3 days in Kuala Lumpur

Has it been really such a long time since I last visited KL? Came down to KL for the KL Marathon and decided to throw in a day or 2 of sightseeing. And that reminded me why it has been such a long time since we came. There wasn’t much to sight see.

Took one of those premier coach service from Golden Mile Complex. Not bad, got personal mini-tv, massage chair, plenty of leg room and a onboard attendant who talked like she was an air-stewardess. Too bad, the ear phone was not clean or changed (God know how many eyes it has been plugged into!). The drivers are now Cruise Captain (stylo right?). The rest stop at Yong Peng still looks the same from the outside but the toilet….. I swear can sit on the floor. Now got proper flushing toilet, nice clean tiles, bright light and a full time cleaner. Changi Airport – you got competition here!

As usual, we stayed in the Chinatown area. The Ancasa hotel was part of the package we bought. But it was good – actually more than good because like the rest of the world, Malaysia has caught the football fever and the hotel was a big supporter of Brazil judging by the Brazil banners, posters and even t-shirts worn by the staff. And to cap it off, when Brazil was playing Portugal, there was free flow of food and drinks. Too bad, the action on the field wasn’t that great.

On the first day, we made our way to Stadium Titiwangsa to collect the race pack. Why must they have such tongue twister name? The organizer had thoughtfully provided free shuttle services to and from the LRT at Titiwangsa.  The collection was a cliché and we were in and out within 5 minutes. The stalls at the expo were a disappointment though. And things were not cheap. So we made our way back to Titt before catching another train to Mid-Valley Mega Mall, apparently the most popular mall in KL which looks much like any other mall back here except that it is much much much bigger!

Father's Day

Father's Day. A day when the old man is supposed to sit back, relax and enjoy pampering from his family.

For this old man though, it didn't turn out very well. The day started well though, a long sleep in followed by a nice brunch at Taste Paradise (more for the FIL than for me).

Then the car decided to get in on the Father's day thingy and gave me a 'present'. A flat tire! In my so many years of driving, I had never got a flat. Flat battery yes, twice to be exact but flat tire? And of all the days! &*(#%$. Nevermind, I know how to change tire. Should be piece of cake. Took out the jack, the wrench and the spare. Found the right spot, jack up the car a bit and insert the wrench and.... nothing! OMG, I couldn't #&)#+ loosen the bladdy nuts! No amount of twisting and turning help. In the end, I had to sheepishly call the workshop to come down. $42 poorer nevermind but so malu. A big strapping guy that can't change a car tire and to add salt to the injury, the guy took less than 5 minutes to change the whole tire. Turns out you got to step on the miserable piece of metal shit as it is too small and does not provide enough leverage. No amount of brute strength is going to help. Or you have those humongous pipe thingy that the mechanic uses. Maybe should get one of them. Can use as weapon somemore:)

At least the day ends well. Got a surprise present from the kids. Didn't expect it actually since the emphasis is always on Mother's day and Father's day is a poor forgotten occasion. Thanks guys.

World Cup Review

Sorry to disappoint but this is not a review of the ongoing matches. It is a review of the venues and no I am not talking about faraway South Africa but here in this little red dot! This is my review of the various means apart from TV and live streaming that one can catch World Cup 2010 live in Sg.

Clubs, pubs and restaurant
So far my experience was limited to standing outside a pub in Clark Quay for all of 10 mins to watch the Argentina-South Korea game and a further 45 minutes of standing outside a restaurant further down the road. The TV screens at both places are 42 inch wide screen LCD TV although the former did have a projection wall at one end but from where I was standing, the angle wasn't good. Also, the TV screen at the first place was inside the pub and the sound could not be hear clearly. There was standing space only for us free loaders at both venue but I guess if we have to pay for something to eat, we would have spend a bomb. Atmosphere wise it was rather mute except when Argentina scores but other than that, there wasn't really much noise.

Screen: So So
Ambience: Not Bad
Atmosphere: Cool
Food: Available but expensive
Recommendation: Go for it only if won on the bets you place and want to impress your date

Urban River

This is a picture of the Amazon River

Note that it is flanked on both banks by trees and greenery.

Now supposed we cut down the trees and put some buildings alongside instead. What do we get?

Now lets supposed we go 1 step further and build high rise buildings. Tada:

Photo Credit: Stomp.com.sg

Isn't it cool? A river running through the heart of a city? Now what are is that car doing in a river?