Kuala Lumpur's Best Rojak Buah

The stall is located at the corner of Lorong Chow Kit 1 (In the background is the old A&W restaurant)

My favorite rojak man.. he makes each pack and eah kuah individually hence the long wait... but the taste
have never changed for the past 30 years. I guess that must be his secret

For months I have been craving for my favourite 'rojak buah'. The old man selling them used to set up his stall in front of the General Hospital Kuala Lumpur at Jalan Pahang, just before the Pekeliling roundabout. I have been his customer since I was 6... well, initially I was mom's errand girl, standing in line to buy the delicious rojak.

Apparently, since about a year he has changed his route, business hours and site... hence my failure to locate him the last 2 attempts. Anyway, someone told me to look near the old Federal cinema and to my delight there he is today. His stall is located at the corner of the old A&W (now a printing shop) at Lorong Chow Kit 1. As usual, the line was long and I booked my 7 packets of rojak before I went shopping.

What is so good about his rojak? I can't explain but the kuah (gravy) is so thick and tasty plus the fruits are freshly cut just before you buy them... and on top of it, he puts fried chakoi....Hmmm....

Another reason why I like the old man is he always give priority to those who come first. As a kid, I used to wait and wait for my turn and occasionally some adult who is in a rush would come and try to get him to serve them first instead of me. He would not argue but smile and continue to make my order first.... I guess the made even kids feel important!

Anyway, because of this I am happy.... by the way who ever wants to try the BEST rojak buah in KL should see him at Lorong Chow Kit 1 ( his business hours is from 1.30pm till about 4pm).. Just be prepared to wait in line.

Chiengmai - The Leisure aspect

Although I was in Chiengmai during puasa I managed to squeeze a few recreational activities during our free time.

In a gist, Day One - we went to see some elephants (though if I was alone I might not want to spend 1200 Baht for the entrance fee). All of us felt cheesy but then the organiser did made an effort to keep us entertained. Later that evening, buka puasa was at the Night Market and after that the boys went berserk shopping.... who says boys don't know how to shop!













Day two, first day of course. At night was the Course Dinner at a seafood joint. Initially planned to go shopping again but I overate (Gluttony!!!) and thus went back to the hotel and slept. (sheesh)

Day three, workshop ended early. Initial plan was to go out at about 5pm and walk around. Came down to the lobby and none were around. The others apparently felt tired and wanted to laze by the pool and jacuzzi... Oh ya, did I mentioned we stayed at this very, very nice hotel - Kantari Hills Hotel and service apartments which has great facilities. I would not mind coming again here

And so, the hyper me went off walking from our hotel to the northern part of the ring road and later reach the Night Market just by the time nearing breaking fast. Actually I cheated a bit; after about 3/4 of the distance I was a wee bit tired and I hailed the red cab (that charges flat rate of 20 Baht). Anyway, found a muslim hawker and bought some food there.

Temple seen at the northern ring road - note the silver and gold tree at each side; reminds me of the times the Malacca government used to send 'duit emas' as protection money to the Siam empire

Later i went for a massage for 30mins of relaxing back and shoulder massage I paid 80Baht(CHEAP!!!!) ; by the way if only costs 120 Baht or 200 Baht for an hour or two respectively.

This paper shop in the Night Market have loads of handmade textured papers that is not so expensive. My favorite find of the day!

And then, I went on a shopping spree. Bought unique hand made stuff like hair clips, key holders, handphone charms. I must say, the market in Chiengmai have more unique stuff; loads of ideas that I enjoyed seeing. I must plan my next trip there soon... and this time it is only for a holiday!

The Cadaveric Workshop -Chiengmai

The past few days I was in Chiengmai attending a cadaveric course on arthoplasty. This is my 2nd cadaveric course the first was the MIPO (Minimally invasive plate osteosynthesis) course in 2008 in University Malaya.

Outside the cadaveric Workshop (aka disecction hall)

This course was jointly organised by University Malaya Orthopaedic Department (Arthroplasty Unit) with University of Chiengmai. It had only 9 participants hence the hands on workshop was excellent with one on one guidance by the facilitators.

The participants and facilitators

Cadaveric disection workshop is an integral part of enhancing a surgeon's skills and Department of Orthopaedic Chiengmai University have been organising similar workshops since 4 years ago. It helps the surgeon to appreciate the anatomy with relation to the surgeries or procedures they are practising to perfect.

The bodies were donated by the people themselves for the purpose of helping doctors improve their skills. They were treated with great care and respect and it is no surprising that the cadavers were nickname 'grandmaster' by those who benefited from their use. At the end of the day, the bodies are given a royal burial with blessing from the King for contribution to the nation's future.

I assume this means 'Department of Orthopaedics'
Everything was in Thai. Thank god we had our 'tour guide'

As a sign of respect, we were asked to observe a moment of silence prior to the workshop session. It is such a great sacrifice by these people and one cannot help but feel humbled by the whole experience.

I was glad I went and kudos to the arthroplasty unit UMMC for the great leap forward.