The Kid from The Big Apple 2 Review...

Have you watch The Kid from The Big Apple 2?

I watched the first episode. I don't read Chinese but there is English subtitle anyway.  I love the family ties projected in the movie, first episode; the relationship between Grandpa and his daughter and granddaughter. So when, the 2nd episode is released, I went to watch it.

This time round, I brought my eldest girl 12 and youngest 3 girl to watch it with me.  My eldest is very sceptical about watching a Chinese movie especially.  She will judge straight away on how terrible it will be and kept asked  why she had to tag along. Well as an autocrat mother sometimes, I insisted her to follow and; not to judge a book by its cover. And I told her she will surely love it.  She told me the only reason why she tagged along was because of the caramel popcorn sold in GSC.

We watched the movie quite late; as me and hubby were just finishing work at 8 some and then rushed to pick the kids. We entered the movie hall and; there were lots of people.  

The Kid From The Big Apple 2

The Kid from The Big Apple 2

The story line kicks off so well with so much humorous scenes by Ah Bao and his funny parents; Meng Suk and Meng Shou. The whole movie was presented very warmthly; the setting, the videography, the songs, the casts were all put together very well; and every scene really melt my heart. It made me laughed; it also made me cried.  

The most touching moment was when I saw my eldest daughter kept taking her spectacles down. I was wondering what's went wrong when I realised she was actually crying. She is a very cool child; but she couldn't stopped her tears. She must have realised something. She was raised up with the care of her GungGung; while mummy and daddy worked day and night to make a better life for her.  As for me and my hubby, we realised that we spent very little time for our love ones due to work.  This movie reminded both of us that family really matter. It does really matter.

Get yourself to watch the movie; to feel it for yourself if you can hold the tears from falling down your cheek. Get yourself to watch the movie; to find out if you really missed something in life.  Get yourself to watch the movie; to find out if you have really known the true love for your family. Get yourself to watch the movie; if you can understand the pain suffered by 淑娴 ; the character played by the most down to earth, kind and beautiful artiste Debbie Goh吴天瑜. I could feel her as I am a working mother, a wife and a daughter. It is so hard to balance on every aspect of life when you need to work hard to make a living; and a better home for your children.

This is by far the most touching and wonderful movie to bring your whole family members to watch. Learn the moral together; laugh together and cry together.  I asked my eldest daughter,"Ern, how is the movie?" She replied," I am surprised it has made me cried. Mummy you are so bad!" I asked her,"Which character you like best?" She loved the GungGung character in the movie.  From there  I knew, her own GungGung has a very special place in her heart. I then remind her,"Ern, love your GungGung more!" 

As for me; I loved what GungGung said,"A man should bear his responsibility. A man must be there for his woman". 

With the actresses Debbie Goh吴天瑜 and Sarah Tan; a surprise the cast has given to the Kuching movie goer  after  the movie ended. What a great gesture from the team. Kudos girls!

With the whole team at GSC City One on 25Th November 2017, a surprise after the movie. It is so great  to see them in Kuching. Thank you for reminding us the importance of  love and family.

This is the song that touched my heart; when I think of my own mother.

P/s: While writing this blog; I listened to this lovely song. 

Part 3: How to travel to Beijing on your budget?

Tips no. 5: Visit places with Free entrance fee/low entrance fees

On the 3rd day, we went to Beijing Zoo; RMB 19 for the entrance fee. It is a very affordable visit and you can spent about 3 hours at the zoo with your children.  Honestly, the zoo was abit rundown but, the cold weather, and the beautiful garden and lake has neutralised it. I truly enjoyed the zoo as my children loved walking and running around.  Also it was the first time we saw Giant Panda. They looked so cute, and lazy haha...

Beijing zoo station

Mother and Daughter

Beijing Zoo RMB19 with entrance to see Panda

Look at the video we compiled as published as above.

How to go to Beijing Zoo from Dongsi subway? Below is the link of how to go to Beijing Zoo through Dongsi Subway.


https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Dongsi,+Dongcheng,+Beijing,+China/Beijing+Zoo,+Zoo,+China/@39.9321396,116.3603546,14z/am=t/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0532a9c0f72b1:0x7e0021a736da9838!2m2!1d116.417493!2d39.92437!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0522e1f3bc45b:0x10eb348a2b114a81!2m2!1d116.339012!2d39.938287!3e3?hl=en

After zoo, we went to WangFuJing to experience the night scene. The weather was so so cold at night. And along the shops, we bought some souvenirs to bring back Kuching. How to get there? Below are the subway link location:

https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Beijing+Zoo,+Zoo,+China/Subway,+Wangfujing,+Dongcheng,+Beijing,+China/@39.9275822,116.358383,14z/am=t/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0522e1f3bc45b:0x10eb348a2b114a81!2m2!1d116.339012!2d39.938287!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052c979eb187f:0xa3f5ddf185adfd82!2m2!1d116.411792!2d39.915155!3e3?hl=en

Wangfujing Beijing

How do we get back to our hotel after Wangfujing?  We walked back; and it was only 15 minutes walk.  Below are the walk direction map:

https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Wangfujing+St,+Beijing+Shi,+China/161+Lishi+Hutong,+Dongcheng,+Beijing,+China/@39.9191342,116.4123178,17z/am=t/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052d1d66b73b9:0xd212cf432caac4d6!2m2!1d116.411168!2d39.9162462!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052d5225e33f1:0xc46f628678578bea!2m2!1d116.41801!2d39.922014!3e2?hl=en

During last day in Beijing, we decided to visit Beijing 798 as recommended by a friend. Beijing 798 to me is a long stretch of street filled with wall art, statues, cafes and restaurants.  Walking along the street allowed you to enjoy the beautiful arts and kept your mind peaceful.  You can also go into some of the art studios to see local produced art work and craft. I really enjoyed the street as I took so much photos. It was really a beautiful place. You can actually spent about 3 hours being in there.

Beautiful wall art

Our last steamboat dinner before heading to Beijing airport.

The Beijing way.

The restaurant is just at the opposite Lishi Hutong road.

As a conclusion, Beijing is a great place to visit and I would recommend it to you. Why? 

Their food are awesomely yummy and affordable.  The weather was very nice and cooling.  Even though we were travelling on budget, we did enjoy some nice food without hesitation as the pricing was very reasonable.

Some of our friends have ever told us about how they disliked Beijing's food. Due to the negative comments, we were prepared with very low expectations before visiting Beijing. Surprisingly when we were there, we not only enjoyed the food; we love every bit of it. Will I visit Beijing again?  Of course! We really missed the beef noodle soup; and the Beijing salad.  

It is advisable to visit Beijing mid October onwards to get away from the crazy crowd as the first week of October is Beijing long week of holiday.  And weather is cooling in October.

Another tip to those who love social media.  In Beijing we don't get to link to Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. You can download Wechat.  While I was there, I download VPN to try to go in social media. Occasionally I managed to go in FB and Instagram as I used VPN to unblock the strict social media wall.  If you Digi/Maxis subscriber, you can activate your roaming. Usually by using roaming from your own service provider, you can log in the FB, Instagram and also WhatsApp without problem.

Thank you for reading and I hope this blog is useful to those who will visit Beijing for the first time.

Part 2: How to travel to Beijing on your budget?

Chaoyang and PingAnLi Road Tour

On the 2nd day in Beijing, I woke very early as I felt too excited about yesterday venture. I must not waste time sleeping so I joined my colleague for breakfast in the hotel cafe. My hubby and children were still sleeping haha..I left the room quietly and headed to the cafe which was just at the lobby.  I sat there with my 2 colleagues looking out the window, enjoying the cold 10 celsius; feeling life is very ironic. 

When my breakfast set came,  I looked at it and I suddenly felt my heart was very heavy.  A bite of the croissant made me felt very emotional.  I remembered clearly that 7 years ago, I could not even afford a RM 30 breakfast.  I skipped breakfast for lunch, and constantly lived on budget of RM 10 per day to survive the world. I thank God instantly for the beautiful breakfast in Beijing.  Seeing 2 of my colleagues sitting next to me, I felt really grateful to be in Beijing with them. They were with me when all the crapped happened. Even though it's passed now and my life has improving, I still remembered everything very clearly. 

Anyway after the breakfast, I went to the room to wake the kids and my hubby to get ready for the beautiful 2nd day in Beijing. I have planned to bring the whole team for road and district tour.

a set breakfast for RMB45; which is quite expensive compared to outside noodle shop but their croissant is too yummy to resist! But they do sell individual croissant at RMB10 each.

Tips no. 4: Do not follow tour; plan own tour. 

I love using visitacity.com as they shared itinerary any city you would like to visit. From there, you can adjust, change the location and time of where you would like to visit. Try to plan practically. I have tried many times that, in one day you can only visit 2 places if you want it free and easy; slow and steady. I have been ambitious in the past; trying to cover as many places as I can but it would not be possible due to time and unforeseen circumstances, yet it is very tiring and stressful. Do browse this website and you will find that planning own tour is the best and by planning your own tour, you remembered the city better, and you learnt so much out of it. 

Do read more to get yourself prepared. Truthfully, by planning own tour you will save most of your bucks; and your whole family is benefited from it.

Have a click. This website has helped me a lot!

http://www.visitacity.com/en/beijing/itineraries/beijing-in-four-days-top-attractions-day-1

Chaoyang: Saw an old hairdresser; loving the exterior.

So the 2nd day in Beijing was our road and district tour to Chaoyang and PingAnLi. I truly do not know what to expect but it turned out to be a lovely day.  

First stop was Chaoyang. How to get here from Dongsi station where we stayed? Below is the location map shared. Copy the below link, paste on the browser and click search.

https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Dongsi,+Dongcheng,+Beijing,+China/Chaoyang,+Beijing,+China/@39.9229946,116.4255432,15z/am=t/data=!4m15!4m14!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0532a9c0f72b1:0x7e0021a736da9838!2m2!1d116.417493!2d39.92437!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f1abee23736947:0xd7bb8b3026d0813a!2m2!1d116.443107!2d39.921469!3e3!5i1?hl=en

Old Hutong vs New Beijing at Chaoyang district 

Venturing the Chaoyang street allowed you to find some details: Sanlitun

Unique neighbourhood

Urban farming

Beautiful neighbourhood in Chaoyang

Local market

Fascinating view

At the Park

At the Park at Chaoyang 

Beautiful roses along the street

 TAN HUA Barbecue Lamb Leg

After the road tour, we headed to PingAnLi district to find our dinner, barbecue lamb leg! Do browse the below link, and be prepared to walk  30-45 minutes to find the yummy lamb leg.

https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Chaoyang,+Beijing,+China/Ping'anli,+Beijing,+China/@39.9276871,116.3766766,13z/am=t/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f1abee23736947:0xd7bb8b3026d0813a!2m2!1d116.443107!2d39.921469!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052ffed36f485:0xb59bbd164d7c35db!2m2!1d116.372881!2d39.933784!3e3?hl=en

TanHua barbecue lamb leg location yummmsssss...

https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Ping'anli,+Xicheng+Qu,+China/Tanhua+Barbecue+Gigot+%EF%BC%88Gongmenkou+West+Intersection%EF%BC%89,+Xicheng,+Beijing,+China/@39.9296709,116.3634686,16z/am=t/data=!4m15!4m14!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052ffed36f485:0xb59bbd164d7c35db!2m2!1d116.372881!2d39.933784!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0525b197411bb:0x41829087b45e8d85!2m2!1d116.362256!2d39.9251238!3e3!5i3?hl=en


https://www.cungkuo.com/en/eye/tanhua-barbecue-gigot/572f2Ab09e0efa73d9f74714c/

PingAnLi, where you found beautiful Hutong and yummy barbecue lamb leg

KaoYangTui yumssss

"KaoYangTui" -Barbecue lamb leg

Yummy lamb leg

.....stay tune to Part 3.....

Part 1: How to travel to Beijing within your budget?

Hi everyone it's our yearly trip again. This year we felt so lucky that we get to visit Beijing China. Thru this blog I will share with you on how to keep your travel cost low. And also I will share with you if Beijing is a nice place to travel to;  as we occasionally get bad comments from friends about  how bad Beijing is.

1st day in Beijing

It's tradition yearly; to travel based on budget; based on the lowest air tickets rate I could possibly find. And it's a year of advanced planning as usual. I always bought the airtickets a year in advanced to grab the great rate.   As usual I am always alert with AirAsia promotion. Last year some time in October;  I managed to get low airfare from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing at Rm 411 per person.. I bought it separately to get cheaper rate.  All in from Kuching to Beijing cost me about Rm 540 per person (rate without seats and luggage); and this is not a check through trip. We have to check in and out luggages every flight; which we don't mind as we wanted a cheap airticket overall.

How to travel and enjoy Beijing at the lowest cost?

From Beijing Airport to Dongsi District

Tips no. 1: Using Subway

We reached Beijing at 4.40am. From Beijing airport, we used Airport Express to Dongzhimen station, and then changed route to Chaoyangmen; and from Chaoyangmen; we travelled to Dongsi station where we then walked to Exit C, and from exit C, we turned to our left and then at the traffic light (without crossing the road) we turned left again and walked passed few shops; such as winter clothing shop named Fast Fish on your left.  We walked about 5 minutes and we stopped at Lishi Hutong which the hotel by the left small street.

https://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/beijing/subway-map.htm

in Beijing bicycle is the main mode of transportation 

I have planned Beijing ground trip with subway as our mode of transportation as I believed that; to experience life as a local; you must travel like the locals; which is using subway. I only planned for car ride the last day of our trip; which is to Beijing airport for our flight home.

Tips no. 2: Stay at affordable Hutong boutique hotel: 161 Wangfujing Hotel

Outside the Hotel

Lishi Hutong Street; just outside the hotel

I booked hutong hotel at Lishi Hutong, 161 Wangfujing Hotel which is 5 minutes walk to the Dongsi Subway station; and 15 min walk to Wangfujing. I chose this hotel due to its great reviews; good location, affordable rate and its a Hutong hotel which looked traditional and unique. For a family room (4 nights) and twin room (3 nights) costs about RM 1648.40 in total (https://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Hotel_Review-g294212-d1405804-Reviews-Beijing_161_Wangfujing_Hotel-Beijing.html)

Based on the review 8.0; I decided to use this hotel even though I am worried. But, when I reached the hotel, it met my expectations and we stayed here comfortably and happy. Room is simple, but space is reasonably good; Bathroom is great; shower is strong and hot; tv channel is great; wifi is fast! Hotel staffs are amazingly helpful and friendly!

                                                                    Beijing 161 Wangfujing Hotel

Hotel chandelier

at hotel lobby

at the street near Dongsi Station

Tips no. 3: Eat wisely at cheaper restaurant

We reached the hotel at 10 am and put our luggages at the hotel.  We then headed to McDonald's nearby. It was just a 5 minutes walk to McD which was located next to WuMart, a market. We just have to try their pork burger and their burgers tasted yummy and juicy! 

yummy McD on the first morning in Beijing - RMB 25 per set

Pork Burger

beautiful bun

After breakfast at McD, we went to Tian'anmen Square, Forbidden City and National Museum of China.  From Dongsi station, we travelled to Dongdan station, and transferred to Tian'anmen East Station for RMB3 only. Then we queued for about 30 minutes to get in as the security is tight. Please do not forget to bring your passport along to get in.

It is advisable to visit these 3 places as early as you can as the queue can be horrifying in the afternoon.

wall of art everywhere

National Museum of China

Forbidden City

National Museum of China - Free Entrance

After that, we went to Wangfujing which is a station away from Tian'anmen East Station. Time for food again yippeee... We went to GouBuLi to try their pork bun and their cold salted dishes which are eaten with their yellow bean porridge; unique huh?  While waiting for the food to come, I went to Wang Ju De restaurant to take away Peking duck for dinner at the hotel later. I paid RMB 297 for the yummy duck.

GouBuLi

Pork bun; cold salty dish with yellow porridge

Cold and salty dishes at GouBuLi

Wang Ju De Peking duck

Forgotten to take the duck before the feast; this is the leftover haha...JUICY!

After Wangfujing, we walked back to the hotel which took us about 15-20 minutes. With the nice cold weather; we could walked comfortably and looked at the city and buildings.  We checked in to our comfy rooms at around 9.30 pm, and then went for our supper at  Liang Lao Er;  just opposite the hotel.

the map from McD's Wangfujing to 161 Hotel.

Opposite this hotel, there were so many eateries. But we loved Liang Lao Er most; their food were all very yummy especially the Beef Noodle soup, the Vege salad, and the meat sanchwich. The food were also very very affordable. For 6 person, each person a bowl of food, with drinks only cost us about RMB 110; which is about RM 70. 

Our favourite Hutong restaurant; Liang Lao Er - Best Beef noodle just opposite 161 Hotel 

Best Vege salad

Best Beef noodle

Best pork sandwiches; we had it every breakfast.

We went back to our rooms at 10.30 pm feeling so full and tired; got our lovely hot bath and then had a great sleep.


Below are some of the photos we took during our trip. Beautiful Hutong!


Part 2:
http://jacstylist.blogspot.my/2017/10/part-2-how-to-travel-to-beijing-on-your.html

cute looking bike

food at one of the mall in Wangfujing on day 3

Beijing zoo subway Day 3

Subway wall of art  at every subway

Cute looking vehicle

the way they bake their sweet potato - you can find this by the street near the hotel

The city; infront of MCD Beijing Dongsi

Beijing798 on day 4

Steamboat dinner on our last night in Beijing

the Hairdressing; unique street at Sanlitun

Beijing 798 

Hutong near Sanlitun Street; Old vs New

Subway Wall of art

Steamboat celebration before heading to airport

Barbecue lamb leg at PingAnLi

Forbidden City

Kung Pao Ji Ting

Breakkie at hotel- super yummy croissant

Beijing 798