Category: Travel

Melbourne & Sydney, December 2012 – Sydney – Part I

After Gavin and Christina’s wedding, my wife and I made our way to Sydney via Tiger Airways. Stupid airline doesn’t have web check in so we had to go to the airport extremely early.

We stayed at Sui Lin’s place at the city. It was spacious and Sui Lin vacated her room for us while she slept in the living room. Thanks SuiSui!

The last time I was in Sydney was in 2002. I don’t remember much of it but somehow memories of the place kept coming back when we were roaming around Sydney. It’s a nice place. Everything seems clean and efficient but the retailers were not very friendly. One incident we had at an unnamed coffee joint:

Sui Lin: What’s the name of this place?
Barista: You can check it on the receipt.


Bloody Bugger

After I took a picture of the place.

Barista: It’s 5 dollars per picture.

Bloody Bugger didn’t even give us a receipt!

The coffee was just okay. But I still prefer Mecca coffee which is just opposite that unnamed coffee joint.

We took a cruise around Sydney Harbour. We had a great view of the Sydney Bridge, Opera House and many other parts.


Smallest wedding ever. This couple needs more friends.

Sui Lin brought us to Hurricanes to have ribs. Sui Lin, my wife and I shared one rack of ribs whereas Sui Lin’s boyfriend had one rack for himself.

Other than the cruise, we also managed to check out Sydney from the Sydney Eye Tower. Somehow my wife and I like going to all these observatory decks. Last one we went was Top of the Rock at New York City.

The queue to the observation deck was pretty short and it wasn’t crowded.

We also got to see Sydney at night.


Sydney Opera House on close up. Now you know how it looks like.

Melbourne & Sydney, December 2012 – Gavin and Christina’s Wedding

We started off Gavin Tan and Christina’s wedding with the traditional Jip San Leong. We had to battle the evil chi muis at a cold open space area of a hotel. The evil chi muis had imports from Malaysia and Indonesia. The Malaysian chi muis were brutal as usual.

It was probably one of the longest Jip San Leong sessions I’ve ever gone through. We had to apply make up, wear granny lingerie, eat fruits off a body of a heng tai, do a catwalk and go through a box with something possibly gross blindfold.


Ugliest person alive. Gavin in a mankini.


Steve “Mango Sticky Rice”.


Om nom nom

After an hour of so, we battled through the tasks and managed to save Christina from the evil chi muis.

We didn’t have much time after the event as we had to rush to Gavin and Christina’ s church ceremony at St Mary Star of the Sea, one of the largest and oldest parish churches in Melbourne. It was quick and unfortunately Gavin didn’t do a big blopper on stage.

Gavin and Christina had their dinner reception at this vintage mansion called Butleigh Wootton. They had it decorated nicely.


Each table had a little frame with a chapter of Gavin and Christina’s life together. Ours was “Chapter 7: Fancy Dresses” Gavin was quoted “I would do it if it weren’t for my wrist. And the whole hip shaking thing. And the V-necked tight suit” (in response to an invitation for salsa dancing).

If I had a choice, I’ll add Gavin’s famous quote, which came out when we were in a club, “HE GRAB MY COCK! HE GRAB MY COCK!“.

He was quite worried that we will sabotage his wedding. He made sure his presentation was in movie form so that we could’t fiddle with it by adding pictures like this:-


That’s not Gavin by the way. It was someone that looks like Gavin, cutting Kenny Sia’s hair.


Almost 10 years of friendship. Flew across the ocean to attend his wedding. Wore lingerie for him. And he got my name wrong. F*** you, Gavin.

Food was awesome. There was a live band. Great wedding video and photos too. I’m glad I didn’t miss it.

To Gavin and Christina, Congratulations to you both and much happiness on your wedding day. May the love you share always continue to shine.

Melbourne & Sydney, December 2012 – Overview

Gavin Tan aka Gayvin Tan invited me to his wedding in December. He came back to Malaysia for mine. I definitely had to go for his.

We took Air Asia to Melbourne. It rained when we left the house and we were stuck in a 2 hours jam to LCCT, Sepang.

No trip is complete is complete without any oddity. While in the boarding room, we had a strange person kneeling with face down for a long time. We couldn’t make out whether she was a bag or a person. Suddenly, she woke up thinking that the plane has left and tried to run to the tarmac.

Melbourne city is not the city I used to know. It changed quite a lot. Artisan cafes have popped up in the city. The good ones usually have long queues. My favourite A1 Chinese restaurant is gone. No more egg chiffon duck rice.

My wife and I stayed at Wei Chen and Sui San’s place at Albert Street. It was formerly an old brewery and now converted into an apartment. Wei Chen had kindly vacated him room for us while he slept in the living room.

I also took the opportunity to meet two of my business associates in Melbourne. One of them was nice enough to invite me to their office. The use colour coded system for their files. Each category has a different colour. It made their office pretty colourful.

We spent a lot of our time at artisan coffee joints trying what the Hipsters call “soul food”. To me, it’s basically food with plenty of bacon, potatoes or butter.

And it’s all awesome but I came back few KGs heavier.

After Gavin and Christina’s wedding, my wife and I made our way to Sydney via Tiger Airways. We stayed at Sui Lin’s place at the city. We did the usual touristy things.


We visited one of my buddies in Castlehill, Sydney. He cooked us dinner.

After Sydney, we went back to Melbourne and plonked at Sui San and Wei Chen’s place again. Lynnzter and Mid Sized Ben (both got married this year too) organised a dim sum lunch with the Melbourne gang at Tai Pan at Doncaster East.

They even serve battered durian. Gavin Tan is not a fan of durian so I made sure his hands smell of durian before leaving the place. I rubbed some durian on his hands while he wasn’t looking. WAHAHA.

Wei Chen sent us to the airport on the last day. The flight back was rather uneventful except that the lanolin cream that I bought for my mother got confiscated (6 bottles!). It seems that I cannot bring in any liquid exceeding 250g into the departure lounge. Strangely, the same lanolin was sold in the departure lounge!


Other than lanolin, I bought my stash of coffee beans!

Anyway, the trip was awesome. Many thanks to friends who gave their time and space to comfort and entertain us.

Mount Kinabalu

Mount Kinabalu is not an easy climb. It’s mentally and physically challenging. Nevertheless, climbing it is something I want to do before I die. Sam, Kenneth, my wife and I set out for Mount Kinabalu in early August. I did not train for it but my 2 times a week futsal, jogging and rock climbing sessions should suffice.


Kinabalu Park is just 2 hours drive from Kota Kinabalu. My father in law loaned me his car. I love the drive to Kinabalu Park from KK City. It’s very scenic.

Although many people have climbed Mount Kinabalu in the past, it’s not entirely safe. There are cases where climbers lost their way and found dead or not found at all. Our entire trip was filled with the story about Ellie James, a young British girl who was found dead in the summit. She somehow strayed from the path and was found dead few days later not too far from the trails.

Before making our ascend, we stayed in a nice lodge at the Kinabalu Park. We were given 2 rooms with a common toilet, kitchen and a living room with a fireplace and cable TV! And we got upgraded for free!


I am ready!

It’s compulsary to climb with a guide. Our guide cum porter’s name is Rowdy. Some people call him the Kinabalu Dragon. Apparently, he carried a 60kgs person up  the mountain before. Anyway, Rowdy was an awesome guide. He was with us all the time and never rushed or pushed us unnecessarily. There are porters who push or discourages climbers unnecessarily and some to the extend of abandoning the climbers.


Place to weigh about bags for Rowdy to carry. Kenneth weighing himself just in case he needs to be carried.

We took the Timpohon trail up to Laban Rata, the lodging area before heading up the Summit. The trail was fine. Loads of steep steps and rocks.


The only waterfall we saw on the way up


Rowdy and our 16KG bags


There is rest stop every 1KM.


Untreated water is available in every rest stop


Our pre-packed lunch provided by the resort

But as soon as we start moving, I was struck with altitude sickness. I had a piercing headache. I felt like my brain was being tortured slowly. I couldn’t move fast and had to stop a lot. The last steps to Laban Rata was toughest for me. I had to stop ever 10 steps but we made it to the top eventually.


There is also a stretcher in every rest stop. Just in case someone gets into trouble.


Tree started to change as we move further up


We stayed in Gunting Lagadan Hut. It’s a small hut with bunk beds and common toilets. There are no heater or hot water.

Many had resorted to boiling hot water to shower. The only good thing about this hut is that it’s just next to the gate up to the summit.


Laban Rata!


Food is served at the Laban Rata lodge. Surprisingly, food was not bad! I guess I was very hungry.


View from the cafeteria! We’re above the clouds!

We woke up at 2am to ascend the peak. We were ready for bed at around 7pm but most of us couldn’t sleep at such early time. I was already sleeping by 7pm due to my splitting headache. My headache subsided after I took paracetamol and slept.

We missed the Olympics  badminton finals between Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei. Luckily I missed the game otherwise I wouldn’t be able to sleep with disappointment after Chong Wei lost.


Before the hike to summit. Now we all know how the ladies look like in a tudong.

My headache began immediately after I passed the gate to the Summit. It became worst as we moved upwards. But it subsided when Rowdy asked me to take off my headlamp. It was an instant cure! Unfortunately, it came back when the vegetation started to disappear. Halfway through the journey, I started to have stomache. It was terrible. I had already had a big problem controlling my headache.

At some point, I felt like shitting in my pants and continue walking after that! Probably leave my undies there as a gift for archeologists excavating the place 10,000 years later. But I guess I still had some dignity left in me during such desperate time.


The sky was still dark. Rowdy is on the left.

The rope climb starts as soon as the vegetation disappears. It was okay for me since I used to climb outdoors.

I must say that my Adidas Kampung was awesome. It has excellent grip on the rocks. I didn’t even need to hold on to the ropes.

We moved very slowly due to my condition. We had to stop quite frequently and took long rests. Rowdy advised us to go slowly instead of doing it fast. It worked but we were so slow that we were the last to reach the summit!


We couldn’t get there in time to catch the sunrise but what matters is that we reached the summit.

The summit was all rocks. There were patches of vegetation and water puddles here and there. The floor was like broken tiles in various shades of grey. The wind was strong and cold.

The ultimate aim of this hike is to reach Low’s Peak, the highest point of Mount Kinabalu. It’s named after Hugh Low, the first person ever recorded to reach the summit. It’s fine if you don’t reach Low’s Peak. I was told that you are eligible for a coloured certificate if you reach a certain point after the Sayat-sayat checkpoint.

When I reached the point where we could elect to climb Low’s Peak, my headache was getting worst. I gathered all my remaining strength to move on. Within minutes, my wife and I were up on Low’s Peak. We were the last person to be up there.

We took some pictures before we descend from Low’s Peak. It was then my head felt like exploding. I thought I was going to die there!

We were the last people to leave the summit. We left together with the people who were taking care of Sayat-sayat.


View of Low’s Gully from Low’s Peak. Some British soldiers got lost while trekking Low’s Gully. Their ordeal was later made into a movie.

Descending Mount Kinabalu was a torture. It felt like forever. Our thighs, knees and ankles were killing us. We took about 4 hours to hike down! It was a mental torture as the journey down doesn’t seem to end. If I compare this trip and my 8 hours boat trip to Tioman island, the latter was mentally tougher but the former is physically tougher.

Once we reached the bottom, I had to drive back to the city. I almost felt asleep while driving. Zzz

To those who are thinking of climbing, here are some tips:-

1. It’s fine to hike with short pants and slippers to Laban Rata. However, you may risk cutting yourself if you slip and have blisters on your feet.
2. Training for such long hike is recommended. I play futsal twice for 2 hours a week, jog in the weekends and rock climb once a week. But I struggled to get to the top and get down.
3. Bring thick clothing as it’s extremely cold in the summit. A beanie is useful to cover your ears.
4. Adidas kampung helps but normal jogging shoes works. You can get Adidas Kampung at Pekan Nabalu.
5. Bring as much food (e.g. instant noodles) or beverages (e.g. 3 in 1 packets) if you can. It’s expensive up in Laban Rata. A cup of Horlicks costs RM12.80.
6. There is no instant cure for altitude sickness. Descending the mountain seems to be the best cure. Paracetamol may ease your pain but I heard it’s not recommended. Rushing up the mountain may cause or aggravate altitude sickness. Take your time to move up.

Washington D.C Food Guide

Busboys and Poets

My wife loves this place. We went this place couple of times. It’s a part bookstore, part bar, part lounge and part restaurant. Very nice decoration.

It is highly recommended by our host and plenty of reviews online. We had to do our touristy duty to eat at this place.


I had their French Toast breakfast. Toast was great but I find that the one at Norma’s better. Latte was mediocre.

There are a few branches in the city. I went to the one at 5th Street, not too far from our place.

Although heavily promoted by the locals, I don’t find this place as good as they claim it to be. But if you’re looking for a decent place, Busboys and Poets is a good choice.

Address
1025 5th Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
PHONE: 202-789-2227
FAX: 202-789-0306
HOURS:
Sunday 9:00 AM – 12:00 Midnight
Monday – Thursday 8:00 AM – Midnight
Friday 8:00 AM – 1:00 AM
Saturday 9:00 AM – 1:00 AM

Website: http://www.busboysandpoets.com/

Map

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Full Kee Chinese restaurant

One restaurant recommended by the local is Chinatown Express. They are reputed to be Washington D.C’s 5 star Chinese restaurant. I must say it didn’t taste like Chinese food at all!

Full Kee on the other hand was awesome. We ordered dishes and they were all awesome.


Fried rice was memorable. We ordered a plate and it came in a mountain. There was so much that we packed the remaining fried rice and gave it to a hobo on the street.

Address
509 H Street, N. W. Washington, D.C. 20001
Website: http://www.fullkeedc.com/

Map

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Chinatown Coffee

It’s just a few shops away from Full Kee. It’s probably the best coffee place in the city. Latte has a nutty taste and is excellent.

They use an iPad as their cash register. Once you’re done ordering, you can email or text your receipt to yourself!

Address
475 H Street Northwest
Washington, DC 20001, United States
(202) 559-7656
Website: chinatowncoffee.com‎

Map

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Washington D.C 2012


Train station at Washington DC

As mentioned in my previous post”New York City & Washington D.C“, I took my INTA conference easy. My wife and I spent most of our time sightseeing and eating.

We also joined a bicycle tour which was organised through one of the INTA LinkedIn groups. Strangely, the group I joined had only 1 lady from the LinkedIn group. Anyway, the three hours tour was great. We got to see many national monuments.

I’m not very good on a bike. I was a bit worried that I will get knocked down by some car. But the roads are pretty wide and clear and not many cars around. There are many bike lanes too. It’s quite safe.


There was even a half an hour boat ride on Potomac river. Once the boat ride was done, we rode back to our meeting point.

There was one night where my wife and I had dinner with my associate from China, Gloria and Indian associate, Nitin.

Nitin then brought me to this place called Bier Baron, a pub with 500 over beers to choose!

I also got to meet Ee Young, a former colleague of mine, for breakfast. He works in the legal department of a Taiwanese IT company and he gets to travel around the world. How awesome.

I allocated one whole day to visit some of the museums. Perhaps the most interesting museum is the Abraham Lincoln museum. It is located in the Ford Theatre, where he was shot. Some lady gave us free tickets because she had extras. We didn’t need to line up to enter!


The gun that shot Abe

You can also visit the hotel which he died after being shot.


Reconstruction of the hotel where Abe died.


The bed where Abe died


Pile of books about Abe! But it’s fake.

In this museum, you, I got to learn about American history in particular the time era where Abe was still around.

We also did visit the Smithsonian museum but no pictures here as my camera ran out of battery. -_-

We rode a bike from Capital Bikeshare back to our place. Capital Bikeshare is a service where people can rent a bike from one of the many bike stations around Washington DC. The station is unmanned hence you need a credit card to unlock the bike.

Once you’re done, find the nearest Capital Bikeshare bike station to return the bike.

Overall, the trip to Washington DC is rather uneventful. It’s a quiet and safe city. We didn’t worry when we were walking around the city in the middle of the night.

New York City Food Guide – Part 2

My wife and I didn’t do much research on the places to eat. Most of the places we were found using Yelp when we were around a particular area. Fortunately, free Wifi was ample in Manhattan and we could surf the net anywhere we wanted. In fact, you can even get Wifi at parks!

Cafe Lalo @ Upper West Side

Apparently Sarah Jessica Parker, the star of War Horse, goes here. Famed for their organic food, you won’t find any pork or poultry on the menu.


Notwithstanding that, food was pretty good especially their Belgian waffles. Their crispy waffles is served with maple syrup, cream and fresh strawberry. Heavenly I must say!

There is usually a queue to get a seat especially during peak time e.g weekends.

Address
201 West 83rd St.
New York, NY 10024

Website: http://cafelalo.com/cafe/
Opening Hours:
Monday-Thursday: 8am-2am

Friday: 8am-4am
Saturday: 9am-4am

Sunday: 9am-2am
Holidays until 4am


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Clinton Street Baking Company

This place is located amongst the good eateries of Lower East Side of Manhattan. So good that the queue is extremely long queue. The wait can go up to 1 hour but fortunately we got in within 20 minutes. There is a cafe, namely Pause cafe, which serves good coffee and free WiFI. We had coffee there while waiting for our turn to be called.

We ordered Pancakes with warm maple syrup (USD12) and Southern Breakfast.


Blueberry pancakes was extremely good. Fluffy and large in portion. Maple syrup complements the dish.


Southern dish on the other hand was interesting. Their sugar cured bacon was awesome but the rest was just okay. I would order something else if I had another chance.

Address
4 Clinton Street (btw. East Houston & Stanton)
New York, NY 10002

Website: http://www.clintonstreetbaking.com/

Opening Hours:
sunday:
open 9am to 6pm (no dinner on sundays)
monday thru friday:
open 8am – 4pm and 6pm to 11pm
saturday:
open 9am – 4pm and 6pm to 11pm
The restaurant is closed Monday thru Saturday from 4 to 6pm.


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Yonah Schimmel Knishery

With over 100 years of history, the premise aged together with the business. Yonah Schimmel Knishery doesn’t have beautiful decor but it does have a lot of history on its walls. Sitting in the shop itself can be a history lesson of the place.

A knish consists of a filling covered with dough that is either baked, grilled, or deep fried and it is a Jewish snack food. To me, it taste like a savory tar sar peng but with potato fillings.

Address
137 East Houston Street
New York, NY 10002
Between 1st & 2nd – The Lower East Side
Phone/Fax (212) 477-2858

Website: http://knishery.com/


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Laboratorio del Gelato

As the name suggest, this place looks like a laboratory. Its interior is mostly white and the walls are made of glass.


You can actually see how gelato is made in their kitchen.

It’s just a few streets away from Clinton Street Baking Company. It’s been featured in many mainstream medias.

We had their strawberry gelato. It was not bad. Salted caramel seems to be pretty popular as it was the only flavour that ran out.

They also have other unique flavours. Ginger is one of them. Big fat Euw!

Address
188 Ludlow Street
(at East Houston)
New York, NY 10002
Te: 212 343 9922

Opening hours:
monday to thursday 7:30am – 10pm
friday 7:30am – midnight
saturday 10am – midnight
sunday 10am – 10pm

Website: http://www.laboratoriodelgelato.com/


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La Mela Ristorante @ Little Italy

Another Zagat rated restaurant on Little Italy. This Italian ristorante occupies three lots.


Three Types Pasta was awesome. Although small in proportion, one dish was enough to feed my wife and I.

Surprisingly, their cafe latte was not bad.

Tirasmisu on the other hand was just alright. Nothing to shout about.

I would recommend people to come here for their pasta.

Address
167 Mulberry Street
New York,
NY 10013, United States
Tel: (212) 431-9493

Website: http://www.lamelarestaurant.com/


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Norma’s @ Le Meridian

This place was a little bit upscale. Food starts from USD20. Cappuccino was USD7 and orange juice was also USD7!

Apparently this place is well known but Yelp criticized this place like mad.

But I must say that their Crispy French Toast (USD21) was great. Sprinkled with crispy rice, it was massive in size. Crust was crispy but the bread was soft. My wife and I shared it and it filled the both of us up!

[Note: Also try Burger Joint if you’re in the same building]

Address
119 West 56th Street
New York, NY 10019,
United States
Tel: (212) 708-7460

Website: http://www.parkermeridien.com/eat1.php


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Totto Ramen
After waiting for 30 minutes for a spot, we finally managed to squeeze ourselves into this small tiny Japanese restaurant.


Maximum 4 people per table.


Niku Ramen was good. It was a meat galour. Full of yummy tender beef!


Half meat, Half Fat. Ah.

Broth was thick and flavoured. But it is not as good as Ichiran in Fukuoka. Although the first few bites were good, the taste sort of died down towards the end. It is no where near Ichiran in Fukuoka!

Address
366 West 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019,
United States
Tel: (212) 582-0052

Opening Hours:
Mon – Fri 12pm – 12am
Sat 12pm – 11pm
Sun 5pm – 11pm

Website: http://tottoramen.com/


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New York City – Sightseeing


Typical NYC sight

My wife has never been to New York City hence we went to the usual sightseeing spots like the Statue of Liberty, Rockefeller Centre and Central Park. But this time round, we explored the city for good spots to eat. Will write another food guide for this.

Speaking about Rockefeller Centre, we went up to the Top of the Rock at night to see the concrete jungle at night. The sight is better at Empire States Building as they only barricade the top using clear glass walls. Also, some parts are not barricaded leaving you a clear view of the skyline.

We also visited the World Trade Center Memorial and also the National September Memorial & Museum. I visited the former when I was in New York two years ago. It still looks the same after two years but they have loads of tissue boxes placed around the memorial. I guess some people could not hold their tears.

The latter (minus the Museum) is now open to the public. The memorial is located at the World Trade Center site, on the former location of the Twin Towers. The memorial has two square pools, where the Twin Towers once stood. It also has names of all the victims engraved on bronze plates attached to parapet walls which forms the edges of the memorial pools.

There are a few other interesting sites around the World Trade Center area. One World Trade Center (formerly known as Freedom Tower) is still under construction but it’s a great sight.

The 200 over years old St. Paul’s Church is also worth visiting.


September 11?

Catching a play in New York City is a must. This time round, we caught “How to succeed in business without really trying” starring Nick Jonas.

Unlike the last play I caught namely Avenue Q (which I fell asleep. Sorry Tim!), this show was quite interesting and entertaining. It’s basically about how a young guy (Nick Jonas) climbs the corporate ladder. Plenty of tips and tricks but unfortunately, it’s no longer relevant to me since I’m not an employee anymore (not young too!)

After the show, we walked back to Times Square to find this.

We overheard some guy saying, “I can’t believe the crowd here. It’s not Barack Obama but Ricky Martin!”. Looks like everyone was trying to catch of glimpse of Ricky Martin. Reallly??

One of the best thing about New York City is accidentally finding interesting places. We passed by a flea market.

There was a small stall selling antiques and there were stamps. I managed to find 4 antique stamps.


Siam Occupation of Kelantan stamps. During the Japanese occupation in World War II, Kelantan was controlled by Thailand.

It costs around US$50 on eBay but the guy sold it to me for US$4! F YEAAAH!!

New York City & Washington D.C

Since I got married in January, my wife and I haven’t had the time to go for our honeymoon. When I got the news that the International Trademarks Association (INTA) is having their annual conference at Washington D.C, I decided to head for the conference with my wife.

The journey, through Emirates Airlines, was fine. There were plenty of shows on their inflight entertainment services. But a kid in front of us kept disturbing us. He even took my wife’s shoes and hid it. -_-

Worst part of it is that, his mother did nothing to stop him. Speaking about his mother, she asked me whether the flight goes to New York City when we were about to board the flight at the boarding area. -_-

We stayed in YMCA hostel in New York City. It was terrible place. The room was dirty. I had allergy probably due to dust mites/beg bugs.


Lousy room for around US$100 per night.

I also accidentally cut myself on the forehead. The bunk bed in our room was low and it had metal spring poking out from top. I sat back and somehow bounced slightly. My forehead suffered a deep cut from one of the sharp edges of the metal spring.


The springs

We engaged a New York based photographer, Ulysses Photography, to take our pictures at Central Park. The husband and wife team consisting of Ulysses and Jenni were excellent. They charge by the hour and we only booked them for an hour. However, we were late. Fortunately, Ulysses and Jenni were kind enough to not charge us for being late an even extended our session without charge. I would highly recommend them.

Speaking about photography business in the United States, they have a different model than ours. Photographers charge extra for high resolution photograph and you don’t get all the photographs like Malaysia. One thing I like about Ulysses Photography (other than their awesome personality) is their style guide. They have a guide on how to dress for each theme or season.


Times Square


Freedom Tower! Notice the plane next to it?

My Internation Trademark Association (INTA) conference was held at Washington D.C. This year round, they had over 9000 participants. However, I only managed to meet less than 20 people -_-. I was told that if you attend the conference more, you will meet less people. But I must also blame myself for not going all out to meet people.

We took a bus to Washington D.C. The four hours ride felt short as they had a power plug and Wifi.

Using the online service Air B & B, we rented a room of Mr and Mrs Blinch. Their place was strategically located few minutes away from the conference area. The room was also a far cry from YMCA as we had a queen size bed, own bathroom, walk in closet, cable TV, complimentary drinks and even a bottle of red wine! No dust mites too!

Conference was held in the middle of the town but most meetings were held outside the conference hall. My meetings were held mostly in hotel lobbies. I managed to bump into many friends whom I didn’t fix any meetings.

I took the conference easy. I didn’t have many meetings fixed and even had one day where I spent the entire day sightseeing. Last time I used go for meetings and receptions from 9am to 1am – everyday!

My goal for this conference was quite simple. To tell my contacts that I’ve set up my own firm. Getting new business contacts was my secondary goal. Unfortunately, I was a little lazy and all I had was 4 new namecards. Uhm.


The house where Lincoln died.

Washington D.C has this service where you rent a bike and once you’re done, you can park it at any of their docking stations which are scattered around the city.

On our last day in Capital View hostel because our Air B&B room was pre-booked by someone else. Capital View was bare and the toilet is extremely dirty. I think I will never stay in hostels again!

We returned to New York City on our last day. We managed to meet up with Raymond whom I met with Timothy Tiah and fourfeetnine during our last New York City trip. He participated in the New York Bersih rally and he said it went really well with 300 over participants. Glad to know Malaysians living outside Malaysia still care about Malaysia.

I know its been a while since I wrote something here but I’ve been extremely busy.

Busy finding money thats it. Till the next blogpost!

Fukuoka, Japan – 2012 – The City

This post has been long pending. I finally found time to complete this!

These few weeks I’ve been busy with my new firm. In fact, you’ll find more updates at my blawg than here.

The Fukuoka City that I know is a quiet city. It’s unlike Tokyo and it’s not buzzing with activities. Probably it’s because I was only there for a day on a weekday. It’s a mixture of old and new buildings.


Most of the buildings are in dull colours. Yawn.


Eeny Meeny Miny Mo is a shopping centre.

I spent the entire day in the city with my new friend, Indian lawyer Chander. We roamed around the city on foot so that we can see the city in detail. But we stopped by a few places for a break.


At one of our many breaks.

Gaythri highly recommended that we head to Ichiran for their to-die-for ramen. In Ichiran, you can custom make your ramen by filling up a questionnaire requesting precisely how they want your noodles prepared. Flavour strength, fat content, noodle tenderness, quantity of special sauce and garlic content can all be regulated. An English language request form is also available.


Explaining how Ichiran works.

Each patron is given a private cubicle to consume his or her ramen. It’s you and your ramen having a good time together.


Me and the bowl before our sexy time.


My, my..how you doing.

I must say this ramen is extremely delicious. I’ve never tried anything like this before! Pork melts in your mouth! ARGH!

We continued roaming the city on foot after our delicious meal.

For dinner, we chose a place randomly. However, I realise that it’s the same place I went when I was in Tokyo many years ago. I remember it serving good food and indeed they serve good food in this branch. Japanese quality never fails!

With my rusty Japanese, I managed to order a few good sashimi to be shared between me and Chander.


Chander and me

We had a little problem getting back to our hotel. Our hotel bus was no where to be seen. We decided to take a train home. It wasn’t easy as we were merely guessing our way home. We asked for directions from the locals. I must say that the Japanese, when it comes to giving directions, is extremely helpful. They personally brought us our location even though it took more than 10 minutes to get there!

After more than an hour, we found our way to the hotel. We had to walk to the train station. It was almost pitch black and extremely cold.

I wish I had more time to explore Fukuoka especially the countryside. Let’s hope there will be another opportunity like this again!