Renewing The Maid's Work Permit under my Residents Pass

For the past years, renewing my work permit at Putrajaya was a breeze, even when I was applying for a maid's work permit. They had a room which was especially catering for expats and professionals, where you can get a comfortable seat while waiting. Imagine my shock when I went to Putrajaya last April 2013 to find that things have changed.

They had a bright new reception which welcomes you as you go up the 2nd floor, which wasn't there before. I asked where I could go renew my maid permit which is under my name (which is under a Residents Pass RP). The girl pointed me to a door which had no sign whatsoever near the elevator... I wasn't sure if I understood her correctly as it didn't seem to have any room after the elevator, so I asked again and she repeated what she said. True enough after you open the unmarked door, it reveals a brightly-lit new office which had a small waiting area with seats. A huge sign behind its counter states "Inspectorate Unit"and there was no visible process of queueing so I decided to just stand behind the guys who were talking to the officers. After a few minutes wait, I stated my case. They had to call someone else who was in charge of the RP and when she looked at my case, she finally informed me that I didn't have to line up in that room, and instead need to go to the 1st floor to apply the maid permit there. I asked which window, and she wasn't sure which one... great. I had to go find out myself. I went to the 1st floor to ask someone else only to discover I was in the wrong area, seems to be the area for locals to pay for some stuff which I don't understand because it was all in Malay.

To sum it up, one had to go to the 1st floor, after you get up from the escalator area you need to turn left. I went to the Information Counter, which had a short queue, and he gave me a ticket and we waited shortly for our turn. After speaking to the officer there, I then discovered that I had to apply for FOMEMA once again for my maid, despite that it is a renewal.

And guess my surprise when I found out from FOMEMA office that in order for me to get a form from them to allow my maid to go for a check up, I had to go get a bank draft in order to settle the payment as they do not allow cash transactions!

I went to my bank in Mont Kiara (this is after the long drive from Putrajaya), got a bank draft, then drove to FOMEMA office in Publika. Finally got the papers and my maid went for a check up at Global Doctors which is nearby. Thank God I didn't have to wait too long at the FOMEMA office... there were many counters to serve people.

I was quite pooped and tired after all that driving, and to top it off I am 4.5 months pregnant at that time. All this inefficiency could have been avoided if I could have spoken to someone in Putrajaya. However, I tried calling for more than a week and realized no one was answering or it was the wrong department. I was astonished because it was not like this before. After speaking to the officer at Putrajaya, now I discovered why. It seems that Putrajaya has re-shuffled the place and planning to "improve" their services. Hence, the offices were renovated, phone lines were probably not moved yet or simply some of them are still confused?

I hope they can get their act together soon so people don't have to go through what I have been through. It was super efficient in the past. I hope they get back in shape like before.

Overall, for the maid work permit, I paid around RM 500+++ then another RM 190 for the FOMEMA test.

I read in the Expat magazine that they were improving their Expatriate services in Putrajaya. I hope they get their act together soon, and I look forward to a smooth transaction perhaps next year when I need to renew again. Some articles that were written about the "improvements" and useful links:

1. Borneo Post
2. Malaysia Immigration
3. The Malaysian Insider
4. The Star

To people out there who plan to renew their maid's work permit I suggest you do it a month before expiry so that you have ample time to do what is necessary. I am glad I did, else I wouldn't have had enough time before the deadline. The FOMEMA result took almost 10 working days to come out.

Cameron Highlands Resort under the Resident Package: Is it Worth It?

This May, Mother's Day, we decided to spend it with cool weather so we gave Cameron Highlands another visit. After 6 years living in KL, we have been to the highlands a few times... but this time we decided to try the YTL hotel called Cameron Highlands Resort. The hotel looked impressive from the outside and I wonder if it will live up to the expectations because we have had good experiences with YTL's Pangkor Laut (that is why we went back there a few times).

Below is an excerpt of what I wrote for my TripAdvisor review of our May 2013 trip:

Under the resident package, the hotel price is reasonable with all meals included. We have frequented Ytl's resorts for the past 6 years and this one was a letdown.

Went Friday-Sunday, discovered there was a large group checking in hence their deluxe rooms all out, so we got a free upgrade to a 2-bedroom. I thought it was perfect as we went with 3-year old daughter. Turned out to be a so-so stay.

Pro's:

- room was spacious. 2-bedroom is perfect for families, with two tv's
- cool weather was nice, made us forget we are in Malaysia
- resident package full board is considered affordable 
- one of the more reputable hotels in Cameron
- very near the Healthy Strawberry Park, which was great for a short drive and strawberry picking for me and my daughter while daddy went on a Jim Thomson nature walk
- strawberries that were served throughout our stay were all huge and nice
- mineral water aplenty which was important for pregnant mommy like me
- nice view of the golf from our balcony
- some notable staff, not all of them were competent, in fact it was so-so (which is disappointing for such a hotel this standard)... The staff at the massage were considerate. Extra note on the waitress Pija or Piga who was very friendly, served with the heart during our meals. And kudos to the evening shift of the reception area last May 11 evening who went out of their way to resolve my mosquito issues
- resident package also had a special spa pricing which was rm200 max for 50-minutes massage with tea bath which was superb
- in-room fruits were nice, daughter loved it for snack time. Plus the green apples at the reception 
- common areas were beautifully maintained
- super nice staff Pija (or Piga) gave some fish food pellets for my daughter to feed the koi fishes, very sweet of her


Con's:

- despite the spacious room, we detest the place bec my poor little daughter had about 10 mosquito bites in the first night. We requested a mosquito plug but they said they were all out. Turned out they didn't have any in the hotel. Because of this my daughter suffered and cried so hard (which rarely happens) on the 2nd night bec of all the itchiness of the bite. She had 5 mosquito bites on the face alone!! So please beware if you go with a toddler. After raising this with the reception, they barely did anything except to give me mosquito coil and match, which is all that they had. This is so oppositely different from the service we had at Pangkor Laut. Despite Pangkor being amongst the forest in an island, they were able to set the turn down service superbly well with mosquito repellents, plug, etc -- and this was consistent with our 4 times stay there.
- some of the staff are noticeably so-so in terms of execution. They speak kind words but in terms of going the extra mile, only few staff were notable. The evening shift reception on Saturday night saw the ultra mosquito bites on my daughter's face and decided to finally go out and purchase some electric mosquito plugs. They came to our room at 930pm to install it, bless their souls for finally doing something. I complained about the mosquito thing on Saturday morning breakfast-- to the reception team and even to the manager -- but all that was given was the coil. We hated the smell but still lighted it that evening thinking that there was no other recourse.
- toilet in the room was small..especially for a 2-bedroom. We were quite cramped in the toilet, when u try to let my daughter pee no one else can fit into the bathroom! Maybe it was better if they made the toilets a bit bigger.

- you could see moulds and stains which I guess is normal ?!? In such high altitude places. Some stain on the white bed sheets. Black spots in toilet joints.

- chubby Chinese reception guy confused me with his explanation about the food rules of resident package. He was trying to be helpful but confused the hell out of me with his rm 300 per meal cap explanation which was not stated in our original t&c package. 

- coffee was mediocre. Expected more from a place like this. Pangkor Laut gave options like latte or cappuccino as part of the resident package

Conclusion: for families (with kids) living in KL who want 3-days-2 nights vacation with YTL, Pangkor Laut is a better option. We also went to Tanjung Jara years ago. We still prefer Pangkor.

Will we go back to Cameron Highlands Resort? At this point, I'd say not in the next few years. Hard to forget that evening my daughter kept crying and scratching... While daddy had fever (coincidentally) and couldn't sleep well bec of all the road noise which can be loud when you are trying to sleep. But for sure it is one of the better places to stay in Cameron highlands if you really want to go there.

5 months pregnant and enjoying my exercise at Fit For 2

 I'm on my second trimester and I'm glad everything is going well. Just like when I had little Alexandra last time in 2009, this place called Fit For 2 still offers pregnancy yoga and Pilates classes. I'm glad they are still around! 

For pregnant women, it's good to continue exercising and being active. This is my one or twice a week activity.

Loved bringing daughter here too when she was less than a year old. Cafe serves 

decent food.

Fit for 2

Bangsar Village 1

Okomen Japanese Restaurant Desa Sri Hartmas review

Let me start off immediately and say that this is not the kind of Japanese cuisine I would go back to.

We decided to be adventurous and try something new for Saturday night dinner and after a quick search we decided to check out Okomen at Desa Sri Hartamas.

Bad move. We arrived at 730pm and there were only 2 tables occupied. That should have warned me ahead.

The good stuff...
- gyoza was good, maybe because we ordered that ahead and we were very hungry
- the kid's meal with ramen, chicken and tempura was okay, placed in a cute lunchbox
- steak combo set was tasty, the pork pieces were huge and juicy, the steak was small but also tasty, and salmon was not bad. Would recommend this set.
- pork yakiniku was tasty
- I asked for a baby chair and they had one available. I hate restaurants that don't provide high chairs

The bad stuff...
- the Prawn Mayo was too much mayo plus mustard... Not the kind of dish we appreciate. Very small shrimp pieces. I get better value at that price when I had dinner last night at Alexis Gardens (shrimp in olive oil)
- tori oko was ultra mayonnaise to my taste. It looked nice but when I tasted it I regretted ordering it. Definitely not the kind of Japanese stuff we like.

Overall:
Pricing : average, not too expensive
Food: 5/10 ... Not the authentic Japanese stuff we were looking for
Ambience: 6/10 looks Japanese modern, simple design
Service: 6/10 one of the staff didn't seem to speak very good English, my water was empty I had to call their attention despite that the restaurant was close to empty
Return Again? No, most definitely not

A Saturday night where I made the wrong choice... Oh well. Learned my lesson. Next time I want Japanese stuff I better just stick to the places I know and have come to love & trust.


Okomen
7G Wisma CKL, Jalan 22/70a, Desa Sri Hartamas
Tel- 0362059828

Why Sunrise is a Good Choice for Expats

Being foreigners in KL, it is always nice to meet new people as well as experience other cultures. So when Sunrise properties organized a Cherry Blossom event for Mont Kiara residents, we were curious to attend.

The Saturday afternoon event was a success, with lots of expat families attending with their little ones. There were games and prizes to keep the small ones busy and happy!!! There was also food and souvenirs, plus some performances which made it all fun.

The Japanese and Korean community is really big here in Mont Kiara, so I saw many of them at the event.

For expat families looking for a good place to stay... With events organized by Sunrise, plus free shuttle rides across different condo and commercial areas like One Mont Kiara, Publika and Plaza Mont Kiara...it is a good choice especially families who want to live within a nice community.

My daughter often goes to play at Sunrise Funzone too, which is a great way to meet others kids.

Farm In The City, Great for Toddlers!

Today we went to visit Farm in the City at Seri Kenbangan. It was a 45-minute drive in the morning (coming from Mont Kiara). We went together with my daughter's school and it proved to be a fun trip for the kids.

We had parents who brought 1-year old's up to kids around 5 years old. Some had strollers, which was okay because the path was stroller-friendly.

We were blessed with superb weather, sunny but not extreme. There were some spots with shade and seats, should you need to rest or have a drink.

The farm was well-kept. I would say that the place is clean and didn't have an overpowering smell of animals (I'm 4 months pregnant and this could have really bothered me!)

The people were friendly and they had photographers walking around to take your pictures. In the end, I did purchase a photo souvenir for rm20 which was a good shot of myself and daughter with a 30-year old giant turtle.

She was able to pet and feed the rabbits and I think she enjoyed that the most. She tried to feed the deer (which were walking around freely) but it came to close and she screamed, haha, that was the first time I have ever seen her like that! She also fed the cow (who had a best friend dog inside his cage). It was also fun seeing her feed the fish, the pond was big and had swans there, too!

I would highly recommend to parents with young children. The Farm is not too big that you can finish in one morning... Ending with lunch or light snack at their restaurant. They had pony /horse ride too but we didn't do it this round.

The toilets were okay. Plus they had Lota of wash areas where kids and adults can wash up after petting / feeding the animals.

What we appreciated was the fact they provided all the food for us to feed animals, unlike other places where they try to sell it to you.

For lunch, you could pack your own food and eat there or you ca order food from their restaurant. They had western style seats and also tatami style (which the kids loved). The school helped to organize a simple lunch set for the kids while we brought some sandwiches for ourselves. They had cold drinks and ice cream, too.

For a short drive from KL, it will be a worthwhile trip for your kids to see animals up close!

Three Little Pigs and The Big Bad Wolf Bangsar

After my French class at Alliance Francaise in Bangsar, we decided to check out the fairly new pork joint at Bangsar Village 1. The name is catchy and easy to remember, it being such a popular story when I was a little kid.

Three Little Pigs and The Big Bad Wolf is located near the Village Grocer (that's how we went in). Fairly busy on a Saturday lunch time (late lunch about 130pm). The waiters were attentive, plus points for that. I noticed a lot of people having their breakfast menu (eggs with some pork bacon), but I wanted to have lunch so we skipped all those breakfast stuff.

I then discovered they had a different menu for the evening dinner, because we looked for the pork ribs on the menu handed to us, and we didn't see any.

We ordered the famous pasta they have which was called The Wolf pasta (or something like that), hubby had the tonkatsu salad while I ordered the pork fried rice for my maid.

Verdict: the pasta was creamy but nothing overly too wow about it. Hubby's tonkatsu was so-so while the salad beneath it was really not that fresh looking. My maid's fried rice had too much chili in it (for foreigners like us). All in all bill came up to be below rm100. We also ordered some fries, which was probably the best dish that we ordered for that meal (haha).

Not sure if I would come back for lunch. Perhaps will give their breakfast a shot. After which if still not too impressed, will give this place a miss next time. It may serve pork but I could find pork dishes somewhere else.