AS RICH AS CROESUS: Halal / Pork free restaurants in China and Macau

Showing posts with label Halal / Pork free restaurants in China and Macau. Show all posts

Friday, 17 February 2012

Halal restaurants in Guangzhou

Hi all, just got back from Guangzhou, China (again!!), went there on 13/2/12 to 16/2/12 to attend to FAT (Factory Acceptance Test) of escalators and travellators.

Last visit in Dec 2011 and the factory was not ready to perform the test then and we had to re-visit. A lot of drama as well before the departure date but thank God everything went well.

Day 1 13/2/12
We left KL at 9.30am and reached Guangzhou at about 1.35pm. After getting our bags, checked in at hotel, we met up for dinner. But too early for dinner, so we stopped by at White Cloud Mountain to walk around and later off we went to a restaurant for dinner. Where? one of favourite restaurants in Guangzhou - Abdullah Qinghai restaurant (No. 8 Tongxin Lu, opposite the Guangzhou Astro Hotel, T: 020-8350 1919). We ordered lots of food (fried chicken, big plate of chicken, veg, lamb etc), we enjoyed the food but 'the big plate chicken' was too salty for our liking and we ended up wasting it. After dinner we went to Beijing Street for shopping. I didn't buy much as I had visited the same place in Dec 2011. I bought boot for my nephew (RM15), laser pointer (RM25), sweater (RM20) and sotong snack (8 packs, RM12/pack). and that was all :-).
Went back to hotel n zzzzzzzzzz

Day 2 14/2/12
FAT from morning till 5pm or so. Lunch break the factory driver took us to a place and that place was closed! But time was short and we saw across the road there was halal restaurant and decided to try. Albaraka Restaurant. The newly opened restaurant serves chinese food, arab food, african n turkish food, however on 14/2, they only have chinese food. Food was not bad all and definitely will stop by here if we go to Guangzhou again.Albaraka address: No.8, South of Tongxin Road, Yueshiu (exit D, subway of Xiaobei)Tel: 1592 0893 124 / 1379 4393 959 / 1372 4841 06 / 1536 0606 798

For dinner, we suggested seafood and the driver brought us to 1001 night restaurant. A lebanese restaurant! The food is so so. Will never go back to this place.

After dinner, too late for shopping and went back to sleep.

Day 3 15/2/12
Factory arranged for Guangzhou tour. We went to Yuexiu Park to take photo with 5 goats statues (Guangzhou symbol). Then off we went to Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. Then followed by a Muslim street (lots of Muslim shops here, Huaisheng Mosque can also be visited here), later off we went to Ancestral Temple of the Chen Family (also called Chen Clan Academy or Chen's Lineage Hall but now serves as Guangdong Museum of Folk Arts and Crafts). After visiting Chen's Temple, we were hungry and we went back to Guangta Road (Muslim street). We were sick of kebab and lambs and looking for halal cantonese meal but not to be found and we ended up having another uighur meal right opposite Huaisheng Mosque. Not bad at all.

After lunch, one group preferred shopping while the other preferred sightseeing. The shopping group went to Beijing Street while the rest of us (including me) went to Shamian Island. Very similar to Georgetown in Penang. Then off we went to our next stop Flower City Square. Wow! nice buildings!!

After the square, we went back to hotel to freshen up and off to dinner. This time seafood dinner at Moslem Restaurant (Huimin Fandian), Zhong Shan Lok Road, No. 325, Guangzhou T: 8130 3991 / 8130 4664. Or some website listed the address as No. 325, Zhongshanliu Road, Yuexiu District. Tel: 020-81303991.

I enjoyed my meal here the most as compared to the other restaurants. Then back to hotel to rest.

Day 4 16/2/12
Time to leave Guangzhou. We went to airport at 11am n once at the airport we enjoyed halal noodle at the shop at the airport. Fantastic!! Another must go place in Guangzhou.

Reached Malaysia at abt 7pm.

Places to visit in Guangzhou:
http://www.mychinatours.com/guangzhou-travel/guangzhou-attractions/flower-city-square/
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/guangdong/guangzhou/huaisheng.htm

Our accommodations:
http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/property/area/index.html?propertyID=1706
http://www.garden-hotel-guangzhou.cn/Accommodation.htm

Our Meals:
http://littlemamadiary.com/guangzhou-travel-jalanjalan-cari-makan-restoran-halal-abdullah-qinghai/

http://borongchina.blogspot.com/2010/08/muslim-and-halal-restaurant-in.html

http://forum.cari.com.my/viewthread.php?tid=295730&extra=&page=88

http://www.etours.cn/china_city_guide/guangzhou_city_guide/dining/chinese_restaurants_of_guangzhou.jsp

http://www.1001nights.com.cn/NewsInfo.asp?id=83
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g608470-d1568063-Reviews-The_Arabian_Night_1001_nights_Restaurant-Yiwu_Zhejiang.html

http://bumisepi.com/?p=1025

http://www.tripadvisor.ca/ShowUserReviews-g298555-d311550-r118995469-Huaisheng_Mosque_Huaisheng_Guangtisi-Guangzhou_Guangdong.html

http://www.colorfuldays-hotel.com/En/restaurant.aspx

http://www.muslimtour.net/halal-info.asp?ID=152

http://susuegoodday.blogspot.com/

Hmmm...my favourite restaurants so far (from most loved to least preferred)

1)
Wuyang Huimin Restaurant 五羊回民饭店

Add: No. 325, Zhongshanliu Road, Yuexiu District.

Tel: 020-81303991

2)
Abdullah Qinghai Restaurant
No. 8 Tongxin Lu, opposite the Guangzhou Astro Hotel

广州市童心路8号登月酒店对面

Phone:020-83501919

3) Albaraka Restaurant, No.8, South of Tongxin Road, Yueshiu (exit D, subway of Xiaobei)Tel: 1592 0893 124 / 1379 4393 959 / 1372 4841 06 / 1536 0606 798

4) Xinyue Muslim Restaurant 新粤穆斯林餐厅

Add: Floor 3, Xinjiang Tower, No, 76, Tianhe North Road, Tianhe District..

Tel: 020-38782783

5) Halal noodle at Baiyun Airport

6) A muslim restaurant on ground floor near Xinyue Muslim Restaurant (item 4 above)

7) Muslim (uighur) restaurant opposite Huasheng mosque

8)
1001 night restaurant
ADD:No 899,Jiefang Bei Road,Next to China hotel.
TEL:020-36182280 36182281
MAIL:gz1001@1001nights.com.cn

9)
Ottoman Turkish Restaurant
No.475 Huanshi Dong Lu, Yuexiu District

环市东路475号

Phone:020-87601227

If you want to stay at muslim hotel:
http://www.guangzhouhotel.com/Muslim_Bostan_Hotel_Guangzhou.htm?gclid=CIOq0seAp64CFQV66wodT3ZYPQ

http://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Hotel_Review-g298555-d814221-Reviews-Bostan_Business_Hotel-Guangzhou_Guangdong.html

Muslim Hotels in China:
http://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/muslim-china/hotels-for-muslims.htm

Tuesday, 27 December 2011

Halal restaurants in Zhongshan & Guangzhou

Hi, I just got back from China, went there on 18/12/11 and came back on 24/12/11.

Went there on business trip. I was in Zhongshan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhongshan to visit ThyssenKrupp elevator factory and I was in Guangzhou to visit Otis escalator & travellator factory.

18/12/11 (Sunday)

We landed at Guangzhou Airport on 18/12/11 and it was warm (colder than KL but hotter than Genting) and we were puzzled why locals wrapped up with thick coat, shawl, hat, boothttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifs.

ThyssenKrupp rep waited for us at the airport and took us to Zhongshan (2 hours drive away). We checked in at King Century Hotel

We reached the hotel at about 4.30pm, after checked in we went for coffee at Starbucks outlet nearby. The hotel? The room is big and breakfast spread..hmm not much choice for muslim just bread, cereals and grilled fish!

Bernard the ThyssenKrupp rep took us to dinner at Xin Yue Muslim Restaurant everyone enjoyed the xinjiang food dinner and looked forward to tomorrow's lunch at the same restaurant! After dinner, Bernard took to us to walk around/window shop at Zhongshan pedestrian street shops. Bernard took us back to the hotel and the group was split into 3 groups! one group continued shopping at the pedestrian street, the next group prefer to go experience Zhongshan clubbing scene while me and another guy preferred to go for full body massage. Not bad, 1 hour/person was only 40 Yuan (RM20).

19/12/11 Monday
Full day at the factory. Bernard did a splendid job, everything is ready and he had arranged for right persons to answer all our queries. All the tests passed with flying colours. Client wanted to cramp all the tests today, so we shorten our lunch and the factory had arranged for KFC lunch delivery for us (prawn burger n chips). After the visit, Bernard took us for massage (I opted for foot reflexology), according to Bernard it was about 70 yuan (RM35), the rest opted for body massage. After massage we went to Xin Yue Muslim Restaurant again and met up with 3 guys from ThyssenKrupp escalator/travellator/PBB factory. Again, very tasty dinner. Lots of grilled meat (beef, lamb, chickens). I did not snap any pictures, ha ha to shy to do that but you can view similar food here the ThyssenKrupp guys told us, Xin Yue is not the only muslim restaurant in town! well...maybe next time.

After dinner, the group decided to go for shopping n clubbing again but I opted to go back to hotel.

20/12/11 Tuesday
We checked out from King Century Hotel and took 2 hours drive to Guangzhou. Checked in into Westin Hotel nice hotel. After checking in, Bernard took us for lunch at Xin Jiang Building Glass House. More xinjiang food and can't imagine more xinjiang food until 23/12/11! After lunch off we went to Shangxia Jiu Lu to shop.

I didn't buy anything though I found few interesting sweaters n clothes for my nieces/nephews as I still have 3 more days in Guangzhou.

After shopping, went back to hotel to freshen up. We decided to go for light dinner at Subway (I had tuna sandwich), after dinner, again others decided to go clubbing while I went back to hotel to enjoy warm cozy bed n tv.

21/12/11 Wednesday
Breakfast spread at Westin is huge, more choices for me. After breakfast, client group packed and ready to depart for airport. While waiting for 2nd group to arrive, 3 of us decided to venture to Beijing Road (Beijing Lu) by using Guangzhou Metro

We had sushi for lunch (very expensive) and then the 2nd group arrived n we had to rush to hotel to meet them. Dinner was at Guang Zhou Xin Yue Muslim Restaurant (same building as Glass House Restaurant where we had our lunch earlier). Thankfully my project team member who was with us in earlier group went to the restaurant first with the rest of the new group and he ordered different kind of food (more cantonese rather than xinjiang food).

Otis guy was not prepared and very inexperienced. He didn't bring enough yuan and he was on tight budget! The restaurant did not accept his card and he had to borrow money to pay for dinner! After dinner he disappeared! OMG! Your host disappeared...tsk tsk tsk I had to call him n reminded him that he's with clients and he should not behaved the way he did. He came back half and hour later and we had advised him on proper way to conduct the Factory Acceptance Test (FAT). He listened but decided to do his way..sigh..

22/12/11 Thursday
Factory not ready for FAT and the day was filled up with shopping activities at Beijing Road. Since Otis guy has no cash, he looked around for a place that can accept his card and decided to bring us to Ritz Carlton Hotel for lunch! Fancy place but he decided to place lunch order himself without asking group members if the food is acceptable to all! He ordered bread, salad and fried rice....sigh..

He seemed to forget client pay for everything and he's not spending Otis's money but he's spending client's money!

After lunch, we returned back to hotel and later that night we went to Ottoman Restaurant (again in front of everyone Otis guy asked the restaurant if they'll accept his card and again to control his budget, Otis guy ordered for everyone). We went back to hotel and later some of the group members ventured out to check out Guangzhou night life.

23/12/11 Friday
After breakfast, we went to Otis factory. After controversial briefing (Otis rep was not prepared), Otis guy sent us to the nearby reflexology centre as he needed to prepare inspection form! Clients were furious but tolerated but when we made to wait at the centre and nobody attended to us, they can't no longer repressed their anger and decided to walk back to otis factory and demanded to continue with the FAT! after few minutes we noticed they were not ready and some of the components were not even available at the factory! The clients can no longer tolerated and they exploded!
The FAT didn't end well. The Otis guy failed in PR (dealing with people) and he was disorganized from day 1. Very disappointing!

We went for dinner at Abdullah Qinghai Moslem Restaurant everyone tried to forget what happened earlier at the factory but with not much success.

After dinner, we were taken for massage (again I opted for foot reflexology), a bit too late for Otis to pamper their guests n develop good PR but I guess it was their way of apologizing for their screw up.

24/12/11 Saturday
Thank God, the ordeal was over n time to go home...

Thursday, 13 November 2008

Halal restaurants in Beijing / Xian

Images from www.skyreach-uk.com/index-SummaCampEng.html

KL - Beijing about 6 hours flight n about RM2k ++ return flight fare.

Why Beijing & Xian? The Great Wall of China n Terracotta Soldiers of course…..I love ancient ruins n old structures from hundreds n thousands of years ago; well one of my ambitions of ‘what do you want to be when you grow up’ thingy – archeologist! Ha ha then I found out ..hmm well the job is more kinda like job satisfaction thingy rather than money thingy ha ha n my path deviated...

Anyway, my love for ancient structures remain till today, so far I’ve visited Borobudur, Perambanan, Angkor Wat, Coliseum, Leaning Tower of Pisa, palaces, castles n various structures in Europe, ha ha Candi Batu Pahat in Kedah, I’m hoping that one day I would be able to visit Egypt (pyramids), Peru (Machu Pichu), Turkey, Petra in Jordan, Easter Island, Taj Mahal etc.

Wow if only time travel is possible, the machine inventor will create tons of money from time tourists…:-) (not to mention from other opportunists) who wouldn’t want to visit the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Statue of Zeus, the Temple of Artemis, the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes and the Lighthouse of Alexandria? and various other ancient wonders……and meeting legends like Alexander The Great, Mahsuri (just to see if her blood was really white ha ha), and how about Sang Kelembai (don’t you wish you can catch him in action turning people into stone by just saying Hi!)….

Trivia “…One question most people would probably ask is, why are there seven wonders of the world and not eight or 13?
"Seven is a very practical number because it seems to be exactly the number of things the average person can remember, challenging the brain. http://www.thesundaily.com/articlePrint.cfm?id=8545

Well..back to reality…thud thud ouch!!!

Beijing

Image from http://belacan.files.wordpress.com/2007/07/great-wall-of-china-new-7-wonders-of-the-world.jpg

Beijing offers lots of stuff - Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven, Beijing Zoo, Lama Temple, Beihai Park, Hutong, Beijing outskirt – mountains n forest, valleys, gulleys n caves, parks n lakes n even grassland n ski resort! n of course newest additions like bird nest stadium etc.

Halal Restaurants

peking duck

Image from http://littlemissmay.com/index.php/?p=212

1. http://www.islamichina.com/halalsinchina.asp?cityid=2&m=1

2. http://www.islamicity.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6993

3. http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/beijing/dinning/muslim.htm

4. Beijing Resaurants for Muslim & Vegetarian http://www.chinahighlights.com/beijing/food-restaurant.htm

5. Click muslim http://www.regenttour.com/chinaplanner/pek/bj-food-restaurant.htm#g

6. Afunti http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Asia/China/Beijing_Shi/Beijing-1024960/Restaurants-Beijing-Afunti_Uighur_Restaurant-BR-1.html

7. Barbeque Ji Restaurant in Houhai http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-07/15/content_8550428.htm

8. http://www.btmbeijing.com/contents/en/business/2006-07/branding/laozihao

9. Dong Lai Shun http://www.chow.com/stories/11258

10. Kaorou Ji http://www.beijingeguide.com/restaurant.php

11. Xinjiang Red Rose http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/beijing/listings/dining/muslim_xinjiang/has/xinjiang-red-rose-restaurant/

12. vegetarian http://www.china.org.cn/video/2008-09/05/content_16391520.htm

Tips
1. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa;jsessionid=2D0E1EBB1A0B0D99A458681040D849D8.thorntree3?messageID=14527235

2. http://www.chinaheritagenewsletter.org/features.php?searchterm=005_halal.inc&issue=005

3. http://www.halaljournal.com/index.php?page=article&act=show&category=2&pid=2078&PHPSESSID=e5c9772b8e8be2053dc...

4. http://www.china.org.cn/video/2008-09/05/content_16394615.htm

5. http://www.beijingtraveltips.com/

6. http://gochina.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=gochina&zu=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.beijingtrip.com%2Fattractions%2Findex.htm

7. http://www.tour-beijing.com/top_10_must_see_attractions_in_beijing/

Xian

Image from http://www.anniebees.com/China/China_42.htm

Beijing - Xian: about 2 hours flight, USD151 (RM530) return flight fare.

My fascination with Xian began long time ago (I was really young, maybe in my primary school?), I watched a lot of Chinese movies with stories which has something to do with terracotta army, one was about a couple - the husband was one of Qin’s soldiers then something happened (couldn’t really recall) then they reincarnated in modern time n met each other again or something like that.

Anyway, because of those movies I wish I could see terracotta army with my own eyes (ha ha in this way Malacca State Gov was right in a way for conferring Datukship to Shah Rukh Khan – So far you may have noticed that my desire to visit certain locations (jiuzhaigou, Angkor Wat, Xian, Petra) was triggered by images I watched in movies!).

Apart from army of terracotta soldiers, what else to see in Xian? Well read here http://www.globosapiens.net/travel-information/Xi great info.

Traveller’s note “Well if you ever decide to go to China, one of the best spots to go see in Xi'an, for a few reasons: 1 it is the oldest place in China with 7,000 years of life, 2 it is rich with history and blended culture. I have lived in China for 19 months now and have seen the north and the south so far, but nothing compares to Xi'an.” If you travel out to the countryside you will see some parts of the dried up river beds that have turned to lush green valleys. In among these valleys there are ancient mud hut homes that are unique to this area. Back in time people could carve their homes out of the sides of the hills and the ground was like a solid clay, terracotta in color.

Another amazing thing you will see are the tombs that are scattered over the land, the land is very flat and at 1st they look like little hills displaced in the fields, but they are tombs of royalty such as the pyramids or the mayan tombs. Most of the sights that you will see are in the outter lying areas which can be traveled to in less then 3 hrs. http://www.globosapiens.net/travel-information/Xi

Hotel With Halal Restaurants

Image from http://www.hotelxian.com/post/30.html

1. http://www.accorhotels.com/gb/hotel-5949-sofitel-xian-on-renmin-square/restaurant.shtml

2. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g298557-d459791-Reviews-Melody_Hotel-Xi_an_Shaanxi.html

Hotel near halal eateries
1. http://www.china-tour.cn/Xian/Xian-Restaurants.htm

Halal restaurants
1. http://www.islamichina.com/halalsinchina2.asp?cityid=5&m=5

2. http://www.zabihah.com/ls.php?id=506

3. Xian Laosun Jia http://www.china-tour.cn/Xian/Xian-Restaurants.htm

4. Laosunjia http://www.lonelychina.com/xian/xian-restaurants.html

5. Prosperity & Fortune / Xian Fanzhuang http://www.fodors.com/world/asia/china/the-silk-road/restaurants-nam_loc:638264.html

Tips
1. http://wikitravel.org/en/Xian

2. http://www.xian-travel.com/facts.htm

3. http://tracy-tan.blogspot.com/2007/10/xian-food-delights.html

4. http://ezinearticles.com/?Muslim-Street-(Muslim-Quarter)---Sightseeing-Xian&id=1299177

5. http://www.virtourist.com/asia/china/xian/20.htm

6. http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Asia/China/Shaanxi_Sheng/Xian-997440/Things_To_Do-Xian-Muslim_Quarters-BR-1.html

7. http://www.chinahighlights.com/xian/attraction/muslim-street.htm

8. http://www.krolltravel.com/stories/China_Xian.html

9. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-448670.html

10. http://www.radio86.co.uk/explore-learn/travel/7260/the-great-mosque-of-xian-at-the-roots-of-chinas-muslim-community

11. http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ormeir1/3/1224030600/tpod.html

12. http://www.shanghaidiaries.com/archives/2004/08/17/chewing_the_fat_in_xian/

13. http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/xian/dining.htm

14. http://realtravel.com/xian-journals-j4208552.html

Wednesday, 12 November 2008

Halal restaurants in Chengdu – Songpan – Jiuzhaigou - Huanglong Part 2

Image from http://trakka.blogspot.com/2008/10/sichuan-province.html
Jiuzhaigou (Jiu Zhai Gou)

I always wanted to visit Jiu Zhai Gou after watching Hero by Zhang Yimou but the long 10-12 hour bus ride (and dangerous trip – occasional mudslides & rockslides can add hours to the trip) from Chengdu to Jiu Zhai Gou always put me off (bus fare USD16).

Thankfully now one can fly to Songpan (348km) from Chengdu (USD195 return ticket, 45min flight); and from Songpan one could either take 1hr bus ride to Huanglong or 2hr bus ride to Jiu Zhai Gou (102km, bus fare USD3.90).

Btw just check internet rate for Sheraton Jiuzhaigou Resort – quite affordable CNY500/nite (about RM264). TH u wanna go? Should be our kind of holiday (NMM, u n I) – plenty of walking ha ha 35km! NMM need you to come since you can speak mandarin ha ha…

**Traveller’s story about Chinese tourists (locals) “So what else made my blood boil, other than the rip-off entry price? It was the Chinese tourists, or more appropriately, the hordes of obnoxious tourists who ruin the beauty and majesty of the sites. If you've travelled in China, you know the behaviour I'm talking about: noisy, littering, spitting, pushy and disregard for queues. I don't like badmouthing Chinese people, because I regard myself as one, but this 'uncivilized' behaviour has got to stop; quite a few backpackers I've met on my trip so far have said that this is their last trip to China, because of the rude behaviour and high prices targeted at foreigners.” http://www.maskofchina.com/dl/2004_08_01_archive.html

One can stay at hotels in Jiu Zhai Gou or Huanglong or Songpan to visit Jiu Zhai Gou park, but if one plans to visit the park for 2 days (instead of 1 day), maybe staying at Jiu Zhai Gou will be better to save from wasting time on travelling (especially if you want to beat the long queues).

**Travellers’s tip “Jiuzhaighou National Park was a “beautiful disappointment”. It is incredibly beautiful, but I was disappointed that I was 20 yrs too late and had to share it with 1000s of other tourists per day.However, here’s the secret to avoid the hordes of tour groups!

Day 1. Be at the park entrance at 6:40 am. Be first in line to buy your ticket and endorse it with free computer ID photo for 2 days usage. Be the first through the turnstiles at 7am and the first off the bus at the most popular tourist spot Panda Lake or Panda Falls. Be the first to start walking northwards to Nuorilang Falls. You’ll start hitting a few groups of tourists, but it’s better than later in the day when you’ll be involved in a rugby scrum just to get a photo of the falls. At Nuorilang take a bus to Long Lake and Multicoloured Lake. Then bus back to Nuorilang and change to bus for Primeval Forest at the end of the park. Walk downhill from there to Panda Lake where you started in the morning, and call it a day. The crowds will be out in force by then.

Day 2 Be the first through the turnstiles again at 7am. Get off at Nuorilang Falls and walk back towards the park entrance – it was as though I had the entire park to myself. Only met 4 people coming the other way, but there must have been 10,000 about 20 minutes behind me. Bus back up to Long Lake and walk back towards Nuorilang along quiet walkways that not many frequent.
That’s quite a long day… keep your eye on park closing time and last buses 5:30pm” http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=1372932

Halal restaurants:

Traveller’s tip “Halal food are common in the TOWN of jiuzhaigou but not the entry of the Scenic Spots.If you go to Huanglong near Jiuzhaigou, you may need to spend one night in Songpan, where many Muslim lives. And when Chinese travel there, "Tasting the delicious food of Minority Hui and Qiang" is one of the "Do"s. (Qiang are not Muslim.)Most halal restaurants have Arabic on their board.” http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/message.jspa?messageID=12500496

Traveller’s tip “Unfortunately the food in this area does not match the scenery.
1. There are only a few good restaurants in Jiuzhaigou and they're usually very crowded especially in peak season.

2. Fresh vegetables are rarely available as they need to transfer vegetables from other parts of the area. The high latitude the area located also affects the taste of food.”http://www.chinahighlights.com/faq/travel-tips/food-dining/I-am-visiting-Jiuzhaigou-what-sort-of-food-can-I-expect.htm

Tips
1. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g303770-i9333-k2201781-o10-August_2008_Update_on_Jiuzhaigou_Huanglong_and_Songpan_GO-Jiuzhaigou_County_Sichuan.html

2. http://www.femtalks.com/travel-leisure/paradise-on-earth-jiu-zhai-gou-the-nine-valleys-sichuan-province-china/

3. http://superericman.blogspot.com/2008/10/jiu-zhai-gou.html

4. http://kamleung.com/triplog/0109xian/xian_09.htm

5. http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/raymondc/china-2005/1123283220/tpod.html

6. http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/raymondc/china-2005/1123108260/tpod.html

7. http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/raymondc/china-2005/1123195620/tpod.html

8. http://www.frommers.com/destinations/jiuzhaigou/3415010001.html

9. http://colourfulagaragar.blogspot.com/2008/05/jiu-zhai-gou-mt-emei.html

10. http://fivetospare.multiply.com/journal/item/149

11. http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tt/2094a/

12. http://www.beijingtravelbug.com/jiu-zhai-kou-chengdu/

13. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/message.jspa?messageID=12261681

14. http://www.helencheng.net/etc/etc/?p=128

15. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Sichuan/Chengdu/blog-19310.html

16. http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tt/20946/

17. http://community.travelchinaguide.com/review2.asp?i=581

18. http://cheeserland.com/2006/10/jzg2/

19. http://www.btmbeijing.com/contents/en/btm/2006-02/travel/getbacktonatureonsichuansnorthernfront

20. http://www.travelevery.com/Attraction/Detail104.htm

21. http://www.world66.com/asia/northeastasia/books

22. http://www.4panda.com/sichuan/attractive/city/songpan.htm

23. http://mumsiechu.blogspot.com/2007/11/jiuzhaigou-valley-nature-reserve.html

24. http://wikitravel.org/en/Jiuzhaigou_National_Park

25. http://english.dreams-travel.com/guide/jzg/food.htm

Hotels
1. http://www.travelchinaguide.com/hotel/jiuzhaigou-hotels.htm

2. http://www.virtualtourist.com/hotels/Asia/China/Sichuan_Sheng/Jiuzhaigou-2271938/Hotels_and_Accommodations-Jiuzhaigou-TG-C-1.html

3. http://www.asiarooms.com/china/jiuzhaigou/jiuzhai_paradise_international.html

4. http://cheeserland.com/2006/09/jzg1/

5. http://www.asiarooms.com/china/jiuzhaigou/grand_jiu_zhai_gou_(xinyu)-hotel.html

6. http://www.frommers.com/destinations/jiuzhaigou/H48357.html

7. http://www.bookinhotels.com/asia/china/jiuzhaigou/jiu_zhai_gou_hotel.html

8. http://destinia.com/hotels/new-jiu-zhai/jiuzhaigou/sichuan-province/china/asia/177081/en

9. http://www.ineedhotel.com/detail_index.php?Hotel_ID=ABZH0003&City_ID=ABZ&City_Lname=jiuzhaigou&City_Cname=Jiu%20Zhai%20Gou

10. http://www.hotelclub.net/hotel.reservations/Ge_Sang_Hotel_Jiuzhaigou.htm

11. http://www.foxrates.com.au/kr/china/jiuzhaigou/jin_long_yu_gang_hotel_jiuzhaigou.htm http://www.chinahotels.net/index.php?o=hotel&id=1617&Jiu-Zhai-Hotel&lng=en

Huanglong

Image from http://www.theodora.com/wfb/photos/china/five_color_pool_huanglong_sichuan_china_photo_unesco.jpg

Traveller’s tip “Huanglong is specialized in the geological phenomenon of travertine pools. I did enjoy its particular scenery (indeed much better than Pamukkale, as the IUCN report says) and feel that it is certainly worth a daytrip for anybody……It is better to get acclimated by visiting JZG the day before at 3,000 meters then do HL instead of the other way around because the altitude is really uncomfortable for those not used to it.” http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/huanglong.html

“Huanglong is said famous for its cascading terraced pool but I found the area quite disappointing and not necessary after your have visited Jiuzhaigou. I would rather prefer an extra day in Jiuzhaigou.” http://www.chinatravel.com/china-travel-story/cathy's-trip-to-sichuan(chengdu,-jiuzhaigou-and-huanglong)-322.htm

“Coming from Jiuzhaigou it was pretty straightforward to get to the park. A daily bus departs the main bus station at 7 am each morning.
Leaving from Songpan is not so easy though, as I’ve heard from fellow travelers. There are no buses that go from Songpan to Huanglong, so it’s necessary to hire a taxi for the trip (about two hours one way.) If you’re able to share a taxi this isn’t such a bad option though. http://community.travelchinaguide.com/review2.asp?i=979

Hotel
1. http://www.hotelclub.net/hotel.reservations/HuaLong_Manor_Hotel_Huanglong.htm

Tips
1. http://www.chinabackpacker.com/old/destinations/sichuan/huanglong/huanglong.htm
2. http://www.thingsasian.com/stories-photos/3682

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huanglong

4. http://nileeysphere.blogspot.com/2008/01/huanglong.html

5. http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/sichuan/chengdu/yellowdragon.htm

6. http://adventurelogger.blogspot.com/2007/08/huanglong-china.html

7. http://www.028time.com/news/159.shtml

8. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g303772-d319133-Reviews-Huanglong_Scenic_Valley-Songpan_County_Sichuan.html

9. http://www.hkctp.com.hk/eng/magazine/285/STORY6.ASP

10. http://www.flyboar.com/china/k1koryu/fb8korye.htm

Tuesday, 11 November 2008

Halal restaurants in Chengdu / Songpan / Jiuzhaigou / Huanglong Part 1

Image from http://trakka.blogspot.com/

China – one of the countries in the world which all travelers MUST visit. WHY? Visit here to get a glimpse of China (well of course lots more to see, but this site will temp you to do China) http://www.janekeeler.com/chinachris/misc.html

Traveller’s tip “In order to enjoy your tour around China, it is advisable to engage in the services of a reliable tour operator based in China. Their agents have local guides who are willing to show tourists and visitors the sightseeing and attractions of the beautiful cities. Since 24 popular scenic spots were listed in the World Heritage List by UNESCO, China has become a world renowned tourism destination. These places are well preserved relics which date back to some hundreds years with a historical and cultural theme. The attractions make for an interesting place to visit on your China tour.” http://travel.resourcesforattorneys.com/index.php?m=02&y=07&entry=entry070222-125607

For me, my fascination with China started long time ago when I visited Epcot Centre in Orlando Florida… Epcot showed me that you can see the world in one country - China – its climate is extremely diverse from tropical in the south to subarctic in the north. One can experience rainforest, steppe, desert, tundra, snow, glacier etc in one country!

I’ve covered a few cities before and this posting is about Sichuan: Chengdu / Songpan / Jiu Zhai Gou / Huanglong.

Basically this posting is about Jiuzhaigou (JZG) but there’s no direct flight to JZG from KL n there is no direct flight from KL-Chengdu.

However you can fly from Singapore to Chengdu (RM2200/flight rtn). By doing that instead of just doing JZG, nearby attractions like Chengdu, Songpan n Hualong can be covered too.

**Traveller’s story “And then comes my number 1 China story - the mother reached for the air-sickness bag, and I thought - Oh CHRIST! he is going to spew, which could make me spew. But he didn't seem ill, so then I thought, - She is just going to spit in it, which, while disgusting, is very common in China, and perhaps bearable.
No, on both counts. As she opened the bag, the boy stood up on the chair right next to me, and began pissing in the bag. Seriously. He pissed in the paper bag, she folded it up (and I freaked out about what she might be going to do with it), then she wiped him down with some tissues and handed the whole sorry mess to the poor air hostess!!!” http://trakka.blogspot.com/

**Travellers tip on Sichuan food “…but when we ask for a dish with "no pork" it is generally interpreted as "not much pork". Bits of it are still present among the vegetables.” Safe to say when you are in China, stick to muslim restaurants or vegetarian restaurants – if none can be found, make sure you have your supply of instant noodles, bread, sardine etc.

Chengdu

Image from http://www.grouprecipes.com/12842/chengdu-gai-yuk-chengdu-chicken.html

Halal / Pork-free / vegetarian restaurants
1) http://www.investchengdu.gov.cn/investcden/5/8/200710/t20071025_3290.html

2) Yuan Huitang / Tianfang lou http://www.china-tour.cn/Chengdu/Chengdu-Restaurants.htm

3) http://www.synotrip.com/chengdu/restaurants/huang-cheng-ba-niu-rou-(hui-minority-cuisine)-1013.shtml

4) The Sultan / Gingko http://chengdu.randomstuff.biz/rs_eat/rs_chengdueats.htm

5) fish hotpot http://mixhostel.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!4D37E80BE4FD41A5!598.entry

6) Vegetarian http://www.happycow.net/asia/china/sichuan/chengdu/index.html

7) http://www.morechengdu.com/venue/tourism/tourism/venue-2219-open.html

Tips
1) http://wikitravel.org/en/Chengdu

2) http://www.chinatoday.com.cn/English/e2008/e200804/p46.htm

3) http://www.janekeeler.com/chinachris/misc.html

4) http://users.telenet.be/jbruyndonckx/china.html#Chengdu

5) http://www.beijingholidays.net/tours/at301-6.htm

6) http://www.d.colorful-china.com/24.html

7) http://blithetraveler.typepad.com/the_blithe_traveler/2008/03/index.html
8) http://www.marimari.com/cOnTENT/china/popular_places/sichuan/main.html
Songpan
Ma–Po Tofu (Spicy Bean Curd with Beef)

Image from http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/photo/Ma-Po-Tofu-Spicy-Bean-Curd-with-Beef-243066

Traveler’s tip “The County of Songpan is a compulsory stop on the way to Jiuzhaigou, and for travelers who don't have the opportunity to visit Tibet, the beautiful grassland near Songpan and the Tibetan people dwelling here make this "mini Tibet" worth visiting.” http://english.wentrip.com/hotel/hotel_show.asp?id=10983

Halal / vegetarian restaurants
1. Star Moon http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Asia/China/Sichuan_Sheng/Songpan-2271939/Restaurants-Songpan-BR-1.html

Hotel
1. http://english.wentrip.com/hotel/hotel_show.asp?id=10983

2. http://www.hotelscombined.com/Hotel/Sunshine_Hotel_Songpan.htm

3. http://www.virtualtourist.com/hotels/Asia/China/Sichuan_Sheng/Songpan-2271939/Hotels_and_Accommodations-Songpan-BR-1.html

Tips:
1. http://francie.wordpress.com/2007/08/20/songpan-travel-info/

2. http://www.talesofasia.com/china-songpan.htm

3. http://www.passplanet.com/China/cw/songpan.htm

4. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Sichuan/Songpan/blog-19708.html

5. http://www.overlandchina.com/content/view/46/59/

6. http://www.chinastage.com/travel-guide/Songpan.html

7. http://www.bonheuretc.com/voyage/traveltricks.html#SONGPAN

8. http://www.durbanbay.com/2005/11/china-travelog-6-jiuzhaigou-to-langmusi.html

9. http://blogs.bootsnall.com/dw/archives/002001.shtml

10. http://www.mark-ju.net/diary/2004/jan1.htm

11. http://juliechao.com/articles/china-songpan.html

12. http://www.beijing-visitor.com/index.php?cID=433&pID=1222

13. http://www.brainnoodles.com/weblog/archive/2008/04/04/sichuan.aspx

Continue to part 2

Friday, 7 November 2008

Halal restaurants in Haikou

Haikou is the capital of Hainan Province, China’s second largest island. Hmm I guess it is not much different from islands here in Malaysia. Of course most Malaysians n Singaporeans visited the island to visit their ancestral homes/villages while other tourists will flock to Sanya. Sounds familiar? Well if you watched Miss World Pageant you’ll noticed it was hosted by Sanya.

But I guess if you’ve visited all the islands / beaches in Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam etc, Sanya would be a nice change of scenery. After all it is only 3hr 20min from KL by Air Asia.

We are all familiar with Hainanese chicken rice, chicken chop etc, maybe for foodies amongst us we want to try the original version of hainanese cuisine....:-) btw chicken chop not from Hainan la, it was an invention by hainanese migrants (fused with western influence) during colonial days here in Malaysia.

Halal restaurants

1. http://www.islamichina.com/halalsinchina2.asp?cityid=23&m=99

2. Ma’s Muslim Restaurant http://en.cnta.gov.cn/city/haikou/2j/d02.asp

3. Vegetarian – Nanshan temple

Tips

Sunset over Sany Bay

Image from http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotos-g297427-w3-Sanya_Hainan.html#17010260

1. http://www.asiaone.com/Travel/Places+%2526+Interests/Region/Asia/Story/A1Story20070519-3785.html

2. http://www.asia-planet.net/china/haikou.htm

3. http://www.femalefirst.co.uk/travel/China-311.html

4. http://hei-bao.blogspot.com/2008/02/chinese-new-year-trip-to-hainan-2008.html

5. http://www.asiabest.ca/products/china/hainan.htm

6. http://sanyavacation.com/General-Info/Introduction-to-sanya.html

7. http://vietworldkitchen.typepad.com/blog/2008/04/hainan-chicken.html

Thursday, 6 November 2008

Halal Restaurants in Guilin

Image from http://realtravel.com/guilin-china-photos-d6188-7.12.html

A little bit of trivia If you are a fan of Star Wars - Planet Kashyyyk of Star Wars III scene was filmed in Guilin, you can google to view the picture or to refresh your memory.

Guilin is regarded as one of the most picturesque city in China. Two crystal-clear rivers meander through the city, while karst mountains with unusual & bizarre rock formations and caves encircle the city.

And it is only 4 hours flight from KL!

View Guilin pictures here http://www.chinaodysseytours.com/guilin/guilin-famous-mountains-photo-tour.html

Hmm what can muslim travellers eat in Guilin?

Hotel with halal restaurant –

[DSC00079.JPG]

Image from http://bjfoodies.blogspot.com/2008/09/find-of-week-guilin-mifen.html

1. Guishan (huaxing) Hotel Guilin http://www.guilinhotels.org/en/hotels/Guishan_huaxing_Hotel_Guilin.html

Review http://www.virtualtourist.com/hotels/Asia/China/Guangxi_Zhuangzu_Zizhiqu/Guilin-1017396/Hotels_and_Accommodations-Guilin-MISC-BR-1.html

2. Magnolia Hotel – on site vegetarian restaurant http://www.yangshuo-travel-guide.com/hotels-in-yangshuo.html

Halal / Vegetarian restaurants

1. http://www.chinahighlights.com/guilin/best-islamic-restaurant.htm

2. http://www.islamichina.com/halalsinchina2.asp?cityid=39&m=7

3. Moon Tower http://www.china-tour.cn/Guilin/Guilin-Restaurants.htm

4. Vegetarian - http://www.happycow.net/asia/china/guilin/index.html

5. Vegetarian - http://www.chinahighlights.com/community/forum/thread-guilin-519.htm

6. Vegetarian - http://www.absolutechinatours.com/china-travel-guide/Guilin/Guilin-Vegetarian-Restaurants.html

7. Pure Lotus http://www.yangers.com/Yangshuo_restaurants.htm

Tips
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guilin

2. http://www.glvisit.com/english.asp

3. http://www.airasia.com.my/site/th/destinationCity.jsp?id=&reference=KWL&property=dynDining&nav=

4. http://eatdrinknbmerry.blogspot.com/2007/08/yangshuo-china-guangxi-province-hello.html

5. http://livingjourneys.blogspot.com/2008/09/guilin-natural-masterpiece.html

6. http://www.businessweek.com/2000/00_36/b3697121.htm

7. http://www.jamieliew.com/2008/02/28/who-says-china-sucks/

8. http://wikitravel.org/en/Yangshuo

9. http://www.smarttravelasia.com/guilin.htm http://www.chinasouth-taichi.com/newEbiz1/EbizPortalFG/portal/html/yangshuo.html?GeneralContentShow_DocID=c373e9188a19226d8fea95f675fb0c42

Monday, 3 November 2008

Halal restaurants in Shenzen, Guangzhou & Macau

how Macau became the world's no 1 gaming spot

Image from http://compass.ups.com/goingglobal/article.aspx?id=558

Do you know that nearly 1 in 5 people in the world claims the faith of Islam? I don't...n it is good to know ha ha easier to travel around the world as halal restaurants will be out there somewhere....:-) just need to look hard enough.

As for China, Muslims make up about 2% of its population - about 30million! Ha ha higher than total population in Malaysia...

Interesting facts about muslim population in the world http://islam.about.com/library/weekly/aa120298.htm

Since we are now in southern China chapter, lets look at restaurants that muslim could visit whenever they are within the vicinity.......

SHENZEN

Fresh oysters at Jogoya Japanese buffet restaurant in Kuala Lumpur
Image from http://masak-masak.blogspot.com/

Halal / Vegetarian restaurants

1) http://www.islamichina.com/halalsinchina2.asp?cityid=38&m=5