Chinese New Year 2014, Gong Xi Fai Cai !

Happy New Year 2013!

Merry Christmas 2012!

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A little more classy this year!
Usually I find the Xmas decor in the Shopping Malls a little,well, over-the-top and the majority of displays look like they have been thrown-in with a shovel.
This year seems that my message has gotten across

either that or I have been here too long and have succumbed to the tackiness of the usual displays but "Less is More" seems to be working for the malls this year... 

Merry Christmas!

Taxi!

Another grab from The Star newspaper...

I don't really think I need to comment....

THE first thing passengers see when getting into Syed Zahid Syed Abdullah’s taxi are the neatly arranged toy cars and action figures all around the vehicle.

Zahid has 1,155 toy cars and figurines in his taxi which he has been collecting for the past six years.

He has spent about RM15,000 so far and his latest collection is only two weeks old.

Zahid said it took a day to put together the toys inside his taxi using super glue and adhesive tape.

Syed Zahid in his taxi.

“It all began with the free Ferrari cars from Shell and later it became a passion and the collection grew.

“There were too many to keep and so I decided to share my hobby with people.

“I have been driving the taxi since 1997 and I thought this will be a great way to attract passengers.

“The toys have been good for business while some call my hobby crazy.

“There was one passenger from India, who even gave me an auto rickshaw to add to my collection. Although I may not know all the names of the toys but I remember every colour and model,” he said.

Zahid said he would remind his passengers that they had to pay extra if their children damaged any of his toys.

Master of the universe: Ultraman figurines and Hot Wheels cars are glued to the dashboard.

“I usually carry spare toy cars for the children to play when they come into my taxi. I also check every month to see if the toys are all in place and well secured.

“When I first started this, my wife did not talk to me for a week but she eventually came around because she knew that it was more than just a hobby.

“Even my daughters know well enough and not touch anything.

“There are passengers who have offered to buy the toys. If I were to sell it to an enthusiast, I would probably opt for selling the whole car,” he said.

He said a lot of passengers would promote his taxi via Facebook or twitter when they get back home.

For those who want to catch a glimpse or ride in Zahid’s taxi, he usually picks up his passengers in front of the Grand Millenium Hotel in Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.

No,wait..I have to comment...There is no taxi stand at the Grand Millenium on Bukit Bintang...what you normally see are about 25 taxis parked all along Bukit Bintang effectively blocking one of the lanes and contributing to the traffic jam.This,along with the taxis parked at the hotels and malls on the opposite side of the street make it a 2 lane road instead of 4.

It's also where it is very,very unusual to find a taxi that will stick to the metre....what most of them want to do is to charge you or an unsuspecting tourist RM 50 for a trip to KLCC.... 

So,when you next sit in the traffic jam,at least you can be comforted by the fact that some obsessive-compulsive taxi driver blocking the road ahead has filled his cab with toys...

Lake Gardens

Huh? get up at 6.30am? on a Saturday? When I don't need to?

What kind of idiot does that?
An idiot who wants to be a little bit fitter, that's who!
Many of us begin a new year with a commitment to "get a bit fitter".
It seemed that the whole world and his wife was at Lake Gardens the other Saturday morning.
Some embrace fitness, other just nod at it from across the lake!
Partly to keep, or start getting fitter and partly because well, there isn't really anywhere else to go, the place gets really packed.
As a city, KL is almost devoid of any big green space for joggers or walkers.
Viewed from above, say from KL Tower, the city looks very green but at ground level, this illusion disappears and all you have beneath your feet is concrete.
I can think of only a few places where you can actually walk on grass (not counting the little strip outside Lot 10 when the security staff aren't looking!) and they would be KLCC Park, KL Tower and Lake Gardens.
KL Tower is a bit too strenuous and steep for me most, so the other two places get mobbed during weekend early mornings...
Lake Gardens is very friendly as people jog, run or walk around the lake wishing "Good Morning" to one-and-all-and the fitter people can tackle some of the steeper hills-but it gets packed.
Arriving at around 7am it was surprisingly cool-and doesn't feel like a city at all but at 7.45am all the car-parks are full and people start parking on the narrow,twisting roads.
Too bad if you're jogging on the road as now you have to navigate parked cars plus moving traffic.
The path around the lake is a pleasant 2.5km track and there are a few different species of birds and trees to look at to take your mind off the ungodly hour.
A few steep paths radiate from the lake going past a goat farm and a deer park.
You can also see a 1950's era motorboat! at the Tunku Abdul Rahman Museum at the top of the hill.
Lake Gardens is actually quite a well-landscaped, artificial-ish oasis in the heart of KL.
As usual, with most Malaysian sites, except for some toilets and a dodgy-looking cafe there are few facilities and so many people bring a picnic as a reward for making it around the lake...a great way to pile on the calories after shedding one-or-two....at least I waited until we were on the way home before stopping for some curry noodles!
Best to get there before 7am as it starts to get light, take some water with you but some enterprising people set-up stalls selling bottled water.
And, it's probably best enjoyed without a hangover!

Elevated Walkways

 A fully air-conditioned RM100mil pedestrian walkway linking Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) and Bukit Bintang is now open.

It seems like it's been under construction for about 3 years at least...but at least it looks solid and  is so over-engineered that it's probably able to withstand a direct nuclear strike.

It's also very ugly.

Ugly in a "Soviet-style architecture" sort-of-way.

The walkway includes a 562m long and five-metre wide elevated walkway that traverses through the busy, traffic-choked areas of Jalan Pinang, Jalan Perak and Jalan Raja Chulan with escalator and staircase entry and exit points at strategic and convenient locations.It doesn't quite reach to Raja Chulan monorail station,which is a bit of a shame.

The elevated section links the KL Convention Centre to Pavilion shopping Centre

Another portion is made up of a pedestrian tunnel from the concourse level of the convention centre which now links to the existing tunnel to the Suria KLCC shopping complex.

So you can now walk in aircon comfort from one huge shopping mall to another big huge shopping mall.

Christmas In KL

At this time of year the Shopping Malls are covered in Xmas Decorations.
No surprises there.
In Kuala Lumpur it's usually a case of "more is better" as most malls cannot resist going way over-the-top. When it comes to creating that perfect display they add everything and the kitchen-sink and end-up with a bit of a dogs breakfast and a display that looks like it's been thrown together with a shovel.
See last year's comments here!
However,This year Pavilion has done something a little different.

A display of 150 Bears outside (one for each country that bothered to participate) creates quite an interesting installation,with each bear decorated in a unique style by an artist of that country...Some have clearly put in a lot of effort whilst other countries that couldn't really be bothered (but you be the judge of that) have just splashed on a bit of paint and left it at that.
I quite like it.
Once inside the shopping centre I feared the worst as I was greeted by the usual mess of confusing styles and themes but when I had a look at the centre-piece I was pleasantly surprised...

It kinda works......

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

TwinTowers @Live 2011

I didn't really get this.....
A free concert held at the front of the Twin Towers in conjunction with the F1 weekend.
A real mish-mash of bands.

No Beer.
Nothing to do with the actual F1.
A lack of atmosphere-for me at least.
and...No Beer (yes,it's worth repeating)
But then again,I'm definitely not the ideal demographic/target audience.
So, I'm sure that some people really got into it.
The crowd seemed to be either young/teenagers or mums and dads with their kids plus the occasional "lost" tourist.
I don't think that many in the crowd would be attending the actual race,it was more designed to give young people something to see and to keep them out of the bars and clubs.
It started at 6pm....but the first band didn't come on until 9pm.
So there was 3 hours of inane chatter by host DJ's....I honestly can't abide it when told 'Make Some Noise" by some idiot DJ...I mean,it's so much of a cliche isn't it?
Perhaps it was that that put me in a bad mood...
First band was a girl wearing a Tudong singing "Rehab" by Amy Winehouse....Oh! the Irony!
Then there were then a few local metal/rock bands that I think I've seen before and are actually rather good and quite refreshing.
But by then I'd had enough.
Headlining on the night I was there were either Wonder Girls or Hoobastank.
The last band would have come on at around midnight....far too long a wait as far as I was concerned.
Main act on the second night will be a version of Earth Wind and Fire but you will have to put-up with Colby Adonis (whoever they are) and a host of local bands (who will all probably be OK) before you hear Boogie Wonderland....

St.Patrick's Day Street Party Changkat Bukit Bintang Kuala Lumpur

You have to hand it to the guys at Guinness-they certainly know how to organise a street party!

In honour of St.Patrick's Day-when the whole world turns Irish (except maybe Saudi and Kuwait),Guinness threw what is probably the most successful street party we've had on Changkat Bukit Bintang for quite a while now.
It makes such a difference when the street is closed for traffic and it's really great to wander up-and-down the street to check-out the various establishments.
A Great Party Atmosphere!
There were temporary beer dispensers outside most pubs and table and chairs arranged in the street so that the bars did not get overwhelmed....but boy,did it get hot and airless on the street later on!
Indeed the street was overflowing with people whilst the inside of some bars were almost empty..
Changkat Bukit Bintang was packed! I mean,where did everyone come from?
At 7.30pm just about the entire street was bustling with activity....
By 10pm if you fell-over you'd probably remain upright!
Face painters,Balloon folders,Stilt-Walkers and Juglers and the compulsory "over-the-top" sound system PA with-a-girl-with-the-most-annoyingly-over-amplified-voice-ever were trying to entertain the crowd who were really only intent on one thing-Drinking!
OK two things...Drinking and then More Drinking!
It was
Chaotic,
Loud
and
Hot.
and
Gave a feeling that it might suddenly collapse and descend into real anarchy....

Everything a party should be!
I couldn't work out if it was free Guinness that was being given away in plastic cups or somehow you had to pay for it...I was told the bars were selling a (plastic) glass for RM 10 for "street use" whilst inside it was "buy-one-get-one-free"
I don't like Guinness ( a result of excessive over-indulgence visiting their brewery in Dublin many years ago)
so I stuck with the Tiger Draft as ,sadly Tiger Crystal is no longer available....
But,what a great party!
Now...if only this street was closed to traffic every weekend.....

Now,This Is Going To Get Confusing!



Petronas Mercedes

 Malaysia has been hosting an F1 event for something like 13 years now and if you're an F1 fan you're probably used to seeing Petronas sponsorship.
But this season there are Malaysian interests sponsoring 6 cars... 25% of the Grid!


A Lotus

 We have the Petronas sponsored Mercedes
Then the Air Asia sponsored Lotus with a Renault/Red Bull engine
and
Lotus-Proton sponsored Renault with Lada written on the side...


• 

And Another Lotus!

 I think.....
This is not bad for a country with no real racing pedigree and it must cost them a fortune.
Anyway,lets hope that they all qualify and deliver some exciting racing this season

Happy Chinese New Year!

According to most Chinese astrologers The Year of the Rabbit is going to be peaceful and prosperous for all of us. This is in direct contradiction to most world economists who are all talking doom-and-gloom and strife.
So,lets hope  the astrologers and 1.3 Billion Chinese are correct.

As usual the Shopping Malls in KL are full of CNY decorations-and as usual Pavilion is the most over-the-top and combines classy with tacky.....combining plastic rabbits (or are they fat rats?) with some interesting Lion Heads and Drums.
The lanterns also add a nice touch.
All the other malls use the same theme of a slightly comical looking plastic rabbit and a host of red lanterns.
Mid Valley also has a "Chinese Village" with all sorts of handicrafts on display and even DBKL (City Hall) has taken the opportunity to string-up some red lanterns along Jalan Bukit Bintang and Jalan Alor.
Although they do look a bit half-hearted.
Most Shopping Malls are playing slightly likable but at the same time slightly annoying Chinese New Year music...there only seem to be two songs...one slow one and one slightly faster.
And the Lion Dances have already started.

And yet..and yet...somehow it all seems to lack a bit of atmosphere and seems a bit "flat"-and that's according to my Chinese friends.
Maybe we've had one holiday too many...or they're just too close to each other....Christmas rapidly followed by New Year and then Thaipusum. And there is a holiday in KL for Federal Territory Day next Tuesday and then we get a 15 day Chinese New Year (admittedly only Chinese New Year Eve and Days 1,2 and 15 are really celebrated) but we may be suffering from "Holiday Fatigue" ....
Still,better make the most of it as after Feb 15th the next Public Holiday is 1st May.... So Gong Xi Fat Chai,as they say!

Little India...aka Brickfields.

Little India used to be an area of KL just off Jalan TAR,along Jalan Masjid India,an area crammed with shops selling Saris and loads of  Vegetarian Restaurants...I say "used" to be as sometime late last year it was decided to re-name and re-brand Brickfields as "Little India"

All of this was a cynical political move and culminated in a visit by the President of India to officially open the area.
So,what used to be Brickfields to everyone has undergone somewhat of a "wash-and-brush-up."
At least on the surface...but dig down a bit and move into the side streets and you can still find the original flavour of the place (illegal bottle shops,worn-out hookers and The Best Fried Kway Teow in town)
I like Brickfields...it has a more relaxed suburban feel than the city centre...and one of the really good things is that you can find Mosques,Churches,Assrams and Chinese Temples all within very close proximity to each other-and everyone seems to get along just fine in that laid-back "live and let live" kind of way. 
Opposite the huge construction site of KL Sentral,Jalan Tun Sambanthan,the main drag is now a one-way street with crazy paving and wiggly lampposts.
There is an archway at one end saying "Salamat Datang Ke Little India" and a totally over-the-top fountain complete with elephant motifs....a column of arches leads into the distance and lotus blooms mosaics are embedded into the road.

And it looks kinda nice... I believe at night that the fountain is illuminated with a light display.
And there's more to come...more arches and stuff and a food stall/hawker centre...the only sad thing is that what used to be a playing field is now covered in concrete and full of market stalls but other than that it looks allright and sort-of works.
You can now get a free walking tour of the area every 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month starting at the YMCA and taking about 2.5 hrs.

Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show 2010

The last time KL held a Motor Show was about 5 years ago...I can remember being amazed by the way the public were allowed to get up close and personal to the cars on show and how many cars were covered in greasy,sticky finger-prints....and how many guys pretended to take a snap of a car but accidentally pan left and take a picture of the glamour-model posing next to the car instead.

So,five years later,what's changed is that most cars were displayed behind red-rope and you had to ask to sit in them...It was a little more sedate and well-behaved than previous and although the newspaper said that 28.000 people attended on the opening day,it didn't feel like it.

The show was mainly a vehicle(pun intended) for local companies and their international marques....there was no Alfa,Bentley,Bugatti,BMW,Citroen,Ford,Jaguar,Land Rover,Mercedes,Porsche,Renault,Volvo or even Volkswagen present...Indeed Volkswagen chose to launch their new cars at a street party on Changkat Bukit Bintang a month earlier rather than attend an International Motor Show.

What you got was Proton and their Lotus offshoots and Perodua,Hyundai,Kia,Honda and Toyota as well as Naza and their branded Peugeot's and their exotic brands of Maserati,Ferrari,Aston Martin and the only new Rolls Royce Silver Cloud in the country,a really ugly brute of a car by the way,as well as their bike-brands of Harley Davidson,Ducati,Apprila and Vespa(!)
Interesting to note that although there were some hot,cute and even elegant female models posing with the cars that Naza's exotic and expensive section had a a guy standing there,as if to say "We don't want to lower our brand by having girls drape themselves over it"
Admission was RM15 and it took about 90 minutes to slowly wander around the 4 exhibition halls.

It was a bit disappointing,I was expecting more marques but it was OK-ish
Of the 100 or so cars on display I would think that at least half of them were not real....they were design concepts or Work-in-Progress-not yet available,like the new Lotus Elite.
It would have been nice to see a few racing cars and some classic/vintage models.
If you want to drop-by,it's held at the PWTC
until 12th Dec.

Xmas at Pavilion Shopping Mall, Jalan Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur

I always enjoy Christmas in Malaysia and bearing in mind that only about 20% of the population actually celebrate any religious connection to Xmas it's great that almost the entire population seem to join-in and get behind it and all the retail opportunities that occur.
The Xmas Decorations are something to behold!
 Taking tackiness to a new level are the completely over-the-top Christmas decorations at the Pavilion Shopping Mall.
It looks like they've just pulled-out everything from their storage and just thrown it all together with a shovel.
Most Shopping Malls here try to stick with a theme such as Trees or Santa and to limit their choice of colours to just a couple.
Mid Valley usually does the best display,KLCC uses the same huge tree that I've seen every year for the last 8 years and Lot 10 usually has blue and white tastefully decorated trees and then go and spoil it by adding way too much other stuff....
Most Shopping Malls and shops at least try to keep their display a bit tasteful-even understated.

Not Pavilion.
All the themes and all of the colours.
In all of the sizes.
First up were the white wire Xmas trees.These are quite good in themselves and they light-up at night.
But rather than leave it there someone from Pavilion's management must have thought "Hey.we've still got loads of stuff from previous years,lets just throw it out and see what happens".
So,out comes the "life-like" reindeer and sleigh.
But it clashes with the wire sleigh so they decide to put it inside.
And then someone says "what about these really big balls? They don't go with anything but at least they're new"
"And they will be a talking-point."
So, into the display they go.
Then they add green and red trees to the centre console....
with gold gazebo like cages.
I'll have to take a walk there at night...to see what it looks like.

And,there's still 6 weeks to go before Christmas.
So they're bound to add even more tat.
It's so gloriously over-the-top that it takes tackiness to a new low....

UPDATE 8/12/10
I knew they couldn't leave it alone...they have now added some gold and red wire circles,which I think are supposed to be snowflakes to the top of the white wire xmas trees.....which is nice!

Street Party, Changkat Bukit Bintang 30/10/10

You see what people can do if they put their mind to it?
After the pathetic VW event at Elixir a few weeks back-those clever people at VW must have read my blog and arranged for the street to be closed to traffic so that they could have a "proper' launch of their overpriced cars.
We had international and local entertainment,fireworks and a great party-atmosphere all along Changkat Bukit Bintang and the later it got,the more people turned-up.
It was really good.
Firstly there was a local "Mat Rock" band-all loud guitars and drums,then a rather uninteresting rap act followed by Aussie girl pop-punk band "The Veronicas" who were surprisingly good,followed by warbler Leonna Lewis (nice girl,great voice but the songs all sound the same).
There were probably about 500 people watching the main event-and then it just got busier and busier.

And busier.
Now,it may be a bit embarrassing to say that the last live music I saw was Leonna Lewis but my point is that when Changkat Bukit Bintang is closed to traffic-everybody wins.
Customers can walk without fear of injury to one place and another whilst the Landlords and Owners enjoy the increased crowds and revenues.
I understand that DBKL aren't interested in closing the road (wonder why? maybe they don't want to see unemployed Parking Jockeys roaming the street) so maybe the Owners and Landlords should petition Tourism Malaysia.

It just needs a few floodlights in the car parks at the top of the street-the diversion streets already exist and have been tried and tested many times as, to my memory Changkat Bukit Bintang has been closed to traffic  4 or 5 times already.
So what if a few high-rollers have to actually walk to their venue of choice rather than just park outside?

Architecture Worth Saving

Despite all the glossy adverts showing KL's modern skyline,which I have to admit is rather impressive there are still a few areas of older buildings that although disappearing fast are still visible and nice to see.

I recently took at Sunday morning stroll along Jalan Ampang,not the bit with all the embassies and condos but at the beginning,near to China Town and the big Maybank building at Pudu Raya.

There was little traffic and is was a pleasant and shady walk admiring the architecture.

How much longer these old shophouses stay standing is anyone's guess.

Recently,The walls of Pudu Jail were demolished and people only made a fuss about it after it had happened.The same thing happens whenever an old building is destroyed in the rush to build modern office blocks,hotels,shopping malls,hotels or condos.

I know that lots of older people in this part of the world equate old buildings with times of hardship or poverty but to most visitors and an increasing number of locals they are part of the social history of Kuala Lumpur and need to be preserved.

There's not much in KL that is over 100 years old-so if you see an old building,take a picture as it may well not be standing when you're next here!

Gypsy Bar vs The United Nations

After a really great weekend spent propping-up the bar at Gypsy Bar I got to thinking the other day that one of the things I like about the place is that you get to meet all sorts of people.
In the last year or so I have met with,and drank with people from:

Australia,Austria,Bangladesh,Belgium,Bosnia,Brazil,Brunei,Burma,Canada,Chile,Colombia,Croatia,Denmark,
Egypt,Finland,France,Germany,Hungary,India,Indonesia,Iran,Ireland,Italy,Japan,Macedonia,Malaysia (obviously-and includes ethnic Chinese,Malay,Indian and Sarawakians) Mexico,Netherlands,New Zealand,Norway,Peru,Philippines,Russia,Saudi Arabia,Serbia,Singapore,South Africa,Spain,Sweden,Thailand,Turkey,UK,USA,Uzbekistan,Vietnam,Yemen and Zimbabwe.
And we all got along. Well, most of the time anyway.
Screw the UN.
If you've got a problem to solve go and have a chat and a beer at Gypsy Bar.
We're now working on that North Korean submarine that blew-up the BP oil well in the Gulf of Mexico.....

Debenhams Opening Night at Lot 10 Shopping Mall

British retailer Debenhams opened their flagship store at Lot 10 last night.

Guest of honour (apart from me) was renowned designer Matthew Williamson with other notable attendees being shoe designer Jimmy Choo, some guy from the British High Comm and the Mayor of KL all rubbing shoulders with the big-wigs of YTL, the owners of Lot 10.

The event kicked-off with a fashion show featuring different inhouse brands paraded by a selection of not unattractive tall,thin girls with really skinny legs.

The champagne flowed freely and there were tasty little snacks served by attentative waiters.

It was a pretty good show but why do they play such loud crappy music? It reminded me of being in TwentyOne on Changkat Bukit Bintang. And it was just as crowded.

After the grand opening of the store we were encouraged to browse and shop but even after the one-off 20% discount,the clothes are still fairly pricey.

At 10pm there was an "after party" on the roof at the peculiarly named Roots nightspot,which I believe included 2 free drinks but to be honest we couldn't be bothered to wait that long and headed off to Gypsy Bar-where the people are a little more down-to-earth than posy fashionistas...

But an interesting night nevertheless.

Petronas Pit Pulse, KLCC, Kuala Lumpur

Every time they feel like it (or can remember to organise it) Petronas ,who have been involved in F1 since at least 1999 put on a roadshow at KLCC to drum-up interest in the Malaysian GP at Sepang.

This year they pulled-out all the stops and put on a great show.

As in previous years,they convert part of the KLCC car park into an arena where they put on a show featuring various Petronas sponsored racing machinery doing "donuts" for the crowd and cumulating in an F1 car doing the same.

There are also lots of racing simulators and side-show and displays to keep you entertained.

This year was a bit special.

1.It was raining.

2.The cars drove out of the arena onto the road.

and

3.Michael Schumacher was there.

For 2010 Petronas have teamed up as the main sponsor for team Mercedes and last Wednesday,all the F1 drivers were present and the crowd got to see them drive.

First out was Nico Rosberg in his F1 car,then the team's Test Driver Nick Heidfield driving a 1955 Silver Arrow and last but not least and when it was raining the most out came Schumi fish-tailing his car to the thrill of the crowd...

And what a crowd it was!-overflowing and bursting at the seams,to be honest there were too many people there and if Petronas do the same thing next year I think they will need even more seating.

I gave up trying to get space inside and found somewhere to stand on the road at the point where the cars leave the arena and go onto the road so they all have to make a quick turn,hence the fish-tailing.

Yeah,we all got wet but it was a good evening's entertainment for a "petrol head" like me.

And,because it was wet-no juvenile show-off donuts and tyre smoke-which was a bonus.

I've been attending these events for quite a while now...this was the best so far.

F1 Roadshow at Pavilion, Kuala Lumpur

The Malaysian F1 has been on the sporting calendar since 1999.

Some years it's promoted quite heavily in Kuala Lumpur,with all the bars getting behind a certain team,displaying a show car etc, and then there are lots of mall events and road shows.

Other years everybody forgets to do anything about it.....until the following year.

This year, the popular bars have lots of flags and bunting on display and there seems to be a bit more 'buzz" around town.

Pavilion Shopping Centre has had a great static display of FI cars from the 80's and 90's including;Schumi's Benetton,Nelson Piquet's old Benetton,a March driven by Tiff Nedell,Martin Brundle's old Tyrell from '86 and.... pride of place a '92 Active Suspension Lotus driven by Senna.(pic above)

Now that was a real race car!

It was also the venue for the "homecoming" (whatever that means) of the new Lotus Team and they had an actual race car on display together with a few spare parts such as front wings and rear wings,race simulators etc etc

I didn't get to see the drivers but perched on the car (above) is Mike Gascoyne,Team Lotus Chief Engineer.