Hello #MYCYBERSALE 2018! A Short Guide To Buying Safely Online

The 5th #MyCyberSale 2018 national online sales even starts in less than 4 hours as of the publishing time of this article and I am very excited! September 3rd, 2018 marks the launch of Malaysia's biggest online sales event with more than 1,200 merchants taking part this year. With this many merchants, many of whom are capable and ready of shipping orders overseas, #Mycybersale 2018 aims to draw more than 13.9 million online shoppers in Malaysia from 3rd September to the end of the event on the 7th.

Before launching into the background of the event and a mini guide to buying online, let me just drop this link here so you can get ready to start shopping if you're a veteran of online shopping! :D

Start Shopping Here

And before I forget, #MYCYBERSALE has a lucky draw even for purchases over RM50 in a single receipt from any participating merchants. Submit the form via the website above to be entered into the lucky draw!

The National ICT Association of Malaysia (otherwise known as PIKOM) event is supported by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). According to their press release, regional and international brands taking part in the online sales event includes Lazada, Shopee, Shopback, 28Mall, Malaysia Airlines Berhad, Qoo10, Hermo, Shopback, and Unilevel, though some stores have already started on the online shopping even with vouchers and discount codes given out daily in anticipation of it.

There are bound to be a multitude of items to strike your fancy during the event, be it flight tickets and travel essentials, home and living products, food and beverages, wellness services, sporting equipments, smartphones and other electronics, or just a bunch of new skincare and makeup items and clothes! ^^

Still, it doesn't hurt to be careful and if you're new to buying online and am wary about typing your credit card details on your computer screen, here's a short guide to buying online. 

A Short Guide To Buying Safely Online

What You Need: 

1. A Secure Internet Connection

I am sometimes guilty of this too, but we really shouldn't be online shopping with free public WiFi. I'm looking at you, all the people browsing shopping sites in Starbucks and in airports. This is one example where paranoia is encouraged. Do not enter or access sensitive personal information when you're using public wifi hotspot. This includes entering your credit card information to complete a purchase, so none of that.

While it is usually safe to purchase online via WiFi, some online shops do not encrypt the information shared on their site, which makes it possible to steal your data. Be sure to check for https and a padlock icon. However, since most of the stores are linked via 

2. Credit/Debit Card or Online Banking

In order to complete online purchases, you're going to need at least either an online banking account or a debit/credit card. This allows you to  pay the merchant, obviously. ^ ^ I've noticed that recently, my debit cards are linked to my phone so that each purchase needs to be authenticated with another passcode sent directly to my phone number, so keep your phones handy as well. This added security is awesome for making sure all purchases are authorized by the owner of the cards and if you haven't gotten your banks to get around to that yet (though I'm pretty sure this is mandatory at this point), I strongly suggest doing so.

How To Stay Safe On Your Shopping Spree

1. Check Statements

With online banking so readily accessible nowadays, it's just logical to go online regularly and check for your electronic statements. Checking for credit card, debit card, and checking account statements not only keeps you on your toes with what's happening in your accounts (ie, how much you've spent), it also ensures that you're not spending over your budget.

In case of credit cards, ensure that your charges are all accurate before paying the bills. If you notice anything suspicious on your statement, notify the bank immediately!

2. Stay At Home and Use Your Own Device

I mentioned a secure internet connection beforehand, but it's worth noting again to stick to known networks, or if you're tech-savvy, use a VPN (virtual private network) when doing purchases. Don't use unfamiliar computers/devices to buy things online either! You have no idea what kind of spyware or malware might be infecting that computer.

Plus, if you shop at home, you can do it in your pj's without getting judged. :P

3. When Something's Too Good To Be True, It Probably Is

With more than 1,200 merchants taking part, it's difficult to ensure that all merchants are trustworthy, so it's up to you to keep yourself (and your money!) safe. Skepticism goes a long way toward saving yourself from a bad purchase. If something's too cheap to be true, there's probably a catch somewhere or the other.

Watch out for links that bring you out of the merchant's store. Don't let sellers conduct businesses out of the store. Basically, don't let anyone talk you into banking in payment directly into another account. This is a sure way to never see that transferred money ever again.

That's all I have to say. ^^ Happy Shopping everyone!

Kuching Fest 2018 - Must Try! Watermelon Ice Cream, PokeBowl, Crocodile Meat, and More!

One of the most look-forward to yearly events in Kuching is the Kuching Fest celebration that's held throughout the month of August. In addition to various performances, musical concerts, galleries, exhibitions and garden shows, the event is host to more than 200 food stores all congregating in a single location. The food, is, admittedly, the highlight of the event. 

The annual event is organized by Kuching South City Council and held yearly at Dewan Masyarakat along Jalan Padungan from July 27th to August 19th. This year, Kuching south City Council (MBKS) banned the use of styrofoam packs in order to encourage the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle). There are a total of 287 food stalls, including 15 serving halal food in the festival in 2018. 

Getting to the location is an exercise in patience, since the issue of traffic jams has never quite been solved. Getting a parking spot is another problem altogether, though if you don't mind a little walking (especially after getting stuffed with all the different food in Kuching Fest), then it's not a problem at all. That said, I recommend using Grab if you're not into driving through traffic. If you've never used Grab before, my referral code: KUCHING2018 gets you RM3 off your first ride (which means if you live near enough to kuching fest, it might end up being a free ride. lol). I would rather just have someone drop me off at the front door for a fee than worry about getting a parking space for my car. ^^ 

I've managed to try a selection of different items in Kuching Fest this year and have opinions. OPINIONS! Lol. Here's all the things I've tried and what I thought about them! Unfortunately, I visited a bunch of these stalls during heavy rain, so I hadn't had the chance to take pictures of everything. :( Also, do bear in mind that this are just my opinions. I'm entitled to like or dislike stuff, as are you. That said, here're some of the things I tried this Kuching Fest and what I thought of them! 

1. Ice Cream

Fried Ice Cream is one of the stalls that I didn't manage to take a picture of, but Fried ice cream is, in my humble opinion, a must try item during Kuching fest! I'm not sure if it's available any other time of the year, honestly, and for RM2.50 per piece, it's a bite into nostalgia that's not to be missed for sure! It's a bread-wrapped ice cream (flavor of vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate), that's deep fried. Crunchy and sizzling hot on the outside and ice-cold ice cream inside. Yum!

There is a ridiculous amount of ice cream selections during this year's kuching fest, including Burnt Ice Cream (Stall 211b), which is basically an outer layer of marshmellow that's scorched to perfection wrapped around a layer of peanuts and an ice cream.

There are more Watermelon Milk Ice Cream stalls than I could count. It's like everywhere I turned, there's another watermelon ice cream stall. I suppose it's a good pick-me-up for hot weather, but 2/3 of the Kuching Fest this year is dreary weather, either raining, drizzling, or thunderstorming, so I wasn't particularly keen on getting wet from the rain + ice cream. Nevertheless, it's a fun refreshment and the watermelon will counteract all the fried food items you're bound to have later on. :P Another fruit-themed ice-cream dessert I've been seeing around is Coconut Ice-Cream. At RM8.00 per piece, I deem this waaaay overpriced and since I'm not a huge fan of coconut-themed dessert that's not like, coconut water, I didn't even bother. Still, I notice their business is pretty good though, so people seem to enjoy it. 

I-stick (Stall22) caught my attention due to sheer cuteness. The ice cream deserts are all designed in a cute-sy matter that's immediately instagrammable. Not my cup of tea and hardly worth RM8 unless you're really into taking cute pictures. 

2. Cheesy Chicken 

Another food option other than watermelon ice cream that's springing up like mushroom after rain is cheesy chicken, which is deep fried chicken with a melted cheese inside the layer of chicken. There are a couple of stores that sell this and from what I've gathered from friends and family, the consensus is that the more money you pay for the chicken, the more cheese you get. If you're really a fan of chicken and cheese together, splurge a little. It's worth it! 

The stall I tried is 71, which has the cheesiest option at RM15. It's quite worth it. The cheese is super stringy inside and melted just the right amount. It's delicious, to be fair, but RM15 for flattened chicken with cheese is expensive lah. ><

3. Poke Bowl (70A) 

The only store in Kuching Fest selling something marginally healthy is the pokebowl stall that's, unfortunately, quite well-hidden. But if you're gonna try the cheese chicken from Stall 71, they're right next door! Lol. 

The colorful mixture of meat and vegetable on rice makes a full meal on it's own. I tried the braised pork, which is well-seasoned and tastes pretty good with the fresh vegetables and edamame soybean (yum!). This is a good option if you're tired of all the deep-fried monstrosities in kuching fest, or would just rather have something less unhealthy to go with all the meat-selection that you've gotten. :P The price for pork is RM9, if I remember correctly? Their price ranges from RM7 - RM10, which is probably one of the cheapest option for an actually balanced meal you'll find in kuching fest. 

I'd suggest sharing this and eating it with other meat options though! Since there's so many things to try in kuching fest. 

4. Taiwanese Sausages 

Some things never change. The selection of taiwanese sausages available in Kuching Fest is no exception. I've seen this available for years and years. I'm not a particularly big fan of mystery meat myself, but Kuching Fest calls for an exception and I managed to try a few. Still not a big fan. Lol. You'll have your options if you enjoy them, since there are multiple stores selling taiwanese sausages during the event. 

5. Souffle! 

Souffles are baked egg-based dishes that are meant to be crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. The souffles available during kuching fest are pancake souffles, which is a breakfast trend in Japan. Instead of cooking the souffles in the oven, the pancake souffles are made just the way pancakes are made, except the egg whites are beaten beforehand to soft peaks, and then folded into the pancake mixture in order to obtain the fluffy, airy, souffle-like texture. The batter deflates quickly, so it's meant to be eaten as soon as you get it.

These are lovely desserts and worth a try if you're not keen on making them at home on your own! About RM10 for ~2 piece of souffle pancakes with a flavor of your choosing, which isn't too expensive. :) If you're an adventurer, this recipe worked pretty well for me! :) 

6. Dragon Beard Candy 

This is another item that I don't see very often outside of Kuching Fest, and it's something that I always pick up whenever I go. :) The stall 193, has a few selections of filling for the candy. I'm normally a huge fan of sugary deserts and dragon beard candy, which is a handmade traditional art in China, a type of pulled candylike taffy that's flossy-delicate and melt-in-your-mouth delicious is... just not. I'm not sure if it's because the pack that I bought has been sitting out for a while, or if my expectations were too high, but eating the candy is a chore, which isn't how eating sugar-based desserts is supposed to go. :( Major disappointment. 

7. Crocodile Meat 

One of the biggest attraction this Kuching Fest is the Crocodile Meat stuffed in a bun. It sells like hotcakes and the customer service here is quite bad. Lol. You could wait here for half an hour and not get anything, which is what happened to a few of my friends during the kuching fest. If you're not keen on waiting and really really want to try Crocodile meat, Juniper, which, if is linked to the stall anyways, sells Crocodile Chop in their restaurant. :) The meat has a fish-like texture and a chicken-like taste with a gamey aftertaste that lingers in your mouth. It's probably due to the fact that the crocodile sourced are wild. I'm personally not a fan but I'm sensitve to gamey aftertastes of wild meat, so maybe you'll like it. It's just like, my opinion, man. 

Regardless, it's worth a try if you're in it for the wow-factor, and the smaller serving (RM10 for 3 pieces) is a good thing in the sense that the flavors added can probably cover the taste, but don't go into it expecting something life-changingly delicious. >< 

8. Miscellanous 

No Kuching fest outing is complete without trying all the little things available. The whole point is to gouge on unhealthy stuff you normally won't get your hands on. Leave all plans of dieting at the gate please. Lol. The deep fried Oreos available in Auntie E's Sweet Treats (Stall 130B) are well worth a look. There's also Enoki Golden Mushroom, both of which are near the front gate. ^^

You can also get your hands on plenty of skewered meat, even more ice cream treats, and all the dessert. Like, legit. All. The. Desserts. 

I went to Kuching Fest more times than I can count this year and couldn't even try like, a fraction of a fraction of what they have to offer. My overall opinion on it is surprisingly okay lah. If you go early enough, (5pm-6pm), you can avoid all the crowd that comes after. Then again, half the fun of these events is the crowd ofo people. ^^ 

I'm the first to admit there are way too many ice-cream stores this kuching fest. The grab driver that dropped me off was a representative for Nestle and he had 30+ clients. There's way, way too many and I wonder if they were profitable. 

With almost 300 stores, it's surprising to note that there's a startling lack of variety unless you do your research and really know what to look for (half the fun of kuching fest is to be surprised though!) Hopefully, we get more variety when Kuching Fest returns next year. :)