Helsinki, the capital of Finland is where we experience the city vibes after visiting the medieval town of Porvoo and meeting Santa Claus and his reindeer at Lapland (northernmost region of Finland) near the Arctic Circle. It may look like an ordinary capital with plenty of modern buildings and busy streets but our impression of it is more towards a peaceful, cool, introverted and quiet city. Well, this sounds boring but there are actually many hidden gems within this beautiful city giving us a relaxing, friendly and comfortable feeling as we explored it. As we wandered along the streets, we learnt to appreciate the tasty local foods, the friendliness of the Finnish people and the incredible details of the  architectural works! 

Yakitori is a type of Japanese skewered chicken grilled over charcoal fire and seasoned with sauce or salt. Nowadays, some of them are also grilled with other types of meat, tofu, mushroom or seafood. In Japan, yakitori is usually paired with alcoholic beverages or liquor as a side dish. It will surely be quite costly if you are having these as a main meal to fill up your stomach. 

While exploring the Petaling Jaya (PJ) area for food recently, we came across Omulab which has a similar concept to the famous Japanese style omurice in Kyoto, Japan. From what we know, the famous omurice in Kyoto is so popular that it is compulsory to make a reservation to visit the restaurant. Since we didn’t have any plan to visit Japan yet, we will just try this Malaysia’s version of omurice first. 

Apart from trying the new or popular foods in Singapore, we are always scratching our heads for places to visit. In our recent trip to Singapore, we were glad that we found some fun surprises around Marina Bay and they are all impressive regardless whether it is in the day or at night. Most importantly, there are NO ADMISSION FEES! 

Keong Kee Herbal Soup (强记补品) has neither a fancy concept nor an air-conditioning dining environment but they definitely have the best Chinese herbal soup in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. Besides serving the customers with a bowl of warm tonic soup and the taste of home cooked dishes, they also relive the olden day’s memories of the Kuala Lumpur folks. 

The northernmost region of Finland called Lapland is the home of Santa Claus as well as the place for people to hunt for the Northern Lights (or Aurora Borealis). There are actually many exciting activities to do there such as taking the reindeer or husky ride, experiencing the midnight sun, ice floating, ice fishing and many more. During our autumn visit, we enjoyed watching the colorful and beautiful autumn trees along the road trip, as well as visiting Santa Claus and had a quick chat with him! Well, these were more than enough for our 2 days at Lapland.

Whenever we planned to visit Singapore, we will always try the recent most popular food or something which can only be found there. Even though the foods in Singapore and Malaysia are quite similar, some are only available in one of them. Nevertheless, it can’t be denied that some foods are better in Singapore while some are better in Malaysia. 

Liao Fan Hawker Chan Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice & Noodles had successfully made the locals as well as the tourists queuing for the world’s cheapest Michelin-starred meal after being awarded a star in the 2016’s Michelin Guide. Even with the long queue for just a plate of chicken rice with some braised peanut, it didn’t stop us from visiting for a second time. The reason was simple. This is indeed the cheapest Michelin-starred meal with prices almost similar (just slightly higher) to the food that you get at a hawker center. So, why not?

Porvoo, the second oldest town in Finland, has been magnetizing people to fall in love with it. The strongest attraction would probably be from the medieval town’s signature red ochre painted riverside warehouses.

The sea fortress, Suomenlinna, which is located at 15-20 minutes of ferry distance from the capital city of Finland, Helsinki, has become a popular sight due to its unique monument of military architecture. It has also been declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1991. Hence, there is simply no reason for us not to pay this amazing fortress a visit.

Margaret River Bakery is something that you definitely cannot miss if you are traveling southbound from Perth. Well, it might be a little difficult searching for its signboard but they are actually located at the start of the busiest street of Margaret River. In fact, you can hardly miss it as you drive into the town coming from the north. 

You might have probably heard of Jamie Oliver if you watch cooking programs on TV or wander around the culinary section of bookstores where you could easily find his books. He is one of the talented and famous celebrity chefs that many people would know. Sometimes, we do watch his cooking shows but never did we think that we would have the chance to dine at his restaurant. At the time of writing, his restaurant known as Jamie’s Italian is opened in more than 20 countries around the world. 

Finally, this is the last part of our Perth adventure. Since it was the final day of our vacation, we kept our itinerary free-and-easy and just spent the day exploring the busy streets and attractions of Perth City at a relaxed pace. Nevertheless, the most important agenda of the day is to dine at the famous Jamie’s Italian!

Whenever we have errands to run nearby Petaling Street, we will definitely drop by the street for its delicious foods. Besides being a place which some people called it Chinatown (especially the tourists) and filled with many yummy hawker foods, it is also a nostalgic place for the locals that grew up in Klang Valley. With over decades of history, I am sure that many locals have fond memories with family and friends at this street. 

Driving in Perth, Australia is easy and relaxing compared to driving in Northern Europe if you are a Malaysian or from countries which uses the right-hand drive system (driver on the right side of the car). But why do we need to trouble ourselves driving in Perth? If you intend to explore the beautiful scenic areas of Western Australia, it is difficult to avoid driving.  I am not saying that it is impossible to get to where you want via public transport but you will probably spend half a day travelling there (perhaps only half the time by driving). Also, it will be perfect if you have the optimum number in your travelling party (eg. 3 – 4 persons in a small car, 5 – 6 persons in an MPV, etc.). This way, you can reduce the driving cost by sharing while having a flexible, fun and relaxing journey. Here, I will share out some information and tips which I think you should know if you are planning to drive in Perth, Australia.

DAY 6 SWAN VALLEY  If you have missed out on Margaret River during your visit to Perth, you need to make sure that you don’t miss out on Swan Valley as well. Swan Valley is where you can easily locate a variety of wineries, cafés, restaurants and homemade products within 25 minutes of driving from the city of Perth. 

Every single year, without fail, each of us would need to figure out where to dine during our other half’s birthday celebration as well as our anniversary celebration. This year, a’Roma Dinings stood out among the rest in Mr. J’s birthday dining list because of its recent recommendation by food bloggers and hunters in the social media. 

Hunting for a clean, comfortable and nice accommodation is always time-consuming in a vacation planning process. It might be because we are similar to other travelers who always want the best yet cheapest deal! 

Again, this is the third part of our Perth itinerary. Instead of a road trip to the south or north, we visited the wildlife park, garden and nearby island in Perth to experience the nature in/near Perth! 

This blog post is the second part of our Western Australia itinerary. After travelling to the south and spending two days in Margaret River region, we were back in Perth City. But, our stay in Perth was only temporary as we traveled to the northern regions for more exciting activities! 

If you have been following our blog posts, you may know that the 2017’s Japan trip was an extended holiday from Mr. J’s business trip while I was left alone in Malaysia! But, Mr. J did made up for it by bringing back 95% of the Japanese products in my wish list. 

We had never thought that Western Australia (WA) would be our first footstep in Australia until AirAsia’s FREE SEATS PROMOTION last year. As we doubted our decision to fly there, a friend of Miss J who graduated and worked there told us that Western Australia is well known for its wineries and natural wonders (beaches, caves, etc.)! 

Initially, it felt like an unattractive country to visit but the more research we did about it, we felt more and more interested and excited to visit it. The country which is located in the northern region of Europe touching the Arctic Circle - Finland! 

The transportation mode between the city and airport will usually be the last item for travelers to research on. Travelling in the European countries no matter the eastern, western, northern or southern region, they are all equally expensive. If you guys are budget travelers like us, then you should definitely check out the below transportation options and fares between the city and airport for the 3 cities (Oslo - Norway, Stockholm - Sweden and Helsinki - Finland) that we recently visited.

With the Korean wave getting stronger and stronger in Malaysia, there are more and more restaurants from South Korea opening their branches here offering Korean BBQ, Korean Fried Chicken, etc. We totally lost count on the number of new Korean restaurants (which are always crowded) in Klang Valley. We decided to give Outdark a try not just because of their popularity in Busan but also the good reviews given by the locals here. 

Hong Kong is a world-renowned gourmet paradise which has the combination of eastern and western culinary delights without losing their local characteristics. From Michelin starred restaurants to street foods, there are just too much delicious foods to choose from. This is why we are always ineffable when it comes to what to eat in Hong Kong. So, we decided to summarize what we have tried in Hong Kong with some of our personal reviews, photos and information to help you guys out in planning your to-eat list.  Note: The numbers are just for numbering purpose and do not represent any rankings.  

Hong Kong is a small but extremely busy city. Tourists usually only see the modern and urban part of the city but not the local and hidden attractions as many might think it is difficult or expensive to do so. Sometimes, the lesser known attractions are also very interesting and cheap too. 

We realized that we have very little knowledge of Sweden or its capital, Stockholm. Honestly, IKEA and Swedish meatballs were the only things that came across our mind when we planned to visit Stockholm.

You may be wondering how we managed to travel to the European countries and other mid-range expensive countries often as well as constantly food hunting around Klang Valley. We are just similar to everyone, earning salary from a full-time job to pay the usual bills (mortgage loan, life insurance, living cost, etc.)

We recently fell in love dining at a new restaurant called Hotpot Kitchen. From the restaurant's name, it is common to guess that the food sold might be related to steamboat. Well, you're not wrong but the restaurant is not selling the usual hot pot (foodstuffs in a pot of soup). In fact, they are actually selling the dry version of hot pot originated from Sichuan Province of China. Sichuan pepper and herbs are the main ingredients in this nice, yummy and fragrant bowl of dry hot pot.

Russia is one of the largest countries in the world. However, it is not one of the popular travel destinations for Malaysians other than for students furthering their studies. We believe this might be mainly due to the visa application hassle and language barrier.