Oakwood Kuala Lumpur | The perfect staycation hotel

Sometimes, the best vacation is a staycation.

A foreign activity or/and name for some yet it is pretty common now.

Staycation has received a few urban definition these past few years, a few of the popular ones found are:

• A vacation that is spent at one's home enjoying all that one's home environs have to offer.
• A reprieve from daily activities of work and chores; taking personal time.
• A  vacation spent close to home.

And everyone’s favourite choice will be ‘A Vacation spent close to home’.  I got the chance to enjoy this experience at Oakwood Hotel & Residence off Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. Everything is perfect to the T; the room comes with a decent and well equip kitchenette, a living room and bedroom.  A few thoughts ran into my mind as I walked in the room, this is a suitable place to hold a small gathering or reunion among close friends, family weekend getaway in the city and perhaps a home away from home for those who wants a different from home yet close enough to attend any emergency issues (if need be).

I have to admit, it was a much needed staycation cum holiday as I get to focus on my work (need to complete my 2017 plan), backlogged blog post, rest while enjoying the pool and gym facilities (obviously).... not only that, I also managed to go for an acupuncture cupping therapy. AND that's a big YEAY for me.

That is not all, a few of the services and facilities I noticed and impressed with are the:

• Doctor on-call
• Complimentary Daily Shuttle Service
• Internal Laundry Facilities (self-operated machine is available)
• 10-minute drive to MaTIC, Kuala Lumpur's one-stop Tourist Information Centre, Suria KLCC, Petronas Twin Tower, KL Tower, Lot10, Lake Titiwangsa, Istana Budaya and etc. Aside, shopping malls along with the financial district within a stone’s throw.
• 5 minute drive away from the world class medical centre; The Gleneagles Hospital
• Situated in a well-connected, accessible and within the popularly known "Embassies Hub” area thus providing guests with a comfortable and hassle-free stay.

Oakwood Hotel & Residence Kuala Lumpur is located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, making it the perfect place for me to have a great staycation. Accessible to KLCC, Avenue K, Pavillion and etc makes it convenient for me to shop or attend any event.

The TrEat Restaurant & Bar offers light and simple meal for guest. Craving for a pasta meal since the last few weeks drive me to sample what TrEat Restaurant has to offer. Flipping thru Oakwood Hotel menu (thank goodness for the simplicity else I have an even tougher time picking a meal), I saw a section dedicated to pasta. 'Hemmm... Gonna get myself an Aglio Olio pasta' I said to myself satisfactorily. Few minutes after placing my order, the most anticipated pasta arrives. Doesn't look that appealing, I remembered telling myself. I took a small bite (doubting)...

It was spicy. Very spicy in fact.

But strangely, I kinda love this new and interesting fuse of Italian food with cili padi. Fit my Minang taste bud. Definitely.

So far so good, love my room, great food and now I set to hunt for recreational activities which sums up to gym and pool. Finding the pool site was easy as it is situated by the TrEat Restaurant of which one can dine while watching the kids playing by the pool at the same time, I believe this is called good time management and great multi-tasking skill *wink*. As for the gym, it is located just next to the restaurant overlooking the pool. I guess the management really think through on everything.

Looking for a great Oakwood Hotel Kuala Lumpur promotion? Click HERE to know more.

Fact :

Oakwood Worldwide® is the premier provider of corporate housing and serviced apartment solutions through its well-known brands, Oakwood®, ExecuStay® and Insurance Housing Solutions™. With a presence in all 50 United States and more than 85 countries, the award-winning company provides move-in-ready furnished accommodations to meet the needs of global organizations, individual business travellers, insurance clients and leisure travellers alike. Oakwood Worldwide was founded in and continues to base its corporate headquarters in Los Angeles and operates regional headquarters in London, Phoenix and Singapore.

Oakwood Hotel & Residence Kuala Lumpur

222 Jalan Ampang

50450 Kuala Lumpur

Tel : 603.2720.3888

Website : https://www.oakwoodasia.com/kualalumpur/oakwood-kualalumpur.php

Harry Porter Graduation Tower. NOT! It’s the Wieliczka Salt Mine Graduation Tower

Looks pretty mighty and weird at the same time eh!

We found it by chance, not knowing what it is.

Mind my ignorance when writing this as I will share my experience.

It started with both Anna and I wanted to cover the famous UNESCO site Wieliczka Salt Mine, after looking at the entrance price, I decided to be kiam siap (stingy) for whatever stupid reason. Occasionally I do this during trips despite I told myself not to, after spending a bomb on a trip, I should just close my eyes and pay for the entrance fee (of which I now regretted not visiting [padan muka Lily!]). So we decided, to do a self-discovery trip Wieliczka town, rather quaint seriously.

#TravelTips 1 : I would highly recommend for you guys to do an overnight trip here here, the country site is awesome and calm to look at. And do check activities you can do at the meadows, farms or country site.

We departed during the midday and arrive just before noon I think, or perhaps at noon. Upon checking out the Wieliczka Salt Mine plus mapping and ticking those attractions we covered, we noticed that there is thing called Graduation Tower which we were curious of. We obediently head to the tower direction, while looking for any place interesting for us to look-see look-see or perhaps drop in and get some souvenirs. There was almost none. Sigh….

It was pretty easy actually, as we got down from the train and cross the main street (a rather small street), within 50m or so, you’ll notice an Information   Booth/Counter, just go right in and get a map, they will be able to point you the right direction to whether you should start your walking excursion. Yup! You practically can walk to most of the attractions.

#TravelTips 2 : Depart as early as possible as the queue can be super long.

#TravelTips 3 : Where a proper walking shoe and bring a bottle of water

Our first point of interest was the Salt Mine, of which we later head to the Graduation Tower, here, we decided to stay abit longer due to the health benefit…gitew.  It is one of the most interesting structure I’ve seen and coupled with the health benefits, I guess I am more impress with how the Polish able to combine this 2 element and build this tower.

Graduation Tower

Also called a Thorn House, the graduation tower wall is made of bundles of brushwood/blackthorn against a wooden wall-like frame. You will see salt water dripping on the brushwood from the top and partly evaporates; it is said that some of the minerals from the solution are left behind on the brushwood twigs. This mineral-rich water droplets are regarded as having beneficial health effects similar to breathing in sea air. Hence, it is often visited for health reason.

Who and why should visit the graduation tower?

Inhalations at the graduation tower are recommended for persons suffering from recurring and chronic ailments of the respiratory system. Thus patients with rhinitis, sinusitis, laryngitis and during the period of post-therapy of acute infections of the respiratory system will feel a relief. The brine aerosol also helps patients to remove mucus during such ailments as, for instance, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchial asthma.

The benefits of inhalations at a graduation tower are well known. The salutary effects can be observed especially with patients suffering respiratory system disorders. Inhalations at a graduation tower have a positive impact on the mucous membrane of our nose, throat, sinuses, trachea and larynx, confirms doctor Magdalena Paciorek, Assistant Health Treatment Consultant at the “Wieliczka” Salt Mine Health Resort. The microclimate of the area surrounding the graduation tower is also serves as a preventive measure for healthy persons cleansing their respiratory tract and improving their body defence system. This allows to protect oneself, at least to a certain extent, from recurring infections.

The best treatment effects can be achieved while standing not closer than 30 meters from the tower while the recommended duration of a single visit is 15 to 30 minutes, twice a day. It is also recommended to have a brisk walk after the visit to the graduation tower or take a stroll along the park avenues. You can also enter the roofed platforms or the tower from which you can admire the magnificent view of the surroundings. But, if you just want to relax and take a deep and healthy breath in the area of the graduation tower there are plenty of benches to sit on in the area.

Source from http://www.wieliczka-saltmine.com/the-wieliczka-salt-mine-graduation-tower

#TravelTips 4 : The brushwood twigs are usually changed every 5-10 years.

#TravelTips 5 : Prepare to spend longer time at the Graduation Tower.

The place is rather scenic I must say, in fact I think the whole town is scenic, quaint and full of history. I fell in love with it immediately.

#TravelTips 6 : For those whom love to take ‘creative’ memorable photography, bring your graduation robe and take a picture here J *wink*.

Oh! This ain’t over yet for Wieliczka town, I have more to share in my next entry. Stay tune.

Villa Kontena | Paving the market trend in Malaysia

Paving the market trend on container eco-friendly home.
A trend setter.

Settling with architecture experience doesn’t goes well with Port25; the company that showcased Villa Kontena at the recent Camping in the City event held a Lanai Matic, Jalan Ampang.

Hungry for challenge and craving for green building excellence, Port25 aimed to create a different in Malaysia tourism industry. Understanding the concern that hoteliers have, the pain that small time guesthouses encountered and coupled with the travellers need of a decent and affordable accommodation during ones journey, makes Port25 craft Villa Kontena. Villa Kontena is an affordable accommodation that focuses on necessity and carbon footprint while meeting demand-supply from both parties; hotel and guesthouse owners and guest. 

Villa Kontena is not a typical container home like what we see trending now in Malaysia, Villa Kontena is a realization and vision of Port25, where it minimizes the reconstruction of the shipping container while leveraging on existing space, at the same time, providing the guest with experience of staying in a eco-like hotel. Embarking in container hotel helped to recycled more than 3000kg worth of steel, not only that, it also contributes in saving the building materials such as mortar, bricks, wood and etc. Aside, it’s fast construction helped to save cost from both the contractor and the hotel/guesthouse owners.

For each recycled shipping container we are reusing around 3,500kg worth of steel. We are also saving all of the traditional building materials (such as bricks, mortar and wood) which don’t need to be used.

Whilst you could argue that melting down the shipping container and recasting the steel into something else is more environmentally friendly, you would be wrong. Recasting steel requires an incredible amount of energy and it isn’t financially viable- this is why there are so many abandoned shipping containers in the world.

Embarking in yet another great project in Perak, Port25 is set to pave their path in this wondrous state, starting with container  villa, equipped with base necessity and eco-friendly built ups, giving guest and travellers alike a pure sense of being and surrounded by nature, yet still feel comfortable and secured.

Background

PORT25, being the acronym for People Of Remarkable Talent, is a design collaborative based in Malaysia. With the aim to forge broader inter-disciplinary creative collaborations, PORT commune was created by repurposing an old factory/warehouse into a space where like-minded creative types would gather and share discourses or exhibits.

Aside from building container home, Port25 also specialises in Architecture Design, Urban Design/Intervention, Interior Design, Furniture Design and Exhibition Installation.

Port25

Studio A, No.3, Jalan 51/201

Seksyen 51

Petaling Jaya

Selangor

Tel : 03-7781 2228

This #CaraCamp Camping in the City event is with supported by #MITA and #NBQS in collaboration with #MaTiC (venue)