You must be useful

If you ever feel useless, remember this shoe rack!
 

Pointing out the A** End

 While the police is "managing" traffic at this intersection in Bukit Bintang, one gets more time to stare at ads, like this 3-D visual.

However, the only thing that stays in my mind is that someone had to highlight the cat's a++hole by putting a cross over it. Would it not have been better to simply fur it?

I leave you with this image in your head to ponder the rest of the day, maybe during your lunch break.

What nonsense is this offer???

 Agoda. Platinum VIP user. Benefits. Great.

Latest offer says "Free Mini Bar". Of course, growing up in the 80s and 90s, this meant minis and beers. I have since gotten to grips that there is no more free alcohol in the minibar in hotels. Fine. 

Now, excited about the "FREE MINI BAR", I booked 2 nights in 2 hotels, both having the same offer. THIS is what I found. Sugary drinks, worth like 1 EURO. Nothing healthy, nothing alcoholic. Just an embarrassment. 

I would rather they charge me 4 times what I pay in the supermarket for the convenience of having a cold drink right there when I check in than this abomination of an "offer". I am happy to spend on the hotel experience, often opting for bigger rooms, club floor etc. Just lump in another 10 EURO and give me 6 - 8 free drinks. Of which ONE could be a beer. 

Inflation is Real!

I found this on an machine in a Maybank branch here in Malaysia. The usual question would be: "What must have happened for this to become an issue that needs to be pointed out. First of, we might be among the very last users of cheques. Even I now use WISE for personal transactions.

Meanwhile, would you want to run around the place with a cheque of that size? Most people may not even know how to treat a cheque so that it cannot be banked in by just any bearer. I never had a cheque book until I got to Malaysia though.

Horse-shaped bread

This is a new one. Seen in the hotel adjacent to the China International Exhibition Center Shunyi New Venue. The hotel is likely a "hidden gem" as one cannot find any information about it or its location on Google maps. 

Fine Print

 Now I SOOOOO need this at home. Cutlery with the name of the place on it!

Good steaks too. Must come back to https://smithandwollensky.com.my/ 
Website already looks delicious. 

Forbidden City to Palace Museum

 

When I first visited the Forbidden city in 1998, I was hobbling around the place as the trip was happening shortly after a motorbike accident that left me with a sprayed ankle. Then I came back in 2005 while on a business trip to Beijing. And again in 2025, when covering the Foton Global Dealer Conference. Accelerating the frequency, the fourth visit took place in April of this year. 

The last two visits couldn't have been more different. Last year, there was a tour guide, who provided a lot of good insights into the history of the place. Should have taken his contact, but didn't know then that I would be back so soon. We went through the middle. Paced. Guided. 

In April though, it was time for a couple's trip to the Palace Museum as it has been called for some time. Strangely, even though the name Forbidden City has been replaced in 1925, I have yet to come across anyone that refers to it by its new name. This time, it was a hard left, away from the throngs of people flooding the place. "Fun" fact: around 40 000 people visit daily. The temples, rooms and spaces away from the main alleyway are virtually devoid of people. Folks are being replaced with interesting exhibits: the history of porcelain, depictions of Buddha through the centuries and more could be visited.