A Heartwarming And Heartbreaking Moment

As I was at Sup Hussin the other day,and while waiting for the breaking of fast, I saw something heartwarming. I saw a mamak (Indian Muslim) employee or maybe the boss himself feeding homeless cats with kibbles from a biscuit tin.

It can be more than altruism though. Hungry, homeless cats might beg by nudging the feet of customers and irritate or scare some people.

It was heartening and heartbreaking at the same time, for me. The scene triggered some sadness for me. I used to feed some random stray street cats from a biscuit tin previously too. I can no longer feed them because buying of pet food is so expensive and I have 5 other hungry cats at home to feed too.

I can’t work after my discharge from hospital and my revenue is down to a trickle. I worry about the nameless, faceless and homeless cats everyday.

I can look for them and continue feeding again if someone kind or generous can donate some kibbles or a little money by PayPal to tvsmith@gmail.com

Thank you in advance. Thank you, mamak for feeding the hungry strays, not with scraps but with real pet food. I will proudly patronize your shop more whenever I can.

#suphusin #cats #cat #homelesscats #straycars #animalwelfare #mamak #soup #hussinsup #animallover

Goat Soup For The Soul

I was writing about the quaint mosque in Setapak the other day and an IG follower reminded me of the famous sup kambing and popia basah (soft skinned spring rolls) shop found behind the mosque. A non-Muslim friend and I decided to go look at Pasar Ramadan bazaars today. I suggested we go to the sup shop to celebrate the first buka puasa or the first breaking of fast this year.

My bowl of sup kambing (front) and my friend’s sup ayam at the rear of the pic. Sliced loaf of Roti Banggali bread was served (chargeable). I ordered a plate of plain white rice to go with the spicy and fragrant soup.

Am thankful for the simple, affordable yet delicious meal. Grateful for my friend’s flexibility. Honoured to be able to celebrate the first day of Ramadan with a like-minded and good friend. Another wonderful news today. Feeling blessed. Was looking for the teacher who stayed next to the mosque and he called me today and we spoke again after a few decades! That will be a story for another day!

Restoran Hussin Sup & Popia Jalan Pahang is tricky to navigate to if you are unfamiliar with the area. The restaurant is closed on Sundays.

#supayam #supkambing #hussinsup #mamaksoup #setapak #mosque #bukapuasa #ramadan #mamak

The Melting Pot

The Melting Pot.

Yong Suan Chinese coffee shop in Ipoh is a true melting pot with okra and customers from various cultures thrown together. Ipoh resident, Vasanthi Mailany, shot this pic at my request. It is at the famous coffee shop in Ipoh with the Indian Muslim nasi kandar (rice) tenant, also known as Nasi Vanggey, or welcome or “come in” in Tamil, it seems. The curry rice and assorted dishes were reportedly so good and addictive, it gained the notorious name of “Nasi Ganja” .

I tried one in KL and and at a couple more counterfeit shops claiming to be original branches in KL. Whenever, I confront the boss to ask if it is a genuine branch, authorised offshoot or legit spinoff, I get a nervous and suspicious answer.

Friend Jugjet Singh Randhawa saw my post and warned me he remembered seeing a sign at the Ipoh shop displaying a warning stating they have NO other branches, implying all others using the same name are fake. With Vasan’s new iPhone 7 pic, I can finally confirm from the horse’s mouth that there are no branches at anywhere else.

While I like some of the imitator’s pirated food, I cannot condone the plagiarism or blatant misuse of a brand name and riding or profiting from someone else’s popularity and hard-earned success. It is also cheating customers outright.

Many people travel to Ipoh on food trips and you can find many good hotel deals at my Ipoh Hotel Deals Finder Page:

http://www.mycen.my/ipoh-hotel-deals-finder/

Find a good hotel, sleep well and get up early for breakfast in Ipoh too.

Thank you Vasanthi Mailany for capturing a beautiful image of mullti ethnicity that is truly Malaysia. First time I am seeing the shop named as “Perniagaan Nasi Kandar Ayam Merah” and the kopitiam’s signboard spelling it as “Yong Suan Coffee Shop ” and not Yong Shuan Kopitiam as seen many times.

Makes sense because “Kopitiam” is a Hokkien word and Ipoh is predominantly Cantonese. As my friend Jahabar Sadiq, an expert on Nasi Kandar, said: “The senseless copying is getting out of hand and must stop”. Will show a comparison pic of real and fake Nasi Ganja soon.

#yongsuan #nasiganja #nasikandar #ipoh #food #ayammerah #mycenhotels #coffeeshop

Pontian Sunset

Pontian Sunset.

Few visitors to Pontian realise it is a district in Johor where its two coastal towns are named Pontian Besar and Pontian Kecil. Ironically, Pontian Kecil is the larger town and administrative capital of the district. It is famous for seafood, just like Kukup, to the south. Drive even further down the coastal road heading south and you will reach Tanjung Piai at the tip. It is Asia’s southernmost point on mainland Asia continent.

Being a former fishing village, Pontian Kecil is famous for seafood. I hunted down one of its famous wonton noodles stalls. Sin Kee served the noodles with tomato ketchup. The use of tomato sauce is possibly influenced by the town’s proximity to Singapore. Pontian region was also, once upon a time, the largest exporter of pineapples in the world.

I loved chilling out under the casuarina trees at the stalls at the breezy esplanade and watching the sunset by the sea. It was beautiful, making Pontian of the most under rated travel and adventure destinations.

There are many hotels in Pontian Kecil. Find a good deal here:
http://www.mycen.my/pontian-kecil-hotel-deals-finder/

#pontian #johor #pontian #pontiankechil #sunset #seaside #adventure #roadtrip #food #kukup #tanjungpiai #mycenhotels

Riccarton Capsule Hotel Kuala Lumpur

What do we know? Kuala Lumpur has a new capsule or pod hotel in the Tiitwangsa area known as the Riccarton Capsule Hotel.

It is in Wisma Q, opposite the McDonald’s Drive Thru in Jalan Pahang.

The lobby seems very spacious and nice. The pigeon holes in the lobby scared me at first. They can’t fit me or midgets, I thought. Turned out to be lockers cabinet for guests to store their shoes after exchanging for slippers and they are not capsules or pods. Lol.

Beside capsules, the budget hotel has regular rooms with double beds too (at a higher rate than pods, of course).

Book or view more of this new, clean budget hotel here

*Pics: External view by me and rooms by hotel’s website and agoda