Hostel Review | Noah's Ark Backpackers in Greymouth, New Zealand

I stayed here during my trip to South Island, New Zealand a couple of years back. The reason I picked this hostel is because it sounded and looked interesting on the website, coupled with good reviews, strategic location, reasonable rates and awesomely cute decor, how could I say no. Right?

What attracted me the most is the thematic decor in each room, in fact, I was praying hard that I get the zebra room as I thought it was the coolest. Instead we got a lion room, oh well... (I am a sucker for all these.... hehhehee...)

The main attraction here is actually Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowholes and trekking. For those planning to stay in Greymouth to visit Punakaiki, you can stay here for a night.

They offer simple and standard facilities such as :

BBQ, Bicycle Hire, Common Room, Free Internet Access, Free WiFi, Hot Showers, Kitchen, Laundry Facilities, Linen Included, Luggage Storage, Tours/Travel Desk, Washing machine etc.

The room I prayed to get. Sigh...

My sis would want this room I bet!

Detailing.

The dorm. As you can see it is rather clean and well organised.

Piggy was not forgotten. I told him whatever it is, I don't want this room. Hehheheh...

Common room.

Clean, neat and tidy.

This indicates the dorm size.

Internet access, and that's my room :)

Front desk/tour desk/Information counter etc.

Tips :

• You can easiloy book via BBH, Hostelbookers, HostelWorld, Booking.com, Hostels.com, Agoda or directly to them.
• Punakaiki Pancake Rocks & Blowholes
• Trekking activities is available
• Take a horse trek through the scenic landscapes
• Swimming, surfing, fishing, and kayaking
• Rock climbing, bouldering and caving in the limestone formations
• If you are renting a car, please drive below 50kph within the city
• The only thing you need to note (for the Muslims) is that they have a dog here but he is pretty friendly and harmless.  

Noah's Ark Backpackers 

16 Chapel St, Greymouth 7805, New Zealand

+64 3-768 4868
URL : http://www.noahs.co.nz/

Day 4b | Searching for Morning Sun [YwaMa Floating Market & Kella Village)

Inle Lake was planned with sunrise and sunset in mind.

We start our day as early as 7am waiting excitedly for the boatman to come and pick us up from our hotel. The great thing about Inle is that most hotels provide this service - sightseeing. One need not go far nor hunt high and low searching for activities or operators.

Asking the hotel staff on weather, expectation, distance, duration etc; we figure we should start packing (sounded big trip huh) the night before. Few tips that I would like to share with travelers : SUNBLOCK (crucial unless your intention is to get a beautiful tan *smile*), jacket/cardy (if you plan to take the sunrise excursion), cap, sunnies, water and snacks (aside from camera [and spare battery!]).

We stayed for half an hour or so taking the sunrise pictures with Inle's famous leg rowing fisherman of Intha tribe from Intha Tibetan-Burmese ethnic. The experience was breathtaking, as seen HERE. If you plan to visit Inle, sunrise would be the best time as it is Inle Lake signature attraction.

Not long after, we arrived at the Ywama Floating Market where most houses is on stilt including their public toilet (don't worry, I shall elaborate later *cheeky grin*). 

The first ray of morning sun shines over the market where locals busy putting up their stalls, cooking simple snacks to sell to morning dwellers, boat owners hoping for business and then; there's us 4 silly girls in need to do our 'small business' urgently.

Similar to Malaysia cucuq rakyat/sayur.

We asked our boatman the where about of little ladies room and he pointed to us (top picture), I believe the first impression of the first sight was "WHAT???" (sungguh orang bandar!), followed by "ERR....". Few things I was trying hard to phantom, can the stilt withstand my weight? (Haha...) Will the wall collapse? Is there water inside? Tissue?... No easy task I tell you that.

We managed to complete our 'small business' with some rare taichi skill and strong 'kuda-kuda' as what P.Ramlee would say. 'Hey guys, the market view is great from here but my camera is with you guys' and 'I can see you pee-pee going into the drain' were the conversation we had (sharing too much maybe?). Hahhahaa... If it is not because of the queue, I would have taken a second 'helping' together with my camera! And I would have more stories to write in this blog of mine.

Somehow I love how the sun hits every decorative stalls, every happy faces and all the sacred temples that morning. It felt like 'Here you go Lily, it's your day today' moment... Everything was perfect down to the locals asking Fie whether she wants to purchase 'you know what'. Epic joke that one!

Marketing. Where it all starts.

Visiting local markets and being among them are probably one of my quirks or perhaps all travelers favourite past time too. Not to mention browsing thru the decorative ornaments which is at abundance here... One thing I realised is that the ornaments here are similar to those of their neighbouring countries but anyway, my first target is fridge magnets, lame I know.

Here is a piece that fascinates me, according to the local this headgear is made of buffalo tooth.

Kela Village was our next destination, a quick one but memorable one as this was the first time I met with a long neck tribe. As much as I am impress and intrigue I was actually scared, I didn't even dare to go near. Serious.

I wasn't sure which to focus, the person or the weaving skill. A tough one.

They are very quiet, shy perhaps.

Fridge magnets - wood and mother of pear(?).

Yes, you fridge magnet lover out there, this is one of the place where you can get them, abit expensive though but it comes with nice pouch.

I manage to roam and wander behind the showcase area, truly mesmerise with the area and what caught my eyes was that it is very clean, very. The stilt house was built in an orderly and grid manner, I was hoping to see kids running around for me to catch a few shots but it was a quiet little village, too early perhaps?

Parking.

I guess I am beginning to fall in love with this country every minute, even while writing this. The next destination is quite interesting as it requires us to do a little trekking.

My other Myanmar entries :
Visa : Myanmar Visa Application
The Beginning : #Myanmar. How I Remembered It! ( #Myanmargang ) 
Gadget : #Myanmar | In Black & White - #Olympus E-PL3
Gadget : #Myanmar | In Dramatic Tone - #Olympus E-PL3
Myanmar Costing : #Myanmar Costing
Day 1 : Yangoon to Bagan Train Ride
Day 2 : Temples in #Bagan Myanmar (Part 1)
Day 2 : Irrawaddy Boat Cruise, #Myanmar (Part 2)
Day 2 : Majestic #Bagan At Sunset - #Myanmar (Part 3)
Day 3 : Inle Town at Sunset, #Myanmar
Day 4 : Inle Lake at Sunrise

I have NOTHING to say

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Me : Yes. I still have NOTHING to say. So, what should I do?
I : You should blog about it.
Me : Blog about what?
I : Blog about the fact that 'you have NOTHING to say'.
Me : What ?????
I : Well, at least you have an entry right?
Me : Whatever... (eyes rolling)
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Confirmed. STILL have NOTHING to say.

PS: Something big happened in my life today for the first time, those who guess it right will get a souvenirs from the 3-5 countries I will be visiting this year. Ceh wah.... Salam Ramadhan.
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I : Hey, you do have SOMETHING to say
Me : Yeah yeah yeah.....




 Ini adalah entry bodoh, sekian. Terima Kasih.

Day 4 | Inle Lake at Sunrise

Inle Lake

I fell in love 

with God's canvas

I am speechless

All over again

My other Myanmar entries :
Visa : Myanmar Visa Application
The Beginning : #Myanmar. How I Remembered It! ( #Myanmargang ) 
Gadget : #Myanmar | In Black & White - #Olympus E-PL3
Gadget : #Myanmar | In Dramatic Tone - #Olympus E-PL3
Myanmar Costing : #Myanmar Costing
Day 1 : Yangoon to Bagan Train Ride
Day 2 : Temples in #Bagan Myanmar (Part 1)
Day 2 : Irrawaddy Boat Cruise, #Myanmar (Part 2)
Day 2 : Majestic #Bagan At Sunset - #Myanmar (Part 3)
Day 3 :  Inle Town at Sunset, #Myanmar

(NEW) 2013 Waktu Solat & Imsak - Kuala Lumpur (KL) & Putrajaya

Salam Ramadhan Al Mubarak.

Sharing July and August timetable for solat & imsak, take note that this is for Wilayah Persekutuan & Putrajaya only.

For whole 2013 solat timetable, please click on this link HERE to download.

For travelers out there, please click Islamic Finder World Prayer Times or IslamiCity World Wide Prayer Times. Feel free to share if you have any link other than this that can be useful.

** Sumber Almanak Falak Syarie JAKIM 

* Dikeluarkan Oleh : Pejabat Mufti Wilayah Persekutuan 

* www.muftiwp.gov.my

#Myanmar Costing

Ramadhan is coming and most of us will be on personal travel freeze during this holy month.

I have to be honest, I have yet to complete my stories of this lovely country which awed me and left me craving for more, and I hope to finish it during thus Ramadhan month, InsyaAllah.

Hope the below helps.

My other Myanmar entries :
Visa : Myanmar Visa Application
The Beginning : #Myanmar. How I Remembered It! ( #Myanmargang ) 
Gadget : #Myanmar | In Black & White - #Olympus E-PL3
Gadget : #Myanmar | In Dramatic Tone - #Olympus E-PL3
Day 1 : Yangoon to Bagan Train Ride
Day 2 : Temples in #Bagan Myanmar (Part 1)
Day 2 : Irrawaddy Boat Cruise, #Myanmar (Part 2)
Day 2 : Majestic #Bagan At Sunset - #Myanmar (Part 3)
Day 3 :  Inle Town at Sunset, #Myanmar

Running Season Again

It’s the running season again.

Of late my twitter timeline are all about running events, Standard Chartered Run, Olympic Day Run, 2XU Compression Run and many more. And if it is not a run, it’ll be hiking or trekking; Gunung Kinabalu, Mesilau Trail and recently Mt. Stong International Climbathon. I guess I do have a bunch of active (hyper) friends, perhaps I too should participate in these runs and indirectly build my stamina for my traveling needs.

I have problem in finding a sports shoe that fits me comfortably and perfectly for my biggest problem is my arch. This is where TevaSphere latest spherical heel and pod-arch system helps the needs of the outdoor enthusiast, its technology able to deliver a more natural point of impact and stability on varied terrain which able to assist my problem without restricting my freedom of movement.

As for me, being an active traveler and adrenaline junkie who chooses flashpacking as my traveling style and adding outdoor activities in my journey, I need the best combination of hiking, walking or running shoe which TevaSphere represents the best combination of performance and stability. The Spider365 Rubber provides tight grip in wet environments for runners, hikers and trekkers, where else TevaSphere Speed features quick-dry materials, keeps water out and also wicks sweat away from feet, keeping them dry inside and out.

Want to check it out? Available at World of Sports outlet nationwide, retailing at RM459.00. Let's start practicing.

Run, Lily, run!

* This is an advertorial write-up.