In my last post I wrote of my starting journey from KL, and my quick breakfast of McDonalds Chicken Muffin. The XC60 was nice and the roomy bootspace was much appreciated. Volvo Malaysia has selected this model for me when I said I was driving down to Terengganu; saying it was suitable for long distance rides and of course, plenty of boot space.
However, as the 5 hours journey progressed I started to wonder if the Volvo XC60 was really an ideal choice. Saying that the suspension is stiff was putting it mildly. I literally felt every bump, rock and undulationon the road for a good 3 hours. I comtemplated between taking more breaks to relax and sooth my headache; or just brave the long drive ahead and get to Tanjong Jara as soon as possible.
Fortunately the handling of the vehicle itself wasnt a problem. Here the Volvo famous safety features came in useful. I switched to Auto Cruise mode, setting it between 80-100km/h and full possible distance between my XC60 and the front vehicle. Keeping my hands on the steering, I sat back and let the XC60 took over the driving.
Below: Speed set at 82km/hr (yes, was going slow as the highway to Terengganu is pretty busy with lorries and trucks), FULL distance allowed between the front vehicle and myself.
Note: Distance is the long stretch of bars on the RIGHT of the (82) .
The Auto Cruise mode basically drives the vehicle for you. Naturally the driver (myself in this case) still has to steer the direction and keep an eye on the road. However, you can have both your feet off the accelerator and brakes, thus providing you some respite from the act of driving.
And yes, you read right. You can have your feet off the BRAKES. The Auto Cruise and Collision Warning with Full Brake and Pedestrian Detection mode detects objects front of the vehicle and slows down and brakes the vehicle at a safe distance.
However, you do have to start the acceleration after the XC60 has come to a standstill as the Auto Cruise mode goes off the moment the brakes are applied.
Below: The brackets () around the speed number tells you that the auto cruise is off.
So if youre hoping that the XC60 to auto-pilot you to your destination, its not possible for now! 
As expected of a foodie, I took the opportunity to explore a few known food stops along the journey. Since I wasnt familiar with the area and there wasnt much time to begin with, I decided on 2 food outlets; both famous, and coincidentally one Malay and a! nother C hinese.
Hoi Yin Curry Mee.
This little shop is just along Jalan Teluk Cempedak, a short walk from the beach. Their curry mee is the famous dish, but they do serve mee kicap (dry noodles in soy sauce) and noodles in clear soup. Being here for the first time, I tried the Curry Mee of course.
The shop is small, but just like an other popular shops, when space inside the shop is insufficient, just take over the pavement outside.
It is also packed due to the fact that this place is actually halal. Exploring the insides, I watched the 3 ladies at work.
This is a basic bowl, with your choice of noodles, fish cakes, steamed chicken, beancurd puffs, fish ball and FRESH BLOODY cockles! Prices are according to the sizes of Jambo(RM4.20), Besar(RM3.50)and Kecil(RM3.20).
Mine was the Jambo, RM4.20 and worth every cent.
2 choices of chilli were placed on the table. One is watery and tangy while the other is thicker, but both has the chilli oompph and does a good job of elevating the taste of the curry mee.
The soup? Wonderfully creamy and balanced in both spiciness and saltiness.
Thres no reason to worry though, as it wasnt cloying but just milky enough to satisfy. Though I hate yellow noodles because of the associated alkaline taste, the mee here was devoid of such unpleasantness.
We washed it all down with freshly boiled barley. Business is brisk and I was lucky that I didnt have to wait too long for my order as it was a Monday morning.
Next was the famousNasi Lemak Zaman.
I have h! eard so much of it during my previous Kuantan trip with Firefly. Back then our schedule was way packed and we didnt manage to visit Zaman Restaurant.
Since I was passing through Kuantan to Tg Jara Resort, I made sure I made a stop here.
Since I have only heard of the Nasi Lemak, I was surprised to see the variety of other food that were available as well.
The people here were friendly and more than happy to demonstrate their roti canai acrobatic skills for the camera. 
The roti canai was just as popular as the nasi lemak. It looked really good actually, crispy around the edge and served flooded with thick dhal and curry.
But I refused to be diverted from my initial plan thus I dived straight for the nasi lemak. After hearing so much about the long queues and wait, I was a bit baffled to see no queue nor any wait required as plenty of nasi lemak packets were placed on the tables plus the restaurant was half empty.
Anyhow, it was about 11am then and I guess I should count myself lucky that the nasi lemak is still available.
When I reach for a packet, it felt warm in my hands. Wow, even at 11am there were fresh packs which were still warm. Like a little delighted kid, I opened one, grabbed my spoon and dug in.
It was GOOD! The banana leaf did really impart a lovely fragrance to the rice, which incidently was cooked with a good balance of coconut milk and salt. Some may find the sambal a bit salty, which I did, but overall it was certainly a tasty packet of nasi lemak!
For RM2.00, it may be expensive for Kuantan standards but I thought it was fine for the portion and the lovely sambal. Salty spicy versus the sweet spicy ones we get in KL, my preferance goes to this one.
The Volvo XC60, T5:
Selling price without insurance : RM300,150.00
Standard 3 year warranty and 3 years complimentary Volvo-On-Call.
Hoi Yin Curry Mee
31, Jalan Teluk Cempedak, 25050 Kuantan
Tel: +609-567 3871
Operating hours: 7.00 am to lunch or till sold out.
GPS: N: 03 48 44.8 E: 103 22 14.9
Restoran Zaman
Lot 1-3811, KM14 Jalan Gambang
26070 Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
Tel: (+609) 538 1253
Business Hours: 6:00a.m. 2:00p.m.
GPS: N: 03 45.738 E: 103 12.820
Other Kuantan delicaci! es to tr y:
Murtabak Mengkasar at Pekan, Kuantan
Pudding Diraja a local Kuantan specialty
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