The Macallan – Single Malt Highland Scotch Whisky

the macallan scotch whisky

The Macallan is a single malt Highland Scotch whisky. It’s usually available in the 12 year old single malt version matured in Sherry Oak casks. The Macallan is distilled in their own distillery (which is what differentiates premium single malt from blended whiskeys) in Speyside, Scotland.

the macallan single malt

The Macallan is one of the best single malt Scotch whisky that I’ve ever tasted. I opened a bottle at Luconia and drank half the bottle in the first session (with some other people). The Macallan has a cork instead of a metal cap, which is a plus point for me. It’s considered a Highland single malt Scotch which puzzles me since The Macallan is obviously a Speyside single malt from their distillery location.

macallan sixthseal

The Macallan tastes great, subjectively better than Glenfiddich, the other premium single malt Scotch that Luconia carries. The Macallan 12 year single malt Scotch comes in a rich gold color and goes down really smoothly with hints of sherry and spice, with a sweet smoky finish. The Macallan is usually priced around the RM 300 region (pub prices, not retail) in drinking establishments, though YMMV depending on your location.

There is also a bottle of Johnny Walker Swing in the background – it’s a neat bottle of blended whisky that actually swings back and forth when you put it down on the table. It’s a great presentation bottle but The Macallan tastes better. It comes highly recommended from me!

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Jong's Crocodile Farm report

jong crocodile farm sign

Jong’s Crocodile Farm is located about 30 km from Kuching and it’s the only crocodile breeding farm in Malaysia. There are plenty of road signs to direct you to the crocodile farm which is located along the Kuching – Serian road. It is home to the legendary man eating killer croc Bujang Senang. I went there with a couple of friends to check out the crocodiles during the weekend.

jong crocodile farm

The entrance of Jong’s Crocodile Farm features a huge crocodile sculpture in front of the diminutive entrance. It’s a replica of Bujang Senang. The zoo is actually quite huge, with various breeding farms for crocodiles. Jong’s Crocodile Farm also features other animals native to Borneo, but the main attraction is the crocodiles, specifically the crocodile feeding session (video below).

counter

Jong’s Crocodile Farm charges RM 8 for adults and RM 4 for children below the age of 12. It’s best to go during the crocodile feeding times which happens twice daily – once at 11 pm and once at 3 pm. The afternoon croc feeding demonstration is a good one to catch as there are plenty of other interesting things to occupy your time. I would recommend at least 2 hours for checking out the other sights at the farm.

bujang senang display

There is a huge glass display that confronts you right as you step inside Jong’s Crocodile Farm. It contains the substantial skull and jaw of the notorious Bujang Senang killer crocodile that reigned in blood until the fateful day on the 12th of May 1992 when it was brought down by a shotgun in Sri Aman (also on display).

bujang senang victim

Jong’s Crocodile Farm has pictures of Bujang Senang’s reign of terror on the walls of the entrance. I remember the crocodile from my childhood – it was something of a household name during a killing spree during the early 90’s. Bujang Senang translates to “Happy Bachelor”. Don’t look at me, I wasn’t the one who named it.

bujang senang shrine

There is a slot beside the shrine where people can put in cash (though to what purpose, defeats me) and 4D numbers. Bujang Senang is a huge crocodile that grew to 19 feet and 4 inches. It was struck down by a shotgun shell in Sg. Pelaban in Lingga Batang Lupar at Sri Aman and judging from the well formed and worn canines on its huge jaw, it must have been justified. πŸ˜‰

iguanas

Jong’s Crocodile Farm and Zoo also has other animals on display, like these two iguanas having a staring contest. I don’t know which one blinked first.

crocodile lifecycle

There is also a museum like display of the lifecycle of a saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus Porosus) in the form of live exhibits ranging from eggs to the hatching stage at 92 days and right up to a six month old crocodile. The exhibits are real crocodiles and eggs preserved in embalming fluid.

jong signage

The entrance to the outdoor Jong’s Crocodile Farm is accessible from a small gate which has a sign with the crocodile feeding time and directions to the various other animals in the large Jong’s Crocodile Farm natural zoo.

crocodile concrete pits

Jong’s Crocodile Farm features concrete enclosures (more like pits actually) with lots and lots of crocodiles in various stages of their lifecycle. The crocodiles are separated according to their age (and thus, size) and does not seem to display aggression towards their own kind.

crocodile orgy

There was even some reptile lovin’ going on in one of the pits…some sort of crocodile orgy.

crocodile small

The crocodile pits have wet and dry areas to simulate the natural habitat of a saltwater crocodile. It goes sequentially from small (young) to large (older) crocodiles and after a certain age, the crocodiles are released into another area inside the crocodile farm.

crocodile staring

The larger crocodiles look kinda cute with their intricate scaly exterior. I like the two crocodiles sizing each other up in the middle. Crocodiles have existed since the age of the dinosaurs and they predate man and probably would outlast us in the evolutionary cycle.

crocodile submerged

This crocodile looks sinister (in a nice way) when it’s partially submerged in the water with only the snout showing. It looks rather like a log when it does this. I think this is the stage where it learns how to hunt.

croc aggressive

I think this crocodile doesn’t like me very much…

tailless crocodile sign

There were two unusual live crocodiles on display.

tailless crocodile

This is a Tailless Crocodile. I don’t know if it’s a genetic defect or whether another crocodile ate its tail. It’s still alive and staring. It looks grumpy.

eyeless crocodile sign

Jong’s Crocodile Farm also has an “Eyeless Crocodile“. I feel compelled to share the signage coz it’s like Ripley’s “Believe it or not”.

eyeless crocodile

This is the “Eyeless Crocodile”. Again, no mention is made on whether the crocodile was born without eyes or whether another crocodile took out its eye. I think it’s the former though coz there’s only scales where its eyes are supposed to go.

friendly bird

There are also other animals in cages or roaming around freely. This is a very curious bird that doesn’t fly and isn’t afraid of people. It came up to me and cocked its head to look at me.

ostrich

This is a colorful ostrich. I didn’t know ostriches look like this.

borneo sunbear

There is also a Borneo Sun Bear which was isolated in the middle of a concrete unit. It was pacing around restlessly.

poor monkey

I had to console this monkey after she was brutally raped and left bleeding and crying. We chatted for a while, and after I established that she was OK, we moved on to the other exhibits.

arapaima gigas

Jong’s Crocodile Farm also features a huge manmade pond full of Arapaima Gigas. It’s one of the largest freshwater fish in the world and the size of these things easily reaches meters.

largest fish

It’s not exactly a very friendly fish though…there is one partially submerged in this photo. It’s shy but you can find it in the upper right hand corner if you squint a bit.

crocodile camo

There are actually crocodiles wondering around, so watch your step when you go to Jong’s crocodile farm.

crocodile feeding

It was soon nearing the 3 pm feeding time so we made our way to the crocodile feeding pond.

croc feeding pond

The crocodile feeding pond has a watchtower of sorts on the other side (inaccessible to the public) which features a contraption spanning the entire pond (which is crawling with crocodiles).

croc feeding tower

The contraption is operated by a staff of Jong’s Crocodile Farm and features a pulley system to put whole chickens on hooks before rolling it out to the crocodile infested pond.

croc feeding meat

The meat is suspended about a meter off the surface of the water and the hungry crocodiles slowly float towards the chicken. It’s the calm before the feeding frenzy starts…

croc jump

Crocodiles can leap from the water and launch themselves surprisingly high into the air to snap at the meat dangling from the hook.

croc acrobatics

More crocodile acrobatics from Jong’s Crocodile Farm…

croc perfect 10

/me holds up sign for 10.

croc feeding

Download: Jong’s Crocodile Farm crocodile feeding [sixthseal.com]

Jong’s Crocodile Farm is worth visiting for some quality time with our reptilian friends. The crocodile feeding show is worth the RM 8 entrance fee itself!

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Oregano restaurant review

oregano travillion

Oregano is an interesting eating experience in Travillion Mall, Kuching. It’s located near one end of the open concept mall and the relatively small restaurant interior is boosted by a large al fresco seating area with lots of green shrubbery surrounding the seating arrangements.

oregano interior

The interior of Oregano has a unique contrasting ambience with the warm incandescent lights near the counter with its elevated faux floor dΓ©cor contrasting with the cold florescent lights from the open kitchen concept near the back. I went there for dinner last night with Val and Monica.

oregano open kitchen

Oregano is one of the few places to offer the open kitchen concept in a restaurant in Kuching. The cooking area is open for patrons to look into and there are chefs carefully tending to sauces, garnishing food and preparing dishes readily visible. This is a very nice arrangement as opposed to the closed kitchen that most eating establishments subscribe to.

oregano al fresco

The limited floor space afforded to Travillion Mall tenants is utilized well by Oregano by extending the seating area outside, which exponentially increases the seating capacity while still retaining a coherent theme with the main building with the well placed see-through glass walls bordering the restaurant.

oregano video

Download: Oregano video tour [sixthseal.com]

oregano banana dates

Banana Dates Crush (RM 7.60)
This is a very thick blended drink that combines bananas with dates. It tastes great! The density of the drink is so great that it takes much effort to suck the thick blend through the straw. This is the only drink we ordered…the other refreshments came in the form of a bucket of beer (Heineken).

oregano onion rings

Oregano Onion Ring (RM 7.80)
Deep-fried crispy onion ring with spiced flour. It’s a little too oily but the spiced flour batter is a nice touch.

oregano confit salmon

Confit of Salmon (RM 29.80)
Pan-fried salmon with green asparagus, candied cherry tomato, and yellow capsicum caulis.

oregano salmon

I had the confit of salmon and it tastes great (though Val finds it too salty) but my only beef (no pun intended) with it is that it’s not a confit of salmon. The use of asparagus and other unusual ingredients gets two thumbs up from me though.

oregano lamb shank

Lamb Shank Navarin Style (RM 28.80)
Braised lamb shank served with young vegetables and potato.

oregano lamb flash

The lamb shank from Oregano is HUGE! Val and Monica both ordered this and it tastes great! Val kept on slicing bits of lamb shank pieces off for me (thanks!) and we still couldn’t finish the dish. Highly recommended! The sauce it came with is perfect…Oregano does sauces well.

oregano photo

This is a photo of us at Oregano – me and Val is going at it in the foreground while that’s Monica in the background. I know, the Tim Tams are making me put on a lot of excess weight…and I still had dessert! πŸ˜‰

oregano dome

White Chocolate Dome (RM 13.80)
Portion of crispy rice mixed with white chocolate mousse and passion fruit jelly.

oregano roulade

Cheese Roulade (RM 12.80)
Roulade with cheese filling and chocolate ganache, served with wild berry sauce.

oregano end

Oregano does food presentation very well and their desserts are delectable!

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Arnott's Tim Tams from Australia

Important announcement: I have Tim Tams from Australia. This probably means it’ll all be gone in a minute. πŸ˜‰

cherie tim tams

Well, if anyone doesn’t understand all the fuss about a chocolate biscuit and why The Cult of Tim Tams loves these things, you gotta taste the Australian made ones. Such exquisite beauty in a chocolate biscuit…

Cherie got me:

Tim Tam Double Coat
Tim Tam Chewy Caramel
Tim Tam Latte
Tim Tam Classic Dark
Tim Tam Dangerous Liaisons Black Forest Fantasy
Tim Tam Dangerous Liaisons Creamy Truffle Temptation

It’s truly earned the moniker “The most irresistible chocolate biscuit“.

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Fancy Cocktails (inclusive takeaway themed mug) @ Rajang Lobby Lounge, Holiday Inn, Kuching

rejang lobby lounge

Rajang Lobby Lounge is located at the lobby of Holiday Inn, Kuching and extends out from the air conditioned interior to the pool side seating which overlooks the mighty Rejang River (which is where it probably got its name from).

rejang lobby lounge view

There are different and contrasting views each way you look – the pool, the bar, and the interior of the lounge. The seats range from pool side recliners to comfy padded chairs and the clientele is predominantly Caucasian for some reason…probably coz this is Holiday Inn.

tutom pole

Tutom Pole (RM 30)
This Totem Pole like drink comes in a really cool sculpted design. The cocktails all have a theme and the mug is customized to fit the theme and comes specially designed for Holiday Inn.

tutom pole drink

The “Tutom Pole” (sic?) is topped with a slice of orange and a cherry in a long receptacle containing a combination of Cointreau, Grand Marnier, and wine cooler, plus some other spirits which I promptly forgot.

kereta lembu

Kereta Lembu (RM 30)
Look at the beads of sweat forming on the industrious cows. This intricately designed receptacle is shaped literally like a “cow driven carriage” (instead of horse, geddit?).

kereta lembu back

You basically have to grab the bull (or cow) by the horns to drink this one. The straw goes into the lid and the drink settles around the base (which has a large footprint) so to get all of it the cow part has to be tilted to pool the drink for consumption.

kereta lembu drink

This drink contains an egg yolk mixed in and it tastes great – nice and creamy. Hmm…I mean, Mmm…

rejang lobby tuna sandwich

Rajang Lobby Lounge also serves food. This is the tuna sandwich (RM 14++) that comes with white bread, fresh raw vegetables and Pringles.

rejang lobby club sandwich

I went for the Club Sandwich (RM 15.75++) which is a triple decker toasted sandwich with chicken, lettuce, beef bacon, tomato, mayo and egg. It’s served with chips instead of Pringles and a salad with raw onions.

fancy cocktails menu

The Fancy Cocktails menu with its themed mugs sent out a siren call in the middle of our eating expedition (it was supposed to be our late lunch) and we decided to go for another round of drinks to check out the rest of the customized mugs.

ketam batu

Ketam Batu (RM 30)
Ketam Batu translates to “Stone Crab” and it comes in a crab shaped clay mould. It is customized for Holiday Inn and the crab is painted to look exactly like a crab. It even has eyes! Awesome! (…and other adolescent hyperboles)

ketam batu drink

The straw for this cocktail goes straight through the crab…the very place you stab to kill a real live crab. Nice touch. No pun intended. This is a great drink, it’s made with lemonade and various liquors which the bartender told us but we promptly forgot. It’s refreshing and thirst quenching.

headhunter

Headhunter (RM 30)
Headhunter comes in a tall receptacle with an orange slice, a piece of orange rind carefully sliced to resemble an orchid garnish, and the entire drink is topped with a cherry. The expression on the face molded into the mug looks almost comical.

headhunter drink

The Headhunter cocktail uses a lot of cognac and tuak (a local rice wine) which is a strange combination. It has an interesting taste to it due to the unusual ingredients but it works. I was told this is the most popular cocktail in Rajang Lobby Lounge, Holiday Inn.

There are six more drinks in the “Fancy Cocktails” menu and we’ve made it a mission to drink all of them (and take the themed mugs back home). I want a collection of all the 10 customized theme mugs! I think it would look great on my desk at work. πŸ˜‰

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I bath like the ass cheek guy in Kung Fu Hustle except I don't use longkang water to wash my hair

kung fu bathing

The water board, in its infinite wisdom has decided to cut off water supply to my place of residence. Water, as we all know, is Very Important (TM) as it is the substance used to flush various bodily fluids, shower with, and drink from (if you’re so inclined).

I had an outstanding bill of RM 4.95. RM 4.95!!! It’s not like its RM 490 for crying out loud! Move back two decimal points! Now I have to use the (only) running tap in my place in the balcony to fill a bucket to take a bath.

kung fu bathing balcony

The space was at the balcony and I’m on the third floor so my family jewels were on display for all and sundry to see.

Yes, please feel free to stare at my gonads while I attempt to take a bath, friendly neighbors!

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Room 205 cafe @ Padungan

roomtwo0five

Room two0five cafe is the latest concept cafe to hit Padungan. It’s nestled between a fruit store that’s been around since the dawn of time and a dentist (which has also probably been around since forever and a day).

room 205

The address of the Room 205 is coincidentally, 205 Jalan Padungan. The counter is (still) decorated with festive Valentine’s Day cheer and there are bottles of fruit juice concoctions neatly arranged on the sides.

interior

Room 205 cafe is cozy and has a warm ambience which suits the small enclosure. There are high backed seats on one side of the place and more comfortable sofa type seating on the other.

water

The tables are lined with purple bamboo mats which suit the entire color scheme of the place. Glasses of water are presented with the menu, which is a nice touch. The menu runs the entire repertoire of appetizers to desserts and you’ll be spoilt for choice at this place.

oysters

Oysters on Ice (RM 24.90)
Served on a bed of crushed ice with a lemon wedge.

205_oysters_tabasco.jpg

This is what we had for the appetizer – its fresh large oysters on a bed of crushed ice with lemon and Tabasco sauce. It’s fresh and it’s nice to see eating establishments serve proper oysters for once.

caesar

Warm Tandoori Chicken Caesar Salad (RM 8.90)
Fresh Romaine Lettuce tossed in our homemade Caesar dressing.

foot sausage

1 Foot Long Sausage (RM 4.90)
I expected it to come out in a foot long dish, but the poor thing was sliced into four. πŸ˜‰

salmon

Grilled Salmon Fillet (RM 22.90)
Topped with homemade Japanese sauce and served with tempura veggies and mashed potato.

I think we were the only patrons there that night and the service was alright but surprisingly they forgot one of our items – the American Club Sandwich (which comes with a choice of white or whole meal bread). The salmon was alright (thought a bit overdone) and it was filling so we didn’t ask for it and went straight to the dessert:

banana bonkers

Banana Bonkers (RM 15.90)
Cocoa crepes wrapped with fresh banana, flanked by chocolate, raspberry and vanilla ice-cream, topped with colored rice, crushed peanuts, whipped cream, waffle fan, chocolate sauce and caramelized banana.
WARNING!! SUPER LARGE

It was huge alright…the crepe filled the entire dinner plate and it took a lot of effort on our part to finish it.

Sugar overdose!

Seriously though, Room 205 has a large menu with more esoteric items like savory crepes with customization options at a very reasonable price. The oysters are great too; and the Banana Bonkers dessert comes highly recommended from me.

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Tablet and capsule tongue piercing decors, witty T-shirts from Australia, Clive Barker's Tortured Souls 2 and other gifts

cherie pill tablets

Cherie just has this knack of getting me things that suits me (probably coz we have the same taste in things) and gave me this nifty tongue piercing from Off Ya Tree, a headshop in Melbourne.

cherie pill piercings

It’s supposed to fit into the 14 gauge barbell and comes with two standard round ends with a flaming skull, a tablet and a capsule. I love the pill and capsule ones…it’s perfect for me – constantly medicated. πŸ˜‰

cherie clothes

She also bought me a lot of clothes – there’s a Nike sweater, a long-sleeved shirt for work, and three T-shirts.

cherie bury bone

This one goes “Bury the Bone” and shows a pair of canines copulating. OMG, alliteration! πŸ˜‰

cherie aries

This one has horoscopes printed all over it and the text describes each star sign in a brutally honest take-no-prisoners manner. Aries goes “You are a pioneer type and think most people are dickheads. You are quick to reprimand, impatient, and scornful of advice. You do nothing but piss off everyone you come into contact with. You are a PRICK!!

cherie beer time

The third ones goes “It’s beer time any bloody time“. I love the designs, Cherie got them in Melbourne.

cherie zain

She also got me Zain from Clive Barker’s Tortured Souls 2 – The Fallen series. I’m going to display this at my work space in the office. πŸ™‚

Cherie also got me Tim Tams from Australia (one of each flavor), a mug which says “Fuck! I love you!” and Robitussin DX.

Thanks Cherie! I love the presents! Much love…

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Oriental Passion St. Valentine's Day Dinner review

oriental passion

Oriental Passion is one of the new eating establishments that have mushroomed up in Jalan Padungan in Kuching. The distinctive red signage of the eatery features a square ancient Chinese style stamp with a bright red background and an intense light source illuminating the signage.

op interior

The incandescent lighting radiating from Oriental Passion is inviting. There are curtains softly billowing at the entrance. Oriental Passion also has al fresco seating arrangements and a main seating area which follows the theme a little too literally by providing patrons with stools instead of chairs.

op tree trunk

Oriental Passion has a wood themed interior, with a lot of bamboo features and a large tree trunk anchoring the partitions. The real wood and bamboo feature actually obscures the wash basin for patrons.

op mirror arrays

The interior of Oriental Passion also uses a lot of mirrors to create the illusion of a larger space (and for the convenience of patrons to check their make up by just glancing to the side ;)). There are large reflective glass panels everywhere.

op mirror bricks

Oriental Passion also incorporates the mirror concept into the brick foundation of the walls. There are small mirrors embedded into the bricks on the wall every few feet. I went there with Irene [blogspot.com] last night to check out the place.

op back seating

There is also a bar seating area with lounge chairs and the rest of the seating arrangements lines the side of the unique tight and long space characteristic of the Jalan Padungan old shop houses. The back also houses a tatami area.

op counter

The gramophone at the cashier counter lends a rather retro look to the place. There are also bottles of home made chilli sauce for sale at the cashier counter. Oriental Passion had a Valentine’s Day menu and we both went for that option.

op tour

Download: Oriental Passion video tour [sixthseal.com]

Oriental Passion has three Guinness mixed drinks which we tried in successive order:

guinnesslad

GuinnessLad (RM 10)
This drink is Guinness stout mixed with a mixer that I couldn’t identify. It’s the plainest one of the series and the alcoholic content of all three drinks are minimal at best.

guinnesslass

GuinnessLass (RM 10)
This one is Guinness stout with a cocktail of fruits and ice cream. It tastes great!

guinnessberry

GuinnessBerry (RM 10)
This is Guinness stout blended with blueberries. It’s a sweet drink that goes down well, albeit with an almost indistinguishable stout taste.

The Oriental Passion St. Valentine’s Day Dinner menu goes for RM 49.00 per pax and entails:

op chef salad

ORIENTAL Chef’s Salad
Passionate sushi-meat roll, fried bags of fortune served with refreshing lettuce.

op mushroom soup

Cream of Mushroom Soup
Button mushroom affectionately boiled with chicken stock and cream.

op rosemary lamb

Rosemary Lamb Chop
A tender lamb romantically filled with scent of rosemary flanked by salad and fries.

op lamb

This is the main course…the lamb meat is great, with the meat slightly charred outside while the flavors of the lamb is infused inside the tender meat.

op ice cream

Delightful ice cream topped with fine dark chocolate that melts your evening!

op vday gift

The Oriental Passion Valentine’s Day Dinner comes with a small complimentary gift-pack full of candy given out after the meal.

Oriental Passion is a great place to head to in Jalan Padungan coz it tends to be less packed than the other eating establishments in that area.

op sia utensils

It does seem that they took the Oriental part of Oriental Passion a little too literally though…all the eating implements seems to be sourced from Singapore Airlines! πŸ˜‰

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The best Valentine's Day gift ever!

vday gift rx

I just received the best Valentine’s Day gift of all time from the most unlikely candidate – my doctor. He was kind enough to write a prescription for DF-118 from another pharmacy to get me through the week until his supplier comes again (it’s not the usual practice here) since he ran out of stock.

vday gift df118

Rx for DF-118 x 30 tabs (no repeat authorization) for Poh Huai Bin.

vday gift

I drove to the pharmacy (most clinics and pharmacies here don’t carry DF-118 coz it’s restricted) and got my medication. 1 tablets of DF-118 (dihydrocodeine tartrate 30 mg) to be taken when necessary. I love DF118 coz it only contains DHC 30 mg without other active substances.

vday df118

Nothing says “I love you” more than a prescription. πŸ˜‰

Disclaimer: I have a legitimate prescription for DF-118 for my end-stage testicular cancer. That usually shuts people up, coz nothing is manlier than a man telling someone he has testicular cancer. πŸ˜‰

P/S – Don’t panic, I don’t really have testicular cancer, mom and dad. My family jewels are perfectly fine and in good working condition last time I checked. It’s actually for my back pain.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all readers of sixthseal.com!

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