Morning Walk Part 1

It was too early for the boys, and Anita was still asleep. A quick peek out the window and as predicted by the weatherman, the morning would be overcast. No chance of setting up the GoPro for the sunrise capture.

So, I bide my time and once the morning broke, I took my camera gear out and headed towards Lebuh Armenian. Nice breeze, although a blue sky would have been great. Due to the cloud cover, I decided to go telephoto. I attached the 56mm on the X-T1, switched on my GPS and started walking.

I walked from the hotel towards Penang Road via Lebuh Leith, reaching the intersection with Lebuh Chulia. Walked further down taking a left along Lebuh Kimberley, later turning north at Lebuh Carnavon to join Armenian Street.

There was plenty to concentrate on on this walk. With the lens, I mainly did close-up of the windows and building facade. Colourful, gorgeous architecture, a mix of the later 19th Century Chinese influence and a later Art Deco styling. Eclectic mix to be quite honest, wishing that I was better versed in the arts.

It was still early in the day and being Saturday, there was hardly many cars. Plenty of tourists though with their cameras on tow. Some of them already settled for breakfast at the cafe alongside the streets, outnumbering the locals.

At the end of Armenian Street I took a left turn up Lebuh Pantai and another left at Lebuh Ah Quee. Plenty more subjects and mural here.

More stories from this trip here.

Gurney Paragon Mall

On the way to Batu Feringghi, we drove past a new mall sat right next to Gurney Plaza. A bigger one, and on the wall, the Debenhams caught Anita's eyes.

After a quick snack at the hotel after the drive from Batu Feringghi, Anita decided to have a look at the mall - against Irfan's protest! Since both myself and Idlan also wanted to go, the majority won ....

Now, one of the common theme among the malls in Penang was the confusing car park lay out. And oh boy, this mall topped them all! The spacing were awkward and some of the slot were slanted on an angle, and to get in and out of the spot, you have to back into the main traffic flow! I guessed they didn't think about the car park area when they designed the malls.

Once we settled in - parked on the fifth floor none the less - Anita went straight to Debenhams. I went to another floor with the boys to check out the Tumi outlet. There was also Victoria's Secret, and Idlan's favourite, Godiva! Sugar rush!!

It was clear that the place still needed to be filled tenant-wise. Some of the spaces on the top floors - I counted eight floors - were either still empty or quiet. I could finished the shops in under an hour. They might struggle to hold onto those shops in the coming years I think. There were appreciably more people at Gurney Plaza compared to here, although it was obviously more upmarket.

More entries from this trip can be seen here.

Home Furnishing Expo

Anita and the boys were only to join me after dinner last Friday evening. The boys had to attend their Quran school before coming over. Therefore I had a spare couple of hours looking for dinner after work that evening.

A quick net search brought me to Mid Valley - which was only 5 minutes away from the apartment. There was an Expo going on. And it was on home renovation and furnishing. A good excuse to have a look.

It was held over the weekend - the last day being on Aidil Adha - at Mid Valley Convention Centre. As it was just after 6 on on the first day, the crowd was still pretty light. Less crowded meant more time to have a close look around.

The front entrance. What? No photography?Started off at the bedsThen some home appliances, such as this self propelling vacuum cleanerSome cute LED lightingI was looking for a couple of specifics. A good mattress - even though I've already had my eyes on one somewhere else but it was good to compare the prices - and outdoor furniture for the verandah at the apartment.

There were a few but none caught my fancy. As usual, there were a few interesting stuff. The first one was a new padlock with a built in shrieking alarm. It goes off everytime you try to pry it or cut it as what usually happened during break ins. A nice idea. It looked the same as the usual padlock and unlocked using using keys. But the moment you temper with it, all hell break loose. Nice! And it wasn't particularly expensive.

The alarmed padlock I mentioned earlier. It looks like a normal padlock, until it started to shriek!This man tried to charm me into buying a food processor. Not interested.Then there were the usual suspect. Some of the sofa were damn nice to look at and to sit on. There were going on offer of course, but we didn't need one for the moment. That would come maybe next year after we figure out what to do with the main sitting area.

Then it was sofa ........ and more sofaAll in all, it wasn't half bad. The majority of the show floor was filled with home automation and kitchen appliances. Nothing new. Price-wise it was difficult to judge as I wasn't aware of the standard pricing. The vendors would always point out to prove cuts, but how true that was remained to be seen.

A good way to spend a couple of hours and build your appetite for dinner.

Five in Two and a Half

I was done with a busy stretch. 5 calls in 18 days, akin to what I was doing as a houseman. Except that I still run my clinic, do my procedures as well as attending meetings and doing a lecture last weekend.

Now it was time for a rest. A couple of days away from the hospital for Aidil Adha to be spent at the apartment with Anita and the boys. The boys would have some homework to do no doubt, and I might have some time to look at some paperwork for next week where a firm I consulted for were having their credentialing assessment.

But for tonight, time to chill. To have a good night sleep, wake up early for prayers tomorrow morning before visiting my parents.

To all my colleagues, friends and relatives, Selamat Hari Raya and happy holidays.

d7

In the past years, I have always been fascinated by the YTL initiatives timer brand Sentul. It used to be a predominantly Indian community as the railway workshops and hangers used to be stationed there. In the years gone by, the community there thrived but their sense of identity had been lost since the railway terminals no longer operate there.

To a certain extend, the area was under developed until YTL came into the picture rebranding the area and developing it into an urban commercial hub. That had been going on for the last decade and it had been slow to take off.

Slowly but surely, there had been new buildings sprouting up from this area, which were architecturally spectacular. And d7 was definitely one of them.

I had been a consultant for a company based at d7 since the beginning of the year and I often go there for meetings and what not. And today, I brought my camera along to snap pictures as the building was certainly unique. Sadly, the occupancy was rather low due to combination of location and undoubtably cost. Those who could afford to set up shop there would definitely appreciate how aesthetically pleasing the building is.

The tenants there were trendy, mainly architecture and design firms. My favourite shop there was definitely Smeg. I've been admiring their fridges for a while now. Shame that they had to cost a bomb. There were a few art galleries as well, which I have yet had the time to explore.

Security was tight. To get into the offices, you would need to carry a key card - which luckily I had - or register at the security desk. A pain to be perfectly honest. Luckily parking was free - covered slots at the basement.

Maybe in the future I would venture at the surrounding area as well. A photo walk maybe.