Travelogue around Asia Pacific Part II

Bangalore -  Breakfast was complimentary and a very good spread of Indian cuisine.  The waiter at Hyatt restaurant was very good and tended to my every needs, kudos to them for this Indian hospitality. Dinner was at Karavalli restaurant - a popular Indian fine dining restaurant located at The Gateway Hotel - a short distance from Hyatt Bangalore.   The decor and ambiance of this restaurant brings you back to ancient Indian times. signboard along the corridor This restaurant specialise in seafood, so we chose 2 seafood dishes and a mutton dish. Sungatache Kodi This is tiger prawns cooked in spicy Indian curry.   There were only 3 medium size tiger prawns fresh and nicely cooked, not so spicy. Mutton curry The mutton was very tender and delicious; and the curry was not too hot. Chevod Blachao This is a lobster dish prepared in pickle masala with very hot and spicy chillies from Goa; and Goa vinegar.   It was so chilli hot that I sweat w...

Bangalore -  Oko that is the name of this restaurant and it received rave reviews and wanted to see this for myself.   I got the front desk to book a reservation for Lesley and myself @ 7pm; also got the hotel car booked as well.   We got down to the Lobby @ 6.30pm but reached The Lalit Askhok hotel only at around 7:15pm due to the heavy traffic. The restaurant was on the 6th floor of the Lalit Askhok hotel and we were the first guest being greeted by rows of waiter and waitresses. Apart of the heat, dust and noise - Indian dining experience is a notch above restaurants in Singapore.   We were greeted politely and shown to our seats.  Furthermore, throughout the meal the waiter tended to us asking how was the meal; whether we are ready for the next meal, and a sous chef was always around to chat with us. This restaurant is big with an indoor concept and a very nice outdoor dining area.  Initially we sat outside but the warm weather coupled with 'unfr...

Bangalore - Upon arriving Bangalore, the heat and dust outside the airport was unbearable.  It took a considerable 1.5hrs to reach Hyatt Bangalore due to the heavy traffic jam.  Car and buses were trying to cut into each other lanes just to get ahead and in the process honing non-stop.  My taxi driver was trying to strike a conversation with me but I was not in a mood; furthermore straining hard to understand his broken English. I was so glad to see Hyatt Bangalore - the room air con was cool to the right temperature and decor clean and neat.   Waited for Lesley till lunch. Lunch We ordered Ala carte and the food was good.   Butter chicken, mix vegetables and lamb (top dish) with Basmati rice and roti.

Sydney - We decided to go to Golden Century Restaurant , this Chinese seafood restaurant on 393 Sussex Road, which is on our hotel road many blocks down.   This is a big 2 floors restaurant and we sat on the first floor, near the live fish tanks. When I flipped through their live seafood menu, wow! the prices are like out of this world - very expensive.  A$127 for 1kg of live prawns.  The cheapest was the mud crab @ A$68 for 1kg.  They also have a minimum charge of A$20 per person. We chose the food from their Ala carte menu much reasonably priced and the food is good too. prawns with onions The prawns are big and very fresh, it is unique stir-fired with onions. King mushrooms with vegetables Value for money:  Very expensive Ambiance: Reasonable and clean Worth a 2nd visit:  Maybe if there are no other seafood in mind...

Sydney - We walked along Pitt Street and came across 'The National Opal Collection" and their showroom.  Quite an interesting array of Opal collections. Just as Jade is to China, Opal is to Australia.  Opal is the national gemstone of Australia, producing 97% of world's opal.

Sydney - After our morning business meeting, we took a leisurely stroll to the Sydney Opera House about 1km from our hotel.   We did not break a sweat under the cool and windy Sydney weather.  Upon reaching Sydney Opera House, it started to drizzle and rain and stop for a few minutes enough to get across quickly to the ticket counter.   We booked the Sydney Opera House walking tour which lasted for 1hr and conducted in English.   At 3pm, a sizeable number of ticket holders were waiting for the tour guide.  It was very organized and handled.   There were headphones being handed out to the group so that the tour guide and speak softly and all can be heard. It was a good educational tour of the Sydney Opera House - I visited their drama halls, studio and finally their huge theatre.  Fortunately, a ballet rehearsal was taking place which we manage to catch a glimpse of it. Studio Hall retractable chairs Harbour Bridge Sydney Opera House ...

Sydney - It was a cold and windy day which deserves a nice walk to the park, it took us about 10 minutes of brisk walking down Market Street to the Art Gallery of New South Wales .   This Art Museum is one of Australia's leading and very popular among locals and tourist alike.  Located at along Art Gallery Road and it's free admission.  Every Wednesday it closes at 10pm. The Art Gallery of NSW is Sydney's fine art gallery and was establised in 1871.  The Gallery presents a fine collection of both national and international artwork from 19th century Australian works to European masters. Some of the Art Gallery interesting art pieces of works. Pablo Picasso art Music of Art The Art Gallery cafe serves good deserts and coffee.  Sitting outside in the nice and beautiful weather sipping coffee was very nice. Dark Chocolate Brownie a pair of scones and my cup of cuppacino We walked back to Darling Harbour to try our luck for some good Au...

Sydney - What a beautiful morning in Sydney - cold and windy.  Instead of having breakfast around our hotel - we took a taxi to our customer - Optus which has a huge campus and many restaurants and cafe. Darling Harbour from my window For dinner, we went to The Rocks - a beautiful location along Circular Quay overlooking the Harbour bridge.   We chose this restaurant Searock Grill - hoping they have a wide selection of seafood but was limited and instead we went for their steaks.   We were not disappointed with our selection - it was exquisite and succulent. Sydney local beer  This is brewed by Rocks Brewing Company - an Australian owned and brewed company based out of Sydney.  A refreshing and light beer, just nice for our steak and oysters.  We ordered 5 Kilpatrick and 5 natural Oysters. Kilpatrick Oysters Natural Australian oysters Lesley steak 220g Eye fillet medium rare, with mushroom sauce and nice bowl of fresh salad. A ...

Sydney - It was a full flight on SQ and there was no choice left but a middle seat on the exit row.   At least I had leg room.   I was dozing on and off, watched 2 movies and 2 meals and soon, the captain was announcing the arrival into Sydney. Sydney International airport had e-immigration for approved countries and Singapore is one of them.   I just scanned my passport, got a ticket and walked pass a gate to another gate for a photo take; that's all completed in less than 8 minutes.   Picked up my luggage, zipped through customs and hand over the ticket.   I really liked the e-immigration system. I waited for another 30 minutes for Lesley and both of us catch the taxi to Four Points Sheraton Hotel.    I never stayed here before -  the rooms are clean and new.  The wireless internet is fast.   It's located near Darling Harbour.   My room faces the beautiful harbour. We were hungry and walked down King Street and found this ...