Dim Prospect of Success

Week 43: 11/02/2013-17/02/2013

I caught up with Z twice this week, firstly for a cheeky beer in Backyard (live music every night) and secondly for a Valentine's Day dinner in a mamak somewhere in Sri Hartamas. Dinner total RM33.50, paid for by Z!! Cheapest Valentine's outing ever!

Yee Sang - tossing raw fish and vegetables with chopsticks whilst making wishes about the future "Prosperity! World Peace!" Thanks Wajih. 

On Tuesday I experienced my first Yee Sang (salad tossing) for Chinese New Year. A bunch of us made the trip to Cheras and Jags showed us how to celebrate in style. After food, we congregated on a street corner to send some lanterns, laden with our hopes and dreams for 2013, into the night sky. After a few abortive launches and some excess flames, we finally launched our fleet (although one did end up in someone's front garden!!)

"Prosperity! World Peace!" Thanks Wajih.

At Tom's belated pancake day celebrations on Friday evening I had this gem of a conversation.
- Hot Girl: "I used to date a guy who looked like me"
- Me: "Wow. That must have been really weird."
- Hot Girl: [pulls disgusted face] "Ugh! No way! He was beaut-i-ful!!"

Slave Driver Jags after making me get up at 5am. Grrrrrr.

Saturday was an early start, as Jags forced me to join her on a hike up Bukit Kutu. Not being a morning person I spent the hour's drive north cursing her over my (Chicken) Sausage & Egg McMuffin. The hike itself was good, a nice group of people and rewarding views from the summit. It was great too to meet a fellow (really) white man, Ginger Seth. After some "gweilo" banter with a restauranteur, we had a hilarious innuendo fueled drive home. I wrapped up Saturday with a trip to Jalan Alor with Dylan.

Oh, Happy Hokkien New Year to you too. Not only is this fortune less than inspiring, the late night fireworks were also a distraction.

Still in the new year spirit of CNY Gemma, Becky and myself took a mini road trip, in Sunny D, to Thean Hou Temple, decked out in all its lantern glory. I had the misfortune to get my fortune for the year of the snake.... Luckily I don't believe in that mumbojumbo.

Gong Xi Fa Cai

Week 42: 04/02/2013-10/02/2013

The week got off to a bad start when I had to abandon my Monday morning (Super Bowl Sunday!!) to attend a meeting instead…. talk about inappropriate work life balance! I managed to avoid the score all day, and after dinner with Pip and Charlie watched the full game on GamePass. Go Ravens! Great game.

Zeat Bar with Jags, Carol, Nasch and Rahul.

During the week I caught up with Elke (nice pool), hit Taps and Jalan Alor with Dylan and Cory and ended the week having a quiet dinner with Lianne at Hakka Republic (“Sorry, no desert, we’re cleaning the kitchen”). My early Friday night got waylaid by a trip to the Zeta Bar with Rahul, Jags, Carol, Nasch and Elke.  Great to see some live music, not so great to over indulge in vodka though. My slow Saturday was punctuated by a great catch up on Skype with Nige.

The worst interviewer ever (TV), me and a lion, Wajih interviewed (paper)

On Sunday, in the search for an authentic Chinese New Year experience I join Jags and a few others to attend a CNY Open House. After a horrendously early start, under clear blue skies, we ended up at a government sponsored event which was closer to a political rally than a CNY celebration. Most in attendance were only there for the free food though. 

High Pole Lion Dancing in KLCC

Being some of the few foreigners in attendance we ended up getting interview for tv and newspapers and photographed by professionals and amateurs alike. 

In the afternoon we caught some High Pole Lion Dancing at KLCC. I’m not quite sure how authentic my CNY experience was, but I received plenty of free oranges and even got my first ang pau.