Hua Hin - Wine Tasting, Cozy Chat and Sight-seeing at Hua Hin Hills Vineyard

Ever thought of pairing wines with cozy chat during the afternoon? During our visit to Hua Hin, we decided to experience the different side of Thailand which most people would not associate the country with wine; a vineyard. We visited Hua Hin Hills Vineyard nestled in a scenic mountain valley 45 km west of Hua Hin i.e. the home of Monsoon Valley wines. It was a precious experience for us since we had not gone to any vineyard before. Today was also a special date for my travel partner as it was her birthday. At first, I was quite surprised that Thailand has vineyards as I thought most vineyards were only available in Australia and other Western Countries. Another remarkable vineyard in Thailand was located in Khao Yai which I hoped to visit this countryside years later.

About Hua Hin Hills Vineyard

Hua Hin Hills Vineyard is built on a former elephant corral, a sublime place where wild Asian elephants were domesticated. The whole terrain, mostly comprises of loamy-sand and slate, this place about 40-210 meters above sea level is great for cultivation of grapes providing the seaside resort town of Hua Hin with its first boutique vineyard.The vineyard tour package is available here including fresh grape juice, wine and snack pairing. Elephant ride to stroll along vineyard is offered here too. You could also opt for a guided tour through the vineyard to learn how vines grow in their tropical climate via a jeep tour which commence around 1pm and 4pm.

It was about 45 minutes drive from Sam Phan Nam Floating Market. Upon arrival, it was almost 1.30pm and we reached The Sala; a restaurant which located in a modern building facing the scenic views of vineyards. We were lucky to be seated as most informed that The Sala used to be full-house and prior booking was needed. However, most of the tables that faced the picturesque view of vineyards had been fully seated.

The scenic view of the vineyards from the Sala, a restaurant cum wine bar was breathtaking.

The menu of wine and tapas 

The Sala has a world map of wine producing countries and New Latitude wines are served here. 70 percent of its wine production are exported mostly to UK and about 20 per cent are sold locally in Thailand.

It was the 1st experience of wine tasting. We opted for the wine tasting set which came with 3 glasses of wines (75 ml) with 3 choices of accompanying foods costed us around 650 baht – 

• Monsoon Valley Colombard with Chilled Crab Meat Apple Timbale
• Monsoon Valley White Shiraz with Lobster with Frozen Red Curry
• Monsoon Valley Shiraz with Smoked Duck Breast

We had Monsoon Valley Colombard paired with chilled crab meat and apple timbale, Monsoon Valley White Shiraz paired with lobster with frozen red curry and Monsoon Valley Shiraz paired with smoked duck breast.

Smooth wines that run through the throat without causing the choking feel.

Well, I had not much knowledge on wines, but it felt nice to be relaxed and enjoyed the view.

Take a sip of the red wine and forget the unhappy moments

Chill and Relax, birthday girl !

I felt glad to enjoyed the afternoon here, viewing the valley while sipping a nice glass of wine.

Overall, it's a pleasant experience of wine tasting pairing with tapas. However, the hygiene of The Sala needed improvement as flies were flying around after food were served. We had to cover our glass of wines with tissue papers to avoid flies dropping into the glasses. Indeed, there were lots of flies joining our meals session which two flies landed into our half-drank wines. The waiters did help to exchange new glasses of wines after the unpleasant dining experience.

The weather was still great when we finished our wine tasting, hence we decided to have a walk around the vineyard. The staff here was very friendly and they offered help to take photo for both of us. They even showed us the spots where we could get some nice photos.

With the elephant sculpture

Vineyard map which showed New Latitude Wine Trail

Transportation mode: by foot, elephant ride, rental bicycle

We opted for strolling along the trail by foot as we could drop by freely to take photos.

Elephant ride for vineyard tour.

The elephant looked quite pitiful and tired.

A big billboard which showed the vineyard map, introduction to Hua Hin Hills and Monsoon Valley Wines, Grape Varieties, Wine Grape Varities (White and Red), World Wine Map, Propagation, Technique and Soil as well as the annual operation cycle and harvesting. Harvesting month: March; hence it would be better to visit vineyard during January and March for better scenery. A wide range of grape varieties for palates excitation including Colombard, Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Muscat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, Sangiovese, Tempranillo and eating grapes.

The walk around the vineyard was not long due to the heavy downpour right after we took some photos. The service of Hua Hin Hills Vineyard was impressive as a minivan came to pick up the visitors who strolled along the vineyard. Otherwise we might have been waiting helplessly in the vineyard and got wet by rain.

Hua Hin Hills vineyard is unexpected for those who grow up thinking grapes only grow in temperate climate regions. Price-wise of the food with wines is on a high side yet it's a good opportunity for us to experience wine tasting as well as sight-seeing at vineyard. The atmosphere at Hua Hin Hills Vineyard is very relaxing and suitable to be included in itinerary for whom that need an escapade of busy lifestyle. It would be a more delighting experience if we came during harvesting season. Anyway, the hygiene of The Sala is much desired as nobody likes to dine together with flies partying around.

Hua Hin- Sight-seeing at Sam Phan Nam Floating Market

There are two popular floating markets in Hua Hin, namely the Hua Hin Floating Market and Sam Phan Nam Hua Hin Floating Market. Both floating markets are built in 2011, located near to each other with less than 10 minutes drive.

As we did not plan to visit floating market in Bangkok, we decided to go to Hua Hin Sam Phan Nam Floating Market which is the biggest floating market in Hua Hin, covering an area of over 100 rai (16 hectares).  The market’s architectural features were inspired by several historical sites in Hua Hin that were either built or renovated during the reign of King Rama VI (1910-1925), including the Mrigadayavan Palace and Hua Hin Railway Station.It was said to have more than 200 stalls in Sam Phan Nam Floating Market. 

By the way, it was a fallacy to think that Sam Phan Nam Floating Market was similar to the floating markets in Bangkok if you expected having full of boats selling food and fruits. It was just a lakeside market which rows of stalls were built around a huge man-made lake. Generally, it was meant for photo-shooting and sight-seeing only. Entrance fees were on a high side i.e. 200 baht with a free ride of boat around the lake.

Spotted this at the ticket counter

There's a huge lake in the center of Sam Phan Nam Floating Market, providing a calm and tranquil scenery. Yet, there weren't much things to view except seeing the surrounding of the floating market. The boat ride was about 10 minutes.

Strangely there weren't any food stalls which I saw from some blogs mentioning there were foods sold at the boats.

Drop your postcards here :)

20baht if you would like to have train ride around the floating market.

We did not have train ride as we would prefer to stroll along the market by foot.

The boardwalk around the lake was spacious and wide enough that you would not scare of falling into the lake. After some photography session, we started to explore the stalls.Most stalls sold tourist-oriented items such as Hua Hin T-shirts, handicrafts, key-chains which had the Hua Hin fonts stated, hats, caps and etcetera. I bought my hat here as I couldn't stand the heat of the bright sun and it would be handy for me in Vineyard later.

Wooden crafts- home decors, keychains.

Handmade soaps

We had a drink of the Thai latte before we proceed to Hua Hin Vineyards. For a floating market which attracted people to purchase items, the entrance fees weren't reasonable. I personally think that it would be better to have the hours spent wisely elsewhere instead of Sam Phan Nam Floating Market because the items here could be purchased in night markets too.

Dwaeji Galbi,Pajeon, Kimchi Soup, Korean style fried chicken@Gangnam 88; Solaris Mont Kiara

With the uprising of Korean culture in Malaysia, Korean restaurants and cafes are sprouting everywhere especially in KL city. However, it's very difficult to convince my mom to try Korean cuisines as her choice of foods is only around Chinese style.

Upon the celebration of Father's Day after the consecutive examination weeks of siblings, dad had provided the menus for mom to choose over with the persuasion that he'll foot the bill. Gangnam 88 was the choice for us to taste Korean cuisines.Ever since South Korean musician Psy’s Gangnam Style had gone viral on YouTube, the word "Gangnam" had been a popular word in most people’s dictionary including my mom, this was one of the reason why Gangnam 88 was chosen to be dined at. Secondly, we wanted to dine at a restaurant which served wide range of Korean cuisines such as bibimbap, BBQ foods, kimchi soup and etc.  It's located strategically at the 1st floor above Coffee Bean at Solaris Mont Kiara.

Considering the crowds and waiting time, we went to Gangnam 88 around 6pm. We were greeted warmly when we stepped into Gangnam 88. At Gangnam 88, you'll be seeing LED TV playing the latest K-Pop musics from famous idols like G-Dragon, Girls’ Generation, Super Juniors and etc., accompanied with the posters of K-Pop stars are placed all over and the cabinets fill with Korean stars merchandises.

I guess the man who is wearing blue shirt is the owner of this shop.

Menus were provided as soon as we were seated. The man who wore a blue shirt was suspected as the shop owner as he's not wearing the uniform as the rest of waiters/ waitresses. He helped in explaining the foods after seeing us flipped through the menus for several times, Eventually we opted for family set which consisted of pajeon (pancake), kimchi soup, seafood jeongol, BBQ pork galbi (Dwaeji-galbi ), sweet and sour fried chicken. While we ordered soju, he had a short chat with us. A joke that I merely remembered was we asked for whereabouts of Song Joong Ki when he asked what else he could help. He pretended to call him and said that Song Joong Ki would be arrive within minutes. Well, a lively and funny chat though.

Soju for us to cheer!

Seafood Jeongol

Similar like what we saw from other tables, the soups were served to boil till piping hot on the portable stove. Spicy and tangy soup was really comforting and satisfying as a starting meal. The cabbages, sliced pork bellies, ramyoon, mushrooms, dumplings were the ingredients,

Webfood octopus pancake

Seafood pancake was the staple snack that we had while we waited for the rest of Korean foods to be served. The seafood pancake was packed with a generous amount of ingredients, we shall try its kimchi pancake during next visit.

 Kimchi Soup 

The signature Korean dish which was served with the delectable ban chan (side dishes) came next. The side dishes included bean curds, eggs, fried anchovies and nuts; kimchi, potatoes and seaweeds. The fermented kimchi vegetables provided deep flavor to the broth and it tasted appetizing when ate together with sliced pork meats and bean curds. Kimchi soup here was not too sour and spicy, warming our stomachs after consuming the pork and chicken.

Sweet and sour chicken

The deep-fried crispy chicken meats were glazed in a sticky, sweet, and spicy sauce. My mom and I loved this dish very much and we had eaten so many bite-sized boneless chicken pieces. 

Dwaeji-galbi – RM49 (large portion)

Their tasty savory sauce’s recipe is from South Korea’s Jeju Island restaurant for more than 30 years as mentioned. The sizzling BBQ pork ribs were marinated well and very flavorful. We tried having the bite-sized meat wrapped with leafy vegetables as shown in Korean dramas.

The photo was taken right after all foods were served. 

Overall, it was an enjoyable experience to dine a wide range of delicious Korean cuisines. A Korean restaurant that offers a splendid variety of foods, worth for the price paid. 

Address:

GANGNAM88 - 1 ST Mont't Kiara Solaris

No. 1-1, Jalan Solaris 3, Solaris Mon’t Kiara

Off Jalan Kiara,

50480 Kuala Lumpur

Tel : 03 - 6206 5888

"No break time"

am 11:30 ~ am 01:00

1st_solaris@gangnam88.net

Coordinate:

N03 10.30.36, E101 39.35.23

Hua Hin Railway Station

The second day had been kick-started with the visit to one of the most famous sightseeing attractions in Hua Hin with a long cultural heritage and Royal connections which is Hua Hin Railway Station. Let's see the past history of Hua Hin Railway Station, being one of the Thailand’s oldest railway stations, built in the reign of King Rama VI. In addition, it's one of the country's most beautiful train stations with unique architecture.

As Hua Hin Railway Station was not far from the hotel, we followed the map provided and walked to here. The locals here were helpful in giving us the direction too. The railway station was clean and well maintained. The signboard of Hua Hin station was seen from far, here's the first location of the day to have several photos captured.

Such a beautiful railway station that I had ever visited.

The railway station started to be crowded with many tourists came for photo-shooting.

The exquisitely designed Royal waiting room was relocated from Sanam Chan Palace in Nakhon Pathom province, also built during the reign of King Rama VI. The architecture was painted in red and yellow; very well maintained. Anyway, I guessed it wasn't frequently used in the past.

Locomotive in glossy black and green at the opposite of railway station.

As there was no train passing through, most of the tourists captured photo with the long railway.
It's one of the best place for photo-shooting as the backdrop of railway and railway station were very nice providing several photos' captions that you could think of.

As we checked the train schedule, there wasn't train going to pass by. Hence, we left after 1 and 1/2 hour spent here. Hua Hin Railway Station is a place that worth for visiting if you love photo-shooting and like viewing architectures. It's free of entrance fees and it's worth visiting if have ample time.