Since my mom passed away in Oct 2010, my sister and her family moved to my parent's house @ Taman Nuri, Jalan Dato' Kumbar and stay with my Abah. So, we always have a day-trip back. It was only last year during Hari Raya Puasa when we stayed longer at a nearby homestay...we stayed there for about 3-4 days starting from the third Syawal. Since then, we started to engage with the homestay owner if we decide to stay longer in Alor Setar for our weekend balik kampung.
When I got married in 1999, I introduced my favourite dinner meal to my hubby...it was Iman Koayteow Kerang @ Taman Pandan, near Hentian Shahab Perdana! Since then, this is a must-eat for him every time we go back to Alor Setar. I still remember that we used to enjoy koayteow kerang with my mom...it was her favourite too! If Penang is well-known for char koay teow, Kedah is known for koay teow kerang. We would have a chit-chat with Abang Iman, the chef cum owner. It is good to see that his business is expanding from just a stall to a shop lot with few other stalls selling different menus. In my opinion, what makes this koayteow kerang is so special is that it is koayteow goreng basah with loads of kerang and served with telur mata kerbau lembik and cili jeruk. Abang Iman has his own 'sous' chef, specializing in making telur mata kerbau lembik.
Then, recently, I introduced the famous Nasi Lemak Royale to my hubby...and he got 'addicted' to it. It all started during our school holiday balik kampung last month when we stayed overnite at Grand Crystal Hotel (the room rate via Booking.com was cheaper than our favourite homestay). I suggested to my hubby that we had a breakfast @ the original Nasi Lemak Royale near Pekan Rabu and he agreed. So I arranged the breakfast gathering with my sister and her family, and my Abah as well. It really recalled my childhood memories of having food at the restaurant...with classic furniture and dishes. And it was still the same old damn good taste! Then, on Saturday, couple of days before puasa, we went back again to have our brunch @ the original Nasi Lemak Royale. My 'basic' combination was 1/2 serving of nasi + fried chicken + daging masak hitam + hard boiled egg and kuah campur.
As a fan of laksa, most of the times, we would go to Laksa Mama @ Bangunan Ukir for our lunch. I would order laksa for me and my hubby and bihun sup Utara for my kiddos. This is also my childhood favourite stall for laksa. It used to be my must-go place every time I went to town with my mom...my favourite combination would be laksa + air jagung. Laksa Kedah is a bit different from Penang Laksa...the laksa itself is made of rice flour which makes the texture a bit different from Penang Laksa which is smoother and softer. One special thing about this place is that it has a limited seatings so don't be surprise if you find that someone is waiting at your back to reserve your seat while you are enjoying your meal!
For tea time, I love one roadside stall in front of Masjid Al-Bukhari @ Jalan Langgar. This stall sells varieties of hot-from-oven kuih-muih, bubur, cekodok, goreng pisang etc. Just name any traditional kuih-muih, and you can find it over here....it is like a one-stop centre.
To name a few are seri muka bakar, tepung talam, seri muka, talam keladi, talam suji, talam ubi kayu, bengkang gandum, bengkang pandan, bengkang kacang, kuih lapis, sagu, kuih cara manis, kuih cara berlauk, apom seri ayu, buah melaka, kuih pelita, lompang, kuih keria, donat, cucur badak, pau goreng berinti, cucur udang, bubur kacang, bubur pulut hitam, bubur jagung, bubur gandum and bubur chacha.
Though my sister considered that kuih-muih here is a bit expensive compared to others, I don't mind at all as the kuih-muih tastes so 'old-school', classic, original and damn delicious.
My favourites are talam and seri muka bakar. Each talam is wrapped individually, making it easy to eat as well as hygiene. I love the cekodok as well...although the shape is not perfectly round and it is crispy outside, the inside is so soft...it is an indicator that the cekodok is made from lots of mashed banana with less flour and no baking soda!
Alor Setar offers quite a number of popular landmarks for outing and sightseeing including Pekan Rabu, Menara Alor Setar, Tasik Darul Aman, Dataran Tanjung Chali and Muzium Padi. 
Pekan Rabu is synonim to Alor Setar, Kedah and well known among the locals and tourists from outside Kedah. It is a business complex and trading place for Malay entrepreneurs. Most tourists visiting Alor Setar make it a point to shop around here as Pekan Rabu offers 'rare stuff' like traditional cookies, handicrafts, crockery and songkok tailor.
Interesting fact about Pekan Rabu is that ex-Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohammad was once a trader at Pekan Rabu. He will not fail to visit Pekan Rabu whenever he is in Kedah. The auction of the raya cakes and cookies held on the eve of Hari Raya Aidil Fitri and Aidil Adha, also adds up to the interesting facts about Pekan Rabu. I still remember when my Abah brought me here once to feel the vibe of the auction. Jalan Tunku Ibrahim was closed for this activity. Raya cakes and cookies were sold at RM10 for 3 packets...even baju raya was sold at cheap and bargain price.
With such a distinct features, it is not surprising that Pekan Rabu is a must-go place for my hubby...he would stock-up his 'inventory' of kerepek, especially kerepek udang geragau from Melaka. Sometimes he would buy beras pulut, dodol and serunding, pre-orderd by my parents-in-law.
Another landmark in Alor Setar that we love to visit is Menara Alor Setar (Alor Setar Tower). The 165.5 m telecommunication tower is basically a replicate of KL Tower. It is the 2nd tallest tower in Malaysia and 19th tallest tower in the world. From the tower, you can absorb and enjoy the spectacular view of Alor Setar. The bird' eye view of the city can also be enjoyed from the revolving Seri Angkasa restaurant.
On our way back from a visit to my mom's grave at Tanah Perkuburan Masjid Akar Peluru, Jalan Pegawai, we would stop at the next landmark. It is Dataran Tanjung Chali (Tanjung Chali Square), located at Jalan Pengkalan Kapal in Alor Setar's waterfront of Kedah River and adjacent to Taman Persisiran Tanjung Chali. You 
You may catch a glimpse of Tanjung Chali Tower when crossing the bridge over Kedah River along Persiaran Sultan Abdul Halim to Pekan Cina (China Town).
The Dataran features the tower and beautiful riverside park along the Wan Muhammad Saman Canal, the longest man-made canal in Malaysia.
My kiddos play 'combat battle' at the tower while me and my hubby enjoy the riverview from atop the tower.
Tasik Darul Aman (Darulaman Lake Park) is also our favourite outing spot. Situated in Bandar Darulaman, Jitra, along the North-South Expressway, the park covers the land area of about 92 acre including a 26 acre lake. The park offers a remarkable water plays amusement, providing services for activities such as kayaking , footpaddle boating, boat cruising around the lake, fishing and buggy ride along the perimeter of the lake. The park also has a pedestrian walk passageway of 2.4 km long which is suitable for jogging activity. There is an island in the centre of the lake which can only be accessed by boat. For every visit, we would ride the buggy and footpaddle the boat. Syameer would nag us to 'drive' the buggy...so with our paddle control, he would be 'controlling and in-charge' of the buggy steering. Along the ride, we would enjoy the serene view of the lake and rubber trees. During the windy season, we would play kites as well.
Muzium Padi (Paddy Museum) is another attraction in Alor Setar, the capital of the '"Rice Bowl State". My kids love to visit museum, so this museum adds up to their 'conquered-museum-list'. It is the first paddy museum in Malaysia, and the fourth to be opened in the world after Japan, German and Philipine. It is located at the foot of Gunung Keriang, which is about 8 km from the city centre. The museum serves as an honour to the history, culture and significance of paddy farming in Kedah. The museum has a unique roof design that potrays bushels (gantang) of harvested rice stalks. And not only that, the rice motifs are repeated almost everywhere in the museum. The museum exhibits materials and items related to paddy farming including the culture, R&D and technology.
We were fascinated when we arrived at the top floor that offers a spectacular bird's eye view of a revolving wall galleries. The mural displays the stages of rice cultivation from ploughing, planting, threshing and winnowing. We were mesmerized by the reverse effect of the revolving platform that we were standing on while enjoying the view of the mural without realising that in actual fact the scenery is not rotating around us. We were informed that this massive circular mural has an overall length of 103 metres in circumference and with a height of 8 metres tall, was a masterpiece artwork of 60 artists from North Korea.
Well...that is just a glance of popular landmarks and sightseeing spots in Alor Setar. As my growing kids are so keen to explore and discover new places and learn and taste from the new experience, my hubby and I made a promise to our kiddos to discover more of Alor Setar including Balai Besar, Balai Nobat, Menara Jam Besar and Alor Setar Railway Station. We will be back for more! I wanna go down to my memory lane. One day, I'll be cruising with my hubby and kiddos along those streets where I grew up...and have a snap shot!
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