Luxury health holiday in Ipoh?

Are you well heeled, or at least willing to splurge on a luxury holiday that is meant to restore your well being or to reduce your stress? Then perhaps the Banjaran Hot Springs Retreat, owned by Sunway Group, in Ipoh is something you would like to try out. (http://www.thebanjaran.com)

The Banjaran opened its doors to guests this year, with lots of advertising over the radio. I also noticed new signs on the major roads in Ipoh directing you to the Banjaran.

Well, last weekend we decided to check it out. True to its desire to be exclusive, the Banjaran does not permit casual visitors to enter the retreat. You need an "appointment". The guard at the entrance turned away several cars, including ours. He also handed us an information sheet quoting Banjaran's opening special of a 2 nights/3 days package which includes accommodation, aromatherapy, spa cuisine menu etc. at RM1,990 per person for a twin package.


Sound attractive to you? Let me know all about your experience there!

Rolling in something smelly

No, I'm not referring to the recent MCA election results.

My white, gentle female lab-mix who is usually very obedient, clean and docile came home yesterday after a jaunt out smelling like s*&@! I thought I had stepped on some poop or perhaps some animal had died on my car porch. But I could not find the source of the offending smell until my maid yelled that Bonnie (the dog) was a walking smelly-bin!

Yucks! She smelled like poop and a dead animal combined. Really, really disgusting. It reminded me of a dog I had when I was a child. I caught it nosing and pawing at something excitedly. Upon checking, I found that it was a dead rodent of some sort. Before I could do anything, my dog madly and joyfully leapt onto the carcass and rolled vigorously onto it. Then my dog regained her senses and started bounding towards me for a pat. I, of course, ran away from my dog, screaming!

So back to my Bonnie in the present time. The only explanation for her bad smell is that she must have found a carcass outside the house and rolled in it. This is such a weird behaviour of dogs. The general thinking out there is that dogs roll around in a carcass to mask its own scent in order to hunt effectively - in other words, it's instinctive so there's no point punishing your dog for it. The joy of having pets .......

MCA is LOST

I read in disbelief and great disappointment the results of the MCA elections.

The "wisdom" of the MCA central delegates has put Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek aka "the one in the DVD" in the post of party president, while Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai aka "I will stand by my President- maybe I'll try and push him out- I'll stand by my President again - maybe not" was chosen as deputy president.

With such people helming MCA, and the central delegates supporting them, it is clear that MCA can no longer, and does not want to, serve or be relevant to the general voters.

On the side, it is admirable that Datin Seri Wong, Datuk Seri Chua's wife, was able to stand by her husband's side and demonstrated her affection publicly with 2 congratulatory kisses. Great is her forgiveness and tolerance.

Hunting for a good dentist in Ipoh

Now that my family is settled in Ipoh, I need to locate services such as dental, facial, medical etc. here.

For paediatricians, I have tried Dr. Lim in Fair Park, Dr. David in Ipoh Specialist and Dr Tang in town. My children don't really take to Dr. Lim as he appears rather grouchy. Dr. David is thorough and caring, but he is extremely popular and there is always a long wait for him. Dr. Tang is now our regular paed.

My hunt for a good beautician is still ongoing.

As is the hunt for a good dentist. We still go back to KL for that. But just this week, my maid's molar tooth flared up again, causing her pain and discomfort. It definitely has to go. The nearest dentist to us is Kuan Dental Clinic in Ipoh Garden South. It is close by, and you don't have to wait long.

I guess the reason is because Kuan Dental is very pricey, and as for its quality, I am not very impressed. I was charged RM 90 for my maid's cleaning, scaling and antibiotics. The dentist on duty said that the molar was impacted and infected. It can only be removed once the infection clears. My maid's feedback to me was that the dentist (a middle aged lady) was quite rough and she felt quite a bit of pain during the scaling. Also, my maid said there was spray all over her face! Not to mention quite a lot of bleeding. Sounds like a bad job to me.

Scaling done by a good dentist should not feel too uncomfortable and there should be little bleeding. My dentist in Desa Sri Hartamas always cleans thoroughly yet gently.

As for surgical removal of the molar, Kuan Dental told me it would cost RM650. I checked with another dentist - Dr. Teh on Hume Street - and I was told it would cost RM350. That's a huge difference! But we haven't tried out Dr Teh yet, so the search continues......

Facial at Casa Mia

I've relocated to Ipoh for just over a year now, and I still haven't found a place to have a facial. Not that there aren't any beauty centres here - there's plenty. But I just don't have the confidence to go to any particular one here yet, as the few that have been recommended to me seem, well, below average. Even my friends who recommended them to me said it's just so-so.

What's left to do? Return to my usual beautician in Desa Sri Hartamas everytime we go back to KL and I can squeeze in the time during our trips.

I just had a badly needed facial 2 days ago. Casa Mia has been having a body massage and facial combo offering at RM138 - one hour of massage and another hour of facial. It's great! I rarely fall asleep during facials but after an hour of soothing body massage, I actually dozed off.

I sure hope I can find a good beautician here in Ipoh....soon.