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Glutton street, muar

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Forget islands and highlands. Johor is where the organic hangouts, and incredible fun and happening people are. The female team invades the state for a 3D2N stay! By Rachel Law

Southbound adventure

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it roo Café17, Jalan Dhoby, 80000, Johor Bahruopening hours 12pm to 9.30pm dailyContact 07-222 7780

Leaving a food treasure trove like Muar was not easy but we moved on to JB. A household name for its chicken chop, entering IT Roo felt like a blast to the past with its black and white photographs and antique collection scattered across this humble diner. Our favourites of the night were the mee mamak – served with scrambled eggs and seafood: a premium flavour that’s super addictive! – and grilled chicken chop with mushroom sauce. Best part about the latter was the sauce, which was filled with actual bite-worthy mushroom slices. Price RM13 for chicken chop, RM7 for mee mamak

DAY ONE

Glutton street, muar Jalan Haji Abu, 84000 Muar opening hours Morning to evening

What is a trip to Johor without visiting its gourmet paradise – Muar? Along Glutton Street, hawker stalls and coffee shops embellish a backdrop of colourful, well-preserved heritage structures, reminiscent of pretty Ipoh town. In no time, we were tucking into Muar’s famous otak-otak, which cost only 60 and 70 sen for each fish and prawn cake, respectively. They tasted nothing like the ones in KL, which tend to smell and taste too fishy for my liking. Pasty, flavourful and best nibbled hot off the grill, they were an interesting introduction to Muar!

mee bandung abu bakar hanipah Wah San Kopitiam, 69A, Jalan Abdullah, 84000 Muaropening hours 6am to 5pm dailyContact 012-264 2720, 017-260 7383

While Glutton Street offers an abundance of lip-smacking Chinese delicacies, I thought we shouldn’t miss the equally famous Malay dishes. In the scorching heat, we searched high and low for an 80-year-old mee bandung place we’d heard of. When we finally found it, we were greeted by its media-friendly owner (we figured from the magazine and newspaper cuttings sprawled over the wall), who quickly whipped up four plates of the fragrant, sweet and spicy, gravy-drenched noodles, packed with dry shrimps and a beautifully-poached egg each – so fulfilling for both tummy and taste buds! Price RM4 for a small plate.

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Looking so fly in the

new Honda City!

Thanks for not getting us lost!

So what’s for dessert?

WITH THE BOSS, ROBIN JIAN

GRILLED CHICKEN CHOp WITH MUSHROOM SAUCE

LOOKS LEGIT TO US!

FISH AND pRAWN OTAK-OTAK

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johor premium

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Chaiwalla & Co.

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the Girl next

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the Girl next door hair n dress 8A, Jalan Dhoby, 80000, Johor Bahru opening hours 12pm to 10pm (Monday to Saturday)Contact 07-222 4178 website www.facebook.com/tgndhairndress

Whoever said people in JB don’t know how to dress cannot be more mistaken. The Girl Next Door owner Beverly Bee’s individualistic and valiant style would put most self-

proclaimed fashionistas in KL to shame. TGND has been standing strong for the past eight years for an obvious reason; Beverly’s ensemble of pre-loved designer apparel and vintage goods are nothing short of exclusive – figuratively and literally! Going up to the first floor where TGND is at is akin to climbing to an old attic full of fashion jewels waiting to be explored, adored and adorned.

Chaiwalla & Co. Container Café Lot 2810, Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, 80000, Johor Bahru opening hours 10.30am to 10.30pm (Sunday to Thursday), 10.30am to 1am (Friday and Saturday)Contact 012-735 3572website www.facebook.com/chaiwalla.co

This must be the epitome of industrial sophistication! Two jet-black shipping containers transformed into an artistic tea joint – a refreshing addition to the stretch of old-fashioned shops and quaint cafes in the heritage trail. Inspired by the film Slumdog Millionaire, Chaiwalla (the word means ‘tea boy’ in Hindi) offers a variety of teas sourced from Taiwan, India and Thailand, plus milk tea, coffee and smoothies as well as baked desserts and pastries. If you happen to patronise Chaiwalla on a ridiculously hot day like we did, the passion fruit and mango smoothie topped with yogurt pops will rejuvenate and sweeten your day in an instant. You’ll get minute doses of yogurt from popping the ‘bubbles’! Price RM7.80 (large), RM6.80 (regular)

johor premium outlets Jalan premium Outlets, Indahpura, 81000 Kulaijaya opening hours 10am to 10pm dailywebsite www.premiumoutlets.com.my

Nourished with a hearty breakfast at the hotel, we started the day by invading South East Asia’s first luxury premium brand outlet. Sure, our wallets weren’t quite ready for the big players like Salvatore Ferragamo and Michael Kors but we found guiltless pleasures at Gap. All thanks to my colleague Amanda’s stained shirt, the rest of us couldn’t resist getting an ultra-snug cotton T-shirt for RM30 each, which was half the retail price! From the super-vast parking lot and boundless open-air shopping grounds to over 80 stores and discounts starting from 25 per cent, this is truly – hands-down – every woman’s stress-free shopping experience!

DAY TwO

the new honda City The City has always got style locked down so we were extremely pleased to take this baby on our road trip! So what if it’s not a SUV – the new City is still big on territory and comfort from the front to the back seats, and boy, the trunk space is just generous! Fuel consumption is acceptable and fitting for urban driving but we wouldn’t advise gunning the City on the highway because you can’t expect an average-sized engine (1.5-litre) to be fuel-economical at 120km/h. Speaking of speed, the City handles it pretty steadily despite its light physique while its suspension and cornering are just as stable – a hardcore urbanite, all right! Although it holds a close resemblance to its older brother, the new City remains one of our favourite rides. Rating: ¶¶¶¶¶

BE YOUR OWN TEA MASTER (OR

BARISTA)!Customise your drink by

choosing between tea, milk tea and coffee or a smoothie for the base then pick a flavour,

add a topping or two and finally specify your preferred

amount of sugar!

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fujifilm instax 210 hello kitty Bigger is better rings true with this instant camera! The wide picture format and 62 x 99mm colour films (twice as wide as the Instax Mini film) meant we were able to capture more people and larger-than-life sites like the LEGOLAND arch and Chaiwalla cafe without compromising on details. Because of all that mad dashing, we didn’t really play around with the exposure control and ended up with a few underexposed shots. Most, however, turned out crystal clear and pretty, yay! We certainly wish it wasn’t so bulky. Rating: ¶¶¶¶¶

At night, the word ‘CITY’ is illuminated on the driver’s and front passenger’s door sills. Swell feature, we think!

Thanks for coming,

female!

Have more of our

brownies!

How fast can this go?

THE HOT WEATHER CALLS FOR A DRINK!

IF ONLY WE HAD ALL DAY!

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roost repurposed and recycled salad bar 14, Jalan Trus, 80000 Johor Bahru opening hours 6pm to 12am daily (closed on Tuesdays)Contact 017-726 7489website www.facebook.com/RoostRepurposedRecycleSaladBar

Established by the same mastermind behind Roost Juice + Bar (just a few stores away), Roost Repurposed and Recycled is the wonderland for every health-conscious tree hugger and DIY aficionado. Unlike its eight-year-old sibling, which offers Western and Asian fare (your drinks come in colourful little buckets, how endearing!), owner Sea Wong hopes to reach out to customers about healthy eating, hence its star

spread of salads and frozen yogurt. Make your way upstairs and be blown away by the interior that would make Martha Stewart proud. Ninety per cent of it was built from scratch by Sea and his partner,

Kenny Lim, using materials gathered from recycling centres. By the way,

neither partner studied interior design or architecture.

JB CALLING:The close-knit relationship within the community at Tan Hiok Nee

Heritage Trail was heart-warming and eye-opening. Store and cafè owners are incredibly supportive of each other; we were actually introduced to Roost by Beverly

(TGND) and Amy (Psychedelic) as well as Robin (IT Roo)!

psychedelic 21, Jalan Dhoby, 80000 Johor Bahruopening hours 5pm to 2am daily (closed on Mondays)Contact 012-703 3697website www.facebook.com/pscdlc

Since we started the day shopping, why not end it with the same MO, right? This humble boutique is managed by Amy, who flies to Bangkok once a month or every fortnight to update her loyal clientele and surprise potential shopaholics. From skull-emblazoned, body-con skirts and retro dresses to vibrant statement necklaces and even menswear, they are all brand new, and better yet, affordable! Trust us on this.Price From RM5 to RM100

lat’s place Showtime 1.15pm and 6.15pm daily. To be honest, we thought forking out RM120 for dinner was a little too much but after hearing all the hype, we were psyched. Instead of a ‘restaurant’, we were seated in an air-conditioned cardboard kampong setting, complete with sounds of goats bleating, children running about, etc. The staff sang and danced a welcome routine before we were addressed by animated LAToons from a screen, with whom we interacted and danced along in between three courses of authentic Malay cuisine. Not only did we savour impeccable dishes, we found ourselves revisiting Datuk Lat’s black and white cartoons via the screen. A one-of-a-kind experience, genuinely Malaysian and worth every ringgit!Price RM120 (choose between normal and vegetarian menu)

STOP 4 STOP 5puteri harbourfamily theme park persiaran puteri Selatan, puteri Harbour, 79000 NusajayaContact 03-2203 9662 website www.playtime.com.my

sanrio hello kitty town Opening hours 10am to 6pm daily (closed on Tuesdays except school and public holidays) Okay, we might as well admit it. Some of us were in complete denial of our adoration of this mouth-less cat from Japan. But the girlish fantasy within Hello Kitty Town reversed all that! The magic swept us away as soon as we entered this pink paradise; picture four 20-somethings squealing like five year olds! Every nook and cranny was a perfect photo opportunity but it was in Hello Kitty House that we ooh-ed and aah-ed at the extensive merchandise ranging from kitchenware to furniture and toiletries. Since we were already there, we thought we might as well complete every child-friendly activity available. Photographer Ting looked smug about his fancily-painted digits at the DIY nail salon! Price RM55 for MyKad holders, RM75 for non-MyKad holders

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Amanda: Are you

sure we’re on the right

track? Rachel: The GPS is always

right!

Beatrice: Are we

there yet?

I want to stay here forever..

CUTENESS OvERLOAD!

HAppY pEOpLE WITH HAppY TUMMIES!

DEAR DANIEL, HELLO KITTY AND MELODY – YES, WE ACTUALLY KNOW THEIR NAMES.

KAWAII pOSES, CHECK!

SUpER SUMpTUOUS OTAK-OTAK, YUM!

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legoland 7, Jalan LEGOLAND, Bandar Medini Iskandar Malaysia, 79250 Nusajaya opening hours 10am to 6pm/8pm daily (closed on Wednesdays, please refer to website for specific opening hours) Contact 07-597 8888website www.legoland.com.my

As clichéd as it may sound, this is a place for people of all ages! Travel bugs and photographers would be thrilled to snap away at the MINILAND, which lets you explore the world under an hour with miniature LEGO structures – from the Petronas Twin Towers to the Taj Mahal. Call me a scaredy-cat but I almost got a heart attack riding The Dragon and LEGO TECHNIC but daredevils like our designer, Beatrice, should go ahead and ride it twice! After taking a gazillion photos around the park, we had a lovely roast chicken lunch at Market Restaurant and went bonkers at The Big Shop (over 2,000 LEGO products!) before heading home – outrageously happy! Price RM140 (RM20 rebate for MyKad holders and 20 per cent discount if booked online minimum seven days ahead)

DID YOU KNOW?

LEGOLAND Malaysia is the first in Asia and sixth

in the world. The park has more than 50 million

LEGO bricks, whoa!

DAY THREE

Garmin nÜVi 52lm The 52LM is one of Garmin’s newest additions this year, and we like that it did away with the rounded corners, adopting a more rectangular and sleeker look, especially in its slim 5” display. The operating system has been revamped without interrupting the user-friendliness of the device. For some reason, it couldn’t locate

several destinations – the most mind-boggling one being tourist hotspot Tan Hiok Nee Heritage Trail or Jalan Dhoby. Nonetheless, features like ‘Lane Assist’ and ‘Junction View’ did an awesome job in guiding us into the right lanes and junctions. Best part? This model comes with free lifetime updates! Rating: ¶¶¶¶¶

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Oh, my heart!

I’m all packed; let’s go home!

So comfy I don’t wanna

get out...

EvERYTHING WAS BUILT WITH MINI LEGO BLOCKS HERE IN MINILAND — DON’T MESS!

MANDATORY JUMpING pOSE, CHECK!