Recently, C and I needed a place to have dinner and discuss future writing projects. We ended up just off Jalan Pudu, in a little rectangle enclosed by Jalan Pudu on the west, and Jalan Imbi in the north. To make it easier for the reader, we were near Shaw Parade (left pic) on Jalan Cangkat. I have sometimes driven through this area, and once upon a time, I had even walked here from Menara Promet to join a gym (it turns out to be Gold Gym – note: not Gold’s Gym!). In any case, we parked behind Shaw Parade, and I pulled out my trusty camera to take pictures of the neighbourhood. 

I love these quieter hidden areas of KL. There are so many interesting things tucked away in these recesses, like hidden secrets. There were the usual number of car and accessory shops (left pic above). Gold Gym (right pic above) was looking reasonably prosperous since the time I went in looking for a possible gym membership. From what I recall, it was a serious bodybuilding-type gym. And to prove my point, the sign on the window stated that aerobic classes were “for ladies only”. Aside from Gold Gym on Jalan Nyonya, I also disovered a martial arts place along Jalan Brunei Barat (right pic). 

Here and there, on the first floors and above in some shoplots, were a number of “Tempat Istirahat”, some of which had karaokes and pubs underneath (left pic above). “Tempat Istirahat” literally means “rest place”. I am told that these places are designed to help leave one’s worries behind, as it were. There were occassional touches of colour and individuality, like pic, which was the upper floor for a printing house (if I recall correctly). Further along Jalan Nyonya were large trees in front of the shoplots, lending the street a degree of elegence (left pic). Also along the street was a store housing “Pan Malaysian Acceptence”. I wonder what that is… As usual, there was some construction around the fringes of the area (right pic above). 

At twilight, and during the long Raya weekend, the place looked quite deserted (left pic above), despite its being a predominantly Chinese area. C and I took a walk from Jalan Nyonya down to Jalan Brunei Barat. The initial plan was to have steamboat along Jalan Cangkat, but C spotted this Hakka Yong Tow Foo store (right pic above) along Jalan Brunei Barat, from which delicious smells wafted. He became quite keen to have dinner there, so I agreed to, after we had taked a walk around the area. 

At the end of Jalan Brunei Barat was a little shop with loads of chickens, apparently kept as pets (according to C). One of those chickens (which looked unspectacular to me, but had interesting crests and tails) could cost to RM500 or more. Beyond the shop was a little parking area, around which were newer shops and buildings. We opted to turn left, towards Jalan Brunei Utara. We passed through dank wet and smelly alleys, and came across the rubbish heap in the pic above. Yes, it looks bad, but I can vouch that it smells far worse. Along the alley, I noticed that all the shoplots had the old-school spiral staircases (right pic) which I’ve always loved (picture of alley below). 

Dinner at the Hakka Yong Tow Foo place was an experience. The food was delicious, and I had seconds (which is unsurprising, really). Unfortunately, I discovered that the back of the store was quite dirty and smelly, having to pass it to and from the toilet. Furthermore, the shop was really noisy, being an air-conditioned and no smoking area. C and I decided to postpone our writing projects discussion until after dinner in a more conducive atmosphere. 

After dinner, C took me to the Purple Cane Tea Art in Shaw Parade (pic above). This also was a new experience for me too, since I had never been into a tea house before. The sales assistants were really quite friendly, and they had all manners of things related to tea. I thought what a great place for Christmas gifts (and sure enough, I did a little early Christmas shopping). There was a little theatrette behind the store for performances and the like (as the name suggests, the shop supports the arts). Adjacent to the theatrette was a litte restaurant (which was empty, I wonder whether the kitchen had closed for the evening).

Next to the tea store is an art gallery, “Art De Gallery”. I couldn’t really tell whether I would appreciate the exhibits, since the gallery was shut. However, the sculpture and painting in the front window (pics above) looked interesting. C and I took a little walk around Shaw Parade, which seemed chock full of travel agents. There was a little sale in the courtyard of the shopping mall (pic below). 

By that time, we felt we needed to really get down to work, so we had our work discussion of McDonald’s ice-cream, after which we called it a night.