Category Archives: Johor Bahru

Big Bad Wolf Book Sale in JB, May 24th to June 2nd

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The Big Bad Wolf Book Sale in JB, May 24th to June 2nd and Danga City Mall in Johor Bahru. They offer the most books I have ever seen at the periodic books sales that take place in JB. Probably 2 or 3 times the number of English titles I have every seen here before. This sale has only English language books.

The majority of books are novels of various sorts but also children’s books and books on business, history, photography, science… They are largely popular thrillers and the like but include a few classics and some science fiction (I wish there was more science fiction).

photo of 8 book covers from my Big Bag Wolf haul.

The photo shows 8 of the 21 books I got yesterday. Books include 2 travel books (China and Malaysia), Competition (a business/economics book), The Gambler by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Homer and Langley by E. L. Doctorow, The Holcroft Covenant by Robert Ludlum, The Devil’s Elixir by Raymond Khoury and Our Friends from Frolix 8 by Philip Dick.

Philip Dick is the author of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (made into the film Blade Runner) and Minority Report (film of the same name) and many other science fiction books.

They are nearly all priced at 8 or 10 MYR (essentially $US 3) though there are some at 5 MYR and some fancy picture books and the like at 20 or 25 MYR. The Big Bad Wolf book sales are offered around Malaysia recently (KL, Penang…).

Does this count as a haul blog post?

Those interested in English language books in JB should definitely check this sale out. Also visit my favorite book store in JB: Treasures and Books Store (Permas Jaya). When you do try the bakery next sore it is great – I’ll add a post on it soon.

Related: Galleria Mall @ Kotayara – Johor Bahru CBD – Mee Bandung at JB Station Kopitiam – Arulmigu Sri Raja Kallamman Indian Hindu Glass Temple which is nearby the Danga City Mall

Village Countryside Cuisine

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photo of inside of the restaraunt

Village Countryside Cuisine

Village Countryside Cuisine is an extension of the Village Briyani Cafe which is located a few doors away. Both are excellent.

photo of buffet at Village Countryside Cuisine

Village Countryside Cuisine buffet

On the weekends they have an excellent vegetarian buffet (15 MYR). I have enjoyed the egg thosai and fish masala and really like the weekend buffet. You get a selection of dishes and it seems to me they rotate the dishes quite a bit so you get to try new dishes each time.

photo of Aloo Ghobi Carrot Dry and Vegetable Doloha

Aloo Ghobi Carrot Dry and Vegetable Doloha

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Arts and Culture Carnival in Pasir Gudang, May 11th and 12th

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Sun arts and culture carnival is taking place at Bukit Layang-Layang, Pasir Gudang, Johor from the 11th to 12th May 2013 from 10am to 7pm. This free admission event, Karnival Seni Kreatif Kita, is organised by My Performing Arts Agency in collaboration with the National Department for Culture and Arts.

As their webcast says it is suitable for ages 1-109 with 300 artists giving 30 performances.

Performers include: Najwa Latif

Couple

Azmyl Yunor and The Siggarettes

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Kedai Makanan Dan Minuman Seng Huat

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photo of whole fresh fruit including pineapples, mangos and bananas

Kedai Makanan Dan Minuman Seng Huat includes several venders selling local food, fruit and bakery items. Kedai Makanan Dan Minuman basically means food and beverage shop. Seng Huat is located across Jalan Trus from the Old Chinese Temple in old town Johor Bahru.

photo of exterior of the food court

I generally just get fruit here. I enjoy coconut water and don’t find it at that many places; I get it here every time I pass by (which includes anytime I eat at Annalakshmi Indian Restaurant or the food court at Galleria Mall Kotayara). Learn more about coconuts and the health properties of coconut water.

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Johor Bahru Old Chinese Temple

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The Old Chinese Temple is one of the oldest structures in Johor Bahru. It is located downtown, surrounded by sky scrappers, malls and other temples.

photo of Bells old chinese temple jb

Bells on exterior wall of the old Chinese Temple. Note the turtle at the bottom of the flagpole.

photo inside old chinese temple

The temple is a place of worship and a symbol of unity among Five Chinese Dialect Groups which are “Teochew”, “Hoklo (Hokkien)”, “Cantonese”, “Hakka” and “Hainan”.

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18th Pasir Gudang World Kite Festival, Johor, Malaysia – Feb 19-24

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The 18th annual Pasir Gudang World Kite Festival will be held from the 19th of February until 24th February, 2013 (schedule). The kite festival draws enthusiasts from around the globe with competitors from over 20 countries. Videos of kites flying at the 2011 festival:

Video showing some scenes from the 2012 festival:

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Annalakshmi Indian Restaurant in Historic JB

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photo of the elaborate doorway entrance to the Annalakshmi restaurant

Entrance to the Annalakshmi restaurant in Johor Bahru

The Annalakshmi is a vegetarian, Indian restaurant that offers good food in an inviting environment with friendly service. Annalakshmi restaurants exist in several other cities including Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Chennai. They offer a interesting policy of letting you decide what to pay.

The restaurant is located in historic Johor Bahru near many other attractions: Salahuddin Bakery, Masjid India Mosque, Bangunan Sultan Ibrahim, Sri Raja Mariamman Temple, Johor Bahru Old Chinese Temple, Tiong Hua Chinese Heritage Museum, Sikh Gurdwara Sahib and a pleasant stroll from City Square Mall.

photo of the interior of the Annalakshmi restaurant

Annalakshmi is the culinary arts section of Temple of Fine Arts (TFA), an artistic and cultural organization dedicated to serving the society through arts, music and dance. This heritage is seen in the very nice decor.

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Galleria Mall @ Kotayara – Johor Bahru CBD

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exterior view of the Galleria @ Kotaraya

The Galleria @ Kotayara is a newly completely refurbished mall in JB town (Johor Bahru CBD). It is across the street from the Sikh Gurdwara Sahib and Sri Raja Mariamman temple and (on the other side of the mall) Bangunan Sultan Ibrahim.

The food court has been open for a few months but the rest of mall is still mainly empty. Still the food court already has almost no seating (I went at lunchtime this time but another time, even in the middle of the afternoon the food court was very full).

photo of the food court area

The food stalls (probably about 15 with mainly Malaysian dishes) offer very good food at great prices (the two times I have tried it so far anyway). Main courses are about 5-8 MYR ($2-3 US).

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JB to Singapore by Taxi

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I just found out taxis can be booked to bring you from anywhere in Singapore to Kotaraya (in JB – a few blocks from CIQ), or from anywhere in JB to Queen Street in Singapore. Call +65-62967054 (Singapore) or +60-7-2246986 (Johor Bahru), and be sure to get the taxi’s number, driver’s name and his phone number. They can take you to designated spots instead of the designated spots for an additional fee.

The price from JB to Singapore is 60 MYR.
The price from Singapore to JB is 60 SGD.

This is a very good deal from JB. The best I had been able to find before had been 150 MYR. It is crazy how the price is almost 2 1/2 times more from Singapore to JB than the reverse. The cost from Queen street to JB is 40 SGD for the full taxi. They can also be shared between 4 people so you can wait until a cab is full at Queen street and each pay $10.

The 150 MYR prices are for nice cars (they are not cabs) and the driver’s speak very good English and are very good. They will go pretty much anywhere in JB to anywhere in Singapore (the prices might be a bit higher for longer distances). I don’t really understand the way they relate to the taxi rules, they seem to be exempt from some reason. They are really still the best deal from Singapore to JB (as of today 60 SGD = 150 MYR).

But 60 MYR for JB to Queen Street is an excellent price, I wish I had learned about that earlier.

The biggest problem now is how congested the bridges will become. That they are so backed up now, with only a fraction of the anticipated Iskandar traffic due in the next few years, I find is an extremely bad sign. I don’t know how people can trust that enough capacity will be added fast enough to allow buying in JB and commuting to Singapore every day. The traffic is already bad and lots of new traffic is being planned (a large number of new high rise condo with lots of commuters to Singapore jobs and new attractions such as the recently added Legoland). It seems to me a third is needed today (and they haven’t even started construction or even confirmed a third link) and the MRT extension should be under construction (which will take years to bring online). The MRT is going to help a great deal, but it is not going to be usable until 2018, at the earliest.

Related: Taxi Between Johor Bahru and Singapore – Taking the Bus from Johor Bahru to Singapore – Taxis in Johor Bahru