The Walk Part I

The turn out was very good. A quick head count at the starting point tallied at around 60. Weather was nice. It rained in the early hours, and the pavements were still wet. The sub had already started to pierce through the thick morning Kuala Lumpur cloud when it was time to start off at 9.30 am.

It was a Saturday, 5th October 2013, at Restoran Sahara on the north end of Chow Kit. The sixth instalment of the Scott Kelby Annual Worldwide Photowalk, the KL chapter was organised and lead by the ever irrepressible Ripi. Maps and email storm galore prior to setting off, to make sure every participant for the picture. And he started things off with the pre-walk preambles and briefing.

Then came the obligatory group photo. Best to take it before we set off because the group will start to disperse and shrink before long. Fariz obliged with his 5D and wide angle setup. All smiles!

Young and old, there was space for everyoneFariz set up the group photo for us this yearThe group started to pair up and heading out in groupsSome were still trying to find their bearingsTime to rolloutThe route this year snaked through Chow Kit wet market, exiting on the opposite site - near Menara Safuan - before heading into the Town Center along Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman towards Maju Junction and Medan Tuanku. There were a few gem here. Plenty of old shophouses plying the trades since the 70s with the owners having plenty of story to tell. The place had certainly passed its heyday.

Next, we passed by the main shopping district of Jalan TAR before the roads were blocked for the weekly Pasar Malam - the block started at 3 pm and we were well early. We then took a sharp left towards Jalan Bonus and Semua House. Walked along Masjid Indian and the new bazaar - creatively named Bazar - before reaching Masjid Jamek where we grouped for lunch at one of the cafe by the LRT there.

Getting wet in the wet marketColourful indeedThey certainly looked freshRolling out againBy the time we reached that particular checkpoint everyone was already comfortable sitting around. Lebuh Ampang and Chinatown was not far off for those still energetic - or have a spare battery pack. My X-Pro1 battery started blinking red once I hit the 350 frame mark. And it was time to call it a day.

Not after a spot of lunch though. And on the subject of food, we set off from a restaurant - Restoran Sahara - and I stopped at Cafe Safuan, Cafe Capital, Restoran Kudu bin Abdul and at the end CoffeeBox Cafe. So, you get the picture. It was food, drinks and chit chats along the way, plus stops at cafe, shops and stalls talking to the vendors taking in the feel of the place.

I just realised that Jalan TAR was filled with hardware shopsOld and rustic charmPlotting our next destinationDone and dustedIt was just before 3 pm when we said our goodbyes. Some of us had other engagements to attend to for the rest of the day, while some like myself, it was family time.

More on the walk here.

Happy Sunday

I was too tired to watch the United game last night - it kicked off after midnight. Irfan had fever and all of us went to bed earlier than planned.

I managed to do the post-processing of my photos - all 300+ of them before waking up and uploaded them onto Flickr overnight.

Woke up early this morning to do some more uploading as well as planning entries for the blog for the coming few days while I still got ideas on my head. Plenty to write actually.

I have a few patients to see in the Ward but not too many. I can afford to head out a bit letter. To enjoy the Sunday morning drive I supposed. I was due to visit my Mum this weekend as well. She had an appointment coming with her Cardiologist next week as well. Better get that sorted out.

So, a full day from the looks of it. I better get the entries written up before the Ward round. The internet connection had also been good overnight. No hitches I hope.

Downhill Cafe

Shame that the service wasn't up to the billing. In fact it had got worst. And I think the main issue was inability of the staffs to communicate either in Malay or English.

They messed up the orders big time. The instructions were simple, to make sure that the children's food were not hot or spicy. Forget it! It was both how and spicy!

We ordered again, and they messed things up a second time. And we can't complain since the waiter near us could understand us. But when it came to the bill, they were right fluent. They charged us for both orders obviously and I couldn't be bothered to explain that they botched the order first time.

So, the message to management is simple. Make sure your staff can speak either Malay or English. Hire some local people!

After the Walk

It turned out to be a nice day weather wise and the wall went on without a hitch. I started my day as planned with an early ward round. I was driving back towards the city by 8.15, and parked at KLCC. Took the LRT and Monorel towards Chiw Kit, and made it to the starting point well before we set off.

Around 60 photographers turned up. There was even a family - Mum, Dad, Daughter and Son - who came. Got to meet friends old and new. Quite a gathering. And the trend now was towards smaller gears and smartphones. Of course there were the D3s and 5D Mark IIs. But there were not as many as before.

Some of them ordered breakfast but it was clear the restaurant couldn't cope with our orders.

As usual, we did the obligatory group photograph at the starting point. The route this year was from Chow Kit Monorel station, setting into the chow Kit wet market, exit on the opposite side and walk towards Maju Junction and Masjid India.

Then we would congregated at the end at Masjid Jamek where we would have lunch.

Tea when I reached homeI ended up eating long the way. How could I resist, there was Restoran Kudu along the way. And the stores along the way .... I was full by the time I reached the destination. That didn't stop me ordering more drinks afterwards.

It was a great day out. I snapped over 300 frames which explained why my battery was almost dead. Took the LRT back to KLCC, and I was home by 4. Tired, I actually took a nap before uploading the photos into the computer. Hmmm .... Post-processing fever coming tonight ......

More entries on the walk here.

Walks of Yesteryears

I thought it would be neat to dial back the years and put the links of the previous Scott Kelby walks I participated in in the past few years. So, here goes ....

It all started for me back in 2009.

I helped organise the 2010 walks, and I was actually busy doing the reccing but did not enjoy the actual day as it was more of making sure that things went according to plan. Oh well! The links are here and here. I also had a slideshow of the snaps here.

I enjoyed the 2011 walk more, and I created a link for the walk.

Looking forward to plenty of snaps tomorrow .....

The links on the 2013 walk here.