Here I am in Sydney.

It has been more or less 3 months since I left Kuala Lumpur for the land Down Under. I love Sydney for the weather, the view, everything but as the rain falls outside and the room feels cool, my mind rushes to a tropical city with after the rain. The smell of moisture that is unmistakably Kuala Lumpur’s.

I think I miss the city already. I can see the all so familiar places in my mind’s eyes. Sigh…

I suppose home will always have a place in my heart, wherever I am.

I had heard that Langkawi was a tax free zone.

It might be, but in my humble opinion, Penang (read: Georgetown) can be a pretty good place to shop at times.

The best public toilet goes to the toilet near the Petronas towers near the KLCC in the garden

:)

Random rants from a visitor to KL :)

I am Talha from Islamabad Metblogs. I am in KL for a while and shall be posting my experiences in this city for the next some days.

Till now – I am loving the city.

Guess what Suria KLCC is doing to celebrate Earth Hour?

Shutting off the lights? Dimming off the lights?

No. Giving out free F1 tickets.

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters Life!) – A Malaysian mall is marking the global Earth Hour climate change initiative by dimming its lights — and offering tickets to one of the world’s most polluting sports to well-heeled shoppers.

More than 80 countries have signed up for Earth Hour on Saturday in which homes, office towers and landmarks such as Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Stadium and New York’s Empire State Building will turn off their lights from 8.30 pm local time.

“Earth Hour Specials 8.30 pm-9.30 pm, March 28th 2009: Free! A pair of F1 grandstand tickets when you spend 1,000 ringgit ($276.1) and above in a single receipt,” said promotional posters placed around the six-level Suria KLCC complex.

I promise not to set foot in Suria KLCC for a very long time. I will encourage other people to do the same.

I don’t mind if they do not want to participate in Earth Hour but to do so in the name of Earth Hour is missing the point.

The management of Suria KLCC is made of idiots.

Hours of downpour translated into traffic snarl.

Fortunately for me, my workplace for today close to home. So, I only had to suffer a short time trapped in massive traffic congestion. I escaped Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman by using the road passing by Sultan Sulaiman Club.

My joy was short lived when I discovered that Jalan Raja Muda was simply impossible. It went on as far as the eyes could see. Scouring around, I finally decided to try Kampung Baru and boy, I enjoyed the cool wind.

I thought I outsmarted the traffic by cutting through Kampung Baru but I later found out that Jalan Tun Razak was not moving at all. The cause of all traffic was Jalan Tun Razak!

And the reason for the situation in Jalan Tun Razak was flash flood. Reading from the news, Batu River was overflowing. That was a good 5 km away but here, at the juncture of Semarak, Raja Muda and Tun Razak, a stand still. A couple of ambulances got stuck in the traffic. Somehow, I thought, the drivers were giving up.

The trains were not in operation either. At the time of press, I am still unsure if the trains are in operation. There was a disruption of electricity during the heavy rain. Having been through a time when train service was disrupted during rush hour, I understand how sucked it would have been to be a train commuter for day.

That little open parking space at Central Market has to be the worst place to leave your car behind for hours.

The radioactivity of biological refuse is affecting my olfactory.

It was 4AM and there was a deep noise lasting minutes.

Disturbed, I woke up and checked the windows and saw nothing.

Was it a dream?

No, I did wake up and I saw nothing.

The noise.

I think I’m afraid of sleeping alone now.

Ah, crap. Where did all of the vehicle come from?

The road was empty last week.

It was hazy in the morning today.

My cat farted.