Saturday 24 November 2012

Toast to a great coffeeshop

Toast to a great coffeeshop

THE aroma of freshly made toast and rich aromatic coffee wafts in the air, greeting customers as they walk into Hua Mui, a popular coffeeshop located in the heart of Johor Baru.

The traditional deco and simplistic design gives customers a peek into thetimes where people sat for hours, just to mingle with friends and share the latest gossip while sipping a cup of coffee or tea at the kopitiam.

Waitress Mariam Ibrahim, 59, who has been working at Hua Mui for more than 40 years, says that is the main reason why people keep coming back to the eatery at the junction of Jalan Trus and Jalan Dhobby.

“I remember walking past the shop when I was schooling a long time ago, and even then, Hua Mui was famous for its delicious toast, coffee and tea.

“Another dish that is popular with Hua Mui is its special Hainanese Chicken Chop which comes with crispy potato wedges, green peas and a special mushroom sauce,” she said while greeting several customers by name.

The chirpy Mariam also said the shop had a steady flow of regular customers, and sometimes even welcomed customers who returned to relieve their childhood experiences, after being away for many years away.
v “I have been approached numerous times by customers, who still recognise me from years ago.

“They often tell me that they came here as a child with their parents, and were so excited to return with their own children or grandchildren to enjoy the food here,” she said, adding that it was heartwarming to learn how special the little coffeeshop had become.

Hua Mui kopitiam was set up in 1946 and started off as a popular eatery, frequented by British officials who used to reside in the Bukit Timbalan building located nearby.

The restaurant was also a popular place for families to celebrate special occasions and Mariam said she had lost count of how many birthday parties, anniversary celebrations and other events that the kopitiam has hosted.

“Over the years, not much has changed in terms of the kopitiam’s deco and in fact, most of the flooring, crockery, window panes and even a traditional pulley system has been retained to keep the authentic feel of the place.

“Another signature feature of the kopitiam is the traditional staircase banister which feels so smooth from the thousands of hands that have held it while walking to the restaurant’s second floor,” she said.

Businessman Othman Hitam, 55, said he spends at least an hour a day, chatting with friends and enjoying the food at Hua Mui.

“Hua Mui is like my second home.

“It is nice that I will always find a familiar face whenever I drop by, and the ambience is the main reason why I always keep coming back,” he said, adding that the table located at the corner of the entrance was the best place to relax and observe the city’s transformation as the years go by.

Long time customer, Najmuddin Sockin, 54, has been frequenting the shop since he was a little boy.

“My favourite is the chicken chop and I always crave for the delicious dish whenever I am close by the area,” he said, adding that although there were many new kopitiams around, Hua Mui would always be on the top of his list.

First-time Singaporean visitor Vivienne Soon, 19, described her first experience at the simple kopitiam as memorable.

“We have similar establishments in Singapore but nothing compares to the authentic feel of this charming place,” she said, adding that the flavourful food and friendly staff were some of the plus points for the restaurant.

Besides its signature kopitiam dishes, Hua Mui is also famous for several local food including the Hua Mui Mee Mamak, nasi goreng and their roti bakar which is still toasted over charcoal fire.

The quaint kopitiam also serves up some unusual dishes including Mongolian Chicken Rice and Butter Cream Chicken Rice, which is an equally popular dish among customers.

Hua Mui is open from 9am to 7pm daily. For details, call 07-224 7364.

~News courtesy of The Star~

Tuesday 13 November 2012

Added attraction in Johor

Added attraction in Johor


Beautifully designed: The entrance to Sanrio Hello Kitty Town, which is the first one in the world outside of Japan at the RM115mil four-storey Puteri Harbour Indoor Theme Park in Nusajaya.

THE opening of another theme park in Iskandar Malaysia is set to attract more tourists to Johor and boost the state’s tourism sector.

The Puteri Harbour Indoor Theme Park is the second to open in Nusajaya last month after Asia’s first Legoland Theme Park opened in September this year.

The four-storey indoor theme park which opened its doors on October 26, offers theme cafes, seven rides including a train, windmill, helicopter and bumper car for both children and adults.

Popular caricature Lat’s Kampung Boy cafĂ© is expected to open at the end of the year.

The RM115mil theme park houses the first Sanrio Hello Kitty Town in the world outside Japan.

HIT Entertainment’s The Little Big Club lovable characters like Bob the Builder, Barney, Angelina Ballerina and Thomas and Friends also have made the park their “home”.


Happy faces : Tourists from The Phillippines grabbing the chance to hug and snap photos with Hello Kitty mascots.

Children as well as adults were equally excited at the sight of the adorable cartoon characters came “alive” right before their very own eyes.

They could pose photographs with the life-sized mascots of Hello Kitty and her friend Daniel.

Or learn ballet moves with Angelina Ballerina and even watch live performances by Barney and Thomas and Friends.

Visitors especially children were seen squealing in excitement as they went into Hello Kitty’s multi-hues coloured complete with furniture.

Best friends from SJKC Ming Terk in Gelang Patah, Tin Jing Xian and K. Anusha, both 11, said that they could not sleep the night before because they were too excited to visit the theme park.

“The Hello Kitty mini street parade is my favourite part of the theme park as the characters are very entertaining with their lively dance and colourful costumes,’’ said Tin.


Lots of choice s: A Hello Kitty maze game that visitors can participate in at the t heme park in Nusajaya.

Anusha on the other hand, enjoyed the Thomas and Friend bumper car rides.


Singaporean Mohd Hashim Abu Othman, 50, said he and his 26-year old wife jumped at the chance to visit the theme park.


“The hotel staff told us about its opening, so we decided to visit it as well as the Legoland. My wife was more excited than our two-year old son and she kept snapping photos of the rides on her mobile phone,’’ he said.


~News courtesy of The Star~

Saturday 10 November 2012

Heavy traffic expected at checkpoints


Heavy traffic expected at Woodlands, Tuas checkpoints over Deepavali

The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) expects traffic flow through the checkpoints at Woodlands and Tuas to be heavy over the coming weekend ahead of the Deepavali public holiday on November 13.

ICA advises travellers to car-pool or make use of public transport.

In addition, Singaporeans who are issued with the BioPass or are registered with the National Registration Office, are encouraged to use the enhanced Immigration Automated Clearance System (eIACS) lanes at the bus halls for immigration clearance.

Travellers leaving Singapore by the Woodlands or Tuas Checkpoints are advised to check on the traffic situation at the checkpoints before they start their journey.

The various platforms available are TrafficWatch on radio, the Land Transport Authority's One Motoring website, and the traffic information hotline at 68630117.

~News courtesy of Channel Newsasia~

Friday 9 November 2012

City of the future

City of the future

ISKANDAR Malaysia (IM) in Johor has been chosen as a Smart City Model for Malaysia and the world.

The selection took place during the first intersession meeting of the Global Science and Innovation Advisory Council (GSIAC) in July 2012, in San Jose, the US.

The GSIAC was formed by the Malaysian government and the New York Academy of Sciences in order to drive Malaysia’s effort to accelerate economic development through science, technology and innovation. It serves as an advisory panel to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and is composed of international experts drawn from industry, academic and the public sector.

Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) chief executive officer Datuk Ismail Ibrahim talked with The Star on the topics related to the Smart City project.

Q: What is the definition of a smart city and what does it mean to IM?

A: In line with its strategic pillars, IM’s definition of a smart city is an integration of three basic components: the economy, environment and social aspects.

By combining these components, it will form the basis of becoming a city that performs well focused on six areas — the economy, the environment, governance, mobility, people and the quality of living.

The city is built on the “smart” integration of investments of human and social capital, combining hard and soft infrastructure that fuel sustainable economic development as well as a high quality of life, and wise management of natural resources through good participatory governance.

Often, terminologies and newly coined words create more confusion for the public instead of giving them a better insight on what is being done and will be done in the future...

Smart City is not a new concept to the European countries and our neighbour, Singapore.

The definition might vary from one city to another depending on the priorities in the respective countries.

Not to confuse the public, this is the main reason that IM Smart City framework was developed based on and in line with our three main pillars which are economy, environment and social.

The enhanced and added-value focus points are:

>How we attract economic growth in a smart way — catalytic projects, complementing Singapore and meeting global requirements.

>How we get smart and good buy-in from the public in the things that we want to do and implement, and usage of new channels of communications for the citizens — such as public participation for feedback, utilising our website to reach out to a larger group of people, encouraging the private sector to work together with the public sector in providing infrastructure.

>How can we conserve the environment in a SMART way — to entice the developers/investors to do their part on environment by giving incentives for green technology and infrastructure and introducing green economy and carbon credits.

>How we should plan for smart mobility

~News courtesy of The Star~