Happy Bday to JW

I know it is a little late to say this, but Happy Bday Jinn Wei. This post comes up at the very end of the day so pardon the timing.

Jinn Wei's 19th Bday Cake

Last Wednesday I went on assignment to Zouk in KL. No I wasn't assigned to drink myself stupid. Rather, it was a launch party organised by BenQ. While there was no actual agenda for the evening I helped myself by taking plenty of photos in the club. Anyways, these are the pics I took that day.

Arrival at Zouk KL

I got to the club early, more like a whole hour early. The event organisers weren't through with the preperations. With time to spare, I was together with a bunch of other journalist out at the Terrace Bar to grab some drinks. There was this one guy who looked through the menu and came across an interesting drink. Believe it or not, the was called a b10wj0b. We all laughed when we asked the waitress to give him one.

Presenting the Blowjob!

The party got under way at 7pm

Inside, it was sorta like a cultural clash of music and dance. A Chinese Orchestrial Group sat in one corner playing music.

There were Malay guys showing off their skills with a gasing (spinning top).

Guests were encouraged to take part in the festivities. Looks like this awkward dance routine has got somebody laughing.

The floor was getting more crowded as the night went on as dealers and members of the media came in to take a look at BenQ's latest products.

After dinner we were treated to a Wayang Kulit (shadow puppet show).

I took a peak at the back and was quite amazed at the amount of man power used to create the show.

A lone Malay man reads out a script provided by BenQ. His paper characters danced and jiggled as he promoted BenQ and Microsoft's products. The man's knowledge of the English language was not that strong, but we got the message. Simple sentences like "Windows Usta, very good product" accompanied by "BenQ, very good. Good product" were scattered througout his performance.

This is probably my favourite shot of the night. I was snapping like crazy behind the scenes hoping to capture the rare seen of a man conducting Wayang Kulit. Hopefully, these pictures do justice for, what has become, a dying Malaysian art form.

The night was still young, but I could no longer stand the environment inside the club. By the end of it all I was smelling like a cigarette. All I can say is, this is one place I don't intend to spend any weekend at.

Going 360 on the Eye

Last Thursday I was invited to go for an evening event organised by Symantec, the people behind Norton Antivirus. They were going to launch a new product by the name, Norton 360. The weather that day wasn't particularly friendly. It was pouring non-stop.

I slowly made my way over to Tasik Titiwangsa from my office. The traffic was not too heavy along the way though it smarted getting heavier as I neared by destination. I found the place easily enough, thanks to a handy map book and some nice big signs. Now if only all places in Malaysia have nice big signs to point us to them.

Upon reaching the lake, I was surprised to find that there weren't any commercial buildings nearby. In fact, the area around the lake was no more different than the housing area surrounding Taman Jaya. Very surprising that our main attraction for the year is in such an isolated area.

It was still raining when I got out of the car. Seeing that there weren't any buildings or function hall in sight, I began to worry. A small tent with yellow banners told me I was in the right place. The PR person in charge gave a weak smile and asked me not to mind the damp state of the place.

A disused capsule near the entrance.

The ticket booth leading to the Eye.

Once the event was over, the members of the media were hearded together to take a ride on the Eye on Malaysia. I was surprised to see that the capsules were quite small. Enough to seat four people. Riding up on the Eye, the space was a little crammed. I didn't mind that. There wasn't much to see around the Eye because it was still raining at the time.

Riding up on the Eye.

The nicer view of the Eye

The not-so-nice view from the Eye. Notice the squater houses behind Istana Budaya.

All in all, the Eye is a nice attraction that's a good show for relatives from out of town and the occasional friend from overseas. The ride up was ok. A little bumpy but overall safe. Bewarned that you will be up there for 15 minutes, so if you are afraid of heights, this won't be a short ride.

Places I've been to this week (and last week)

Recently it's been getting harder to post up stuff. Not alot of stuff has been happening. The others haven't planned a meet in a while and Kat is still bogged down with work. That pretty much leaves with pics of (surprise, surprise) work.

Well, since most of these pics won't make it out on print, I thought I might as well put them. So here's a start to the "Places I've been to this week" series. Enjoy.

Last week, Panasonic Lumix Launch at Carcosa Seri Negara

This is Carcosa Seri Negara. A hotel in a secluded spot near the Lake Gardens in the middle of KL. It's quite a swanky place given the fact that some historic figures have lived here since the British Colonial days. Queen E even stayed here when she visited our country.

The interior is really classy and gives an air of chivalry and class. It really gives you the impression that you've stepped into an English governour's mansion to have a cup of tea (which we did, the media I mean. scones and everything)

Looking out, the exterior of the building looks nice and cool. The perfect place to laze through Sunday afternoons .

Sony VAIO launch in KL

A guy performing at the start of the VAIO launch.

The full range of models each holding a Sony VAIO that sorta matches their personality and style of dressing. The guy on the far right was the probably the most out standing, surfing around the stage with a psuedo skateboard and performing jumps off the stage.

Sony Malaysia's bossman, Naoi Sudo flanked by models. I don't see Ronson anywhere though, guess he will be making his appearance one day on stage (either as an executive or a model).

Promethean Activboard Launch, Alice Smith School

This is Alice Smith Primary School. Looks more classy than any govt. school. This is the first school I've seen where all the classrooms are air conditioned and the guards carry those long mirrors to check the underside of cars. A very tightly guarded place with lots of rich foreign kids.

Can't remember the name of anyone in the pic. But that is the Activboard, a stylised whiteboard that you can write on and interact with. Certainly makes boring classes more exciting. The kids at Alice Smith don't mind spending extra time in class to have a go at the board.

Chinese New Year Part 2

This post is long over due but the Internet connection from my place hasn't been kind to me as of late. In anycase I just wanna put up pictures I took while I was in JB two weeks ago. Today's already the last day of Chinese New Year. So I guess it is best that I get all the new years things over and done with. Enjoy.

Ah..Jlan Ru. Weird name this road has. I've seen this sign for many years cause my grandpa on my mom's side lives here. The ugly looking ads on the side are the sign of the times. Ah Longs are willing to stick on anything to get their services seen and heard.

My grandpa's place.

"Bubbles"

One of my cousins and my brother, playing with bubbles at my grandpa's.

Amanda and my uncle

Lunch was a simple affair. I didn't eat anything as I was still suffering from diarrhea at the time.

Guess who's the monkey in this picture.

All aboard!

Holiday Plaza in the distance.

I didn't get to see much of the place and there wasn't much to see. Most of the shops were closed for CNY. As you can see, most of these entreprenuering DVD sellers offer delivery service across the border to Singapore.

The family gathering at my grandpa's place after dinner.

My cousins playing Blackjack. Notice that almost everyone is wearing red.

We got our hands on some fireworks. Nothing fancy. Just some small tiny ones that go pop.

Fire at will!