Super 8

After work today, I decided to kidnap Anita and we went to watch a movie. This was the first time in nearly 2 years that we were able to watch a movie together. It was a spontaneous thing. None of the boys - who were with their Ustazah at the house - knew what we were up to. Not even the in-laws. We timed it just right, so we did not have to wait too long for the movie to start despite a nearly full theatre.

It was as good as it promised, and it went to show that it was possible to deliver a sic-fi blockbuster without needing to resort to an over the top special effects or goriness. I wouldn't spoil the storyline, but suffice to say that if you were into JJ Abram's movies, you would not be disappointed. The train crash scene at the beginning of the movie was nothing short of spectacular, although the movie did take a more subdued tone after that. The twists were predictable, but was subtle enough to be enjoyable. I thought the acting by the children were really good. It was RM16 well spent.

Cath Kidston

Not all of you might be familiar with the name. And so was I until Anita stumbled across some of their products while shopping at The Curve. It was from one of the stalls on the Sunday Market and it was a fake. Surfing the Net, Anita later found out that it was really a real brand, and she quickly fallen in love with it. I have to confess that it was not my cup of tea, but knowing Anita, she really liked the flowery stuff, so she insisted on me giving the main store a visit when I was in London. We later found out that the main branch was in Covent Garden, and courtesy of Google Map, I found the place. Damn you Google!

The shop was not very big, but oh my God, it was crowded. It was pretty clear that the brand had built up a big following especially amongst the Asian crowd. More than half the crowd in the shop that day were from Asia as far I could tell. Cath Kidston does many things and the shop has dresses - flowery ones of course - to bags, notepads, cups and mugs, books, and wallpapers even. After a 30 minute squeeze and a couple of phone calls to Malaysia, I managed to get what she wanted. And yes, Anita was happy with what I got for her.

There was also another Cath Kidston boutique at Heathrow Terminal 4 - where I got a bag for my Mum, but since I wanted to pack everything into the main luggage bag and travel light in the cabin, I decided to buy everything before I reached the airport. We have yet to find one of their outlets in Malaysia. I pray that one would be coming soon as I couldn't really afford regular trips abroad just to get their products for Anita!

Covent Garden

For the first couple of days in London, I had been trying to convince the others in my group to give Covent Garden a visit. Yes, some of them did ask if there was a garden there. Resisting to laugh, I explained to them that it was an old market, smack in the middle of town, right next to Chinatown. But on the first day, we were too tired to venture out, and on the third day, we went towards Bayswater instead. Finally, on the sunny Saturday afternoon, I got my wish.

I set out from Oxford Circus, taking on the crowd, walked through Carnaby Street and Soho towards Chinatown. I then took one of the back alley to the Cath Kidston Store - more on that later. Another turn, and I was right into the market. The bright sunny afternoon really lifted my mood - unfortunately the mood included shopping, after which I was broke. I spend a good couple of hours sat at the cafe, enjoying the scene as well as mingling with the crowd. There were many open cafes and beer gardens round there, and also street performers aplenty. On one side of the market, they had rows of stalls selling high quality artwork, which unfortunately did not come cheap. But if you actually have some extra cash, it was definitely worth spending there. I bought a few shirts for my boys at David and Goliath.

I topped off the afternoon by having some halal ramen at Chinatown. At the time, the West End crowd were building up for the evening show at the theaters. It was getting dark when I finally left. A nice day out indeed.

Back to reality

I woke up late this morning. Really tired. Drove to work to check what needed doing. It turned out that the Deputy Director made a surprise visit to our Day Care, so I spent some time showing him around. Since today was a quiet day - we do not run a full Day Care on a Tuesday - he would return back tomorrow.

Then I went on to do some paperwork, before deciding to go home a bit early. Managed to pass some tit bits to the nurses from London - couldn't afford to buy much as I ran out of cash after my shopping spree. Then it was time for lunch - at one of the MRR2 stops on the home.

The Journey Home

A 12 hour flight used to be a doodle when I was a student. Now it was becoming a drag. I guess I was starting to show my age actually. But this flight being MAS were amongst the best as far as economy class was concerned. For business, take one of the Middle Eastern carriers, but with the drawback would be having to transit on the way rather than a direct one. And transit could be a pain.

The flight coming and out this time around was a bit too rocky for my liking, especially across the Andaman Sea. But the in flight service was good as usual, and I managed to catch some movies, a luxury really. On the flight back, I slept for about four hours, as it would be late afternoon at landing, and I didn't want to be wide awake tonight.

I also noticed that this being the flagship MAS flight - MH001 - the crew were also rather senior, but definitely offered great service. Experience counts I was sure. The flight landed on time, but as usual, it took nearly 45 minutes for my luggage to clear through. I didn't have a choice but to check in from the amount of shopping I did.

Unfortunately I had to work tomorrow. Now with unpacking done and the children in bed, I was chatting with Anita about the trip. She wished that she could come along. And so did I. Maybe in the next couple of years, as it would not be cheap to bring the two boys along. When I showed the photos from my trip last weekend, both of them were excited. So much so that Irfan actually slept in one of the T shirt I brought home for him.