Michi Photostory

Among the ASEAN countries, Brunei is not so popular tourist destination, maybe because of the limited flights from the Philippines and Brunei Dollar is a strong currency so everything seems expensive. We were supposed to visit Brunei when we went to Kota Kinabalu Malaysia but because of the limited time, we did to push it anymore.

Read: 3 Days in Kota Kinabalu Malaysia

I haven’t been to Brunei but my husband is a frequent traveler and whenever he visits Brunei, he usually stayed at Radisson Blu Hotel or Badi’ah Hotel. My husband had a business trip last week in Brunei and he reserved a room at Badi’ah Hotel. If you are looking for a budget hotel in Brunei, you can check this one. It is just 10 minutes away from Brunei International Airport and also near to some tourist spots in Bandar Seri Begawan. And the best thing about this hotel is the FREE Airport Shuttle so don’t forget to inform them that you want to avail this service.


This is the room and bathroom.




Badi’ah Hotel has 2 restaurants which serve local and international cuisines, Badi’ah Hotel Restaurant and Bristodeli Cafe. My husband ate his complimentary breakfast at Badi’ah Hotel Restaurant, he prefers the buffet spread here compared to Radisson Blu because they have more options and according to him, masarap food.




They also have a swimming pool but he hasn’t tried it yet.

Read: Royal Brunei Yacht Club
Pasalubong from Brunei

Badi’ah Hotel
Badi'ah Complex Mile 1 1/4,
Jalan Tutong, Jalan Laksamana Abdul Razak,
Bandar Seri Begawan BA1712, Brunei

My husband was in Brunei last week, though Brunei is just a small country, he hasn’t explored the country yet because he has very limited time so work, work and work lang. Most of the time he will just eat at the hotel but last week, he had a chance to visit Royal Brunei Yacht Club, his business contact invited him to eat at one of the restaurants there.




The Royal Brunei Yacht Club is a nice place where people can eat in an open restaurant. It is a stilt house, where you have a beach view. It is also known for water sport such as jet ski, kayaking, water diving and many more.


His business contact is part owner of the restaurant so he just allowed him to order for him. He had steak and according to him, the steak is really good. It was imported in Australia. Kakaunlimited wagyu steak and shrimp pa lang namin sa Hogs & Cattle Steakhouse, nagsteak ulit siya.

My husband said, medyo malayo ang restaurant and I asked the travel time. He said it is more or less 20 minutes travel time from Radisson Blu Hotel. I said, "malayo na ba yun?". And he replied, "Oo, malayo na yun kung sa Brunei". I almost forgot, wala nga rin pala traffic sa Brunei so malayo na nga kung tuloy-tuloy ang biyahe. :)

Read: Radisson Blu Hotel in Brunei
Pasalubong from Brunei
Royce Nama Chocolate at Brunei Airport

Royal Brunei Yatch Club 
Simpang 664, Km 7,
Jalan Kota Batu, Bandar Seri Begawan

When my husband visited Brunei for the very first time, he stayed in Radisson Blu. It is one of the most recommended hotels if you will visit Brunei. Then for the past business trips in Brunei, he stayed in a different hotel which is near his office. 


But he prefers Radisson Blu so last week, he stayed in this hotel during his 3 days business trip. It is located in Bandar Seri Begawan, which is the capital of Brunei. This hotel is just 15 minutes away from Brunei International Airport. 

Pasalubong is a Filipino tradition wherein we buy something from our destination so we have something to give to our family and friends. It is very common to balikbayans, OFW, or even travelers. 

My husband is not an OFW but he is always out of the country twice or thrice a month because of work and because of this, may pasalubong kami lagi. Lol Though I don’t really demand pasalubong at magastos ito. Mamumulubi kami because 2-3 times na gastos ito.

But there are times I asked something especially if I’m interested in trying delicacies or food from that country or place like lechon in Cebu, Kaya Spread in Singapore, and Royce in Brunei or Japan. Most of the time my husband will buy chocolates especially if there is a sale. 

Sharing with you some pasalubong that we’ve got during the last business trips.

Pasalubong from Singapore 

When he went to Singapore, I asked him to buy Kaya Spread so I can make Kaya Toast. I tried it before when someone gave me a bottle of this coconut jam and I liked it. He bought some at the Changi Airport and unfortunately I didn’t like it, it is not sweet and parang walang lasa. 


I just can’t remember the brand that I’ve tried before na ok ang lasa. Let me know if you know the best brand of Kaya Spread. Sayang, this is expensive pa naman, parang P1k+ itong Kaya Spread.


So I told him, don’t buy pasalubong na from Singapore kasi ang mahal, even the chocolates are expensive mas mura pa sa Pinas. 

Pasalubong from Thailand 


The famous pasalubong in Thailand is tamarind so he bought a few packs only since we will be going to Japan in a few days na rin. 

Pasalubong from Indonesia 

Every time he goes to Indonesia, I don’t ask anything because I don’t know what is the best pasalubong from Indonesia. So I was surprised when he bought this Monica original layer cake 55,000 rupiah. 


In Indonesia “lapis” means layer and this is a traditional snack which can also be found in Netherland because of colonial links. The taste is just okay.

Pasalubong from Brunei

He just came back from Brunei, initially I asked for Royce chocolate but before he left, I told him wag na lang para tipid but still, he brought something home kasi may tira pa daw siya Brunei dollar, hehehe! 

Read: Royce Chocolate 
           Royce Nama Chocolate



In fairness, we liked the Munchy’s Oat Krunch cookie and Loacker “Rose of the Dolomites”chocolate. Ubos agad. Hehehe! The Munchy’s are made in Johor Malaysia and of course, Loacker is an Italian company.

No post for the last few days because last week was my son’s exam and I wasn’t feeling well these past few days. Anyway, hubby was in Brunei last week, he was asking me what I want for pasalubong. Honestly, I don’t know what is the popular pasalubong in Brunei so wala ko bilin. But my husband never fails to buy chocolate for pasalubong. 

Hubby’s flight was delayed last Friday + traffic in Pasay because of Oktoberfest so nakatulugan ko na paghihintay. The following day, I went down the stairs and I was surprised when I saw the Royce plastic bag.

Me: Ano yung Royce na plastic dun? 
Hubby: Pasalubong ko.
Me: Bigay sayo?
Hubby: Binili ko. 
Me: Wow, level up na chocolate mo.
Hubby: Bakit ano ba yun? 
Me: Mahal na chocolate kaya yun. 

My husband just bought Royce Nama Chocolate without any idea that it is popular and expensive chocolate. I was happy because finally, I can taste this chocolate. FYI, Royce was founded in 1983 at Sapporo, the capital city of Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido. 



I checked the fridge, the chocolate was inside the cooling bag with dry ice pack to make sure that it will not melt on your way home. 



I notice that the packaging is good and secure. 





I can really say that this is not an ordinary chocolate. It was cut in cubes and my son said, yummy brownies. Hahaha! I find it amazing that the chocolate is soft even it came from the fridge. It is not sweet so there’s no umay factor. 



We loved and enjoyed it very much and I told my husband to buy another flavor if he will go back to Brunei. It is cheaper compared here in the Philippines.