cup noodles we had brought along. They had extended their check-out to one more hour. Thereafter, the guys dropped us off at the cable car station so that we could take the cable car down while they drove the cars down Genting. This is a pic of Isaac enjoying his cable car ride.We spent a short time at the station below to buy stuff from this big shop selling all kinds of preserved fruits (kanas) and snacks. We left the place around 3pm. My sis and neighbour headed straight back to Singapore while we planned to stop by at Johor Bahru. We drove down to Seremban, where TT had his fix of nasi lemak and teh tarik. He said it was delicious. Along the way, Cheryl took a short nap while Isaac slept most of the way. Even then, I had a challenging time entertaining them with masking tape during their waking hours in the car! We reaced JB town around 7+ in the evening and headed for Holiday Plaza, the place notorious for all the horror stories that happened to other unlucky Singaporeans. We ate at McDonalds, and the kids had fun at the indoor playground there. We managed to get some *ahem* contraband items there before we headed home. By the time we reached home, it was almost 10pm, but the kids were still energetic!
As with previous trips, the kids proved to be good travellers. Isaac surprised me by staying belted in his car seat for long periods of time without too much of a fuss. Somehow he knew we were going on a long journey and behaved himself. It helped that he slept for about half of the journey both ways, so I was relieved of entertaining him during these times. I was also grateful they didn't get any sickness during the trip which would have made me very anxious.
All in all, as expected, the kids enjoyed themselves thoroughly with all the park rides and having each other to play with for 3 days. They just can't get enough of Genting. Isaac never fails to be entralled with the sights around him, especially while in the cable car. Three weeks on, he's still asking to "go cable car"...As for me, I'm already quite bored with the place but the cool air is a nice change. The trip was anyway for the kids, and I'm glad everybody had a good time and came back safe and sound!
If you need any advice on Genting - how to get there, temperature, what to do there, etc...drop me a line! I'm no expert, but I can tell you a thing or two!
Click here for more photos of the trip...
No comments:
Post a Comment