at the entrance

It has been a long time since I last entered Singapore. More than 5 years, surely. My children haven't at all. In March this year we made our passports, but only in October we made the trip to Singapore. So near yet if feels like it's so far.

In conjunction with Marsya's birthday, I decided to bring everyone to the Singapore Zoo. It was a busy weekend with not much sleep for me personally. On Saturday I went to Melaka for Burung Hantu 2011 offroad night ride, and back home right after the event ended. Took a nap at Machap R&R for an hour before Fajr and reached home at 7-ish Sunday morning. When I reached home I cleared out the dirty clothes form the night's ride, put things back to their places and did a bit of gardening. I woke everyone up at 8.30 so that we could go early because there are a few things need to be done before we could enter Singapore and head out to the zoo. Eventually, everyone got ready and at 11.00 the car started to roll out to Stulang CIQ.

While queuing at the Woodlands checkpoint, I noticed that somebody in an mpv on my right waving to me wildly. Haha... it was my cousin from Woodlands, Abang Man. He called me up and invited me to come over his place later on after the zoo visit and I said no promises. As soon as I entered the immigration checkpoint, my phone was without network reception. I had forgotten to activate roaming access. Was unable to call him to ask for address and directions to his place. Too bad, maybe next time insyaAllah.

It was the first time I bought an autopass for the car to enter Singapore; with tips from friends and the swiftness of Singapore immigration and LTA, it was not that hard. Just fill in a few standard details in the form, queue up and pay $10. The process took less than 10 minutes. My thanks to Reza for giving me the embarkation card, too.

The Singapore Zoo is not far from Woodlands checkpoint, and there are ample signs to get us there. We reached the zoo at around 12.00, parked the car at a nice covered parking building.

The zoo entrance fee for the five of us amounted to $66. $20 for adults, and $13 for children (3 - 12y). Free for Umar. Not too bad, as the park is big and the animals in there looks healthy. The areas are clean, too.

We spent a bit more that 3 hours in the park. While deprived of sleep and my legs are still tired from the ride the night before, it was surprising that the walk in the zoo did not make me exhausted. Sleepy at times when stopped, yes, but no complains of tiredness from me. Of course the children are.

We had our lunch late, at 3.30pm in KFC. Umar needed a nappy change and so we went off. The toilets at the zoo lobby are nice, but no faucet provided except for tissue rolls.

:P

However, the nappy change room has everything. Washbasin, nappy change counter, faucet (without hose), shower and toilet bowl.

I asked the muslim lady at KFC if there are any musolla available, but there is none except for staff only. She mentioned that people would use cardboards. As it was reaching 4pm (end of Zuhr), we decided to solat at the parking lot. Went up to the uncovered topmost floor, and found a shaded area. Parked the car to cordon us, and we perform our solat. Soon after, we went out of the parking lot.

There's a mini drama happened to me while exiting the parking lot. Apparently, foreigners have to get a 'complimentary ticket' valued at $4 from the zoo counter. So, long story short, I went back to the counter (some 500m walk), bought the ticket and went out. Thanks to Diana the parking assistant over there for guiding me.

The journey back to JB was uneventful. Smooth ride all the way, alhamdulillah. InsyaAllah, there'll be more trips after this. Perhaps a weekend over my cousins' places, and mountain biking at Bukit Timah too.

:)

 

More photos here.

Battle of Cape Rachado 1606

Dutch VOC with help from Johor versus Portuguese (Malacca).

The lighthouse at the cape witnessed the fierce battle involving 31 ships with cannons and numerous hands aboard.

If the story narrated in the link below is true, I can imagine how precious the resources of this great land were during the days in history.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cape_Rachado

I wish to bring the family and pay a visit to the lighthouse in February during Ahad's Family Day insyaAllah.

Dewey the Library Cat

His full name is Dewey Readmore Books, very apt for a library cat, adopted by staff at the Spencer Public Library, in a small town of Spencer, Iowa.

A chat with Nassim over teh tarik after last Friday's night ride in Larkin, triggered my bookstore visit yesterday. It's been a while since I read a novel, so I'm hunting for one to read.

I was in MPH City Square Johor Bahru browsing for a Crichton's Pirates Latitudes. They only have it in hardcover (read: expensive), so I guess I'll just have to wait for the paperback version. I picked up one of Azizi Ali's book on property investment, looked at the backcovers of all books Toyota management (because they are all plastic-wrapped), while holding Umar in arms. Man, he's getting heavier day by day. Naza took care of selecting the children's educational books, and the payment at the counter (of course, with my $).

I lingered at the non-fiction (Albom, et. al.), and I saw Dewey posing innocently to the camera on the book cover. The backcover stated his full name (yes, this one's also was wrapped in plastic), and I'm hooked just by reading his name. So, I brought his story home as well. A true story would be much better than a novel if it involves cats, I think. Paulo Coelho (probably The Zahir) just have to wait until next month to reside on my bookshelf.

A quick research this morning returned the links scattered in this entry. Interesting, indeed. Especially for an ex-librarian (in MBS Sentul), book lover, and feline adorer in me.

Up to this point, I'm only at the first chapter. I'll continue reading during lunchtimes. Meanwhile, have a load on Dewey's photos in Spencer Library's website. He's also on Facebook, by the way.

photo credit goes to Spencer Public Library

Masjid Abu Bakar Johor Bahru

It’s been my favourite masjid in Johor Bahru since I first stepped into its courtyard. That was 19 years ago, when my cousin steered his van with us inside for our solat, en route to Singapore.

The architecture and finishing of the masjid is amazing, while being simple. The black small domes are distinctive, and I really like the brass fittings adorning its white doors and windows.

I would never miss the chance to go for solat Jumaat in this very place, and 3 weeks ago I did. The parking space is always crowded, so I went there quite early. Parked only at the sides of the entrance way, to ensure my easy way out after the solat. While it may seem that the masjid would be congested, it is actually not so. There’s ample space. Another thing I like about it is that there’s an array of water faucets for ablution along the covered pavement leading towards the side entrances. Seldom I have to queue for my turn.

These facts below I gathered from an information board erected on the masjid grounds:

• Located atop Bukit Kecil, overseeing Selat Tebrau. You can see Singapore from here, and the view is simply breathtaking.
• Construction took 8 years to finish, sice 1893, costing $400,000. I’m not sure whether the sum is based on current value, or the amount at the time of construction. If it is from 1893, that’s an awful lot of money.
• First opened in 2^nd February 1900, officiated with a solat Jumaat.
• The marbles are from Italy.
• The mimbar is from Turkey.

No info on the sparkling chandelier, though.

Photo by Pasha Razak Photography

Aussie T-Shirt

My friend Noraidalin went Down Under and bought me a t-shirt.
Okay, I asked for the t-shirt. For free.
:)

And sure enough, she gave me a piece. Quite nice. Very comfortable. Unlike the usual thin, low quality type. I like the color too.

The thing that makes it special is what printed on the t-shirt.

I'm a bit of a collector, and so it's nice to have a collection of Australian slangs in one piece of cloth.

Here's the list:

• wally
• gone walkabout
• chock a wobly
• stone the crows
• no worries
• bloody oath
• stunned mullet
• crikey!
• hows that!
• sheilla
• you beauty
• bonza!!
• down under
• fair crack of the whip
• turn it up
• mug lair
• too right
• amberfluid
• footy
• flatout like a lizard drinkin
• strewth!!
• onya
• yobbo
• she'll be right
• g'day mate!
• fair dinkum
• spot on
• tinnie
• flamin heck

I've heard a few, like the familiar "Down Under", "G'Day Mate!","spot on", "no worries" and "fair dinkum".
Totally no idea what the rest means.
Go and figure them out:
http://www.aussieslang.org/
google 'aussie slang' or 'strine' and you'll get quite a handful of hits.

Thanks for the t-shirt, Lin!
Where'll you be going after this?
;)

*updated 21 Feb 2014. thanks to Robbie and Michelle for informing me the correct link above :)

we have moved

18.12.2008
Naza, Mak, kids and I officially moved to our house in Seri Alam.

Datang le menjenguk-jenguk. You're welcome to our little place.

4 coleby avenue

L to R: Akmal Hisham, Akmal Hizam, Azman, Zaiman, Zulhilmi.

Me and housemates in front of our rental house in Old Trafford.
4 Coleby Avenue, off Lindum Avenue, Old Trafford, Manchester.

It's a semi-D house with a separate garage (keys kept by the owner - Mr. Shabir Bangi) and a small backyard (never bothered about it, but once we had a barbecue session with friends over there). Located in a cul-de-sac in a quiet neighbourhood.


View Larger Map

I don't quite remember this photo existed, until my mate Akmal Hisham (aka Imam) scanned it and posted in his facebook page. What I remembered is that we snapped several photos to be sent to newspapers in Malaysia for Hari Raya greetings from overseas. Not sure whether this was the one being published.
Date stamp: 17 January 1997. More than 10 years. Seemed like it was only a short time ago.

Aah... and look at the colour tone of our Baju Melayu - by pure chance.

credits:
don't know who snapped this photo.
scanned by Akmal Hisham

spelling contest - the day

We went to Danga City Mall to support Marsya for her spelling contest.
Apparently, finalists for the 3 categories (60 of them total) were selected from over 900 participants. Wow! Isn't that something?

For the finals, the contest format was changed. I guess to facilitate the venue and manner of judging the contestants. Finalists were given a spiral bound drawing board each, together with a black marker. They are seated on the stage, all of them, one category for a session. The word to be spelled will be announced in this manner: word, meaning, word, word. After that, 25 seconds given for the finalists to write (spell) the word on the drawing board. Then the bell will be rung. Finalists would raise their drawing board for the judges to give marks. Thus, it's not only testing their spelling ability, but other skills as well: listening and writing - neatly, legibly and big, while being quick at that. I personally do not agree wholly with the format, albeit it's the organiser's exclusive right to have it any way they deem fit.


worried mommy, among the audience

The first word was 'ambulance'. Poor Marsya managed only to write 'ambulan', and was a bit disturbed when the bell was rung as she was about to write 'c' on the paper. I'm sure she doesn't have any problem spelling the word. It was just that she didn't have enough time to write the word in big letters, neatly and fast. Not a norm for any kid her age in day-to-day schooling. Anyway, she marched on and kept giving her best.



Out of 15 words, she got 10 spelled out right (there were words not completed because not enough time). Not bad, although she didn't win anything. What I'm happy about is that she participated and didn't show any sign of stage fright, anxiety or nervousness. I guess none of the finalists were. It seems that they were at ease.

Kudos to Marsya. Also to the organiser for the event. They all did very well.

Tanjung Kupang Air Crash

Marsya entered a spelling contest last Sunday, so the four of us went to Foon Yew 1 School at Jalan Kebun Teh together.

Lots of pupils with their parents came for the 3 category contest. Marsya's was the third, starting at 12.00 noon. Arrived 5 minutes late than required (have to be there 15 minutes earlier), the parking lot in front of the school is already packed.
Marsya and I headed to the school while Naza parked the car some 100 meters away with Adam inside.

Around 12.45pm the contest ended, and we headed to the car.
We passed by a silent memorial located just next to the school, set up by Malaysia Airlines to
commemorate the air crash of 4th December 1977 in Tanjung Kupang.



I did a (very) little research, and it was quite sad to learn about the fatal crash. The Boeing 737-200 from Penang to Kuala Lumpur was hijacked with 97 passengers and 7 crews on board. None survived the crash.

further reading:
http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19771204-0
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_Airlines_Flight_653
http://eprints.utm.my/343/1/SallehuddinMuhamad2006_SimulationoftheTanjungKupang.pdf
http://www.newspaperarchive.com/freepdfviewer.aspx?img=44073993

more images:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanjung_Kupang_Memorial

Melaka: A' Famosa vs Proclamation of Independence Memorial

A' Famosa - the famous one.
Proclamation of Independence Memorial - huh? Which one eh?

We went to Melaka on the way back to JB during Deepavali weekend.

It was overwhelming how Bandar Hilir has transformed.
I parked the car a bit far from the famous A' Famosa, so we had to walk past Muzium Islam.
Right in front of it is this interesting big tree:


big ol' tree


this tree is not to be destroyed in any manner whatsoever.
but you can nail the notice on it, though.

The purpose of visiting Bandar Hilir is to serve as an introduction of the famous A' Famosa and surrounding buildings to the kids. Well, only Marsya went with Naza and I. Adam stayed in the car with Mak - not feeling well.


Naza and Marsya walking past A' Famosa

Alfonso de Albuquerque started the construction of A' Famosa in 1512 from which they fended of attacks by the armies of the Sultan of Melaka and Acheh for well over a century.
The Portuguese used slaver labour to construct this squarish fort surrounding Melaka Hill with walls 3 meters thick using parts from demolished palaces, royal mausoleums and mosques.

Apart from the appalling English grammar etched on the info stone, the more atrocious fact laid down plainly is "...using parts from demolished palaces, royal mausoleums and mosques".
Damn.


the info stone. see how many grammar or typo errors you can spot.

Marsya and I went up the hill to take a look around, and have a view from the top. Quite nice - you could observe the prosperity that showers Melaka, except the sea shore.



Also there's a 'wishing well' in the remnants of building (used to be a church by Dutch, then as a gunpowder storage by British). What struck me was that people throw in coins in the 'well'. I don't know why. I bet they also don't know why. The bigger question: who would eventually collect the coins? And what would they do with it?
Anyway, I told Marsya that we Muslims do not do such things. If we wish for something, we ask Allah by reciting du'a. No need to throw in coins and make wishes.



I love to look at the memorial tablets lining the walls inside the building - for it's artistical values. And it's ancient. I like 'em.
Nearing maghrib, we went down.

Opposite of the fort stands a solemn building, though not that attractive to local tourists. Perhaps because it is closed during the time I was there.


Proclamation of Independence Memorial

The Proclamation to Independence Memorial is important to our local history for this: it houses an exhibition that traces the history of the nation's journey to independence (as the sign says).



What I like about it is that it is erected right in front of A' Famosa, and across Dataran Pahlawan. Simply poetic.

soft drink refill at McD - update

I submitted a query to McD Malaysia with this question:

a quick question:
can i have free soft drink refills at any of your outlets?

Their reply an hour ago:

Dear Akmal,

Greetings from McDonald's Malaysia!

Thank you for taking the time in submitting your inquiry through our
official website dated 24th October.

With regards to your question below, FREE soft drink refills do happen at
all our outlets if the drink is being purchased on the day of purchase &
from the outlet that is being purchased.

We would appreciate if you could provide us with more details of your
experience that you had recently as this are areas where we can improve our
services.

Once again, thank you & we hope to hear from you soon.

Best regards,
Leonard M. W. Wong
Corporate Communications Department
(tel/fax/email withheld)
Website: http://www.mcdonalds.com.my

curry puff in manchester

people asked me this quite a lot:
do you want to live in manchester, given the chance?

my answer: yes and no.

yes - it's quite nice to live in a 4-seasons country. the culture, the manners of their people (believe me, they are very courteous lot) , scenery, etc.
no - when the little details of living a normal life have to be forfeited. parents, durians, rambutans, shopping until late at night, etc. also, i can't stand the cold weather. not to mention the constant rainfall.

i stumbled upon this website by a malaysian now residing in manchester.
he's selling curry puff - ready to eat, and frozen.
sold in 5 varieties: beef, lamb, vegetarian, chicken and fish.
the price? £1 for 3 ready to eat, and £1 for 4 pcs of frozen ones.
not too bad, considering one of the details of living a malay life in manchester is served.
check it out at http://www.alittletasteofmalaysia.com/

perhaps i have to re-consider my answer for the question.

it was raining in kuala lumpur

I was stuck in Menara Tan & Tan yesterday evening, due to the downpour in KL.
My flight to Senai scheduled at 9pm. I thought I could walk to KLCC or Ampang Park and have my dinner over there. I left my trusty foldable umbrella at home on purpose - didn't want to add weight to my bag. So much of a convenient for a weight weenie, after all, huh?

Well, it's quite nice to watch the traffic jam on Jalan Tun Razak. I kinda missed it a bit when I left The Forum since February.
And whaddaya know - there's a nice big rainbow too.

photos by Zaid Ghani, using his handphone camera

aku dok kat KL

"kau dok mana sekarang?"

banyak kali bila aku tanya kawan2 aku yang asal dari luar KL (tapi la ni dok kerja kat KL) soalan ni, jawapan diorang simple je:
"aku dok kat KL"

pastu aku tanya, "area mana tu kat KL?"
depa jawab:
"Puchong"
"Sepang"
"Serdang"
"Bangi"
"Sungai Buloh"
"Kajang"
"Petaling Jaya"
"Shah Alam"
"Rawang"
"Putrajaya"
dan banyak lagi nama-nama tempat yang aku rasa masih dalam jajahan Selangor.

duhh!! naseb baik tak sebut "Seremban" ataupun "Nilai".

masa aku kecik-kecik dulu dok kat Jalan Ipoh (area Sentul, masih dalam KL), kalu sebut Kajang/Puchong/Sungai Buloh/Sepang/Serdang/dsb, dah sah le Selangor tu.
dan memang agak jauh nak pegi tempat-tempat tu.

tapi aku saspek orang la ni pukui habih dok kata yang depa dudok kat KL pasai dah ada kemudahan pengangkutan - dari segi infrastruktur lebuhraya (dan pondok kutip duit tol).
aku pun tak berapa nak hafal segala jenis highway yang ada dalam KL tu.
dan mungkin jugak depa lebih mudah nak sebut 'KL' (dua sukukata) berbanding dengan 'Selangor' (tiga sukukata). ni masuk kes perekonomian perbualan la ni.
atau mungkin jugak nak glamer dok kat KL. tak tau le. tapi aku rasa dok kat tempat lain pun glamer apa... digi ngan celcom boleh aje dapat line kat mana-mana...

walaubagaimanapun, itu aje lah aku nak cakap.
dan aku nak tegaskan kat sini bahawa:
kalau korang dok kat dalam Selangor, cakap aje la korang dok kat Selangor.
KL tu KL la. tengok peta KL. belajar balik chokapi.

melainkan korang dok kat Kuala Langat.
waaakakakaaaaa...

Family Portrait

where: Naza's grandparents' house, Stulang Darat, Johor.
when: 1 Syawal 1429H

Johor Bahru Public Library

On Saturday (6th Sept), I went out to send Marsya to school - a replacement for Hari Raya holiday extension. We arrived 45 minutes early, so I made a detour to the new JB public library in Jalan Yahya Awal, a stone's throw from her school. Opened nearly a month ago (despite delays), I still haven't been there. A good time to check out what RM5.7mil library can offer.

First impression being important, they got it right. It's a nice place, and looks organised. Well, it doesn't look like a library, but much more like a bookstore in a shopping mall. The atmosphere is like being in a bookstore - but much better. It has an open cafeteria right behind the service counter, and you can borrow books (and other media) for free, up to 14 days.

It is a modern library, very much different with the one I went frequently during my younger years. There are many different section for visitors to enjoy different medium that knowledge can be enjoyed.

Ground Floor:

• Magazine Rack - like the ones in Borders in Times Square, but with much lesser spread of titles
• Audio and Video (DVD/VCD) shelves - can be viewed upstairs in tv room.
• Cafe Aras - for refreshments
• Children's Corner - much like a kindergarten setting with cool Ikea stuff (no kidding!) and lots of books
  
• Petronas Street Smart - now until 22nd Sept

First Floor:

• Adult Sections - divided into two - Fiction (on the left) and Non-Fiction (on the right)
• Games Room - I saw children playing congkak in there
• Teenager Section - with lots of interesting titles
• Reference Section - didn't get in there, yet
• Discussion Rooms - a few enclosed rooms with glasswall for discussion.
• Media Room - for viewing video
• Islamic Media Room - for viewing digital Quran

Second Floor: closed (for now)

Note: the room names above is only my designation, not the official name given by the library authority.

Here's a few things I have to say about the library:

1. Af first I wonder why there were discussion rooms provided. After sitting down with a book for a while, then it finally occured to me. The library is not as quiet as it is supposed to be (or used to be?). With the Petronas Street Smart in town, children playing with it can be heard on the first floor. Discussion rooms were full, and teenagers doing their discussion out in the reading area. I really couldn't believe that I was sitting with a book in a library, with all these noise. I wonder if this is the concept of a library these days. I looked around, there were no 'please be silent' reminders posted.
2. The collection of books is impressive. It's close to browsing the bookshelves in a bookstore. Most of the materials are new, modern titles. You don't feel like you're transported to 10 or 20 years back in time when browsing through the book titles. For non-fiction works, titles are abound in many different subjects - religion, management, self-improvement, hobbies and craft, etc. There's also Chinese and Tamil collection, albeit very limited. And yes, they do have Michael Crichton's in Fiction section (recent titles only). Kudos to the management.
3. The desks and chairs are nice - they're teak. However, comfort is compromised while giving way for appearance. I strongly feel that they could spend on quality plastic/steel chairs with cushion for better comfort.
4. Everywhere in the building you could see people deeply sunk in their laptops. That's because it is equipped with wifi connection.
5. For mobility in the building, there are hits and misses. There are ramps and an elevator for the disabled. If you choose to use the stairs (most would do), please be extra careful. Due to the design, the steps are varied in width along a single step. If left side is narrow, the right side is wider (and vice-versa). The center has constant width, but you have to forgo the handrail.
6. Amenities are quite good. There are toilets and surau provided (at the time of writing, I haven't checked them out yet). If you fancy a drink and light snack, there's a cafe on the ground floor. In the children section, there's a baby cot provided. I'm not sure whether there's a feeding area, though.
7. I like the fact that the library is not just a depository of books. Here, multimedia learning takes on its true meaning - and they are accessible to everyone.
8. Opening hours are from 9am to 5.30pm (until 5pm during Ramadhan). I think it would be superb if it is open till late - say, 9pm. Closed on Mondays, and, it will be closed during 1st and 3rd Saturdays soon. Aahhh... not really convenient, eh?
   

After that short while in the library, Marsya and I went off to her school. It turned out that actually classes for evening session were cancelled (or postponed?) without official letter from the school. Anyway, this was informed by one of the teachers, so it's okay. That means another round in the library, then.

We went back the following day, too. This time with the whole family. We registered with the library and got our library card each - and went back home with at least a book. Oh, and please be reminded that there's an annual registration fee.

Nuff said, I suggest you go experience the library yourself.

Read more:
Johor Bahru Public Library site
article from The Star
article from NST - Johor Buzz

musical friday, jalan strachan and short of cash

I went with Tamyiz to KL PAC for the KL Sing Song on Friday 20th July.
There were two parts, separated by an intermission.

Mesmerized by the performances, I grabbed a couple of CDs on sale at the counter during the break. One from Mei Chern, and another from Reza Salleh. Well, Reza was yet to perform on the 2nd part, but I'm convinced that he's good. Indeed, he is.

The organizer planned the performance sequence quite well. Saving the very best for last. Too bad, I didn't have any more cash to buy Mia Palencia's single CD 'Sayang'.
Well, sayang sekali....

The show ended around 11.00pm. Tamyiz let me drive the car, and so we cruised along the colonial buildings around KL PAC area. They were painted with memories of my childhood. A lot have changed, though. The memories remain, vividly. There used to be an oval field in front of an office building. I used to play football with my friends there, although it is not a playable field -
its existence was pretty much for creating a green landscape. Imagine playing football on a golf course - pretty much like that.

There were numerous KTMB office buildings at the end of Jalan Strachan - I used to play skateboard with Mike over there, and rode our bicycles around the buildings. Heck, we also did have a '100 meter' dash around the oval field. Complete with relay runs with batons. There were also hide and seek, and police and thieves, and tag - on bicycles.

Jalan Strachan used to be lined with KTMB quarters. I used to live at No 40 Jalan Strachan. Kids used to play everything along and on that road. BMX freestyle, tag, tennis, badminton, skateboard, roller skate, football, relay runs, marathons, bicycle race, police & thieves, kites, slippers & cards, rounders, chop (where you aim a running target - your friend - and shoot him with the tennis ball). It was not that busy, except during the morning, lunchtime and evening. It was the main road KTMB workers used to get to their offices and workshops, and go back home. It was a peaceful area, with lots of trees and many neighbours.

Now that most of the houses are brought down, the long stretch of road seems short. I couldn't locate the tree in front of my former dwelling. Thankfully, they still preserve the big trees lining the road. I hope that big old tree that provided shade for our house is still there.

Perhaps one day I could stroll along Jalan Strachan, and soak in the memories of my adolescence. Personally, I learnt how to ride a bicycle on Jalan Strachan. I had a fight with Devan on Jalan Strachan. We go to our neighbours houses during festives along Jalan Strachan. And I lost a cat on Jalan Strachan. I grew up with my friends on Jalan Strachan.

That night, as soon as we turned into Jalan Ipoh, and my memories of Jalan Strachan left something for me to smile, my stomach grumbled. Tamyiz and I were famish. We wandered to find a place to eat, and eventually brought us to an eatery in Gombak (yes, we wandered very far...). The food was quite good, and that is not because we were hungry and could eat anything.
It was a little bit after midnight, when the unthinkable happened. We were simply short of cash. Well, 3 ringgit short for our meals. I stayed at the eatery while Tamyiz went off to find an ATM to withdraw some cash.

Before going to the show, Tamyiz was from Shah Alam to fetch his car from his sister, and thought that he would withdraw cash on the way to KL PAC. As for me, I had some cash enough to pay for my ticket and dinner, and left much of my cash at home. Well, it was past midnight, and it didn't occur to us that all the ATMs are out of service.

Tamyiz drove to Setapak, even as far as Jalan TAR to look for an ATM that would churn cash. To no avail, he went back to Forum to get the cash. I was at the eatery in Gombak, until they are closing up. I went to the counter and paid for the meals, asking for an IOU of RM3 to be paid later ASAP. The man said ok, and they are closed for the day.
Damn.
If I had used my charm earlier, I wouldn't end up stranded here in Gombak.

I waited for another 15 minutes, and Tamyiz finally arrived - with the'hard earned' 3 ringgit. Lesson learnt - pride could make you suffer, while other people aren't that interested in your pride, anyway. If you want to keep your pride (stupid ego) still, be well prepared, and have lots of cash to back it up!
;)

There you go.

For the record, Tamyiz went to the eatery the next day for lunch - and paid the 3 ringgit.