This is a great place as well…..!

This is a great place as well…..!

Vientiane is the capital and largest city of Laos, situated on the Mekong River near the border with Thailand. Vientiane became the capital in 1563 due to fears of a Burmese invasion. During French rule, Vientiane was the administrative capital and, due to economic growth in recent times, it has now become the economic centre of Laos.
The estimated population of the city is 754,000 (2009). The city hosted the 25th Southeast Asian Games in December 2009 celebrating the 50 years of SEA Games.

Our hotel
Dec 30, 2012 11:09 AM

A temple opposite our hotel
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Presidential palace
Dec 30, 2012 11:54 AM

Wat Sisaket in Vientiane
Dec 30, 2012 12:06 PM
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Dec 30, 2012 12:11 PM

As the temple was closed for lunch we also decided to go for lunch
Dec 30, 2012 12:25 PM
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Vegetarian in the Golden Age
Dec 30, 2012 12:31 PM

Buffet for 25,000 kip
Dec 30, 2012 12:48 PM

We recommend getting there early as the food will taste fresh and will be hot

Afterwards we walked back to the temple
Dec 30, 2012 1:33 PM

I misread the entrance fee instead of 5,000 kip I read 50,000 kip. We took out way too much money!

Dec 30, 2012 1:26 PM

Walking through a mall
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Dec 30, 2012 1:40 PM

Dec 30, 2012 1:51 PM

Dec 30, 2012 1:51 PM

Back outside the temperature was a mild 26 degrees C
Dec 30, 2012 1:53 PM

Back to Wat Sisaket in VIentiane
Wat Si Saket is a Buddhist wat in Vientiane, Laos. It is situated on Lan Xang Road, on the corner with Setthathirat Road, to the northwest of Haw Phra Kaew, which formerly held the Emerald Buddha.
Wat Si Saket was built in 1818 on the orders of King Anouvong (Sethathirath V.) Si is derived from the Sanskrit title of veneration Sri, prefixed to the name of Wat Saket in Bangkok, which was renamed by Anouvong’s contemporary, King Rama I. Wat Si Saket was built in the Siamese style of Buddhist architecture, with a surrounding terrace and an ornate five-tiered roof, rather than in the Lao style. This may have kept it safe as the armies of Siam that sacked Vientiane in 1827 used the compound as their Headquarters and lodging place. It may now be the oldest temple still standing in Vientiane. The French restored Wat Si Saket in 1924 and again in 1930.
Wat Si Saket features a cloister wall with more than 2000 ceramic and silver Buddha images. The temple also houses a museum.

Dec 30, 2012 1:58 PM
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Next was Haw Phra Kaew which was built between 1565 and 1556, on the orders of King Setthathirath. The temple housed the Emerald Buddha figurine, which Setthathirath had brought from Chiang Mai, then the capital of Lanna, to Luang Prabang. When Vientiane was seized by Siam (now Thailand) in 1778, the figurine was taken to Thonburi and the temple was destroyed. After it was rebuilt by King Annouvong of Vientiane in the 19th century, it was again destroyed by Siamese forces when King Annouvong rebelled against Siam in an attempt to regain full independence. The revered Buddha now resides in Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok. The temple was rebuilt for a third time by the French between 1936 and 1942, during colonization of French Indochina.

Dec 30, 2012 2:26 PM
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Dec 30, 2012 2:48 PM

Looking out to the gardens the temple is behind us
Dec 30, 2012 2:48 PM

We took a tuk tuk to Pha That Luang (‘Great Stupa’) is a gold-covered large Buddhist stupa in the centre of Vientiane, Laos. Since its initial establishment suggested to be in the 3rd century, the stupa has undergone several reconstructions until the 1930s due to foreign invasions to the area. It is generally regarded as the most important national monument in Laos and a national symbol.

Pha That Luang according to the Lao people was originally built as a Hindu temple in the 3rd century. Buddhist missionaries from the Mauryan Empire are believed to have been sent by the Emperor Ashoka, including Bury Chan or Praya Chanthabury Pasithisak and five Arahata monks who brought a holy relic (believed to be the breast bone) of Lord Buddha to the stupa. It was rebuilt in the 13th century as a Khmer temple which fell into ruin.
In the mid-16th century, King Setthathirat relocated his capital from Luang Prabang to Vientiane and ordered construction of Pha That Luang in 1566. It was rebuilt about 4 km from the centre of Vientiane at the end of That Luang Road and named Pha That Luang. The bases had a length of 69 metres each and was 45 metres high, and was surrounded by 30 small Stupas.
In 1641, a Dutch envoy of the Dutch East India Company, Gerrit van Wuysoff, visited Vientiane and was received by King Sourigna Vongsa at the temple, where he was, reportedly, received in a magnificent ceremony. He wrote that he was particularly impressed by the “enormous pyramid and the top was covered with gold leaf weighing about a thousand pounds”. However, the stupa was repeatedly plundered by the Burmese, Siamese and Chinese.
Pha That Luang was destroyed by the Thai invasion in 1828, which left it heavily damaged and left abandoned. It was not until 1900, when the French restored to its original design based on the detailed drawings from 1867 by the French architect and explorer Louis Delaporte. However the first attempt to restore it was unsuccessful and it had to be redesigned and then reconstructed in the 1930s. During Franco-Thai war Pha That Luang was heavily damaged from Thais air raid. After the End of World War II Pha That Luang has been newly reconstruction.

The architecture of the building includes many references to Lao culture and identity, and so has become a symbol of Lao nationalism. The stupa today consists of three levels, each conveying a reflection of part of the Buddhist doctrine. The first level is 223 feet (67 metres) by 226 feet (68 metres), the second is 157 feet (47 metres) along each side and the third level is 98 feet (29 metres) along each side. From ground to pinniacle, Pha That Luang is 147.6 feet (44 metres) high.

The area around Pha That Luang is now gated, to keep traffic out. Previously visitors could drive around the whole complex. The encircling walls are roughly 279 feet (85 metres) long on each side and contain a large number of Lao and Khmer sculptures including one of Jayavarman VII.

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Patuxai (literally meaning Victory Gate or Gate of Triumph, formerly the Anousavary or Anosavari Monument, known by the French as Monument Aux Morts) is a war monument in the centre of Vientiane, Laos, which was built between 1957 and 1968. The Patuxai is dedicated to those who fought in the struggle for independence from France. In romanising the name from the Laotian language, it is variously transliterated as Patuxai, Patuxay, Patousai and Patusai. It is also called Patuxai Arch or the Arc de Triomphe of Vientiane as it resembles the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. However, it is typically Laotian in design, decorated with mythological creatures such as the kinnari (half-female, half-bird).

Dec 30, 2012 4:38 PM

Dec 30, 2012 4:38 PM

Had to complete the day with ice cream! So back to Swensens.
Dec 30, 2012 5:00 PM
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In the evening we walked to the banks of the Mekong River to view the sunset
Dec 30, 2012 5:29 PM

The land across the Mekong River is Thailand
Dec 30, 2012 5:34 PM

You walk through Chao Anouvong Park in which stands the majestic statue of King Anouvong. The park was named after the King and he is highly regarded amongst Laotians. The statue was constructed in 2010 during Vientiane’s 450th Anniversary to commemorate the King’s noble contribution to Vientiane during his reign.
Chao Anouvong was the last king of the Lao Kingdom of Vientiane. During his era, he struggled to fight against the Siamese invasion of Vientiane. In the end, he was unsuccessful and was captured and the Kingdom of Vientiane was forced to surrender to Siamese rule and ceased to exist. Because of his persistent attempts to defeat the Siamese forces, Chao Anouvong is considered a courageous hero who fought for Vientiane until his death.

Chao Anouvong Park

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Chao Anouvong Park

Dec 30, 2012 5:50 PM

Me looking at the statue
Dec 30, 2012 5:51 PM

And not at the sunset
Dec 30, 2012 5:51 PM

You maybe asking why?!
Let me explain
Whilst looking at the statue I saw families having their photographs taken, by a local photographer. This photographer wears coloured top and carry badges to say they have permission to take and sell photographs. They are totally genuine and I am sure their charges are reasonable, otherwise, locals would not use them. Anyway, once the family takes a photograph they go for a wander whilst the photographer develops the picture. The family return to collect their picture and are mesmerised by the picture, some laugh whilst others are in awe of how is this possible, their in this piece of paper. They then very carefully handle the picture so as to not damage it. For them it is a very precious memory of the trip out. This made me appreciate what we take for granted…..between us we have a digital camera, iPad and two iPhones which we use as cameras, we take them for granted. The poor camera gets thrown about but it still serves us well. The iPhones get dropped every other day but still serves us so well. We always expect it to work as it should regardless of how we treat it. If not we would just buy another one and not think about it. Here families really do appreciate every little thing. The picture of them. Their family walk on the beach. I noticed in Luang Prabang their dinners around the family table. Watching their car battery powered televisions as a family. Here throwing away items e.g a radio, television is not an option. They treat it well if a mechanical fault does occur they will fix it, in the west if a mechanical fault occurs we throw it away and buy another one!

Dec 30, 2012 5:57 PM

Sangeet took amazing pictures of the sunset, here they are…in fact 99% of the pictures on this blog are were taken by Sangeet.
Dec 30, 2012 6:02 PM
Dec 30, 2012 6:10 PM

The statue from behind
Dec 30, 2012 6:14 PM

Whilst walking through the park we came across an aerobics class
Dec 30, 2012 6:16 PM

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Aerobics in the Park

On the way backup the hotel we walked through the night market
Dec 30, 2012 6:42 PM
Dec 30, 2012 6:47 PM

For email subscribers
Night Market, Vientiane

Royal Visit…..

Royal Visit…..

Today we looked into flights to Vientiane there are two companies we can use Lao Airlines or Lao Central Airlines. Lao airlines worked out best for us in terms of times. The tickets are booked for Saturday.

We had a wander around town, visited Phou Si temple (climbing around 300 steps to get there!), Buddhist footprint, other temples and a Buddhist monk school.

Phou Si
The main hill in the city from which you have a good view of the whole area. It’s not a very steep climb from the bottom and sunrise and sunset are particularly rewarding times to go up. There is a near-panoramic view from the top. There are 2 entrances from ground level: 1 on the north along Sisavangvong Road, facing the Royal Palace, and another one on the East, on Sisavang Vatthana Road. The northern entrance has about 130 steps up to the ticket counter, and another 190 steps to the top. The eastern entrance is longer than the northern one by a factor of 2 or 3, and is hence less steep and has more points of interest along the way, which are perfect excuses for stopping for a breather on the climb. Entrance fee 20,000 kip. Here there is a Buddhist footprint.

Temple at the ticket office
Dec 27, 2012 11:07 AM
Dec 27, 2012 11:09 AM
Dec 27, 2012 11:09 AM
Dec 27, 2012 11:09 AM

looking across to the Royal Palace Museum
Dec 27, 2012 11:12 AM

The next steps up
Dec 27, 2012 11:20 AM
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Views from the top
Dec 27, 2012 11:27 AM
Dec 27, 2012 11:42 AM
Dec 27, 2012 11:44 AM

the temple from the outside
Dec 27, 2012 11:47 AM
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Another temple at the bottom
Dec 27, 2012 12:38 PM

Monks studying
Dec 27, 2012 12:36 PM

Afterwards we had a walk around town popping into the Big Brother Mouse offices (more information in my post for tomorrow) and Ock Pop Tok (a fair trade textile shop which is linked to the Living Craft Centre). The shop assistant was curious and asked what religion we are We told her, she then wanted Sangeet to tie a turban on her. She also gave us her email address and wants information on Sikhi.

Big Brother Mouse
Dec 27, 2012 1:13 PM
Dec 27, 2012 1:24 PM

Ock Pop Tok shop, the lady liked Sangeet’s turban and wanted Sangeet to tie one on her.
Dec 27, 2012 12:46 PM

We then popped into saffron cafe for a strawberry smoothie.
Dec 27, 2012 1:58 PM

Red chillies
Dec 27, 2012 2:07 PM

We wandered around town for a while then made our way to The Royal Palace.
The Royal Palace (official name “Haw Kham”) in Luang Prabang, Laos, was built in 1904 during the French colonial era for King Sisavang Vong and his family. The site for the palace was chosen so that official visitors to Luang Prabang could disembark from their river voyages directly below the palace and be received there. After the death of King Sisavang Vong, the Crown Prince Savang Vatthana and his family were the last to occupy the grounds. In 1975, the monarchy was overthrown by the communists and the Royal Family were taken to re-education camps. The palace was then converted into a national museum.
Dec 27, 2012 2:15 PM
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On the way back through the night stall which was being setup we stopped at the vegetarian stall for a late lunch / early dinner. We were the first to arrive so were able to enjoy the buffet whilst fresh.

Dec 27, 2012 5:21 PM

In the evening I went to pick up the laundry from town and also had a one hour foot massage. It was a bargain at 40000kip (around £3)!

Goodbye Cambodia…..Hello Laos…..

Goodbye Cambodia…..Hello Laos…..

This morning we spent packing and a little time around the pool. Hotel provided a courtesy transfer to airport. It was sad saying goodbye to the hotel and Siem Reap. The hotel staff and service have been excellent. Definitely worth looking at Ebookers, hotels.com and Asia rooms, especially for late deals on hotels. This hotel cost us £35 a night for a five star hotel – cheaper than hostels we’ve stayed at! Sangeet really liked this place, especially the people who have been through so much, (The Khmer Rouge), literally translated as Red Khmers, was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea in Cambodia. It was formed in 1968 as an offshoot of the Vietnam People’s Army from North Vietnam. It was the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen, and Khieu Samphan. Democratic Kampuchea was the name of the state as controlled by the government of the Khmer Rouge from 1975 to 1979.
This organization is remembered primarily for its policy of social engineering, which resulted in genocide. Its attempts at agricultural reform led to widespread famine, while its insistence on absolute self-sufficiency, even in the supply of medicine, led to the deaths of thousands from treatable diseases such as malaria. Arbitrary executions and torture carried out by its cadres against perceived subversive elements, or during purges of its own ranks between 1975 and 1978, are considered to have constituted genocide.
By 1979, the Khmer Rouge had fled the country, while the People’s Republic of Kampuchea was being established. The governments-in-exile (including the Khmer Rouge) still had a seat in the UN at this point but it was later taken away, in 1993, as the monarchy was restored and the country underwent a name change to the Kingdom of Cambodia. A year later thousands of Khmer Rouge guerrillas surrendered themselves in a government amnesty. In 1996, a new political party the Democratic National Union Movement was formed by Ieng Sary, who was granted amnesty for all of his roles as the deputy leader of the Khmer Rouge. The organisation itself was officially dissolved sometime in December 1999. Despite this the people are still so warm and upbeat. We flew through security, no pun intended!. Security was very apologetic about scanning turban. Nice quaint airport restaurant bar few souvenir shops

Check in at Siem Reap

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Shops after security

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MA60 aircraft landing was in VERY heavy winds. I enjoyed it. You could hear cups falling in back where the stewardess is located. We had a 25 minute stopover at Pakse airport in Laos. This is used for transfer airport. First port of call I would have thought they had customs or issued the visa here. Waited 25 minutes and back on flight to Luang Prabang

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At Luang Prabang three queues one to hand in your visa on arrival application with passport, second to pay the visa amount varies country to country and pick up passport. Third to go through immigration. Picked up backpacks then took out some money from the ATM. 12,000 Lao Kip to UK£1

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Outside was met by the hotel staff drove to hotel which took 15 minutes.

Any Thong Hotel damn predictive text! Ang Thong Hotel
Lao-Thai Friendship Road,
Ban Naxang
Luang Prabang
Lao
T: +856 71 919 999
F: +856 71 919 777
E: [email protected]
W: www.angthong-hotel.com

Rated a 3 star hotel which opened 8 months ago. The staff are very friendly and the hotel is clean.

We had a wander around the hotel. Before hitting the bed, actually if I said retiring for the night sounds good but just not me!

My thoughts on Singapore…..

Singapore is an amazing country, I am so tempted to move there and work for a couple of years. The people are very friendly and the technology is everywhere….probably one of the many reasons I like the country.

Some of the sangat at the gurdwaras have been very warm. Hopefully, I will be back in Singapore near the end of January 2013. Meeting and chatting to Andrew was great, he gave us very good information which I will be acting upon.

I did notice more in Singapore then anywhere else that people are stuck to their phones, iPads, tablets. In restaurant you would see a group of people just stuck to their phones, not even talking to each other. Then I thought about myself sometimes I do the same. It is very easy to get caught up with being engrossed in technology and not paying attention to what is around one.

Goodbye Singapore…..

Goodbye Singapore…..

I felt pretty sad today as we are leaving Singapore, it is a fantastic city/country. After a light breakfast….yes you heard me…light….believe it or not we can do light meals! We checked out of the hostel. The taxi ride to the coach took 10 minutes and cost SGD$5.40.

The departure point is where there are many different coach companies:

5001, Beach Road
#01-16, Golden Mile Complex,
Singapore 199588

Dec 4, 2012 9:52 AM
Dec 4, 2012 9:53 AM

Our coach company is

StarMart Express Air Asia Liner Pte Ltd
Dec 4, 2012 10:03 AM

You are required to check in 30 minutes before the coach departs, therefore we were there at 10am. You could actually get there fifteen minutes before departure. Especially, as there were hardly any other passengers there.

The coach leaves a couple of blocks away from the ticket office, once we got there (be sure you get onto the correct numbered coach. There could be a couple of coaches from the same company waiting there.) we loaded the backpacks onto the coach, which is what you do yourself and made our way to the assigned seats.

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Individual massage system on every seat.
Dec 4, 2012 11:53 AM

About one hour into our journey we arrived at the border
Dec 4, 2012 11:31 AM

Dec 4, 2012 11:32 AM

A very simple process, you leave your luggage on the coach and go through customs. Once through the coach is waiting for you in the car park.

The bridge crossing over to Malaysia, I guess this is no mans land
Dec 4, 2012 11:41 AM

At the Malaysian border you take all your luggage off the coach and walk through customs
Dec 4, 2012 11:48 AM

The customs check your passport and then you take your luggage through a scanner.

Again, the coach is waiting for you in the car park. Welcome to Malaysia.

Driving this part of Malaysia you immediately notice how lush and green the land is.
Dec 4, 2012 3:17 PM
Dec 4, 2012 3:18 PM

Throughout the whole five hour journey there was one break, to stretch your legs and use the restrooms.
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Our first glimpse of Petronas Tower
Dec 4, 2012 4:09 PM

Arriving in KL, very hungry!
Dec 4, 2012 4:16 PM

Making our way to the hotel
Dec 4, 2012 4:20 PM
Dec 4, 2012 4:25 PM
Dec 4, 2012 4:25 PM

Arriving at the hotel
Dec 4, 2012 4:45 PM

Looking forward to a good night’s sleep!!
Dec 4, 2012 5:07 PM

View from the bedroom, situated on the eleventh floor
Dec 4, 2012 5:05 PM

For email subsscribers:

Ritz Carlton Bedroom #1111

Around 5pm to 8pm the heavens open up and it pours. We waited until it calmed down, then made our way to get dinner.

Dec 4, 2012 7:29 PM
Dec 4, 2012 7:31 PM

I immediately disliked Kuala Lumpur, every other shop seemed to have scantily dressed women offering a massage. It all looked sleazy. We are located in the Golden Triangle of KL. KL’s equivalent of the Central Business District(CBD) located to the north-east of the old city centre/old town. This is where you will find many of the city’s shopping malls, five-star hotels and the iconic Petronas Twin Towers. It looks like sleaze and wealth are next to each other!

It took us fifteen minutes to get to the restaurant

Woods Bio Marche
Eternal Happiness
Lot G-02,
Ground Floor
Wisma Bukit Bintang
28, Jalan Bukit Binag
55100 Kuala Lumpur
T: +60 3 2143 1636
F: +60 3 2143 4636

Dec 4, 2012 9:11 PM
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Dec 4, 2012 7:51 PM

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The food was excellent. A restaurant we should go back to. As we are getting close to MYR5 to GBP£1 the prices here are very cheap. The dinner cost us GBP£12.

On the way back to the hotel
Dec 4, 2012 9:30 PM
Dec 4, 2012 9:30 PM
Dec 4, 2012 9:33 PM
Dec 4, 2012 9:34 PM
Dec 4, 2012 9:36 PM

Starhill Gallery
Starhill Gallery is a luxury retail mall located in the Bukit Bintang shopping district of Kuala Lumpur. The mall opened in 1996 as Starhill Shopping Centre. In 1999, when business was in decline, it was acquired by YTL Corporation. YTL decided to do away with the anchor tenant-based business model and transform Starhill into a luxury brand retail centre. It underwent extensive renovation led by architect David Rockwell and reopened in July 2005 as Starhill Gallery.
The mall is connected to the JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur by a “Time Tunnel”

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Starhill Gallery

A relaxing day

A relaxing day

As if is our last day in Singapore we just spent the day relaxing and getting organised for Malaysia. First we went to the Khalsa Dharmak Sabha Gurdwara, another Gurdwara really close to our hostel! There was recitation of Sukhmani Sahib ongoing. After a short while, we headed over to

Whole Earth Vegetarian
76 Peck Seah St
(Tg Pagar MRT Exit A)
Singapore 079331
T: + 65 6323 3308
W: wwww.wholeearth.com.sg/

for lunch. We arrived just after 14:30. Unfortunately the restaurant shuts for lunch at 15:00 and takes last orders at 14:30. The restaurant was completely dead.

Our plan was to have lunch at Whole Earth Vegetarian and then head to the Gurdwara:

Gurdwara Sahib Silat Road
8 Jalan Bukit Merah
Singapore 169543
Tel: + 65 6222 2208
Fax: + 65 6225 1994
E: [email protected]

Dec 3, 2012 4:20 PM
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Fantastic windows

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As it was raining very heavily we took a taxi to the Gurdwara.
In the early days of Singapore, there were only two Gurdwaras in Singapore. Members of the Sikh Contingent of the Straits Settlements Police Force had their Gurdwara on Pearls Hill. The Civilian Sikhs had their Gurdwara in Queen Street.
It is only after the tombstone, found in the ground of General Hospital, was brought to Silat Road Gurdwara, on 12th October, 1966 that this Gurdwara became very popular with the Sikhs. The Samadh (tombstone) is believed to be that of the Sikh Saint-Solder, Bhai_Maharaj_Singh, the hero of the Sikh resistance to the British occupation of Punjab. The attraction of Silat Road Gurdwara is the Shrine of Bhai Maharaj Singh containing his Samadh.
Dec 3, 2012 4:21 PM

We had Guru Ka Langar at the Gurdwara. When I asked if they were serving Guru Ka Langar they asked me where I was from. I said England, they said “ok we will serve you. Usually we only serve between 11:30 to 2pm and then after 6pm.” I always thought it was served all day long. Whilst we were eating the Guru Ka Langar, a lady asked if she could have Guru Ka Langar, they said they would start serving at 6pm (it was around 3pm). Though we really appreciated the Guru ka Langar, his made us feel awkward, everybody is equal and everyone should be served equally, that is usually how things are done. Thankfully a little later they started serving biscuits in the Guru Ka Langar, with tea, so we didn’t feel as uncomfortable.

Afterwards we got a taxi back to the hostel as it was still raining heavily. It has rained every day we have been in Singapore! Sangeet went to the Gurdwara for the evening whilst I looked into options for transport to go to Malaysia tomorrow. We have the following options

1) Taxi – very expensive
2) Train – would miss the smaller towns
3) Fly – would not see a thing on the way
4) Coach – would see a lot of small towns, reasonably priced
5) Walk – we do not have that much time!

We decided on taking the coach. There are various operators, the prices range SGD$28 to SGD$124 depending on the level of luxury.

There are many express bus services from Singapore to KL. Some of the famous express bus operators like Starmart Air Asia Liner, Aeroline and First Coach offer almost hourly trip between Singapore and KL.
Most of the bus operators will depart at Golden Mile Complex. But they are some operators which depart at other location like Key Point (Golden Coach) Harbour Front (Aeroline), Novena (First Coach), Boon Lay Shopping Centre (Grassland, Konsortium and others) and many more. For the arrival location in KL, most coach will call off at Puduraya, the largest express bus terminal in Malaysia. Some coach will call off at other location like Berjaya Times Square (Starmart Air Asia Liner Express), Bangsar, 1 Utama Shopping Centre or Pasar Rakyat. Do note that some bus operator will offer non stop express bus service to KL and others will stop at Yong Peng for a short 20 to 30 minutes break. Please check with respective bus operator before book the ticket.

The table below list down the trip duration for some of the most popular
bus route in Malaysia/Singapore.

Please note that journey duration listed below is just an estimation only.
The actual travel time may varies depending on the traffic condition.

Trip Duration
Singapore to Malacca 4 hrs
Singapore to Seremban 5 hrs
Singapore to Kuala Lumpur 6 hrs
Singapore to Genting Highlands 7 hrs
Singapore to Shah Alam 7 hrs
Singapore to Klang 7 hrs
Singapore to KLIA/ LCCT 8 hrs
Singapore to Perak 8.5 hrs
Singapore to Butterworth 9 hrs
Singapore to Penang 10 hrs
Singapore to Hatyai 12 hrs
Genting Highlands toSingapore 7 hrs
Johor Bahru to Genting Highlands 6 hrs
Johor Bahru to Alor Setah 10 hrs
Johor Bahru to Kuala Lumpur 4.5 hrs
Johor Bahru to Seremban 4 hrs
Johor Bahru to Penang 9 hrs
Johor Bahru to Perak 8 hrs
Johor Bahru to Perlis 11 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to CameronHighlands 3 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Johor Bahru 5:5 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Kedah 7 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Seremban 1.5 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Penang 5 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Perak 3 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Perlis 8 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Singapore 5.5 hrs
Kuala Lumpur to Hatyai 9 hrs
Malacca to Johor Bahru 3 hrs
Malacca to Singapore 4 hrs
Seremban to Johor 4 hrs
Seremban to Kedah 9 hrs
Seremban to Kuala Lumpur 2 hrs
Seremban to Malacca 1 hrs
Seremban to Penang 8 hrs
Seremban to Perak 10 hrs
Seremban to Perlis 11 hrs
Seremban to Singapore 5 hrs
Penang to Johor 10 hrs
Penang to Kedah 1 hrs
Penang to Kuala Lumpur 5 hrs
Penang to Malacca 6.5 hrs
Penang to Seremban 7 hrs
Penang to Perak 2 hrs
Penang to Perlis 2 hrs
Penang to Klang/ Shah Alam 6 hrs
Penang to Singapore 11 hrs
Penang to Hatyai 3 hrs
Perak to Johor Bahru 8 hrs
Perak to Kedah 3 hrs
Perak to Kuala Lumpur 3 hrs
Perak to Malacca 4 hrs
Perak to Seremban 4 hrs
Perak to Penang 2 hrs
Perak to Singapore 9 hrs
Shah Alam to Singapore 6.5 hrs
Shah Alam to Butterworth 4.5 hrs
Shah Alam to Johor Bahru 5.5 hrs
Shah Alam to Penang 6 hrs
Klang to Singapore 6.5 hrs
Klang to Butterworth 4.5 hrs
Klang to Johor Bahru 5.5 hrs
Klang to Penang 6 hrs
LCCT/KLIA to Ipoh 4.5 hrs

I used the website www.busonlineticket.com which lists most of the operators, the times and ticket costs. We ended up using StarMart Express Air Asia Liner Pte Ltd the cost per ticket was SGD$30.

For accommodation I asked Maggie at American Express to look into it. She gave us two hotels from the Fine Hotels and Resorts package (Amex have negotiated with these hotels so that we get benefits like:

– Upgrade on arrival if available
– 4pm check out
– Breakfast included
– A complimentary afternoon tea for 2.

The benefits vary from hotel to hotel).

We asked Maggie to book:
THE RITZ CARLTON
KU168 Jalan Imbi
KUALA LUMPUR
MY 55100
Malaysia.

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