Retreat at Maxwell Hill, Taiping

Ah, it has been really long since I actually went for a good retreat. This time around, a few church friends & I went up to Maxwell Hill (Bukit Larut) in Taiping :) We were there for only 2 days 1 night (29-30 December 2007) as I can't take leave on the 31st of December...bah.The journey from KL to Taiping wasn't too long. We were pretty much excited cos it was the first time that this group is out for a retreat together...heehee... I can't recall why we we ended up with Maxwell Hill...hmm...but we sure enjoyed our short little break there ;)

There were 8 of us in total, 3 guys & 5 girls (we went in 2 cars). Thanks to a friend in Taiping, David, we got everything arranged for us nicely & all we had to do was just to pay & have fun! Hahaha... :lol: We stayed at The Nest, a bungalow situated right at the top of yet another 'hill'. The hike up to that bungalow was pretty tough as we had our bags & all, but it was enjoyable indeed. Heh.

Well, to cut the story short, the few activities that we had up there were sharing, worship, prayer, makan, UNO card game, & definitely a time of catching up (since we basically meet up only once a year when everyone comes back from overseas). We also went around Taiping town on our 2nd day for makan, makan, & more makan in the 2hours that we had before we left for KL again.

I reckon pictures will speak for itself ;) (though I didn't take that many with my camera this time around...) I would highly recommend this place if any of you would want a quiet & serene place to relax & shy away from the busy city life.

How our room looks like + the guys (Jinn, Nick, Chris)


Lunch Day 1 at The Nest


After lunch, we went for a walk... (L-R: Gloria, Nick, Yith, Jes, Chris, Hsu)


This was something that I found interesting...I like the formation of the leaves :P Ferns!


The evening sky on Day 1


Dinner Day 1 at The Nest- steamboat! Yummilicious! Food at The Nest is GOOD! :lol: The home-made fried beancurd items were exceptionally delicious! :P


Group photos taken on Day2 at The Nest


2nd best cendol in Taiping town- Bismillah Cendol




Somehow I feel that the cendol ain't that nice although the place is pretty packed. I much prefer the one that I had in Kuantan...hahaha...I'm yet to find the most delicious cendol, but frankly speaking, I'm not a great fan of cendol, so it won't be my priority to hunt for the nest cendol after all! ;)

I reckon this will be the last post from us for the year 2007. The year has been an exciting one, with loads of events, adventures, & transitions (from uni life to work life) for both Anne & myself. We hope that our dear readers will stay tuned as we continue on our journey for more food, fun, friendship, & adventures!

PerutBesi would like to wish all its readers a very Happy New Year & a great year ahead!!

- Ruth

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Merry Christmas!

Christmas is here! The city is brightly lit & almost every departmental store is having their Christmas & end year sales! How exciting :D

I wonder how many who are going through the hustel & bustle of this season know the true meaning of Christmas. This season is so commercialized that it is losing its meaning *sigh* The celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ marks Christmas. Without His birth, there's no need for us to celebrate Christmas (unless people just want to have some insignificant kinda celebration, without a purpose!).

The celebration comes along with Hope, Joy, a Promise fulfilled, & Love. With families & friends gathering for the celebration, loads of food to indulge in, a galore of gifts to open up, & a time where you would probably see most smiles :) , Christmas is truly a day to reflect on & enjoy.

We, the PerutBesi duo, would like to wish all our readers a wonderful Christmas & an exciting year ahead, filled with hope, promises fulfilled, & all things good! :lol: Stay tuned!

- Ruth & Anne

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Lindt Swiss Chocolate (Dark Collection)

What would make a PerutBesi-an happy? Mmm...certainly food! But what makes us even more delighted are chocolates! Even more, good chocolates!! :P

I had the pleasure to receive a box of dark chocolates from my friend, Nat, who just came back from Australia for a semester break. Wow... the chocolates that I received were wonderful! Certainly I can't compare Lindt Chocolates with Godiva Chocolatiers, but this collection is certainly gooood... thank you SO much, Nat!! :D

Named, Lindt Swiss Chocolate (Dark Collection), I found out that this collection costs almost RM70! *faints* There are only 14 chocolates in the gold-coloured box, which looks extremely classy, & I found it very difficult to move the chocolates from its comfort zone...haha...

(taken with my housemate's camera phone)




I believe very strongly that such chocolates are to be slowly enjoyed. Not everyone knows how to enjoy such yummilicious chocolates, especially when it's dark chocolates. (I know for sure that my housemate can't appreciate such stuff) Eating such chocolates sure reminds me that life is indeed 'bitter sweet' & I like it that way ;)

- Ruth

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Weekend Down South...

I made a trip down south to JB with a friend, James, this recent weekend (Saturday-Sunday). The trip was indeed a short one, & quite a rushed one, but it was all good :) We were there to visit our friend, Mabel, who just came back from Aussie for her uni-break.

The entire trip was focused on eating, catching up, & sleeping...hahaha. Our first meal was beef noodles & duck cooked in soy sauce (lou ngap) at Cathay! The beef noodles were pretty good, I've to say. It's different from the Seremban one, but the meat was tender & the flavour was yummy! The duck was also very delicious! Too bad I didn't manage to take any photos throughout the entire trip using my camera as there were some problems with my camera batteries.

We also had the irresistable ice kacang at Taman Pelangi (with chocolate sauce!) & the ice jelly (finely shaved ice with lemon flavoured jelly, watermelon cubes, & canned fruits of all sorts) for tea on Saturday :P Yums! Enjoying such delights really make our day ;)

I have to recommend the dinner place that we went to. This restaurant is called San Low. It's located at Taman Pelangi, Johor Bahru, & it serves very yummy fried baby squids, fried bee hoon, & many other dishes :P If you are around that area, you have to stop by that restaurant for a meal (usually opened for dinner). It's well patroned by locals & Singaporeans alike, & I reckon the price isn't too steep :)

I had such a wonderful time with my friends & family there that it was kinda sad to leave that place on Sunday afternoon. It'll be at least another 300+ days before I can meet up with Mabel again. Bah. I look forward to more makan & catch up trips like this. It may be rather tiring, but it's something that keeps me refreshed to face a new week ahead! ;)

Darling Mabes, James hon, & Ruthie


- Ruth

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Hunt for Beef Noodles

Last Tuesday (11 December 2007) was a public holiday for Selangor (Sultan's birthday). I had a blast of a day! I decided to make a trip to Seremban...a totally mad idea, to meet my friend, Nat, & also to makan! Teeheehee :D

My housemate, Edwin, was very gracious to give me a lift to the nearest KTM station & I took a train all the way to Seremban to meet Nat. :) We had the famous Seremban beef noodles in town....this time around, we went to this shop called Yee Kee. It's a slightly more 'posh-looking' shop that sells beef noodles. The noodles are not too bad, really, but I reckon nothing beats the classic market ones!

(I finally uploaded the photos... :P)

A bowl of mixed beef noodles (dry) costs RM5.50


The beef balls ain't too bad too... that costs around RM3.50 for a small bowl


Green tea costs roughly RM2 & it's not too bad in fragrance ;)


I guess, what's best is not the food, but the fellowship & time of catching up with a friend. It's one of my best days for this week & I surely look forward to more fun at the end of the week as I'll be heading down south to JB & probably Singapore!

- Ruth

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The Graduated Perutbesi Duo!

Yup, we've finally graduated!! Alas, it was a long awaited journey. The past 3 years of studying was indeed an enriching one :) We'll share more on our convocation soon! As for now, do check out more on our convo in our Perutbesi in the Work-World page. Stay tuned!! :lol:



- Ruth

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