Walk and Eat With Passion @ Jonker Street

Part 2 of my Melaka trip a few weeks ago.

Jonker Walk is the MUST VISIT place for me whenever I have the chance to set foot in Melaka.

The narrow road flanked by old shophouses comes alive during the weekend (Friday, 6-10pm. Sat/Sun, 11am-10pm) with hawkers, traders and street performances. Lots of things to see and buy - souvenirs, t-shirts, toys, etc.

For me, it's a place to savour street food of Melaka, especially of Nyonya origin.

Yummy Chicken Rendang Noodles.

Nyonya Laksa....Extremely rich and creamy. Hahah! Be careful, you might get a coconut milk overdose!

During the day time, Jonker Street is a place for antique lovers to hunt for treasures from the past.

My friend bought this for RM2. An EP of Hakka traditional songs!

Hoe Kee - famous for its Chicken Rice Balls. At Jonker Street.

Tender juicy steamed chicken in light soy sauce.

The must-try yummilicious Chicken Rice Balls.

I think this couple's putu piring is featured in The Star Street Food Guide. I left my copy in the office!

Simple yet delicious putu piring - Steamed rice cake filled with gula melaka (palm sugar) and eaten with shredded coconut.

Not the usual fried carrot/ radish cake. This fler also sells fried pumpkin cake! I love it! 50sen per piece. Very nice!

Finally, the video of Jonker Street. I didn't post the pictures of the famous pineapple tarts above. They were finished when I realised that I have yet to take the pic. You can see them in the video freshly oven baked at the shops along Jonker Street. :)

If you have not ride in a beca or trishaw before, you can find them at the entrance of Jonker Street (near Stadthuys). The trishaws here are nicely lits with bling bling lights and some even come with loud boombox!

ENJOY!

KL Lantern Festival 2009

KL Lantern Festival 2009 was held in conjunction of Mid Autumn Festival . I am not going to explain the origin of the festival. Click the link to find out. :)

I'm such a goodies bag junkie :) It's one of the reasons I come to the festival at the first place.

What's in the goodies bag?

1 x Mooncake

1 x Lantern

1 x Mineral Water

1 x M-150 Energy Drink

1 x face mask (To Prevent H1N1) but nobody was seen wearing one later, except me. :)

Meet Jenny, a regular at roadraces especially when there's fancy dress category...She handcrafted the lantern herself!

I arrived in Central Market where the event was held around 5:30pm, after a visit to Dr. M's Raya Open House. Malaysia is such a bless country - so many festivities for us to enjoy!

After collecting the goodies bag, I waited for the event to start. I still have around 2 hours to kill. The dragon and lion troupes were busy practising. So, I shot some of these....

Little Simba...

"When I grow up I wanna be the Lion King"

A rip-roaring welcome for the guests!

Lantern with Dayabumi in the background.

Dayabumi Building. The colourful stage for the festival is located outside Central Market.

The press cameramen posed these little kids for photographs. No prize for guessing, the theme is 1Malaysia. :)

M-150 Energy Drink promo girls. Do you feel energized already?

Little fairies? Well, they are not so little....Heheh!

Fireworks.

More firework...

Indian man.

Indian girl.

Malay boy, tired of waiting.....Why do the VIPs always arrive late? LOL!

They finally arrived with a bang! Yup....fireworks in the sky. Not C4. :P

As usual, there way lengthy speech....

There was also the 1Malaysia logo shaped mooncake cutting ceremony....

There was shameless public display of affection. ;)

And there was the lantern parade.....

It was like the circus was in town. Everybody came out to see the freakshow. Almost madness! Photograhers were running and chasing after the our PM. Curious on-lookers jammed up the streets. Bodyguards and the police were trying to push everybody away to make way for the VIPS.....

The lantern parade started at Central Market, passed Kota Raya Shopping Center before turning into Petaling Street and back to Central Market again.

I left Central Market after the parade. There was lion dance going on but it was getting late. I felt very tired as I was out and about the whole day long.

As I was about to board a RapidKL Bus home, the fireworks lit and decorated the sky....What a night, eh?

Here's the video.

See our beloved PM, Dato Sri Najib paraded down the street of Kuala Lumpur with 1big 1Malaysia slogan, 1big lantern and 1big erm...nevermind.

Also look out for the part when the whole procession 1Malaysia stopped and waited for our "beloved" First Lady to change her heels to a pair of more comfortable shoes DURING the parade! :)

ENJOY!

WISHING YOU A HAPPY MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL! :)

Lenka - Enjoy The Show Live In Malaysia

I meant to post this yonks ago but haven't got the time to do it. It was recorded couple of months back when Lenka was in town to promote her album.

She is back to Malaysia on Friday for another showcase at an event organised by some alcohol company. To gain entry you have to buy one friggin bottle of booze! This sucks! So, with a heavy heart, I am giving this event a miss.

Anyway, hope you like the pictures and video here from her previous visit, brought to you by Telekom Malaysia & Sony Music.

"Cute" is the word to describe Lenka. The stage was decorated with multicoloured letters that spelled out L.E.N.K.A, props, flower and this...a little pig!

Lenka opened "The Show" with "Trouble Is A Friend". How can be a sombre song about trouble sounds so cute? :)

Lenka is an Australian television actress and singer-songwriter, most famous worldwide for her song "The Show" from her eponymous debut album.

Trouble is a friend but trouble is a foe, oh, oh.... :)

Keyboardist cum trumpet blower.

Lenka wowed the crowd with her sweet voice and even sweeter personality.

I'm glad that she came with her own band rather than relying on minus one music.

Not only Lenka can sing, she can play musical instrument too! See that tiny red heart on her instrument? Cute!

Don't Let Me Fall....

Band members - bassist and a lady drummer! Fierce!

Blowing her own trumpet and good at it. ;)

Nice legs, eh?

The crowd went crazy when she finally performed "The Show". Many know the lyrics by heart! Me? I just know that "I Want My Money Back" part. Heheh!

Lenka capped her show with a song called - We Will Not Grow Old. Well, don't know about her age, but her music certainly will grow old. :)

At certain angle, he looks a lot like a thinner version of Mel Gibson. :)

I certainly ENJOYED THE SHOW!!!

Later, Lenka went shopping at Petaling Street and tweeted that she found her pirated CD there! LOL!

If you're a Lenka fan, get her original CD at your favourite CD store, ok?

Here are some snippets of her performance at 1-Utama. Check out Lenka's attempt to speak Malay. :)

The sing-a-long crowd was fantastic! :)

ENJOY THE SHOW! (You don't get your money back here because it's FREE! Heheh!)

Acknowledgment: To my friend Chee WH, Thanks a lot for the privilege pass to see Lenka!

Timex Run Accepting Donations For Philippines Typhoon Victims

I received this email from a contact from the Philippines. Rio is a runner, coach and roadrace director. Please read.

Dearest Friends,

Marikina City has been my home for most of my life and it fills me with great sadness to witness and experience first-hand, the tragic events that occurred over the past weekend. In one sweep, many lost their homes and the lives they’ve always known. Some have to deal with the painful loss of friends and loved ones in the midst of the tragedy that struck our beloved city.

Now, more than ever, I’ve realized how fleeting and fragile life can be. And despite both of my cars needing major repairs and the first floor of our house looking like a huge mess due to the flood waters that ravaged our subdivision, I am still better off than most of people in our neighborhood.

As I stood on top of a rock outside our house surrounded by a raging stream of flood water, seeing the far worse conditions experienced by my neighbors, I remember telling myself that it doesn’t matter anymore if Typhoon Ondoy takes away my Speed Racer and Bubble Bee and suck them completely under water. Losing my precious cars is nothing compared to the suffering that other people went through, some of which I painfully saw with my own eyes.

It was truly heart-breaking and I can’t help but be thankful that I am still one of the luckier ones.

In line with the surge of relief operations from kind-hearted and selfless souls all over the Metro, the 2009 Timex Run will be accepting donations in cash and in kind, to aid our displaced brothers and sisters in Marikina City during their time of need.

To start the ball rolling, the 2009 Timex Run has decided to allot a portion of the event’s proceeds to the affected Marikina residents. I am also donating 40 sacks of rice and about 700 singlets to several barangays within Marikina City, but more help is needed to reach as many victims as possible.

Items such as ready-to-eat food, rice, noodles, potable water, clothes, blankets, beddings, towels, and other basic necessities will go a long way to help our fellow Filipinos get back on their feet.

Volunteers are also more than welcome to offer their time and energy to help pack relief goods and distribute them to the different barangay halls and evacuation centers in Marikina.

All 2009 Timex Run registration sites will be accepting your generous donations.

I am also opening my home at 46 D. Macapagal St. Vista Valley Subdivision, Sto. Nino, Marikina City, if you wish to send them in bulk. All participants, including friends and family, are invited to the distribution of relief goods on November 15, 2009, 1:00pm, at the different barangay halls and evacuation centers in the hardest hit areas in Marikina. These include Industrial Valley, Tumana, Concepcion, Calumpang, Nangka, Sto. Nino, Sta. Elena, Tanong & San Roque.

Thank you so much for your willingness to help us reach out to the countless victims plagued by Typhoon Ondoy. May God bless your homes and keep you safe. More power to the running community!

Sincerely,

Rio De La Cruz

Timex Ambassador/ Race Director

2009 Timex Run

It is heartwarming to see that the running community in Philippines to do something to relieve some fo the burdens faced by the thyphoon victims.

Please contact rio(at)runrio.com should you need more info or find out how you can help.