Hot Saturday Afternoon

Yesterday, while waiting for another wedding, Puan Anita and I decided to go to KLCC to do some shopping and some chores. While I walked across towards Bukit Bintang to pay my credit card bills, Anita hang around at KLCC.

And the weather was really hot. It was balmy. I had to stop a couple of times for fluids, it was that bad.

The hot weather was usually a welcomed sight for photographers, but not when it was a shot as yesterday. So, it was all work, and not much photography. ‎

It Rained!

I got a free afternoon post-call and I had to settle my bills and buy some toner for my printer. Where else to go but Bukit Bintang and of course Low Yat.

The highlight? The new Mac Pro - which I got the chance to sample first hand - and the rain had returned. And it returned with a vengeance!

Luckily I was stuck at Low Yat during the rain. More excuse to just take some time and cruise around for a bit.

The Samsung Chromebook caught my eyes, but I couldn't justify any use case scenario for the time being. I got wifi at work and Gombak House. Blazing broadband at the apartment.

So, I shall be dreaming if the Mac Pro tonight .... It would have to wait for a few more months until we move proper to Bangsar. No space at the Gombak House at the minute.

Tous les Jours Slideshow

Write-up of the visit here.

Tous les Jours

Location was everything. And this new swanky cafe in town had it in abundance. Located right at the heart of Bukit Bintang, at the intersection of Jalan Bukit Bintang and Jalan Sultan Ismail, it was screaming to be entered. Coupled that to the fact that it beautiful architecturally - the complex was called Wolo - don't ask me why - made it even more inviting.

How to get there? Walk from Pavilion towards Lot 10 and stand in front of the Yes! Cube facing the Bukit Bintang Monorail station and look to your right. There it was!

So, on the way back from Times Square to Pavilion, I decided to sample the place.

From the Bukit Bintang intersection in front of Lot 10Some of the barrista even struggled with their EnglishCertainly there were plenty of space to chillCosy and cool. All nicely laid out with nice plush settings both inside and outdoors, you get the feeling that you were transferred abroad. Suddenly it wasn't KL anymore. Plenty of pasties and cakes. A long selection of drinks. You just wanted to sit down and kick back.

There was a couple of floors to the cafe - or the French would say boulangerie - I hope I spelt that one right. Wifi came as free and the seating arrangement made for a nice gathering with friends effortless.

Unfortunately, one sample of the pasty and straight away you realised that you were in Bukit Bintang. It was average! I ordered only a couple of items and both were a disappointment.

Even my mocha lacked a zing! So much for daydreaming of Paris. Maybe my mistake was heading there alone. You'd probably enjoy the place more in a company. Just maybe.

Anita had been talking about visiting one of the outlet in Bangsar Baru. I should head there one of these days before making my mind out for this chain.

But in terms of venue, it was superb ...

Slideshow of the visit here.

Sad Imbi Plaza

Imbi Plaza used to the center of all things digital back in the 80s. And it was still at its heyday until the early 2000s. The combination of regular raids by the authority and the wide availability of digital downloads made the business of bootleg software which thrived there then bit the dust.

Right next door, a more legitimate - emphasis on the word more - IT center was opened, Low Yat Plaza. This forced most of the vendors at Imbi to either clean up their act or ship out. My usual dealer left for Berjaya Times Square across the road.

The restaurants were still opened

As it was now, the three story mall looked empty. Some of the shops looked abandoned. I remember back in its glory days when the place was packed, and you could get anything IT there. I had built PC from parts from the shop there before it became fashionable.

I remember waiting for new games released on 5.25 inch floppy being sold there - illegally of course. We couldn't get our hands on original, not to mention how expensive those were back then. All those walks to and from my house at Jalan Bellamy those days. I was sure a few of my friends also had find memories of the place...‎