My Favourite Stuff of 2018

Just realised I missed out on this great tradition last year. The horror! Well, it's back again. All of my favourite stuff from an eventful year!

Vacation 

Dubai

What an awesome time we had in Dubai! And it's not just the shopping; old Dubai has its own charm with the museums, the boat ride and souqs. And then there's also the desert for a one-of-a-kind adventure. If you have the moolah, dump it on Dubai : ) 

Book

Billion Dollar Whale

A gripping read. You can virtually see the movie as you're reading every step these scoundrels make.

Movie

Bohemian Rhapsody

I love music documentaries/biopics, so this is a no-brainer, really. 

Animation

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

An awesome cinematic experience. Damn, there's so much to like about this masterpiece. 

Song

Lihatlah

Hehe. I'm biased, of course. But so proud of this song that I got to collaborate on. And remember the name: Yazmin Aziz. 

Netflix Shows

Ozark, Line Of Duty, Happy Valley

We've had Netflix for a while now, but 2018 saw us bingeing on all the good bits. So many shows, so little time. And these were my three favourite ones!

TV Show

Kidding

Jim Carrey in a whole different light. Seriously, watch this bitter sweet dark comedy, folks!

Live Show

Guns N Roses

It was raining almost throughout the show. What an epic night!

Historic Event

GE 14!

Apart from my own personal milestones, this was the greatest day ever!

Food, Glorious Food!: Mee Bandung In Muar

We're in Muor and having the best Mee Bandung in town! It's at a typical Chinese coffee shop that also sells Malay dishes. Brilliant muhibbah spirit! The mee bandung itself is wonderful with thick gravy and packed with flavours. It's like how people would cook at home, without the frills to suit city taste buds. 👍👍😊 @ Mee Bandung Abu Bakar Hanipah

Food, Glorious Food!: The Halia, Singapore

Had an excellent breakfast at The Halia at the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Tasty food with peaceful, green surroundings. Perfect!

Food, Glorious Food!: Well, Not Really...

 

We tried this new restaurant near our place yesterday after seeing some good reviews online. When we came in, we were greeted by these two young boys (16-18) who turned out to be the waiters (part time, or maybe related to the owner).

One of them took our order. We ordered 2 wet butter chicken rice sets. My wife then asked the boy what was inside the club sandwich. He didn't know, and went off to ask. He explained to us in an unconvincing manner. My wife said nevermind, and ordered the butter chicken rice as well. She also ordered carrot juice and said twice, "tak nak gula".

The first thing that arrived at our table was the club sandwich, which we said we didn't want. Then the 2 sets of butter chicken rice came. Then the carrot juice which was, you guessed it, NOT the "tak nak gula" version my wife ordered.

We changed the drink, but shared the club sandwich. The food was generally OK. But I was also looking at this guy whom we assumed to be the owner. When we left, we was playing with his phone instead of saying a simple thanks to his first time customers.

But really, why invest so much money in opening a restaurant and pay little attention to the BIGGEST part, service? Why get these two untrained boys to take the orders and talk to customers? Good grief.

The Great Heritage Project: Let's Get To It!

Every time I travel to other parts of the country, I usually rant about the same thing (actually, even to downtown KL): How our old, pre-war buildings are not well taken care of. 

These buildings are historically and culturally important and should be preserved and appreciated. But usually, you'll see them rotting away OR refurbished to look gaudy and unappealing. 

Recently, we took the trunk road from Tanjung Malim to Ipoh and we got to see all the towns in between, each with their own identity, their own set of beautiful old buildings. Happy to see that some have been maintained well, but others left much to be desired. 

Pls refer to pictures attached.

I know that most of these buildings are privately owned and not protected by the relevant laws, but speaking as a lay person, would love to see this become the priority of local governments. There should be more engagement with the owners too, and a masterplan to get everyone's buy-in, even the rakyat. (Do let me know if this is all being done.)

But yes, I am happy and encouraged to see this initiative by DBKL and CGB Consultants in KL! (Refer to pics below). 

Let’s also widen the scope so budgets could be allocated for even non-heritage sites. 

Come on, let's get this done folks!