..the water is clean as a whistle and the air is warm as toast..
Oh how lovely it sounded. Except the image of me and the kiddies dipping into the blue ocean on warm toasty days was marred by jellyfish season. Gawd, we totally did not anticipate that yet it was the first warning given to us by the tour guide. Oh well, other activities abound, especially when there's 41 of us altogether! ;)
I was rather nervous for Sofia, she did not take to air travel well the last time but with a few tricks up my sleeve, involving cough syrup, crayons and a portable DVD player, she and I managed pretty well.
We stayed at Holiday Villa Langkawi, it came recommended as the most "family-friendly hotel in Langkawi" by our agent. Not sure about family-friendly bit- the lift was broken from Day 1 so we had to brave the stairs with our prams and what-not, but it did have an indoor playroom and outdoor playground. Our upgraded Studio room was spacious and could accommodate 4 people comfortably- there was a big King sized bed, a sofa bed and a pull-out bed.
There were many interesting places to explore in Langkawi, but we avoided the touristy areas preferring to stick to the culinary road to obesity.
This restaurant was a 5min walk from our hotel. It ended up being rather pricey but it's offers a quaint 'kampung' experience, complete with musical instruments and clogs for the kiddies to try.
Hafidz and Yadali entertained us with their antiques and the kids joined in the fun, so much so we spent the rest of the evening here (plus it was raining and we had nowhere to go).
Sofia was pretty pooped by then, having missed her afternoon nap, and demonstrated her famous 'koala cling' with the future SIL who found it too adorable.
Day 2 was a lot more hectic- I think the tour leader (aka MIL) intended to cover all of Langkawi in one day! We went to the very fun Underwater World, spooky Mahsuri Mausoleum, adventurous jungle trail horse-riding and managed to pop into 2 malls where I quickly grabbed foodstuff for Sofia's birthday party the following day. It was pure marathon but we had hired 3 vans and wanted to make it worth our pretty penny.
Underwater World:
Mahsuri Mausoleum:
Arissa and one of the little cousins experienced something a quite strange at this place, but lets leave that to another day hey? Its bad ju ju going into a ghost story when its supposed to be a fun holiday entry! :) In any case, it made the trip a little more memorable and surely talked-about.
The jungle trail horse riding was one we spent a lot of time at. The whole stable was owned by Mahathir Mohamad, the horses were gifts from the Saudi king. Everyone wanted a ride, the husband included, and Arissa just.won't.take.'no' for an answer. I was only worried because unlike Singapore's Gallop Stable with little ponies suitable for kids her age, these ones are full-grown Arabian horses and I was not allowed to walk alongside her. But adamant she was, so I caved in.
For RM50, it was a grand experience and I'm surprised, yet pleased, at her bravery. Maybe its time to sign up for riding lessons??
The rest of the holiday was pretty relaxed- we had a Sunday pool party for Sofia's 2nd birthday with her 14 cousins. We stumbled upon a bakery who was willing to deliver the cute cupcakes to the hotel. On hindsight, I should have ordered proper food too because the kids and adults were famished even though we had just finished a wide spread of buffet breakfast.
And that pretty much summed up our family holiday- I loved the fact that Sofia and I bonded like never before, without the Helper hovering over us. All the rules were thrown out the window during the 5 day break- she was allowed to eat & nap whenever she pleased, in whatever amount she desired. I think that made it a lot less stressful for me and her.
I did however, lose my head one night, when after a long day and the husband gone MIA on his rented scrambler bike, Sofia threw down a bottle of Arissa's neon blue nail polish in the hotel room. The glass bottle shattered into pieces and blue nail polish splattered all over the room. GAAAAHHHHH!!!!
The one lovely thing about traveling with a big group of family is one could always count on a lending hand. :)
Photo Gallery:
I was rather nervous for Sofia, she did not take to air travel well the last time but with a few tricks up my sleeve, involving cough syrup, crayons and a portable DVD player, she and I managed pretty well.
We stayed at Holiday Villa Langkawi, it came recommended as the most "family-friendly hotel in Langkawi" by our agent. Not sure about family-friendly bit- the lift was broken from Day 1 so we had to brave the stairs with our prams and what-not, but it did have an indoor playroom and outdoor playground. Our upgraded Studio room was spacious and could accommodate 4 people comfortably- there was a big King sized bed, a sofa bed and a pull-out bed.
There were many interesting places to explore in Langkawi, but we avoided the touristy areas preferring to stick to the culinary road to obesity.
This restaurant was a 5min walk from our hotel. It ended up being rather pricey but it's offers a quaint 'kampung' experience, complete with musical instruments and clogs for the kiddies to try.
Hafidz and Yadali entertained us with their antiques and the kids joined in the fun, so much so we spent the rest of the evening here (plus it was raining and we had nowhere to go).
Sofia was pretty pooped by then, having missed her afternoon nap, and demonstrated her famous 'koala cling' with the future SIL who found it too adorable.
Day 2 was a lot more hectic- I think the tour leader (aka MIL) intended to cover all of Langkawi in one day! We went to the very fun Underwater World, spooky Mahsuri Mausoleum, adventurous jungle trail horse-riding and managed to pop into 2 malls where I quickly grabbed foodstuff for Sofia's birthday party the following day. It was pure marathon but we had hired 3 vans and wanted to make it worth our pretty penny.
Underwater World:
Mahsuri Mausoleum:
Arissa and one of the little cousins experienced something a quite strange at this place, but lets leave that to another day hey? Its bad ju ju going into a ghost story when its supposed to be a fun holiday entry! :) In any case, it made the trip a little more memorable and surely talked-about.
The jungle trail horse riding was one we spent a lot of time at. The whole stable was owned by Mahathir Mohamad, the horses were gifts from the Saudi king. Everyone wanted a ride, the husband included, and Arissa just.won't.take.'no' for an answer. I was only worried because unlike Singapore's Gallop Stable with little ponies suitable for kids her age, these ones are full-grown Arabian horses and I was not allowed to walk alongside her. But adamant she was, so I caved in.
For RM50, it was a grand experience and I'm surprised, yet pleased, at her bravery. Maybe its time to sign up for riding lessons??
The rest of the holiday was pretty relaxed- we had a Sunday pool party for Sofia's 2nd birthday with her 14 cousins. We stumbled upon a bakery who was willing to deliver the cute cupcakes to the hotel. On hindsight, I should have ordered proper food too because the kids and adults were famished even though we had just finished a wide spread of buffet breakfast.
And that pretty much summed up our family holiday- I loved the fact that Sofia and I bonded like never before, without the Helper hovering over us. All the rules were thrown out the window during the 5 day break- she was allowed to eat & nap whenever she pleased, in whatever amount she desired. I think that made it a lot less stressful for me and her.
I did however, lose my head one night, when after a long day and the husband gone MIA on his rented scrambler bike, Sofia threw down a bottle of Arissa's neon blue nail polish in the hotel room. The glass bottle shattered into pieces and blue nail polish splattered all over the room. GAAAAHHHHH!!!!
The one lovely thing about traveling with a big group of family is one could always count on a lending hand. :)
Photo Gallery:
