Lantern at KLCC

It was a Xmas tree barely a couple of weeks ago, and now the same spot was occupied by a tall column of lantern. I guess they saved a fair bit on the foundation and just switch the decor from one to another. But it worked.

After hearing about it from friends, I decided to have a look. And I got there just after Maghrib when the lights were about to be turned on with a hint of the blue hour still lingering.

It was actually rather nice. And there were plenty of people around there, surprisingly the majority being Arabs. There were throng of them there, all anticipating the fountains and their dancing water sprouts to be turned on.

The interior of Suria KLCC was rather more conventional with a big stage in the middle of the foyer with a few stalls littered around. No doubt there would be shows on the stage. There were nothing much going on there yesterday evening. Pretty average compared to other places I would've thought.

Happy Long Weekend

For some, this was going to be a three day weekend. Luckily for me, apart from the clinic tomorrow morning, I would not be on duty. I may have some free time to enjoy during the weekend. Monday would be Thaipusam, but this time around there was no plans to go out photographing. I guess the uncertainty about security and the threat of a riot in town made everybody jittery.

I expected the city would be empty with plenty of the dwellers driving home or on holidays. I was planning to spend the weekend in town and possibly play a game of football or two with Idlan.

KLCC was packedIt was jammed up all the wayWe were at KLCC earlier. And the traffic out and back was rather heavy. Plus KLCC was full as well. We did some shopping there, but we ended spending more time on the road than we thought.

Dinner

Irfan swore that the fusili he had on the first night we were at Smokehouse was the best he had ever had. He finished his plate in double quick time and Idlan also enjoyed his roast beef.

Back in 2009, the food here was excellent. I still remembered the chicken pie I had then. I ordered the same item but although it was better than 2012, it still way below the offering back in our first visit. My Dad enjoyed his sole while Anita was on a diet - she only ordered some salad.

It's foggy outside. And cold!Loving the draft!Great ambiance though ..... and still very expensive!

An Unplanned Stop

Last night, I planned to join Anita at Melawati who stayed late in Gombak since Idlan had tuition there. It would only finish by 10, and I thought of having dinner with her while she was waiting. I only left after Maghrib prayers but the traffic was still pretty heavy all the way from Bangsar then.

While queuing up along MRR2 not far from Bukit Antarabangsa, the engine suddenly felt sluggish. I thought nothing much of that. But suddenly it stopped. Luckily, the traffic was crawling, and I managed to restart the engine, to find somewhere to stop.

I planned to drive first her towards a petrol station but the ringing stopped again about 2 minutes later.

That was it. I parked at the curb and called for a tow truck - luckily I could call one for free as it was covered by my insurance.

Half an hour later the car was safely parked at my in-law's place in Gombak. I was still able to drive the car up and down the tow truck while it was being sorted out, so hopefully the damaged was not too extensive.

My car was already 14 years old, and there was a light indicating the coolant level being low coming on for the last week. I was planning to have the car serviced later in the week, but I was obviously too late. Or maybe the car caught wind that I test drove another car last weekend? Hopefully it wouldn't turn on me again after this....

So, let's see how the damage going to be like later today...

A Fruitful Afternoon

So, finally I test drove a couple of cars. The first was the GLC 250 and the second, the GLE 400 Coupe. The Coupe was a hit.

Although there were plenty of people there, the event was well organised with plenty of things to see and do while you wait for your turn to drive. The fact that we had a friend who worked for Mercedes helped to smooth things over and waiting was never an issue. We had lunch and sat around while waiting for our turn, and it was certainly worth the wait.

The first drive was pretty basic. The lady who took us around did the necessary sales pitch and within 15 minutes we were done. But when it came to the Coupe, despite being the only Coupe available for the test drive, we were given plenty of time. I had the chance to drive further than the first time as well as trying out the Drive Assist system at the car park. And it worked wonders. Unfortunately it only detected space for side parking for us. No reverse parking this time.

Let me take you for a ride!It's no Formula 1There were a few features which caught my eyes. Yes, it had the blind spot detector. Plus it had a 360° camera system which on display would give a bird's eye view around your vehicle.

The Eco-friendly system also stopped your engine when you were stationary and automatically start it again when you hit the accelerator. The brake locks when you were stationary, so that you would need to engage the handbrake when you stop. Handy if you were going uphill.

Then came the suspension. It tied up to the gear system and you have options of comfort and sports. The suspect ion would increase your height if you select comfort making going on bumps on the broad unnoticeable. You can switch it to sports mode, which would bring the car down - the lower the centre of gravity - for extra stability when taking corners at high speed. The changes were there to be felt.

The Coupe also had an anti-roll system which made taking sharp turns a breeze. And the 333 bhp, 3L V6 twin turbo engine certainly was no slouch. The only problem was it cost more than half a million Ringgit! A slight drawback!

We were back in one piece!More things to see insideIn the end, I must say that Mercedes did good job in organising the event. They took care of you from the moment you park - there were complimentary buggy to shuttle you to and from the car park. There were things for the kids to do to keep them occupied while you do some serious driving and of course there were food and drinks in the decent surrounding of KLPAC. You can't really neat that on a warm Sunday afternoon. A decent way to spend some time off!