will i am's delayed diary

For the first time ever, a Merdeka mass was celebrated at St. Ignatius Church. Parishioners were encouraged to dress up in traditional costumes. Mum dug out her baju kurung , while I went with a red top I bought for CNY. The East Malaysian parishioners were the most impressive. The church was decorated with the Jalur Gemilang , and mini flags were distributed to everyone ( surprisingly provided by the town council ). Before mass began, there was flag raising ceremony with everyone singing the national anthem.   Was supposed to have a double date with Terrance and Phillip at Palilos , but Phillip caught a stomach bug, and FFK-ed us. Already our second time there, don't think will be going back again. Expensive, slow, and hard to book. Not very satisfied with dinner, we made a stop at Super Boring Club just a few doors away. The 3-for-2 cocktail offer called to us ( not like we didn't have sake earlier ), and we had a plate of grilled kimchi octopus, and Korean garlic fried chic

Mum's pilgrimage buddies from East Malaysia planned a trip to Cameron Highlands, and she joined them. KH and I took the opportunity to go on a little road trip of our own. Batu Pahat was our choice I had never been there ( KH went there with some guy years ago ), and it was a great opportunity to visit Mei and MiniMei. Before leaving KL, we had breakfast at Cotta , Bukit Damansara. Perhaps you can guess that their specialty is ricotta cheese. The owner's morning energy was a little painful for me to watch, even with a long black in hand.   The drive to Batu Pahat was pretty smooth, but we were a bit spooked by a route that Google Maps chose for us-- a single lane road with palm oil trees all around. Our timing was pretty good because her class had just ended when we arrived at her doorstep. She gave us a short tour, and she drove us out to lunch at Kampung Segenting, a fishing village nearby. Parked outside, and walked in. The main attraction here is the Lover's Bridge, whi

Sensing my mood from my recent work troubles, KH brought me out for a night out at Rivercity, Jalan Ipoh. We were a tad early for dinner, so we stopped at Curio Coffee Roasters first. A very small cafe located atop some spiral stairs. Saw a very familiar face. See if you can recognize this cutie from social media. Google Photos definitely did a very good job for me. Managed to match him from sexy screenshots from donkey years ago. The wonders of technology. Curio closes at 6PM, so we had no choice but to head over to Artisan's Playground . From what I gather, its a food court for restaurants, but the vibe was amazing. There's an option to order from a McD-esque kiosk, but I don't know why people use it when there's a online ordering option. The waiters are all robots, but they still have flesh and blood waiters on standby in case things go wrong. We had a wagyu burger, and apam with mutton curry. And I caved when I saw the cute Yoda cocktail.  Started the date with mat

Mum was off on a trip, so KH and I went on a staycation in the heart of KL Tried our luck for early check-in at Stripes Hotel but our room wasn't ready. Ok lo, so we went for lunch at Kwong Cheung Loong Kopitiam , a pet-friendly kopitiam / cafe / bar. The lines are so blurred here that the guy next to us was having nasi lemak with his Golden Retriever at his feet, sipping a cold beer. Halfway through lunch, the front desk called to inform us that our room was ready.  The room was pretty nice, but the view was obstructed by the red brick facade that gives the hotel its distinctive look. The pool is located at the roof top and provides a view of KL Tower. Managed to squeeze in a swim. Our dinner venue was back at Heritage Row-- Kappo Takebayashi . Actually, we spotted the Japanese chef during lunch while he was walking his Shiba Inu. His cute doggo was staring longingly into Kwong Cheung Loong, hoping to join the other canines in there. Uncommon items on the menu like sea eel, but th

Trekking and hiking is more up KH's alley. The timing of his trips are usually not compatible with my schedule because it would clash with Saturday market and Sunday mass. Finally he found something that fit both my timing and fitness level. The place is called Mars Hill, and is located in a palm oil plantation in Sepang. It was organized by a bunch of millennials, and were just tagging along. The meeting point was at a dragon fruit orchard ( so many of them along the way, no wonder the market is flooded with draginfruits! ) in Sepang. Unfortunately, the bunch of kids could not be punctual. The stragglers delayed the trip from 4:30PM to 5:30PM, wasting precious daylight. Lots of girls on the trip. Those who took the time to put on makeup, and bra tops were given a rude shock by how unforgiving the late afternoon sun was. On the hand, I came prepared with umbrellas and arm sleeves.  The terrain was mostly flat, with lots of cow pies scattered on the paths. Our guide for the day prov

Not long after my run-in with COVID-19, KH organized a trip to his friend's durian orchard in Melaka. Both our mothers joined us, so it was an interesting bonding session. Located at Durian Tunggal, the orchard was pretty easy to get to as it wasn't far from the highway exit. The durian trees are planted sporadically, interspersed with other fruits like rambutan. More a retirement project than a commercial undertaking, there's plenty of flowers on the grounds too. Also spotted some bee houses, probably to aid in pollination. Freshly-gathered durians were collected at a shed, and we made our picks there. Well to be exact THEIR picks, I was just there to watch.  Another interesting thing about the orchard was the three-storey homestay that was built on crest of the hill to tap into the ecotourism market. The top floor provided a great view of the surrounding terrain. Got a few lunch recommendations from the host, and we left for Melaka town. Once we had cleared the hundreds o

One of Kenji's many food cravings was Klang BKT. KH recommended Links , a weird name for a BKT restaurant. A family-operated place with limited servings. Much of everything that we wanted was sold out. Argh. Garlic pun takde . Cannot brain. Just took whatever they had. Then it was shaved ice desserts at Queen of Spades , a random choice. Left Klang with some takeout-- mui choi bao from Klang Food Center , and Angcle Peoh 's assam laksa .  KH was nursing a sore throat and he still went for heaty BKT, and ice desserts. He had already complained about a scratchy throat during our Friday dinner date. Other than that, he seemed OK. On Sunday, mum and I attended a Corpus Christi procession on the church grounds. The last procession we had was before the pandemic, and the route involved public roads and the adjacent housing estates.  On Monday, I too had a bit of a scratchy throat. Didn't think much about it, and met up with Tater and Ray for dinner at JJJ Ya . The ice-cold Suntor

Made a visit to a church friend who lived nearby. His father was a Parkinson's patient whose condition was deteriorating. Once he returned home from a stint in the hospital, we decided to pay his father a visit. His dad looked frail, but was still able to get up and about for short periods of time. Things were kept lively in the house by their cute pet Corgi, who seems to understand Hakka. Drools all over the place as his tongue seems permanently lolled to the side. And he goes crazy over tissue. Literally, crazy.   In the evening, it was date night KH. Hubby made reservations at Palilos , a Spanish fusion yakitori restaurant. The place is so popular that one needs to book months in advance. To avoid any traffic weekend traffic snarls during the weekend, we arrived a little earlier. Went to Elephant Republic for an iced coconut latte. Another IG-worthy cafe, but I can do without coconut milk in my lattes.  Palilos is one those places that you avoid if you're hangry. Great amb

After years and years abroad in Canada, Kenji has finally relocated back to Malaysia. The usual scenario-- to help out in the family business. Long before his return, we had already been discussing what Malaysian food he would like to gorge on. Picked him up ( still not braving the Malaysian traffic ) from his new place in Shah Alam, and brought him to dinner at T.J.K. Little Wok . Not exactly a famous place, but KH chose it because of the proximity, and variety. Kenji looked well, but he wasn't exactly thrilled about his homecoming. Hopefully he would get a hang of things soon enough.  No makan-makan session would be complete without dessert. Deliberated with Sharky and found that Subang was the closest option.  Soypresso piqued Kenji's interest because he has a weakness for those taro and yam balls. Why stop at one dessert place, right? Before calling it a night, we went to Roji Monster Ice Cream . They seem to put googly eyes on everything, but imagine my disappointment wh

On a whim, KH and I decided to go on a road trip to Sekinchan, with my mum in tow. Being the first day of Raya Puasa, the roads were quite clear. Mum suggested our first POI-- Kuil Sri Maha Mariamman, a Hindu temple at Bukit Rotan. Unlike the the typical Hindu temples, this temple is not painted in multi-coloured hues. Everything is in a pale yellow. In the evening, the spotlights are switched on, and that gives the temple a golden hue. Even in the day, it is beautiful with its intricate details. During our visit, a Hindu prayer ceremony was ongoing, and in the background, a Raya Puasa sermon was blaring from the surau beside it. A few doors down, was a Methodist church.  At around 10 AM, we had arrived in Sekinchan. Looked for a breakfast spot near the morning market. Restoran Sing Ming Kee  looked really popular among the locals. A hot mess. Unfortunately for KH, the curry noodles was sold out. We settled for some wantan noodles, and fish head noodles. Nothing to shout about. Good t

The next morning, we did some exploring around Jalan Gaya. Grant recommended that we try an old pastry shop called Keng Wan Hing that was famous for its buns. Most of the customers were senior citizens who probably live nearby. Eat, kopi , chit-chat in Cantonese, then leave with several plastic bags filled with old school buns, probably for their grandkids. After breakfast, KH bought more 4D at Diriwan, another local brand.  We took a long link bridge from behind our hotel to the wet market. Typical PasarPride stuff. Outside, near where the boats pull up was the seafood market. Some exotic stuff like sea grapes, Moray eels, and parrot fish. Typically, tourists come here to pack frozen seafood in styrofoam boxes to hand carry back to West Malaysia. Back at the hotel, KH and I put on our swim trunks and went swimming. Truth be told, my first swim after 2 years! Really helped us work up an appetite. Fish noodles is a famous dish in KK, and Fatt Kee is one of the famous shops serving it.