Last month I took part in my second 10K run, the Adidas king of the Road. Last year was my first race ever, you can read about it here. A lot of stuff happened in between these two races. Since that last race, i had quit going to the gym since i changed jobs, and i only ran on weekends if i had the time. I had only re-joined a gym shortly before this second race, probably for just over a month. At that same time i ran an 8.5K night race, another first for me. So all in all, this time round I was more prepared mentally (no more…

It was a public holiday, and instead of the usual shopping mall trek or sitting at home in front of the telly, some friends and i decided to go to Jeram Toi waterfalls near Jelebu. I’ve been here before last year on my many trips to Kuala Klawang in Jelebu. Its easy to go, very near the main road, and suitable for kids. So in the morning, we loaded the cars and convoyed down the LEKAS highway. The waterfall is about an hour away, turn off at the Jelebu exit and follow the signs. The lower parts of the falls has a man-made pool with water slides. Right above it…

I was a member of Fitness First (FF) for about 4 years, at the Curve Branch. When I joined the gym coz it was near my workplace at the time in KD. I had the choice of Celebrity Fitness in 1 Utama, but FF was nearer, plus you know how the parking situation in the mall can be at times. True Fitness opened a branch in Sunway Giza but that was much much later. When I quit my job, I terminated my membership at FF. A year later I joined Pure Jatomi Fitness (PJF) in Tropicana City Mall. The story is that the founder of FF named Michael sold his…

On the night most serious runners were in Putrajaya running the Shape Night Race, i was halfway across the Valley running another smaller race. About a month ago, a few days after the closing date, my wife and I signed up for the Tropicana Nite Race IV. This race was 8.5 km on buggy tracks across one of the best golf courses in the city. I signed up mainly as a warm up for the Adidas King of the Road in October, and probably to put my end to my lack of serious exercise lately. 90 minutes before the start of the race, we were on the way and it…

Our final day in BKK was mainly a late breakfast, lazing around, packing, and getting to the airport. Getting a cab was a bit of a problem, we finally found one to take us for THB400 plus toll. Toll costs less than THB100. Thankfully, AiraAsia didn’t delay on us (have we come to expect that of them?) and I spent a good part of the flight finishing Joe Abercrombie’s The Blade Itself on the iPad. (Overhead bridge in Khlong Bang Luang) By the time we got back to home sweet home, it was almost 8pm. Looking back, it was a great and fulfilling holiday, considering it we weren’t supposed to…

Monday is Day 5, its also a public holiday, the Queen’s birthday. It’s also Mother’s Day in Thailand. I thought it would mean the malls would be packed, but it was no different from any other day during our trip here. Which was good for us. I had booked discount tickets to Siam Ocean World via Hotels2Thailand, they offered really cheap tickets compared to the counter price. If you buy the tickets from the counter, there are two prices, one for Thais (or at least those who can read Thai) and one for foreigners. This is actually quite common here in Malaysia too, they usually call it Mykad price. Anyway,…

(This is part of an ongoing series. To start at the beginning, click here.) Day 4 is a Suuuunday… And Sunday we were supposed to go to Koh Kred to see the Sunday market and see local pottery industry. Koh Kred is a (really) small island in the middle of the Chao Phraya river 45 minutes north of BKK. But since we had spent too much than what I expected for the tour to the floating market, plus not really wanting to go with the hassle of public transport all the way (it had to be bus-ferry-boat to get there), I decided to spend the day as what most Bangkok…

(This is part of an ongoing travelogue. To start at the beginning, click here.) If you ever in Bangkok for the first time on a weekend, there is one place you are bound to visit – Chatuchak market. Chatuchak is synonymous with Bangkok, its probably the largest of its kind in Thailand. Its open on weekends only so if you are planning to go, go early to avoid the crushing heat. Getting there is the easy part – both MRT and BTS bring you right to the market. We reach just after 9, there was already a steady stream of tourist making a beeline for the market. Even as you…

This is part of an ongoing travelogue. to start at the beginning, click here. Day 2 started very early. The tour guide was scheduled to pick us up at hotel at 6.45am, so we woke up at 6.00am and went down for breakfast at 6.30am. Breakfast was in a small venue looking out to the pool. the food was limited to 3 different dishes every morning, in addition to bread and fruits. But everyone gets a breakfast Western platter with eggs done to your choice. (it was scrambled or sunny side up for me) (the shaded pool) The tour guide came a little early, she was an unsmiling lady who…

The initial plan was to do a year-end Melbourne & Sydney road trip, maybe 9 or 10 days doing a slow drive across the countryside in the late spring. But due to some financial commitments, plans were shelved and then changed. It then became a Hari Raya holiday, since it was the only time I could get off work. The thing about August – its probably one of the worst time to go vacation, second only to the New Year super-peak. If it isn’t typhoon season (Hong Kong, Macau, Maldives), its the biting cold and wet (Perth) or its the hottest month (Saigon, Hanoi). And with it being Eidul-Fitr, Muslim…