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Haven't had time to do my regular cataloguing cos have been occupied with work, play, and .... jeng jeng jeng ...

INDIA!!!!

So was that 18-year-old foaming-at-the-mouth wait worth it?

Hell yes.

To quote this quaint restaurant in Mysore that a rickshaw recommended to me (yes, and I use the word quaint most legitimately! Check out the menu below!), it exceeded my every expectation.

I love the hospitable people. The vivid colours. The tongue-singeingly spicy food. The eye-popping OTT-ness.

For proof, just check out the menu below.

Quaint kan?

I'm already planning my next trip back.

Chennai? Calcutta? Bombay?

Going Places, August 2010 - The Malaysian Issue

Say triple whammy, somebody!

Not only did I have three stories in GP, two of them got a cover mention. Thank you so much Vivian. I was walking on air for most of yesterday - still am, I think. Pinch me, somebody ;)

More background details later but for now, may I present (ahem ahem) ...

On the trail of Tunku Abdul Rahman

Thank you Sharifah Intan, Kim Gooi, Cikgu BK Yap, Anthony Law, Lubis and Tan May Lee for your invaluable input. Without you, the story wouldn't have been possible.

Town Tales

Thanks so much for your tips Rabani Ayub (who also has a photo byline in this month's issue), Anthony Law, Kelvin Egay, Boon Tan, Uncle Lim, James Tan of Motormouth fame, Mr Chong Sun Yit ... Pardon if I have accidentally missed anybody out.

Biz Talk: Personality - Jeevan Sahadevan

It was a pleasure working with you, Jeevan :) And thanks Noelle for the introduction.

I just looked at the list and ... oh boy, I owe a LOT A LOT A LOT of people coffee :P

Fashion Focus

Shall I ...

... go all girlie in silver Christmas tree earrings, flowery sundress, and Audrey Hepburnesque red shoes?

... defy all sartorial logic in an unseasonal White lace kebaya-inspired top, a black latex singlet, black skinnies I got from the Bercham market and red shoes?

...or channel Katy Perry in RM3 Esprit factory overrun shorts, black Pack Promod singlet & RM10 Thailand black knit top

Ah. Which girl isn't clothes mad?

Mixing and matching is more than just riding the residual buzz of retail therapy; it's the whole theatricality of the act, like orchestrating my own boutique theatre production.

I love the heightened drama as I clack out of the house in my three-inch heels; the contagious playfulness that colours my mood when I flounce out in my riotous bohemian skirt; garments are not just something to shield me from cold or immodesty, don't you see?

When I was a kid, I practically gobbled up fashion magazines.

Many an afternoon was spent, bent over the fashion pages, while my fingers lovingly traced the clean lines of a box-like shift while the mind marvelled at the fluidity of jersey wrap dresses.

So much so, I became extraordinarily well acquainted with fashion parlance.

I could recite from memory the subtle differences between silk brocade and silk jacquard.

I could reel off the entire spectrum of hues (crimson, fuschia, magenta, vermillion, scarlet ....) with such authority my science teaccher would surely beam with pride.

I was, and still am, a clothes fiend to a T (... or should it be T-shirt? :))

Ergo, what assignment could be more fun than traipsing through the yummiest fashion boutiques ever invented? :)

Conservation through Children

Community, Going Places, Sept 2009

This story was special for two reasons.

One, it afforded me another welcome opportunity to return to Penang, where I spent my formative adult years. As usual Penang didn't disappoint. Its streets are as colourful and lively as ever. It would seem, from the outset at least, that the charms of Georgetown are relatively insulated from the recent economic meltdown.

Most importantly, it brought me face to face with two extraordinary women: Janet Pillai and Chen Yoke Pin, who along with Kuah Li Feng are the main drivers behind Arts Ed.

Anyone who has lived in Penang would have heard about Anak-Anak Kota, the Arts Ed-initiated programme that aims to preserve local cultural assets through children. Getting secondhand information and actually being part of them are, I discovered, two very different things.

On Saturday morning, I joined the kids on a heritage walk. They streamed in and out of hallowed institutions around the Streets of Harmony, armed with nothing but pencil and paper, maps and a boatload of curiosity. We visited St George's Church, Acheen Mosque, Masjid India, and lots more, all beautifully-preserved, legacy-rich landmarks I'd driven past a zillion times and never even stopped to look, until now.

The weather did little to dampen our spirits. For starters, the facilitators' own enthusiasm for their subject was infectious. Gamely toting umbrellas, we trekked through puddles, huddled on roofed pavements when the rain got too heavy, and even stopped over at a warung where an be-saronged uncle sportingly demonstrated how to pull teh tarik and make roti canai.

Heh. If only my own history lessons were half this fun ...

In that too-short span, I began to develop an appreciation for what Arts Ed has been trying to do in the last ten years: to conserve our legacy through children (thanks for that great headline, Viv!)

Anak-Anak Kota - and by extension, Arts Ed, are a living testament of what real passion can do. Salute, Janet and team.

If you'd like more information about Arts-ED activities and program, Tel/Fax 04-263 3471 or visit www.arts-ed-penang.org

PS Swee Wah, thanks a million for providing the link.

KL City Tour

Only two words to describe my reaction when I got my April 2009 copy of Going Places: Shock and awe.

That was before I flipped to my article and went Holy crap.



















12 Hours, Going Places, April 2009

I walked past this building, went inside, gabbed excitedly about it to the editor, waxed lyrical about it and yet never in my wildest would expect it to look this good in print.

I guess this is what separates the wannabe (photographers) from the already-theres.

Righto. Back to (amateur) photography 101 for me :(

On the bright side, I never knew buildings could be so exciting.

I perambulated through Dataran Merdeka. Soaked up the atmosphere at Sin Seng Nam over a plate of Hainanese chicken rice. Witnessed the abhisega ceremony at Sri Maha Mariamman Temple, during which Lord Murugan, Lord Ganesh and Seri Mariaamma's figurines are showered with buckets of unguents (yoghurt, milk, saffron, coconut water, honey etc) in individual stalls. Absorbed fascinating historical trivia about Yap Ah Loy and gang at the Taoist Sze Ya temple, named after his “Tze Ya” (an honorific for Yap's subordinates who were killed during the civil war) - one of whom was said to ooze white blood, hence cementing his deity status.

In other words, I played tourist to the hilt and enjoyed every minute of it. Thanks to KL boy, practising architect and ardent conservationist Lim Take Bane, for his invaluable input in helping me plan the itinerary.

Most importantly, this walkabout changed my perception about buildings. I finally understood what my passionate historian and architecture buff friend, H, meant by "Buildings are repositories of history. All human stories have an indisputable connection with different buildings."

The happy side effect?

These days I drive my friends batty when they drive me around and I go, "Hey, that's art deco" or "Oh look Moorish architecture"

The Chinese will say, "Sik siew siew pan toi piew" (Know a little but pretend to be an authority on the subject) :P

Ok, H, what were you saying about a crash course in architecture?

Railway Junket

Going Places, March 2009

So so so ... did the highly anticipated jungle train ride live up to our sky-high expectations?

You bet!



















Don't underestimate this gingerly old girl, she goes so fast, it's like surfing on rails! Now if only all assignments were this fun :D




















There's a chicken in that basket, if you didn't know that already. The Gua Musang platform turns into a makeshift market when the passengers from up north disembark. Read the full story when you get your copy of GP on Malaysia Airlines lah :D

I actually had a ton of photos from my own collection - but ... I lost all my photos when my hard disk crashed recently ... *dabs eyes tearfully*

I know! I'll just have to go there again!

Train ride, anyone? :)

Your Guide to Malaysian Festivals

I love this month's Going Places (MAS' inflight magazine). Stunning photographs, absorbing articles, and ... I got a whole 9 pages! :D

Interestingly, it was GP which actually sparked my interest in my cultural roots. While doing research for a Chinese New Year article last year, I discovered just how deeply steeped in fascinating folklore and customs the Chinese culture is. Now I know why the Chinese elders always harp on their 5000 years of ancient history - it's bragging rights well deserved!

Dang. Now I wish I'd paid more attention in POL class - then I wouldn't be going "huh?" when my dad, mum, Sam and Chang start inserting perplexing Chinese idioms into our conversation!

Try this on for size. Do you know that "pat yuet sap mmm"(literally 15th of the 8th Chinese calendar month) is a genteel euphemism for your derriere???

Skypark at Subang

The latest jewel in Malaysia's aviation crown
MillionaireAsia, Issue 3, Volume 1, 2008

KL Explorer

The Complete Residents' Guide

The KL Explorer isn't meant for tourists who are just looking for the best Twin Towers photo ops - it's written for the intrepid resident and traveller who knows the value of year-round sunshine (paraphrased from the foreword).



















The Kuala Lumpur Complete Residents' Guide has been meticulously researched and written by a team of seven city experts who n ot only know the city inside out, but love it too.

Available at all major bookstores