Adventure Waterpark at Desaru Coast

It has been such a whirlwind, I realised that not only have I not blogged about our trip to Desaru in June, I haven't even uploaded and saved those precious memories. So, since the holiday season is here (almost), let me share with you what we did last summer.

We decided to take a short trip cross the border to Desaru and our first stop was the Adventure Waterpark which opened in July 2018. Being a new attraction, we were treated to clean facilities, slides, seats and every other thing. 

Located along the east coast of Malaysia, it is approximately a 1.5hour drive from Singapore. We were stuck in a jam, but luckily, it wasn't too bad. Once we crossed the border, it took us about an hour to reach. The husband is quite a gangster driver you see. It is an extremely easy drive up, with hardly any traffic, so we arrived at our destination at approximately 10am where it opened its doors. Parking was easy as there was a huge carpark (paid), right next to the park.

There are a total of 5 zones and we thought we could cover them all, but we couldn't! The kids simply didn't want to leave and we even had to skip lunch! I guess play was more important than their tummies. However, there are a total of 5 food and beverage outlets within the park and they sell a variety of food ranging from burgers to staples like nasi lemak. Prices range from RM22 to RM18. 

There are lockers, big and small which you may rent and I highly recommend that you do, unless you are willing to lug all your essentials around. The larger ones were at RM40 while the smaller lockers cost RM20. Rental is for an entire day and you can have multiple access. They are activated electronically, hence you do not have to worry about carrying a physical key. The toilets are nice and clean too, needless to say. Do bring along your towels though. 

Here's sharing some of our favourite attractions:

1. PENAWAR RIVER

Photo credit: 8Days

The Penawar River is a long, looping lazy river that floats amid the greenery of a riverside with a fishing village scene. A lazy pool is something which most waterparks would have but we went round twice because the water was so clean, and there was really hardly anyone. We simply enjoyed the tranquility and took things slow.

2. KRAKEN'S REVENGE

Minimum Height: 110cm

Photo credit: 8Days

The park had several slides but this caught our eyes. Kraken's Revenge is a roller coaster that takes its passengers 30m above the ground! Riders can reach speeds up to 70km/h as they plummet to a splashing finish. Both Big and Small K were eager to try! I mustered my courage for this exhilarating ride. If you must know, I'm not quite an adrenaline junkie. But for my kids, I'll try. But alas! Small K didn't meet the minimum height requirement! I could have sworn that he is 110cm at that point in time. We tried to negotiate with the life guard as Small K was only probably only 2cm away! He tried to tip-toe while the first guard was on duty; and when they had a change of shift, we tried again, and this time, Small K had his slippers on but he was caught red-handed on both occasions. They were that strict.

 My heart broke when i had to tell him he had to sit out and watch his sister and father had fun! It took him so much to muster his courage, only to be rejected twice. Oh well, security first i guess?

Big K enjoyed the ride so much, she went up not once, not twice, but thrice!

Meanwhile, I had to try to pacify my other little darling. 

3. KIDS AHOY

Fortunately, all was good when I discovered an area dedicated to the younger ones! Kids Ahoy has three age-appropriate play areas filled with several slides designed for the younger kids. I was extremely impressed with how many slides they had at this area. With even a main one for the older kids or tweens! So thoughtful! The kids had to much fun sliding

Photo credit: 8Days

Photo credit: 8Days

This semi-sheltered area was meant for the tiny tots to frolic but both Small and Big K had a whale of a time there as well! I wasn't grumbling as I could seek shelter from the unforgiving sun! There is actually a cafe next to this area should you wish to watch your kids from. Even though it wasn't crowded, I spotted several life guards on duty. Professionalism at its peak. *claps

There were several intense slides like the Tempest (Minimum Height 122cm) which comes with a 60m diameter funnel, Riptide (Minimum Height 122cm)  and the Wild Whirl (122cm). All of which my kids did not meet the minimum height requirement. While my kids, namely Big K, were disappointed, I was secretly happy. They were all parent accompanied you see! And the mere look of the ginormous tower sent shivers down my spine. So I was mighty glad that the Kids Ahoy zone had a mini ride which will still allow the little ones to circle around and end with a splash in the pool. I lost count as to the numbers of times the kids went for this attraction. Probably a few years more and they may wish to travel down and enter the Riptide for an unparalleled feeling of weightlessness. I think I might need to find some way to gain more courage from now till then!

4. TIDAL WAVE BEACH

This must have been the biggest draw of our visit! The kids enjoyed themselves tremendously in one of the biggest wave pools in the world, holding more than four million gallons of water over nearly three acres! I had been to a few wave pools, but this one is strong! I was swept away and rolled ashore at one point. I even scraped my knee. Small K was also forced into a somersault due to the sheer impact of the waves. Hence, it is extremely advisable for an adult to accompany the child should they be less than 122cm. After a while, we got the hang of things and were enjoyed bobbing around. If you'd prefer, you may also relax by the 170m sandy beach.

5. SURF WALL

(Minimum height 107cm)

If you have never surfed, this might be a good teaser. The minimum height was 107cm so phew! The boy barely made it! This is a high-energy surf simulator where beginners can catch and ride the artificial wave. If you are lucky, the guard may bring you for a ride! That dude is such a pro!

5. THE SWINGING SHIP

(Minimum Height 110cm)

Photo credit: Desaru Coast 

We really wanted to try this out as it looked mild enough for Small K. Sadly, he didn't meet the minimum height requirement again and Big K decided not to ditch her brother this time. Next time perhaps!

TICKET PRICES & OTHER DETAILS

This was captured as at October 2019 but I'm pretty sure it was much higher when we went due to the peak season.

For a fun-filled day, the ticket prices seem reasonable. Book online for a cheaper rate or be like us, we used KLOOK to get our tickets before hand and received a complimentary coffee or soft serve ice cream for every ticket purchased, along with a 10% retail discount when you book on the Klook app (while stocks last). Oh! And kids under 3 enter for FREE!

There are several properties nearby, with Hard Rock Hotel being just adjacent to the park. We stayed at the Sands & Sandals Resort which was a stone's throw away. A 5min drive to be precise. It is decently nice property which I'll blog about another time. Meanwhile, I'm already missing all the fun at Desaru and hopefully will be able to visit it again in the near future!

ADVENTURE WATERPARK @ DESARU COAST

Address: Persiaran Pantai, Desaru Coast, 81930 Bandar Penawar, Johor Malaysia

Opening hours: 10AM to 6PM

Telephone: +60 3-2203-9696

Website: https://desarucoast.com/Pages/Play/Adventure-Waterpark

The Secret to Speed Math: Fun with Abacus

As a child, I had always loved Math but something made me dread it -- The mental computation of huge numbers. Back in Primary school, my Math teacher used to drill us so much on model-drawing as well as mental sums, I became fearful of not being able to match up with the speed which my teacher had expected. Then one day, over on Channel 8, I saw a show teaching its audience how to improve mental calculations using the abacus! At 10years old, I was intrigued and glued myself to the TV every afternoon at 4pm, taking down notes on how to operate the beads. However, the explanations were too fast, the formulae were too many and I didn't even have an abacus to do a practical. Hence, I gave up.

Fast forward decades later, it was time for me to drill my kids in mental calculation. Big K aged 7+ is honestly not too bad in her Mathematics. However her bane was her speed at calculating. At age 6, she was so slow at even giving me the answers for making 10, I thought I wasn't doing it right. I did explore the possibility of introducing abacus then, but procrastinated as MOE took abacus out from the curriculum. A million thoughts ran through my mine: Was abacus deemed as useless hence the ministry took it out?

This was when I was introduced to Fun with Abacus. It is a school founder by Joy Tay, who started teaching abacus to the young by adopting syllabus from Taiwan. After a while, she created her own workbooks to fit the local crowd. Using her expertise as a certified Abacus Mental Arithmetic Trainer and her knowledge of the local education curriculum, Joy came up with the solution to help a child learn Mathematics during the challenging stages. She believes that a systematic structure in the teaching program not only help the child but also give parents and schools a firm foundation to assist in a child’s learning curve.

Below was a short interview I had with Joy:

Me: Why was abacus taken out of the curriculum? Is it still relevant?

Joy: Of course it is. It was taken out naturally because the school teachers had a million other things to handle and were short of time even for their core curriculum, let alone enrichments such as abacus. There are also many steps involved in abacus and it's tough for a teacher to be teaching this to a class of 40 young children. The focus will just not be there.

Me: How many years has Fun with Abacus been around?

Joy: We have been teaching for 15years, mainly at preschools. Hence, the relevance is still very much recognised.

Me: There seems to be different types of abacus. What's the difference?

Joy: Yes. Abacus has been around for ages. There are different types of abacus used in different countries. They vary according to the number of beads. Some with fewer beads may require more formulae.

At this juncture, Joy whipped out her abacus and explained to me. Fun with Abacus uses the one below, where you have 4 yellow beads, 1 orange bead on top and 4 yellow beads below.

After her explanation, I found that this type of abacus makes the most sense. Each bead represents a unit. Just like how addition and subtraction are taught in Primary schools.  Let me share with you my findings on an abacus used by another abacus school. Some other schools make use of the abacus which is divided into 1 bead (representing 5) on top and 4 beads at the bottom. For such abacuses, one will need to memorise many formula 口诀 in order to solve higher order addition and subtraction.

Photo credit: Kiasu Parent forum

For instance:

In a question of 7-4, the child needs to apply the 口诀 of "-4=+1-5" So the child is conditioned to first position the "7" (top" 1 bead down; bottom 2 beads up), followed by thumb up 1 bead (bottom) and flick 1 bead (top) up to derive the solution of such a simple equation. This seems redundant to me. 

However, in the 9 bead abacus which we are using, it makes a lot more sense as one bead represents one unit. When they do their vertical addition and subtraction in school, they will then see that both are parallel. With that, I was convinced that this was the school for us!

 Also, I had made a comparison with their worksheets. In another school, they actually made used of cartoon pictorial to represent the beads versus Fun with Abacus which uses actual circles. This allows less confusion for the child in future. 

PROGRESS OF BIG K

Big K being older, managed to grasp the concept really fast. Right after our first session, she was so excited that she insisted on doing her homework the moment we reached home. I was really surprised but glad that abacus could ignite her love for Math. In fact, midway through the term, our teacher felt that she was ready for the Anzan which will eventually bring her to mental calculation. Anzan is the Japanese method of doing Mental Math by using a mental image of an abacus.  No physical abacus is used. This has been part of the compulsory curriculum in Japan for many years until the focus on the use of computers in daily life came along. Subsequently, due to the increase in usage of technology, there had been concerns that the general population is losing valuable skills, hence in 1989, the Japanese Ministry of Education reintroduced it into their elementary school curriculum. With such history, it's not difficult to be inclined with the notion that we are becoming too reliant on technology to perform simple tasks for us. 

In fact, I have personally seen how using the calculator is part of a muscle memory for young kids. I witnessed a child aged 12, using the calculator for 1/2 + 1/2 and yet another, aged 16, reaching out for the calculator naturally, to tabulate 1+1. Muscle memory, thanks to the usage of calculators officially for their Math papers at Primary 5. Way too young if you ask me!

After less than 3 months of weekly classes, I noticed that Big K's ability to count fast is improving. Despite the fact that I know she isn't using abacus or Anzan in her mental calculations yet. I believe the course has ignited her love for the subject.

PROGRESS OF SMALL K

When it comes to this boy, it's a little trickier. At age 4, he is rather fidgety and unfocused. Especially when it came to abacus which were all beads beads beads, nothing but beads. It did however helped that his sister was in the same class as him. You see, different levelled students can be grouped together and still receive individual attention from the teachers. But of course, as far as possible, the level of the class will not be too varied and is also kept small with a maximum of 6 students for effective learning. I'm pretty happy to note that now, he is talking less and working more and his butt is always on the chair! His concentration span is definitely longer now!

Small K wasn't competent for the number bond for 10 but after a few short sessions, he was able to shout out the answer immediately. Getting him to do his homework wasn't too tough also as he deems the abacus as a toy. The only thing is during lesson, I have to constantly remind him to get more work down and to have less talk as he was really having a good time with the teacher. He has made wonderful progress and is in fact catching up on Big K fast and furious After a few months, he too, had been introduced to the Anzan. I was initially very worried as to how he would take to it. I mean there are now no beads! You will have to visualise it yourself! To my surprise, he was superb at it! So much so, I believe he will catch up with Big K in no time.

Abacus may seem a little dry to some, so the teachers at Fun with Abacus always try to incorporate an element of fun. For instance, while teaching the number bonds, to assist them in remembering how to make tens, they turn it into a clapping game and calls the corresponding number for the bond a "buddy". Small K found it cute and was most willing to practice with me. Occasionally they also played games.

Here's Small K having fun fishing for the respective number bonds

At a certain level, the children will be given timed practice. Now this really excites Big K. She likes the adrenaline when she breaks her own record! They are each given a little timer to time themselves and hence, she can do her work independently without much help from me. Now that Small K is also getting the hang of doing his homework, he can also do most of the work independently. I just need to use eye-power on him.

Fun with abacus regularly sends their students for competitions overseas. Namely for the LCT Mental Arithmetic competition in Malacca as well as the International Mathematics Association Competition in Korat, Thailand. And these little brains all did very well! They managed to attain 1st to 5th placings for the respective competitions and they may be as young as 9years old! Hopefully one day, my little tots will be able to attain those standards too!

So with the advancement in technology, why am I still embarking my children on this journey. Well, the reason is simple, calculators and computers are all invented by mankind. It goes to show that the brain is far more superior if we tap on it. If we don't exercise it enough, it will go into solitude. While it is easy to reach out to the calculator in time to come, note that you are only allowed to use the calculator for Paper 2 at the primary level. Also, if the child is able to calculate fast enough, perhaps the time spent on fumbling with the calculator can be used wisely on solving other questions. Foundation in Math is very important in my opinion. It starts as young as when the child is in preschool or maybe even prior to that. If it isn't built well, trouble will start to surface predominantly when they hit Primary 5. By the, it may be too late to salvage. It takes time and effort to build. Similarly, abacus isn't a miracle pill. The child will not become quick in mental calculations overnight. It takes time and effort but I believe the rewards are real.

Fun with abacus accept children as young as 4 years old. Give them a call to check on their scehdule and head on down for a free trial and if you like it, Quote "JANICE WONG" and take $100 off their term fees.

Locations:

Katong Plaza
West Coast Centre
Seng Kang West
Bishan

Contact: https://funwithabacus.com/contact/

or call: 97865383

Instagram: @funwithabacus

Review: How Bee Choo Origins helped my itchy scalp

DID YOU KNOW?

Our hair are actually dead skin cells? When I was very young, I remembered my dad always ticking mom off for wasting money on her dead cells. I didn't quite understand till I was much older. I thought dad was simply being rude. But truth is, the hair is alive within the scalp but once it reaches the skin surface, they are not alive anymore. So to ensure that your skin cell can age and come out to the surface beautifully, regular maintenance for a healthy scalp is necessary. 

It is considered healthy if one loses 50-100 strands a day but anything more could indicate a deficiency in mineral, stress and many more. Post-partum hair loss can be quite a bitch too. While it is said to be normal and temporary, the usual hair growth cycle is between 6-12 months and that's kindof long to tolerate if you ask me!

I had been relatively lucky with regards to my crowning glory. As you can see, my head is rather voluminous. I didn't get much of a hair loss after giving birth and things are still looking pretty alright. However, I do have a problem -- ITCHY SCALP! During my younger days, I was in fact, shy to wear black as it would look like I had snow on it. I had dry flaky scalp. So much so it looks like dandruff. Eczema, excessive secretion of oil and head lice are also common causes of an itchy scalp. Just last year, I was hit by the lice! Yup, after all these years! I caught it from Big K who probably got it from school. I thought after that episode, things would be better but nope, the itch persisted though I wash my hair everyday.

Apparently, stress and humidity can also be causes. Those aren't really within my control. I tried various methods but they didn't seem to alleviate things, so I finally decided to give scalp treatment a try. It wasn't quite the first to-go solution for me because I was afraid of being pressured into purchasing a package. Such tactic is a common place these days especially if they have state-of-the-art machines. But I am happy to report that after 4 treatments, the staff did no push me into taking up any packages. In fact, from my understanding, they hardly run promotions on packages. They happened to have one while I was there and it was very reasonable. 11 sessions for the price of 10 ($480). Alternatively, you can pay as you use and per session is only $48! Love how affordable it is!

When I was first introduced to Bee Choo Origin, I found it utterly familiar. Then, when I looked through their 7 locations, I realised I passed by one outlet rather frequently! The herbal smell often invaded my nostrils whenever I walked past and their racks of towels hanging out by their shop was a testament to how good business is. Yes, in fact, whether was it day or evening, the place seemed to be brimming with people. 

So here's my experience.....

I entered the shop and stopped in my tracks. It was filled with a room of old ladies. Momentarily, I was disturbed. Ok, I know I've just crossed a very big milestone but putting me with a bunch of grey-haired women and men with receding hairline did hit me in the face. Reality is, if you don't start young, you may have serious issues and by then, it may take a longer time to cure, if it's even curable! The receptionist was very reassuring though, telling me that a child as young as 3 year old can do the treatment and she had indeed handled such a case before! In fact, because there aren't any chemicals, it is also safe for pregnant women. 

They started by scanning my scalp. I was half expecting a reddish scalp filled with dried flaky skin. Phew! What I saw was quite the contrary. My pores did look a little clouded by an accumulation of oil but other than that, I was told that I had very healthy hair! A good pore situation would be that one pore will have three strands of hair. I'm proud to announce that several, if not all my pores have three strands! Many newborn hair could also be seen. 

Step 1: The first step of the treatment was the application of ginger hair tonic on the scalp. This step prepares your scalp for the next few processes and better absorption of nutrients from the herbal cream. Next, 100% pure virgin olive oil is applied onto hair ends to prevent and ease out split ends while improving condition of the hair. Then comes the highlight -- The application of their specially formulated herbal treatment cream. Their herbs are apparently boiled for 3 hours so you can imagine all that goodness going into your scalp. I must warn you however, that if it is your first experience with TCM, you are probably going to cringe your nose a little. I personally love the smell of dang gui and ling zhi. It feels really luxurious to have them on my scalp. Bee Choo Origin makes use of premium herbs in their herbal cream. Their signature herbal cream are freshly brewed with all natural herbs and ingredients. They include:

Ginseng

This has anti-aging properties and helps in new hair cell regeneration

Ling Zhi

Reduces itchiness and risk of infection

He Shou Wu

Slows down grey hair reproduction and helps restore hair pigmentation. I have taken them orally before as a soup and did not quite like the taste so having them on my scalp is such a welcome alternative. 

Chuan Xiong

Strengthens hair follicles, resistant to breakage

Dang Gui

Regulates scalp immunity

Next, the head is steamed for 45minutes. This step helps to open up your scalp pores to remove impurities and aid in absorption of the herbal ingredients into the scalp. 

Their cream is effective in solving hair loss, itchy scalp, oily scalp, dandruff, white/grey hair and post-pregnancy hair loss. 

Step 2: After all that herbal goodness is applied onto my head, a 45 minutes steaming process takes place. This helps to open up the scalp pores to remove impurities and aid in absorption of the herbal ingredients into the scalp. The steamer really gives it a nostalgic feel.

Step 3: Lastly, the herbal cream will be washed off and hair partially blown dry. I really enjoyed the wash which was accompanied by a short head massage. After the treatment, you hair will still smell of herbs and this will probably last for approximately 2-3 days. The people around me did not complain about the smell so I guess it was alright. My hair colour changed too. Because I have bleached hair, the herbs infused into my hair and changed its hue. It gave it a shinier shade and the overall effect made my hair look healthier! Some friends even thought I had dyed my hair. The colour will likely to stain your towel slightly after one wash.  One thing to note: Do not swim right after treatment! Your scalp may also be slightly itchy after treatment. The consultant explained that this is due to the blood circulation after the scalp has been infused with the goodness from the herbs. The irritation should go away shortly.

My "new" hair colour under natural light. Looks pretty good right?

See! 3 strands per pore! So clear!

After 4 sessions, my pores indeed were unclogged. the residues have been effectively removed and the PH level has been rebalanced. No more itchy scalp! Yay!

It is pretty amazing how this local brand has grew. The founder started out in 2000 providing herbal haircare treatments for a handful of customers experiencing scalp issues. Word began to spread and today, they have set foot in more than 12 countries! Wow! Madam Cheah Bee Chew even published a book to say it all!

With such expensive herbs used, one would expect them to charge exorbitantly. But nooooo, they are only charging between $34 (for men's short hair) to $70 for below the waist. As a guide, my length is approximately $40. The fact that the place is teeming with aunties and uncles, goes to show that it’s effective yet affordable.  Love such pricings which doesn't burn a hole in the pocket. Their array of products are also very affordable. 

photo credit: https://www.beechoohair.com/products

I personally bought hair serum crystal concentrate to try. It is essentially a beauty fluid with adds shine and silkiness to your tresses without getting it too oily. Enriched with Vitamin E and linseed extract, this bottle of goodness strengthens and increases your hair elasticity. I bought it primarily for Big K whose hair is terribly damaged because of swimming. Her hair is often in a tangled mess but I realised after a few applications, this serum did help to make it more soft and manageable. The best part, it's retailing at only $27!

Want a head of beautiful hair? Let your hair grow in a nutrient-filled environment by contacting them at 

www.beechoohair.com

Tel: 67423033

Operating Hours: 

Mon - Fri: 830am to 7pm

Sat, Sun & PH: 8am to 430pm