The Advent of Online Shopping

Lately I have become more and more comfortable with online shopping due to the convenience and the variety of choices available.
My earliest experience was from ebay to buy some books, and then groupon to buy the most unusual stuff. But now I have moved to buy clothes, sports equipment, mobile phone and accessories, and even an LCD TV from online stores.
The advantage is I get to compare prices for the same standard items.  I am most impressed by the TV delivery, ordered on Friday morning, delivered on Saturday morning.  (lazada.com.my).

One thing I learnt when buying things online is that it is better to order standard items.  And check the sizes carefully, measure and visualize.  For other items, it is better to have a cash-on-delivery option so that you can view and see the goods first, unless the items are of low value.  This is very true for clothes, I would probably not buy online anymore unless the prices are so irresistible.

Every time a package comes, I would be so excited.  Like the song that goes: "brown paper packages tied up with strings".  Love the brown packages and crisp sound of paper!  Feels like getting a gift, even though you know that you bought it for yourself.

Where to repair Luggage Bags in KL?

I have a Pierre Cardin luggage bag on which the handle was broken.  And my mom has a California Pak that was perfectly new and good, except for a faulty handle that wouldn't go up or down.  Stuck.
As I felt it would be a waste to just get new luggage bags, I decided to hunt for a place to repair.
There is a famous one at IPC, which repairs shoes and luggage bags, but being located in Damansara, you can guess that the price would not be surprisingly low.
Anyway, I looked on the web and found that customers were raving about this place.

 City Luggage, No. 39, Jln Jejaka 7, Taman Maluri Kuala Lumpur.

They were raving about the good and professional repair works at reasonable prices.  I sent my luggages there due to the good reviews.

And I was not disappointed, within a month, they repaired my 2 cabin bags and 1 backpack.

They couldn't get the same colour material as my maroon backpack. But this is good enough.
I am satisfied with the repair works.

Cash-back for Selling Phone

My faithful phone

A note of gratitude that while I upgraded my phone to Mi3, my previous phone was put up for sale yesterday as a 2nd-hand item and it was quickly sold today, at the reasonable price that I asked for.  The quick sale meant I would not have worry that phones will continue to depreciate with time as new technology comes along.

Cherating Getaway

Cherating Beach

In a practically last-minute plan for a weekend getaway, I made a late booking to Cherating, Pahang.  J wanted to take the kids for a beach holiday and he insisted on the East Coast because the beach and sea are better when facing the South China Sea.
Most of the accommodation were fully booked due to the school holidays, however we tried several websites and were lucky enough to get the last family suite at Holiday Villa Cherating.
While it is rated a 4-star hotel, we noted that the TripAdvisor reviews were 6.6/10.
Anyway because of the last minute arrangement we didn't have much choice.
After I made the booking through the Agoda website, I was quite disappointed to note that having paid a high room rate it didn't include breakfasts for the 2-nights' stay.
I checked the school holiday promotion on the Holiday Villa own website and noted that the rate was about the same as I paid, and that included breakfasts.
So, I called up the reception and asked if I could make a special requests to the HV GM, who always seem to be very attentive in replying customers' review, to get complimentary breakfasts for the family suite.  After putting my request in writing, the GM replied the day after, giving a simple "OK!"
Wow that was very generous of him.  We got 4 complimentary breakfasts per night.

1 of the 2 bedrooms in Family Suite

Upon arrival, the kids were excited to see the family suite that we have booked.  Although it was old, the furnishings were adequate and functional.  We are thankful for everything that went well - hot showers, cool, quiet aircond, quiet surroundings especially the bedrooms.

The family living hall contained old pieces of furniture, however was fully functional with a day-bed cum sofa, 2 armchairs and a square dining table.

And the beach lived up to our expectations.  Soft, golden sand and warm, warm sea.  Perfect for swimming. And immediately melting the stress from living in the big city!

Father and kids finally coming up after being yelled at many, many times as the noon sun beats down

This was a dream getaway with lots of time for leisure, driving around to enjoy all the tourist-recommended food near Balok, Chukai and in Kuantan town itself.  Time to relax, unwind, enjoy a book.  Memorable!

My must-haves in the shade