I like cooking for my husband and son but these days, I don’t cook that often anymore.

It is not because I have grown bored of the cooking routine, but I absolutely detest having to go to the wet market for fresh ingredients. Not only the wet market have a certain ‘ aromatic’ charm that does not appeal to me but it is generally slippery as well, making the shopping experience rather unpleasant. Call me a spoilt, modern hussy if you want but that’s me, being honest to all pf you here. I really don’t like shopping in the wet market.

I prefer to shop in a comfortable environment like shopping mall for my groceries where I can get everything at one place.

But the downside of getting groceries from the shopping mall is that their price is exhorbitant and not necessarily fresh either.

Now, let me tell you something. It is a few days to Chinese New Year 2016 as of writing and I have to shamefully confess that I was panicking on getting ingredients for my annual Chinese New Year reunion dinner’s cookout for my family. It’s been a hectic month and I somehow lost the track of time. I have yet to shop for the ingredients and going to the wetmarket and shopping mall to get seafood supplies for my cooking is out of the question. Not only it will be crowded but the price of the goods will be sky high as well. I, for one have no intention on spending ridiculous amount of money on food.

Lucky me, I no longer have to worry about shopping in the wet market for fresh goods for the upcoming Chinese New Year, especially seafood as Nikudo Seafood is offering fresh seafood shopping all in one place.

Located conveniently in Petaling Jaya, Nikudo Seafood is offering a variety selection of local and imported seafood like mud crab, scallop, Boston lobster, Norway Smoke Salmon, Abalone and many more. The best part? The sea produce offered Nikudo is just at a fraction of the price in comparison to the wetmarket and the grocery stores that I usually frequent.

My treasures from the sea: All the oceanic goodness from Nikudo Seafood.

Fresh prawns, cleaned and all packed up for your cooking convenience.

White prawns with heads intact (500gram)

Vannamei Prawns with heads intact (500gram)

Premium XL Soft Shell Crabs (150 grams per pcs)

Apart from fresh seafood, Nikudo is also offering ready made seafood like seasoned baby cuttlefish, baby octopus, and easy to cook prawn balls, prawn rolls, octopus cakes and many more.

Assorted dumplings: Nikudo Japanese Chicken Dumplings, Nikudo Japanese Prawns Dumplings, Nikudo Japanese Chive Dumplings.

Ebi Tempura and Prawn Rolls

Assorted stuffed crabs: Cheese Stuffed Crabs and Curry Stuffed Crabs.

Japanese Style Octopus Balls and Prawn Balls

Tempura prawns

These ready to cook seafood products are made from premium and the freshest ingredients available, so you won’t have to worry about the food tasting awfully artificial. Another bonus point about Nikudo seafood is that it is HALAL certified, and therefore, Muslims may consume food produced by Nikudo seafood with ease.

I will be cooking up a feast with these seafood, that’s for sure.

If you are looking for the best place to buy seafood in Klang Valley without going through all the hassle and burn a few holes in your pocket, I believe Nikudo is just the place for you.

For more information on Nikudo Seafood’s current promotion, please refer to the information below:

Nikudo Seafood
40, Jalan SS 2/63, Petaling Jaya
47300 Selangor.

Google Map: https://goo.gl/yQoz3y

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/nikudo.seafood/

Business Hour: Everyday 7a.m. to 7p.m.

Malaysians have many ways to enjoy the nourishing goodness of MILO® weather by having a nice big spoonful of it right into their mouth, sprinkling MILO® into condensed milk sandwich, the MILO® dinosaur, a concoction of milo ice sprinkled with spoonful of delicious goodness, and last but not least NESTLÉ MILO® Frozen Confection the popsicle.

MILO® was first introduced in 1950, and since then, it has become a well-loved beverage to Malaysians young and old, with its promise in fuelling us with positive energy all day. The introduction of the NESTLÉ MILO® Frozen Confection by NESTLÉ ICE CREAM will further continue its mission for being the trusted brand in households nationwide.

NESTLÉ ICE CREAM is known for its quality, is not only passionate about nutrition but is also an ice cream treat that makes life a little sweeter and refreshing.

NESTLÉ MILO® Frozen Confection has been made available in stores as of 1st January 2016. Malaysians can purchase NESTLÉ MILO® Frozen Confection at the price of RM1.50.

 
For more information on Nestlé, visit Nestlé’s website at https://www.nestle.com.my or Nestlé’s Malaysia Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Nestle.Malaysia.

Vegetables and greens does not always agree with me. In my foodie dictionary, they are disgusting, mainly because they taste bitter and awful. But having patronized Goodness Greens Cafe in Taman Tun Dr. Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, my opinions in health food somewhat made a 360′ turn. I finally discovered that health food does not necessarily have to be disgusting. Done right, they can be as delicious as regular food.

A spinoff from the well famed juice brand in Malaysia, La Juiceria, Goodness Greens Cafe is offering health food concept for those who wants to eat clean, minus the distasteful flavours and excessive calories.

This quaint looking cafe is great for a lazy weekend with your loved ones.

The cafe is notably children friendly. There is a play area for small children to amuse themselves with and restroom with lowered toilet bowls and washing area for toddlers and children.

Fresh and crisps greens, cold pressed juice, substantial soup and salads can be seen on their daily offering menu.

Huge refrigerator containing various kinds of juices and health shots spotted.

A selection of Vital Shots in small bottles for your takings.

Price-wise, the cold pressed juice, smoothies and shots are quite affordable.

After settling down at the table by the window, promptly made our orders. It can be a tad confusing for first time patrons, but we managed to get a hang of it.

Mushroom Soup. Initially we were recommended something else, but I wasn’t feeling so adventurous and wanted Mushroom Soup instead, and I’m glad I stick with my option. Conjured with all sorts of mushrooms and a drizzle of olive oil and roasted almonds on top, this creamy bowl goodness packed quite a punch. Served with garlic flavoured baguettes, the Mushroom Soup offers comfort to the tummy within seconds. Bursting with natural flavours, my husband loves this so much and polished everything off. This would definitely on our list should we revisit the cafe again.

Goodness Greens Signature Dip is perfect for sharing with your loved ones.

Made with spinach, mozzarella cheese and served with wholesome baguette slices, this healthy green is full of vitamins, antioxidants and minerals. Spinach has an extremely high nutritional value and is rich in antioxidants. Another plus point? It’s richly delicious.

The deep green colour put off my son for a little as he’s almost a natural carnivore, but he shared this with us and was asking us for seconds in which I gave a negative as I wanted us to try other items on the menu.

Homemade Granola Bars with Almond Mylk. We ordered this for our son to try. The granola bars came in two flavours; maple and chocolate. Deciding against chocolate, we went ahead for the maple version of the granola bars and we have to say that we’re impressed.

Generously topped with sliced strawberries and bananas, this wholesome bowl of goodness is fairly addictive to the palate. Perfectly balance between crunchiness, sweet and sourish flavour, the granola bars drowned with rich Almond Mylk is distinctively agreeable. Even the fussiest child would have discovered that this a sensory delight, and would enjoy spooning these into their mouth, I assure you.

The granola bars also comes in small handy packets for takeaway and if you think you did not have enough, you can pick it off from the counter and bring it home for just RM6 per packet. Knowing that the Granola bars would be a useful instant energy boost for my traveling trips, I brought back two home and stashed it in my travel bag.

Moving on from the sensational Granola Bars, we customized our own salad bowl.

Famished, we opt for the ‘heavy and filling’ kind of salad.

Here’s how to customise your salad bowl at Goodness Green Cafe:

1. Start off by choose your salad size: Petit, Medium or Grand.
2. Select your variety base, mains, supplementary items and prime for your salad bowl.
3. Pick your preferred dressing from a list of 10 house-made dressings.

Here’s ours. Our very own special Goodness Green Grand Salad Bowl. What’s in our salad bowl:

Base: Romaine lettuce
Main: Cherry tomatoes, croutons, pasta macaroni, roasted baby potatoes and crabsticks.
Supplementary: Beef bacon bits, and homemade crispy tofu
Prime: Grilled chicken
Dressing: Thousand Islands dressings

The bowl of salad is great for sharing and in all, it was really a satisfying meal that kept us full for the next couple of hours.

‘Dessert’ was a smoothie bowl. We had the highly recommended Acai Berry Smoothie Bowl and was left wanting more. The Acai Berry smoothies were smoothly concocted and topped with strawberries, shredded coconuts, bananas chia seeds, cacao nibs, and bee pollen. It was nothing short of sensational. Regretfully, we were too stuffed from our salad earlier to treat ourselves with a second helping of the smoothie bowl.

Our drinks: Juice, babycino,latte and rose petal tea.

To wash everything off, we had Berry Bliss and PAM LA Juiceria cold pressed juice. The Berry Bliss was berry-licious while the PAM juice was uniquely sour. My husband preferred the Berry Bliss but I positively love the PAM juice much more than the Berry Bliss.

Ravishing Rose Petal Tea was not only refreshing but rejuvenating as well. And I like how the aroma works it’s calming effect on me after just a few sip.

Babycino with Marshmallows. My son tried this, so I can’t comment much about it on the taste, but judging on the empty cup after just awhile, I’m guessing that this is fairly acceptable, at least to him.

Latte and Chlorophil Water. Being a coffee lover, my husband decided to end the meal by washing it off with Latte. I was told that the Latte was fairly on the acidic and sour side instead of the bitter note that he is used to. It needs an acquired taste, I guess. The Chlorophil water on the other hand was simply refreshing, I’d order this shot of energy boost again anytime if I were to revisit this cafe.

Overall, it the Goodness Greens Cafe offers pretty much satisfying delicious meals, minus the guilt. Great place to go if you are looking for some clean eats. Families with young children will appreciate how child friendly it is while social media addicts like Facebookers and instagrammers will most definitely love the fact that the place is well lit enough for photography purposes.

For more information on the cafe, please refer to the information below:

Goodness Greens Café
32, Jalan Datuk Sulaiman
Taman Tun Dr Ismail
6000, Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 018 368 3320

Facebook: www.facebook.com/goodnessgreenscafe

Instagram: @goodnessgreenscafe

Kick start the festive Chinese New Year mood by enveloping yourself in the rich Chinese culture and tradition. Bring your family to Quill City Mall, Jalan Sultan Ismail and check out these exciting activities for prosperity and good vibe as we usher in the Year of the Monkey.

Standing tall and majestic at the Main Court of the mall are two larger than life sized (30-feet tall) Terracotta generals accompanied by 60 warriors, each measuring 2-feet tall.

These replicas were inspired by the “8th Wonders of the World”, the warriors of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China.As for this year’s theme, the mall took a bold yet unique and auspicious approach by presenting the Mighty Terracotta, as the warriors represent strength, energy and victory. This is the wish for all, that 2016 would be a year of great strength and success.

One of the highlights for this year’s launch is the endorsement of the 30-feet tall Terracotta by the Malaysia Book of Records for the “Biggest Styrofoam Terracotta Army Replica”.

In conjunction with the Chinese New Year launch, the mall also spread good cheers by hosting 89 senior citizens from Rumah Victory, Ti-Ratana Welfare Society, Rumah Sejahtera Seri Setia and Rumah Charis. They were all entertained by the performances lined up and treated to a sumptuous meal, followed by a karaoke session thereafter.

Lion Dance performance by the 17th Malaysia National Lion Dance Championship 2015 winner, Kwong Ngai Lion Dance Troupe.

Chinese Magical & LED Dance Show by Vivas Magic & Entertainment.

The Thousand Hands dance being performed.

The appearance of the Monkey King.

Exciting activities have been lined by the mall, which include ‘Meet & Greet’ sessions with God of Prosperity, 5 Emperor & 24 Season Drum Percussion and Lion Dance performance on every weekend from 23rd January, 2016 – 22nd February, 2016 by the 17th Malaysia National Lion Dance Championship 2015 winner, Kwong Ngai Lion Dance Troupe.
Shoppers will also stand a chance to win a BMW 2 Series Active Tourer with its Shop & Dine Fiesta from 8 October 2015 to 7 March 2016. For more information on the Shop & Dine Fiesta, visit Facebook.com/quillcity or Instagram: QuillCityMall.

It was scorching hot and humid throughout our visit to Kg. Dedari. We were practically drenched with our own sweat, but there was no time for shower before our next activity; shooting the rapids.

The traditional boat is once again used for rapids shooting.

All set and ready to go

It is an activity where the boat will cruise against the stream.

Tough ride for some, but it was fine for me and my family.

Playing with the water while the boat is still moving.

Racing with another boat while going against the river stream.

Well, good that we did not shower as we ended up soaking wet, and not even our undergarments were spared.

Nevertheless, it is one of the exhilirating activity that is not to be miss if you’re in Taman Negara. It is not only fun, but adrenaline enducing as well.

Our trip was sponsored by Han Travel/Han Rainforest Resort and MITA. Han Travel provides one of the best transportation and accommodation arrangement to Taman Negara, so look them up for fuss free experience in Taman Negara at an affordable price.

You can also visit www.rainforestresort.net for more information.

Apart from reading this blog, the updates on our trip can be looked up on social media like Facebook and Instagram by using the official hashtag #GoDomestic #dekatje #mitatourismfair and my personal hashtag #ellietravels #kembaradekatje and #kembarabayau.

Following our almost 2 hour 4WD ride with Mr. Rizal Belalang and 4×4 Extreme crew assigned by our host, Han Travel, we arrived at Kg. Orang Asli Dedari to spend some time with the indigenous people who lives there.

The indigenous folks in Kampung Dedari are known as the Bateq (also spelled as Batek). According to our guide, the Bateq people are part of the Negrito tribes.The Bateq is still practicing their nomadic lifestyle inherited from their ancestors. The Bateq community is synonymous with nature and can only be found living in three states of Peninsular Malaysia, which is Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu.

Negrito tribes are believed to have migrated to Malaysia since thousands of years ago from Indo-China on foot through the mountains. Compared to Proto-Malay tribes, the Negritos like the Bateqs are a bit behind due to the way of lifestyle and culture. Some may have embraced modernization and subscribed to religions like Islam, Buddhism and the likes, but most are still practicing animism. Animism encompasses the beliefs that there is no separation between the spiritual and physical or material world, and that souls or spirits exist, not only in humans, but also in some other animals, plants, rocks, geographic features such as mountains or rivers, or other entities of the natural environment, including thunder, wind, and shadows.

The Bateq have distinctively unique physical disposition.

Commonly they are dark skinned with slightly noticeable swirl pattern prints on their skin (a genetic condition), afro-like hair and round faced.

The Bateq are shy and wary of outsiders and there were traditions and taboos that you’d have to respect when you visit them.

Some would not allow you to photograph their babies because they believed that the child’s spirit would be disturbed and many also believed that having their pictures taken would bring bad luck or even death, but over the years, those beliefs somewhat wears down a little.

The Bateq are still living in a rather primitive way and I find it difficult to believe that the village is actually in Malaysia. Their village does not even have basic modern amnesties like electricity or tap water.

At best, their houses are merely shacks that functioned to barely shelter them in harsh weather. The village comprises about a dozen huts, all of which are rectangular and raised on stilts.

The settlement is oriented parallel to the river in a sandy, man-made clearing. The raising of the huts is nothing to do with the proximity of the river but rather to encourage air movement beneath the building.

The structure is made from assorted hardwood branches lashed together, while the walls are bamboo, which is hammered flat and held in place by two sticks on either side. Roofs are pitched and overhang the bamboo walls.

Some of the Bateq people settled themselves at one place for a couple of years, and only leave when something bad happened at their village. One of the things that commonly prompt them to be on the move to search for a new spot to live in again is death. It is believed that when a person in their community died, the place that they are living became contaminated and cursed by bad luck, and so the place became inhabitable.

Apart from the complex culture and ritualistic nature that they subscribed to,The Bateq leads an unbelievably very basic lifestyle. Being nomadic, they do not practice any agriculture activities, enabling them to move from one place to another easily.

Their men hunt for food while their women are left behind to take care of their children at home.

Only the head of the tribe remained at their village when the men is out hunting and serve as the protector of his people.

The duties of the men here are simple: make huts, make blowpipes, go hunting and mate. Mating is done solely from within the village and the family units are large. When the family expands, another hut will be build. Apparently having six children or less is to be seen as a lazy man. I’m asked how many children I have when I was talking to one friendly Bateq lady and I told them I only have one child and motioned to my son and husband. The lady who asked me that shakes her head in disapproval and told me in a very pitiful manner. According to her, my husband is an extremely lazy man and does not pleases me in bed. They believed that only when a woman is pleased they can get pregnant. Divided by culture and worlds apart, I only blush in respond. Not quite sure what to make of her criticism of my sex life.

Courtship is fairly simple. To win a Bateq lady’s hand, the man in question must be of age and must be able to prove themselves worthy of protecting his family and of course, needs to be able to provide for the family. Approval on the union is done by Tok Batin; their leader and the elder of the tribe. According to our guide, children’s stomach will be tied with rattan and they will practice using blowpipe. The rattan rope is used to view the strength of the blast of the blowpipe concerned. When the rope that was tied gets disconnected, these children is considered as an adult and is allowed to join the hunt. They will be given their own Sumpit blowgun and each successful hunting session will be recorded by their Tok Batin by carving a line on their Sumpit blowgun. The more lines on it means the more capable the Bateq man is question is and that is what enable them to settle down and have family if their own.

Still living in a primitive way, they do things without the help of gadgets and whatnot, even lighting fire for heat is done the good old traditional way, but rubbing sticks or rattan rope.

A Bateq man making fire from scratch, literally.

Building up the fire.

Expertly done, under 5 minutes. Seriously speaking, it is really impressive.

The Bateq’s hunting weapon is is known as Sumpit. It is a blowgun type of weapon consisting of a small tube for firing light projectiles or darts.

The weapon is used by inserting the projectile inside the pipe and using the force created by one’s breath to give the projectile momentum. Its propulsive power is limited by the user’s respiratory muscles.

Children of the Bateq tribe doesn’t go to school. Their education consists of survival skills like hunting and whatnot in the jungle while the younger ones stays behind in the village and play simple games they made up. Very refreshing scene, considering that they have nothing and yet everything.

They take pleasure in the simplest joy, something urban children are not blessed with. I watched these children in envy. Their parents have no expectations on them and they’re innocently carefree. Considering the circumstances, this is almost an idealistic childhood a child could ask for.

Their clothing are simple and functional at best. The ladies generally seen clad in sarongs and it is variantly fashioned according to their liking from time to time.

Funeral management on the other hand is not quite simple and rather mystical in my opinion. Instead of burying their dead, they place the bodies high up among the trees. Uprooting the village is just the start of a hugely elaborate burial ritual, in which the body is brought by procession to a hut, similar to the ones in the village, but constructed in a tree some 50 metres high. The body is covered and left with its possessions alongside it, together with food for the spirits. It is then left undisturbed for two to three years, upon which time the village returns to procure a bone from the skeletal remains. This is then buried, so returning the family member to the forest.

Time flies and before we know it it is time to head back for the next activity on the itinerary.

Visiting the indigenous settlement during our family trip to Taman Negara was one of our most humbling thing we have ever experienced. My son probably learned more about life and humility here in Kg. Dedari with the Bateq in a few hours over here than a year in school, and I highly recommend a visit to any of the Bateq tribe’s settlement should you are in Taman Negara. I promise you it will be a very interesting experience.

Our trip was sponsored by Han Travel/Han Rainforest Resort and MITA. Han Travel provides one of the best transportation and accommodation arrangement to Taman Negara, so look them up for fuss free experience in Taman Negara at an affordable price.

You can also visit www.rainforestresort.net for more information.

Apart from reading this blog, the updates on our trip can be looked up on social media like Facebook and Instagram by using the official hashtag #GoDomestic #dekatje #mitatourismfair and my personal hashtag #ellietravels #kembaradekatje and #kembarabayau.

Apart from the Jungle Night Walk Tour, Han Rainforest Resort also offers Night Safari ride on a 4WD vehicle. However, we were utterly exhausted after the night walk and our little fishing trip, and so we opted for the daytime off-roading trip on the next day instead.

Our destination; the The Batek (Also spelled as Bateq) Indegenious Settlement in Kg. Dedari, Kuala Tahan.

It is about 1 hr drive away via the jungle route and here’s sharing the views throughout our trip to Kg. Dedari.

Our driver decided to take a slight detour and we passed by a highway under construction. We were told that the highway will directly connect to Kuala Tahan to Terengganu.

Not to say that I’m utterly impressed or fascinated with the view, but I have to say that I realized that we took plenty of things for granted.

One thing for example is that how much effort it took by the unsung heroes to build a safe road for us. We saw how hard people worked to make such thing possible for us. It is certainly humbling when you think that way, I must say.

Having enough of the construction scenery, we finally took off to Kg. Dedari.

Crossed the river for a little bit

And deep into the jungle we go

It wasn’t exactly a smooth drive, but if I were to compare our 4WD off-roading trip in Kalumpang, I’d say the ride is pretty much a breeze.

Just a little ‘carwash’ here and there, and some hindering branches and tree trunks. Nothing we can’t handle.

Our driver is a professional 4WD driver who is well versed in the route, after all. Mr. Rizal Belalang and team from 4×4 Extreme made sure that the journey was nothing short of enjoyable.

And before we know it, we arrived in Kg. Dedari to spend some time with the Batek Tribe. More about it in the next installment of my post for our eco-escapade to Taman Negara.

Our trip was sponsored by Han Travel/Han Rainforest Resort and MITA. Han Travel provides one of the best transportation and accommodation arrangement to Taman Negara, so look them up for fuss free experience in Taman Negara at an affordable price.

You can also visit www.rainforestresort.net for more information.

Apart from reading this blog, the updates on our trip can be looked up on social media like Facebook and Instagram by using the official hashtag #GoDomestic #dekatje #mitatourismfair and my personal hashtag #ellietravels #kembaradekatje and #kembarabayau.