Homework Afternoon

We spent the earlier part of the afternoon in Bangi, supporting our high school MRSM Terendak at the Ansara Games. Unfortunately with the boys on tow, I had to do the babysitting at the car park. Anita get to see the games with another friend of ours, and she had a lovely time.

I didn't even have the chance to snap any photos while we were there.

Fuelling up with some cheesy pizzaOn his final leg ....But reality soon returned as we had to catch up on the homework for the weekend. Idlan had a couple of essays to write while Irfan got a project. We started early and hopefully everything should be done by dinner.

Irfan' Classmate Party

Irfan turned 10 on the second day of Chinese New Year. And straight after the school break, both he and Idlan had school assessment. No real time to have a party. Irfan had been talking to his classmate about having a party just for them. We dithered but he persisted.

Finding the right time was quite tricky. Finally we settled for last weekend, almost a couple of weeks after the his actual birthday.

The games has startedIrfan staring at his cake ...Guns would have been a better choice ...Poor boy was lost ...A small party, just among classmate. No clowns or anything like that. Just then playing video games with food and cakes. It worked out fine, with some of his friends wanting to stay back after the party.

They played with their Playstations and Wii U, well through the afternoon. And of course binge watching YouTube on the TV.

PlottingBig breathSee how the Pro cut itThe main attraction was the cake however. Mama Min did it again. More on that on another entry. Irfan was especially happy and right excited well into Monday. And Idlan decided that he loved his room after all and since the party had been sleeping in his own room. Although I had to sleep with him there...

Botani Perdana

It had been a while since we went to the park. We hated going there mainly due to the traffic situation, often not finding a proper spot to park not to mention the aggro when there were a small lane opening while you were trying to pass.

The old Botanical Gardens, Lake Garden or Tasik Perdana has now been renamed Taman Botani Perdana. A lot of new infrastructure were being built, making the whole area - the Bird Park, Butterfly Gardens and Orchid Park seems more connected.

Irfan organising the drinksIdlan with his strap-on rubbery shoes ....Walking from the carparkLooking at the multistorey carpark from the groundFollowing our trip to the new Restoran Rebung, we learned that there was a new multistorey car park being opened. So, we parked there and walked across to the new area of the park where Panggung Anniversary used to be - there were renovations being done on the pavilion at the moment.

It was right pleasant and the place, being a Sunday afternoon was filled with joggers, cyclist and young families, some carrying picnic baskets and playing football.

Directions ....I want to roll down the hill on that grass ....Walking with dinosaursWalking onThe place was well kept and the walk across from the car park towards the children play area and the lake felt like a breeze. Pleasant weather and fresh air. We stopped for photos, quick drinks and fed the koi fish when we reached the lake, white people were running around having a good time.

Next stop, the lakeFeeding them turtles ...The crowd soon build up ....Ironic that people playing football by the sign ....Anita wished that she carried her picnic basket with her. But there were plenty enough seat for us to sit and have some ice cream while enjoying the surrounding.

The hard part was walking back to the car park - uphill mind - rushing there before sunset. But I must say we were pleasantly surprised with the day out and would definitely be coming again.

Enjoying the scene while doubling back ....Panggung Anniversary being rebuiltAlmost back to the carparkI was sure in the months to come, more attraction would've been ready, including the newly refurbished Panggung Anniversary. Looking forward to that.

Life Goes On

Sunday today and the atmosphere in the cancer ward was still down after the event on Friday. I didn't have any patients there - my cancer patients were parked in another ward this weekend.

Walking back to the car park after my ward round I had a quick peek outside. The sun was out. Life goes on. The mood will be subdued in the coming few days, but I was sure we would move on by the time the Chinese New Year break was over....

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!