A very good start with first trip, Miri of welcoming new year 2012.
I bought the flight tickets for my family last year due to the cheap flights offered by AirAsia. Our initial plan is to visit my relative in Brunei but now plan changed to stay in Miri.
Miri was not a new place to us as we had been there eight years ago. I still could recall my very first flight to Miri. My brother and I played t.tennis competition there but didn't travel much.
First day (14th Jan)
I didn't sleep through the night after coming home from watching our best badminton player, Dato' Lee Chong Wei's game in Stadium Bukit Jalil (Malaysia Open).
We took a bus from KL Sentral and reached LCCT at 7.15am. We took our breakfast at McDonald before boarding.
The flight took two hours to reach Miri Airport. From there, we took a taxi to Park Hotel. We are lucky that they allowed us to check-in earlier. The facilities are acceptable except no hair dryer and remote control for TV.
After unpacking our luggage, we went to do some exploration in town. I did some "homework" about Miri.. hehe..
Park Hotel is a strategic location where we could travel easily as bus station and Visitors Information Centre are just nearby the hotel. I was disappointed that the Visitor Information Centre is closed. According to a book and Miri Brochures, the Centre should be operating on Weekends. It seems that such information was not updated.
Our first visiting is Tamu Kedayan and Tamu Muhibbah. Tamu means market and it's an old Malay term. Those sellers are mostly orang Ulu such as Melanau, Iban, Kedayan, Bidayu, etc. They were selling variety of fruits and vegetables.
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| Fruits |
You could find some special fruits which is different from KL such as Salak Madu, Buah Asam Mbang and wild Durian. We were fortunate to taste their Durian at this season especially my dad who is a Durian-eater. The flesh is yellow colour and sweet. Vegetables such as Paku and Petai were sold almost every stalls. I found something which is interesting. Normally fruits and vegetables were measured by weighing scale. However, you couldn't find that in their market, instead they measured by plate. They called it "Tompok".
Mee Golok was our very first dish. The price is between RM2.30 to RM2.50. This is the cheapest dish in town. It was my brother's favourite food in Miri. Do you know how much it cost last time? Only RM1.70.
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| Tua Pek Kong Temple |
Our next destination is Tua Pek Kong Temple, the oldest Chinese Temple in Miri. They will be celebrating their 100th Anniversary next year.
A taxi driver recommended famous Indonesian food to us-Lalapan Ikan and Lalapan Ayam at Surabaya shop. The price is between RM8 to RM10.
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| Food |
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| View of Miri Town |
Second Day (15th Jan)
We went to the beach, Taman Selera/Brighton Beach early in the morning. It was quiet and the sound of the wave so lively. The wind kept blowing at us all the time and it's really relaxing. However, we were not allowed to swim due to high current. My brother collected some small seashells.
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| Brighton Beach |
After spending sometime at the beach, we took a taxi to Canada Hill. The taxi driver was a friendly guy who explained to us the history of oil drilling in Miri. Grand Old Lady is our very first oil well in Malaysia. We also visited Petroleum Museum which explained further about the process of oil drilling.
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| Grand Old Lady |
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| Petroleum Museum in Miri |
In the afternoon, we had our lunch in a Chinese shop. My mum ordered Mee Pok. It was quite similar to Pan Mee style. My brother ate Mee Chap (It's a bowl with all the pork mixed). My dad took Traditional Mee Sua (contains some alcohol) whereas I tried their Mee Merah (Looks quite oily). The price of the food is quite cheap (around RM3.50-RM5.00).
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| Food |
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| Eating Time |
Around 5pm, we took a walk to Waterfront Commercial Centre. It's quite a distance. The area consists of office lots. I found Kek Lapis (Layer Cake) at Bakery Shop. This is one of their Sarawak's specialty. Of course, I bought some back to KL. Hehe..
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| Fishing Village at Waterfront Commercial Centre |
A hon sound was heard and we saw a ferry passing through in front of the Waterfront Commercial Centre to go to the sea. Only then, we realised there was a fishing village and seafood restaurant, Yu Ha Hai. The view is quite similar to Kuala Selangor.
We tried Midin with Belacan in Muara Restaurant instead of seafood.
Walking at night in Miri was totally different scenery from KL. Not so many cars on the street and most of the shops were closed at 6pm. I could say the night of Miri is like a deserted place.
Third and Fourth Day (16-17th Jan)
I heard that Laksa Sarawak is also their famous dish so we ordered in a coffee shop. They don't put "Tau Foo Pok" but could taste some herbs in their curry soup. It wasn't spicy but I still prefer Laksa in Penang. All of us tried the laksa except my dad who ordered porridge with pork mixed.
My mum did some shopping in their market before going back to KL. She bought their Belacan, Nasi Bario (planted by Orang Ulu) and Petai.
The street of Miri was started decorating with Chinese New Year ambiance. Several stalls have been setup to sell all kinds of foods, clothes, etc. The place was crowded with people.
A bid farewell to Miri once again. It has been my memorable journey. I like the people and the food. :)
I hope my readers would enjoy reading my blog and would like to wish you, Gong Xi Fatt Cai. May this Dragon year brings you and your family good health, happiness and prosperity. ^.^
