Shah's Ramblings

2008-02-08T01:28:00.000+08:00

This blog has now officially been moved to this new URL along with all its old contents

See you at:

www.shahsramblings.com

Sundanese House

2008-01-03T00:05:00.000+08:00

Went to KLCC last night with the main intention of getting tickets for one of the performances at the Dewan Filharmonik but unfortunately the box office was closed by the time we got there. We're going to have to return some other day to get those tickets since we really want to catch that particular show which happened to be on a significant date for us.

To console ourselves over not getting those tickets (padahal memang nak melantak), we agreed to have dinner at one of the restaurants we've been meaning to check out, House of Sundanese Food which serves authentic Indonesian Sundanese (NOT Sudanese!) cuisine.

Emping Buah Melinja and Sambal Belacan for starters

Then we had the RM19.90 set meal which they're serving at this promotional price in conjunction with their anniversary.

I had the Chicken Rendang

and Yazeed had the Beef

The sets also came with a choice of either hot or iced Barley

Rice - loved the yellow rice which tasted a bit like Bukhara Rice

Veges - this was a bit too salty

And this fabulous Grilled Squid, which on it's own made the set meal well worth trying

Loved the place's simple yet striking decor which created just the right ambiance to enjoy the food there.

House of Sundanese Food is located at Suria KLCC on the 4th floor opposite Madam Kwan's.

Lombok trip

2008-01-02T17:11:00.000+08:00

In the middle of our Bali holiday a few years back, we took a two day trip to the neighbouring Lombok island. The journey by ferry lasted 3 hours and it took us directly across the Wallace Line marking the deepest parts of the ocean, which created a water barrier preventing the migration of fauna in ancient times when the sea levels were lower. The existence of this line is said to explain the marked difference in fauna between Southeast Asia and Australasia.

The Lombok-Bali ferry

Nothing much to do on the long ferry trip except to pose for photos

While still at sea before we reached the Lombok ferry terminal, several of these tiny boats came close to the ferry and the occupants boarded the ferry to sell all sorts of food items to passengers. At that point, I wished we could get on to one of these boats, just for the experience.

The ferry we were on couldn't dock at the terminal since an earlier ferry already there was experiencing some engine trouble. We were told that we had to wait till they could get that ferry running before we could disembark our ferry, and we had no idea how many hours that was going to take. However Yazeed's Lombok friend who was waiting for us at the ferry terminal came to our rescue in one of these winged boats.

And my simple wish to ride on one of these boats came true that day

Lunch on our first day was with Yazeed's Lombok friends at this restaurant at the edge of a paddy field. The restaurant's floating huts sit on a fish filled canal which irrigates the paddy field.

Lombok is not as well known here in Malaysia but is still every bit as beautiful as Bali. It used to be quite popular with foreign tourists in the past, however ever since the Bali bombings, tourism in this island seemed to have be worse affected compared to Bali itself.

We stayed at the beach in Sengigi which is where most of the bigger hotels of the island are located.

Sengigi had the most beautiful sunset I'd ever seen.

As you walk along Sengigi beach at any time of the day, various peddlers will approach you to get you to buy their wares. As souvenirs for friends and family back home, we ended up buying lots of something which Lombok is well known for...

Lombok pearls

The cultivated pearls from Lombok come in all shapes, sizes and colour and are really cheap. You could get a full necklace for less than RM40, with the irregularly shaped ones, and the freshwater ones being much cheaper than the symmetrical, saltwater pearls.

Lombok is also famous for its wooden carvings. A lot of the decorative items we've seen at home deco shops in KL are actually made in Lombok. We came across several familiar items at this shop near Sengigi...

..for example those wooden masks on the wall on the left. But of course they're a lot cheaper in Lombok. The owner of this shop told us that they have several Malaysian shop owners who buy wooden carvings and furnitures in bulk from this shop in Lombok to have them sold later in Malaysia.

Lombok's songket is another great souvenir to get from the island. This full songket has been hanging at our living room ever since we first moved into the apartment. The songket from Lombok are much more colourful and cheaper than the ones you get here.

Even made one into a samping for my baju Raya in 2006 .

Lumbung styled roofs are a specific to Lombok

The Northwestern coast of Lombok boasts of several pristine beaches and rugged cliffs, all still unspoiled by any form of development.

However it's a pity to see the tourism infrastructure being left to rot on this beautiful island. Ever since the first Bali bombing where the tourist numbers here have dwindled, the businesses that depend on these foreign travelers suffered the most.

Several of the hotels on the popular beach have closed down. Few shops could still sustain their businesses and many of the restaurants and pubs catering mainly to tourists either were already out of business or were very close to it.

We were the only customers at this beautiful restaurant in Sengigi later that evening. I wonder if it's still in business today.

When we were there, most of the tourists we encountered in Lombok were there on their way to the Gili Islands just off the coast of Lombok. Click here for our photos from the Gili trip. I've just updated that old 2006 post with a few extra photos.

On the speedboat to Gili Trawangan

Lombok itself had lost most of its charm as a tourist attraction, which is a real pity since the island boasts of quite a number of attractions. Hopefully with time, enough promotion and with proper planning by the authorities there, Lombok can become a major tourist attraction like it's western neighbour.

Yazeed used to make regular work related trips to Lombok in the past. Check out some of his photos taken during one of his trips there.

For more info on Lombok from a tourist's perspective, check out this link:

Trailing the Treasure Island of Lombok

KL tower

2008-01-01T23:38:00.000+08:00

The initial plan was to snap some photos at the Bukit Nenas forest reserve this afternoon then head over to the neighbouring KL Tower for more photos. Unfortunately the late night chit chat session with Hairi, Arel & Hamdi went on till almost 5am so most of today was spent sleeping instead.

I got up at 6pm and decided there was still time to go to KL tower, along with Hamdi and Yazeed.

We can even see our apartment from all the way there. Kak Red nampak tak umah kita ni?

The view from KL Tower was even more stunning at night.

Since we were already in the neighbourhood, dinner was at the Pavillion food court. After seeing the photos on Wahdi's blog recently, I really wanted to try out the Oyster Omelet from this stall just opposite Tony Roma's.

I absolutely loved it

Their Char Kuey Tiau wasn't that great though

But the Prawn Mee Hamdi had was delicious

I'll be starting another month at a new elective posting from tomorrow onwards. During this posting, I'll have slightly less spare time compared to the previous posting, so the blog update frequency and the outings might not be as often as in December.

New Year's Eve

2008-01-01T12:15:00.000+08:00

Organised a potluck barbeque to spend the last few hours of 2007 and the first few hours of 2008 at home with a few close friends last night.

Some of the food last night:

Hamdi's veges

Syafferi & Mizan's prawns & crabs with our lamb and black pepper steak in the background

Zaidi, Kamarul, Khairul & Firdaus' potato salad

Chicken wings by the same gang

Achul's home made muffins

Some of the not so camera shy guests:

The highlight of the evening came after midnight, when we were all treated to a dazzling fireworks display to mark the arrival of 2007. The show started at midnight with the fireworks at Dataran Merdeka followed immediately by KLCC and Bukit Bintang, all viewable from the apartment's balcony. The last and most impressive display last night was the one at Mid Valley which could seen from the corridor at our apartment's entrance.

The fireworks photos didn't turn out as nice as I had hoped unfortunately. The longer distance to the site of the fireworks meant that I couldn't use similar settings to the ones I used during the Putrajaya fireworks competition previously. Experimenting and changing the settings while the fireworks had already commenced didn't help much either so these were the sad few that weren't as bad as the rest I've discarded. Kena banyak belajar lagi ni...

J Co zombie

2007-12-31T10:57:00.001+08:00

I finally succumbed to the hype and got in the line with those J Co zombies forever seen queuing in front of this popular J Co outlet.

Today, even before opening time on a weekday, there were already 9 zombies in the queue.

By the time they started serving the first customer, there were already at least 10 more zombies behind me - making almost 20 J Co zombies all around me. At this stage, I still wasn't sure if after that first bite, I'll get turned into one of them too...

Got a dozen of the ones M@x recommended. Don Monchino, Almond Top and Green Tea.

And then an assortment of a dozen more.

Plus a couple of singles we had in the car before driving back. Judging by the two that we got to taste so far, it's definitely much better than what the other donut shops sell. The donuts are a lot softer and the fillings & toppings a lot richer and tastier. My verdict - Helppp!!! I think I'm turning into one of those J Co zombies too.....

By the way, those two dozen donuts aren't all for us. We only tasted the two singles we got separately. Habis la diet si Yazeed kalau kitorang aje nak peghabih donut tu semua. It's actually one of our potluck items for the New Year bash.

World Drums Festival

2007-12-30T22:58:00.000+08:00

Just reached home from an exhausting 14 hour locum since early this morning. The clinic was busier than normal today so I'm sleepy, a little groggy and too tired to write much, so here are some of the pictures taken at yesterday's official launching of the World Drums Festival at Dataran Merdeka.

Still lagi tak puas hati dengan mamat-mamat press yang kat depan tu sibuk dok block view orang lain. Lain kali kalau dah dapat peluang pi depan tu pandai-pandai la duduk kalau masa tak amik gambaq tu. Yang mamat-mamat DBKL pun dua kali lima jugak, tercegat saja kat depan-depan stage tu buat apa?

Latest addition to the arsenal

2007-12-29T16:33:00.000+08:00

Just found the perfect companion to the Gorillapod I got recently - this remote control shutter release. I've been searching for something like this everywhere but none of the shops I went to had it in store. It's not the same remote as the RM-1 remote showed on camera's list of compatible accessories but when I tested it with their display E510, it worked perfectly. It's really frustrating trying to find Olympus accessories since most of the camera outlets prefer to stock accessories for the other more popular brands.

Except for this store at Sungai Wang Plaza. That's Kim in the photo, the friendliest and most helpful camera outlet staff I've encountered. This shop also had the widest range of Olympus SLR lenses and accesories compared to all the other shops I've been to. And the best thing is that their retail price is cheaper too. The 50mm macro lens I'm planning to get next year is almost RM500 cheaper here compared to anywhere else I've asked. So to Olympus SLR users out there, it's worth checking out this shop before you get your next Olympus accessory.

Despite their cheesy sounding slogan, they do have the best price in town. This shop I was at shares the same shoplot as GNC at the ground floor of Sungai Wang Plaza, right next to the money changer. There's a bigger outlet with a more complete selection of accessories at a different location in the same mall, but it's busier there & whatever they don't have at this smaller outlet, they will bring over from the bigger place.

Now with this latest addition, there's no longer the need to use the camera's timed shutter release when taken long exposure shots on the tripod or gorillapod. Taking pictures of myself in group shots or semi-perasan solo potraits of myself will be so much easier after this too.

P/S: The camera has an optional 2 second delay before pics are taken with the remote, so that the pics are not going to end up like the one above - with my hand pointing the remote at the camera.

World Drums Festival

2007-12-28T21:45:00.000+08:00

Got off work a little early today so I had time to head over to Berjaya Times Square to catch some of the acts there in conjunction with the World Drums Festival. Not all of the participating countries performed there today. The main show will actually be on tomorrow night at Dataran Merdeka.

The first group to perform today was The Diplomat of Drums from Malaysia who performed Bhangra beats on the drums.

When the Bhangra drums and a Scottish bagpipe were performed together, the fusion of sounds was quite hypnotic .

Next on was the group from the Trinity College, Kandy, Sri Lanka. They were the only group to incorporate dance moves in their performance and to feature elaborate costumes.

Events like these draw shutterbugs like honey to a honey bear

The lighting at this venue was atrocious with some areas overlit with the uneven spotlights and the other areas quite dark. I still haven't got the hang of using the new flash in wide open spaces like this where the bounce effect is of no use. So quite a lot of the photos today ended up overexposed or underexposed when I used the flash, or blurred when I decided to go without it. I'm gonna need a lot more practice with the flash at events like these before I can get results as good as the ones I got for the Live & Loud Concert.

Next, it was time for the group from Venezuela who performed several catchy Latin style numbers which got my feet tapping the whole time.

This is not a bunch of the mall's cleaners waiting to mop the stage after Venezuela's performance

It's actually the only group that really got the crowd wild, the Yawa Eco Drum Circle, also from Malaysia.

YAWA stands for Yayasan Anak Warisan Alam. This group of youngters incorporate everday objects and recyclable materials in their performance. It's so uplifting to see kids this young have so much passion in performing.

And their performance was truly captivating and highly energetic. So energetic that one of them broke the glass with his enthusiastic use of the drumsticks.

This is a short sample video clip of their performance. Sorry for the quality audio & video. I still can't afford to get the Viewty yet, so my old phone had to do.

For those interested to catch the main show which will feature performances by all of the participating countries, it'll be on at 8pm this Saturday 29th December at Dataran Merdeka. For those of you who don't intend to catch the show, better not go anywhere near the area as several road will be closed to traffic.

Honey bear just cannot resist the opportunity to pose for a photo :)

Off the beaten track in Bali

2007-12-28T00:21:00.000+08:00

Nothing blogworthy to write about today (thanks Nickxandar for teaching me this new term) so I'm putting up some really old pics from one of our holidays in 2005 where we spent a whole week in Bali and Lombok.

Icy cold, crystal clear fresh water from the mountains in East Bali

Instead of doing the regular touristy thing and staying at the more well known areas in Bali, we stayed in Candi Dasa which is a small town on the southeastern coast of Bali, about 2 hours drive from Kuta.

At our hotel

At a cafe in Candi Dasa

Staying there gave us easier access to these lesser known attractions in the eastern part of Bali. Having thoroughly researched the places we wanted to visit from the internet and guide book, we didn't need to take up the expensive tourist packages while we were there. Instead we saved a lot by booking the hotel driver to drive us around all day.

Goa Lawah or Bat Cave where thousands of bats can be seen hanging from the walls of this cave. This temple is a very important site for Balinese Hindus where people from all around the island congregate during religious festivals.

Besakih, Bali's largest and most sacred temple is located at the foot of Mount Agung, the Balinese's revered mountain.

The best views can be seen when you climb up to the highest temple of this huge temple complex.

We happened to be there during the full moon, which is the best time to be in Bali if you wish to observe some of their religious rituals which take place at these temples on days of the full moon.

Tirtagangga is an ancient water palace & garden featuring intricately carved fountains spewing fresh, icy water from the mountains.

Nearby Taman Sari

This is one of the palaces in Bali which is actually still in use by the royal family and off limits to visitors. Our hotel driver managed to persuade the guardian to let us in for a peek since the owners weren't at home.

You won't get to see scenes like these in Malaysia

The following picture is taken of one of the homes at a living cultural village we were at where each home sells handmade local handicrafts, souvenirs and food items. Most of the homes there were quite dilapidated and run down, except for this one here.

The neighbour told us that the owner worked in Malaysia for 3 years and then returned to Bali and did up his home with the income he earned.

Desa Adat Tenganan is the home of the Bali Aga, Bali's original or indigenous race

Ikat weaving

Barong dance

At the beach right in front of our hotel in Candi Dasa

The following two photos also taken on the same beach, happen to be my personal favourites from this trip. Just scroll down further to find out why.

These pics I took won the weekly prize in the NST. Too bad they didn't make it to the finals though.

During this same trip, we took the 3 hour ferry across the Lombok Straits to spend a few days in Lombok. Pics from our visit to Gili Trawangan island in Lombok can be viewed by clicking here. I'll put up the rest of the Lombok trip pictures over the weekend.

All pics here taken with my first digital camera - a 2 megapixel Panasonic Lumix

More pics of food

2007-12-27T00:51:00.000+08:00

Went out for dinner with Mama & Papa tonight. The pouring rain & nightmare bumper to bumper traffic jam during evening peak hour today meant that the only practical thing to do was to have dinner somewhere not too far away, so we agreed on the nearby Secret Recipe.

Been a while since I was last here for their main courses. The food we had tonight was tasty & quite reasonably priced.

Mama had the Irish Lamb Stew

Papa's BBQ Chicken

My Lasagna

And for desserts:

Tiramisu

And I tried this high fibre cheesecake

Still haven't got the green light to put up pics of Mama here so if you're reading this down in Kangarooland Sue, I'll email you the pics later.

The Optimist's Creed

2007-12-26T14:12:00.000+08:00

As the end of 2007 is fast approaching, I'm putting up these words I recently received from my The Secret Scrolls mailing list. To accompany these inspirational words are some of my favourite photos taken and published on this blog in 2007. Here's to making 2008 an even greater year for me and for all those around me with the aid of these simple reminders...

KL skyline seen from Genting - October 2007
I promise myself to be so strong that nothing can disturb my peace of mind

Yazeed's footsteps on a beach in Kuantan, November 2007
I promise myself to talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person I meet

During my birthday treat at Cyberview Lodge September 2007
I promise myself to make all my friends feel that there is something worthwhile in them

Sunrise during low tide at Gurney Drive, Penang. October 2007
I promise myself to look at the sunny side of everything and make my optimism come true

Eye on Malaysia August 2007
I promise myself to think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best

Penang Butterfly Farm, Batu Feringghi October 2007
I promise myself to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as I am about my own

Cyberview Lodge September 2007
I promise myself to forget about the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future

Batu Feringghi beach, Penang October 2007
I promise myself to wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile to every living creature I meet

Sedratari Ramayana at Prambanan Temple, Jogja July 2007
I promise myself to give so much time to improving myself that I have to time to criticize others

Danga Bay Johor Bharu August 2007
I promise myself to be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear and too happy to permit the presence of trouble

Borobodur sunrise, Jogjakarta July 2007
I promise myself to think well of myself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words, but in great deeds

Malaysian International Fireworks competition, Putrajaya August 2007
I promise myself to live in the faith that the whole world is on my side, so long as I am true to the best that is in me

Inspirational words by Christian D.Larson 1912 & modified by The Secret 2007

Thanks for the dinner treat

2007-12-26T02:38:00.000+08:00

Spent a few hours indulging in good food, chatting and absorbing the ambience at our favourite hangout again tonight with Yazeed, Hairi and Syah who came over for a short visit.

Hairi who picked the venue also treated everyone to a wonderful dinner tonight. Yazeed's got the food pics over at his blog this time. Thanks so much, Hairi for the good food and great company & to Syah, do visit more often okay :)

Kopi, wayang & laksa

2007-12-25T16:49:00.000+08:00

Was at this mall again today to meet up with a few friends.

Ever since The Pavillion opened, Bukit Bintang is getting more and more congested

Awie a regular reader & recent blogger (in the red shirt & cap) joined us today for the first time

Had time for a quick coffee break at the Kopitiam before going upstairs to catch a movie this afternoon.

If you're at this mall, the hazelnut white coffee here is really worth tasting

We watched Alien vs Predator 2 today. Another attempt by Hollywood to rake in the big bucks by getting these two well known monsters/aliens/creatures/whatever to fight each other and kill lots and lots of innocent humans in the process. The action sequences were great but after already seeing these two ugly things fight each other in the first movie, there's really not much else to expect from this sequel.

I give this movie a 6.5/10. Go watch it if you're a big Aliens or Predator fan (ada lagi ke orang yg minat cite Predator ni) The best thing about AVP2 for me was the final words of one of the irrelevant sacrificial characters in the movie:
He said to his little daughter "Look, no monsters..." You can guess what happens immediately afterwards.

After the movie we went down to the food court but there was not a single empty table in the entire foodcourt. So instead, lunch today was at Laksa Shack. It's been a while since I last tried the food at Laksa Shack and they seemed to have expanded their menu to include several other dishes in addition to their more popular different types of laksa.

Cendol in a monster of a glass at Laksa Shack

Laksa Kari

Laksa Tomyam

Laksa Lemak Singapore

My asam laksa

The last time I tried their asam laksa, it was at the KLCC foodcourt almost exactly one year ago. I recall the gravy being a lot thicker then. The one I had here looked a bit watered down.

Have yet to try the donuts at this outlet. Several friends who have tried it claim it's the best thing they've tasted. Judging by the permanent long queues there at any time of the day, it must be true. I'll try it one fine day when there's less people lining up.

Bounce bounce bounce

2007-12-25T00:03:00.000+08:00

Today I've finally discovered the joys of being able to bounce the light for better quality flash photos. The built in flash on the camera was so hopeless at lighting pictures up properly, I preferred not to use it at all and just rely on higher ISO settings and slower shutter speeds. This worked sometimes but most of the time whenever even the slightest movements occur the pictures would be ruined.

So tonight I've been bouncing the light all over the house in order to get a hang of using the new flash. Yazeed was too busy doing his blogrounds so I couldn't prey on him. So the little brats became my victims and models tonight. Check out the differences between direct and bounced flash.

The typical harsh brightness and background darkness with the direct flash

Much softer results with bounced flash

Direct

Bounced off the ceiling

The improvement was even more pronounced when zoomed in

Direct, with the same background blackness

Bounced

Direct

Bounced off the balcony curtains

The brats got bored after a while and started chasing each other around the place so I had to settle with pics taken around the home.

Direct

Bounced off the ceiling

Direct

Bouncing off the red wall gave this reddish tinge to the picture

Bouncing off the white ceiling gave better results

Direct

Bounced

Direct

Bounced

I'm really satisfied with the results so now it's time to get me some volunteers for a little practice at taking potraits.

P/S: Hamdi cepat go & get one before Cambodia :)

Merry Christmas

2007-12-24T17:10:00.001+08:00

This one goes out to all friends & readers who will be celebrating tomorrow

Impulse buy

2007-12-24T15:36:00.000+08:00

Sweated it out for two hours at the gym and then splurged myself with a couple of items from my favourite kinda shop.

I actually went to this shop to get something else but then laid my eyes on this. It's something I've been meaning to get since last month but non of the shops I went to had it in stock. I'd rather not take the chance of buying something like this without being able to test it first, especially when it's this pricey.

It's a good thing I was patient enough not to order this flash from some of the other better known camera outlets. Got it here RM400 cheaper than they're selling elsewhere.

From the online reviews I've read I know it'll be a worthwhile investment. So nows there's one more item I'll be paying for over the next 12 months, hopefully interest free as long as I don't let the balance accumulate.

What I actually went to the shop to get was this nifty little thing, called the Gorillapod SLR. I missed out on some great night photo shots because I couldn't be bothered to lug around the bulky tripod whenever I was out and about at night. With the Gorillapod I can just simply look for something solid to attach it to and shaky, blurry night shots will be a thing of the past.

I can attach it to railings

To chairs

Onto room dividers

On uneven surfaces

On gym equipments if I ever decide to do a TT & take self shots at the gym :)

Found a better use for it at the gym, I can use it to add more weight to the dumbells

I can use it to take pics of myself washing dishes

Heck, I can even strap it onto Mira

Disclaimer : No animals were harmed during the making of this blog entry

#1 on the wishlist

2007-12-23T02:03:00.000+08:00

Just couldn't get myself to fall asleep so I ended up surfing through the net and started drooling when I came across this:

Zuiko Digital ED 35-100mm f2.0 Zoom

The large-aperture telephoto zoom lens (fixed F stop type), which provides F2.0* in entire zoom area. It is equivalent to 70-200mm on a 35mm camera, and covers from medium-telephoto range of natural angles to telephoto area with a compressed perspective effect. Its fast shutter-speeds and beautifully soft out-of-focus image behind the main subject are an ideal for portrait, theatrical and sports shooting under the low-light. Luxurious optical glass elements, such as, four ED lenses and one super ED lens are used to give the highest image quality with optimal resolution and contrast.

*The world's first F2 zoom lens among interchangeable lenses for SLR.

This would be the dream lens to use at the next concert I attend. The local Olympus website didn't list the price for this high end lens so I searched for it on Amazon.com. Over there it costs US$2199.95!!! OK, now I can wipe that drool off my face, get back to bed and start to dream of owning this baby. One day... one day...

Happy 200th and 22222nd

2007-12-22T00:15:00.000+08:00

Just after I published the entry below, I opened the dashboard to see this.

And when I viewed the blog, the counter showed this.

So Happy 200th entry & 22222nd page views to the blog

Still no way I can even dream of beating Kak Red's latest:

Red dinner treat

2007-12-21T23:46:00.000+08:00

Had the pleasure of being invited to a dinner treat by Kak Red tonight. The venue - nearby Sri Melati Palace. The dinner's actually been postponed several times in the past, since both of us and the diva have been too busy with other engagements lately, so tonight the dinner ended up as belated birthday treat for Yazeed.

Kak Red was accompanied by her good friend and faithful shopping partner Fairuz

This time we tried several dishes we never tasted before during our previous visit to this restaurant.

Kak Red prefers the White Seafood Tomyam

I give this a 7/10. Thought it tasted good, I still love their Red Tomyam

Lemon Steamed Siakap - I also give this a 7/10

Mango Kerabu Salad - we had this last time but I didn't rate it. I give it an 8/10

Kailan with Salted Fish - also same as we had last time. Quite average tasting at 6/10

This however was a new discovery. Saw a picture of this at Umi Mia's blog after she came to this restaurant recently, so we decided to try it. This Seafood Otak-otak was absolutely delicious, much better than the one served at Bora Ombak. I give Sri Melati's Seafood Otak-otak a 9/10.

The deserts we had were a little too sweet for our liking unfortunately.

Yazeed had the Durian something something... Very sweet.

Can't remember what Kak Red & Fairuz had - but it was too sweet too

I had the Red Ruby - Instant diabetes in a bowl

Thank you so much Kak Red for the delicious dinner tonight. Jangan risau kalau ada orang tanya harga aku tak layan punya. Cukup le diorang tahu bil Kak Red tiga digit malam ni :)

This time my ratings for Sri Melati have improved significantly.

Value for money 6/10
Variety 9/10
Quality & taste 8/10
Quantity 7/10
Food presentation 8/10
Service 8/10
Ambience 7/10

OVERALL 7.6/10

Sri Melati Palace is located at
No 50 Jalan Permaisuri 9,
Bdr Sri Permaisuri,
Cheras (behind the JPJ office)
0391728049

National Treasure,Times & Tony Roma's

2007-12-21T18:43:00.000+08:00

After this entry I think we can safely say that The Pavillion is now officially our favourite shopping mall and the GCS there our favourite place to catch a movie. We were there again today to watch National Treasure : Book of Secrets.

This is another one of the movies we're been waiting a long time to watch.

And the wait has definitely been worth it. I found this sequel more entertaining than the first movie. It's a modern day Indiana Jones type flick with just enough suspense to keep you at the edge of your seat. Sure if you're going to use real life logic to scrutinise the movie, you might find holes throughout the entire movie, but which Hollywood movie wouldn't be.

Just sit back and enjoy the ride, and I can assure you that you'll be on one helluva great roller coaster ride from the start to the end of this movie. For that I give this movie an 8 out of 10 rating.

After the movie we were at Times and I got this simple guide which may come in handy for the trip we're taking next year. It contains lots of lesser known tips not mentioned in the travel books I've came across before.

But this will be the last time I buy anything at Times. Look at their plastic bag and see if you can figure out why. I'm not going to tell the answer since some people are going to think that I'm overreacting and that he's a brilliant writer, so just try to figure it out yourselves and decide if Times should have included that name on the bag.

After that it was time for a really late lunch/afternoon tea and we were at Tony Roma's to check out their Ribs which came highly recommended from some friends.

Yazeed had the Bountiful Beef Ribs

I had what I think was the Ribeye Steak

I found the Ribs really tasty but Yazeed didn't enjoy them as much. The steak I had was just above average, not really something to shout about. I would have preferred other items for the side dishes though, I didn't think to ask if they could swap them for the lunch set we had. The Fries and Coleslaw seemed a bit too simple for dishes that cost almost RM50 each.

Quiet Aidiladha

2007-12-20T22:20:00.000+08:00

Aidiladha prayers this morning was at the nearby mosque after which we went over to Tijah's grandparents' place for a visit.

Following that - doing nothing all day at home. Tak sedap pulak nak keluar jalan-jalan & tengok wayang masa hari raya ni. So National Treasure 2 will have to wait till tomorrow.

While making the regular daily visits to my favourite blogs, I got a pleasant surprise when I was over at Chen's blog all the way from Penang. He made this cutest video clip with a picture of Mira I posted a few days ago. CLICK HERE to see his post with the YouTube clip.

Mira checking out his video clip

Thanks a lot Chen. Mira says that he expects royalty payments if the clip becomes an online hit. A lifetime's supply of catfood should do...

The chef was busy today

2007-12-19T20:53:00.000+08:00

Came home today to find the chef slaving over the stove which hadn't been used for any serious cooking ever since the Aidilfitri open house a few months ago. Yazeed was free today so he went out to get some groceries in the morning and spent the rest of the day cooking up this feast for Aidiladha tomorrow.

Hand woven ketupat - he made all these ketupats himself

FYI the chef is also a master at weaving all the different types of ketupat

Kuah Kacang

Kuah Lodeh

Sambal Goreng - a must for every Raya in Yazeed's kampung reflecting his Javanese ancestry

Ayam Masak Merah

Since everything was ready by evening and there was more than enough food to feed at least 10 people, we invited a few people over for a pre Raya makan-makan.

There's still a lot of food saved for tomorrow, some for the hearty breakfast feast before going for the Aidiladha prayers and the rest to bring over to Tijah's grandparents when we visit them tomorrow.

Mira update

2007-12-19T00:02:00.000+08:00

It's already been 3 months since we adopted Mira. He's grown quite a bit now so it's time for an update on what he looks like now.

Looking back at his photos on his first day here, it's hard to believe it's the same cat. CLICK HERE to see what Mira looked like on the day I brought him home (and by the way, we thought he was a she then, hence the name Mira)

Now he's proudly known as Mirawan Budi Utomo, but still affectionately known as Mira.

And today I was witness to this touching moment between Mira & Merry who are otherwise forever chasing each other all around the apartment. This is the first time I've seen him doing this. And Yanie's Jatuh Cinta makes the perfect accompanying music to this clip of Mira & Merry (and before you jump to any naughty conclusions, it's not a National Geographic clip ok)

Selamat Hari Raya Aidiladha

Watched The Golden Compass after becoming fish food

2007-12-18T01:07:00.000+08:00

Went to The Pavillion to catch a movie tonight. Since we had some time to spare, we tried out the Kenko fish reflexology spa not far from the cineplex.

This is me being eaten by these Doctor Fish, as these little creatures are known. It took a few minutes for me to get used to the sensation of these creatures nibbling the dead skin off my feet. Once I got over the ticklish feel, I could relax and enjoy the pins and needles sensation for the rest of the session.

At the end of the session, I could really appreciate a difference in the texture of the skin on both my feet. They were a lot smoother, softer with slightly less callus than I had before the session. If only they'd allow me to strip and soak the rest of me in that pool, now that would be an experience worth blogging about.

And if only I was quick enough to video Yazeed screaming as his feet got in the water and the fish started nibbling on them :)

After paying RM38 each to generously provide the fish with their dinner, we went over to GSC to watch The Golden Compass. Even though the movie has been playing for quite some time, we never got around to watching it until tonight.

I've always loved fantasy movies set in a different world. Last year I was really disappointed when Narnia was released, a movie I was really looking forward to but absolutely hated once I watched it. After a friend said that he didn't like The Golden Compass, I didn't want to watch it fearing that it'll be a repeat of the Narnia experience.

But I'm glad we went and watched it today anyway because it exceeded our expectations. The CGI special effects used to create a lot of the scenes and the Daemons were very realistic, the movie backdrops simply astounding, the animals adorable and the characters full of mystery. The plot for this movie unfortunately didn't seem strong enough. But since this movie is based on a novel which is the first part of a trilogy, I'm sure that if they get around to making the second and third part of the movies, then the plot will be a lot more exciting.

I give this movie a generous 9.0 out of 10.0 (and that's not just because I really really want a free stuffed Iorek).

Didn't realize there were so many bears in this movie or we would have watched it much much sooner.

And the ice bear fight scene has got to be the coolest fight scene among all movies shown this year. Beruang madu got really excited seeing so many bears in that scene and I bet he'll really love having an Iorek in the house.

And let me introduce you all to my very own personal Daemon (not to be confused with Demon ok - go watch this movie & you'll understand)

To comment on my Daemon click here.

Now if only I can get my hands on one of those stuffed Iorek Byrnisons for this lover of all things bear..... If only someone was giving them out like say, in a contest or something.....

.....that will surely make Beruang madu the happiest person in the world...

PD trip

2007-12-17T12:39:00.000+08:00

We were in PD last weekend for a short break with a few close friends, many thanks to Remy who got us a night's stay at this company's private holiday condominium there.

Didn't realize the apartments were so spacious or we would have invited the whole cavalry along for the trip

Our first activity of the trip was not in PD but more than 80km away in Umbai, Melaka. We took the trunk road from PD to Umbai, passing through the centre of Melaka town without stopping since we needed to get to Umbai before the weekend crowd started flocking to this popular area. You won't believe how busy this small area can get during weekends.

Umbai is famous for it's fresh seafood & grilled fish restaurants located at the Pengkalan Pernu jetty.

This is the fourth time Yazeed and I have been here and each time we're here, Parameswara Ikan Bakar is the only place we go to. It's located right at the end of the road, on stilts, just by the sea.

Some of the Grilled Fish stalls at the food court hear the entrance. Never tried the food at any of these ones before.

Souvenir and handicraft stalls for the occupants of all those cars there that night, 95% of them with KL & Selangor number plates

I had friends who drove all the way from KL just for the seafood at Umbai, so our 8okm, one and a half hour drive from PD didn't seem like too much of a sacrifice especially since the food was great. These were what we had there that night.

Nasi lemak goes very well with grilled fish

But this time instead of the grilled fish, we went for this Siakap Masak Tiga Rasa

And this Siakap Masak Sira Cili

Siput Buluh Masak Lada Hitam

Udang Goreng Butter

Sotong Masak Sambal

Kailan Ikan Masin

The following morning we started the day with a highly unnutritious breakfast of nasi lemak and birthday cake to celebrate Yazeed's and Harry's recent birthdays.

Ordered the delicious 2kg Tutti Frutti birthday cake from Acai. Honestly, Acai's cakes are way better than the ones at Secret Recipe especially this one and his Banana Chocolate cake.

Then we proceeded with the day's activities - spending all morning and afternoon getting sunburnt at the pool and the beach, a small sacrifice all in the name of fun.

Late lunch was at the nearby Teluk Kemang beach.

By then we were too tired and sleepy so after lunch it was time for a short nap. And following that it was back to the hotel's pool again.

Managed to get some nice sunset shots that evening just before leaving PD.

My favourite shot

My new blog header just in case you didn't notice

Pics taken with an Olympus E510

Palace Beach & Spa

2007-12-15T10:16:00.000+08:00

Spent the night at the Palace Beach & Spa (previously known as the Mines Beach Resort & Spa) as a treat for Yazeed for his birthday.

We stayed at one of the lake facing chalets.

Unfortunately there was another row of chalets partially obstructing our view of the lake.

Fortunately there was broadband in the room so we could keep up with the blogging obsession during the short stay here.

Ever since Yazeed treated me to a night's stay at Cyberview Lodge for my birthday a few months back, I've been scratching my head trying to find a better treat for him. We already had other plans for the weekend with some friends, so I couldn't take him somewhere further for his birthday treat. So the next best thing not to far from KL had to be this resort.

Love the stunning woodwork found throughout this hotel.

Unfortunately the 24 hour water cut which hit most of Selangor coincidentally also took place yesterday so the pool was closed off to guests.

The lakefront was the perfect serene spot to just sit back and relax...

...and do a little bit of Bear Taichi.

We didn't go for the Spa treatment this time though. Budget dah lari jauh :)

This short break was exactly what we needed to erase the memory of the recent De Rhu Beach Resort nightmare.

Pics taken with an Olympus E510 & 14-42mm kit lens

Mines Wonderland

2007-12-15T01:06:00.000+08:00

Used the complimentary voucher obtained from the hotel check-in to check out this mini Theme Park at Mines Resort City which I've been meaning to check out for the past few years.

Mines Shopping Fair next door to the theme park - used to be main hangout during the 3 months I was jobless while waiting for my medical posting. Dad's place is just within walking distance & I was too broke to go anywhere far that's why.

Compared to some of the other theme parks we've been to, Mines Wonderland is rather small and the rides few in number.

Fancy a foot massage while you're cruising the canal and lake?

Still, I was happy since the photo opportunities were aplenty. From the few captive animals...

Peacock - seen through the cage

Bengal tiger - through the floor board of the elevated walkway

Siberian white tiger - through the metal bars of his cage

Honey bear - fortunately this one isn't in captivity...

...to the ice sculptures...

Suddenly I had flashbacks of what it felt like to sit on the toilet seat in the middle of a Dunedin winter

...and the cultural performance...

...and the beautiful play with lights...

Left the tripod at home so I'm glad the camera's image stabiliser worked brilliantly in these poorly lit shots.

Here's a sneak peak of where we're staying for the night. Too tired to put up the rest of the photos of the hotel grounds so I'll save that for tomorrow's entry.

All photos taken with an Olympus E510 & 14-42mm Kit lens

Red Box Plus

2007-12-14T15:56:00.000+08:00

To celebrate Yazeed's birthday today, our first activity for the day was a visit to the newly opened Red Box Plus at The Pavillion.

The lunchtime set meal package includes a buffet spread of salads, pastas and soups for starters, a choice of a main dish each, free flow of soft drinks, desserts buffet, a hot drink and use of a private karaoke room from 11am to 3pm, a definite great value for money at RM18++ on a weekday and RM25++ on weekends and public holidays. Unfortunately since it's Friday, we didn't stay on for the whole duration.

The starters buffet tasted really exotic

The main course we ordered looked and tasted like something served from a 5 star fine dining restaurant.

I had the Braised Lamb with Ratatouille Sauce on Cous Cous

Yazeed had the Pan Seared Chicken on Oriental Vegetables with Cashewnut Juice

Both of the mains were prepared perfectly and tasted absolutely delicious. I'm looking forward to trying out some of the other mains during our next visit here.

The desserts spread were no less extravagant

And to top it all off, a refreshing cup of cappuccino each

All these plus the fun of singing to your heart's content and the bill was less than RM40. I'm never going anywhere else for Karaoke after this...

All photos taken with an Olympus E510 & 35mm Olympus Zuiko Digital Macro lens

Pre birthday celebration

2007-12-13T23:57:00.000+08:00

It's Yazeed's birthday tomorrow, so were out for a pre birthday dinner at Seoul Bulgogi at Plaza Pantai.

This place serves "Korean BBQ for the family" as their business card puts it.

They serve a wide selection of items buffet style, to be cooked by patrons on the hot plate and steamboat found at each table.

All their meats were very well marinated and tasted great even without any accompanying sauce. The Tomyam steamboat was not too diluted like at some other places, and went really well with the seafood and Yong Tau Foo items.

The bill for two including drinks and taxes was RM84.83 which I felt was well worth it for the unlimited amount of great tasting meats and seafood.

Anyone interested to try out the food Seoul they are at:

Lot C1.27 & D1.26 Ground Floor
Plaza Pantai (Kerinchi LRT station)
Off Jalan Pantai Baru
03-22831888

Too bad we couldn't hang around longer at Seoul because after dinner we had to make our way to GSC Signature at The Gardens to watch a movie I've been waiting for weeks to watch.

Along the way from where we parked at Mid Valley, I just had to stop for a few shots of the Christmas decorations there. No matter what the celebration, Mid Valley always comes up with one of the best mall decorations around KL.

Try to spot the bear in this pic

And later on at The Gardens the Christmas decorations weren't as grand, but the mall sure was.

Only managed to get these few shots before security tapped on the shoulder to say that photography is not allowed at The Gardens. Ummm.. So how come people with compact digicams and handphone cameras can happily snap away everywhere in the mall.

Anyway, I managed to get tickets a few days ago for the opening day screening of I Am Legend all thanks to the GSC online ticketing. At half the price of the Gold Class, the Premiere Class seats we got were more than good enough as it also boasted twin seats with ample leg room, only minus the comfort of the full leather recliner sofas found in the Gold Class.

Warning:
The paragraph below may contain spoilers for this movie. Don't read on if you're gonna watch this movie or you might find yourselves buying tickets to some other movie.

I give this movie a paltry 5 out of 10 rating. The major draw in the first half of the movie were the pretty cool scenes of deserted New York. However in second half of the movie, I somehow felt as though I was watching Resident Evil : Extinction. Even the movie's entire plot & the idea of a distant colony of survivors seemed so familiar that I expected Milla Jovovich to leap onto the screen and kick some zombie a*s. This movie had it s fair share of pretty tense moments and sh*t-in-your-pants scenes, but overall I found the pace a little too slow most of the time.

I'm on leave again tomorrow so there'll be more of going out and about to celebrate the bear's birthday...

Selamat Pengantin Baru

2007-12-12T23:28:00.000+08:00

Had the honour of being invited to attend the wedding of a very dear friend who's more like a little sister to both of us.

Tijah Murai (a nickname Yazeed gave her 3 years ago) and Ajib, who has become like our little brother, got married today in a ceremony attended by their closest relatives.

After weeks of going through the hassle of back and forth visits to JAWI for the necessary documents and approvals, finally towards the end of last week everything was ready. Since they both didn't want the akad nikah to involve much fanfare, they opted to get married in the simple yet sweet ceremony held today.

The kenduri will be held later so they'll be more than enough time to plan for a grand reception then. Here are some of the wedding photos from today. More photos can be viewed over at Yazeed's blog.

Kok nervous pun jangan la telan berlian tu Tijah oiii....

Major Bling-bling alert...

I could hear Ajib's heart pounding from where I was sitting

But nervous as he was, the Kadi was the one that had to do a repeat

Later that night, we were at Bora Ombak yet again, to treat the newlyweds to an informal wedding dinner. We've been introducing so many people to this place we really should start demanding a discount from the management...

Nyonya Asam Fish

Chicken Cashew Nuts

Seafood Otak-Otak

Basil Beef

Mango Kerabu

Seafood Tomyam

Here's wishing the newlyweds a long and everlasting marriage filled with all the happiness in the world. After knowing you both for so long, it's one of our happiest moments to be able to see you both tie the knot.

Selamat Pengantin Baru

Azronul Huda & Mohd Razif
12 December 2007

Dinner & a movie

2007-12-10T23:56:00.000+08:00

Went out to the Jusco Cheras South mall tonight to stretch the legs a bit after being cooped up at home since afternoon.

Yazeed was feeling a lot better in the evening, so all the more reason to get out of the house for a few hours.

Beruang dah jumpa sedara- mara dia dah...

Green Box Karaoke (of the same chain as the Red Box ones) is located here as well. Been there a couple of times for their Dinner Buffet & Karaoke package.

Dinner tonight was at this cheesy sounding restaurant at the mall, Johnny's Restaurant. Despite the unappealing name, the menu looked quite interesting so we decided to try out the food there. We went for the steamboat set for two at RM39.90.

The steamboat was nothing to shout about, but then I'm not a big fan of steamboat anyway. However the Thai Pineapple Fried Rice is definitely worth a try if you're there.

After hearing good reviews of Enchanted from several friends who have seen it we decided to watch it tonight.

Overall it was an entertaining, feel good movie which had the characteristic Disney feel and several dancing and singing scenes that may make guys in the audience writhe in their seats. I give it a 7 out of 10.

The most memorable character, Pip

Night for networking

2007-12-10T00:43:00.000+08:00

Tonight saw a group of old and new friends meeting up for dinner at Dong Yi Shun Oriental Restaurant, a Chinese Muslim restaurant located at The Summit in USJ.

Along the way to the restaurant, Beruang madu ran into some friends

With several bloggers and photography enthusiasts in the group, the conversations centred a lot on these topics. But the group's non stop banter ensured that the evening did not end up as a dull gathering of bloggers and gadget geeks.

Needless to say those that brought their toys along couldn't help showing them off to the group.

When dinner arrived, of course the obligatory shots had to be taken first before anyone was allowed to touch the food.

The food there was excellent. With twin sets of each dish at both ends of the table, there was more than enough food for everyone. I found it very hard to believe that the bill came to RM15 per person for our group of 10. Great job in choosing the venue, Crew. We're definitely coming to this place again.

This definitely was the highlight of my weekend - a great evening of catching up with a few old friends, meeting some new ones and sharing laughter & great times over a sumptuous dinner. We definitely need to do this more often.

Later that night there was another meeting, this time to meet up with Hamdi's old schoolmate who's back from the UK for a short break. I've been hearing stories of Paiyee from Hamdi ever since I first knew Hamdi almost 14 years ago and this is the first time that I've had the pleasure of meeting him in person. As Hamdi mentioned this evening, having a friend working in the UK will definitely be a plus once Air Asia X starts flights there next year....

Lookout point

2007-12-09T07:52:00.000+08:00

Yazeed's nephew from Pahang is in town for the weekend for a short break. After he returned from an all day outing in KL, we dragged him over to the lookout point at one of the hills near Ampang for some great views of KL. Along for the ride was Yazeed's niece who recently migrated to KL and will be starting her new job on Monday.

The viewing deck in the background

Yazeed, Erin & Yus

Restaurants at the lookout point have a great view of the KL skyline

Tak dapat la kitorang nak rakam filem Hindustan kitorang kat sini semalam...

One of the 3 restaurants there

Another restaurant

We decided to have dinner elsewhere that night. Returning to KL towards the Ampang way, the closest familliar place was our favourite spot - where else but Bora Ombak again.

This time we went for simpler dishes than what Yazeed and I had during the last visit here.

Yus had the Bangkok Fried Rice with Crispy Beef

Erin's Mak Bonda Fried Rice

Yazid's Ginger Beef Yee Mee
Yazeed rated this 6 out of 10

My Nasi Lemak Nyonya
I gave this a 7 out of 10

Last day

2007-12-08T15:31:00.000+08:00

Today was the final day of the congress so I brought along the camera to get a few pictures of the venue.

The congress was held at a hotel which seemed to ooze of class and opulence. Loved the way the place is tastefully decorated with items that seemed grander, larger and classier than that found at other hotels.

And at every nook and corner of the hotel there was a little something simple to add that extra touch of class to the ambiance.

After the end of the last talk, I went across the road to The Pavillion which I heard had the best Christmas decorations in KL.

Loved the abstract lines and curves found throughout this mall.

While there, I managed to catch the short Christmas Musical performed at the centre stage.

Looking forward to checking this one out real soon...

Congratulations Suba & Vicknezan

2007-12-07T23:04:00.000+08:00

We attended the wedding of my good friend and ex colleague Suba and her "Baby" Vicknezan tonight. It seems that everything is going IT these days, just check out their wedding website.

Since Suba shifted to a different hospital a couple of years ago, we haven't been exchanging gossips and chatting during coffee break or over the phone like we did before. As the years went by, I got a call from Suba telling me that she'll be getting married at the end of the year. I couldn't be more thrilled to find out that Suba, who's the sweetest person I've ever known, and a big fan of Yazeed's nasi lemak, has found her prince charming.

It's my first time at a traditional Indian wedding, and what a beautiful wedding it was - full of vibrant colours and rich in tradition and culture. Enjoy the photos just much as we enjoyed attending the ceremony.

We wish you both a lifetime of happiness and joy

Congratulations
Subashini & Vicknezan

Day 1 of Congress

2007-12-06T16:02:00.000+08:00

At registration to the ASEAP Congress this morning, I was relieved to find that the bag given out at this meeting was actually quite decent.

I've got quite a few bags from various courses and congresses I've attended in the past, hidden somewhere in the apartment and I've sworn to myself never to use in public.

After registration, it was time to sit back and listen to prominent speakers from around the world present on various topics related to pain management.

It's at events like these that you're updated on the latest in medical knowledge and advances. Medicine is evolving so rapidly that it is easy to be out of date with the latest trends and treatments. A drug that is touted to be the miracle drug of today may well end up as a drug that gets pulled off the shelves before the next congress. And then as more knowledge of the drug is known, it may well make a comeback in different formulations, as was the case with several new drugs used to treat pain.

It's also at events like these that I get to meet up and catch up with old friends, colleagues, mentors as well as the great ones I look up to and aspire to be like when I grow up.

During breaks, the exhibitions booths outside promoted the latest in drugs and medical equipment.

This was the point where I realised that I really need to save some money for a better camera phone...

My favourite booth at the congress had nothing to do with medicine.

Unless you're one of those people that consider caffeine a drug. Thank you, San Francisco Coffee for keeping me awake today. The gloomy weather outside sure made me feel extra sleepy all day long.

But the best thing about these medical conferences for me is...

...collecting all sorts of souvenirs handed out at the exhibition booths.

After the delegates finally managed to empty the company reps of all their souvenirs, it was time to head back inside for a few more hours of lectures.

With several unscheduled intermissions for more visits to my favourite booth.

Pre congress workshop

2007-12-05T17:59:00.000+08:00

The management of acute and chronic pain is a lesser known role of anaesthetists but one of high significance for patients suffering from various inflictions resulting in intolerable levels of pain. This year's Congress of the Association of Southeast Asian Pain Societies is currently being held in KL and I'm fortunate enough to get to attend this first medical conference I've been to in over a year. So for the next 4 days I get a break from my elective Cardiology posting and get a chance to be involved in something of more interest to me.

The precongress workshops were held today and I attended the one on Non Pharmacological Management of Chronic Pain.

The session on Acupuncture was conducted by a Consultant Anaesthesiologist who runs an acupuncture clinic at her hospital. Despite acupuncture originating from the east, it is the west that are more ahead than us at assimilating this mode of therapy into medical practice. I recall a GP posting almost 10 years ago when I was a medical student in New Zealand. The GP I was with was a licenced acupuncturist who performs acupuncture on his patients with chronic pain. This is still almost unheard of here in Malaysia. Sure there are sceptics around who claim that acupuncture is quack, but I've met with some of his patients then and they seem to be very satisfied with the results.

I've been tempted to try acupuncture for quite some time for my slipped disc and persistent back ache, but the thought of having needles stuck all over me was enough to scare me from ever going ahead and doing it. But today, after seeing some of the nurses bravely have needles stuck into their hands, I boldly had a go at it.

And surprisingly, I didn't feel the needle at all. After a few minutes there was a dull aching sensation, like a fullness or swelling over the hand, which was still bearable. Since that didn't hurt, I decided to get bolder and have needles stuck elsewhere. If you're squeamish, then you better not scroll to the end of this post.

The next session was on the role of physiotherapy in the management of chronic pain. The speakers were a team of Physiotherapists from Singapore General Hospital who run a 2 week, well structured program to assist those with chronic pain to work around their ailment and get back to performing their normal daily activities.

The final session we had was with a Psychologist who highlighted the role of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in managing chronic pain...

...which is just another example of The Secret being put to good use by those that are in the know.

Going back to acupuncture, after having the needle stuck in my hand I decided to get bolder and have them stuck somewhere which could help clear up my congested sinuses which were on overdrive from the freezing air cond in the room.

So I had a couple of needles stuck in my face.

Not feeling squeamish yet? Here's a close up.

The one on my left hurt a tiny bit when it was going in but after that it was painless. I had these on for half an hour as instructed and I even went for morning tea with them in my face.

Sad the things some people do for attention...

And within less than an hour from when they were initially put in, my nose was dry. Placebo effect or not, I'm definitely going to try them out for my backache.

7 Wonders

2007-12-04T16:24:00.000+08:00

Swipe number 6, yesterday at Parkson KLCC, after getting that DVD at Kino. Item = Birthday gift for birthday boy's birthday next week.

Swipe number 7, at World of Cartoons Mid Valley, after torturing myself at the gym again today. Item = Another gift for the birthday boy.

Now it time to keep fingers crossed, continue dreaming and let the Law of Attraction go to work :) Who knows? I might get to blog about visiting one of these places...

I think I've got way too much time on my hands lately...

The Secret revealed

2007-12-03T21:05:00.000+08:00

Staying up late last night to put up the post on the weekend concert, I hauled myself to work this morning still half asleep. Today was Day 1 of my elective posting in Cardiology. Started the day with registration and a quick orientation to the department.

Followed by a short briefing on what happens during the ECHO stress test, Dobutamine stress ECHO, technetium scan and canggih MSCT they have over at Radiology. No outpatient clinics today for the team I'm attached to, so it's pretty much goyang kaki today, noticeably a lot less hectic than the past 2 months I spent at Cardiothoracic.

I couldn't wait to get off work to head over to Kinokuniya and get this.

The book has been around for some time but I never got around to buying it, even after reading repeated rave reviews by those that have read it. However after reading M.I.M.'s recommendations on his blog, and after coming across The Secret To You clip on YouTube recently, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this DVD. Good thing Kinokuniya had an abundant supply of it unlike MPH in Mid Valley.

Since Yazeed is still at his family gathering in Pahang, this evening I was too lazy to go out alone for dinner. Ordered from Domino's tonight and tried out one of their promotional pizzas. I have to rave about this one so that they'll keep it around longer. The Classified Chicken I had was absolutely delicious. I'm not a great fan of Domino's & I usually order from them because of the convenience. But this new promotional pizza, I absolutely love. I'm hooked on the tasty, special garlicky cheesy sauce which I'll definitely order again real soon.

After dinner, it was time to sit back and watch the DVD.

All I can say after watching it is : GO WATCH IT!!! It's an eye opening and thought provoking revelation. One that's not really something new as it's been mentioned in brief repeatedly at a few courses I've attended or motivational books I've read over the years, but one I've never actually paid enough attention to practice daily.

If you have no idea what The Secret is about, watch this trailer.

Turn on the pop

2007-12-02T23:35:00.000+08:00

Arrived at Bukit Kiara just after 3pm and already there was a long and slowly crawling queue outside the main gates. The reason for this - they were checking all bags for cameras which weren't allowed at the venue

Did they think we're still living in the 90's or something? Almost everyone's got camera phones these days so what's the point of the ridiculous camera ban anyway? Little did I know then that it was to fulfill the demands of an ex diva.

Determined shutterbugs managed to find ways of smuggling in cameras, even huge SLRs with their assortment of lenses. What fun would the concert be if we couldn't take pictures to make others envious of the great time we had there?

Anyway, after almost an hour in the queue we finally got in. The special passes Orang Rawa gave us got us in the less crowded exclusive area much closer to the main stage.

After claiming our spot in the field, it was time to enjoy the show. I didn't take many shots of the acts earlier in the day for the fear of having my camera confiscated. I thought it'd be safer to wait till it got a little darker before I got bolder with the camera.

Hannah Tan in the background

Joe Flizzow and his highly energetic posse

My more lethargic posse ;)

Elliot Yamin came on later as the first act in the evening session...

... and barely a minute into his second song, it started to drizzle. The timing couldn't have been more perfect since one of the lines of the song he was singing, Find A Way went "The rain is falling from the sky, it's getting harder to stay dry". Fortunately it wasn't heavy and it cleared up before the end of his act.

That's my camera lens on the big screen

In between major acts, while the stage was being set up for the following act, it was the turn of the audience to provide the entertainment. A number of non camera-shy individuals made the long wait a lot less boring with their various antics each time the camera was upon them, and their faces on the big screen. I was too shy and could only grin widely when the camera pointed our way.

Me in the middle grinning away while trying to snap a pic from the screen

As the night progressed, more of our local artistes came on stage and performed their rendition of well known numbers.

Nikki's vocals were superb. Too bad Vernon had to scrap the idea of her flying onto the stage with wires. It would have been the grandest entrance of the entire concert. Sure Kak Whitney makan hati punya.

Noryn Aziz also showed off the powerful vocals. Pity the sound system had glitches towards the end of her bit and her voice totally disappeared behind the accompanying music.

Noryn in her starting "If you've got it flaunt it" pose

When Anuar Zain took the stage, the faulty sound system was still not yet rectified. The first few verses he sang were inaudible.

When his voice could finally be heard, I was somewhat disappointed. Being a big fan of his music, I wish he could have sang ballads from his latest album. Those would have brought out his vocals better than the cover versions he did last night. But then it would have gone against the concept of the local artiste's joint performance that night.

Jac's vocals was as always, top notch.

Just let her sing anything and this girl will surely nail it. I bet she can even do Keronchong better than those who are veterans at it.

By 9pm the crowd was probably at it's maximum in number. The entire area in front of the stage was a sea of faces, all on their feet, all having a blast to the sounds of house music blaring from the speakers. Even the field behind the main area was packed with people, but with a more laid back crowd, seated on the grass and a lot less boisterous.

Shaggy came on stage after 10pm and got the crowd even more energetic. This man surely knows how to get the crowd going.

Shaggy striking a pose

What?!?!? U gonna put that picture above on your blog?!?!

Handsfree singing

He truly is a magnificent entertainer. A true pro in engaging the audience to be one with his performance.

Shaggy's naughty moves had the gals going wild and the guys pretending to look the other way.

Shaggy's backup vocals were stars in their very own right.

After Shaggy, it was time for what was billed as the main act of the night - Whitney Houston. Half and hour later the stage was all set. The crowd was full of energy and ready to party on.

Well maybe not this section of the crowd...

Suddenly there was an announcement from the organisers that no photography or recording of any kind was allowed while Whitney was performing and that security personnel would confiscate cameras of those ignoring this warning. OK so that explains the bag checks at the entrance.

Lets play a game of spot the ex Malaysian Idol contestant

Almost an hour and 3 other camera ban warnings later (each one followed by a loud reverberating "Boooooooo!!!"), Whitney was still nowhere in sight. I wondered if she decided not to perform after hearing those "Booooooo's from the audience". Hamdi SMSed that they were probably resuscitating her and administering Naloxone backstage.

Finally at about 12.30am Whitney came on stage. Due to the camera ban I already left the stagefront and was seated alone on the field at the back. Phone cameras are one thing but if your lugging around a bulky daddy of a camera, it's bound to attract the attention of security thinking you're getting tabloid shots of Whitney. So no pictures of her are on this blog, I'm sorry. Instead here are some bigger stars than Whitney that night.

I was shocked to see Whitney on the big screen. Arel's SMS is a clue of what she looks like today, "....kalau tgk dari dekat ni terang2 perut dia dah boroi mcm aku..."
'Perut boroi' and navel baring outfits really don't mix well together.

Sorry Whitney obviously doesn't want people to see her face for free so I'm going to have to censor this pic

Not having heard her sing for a long time, all I can say is that her performance was a let down. It's hard to believe she could butcher her own songs. Well some of them were okay, but some were just totally butchered beyond repair. I'm sure if Simon Cowell heard her last night, he'd tell her never to choose Whitney songs for her next performance. By the time she went into her third number, the field at the back of the main area had more than 1/3 cleared up, but it wasn't because people were going to the front to see her up close.

People were actually leaving while Whitney was still performing. Don't know whether this was because:

It was really late and people were exhausted
People didn't want to get caught in the traffic jam leaving the area
People were irritated at not being able to take photos of her performing
People felt that she can't sing anymore
People think that she's yesterday's news
Shaggy rules
All of the above

We were too tired by 1.15am so we made a move as well. At least we got to hear her singing " I will always love you" during our long walk back to the main entrance. Jac would have sung it much much better though.

P/S: Apa la "The Star" - all my shots of Shaggy are way better than the one you put up in today's newspaper. Maybe I should start selling my pics...

P/P/S: If you enjoyed reading this review, sponsor la tiket free selalu. Cheers.

All pics taken with my trusty Olympus E-510 & 40-150mm kit lens

Sneak preview

2007-12-02T02:36:00.000+08:00

It's really really late & I have to be up by 7.15am so I can just post one pic from the concert. The rest of the pics and the story will have to wait till after locum tomorrow. Just one word to describe the experience - awesome!

Pre concert

2007-12-01T12:43:00.000+08:00

Was a good boy today and didn't sleep-in this morning. Instead after Yazeed left for Jerantut for his family gathering, I headed over to the gym for an hour of weights and half an hour on the treadmill. Been 2 weeks since forcing myself to work out again. Still too soon to see any progress but as long as I can keep this up, I'm sure there'll be some to see soon.

Went over to MPH after that to find the "The Secret" DVD and soft cover book. Unfortunately both were sold out. Either these are really popular or they just didn't bother to stock up more copies. All they had were the hard cover edition and the audio CDs. I'll try Kinokuniya on Monday. Got home just before noon, in time for a short well deserved nap in front of the TV, when Mira decided to get cute and got on the cushion I had over my face.

Mira woke me up just in time as Arel just arrived downstairs and Zaha just called to say he's on the way. Hamdi just came over to pick up the tickets for him, Ken and Achul. I'll be fetching Sham and Amri and then it's off to Bukit Kiara for the concert. We'll be meeting up with Zul, Syukur, Kamarul, Khairul, Wafa and a few others I'm meeting for the first time. It's quite a big group and we're gonna be at Live & Loud tonight.

The secret to you

2007-11-30T18:22:00.000+08:00

I just came across this short video clip which I feel has changed the way I see the things around me. Watch this clip, read the words and feel them with all your heart and you are sure to feel the same way too. I'm definitely getting the book and DVD after this...

To experience "The Secret to You" visualization tool everyday for its maximum effect, click here to save it on your computer.

Lega....

2007-11-30T10:12:00.000+08:00

Yesterday's relatively quiet 24 hour day on call marked the final day of my 2 month cardiothoracic anaesthesia posting. Now that it's over, all I can say is "Phewww..... Lega....." Starting Monday I'll be doing a month of Cardiology and following that a month of Respiratory Medicine, both of which are more laid back and far less tiring than what I went through the past 2 months. I'll only be returning to the main hospital in February for my final elective posting in General Medicine, another posting I'm dreading.

The weekend has arrived early for me since I'm on my post call day off today. Nothing much to do today apart from a few errands and then hitting the gym later today, which I'm trying to make a habit again. But what I'm really looking forward to this weekend is tomorrow's concert, thanks a lot to Orang Rawa for the complimentary tickets.

Ten reasons why I'm never staying at De Rhu Beach Resort ever again

2007-11-27T22:53:00.000+08:00

Our near perfect, last minute vacation in Kuantan last weekend was marred by various incidents at the hotel we stayed at in Kuantan. After the first incident, I thought never mind - it's a busy weekend for them so mistakes like that were bound to happen. Unfortunately it was a sequence of one unfortunate mistake right after another. Luckily enough for Yazeed and me, our schedule was packed so we were only at the hotel for a brief period. If it weren't for the fact that almost all the nearby places were fully booked, we would have opted to stay elsewhere.

So here are the 10 reasons why I'm never staying at this hotel ever again (and neither should you) :

Reason 1
The Kuantan trip was a spur of the moment thing we only decided that same morning just before leaving for Raub for Azita & Syahrail's kenduri. We called up 103 to get the numbers of several hotels that I knew were in the Kuantan beach area. Unfortunately since it's the school holidays, all of the better known ones were fully booked. When we called up this particular hotel, we were glad to find out that they had vacancies. However the guy that answered the phone said that it was not necessary to make a booking because there were a lot of vacancies there. We should have insisted that he reserved a room for us. When we arrived at the hotel 4 hours later, we were told that there had been a lot of walk-in guests the past few hours and that there were now fully occupied.

Reason 2
We managed to identify the person who took our call earlier and demanded to know why the hell he refused to take our booking earlier. Timidly he said that they do not accept phone bookings. What a lame and stupid excuse for his own laziness. It's the first time I've heard of a hotel not accepting phone reservations.

Reason 3
Being in no mood to go driving around to find alternative accommodation since I was tired from the long drive, we kicked a fuss and demanded that they find us a room there. All of a sudden we were told that they have a deluxe room available. Just a few seconds earlier we were told that they were fully occupied and had no rooms at all. Now all out of the blue a room magically becomes available.

Reason 4
The deluxe room was RM60 more that the standard one we requested so we made noise again. Seeing these two burly and agitated men harassing them must have did the trick because after some whispering between the frontdesk staff, we were told that they indeed had one last standard room available.

Reason 5
Feeling relieved that we didn't need to go hunting for a room elsewhere we went up to our room. I might have just imagined this but I swear that the way the staff smiled when we checked in, it felt as though they were hiding something. The smile even seemed a little like a smirk of someone trying to suppress a snicker. I wondered what was wrong with that "last" standard room.

Reason 6
Upon entering room 115, nothing seemed out of the ordinary at a glance. Since it was the last standard room available, I already knew that it wasn't going to be one of their sea facing rooms. But I was totally unprepared to discover what view lay beyond these curtains.

Enjoy the view...

Fine! We decided it was too much trouble to head downstairs and make more noise. We had a lot to do anyway and would only be returning to the room to sleep. And we were going to check out right after breakfast anyway, so we'll just let them win at this game of theirs. I bet the staff downstairs were having a big laugh at getting back at these two fussy guests.

Reason 7
The following morning, we went to take photos around the pool area and then went in for a swim. The pools at the hotel were shaped into winding lagoons which made them seem really inviting. Unfortunately the fact that the pool floor wasn't visible should have been warning enough for us not to jump into the pool that morning.

The murky water smelled really bad, quite close to drain water. Sadly, I only found out about this after jumping into the pool. That must be what drain water tastes like. I'm not exaggerating but I really had to suppress my gag reflexes those few seconds I was in that pool.

Reason 8
A few minutes of body scrubbing in the shower was enough to remove the smell of the pool but after that disgusting experience in the pool, I wondered if I had any appetite left for the buffet breakfast. We went downstairs looking forward to a hearty breakfast before we started another long day with tons of things to do. The main restaurant was under renovation (though it seemed as though no work has been done for quite some time) so the buffet was held next door in a smaller dining area. At the entrance to the buffet area we were shocked when told that we had to wait for a while as the room was full. Seeing so many people waiting at the main lobby we wondered how long we'd have to wait. We went into the room anyway just to see what was being served and we were shocked to find out that the main buffet breakfast area for the entire hotel was situated in a small room smaller than the size of my apartment. If the hotel was fully booked, how can they hold the buffet in that tiny room? Apparently several government agencies were holding courses at the hotel and the other dining areas at the hotel were reserved for them. So because of this, paying hotel guests have to get crammed into this tiny room and those unlucky enough to arrive late are kept waiting at the lobby, especially families with little children waiting for the bigger tables.

Reason 9
We went back upstairs and packed up our things to get the hell out of that hotel. Too many things have gone wrong that it's not worth spending another minute at the hellhole of a hotel. Upon checking out, in an irritated tone, I asked the staff why they didn't ensure that enough space was available for guests to have their breakfast. Suddenly we were informed that one of the areas which was reserved for the course participants was now open to regular guests. This was the much bigger dining area which was visible from our hotel window. So instead of searching for breakfast elsewhere we relented and went for the buffet.

Well, we really should have just went elsewhere for breakfast. The food was tasteless and it took forever for them to replenish whatever's finished. Don't even get me started on their so-called half boiled eggs.

Fancy a little chicken poop with your egg, sir?

Hope you enjoy your raw egg, sir

Reason 10
And the final reason why you shouldn't stay at this hotel - no other hotel we've ever been to (even 2 star ones) requires you to pick up and return the TV's remote control on checking in and out. If you fail to return the remote when you check out, you will be charged RM100. And it's only for some cheap unknown brand TV.

Cellophane tape bound remote control which costs RM100 to replace

I wouldn't be so pissed off if the staff at the hotel were humble enough to apologize whenever they were in the wrong. Not once did any of them say that they were very sorry for any of the mistakes they made. Not once did they admit that they were in the wrong. I guess when you're staying at a state government managed hotel like this one, you can expect the same civil servant mentality, attitude and quality of service you get at a lot of government agencies which is a real pity because the hotel has the perfect location and infrastructure. Another fine example of a first class facility run by third class morons.

More wedding photos

2007-11-25T21:50:00.000+08:00

On Saturday, it was the turn of the groom's family to hold the kenduri for Azita & Syahrail's recent marriage.

The Raub Guest House was the planned meeting point for relatives travelling all the way from KL.

It was also where the newlyweds got ready for the day's events.

Around noon a mini convoy of 9 cars left the Guest House and headed to Syahrail's family home, a short drive away from the town centre.

Upon our arrival, the celebrated couple, along with members of the bride's family made a brief procession to the family home, accompanied by the sounds of the kompang.

Next was the makan-makan session. It's customary that the guests of honour at the main table were given the honour to savour the extra specially prepared dishes.

And like always, I just couldn't resist taking pictures of the food.

What was served to all the other guests was no less special. There were at least seven different dishes served including nasi minyak, ayam kicap, ayam masak merah, rendang daging, kari daging to name a few of them. The menu was definitely unlike that served at any other Malay wedding I've been to which makes it all the more special.

After bellies were filled to the brim, it was then time for the newlyweds to pose with the guests and attempt to keep smiling for at least an hour. At first it was the outdoor meet-the-guests session.

Followed by the indoor by-the-pelamin photoshoot.

And finally, one for the album...