I had fun doing the post on last month’s trip and wanted to continue riding the post-vacation high. Going through and sorting old photos made me feel nostalgic for the past. Cue this retrospective summary of the trips I took in 2023 (April) and 2024 (February & April). People I tell invariably ask me why I go to KL so often, and if I have a clandestine lover that I meet up with over there. Oh, if only that were true. I didn’t go last year, though. I had been to Bangkok instead, and then spent the rest of the year white-knuckling through a toxic job (that I’m happy to say I have quit). I hadn’t had the heart to plan any travels after that.
I thought it would be interesting to take a walk down memory lane, since I never really mentally unpacked these trips after they happened. I’m in my pajamas, freshly showered, and having a cup of hot chocolate. Let’s see what past-me did for fun.
(The pictures and events aren’t in any chronological order.)
Travel nails! My nail tech Rachel had asked if I wanted to try out a new jelly nail polish. It’s even more see-through since I got extensions, but I still thought they were cute.
Spending time with Bunbun before going to the airport. He’s all snuggled up here as I gave him head rubs. He was more clingy back then as a young bun. He’s much more independent now and not a mama’s boy anymore. I looked for Blackie, but she was napping under the sofa, so I didn’t disturb her.
Where I Caught My Zs
I stayed at Hilton Garden Inn on the first night of my 2023 trip. I had only booked one night there because I was switching the next day to a hotel in the Bukit Bintang area. I just wanted somewhere cheaper for the night since I was only arriving in KL at 8 pm so the day was basically over. But something kept biting me during the night, and my face, which was the only part exposed above the blanket, itched relentlessly.
I struck up a conversation with some Kyrgyz guys in the hotel lobby. I thought I would just practice my (very rudimentary) Russian for fun. “Oh! Vy govorite porusski (do you speak Russian)?” I had asked when they said they were from Kyrgyzstan. They started speaking in Russian immediately to me. They talked at great length, but I had no idea what they were saying. By the time I sheepishly said, “Ya nemnogo govoryu russkiy (I don’t speak much Russian)”, they had already said enough things to fill a small brochure. They reverted back to English. One of them showed me something on his phone, I think it was the local weather forecast for the week in Bishkek. Everything was in Cyrillic. Good to see I’m still awkward when I’m abroad… like starting conversations I don’t quite know how to continue.
I checked out and went to Impiana KLCC where I spent the remainder of my stay.
OOTD. Wow, my hair was so much shorter back then. Having hair that isn’t waist-length is just a distant memory to me now.
That bed was so big and comfortable, I was late to breakfast almost every morning because I didn’t want to get out of bed. The artistic pink-and-grey hisbiscus flowers on the wall were a nice touch, easy on the eyes. I wondered why this was my second hotel in a row to feature hibiscus wall art. Then I found out that the red hibiscus was the national flower of Malaysia. Oop. And to think I’m Malaysian and I didn’t know this.
In 2024, I stayed at Park Royal Serviced Suites.
Cute chicken decor for the hotel lobby’s kampung theme during raya.
My photography skills were really something to marvel at back then. Somehow I managed to turn the Petronas Twin Towers into the leaning twin towers of pisa.
Tattoos & Piercings & Stuff
I got a tattoo of my late Obi Bun in February 2024, a few months after her passing. I wanted to have her walking on a garden of flowers. In the original reference photo, she was stepping on the pillow on her Ikea doll bed. I wanted her on my ankle so that she could be always with me, by my feet just like she was in life (well, occasionally…she does what she wants, and most of the time what she wants is to be napping under the sofa).
In April 2024, I commissioned the same artist to tattoo another rabbit on my back. I wanted it celestial-themed, so I told him to try and do the Lepus (“hare”) constellation inside the rabbit’s outline. Bun-ception. This one hurt, for something that small and simple. I also had to be careful with timing my breathing in between the artist’s strokes, so that the lines wouldn’t come out wonky. I actually also got a betta fish tattoo with some flowers on my upper thigh in the same session, which took much longer and was equally if not more painful. I’m really curious about the psychology behind tattoo addiction, because I now have 4 in total and am still itching to get some more.
I also had two body piercing appointments, which I spaced months apart because I didn’t want to flood my body with too much adrenaline in a single session. Plus, my body was still healing from my tattoo appointments from days before. I chose internally threaded bars with Swarovski crystals at the end, because why not, my birthday was coming up and I love jewellery. I was worried about passing out afterward, so I ate double portions of everything the night and morning before my appointments. The piercings hurt more than anything I had ever felt in my life. I’m very happy with how they turned out, though.
After they tidied everything up, I continued laying on the table for a while and then sat down on a chair for about five minutes before I decided I was fine enough to get up and leave. I took an escalator down and started feeling dizzy halfway through. There was a Boost Juice a few feet away, so I ordered a large drink with lots of sugar and extra everything, and found a place to sit until I felt better. After that, I went to get dinner.
Music Stuff
At some point I went to a strings workshop called Stringmaster, as I needed some new accessories for my violin. The owner, Mr. Wong, was very helpful. I said I needed new rosin for my violin, and he pulled out a bunch of different brands and explained their differences to me. He then asked what type of rosin I was looking for.
I said I was looking for something that would produce a bright sound, so he suggested a light French rosin (“Gold & Silver”/”Or et Argent”). I’ve been using it for almost two years now, and I would absolutely get the exact same one again once this block runs out. I was more conservative with rosin use back then, but I now rosin my bow liberally with each practice session, so the block is getting noticeably smaller quicker. I also bought a new complete set of Dominant strings. Then we chatted about other unrelated things while I was waiting there for my driver.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
This was at Sakana Japanese Dining near Suria KLCC. I thought the food was just okay; I wasn’t a fan, although I can’t remember why exactly. Maybe it was the freshness? Portions? I dunno, but if I wanted to try Japanese again in KL, I’d probably get it somewhere else.
This was a late lunch at Ocean Twe12ve (gosh, the name is so trippy to type). I was walking back and forth around in Pavilion, looking for a place to eat before my 5 pm appointment. It was already 3-4 pm at the time and I hadn’t had lunch yet, so naturally I ordered two dishes.
Above: Grilled sea bass.
Below: Scallops with mango and tomatoes.
Seafood aglio olio from one of my favourite restaurants, D’Empire @ Pavilion. They’re known for their dry-aged beef, but despite my repeat visits, it was the one thing I hadn’t tried yet.
Above: Lamb leg from the same place. So tender and fancy-looking.
Below: Some kind of lasagne.
There’s a story behind this picture that I had forgotten until now. I had a cocktail so I was a little buzzed by the time I finished eating and went down to the building entrance. It was quite late at night and I had booked a grab ride to my hotel which was some distance away. Problem was, it was the end of a long day and I had been complacently scrolling Reddit while eating my dinner, further depleting my phone battery. My phone had died completely by the time I reached the concourse.
It startled me into wakefulness, because what if the phone being off somehow cut me off from the booking queue? There weren’t any taxis around, and I had no idea how to get back to my hotel on my own. I just stood there for a while, trying to think of my options. I couldn’t imagine what I would do if the ride was cancelled. Even if it wasn’t, how was I supposed to communicate with the driver? What if there was some misunderstanding and he pulled up and left without me? Where would I walk to without my maps? What was I supposed to do? It was past 9 pm by then. Luckily, I vaguely remembered the approximate car plate number from when I had glanced at the app earlier. I decided to wait, just in case. After quite some time, the car pulled up even though I had not expected it to, and was about to pass me by when I ran after and flagged it. I can’t explain the relief I felt after getting in and closing the door. I didn’t really care about anything else after that. Now, I either bring a powerbank or a backup phone. Lesson learned.
I think the salmon pasta above and chicken chop below were from Secret Recipe. Yes, in the same meal. I still can’t believe I used to eat so much in the past. My poor liver…Luckily I don’t really binge-eat like this anymore.
I had a fish fillet (above) and seafood pasta (below) at Alexis Bistro in The Gardens Mall. I think these were what I ate after getting two tattoos done in the same appointment.
This was my dinner on the last night of the trip. Yum. It was kind of refreshing to eat something healthy. It was from this place called the Fish Bowl, where you start with a base and then choose what toppings and sides you want to add. I had it delivered to my hotel as I was feeling really tired and it was late. The upside of delivery is that I can just lie on the sofa and close my eyes and wait for the food to come to me. The downside is that the whole thing from start to end takes 45 minutes to an hour, on a good day.
Looking Around
2024 was the year of the dragon, so most of the malls and shops already had their dragon decor all set up.
There was a miffy pop-up exhibit at Kinokuniya. So many colours!
I couldn’t decide which colour Miffy to get. I was torn between the grey and the green ones. I was texting a friend asking for advice on which colour to get. I decided to go with mint green, so this one came home with me. It still sits on my bedroom desk, watching everything I do on my computer, silently judging me as I add things to my shopping cart and scroll Tumblr.
Cute jellycat buns!
I bought one or two mini Sylvanian Family Rabbit sets. I still take them out and rearrange them occasionally.
What a cheerful looking puzzle. I want to find and do the ‘Dinner with Van Gogh’ one one day!
There were some adorable bonsai trees for sale in the Tokyo Street wing in Pavilion.
This was at BookXcess in The Gardens Mall. There was an entire shelf dedicated to having a ‘blind date with a book’. Each book on the shelf is individually wrapped up and assigned a note with vague hints about its contents. These are the only blind dates I would ever consider going on again.
I wonder if there’s a chapter on bonsai trees. I wonder if this book would’ve saved my snake plant. I really like the vibe of this book, the portrayal of houseplants as toddlers on the cover is really apt (um…fiddle leaf fig), complete with hanging crib toys.
Water feature at The Gardens Mall.
I think this is a painting?
Aquaria KLCC
On my birthday, I went to the local aquarium. That’s a great banner. Imagine the graphic designer sitting there at their serious desk job with their morning coffee, photoshopping a songkok onto a shark.
I can’t be the only one who sees a ray and reflexively thinks its nostrils are its eyes.
Spot the chameleon.
Whee!
I was confused at first as to why there was a rambutan in a marine life exhibit.
On the last day of my 2024 trip, I had dinner at the airport and then went to Guardian afterwards. I saw they were selling their mascot bunnies Pom Pom and Bun Nee. I got both. They’re so cute! Just look at those sweet little faces. They make my heart full with their little smiles and floral-print tummies. I hug them to sleep every now and then.
At the airport. Bye, KL. See you again in 2027.