Cruising on Star Cruise Libra 23 Dec - 26 Dec 2011

This is my first time cruising on Star Cruise Libra. Our itinerary is Port Klang > Penang  > Singapore > Port Klang. My family all cruised before except me *sad*
Anyway, allow me to tell you my experience.
The cabin that my mum and I stayed in (Oceanview Stateroom with Porthole) is really tiny... It will be difficult to move about especially those who are obese, because even for me a petite person like me and a slightly fleshier person like my mum have a bit difficulty moving about in the cabin. There's very limited space to even put our luggage bag.

The bathroom was extremely tiny, too.

 Anyway, it's not like I'm gonna stay in the room throughout my holiday. So we just stepped outside and met up with my brother and sis-in-law on the deck.

One thing about this cruise is all food are paid for. They served 6 meals a day: breakfast, morning tea (Mariners Buffet), lunch, afternoon tea (Mariners Buffet), dinner and supper (Mariners Buffet).
And they have all sorts of entertainment, on the deck as well as in the entertainment halls. And they have a small casino, too (not any of our cup of tea, so we practically skipped that, but we do went inside to check it out)
And for my first time, I actually witnessed sun rise and sun set... A breathtaking view indeed...

And on Christmas eve, they have the countdown party on the deck. And to my brother's delight, a chocolate buffet, where all kinds of chocolate, such as chocolate cakes, brownies, tarts, candies and fondue, as well as some fruits.

Something for my brother to look forward to before the countdown party began. LOL

Overall verdict:
I had a really good and lovely time. The whole experience is really relaxing and completely stress-free. Perfect for a quick yet fun getaway for both family and honeymooners. Resting on the deck chair and enjoying the breeze and weather. The food is great, too; good portion and nice choice of dishes. My next goal is to go for the Star Cruise Virgo. Then, hopefully in the future, the Norwegian Cruise Line.

My Birthday Dinner at Tony Roma's Restaurant, Pavilion

Can't believe I'm another year older. Anyway, I celebrated my birthday with my family at Tony Roma's restaurant at Pavilion Shopping Centre.
I ordered grilled salmon steak, which was pretty good. Just a tiny bit hard on the skin, but the flesh are OK. My family also enjoyed their food as well, and thinking of coming back.
However, as we were about to ask the waiter to bring in my cake, which my brother bought for me, my brother noted a small cockroach on the back rest, few inches away from where I'm sitting. I bit my lip from screaming, as I don't want to create a scene. I slowly slid out of the seat and called the waiter to get rid of the cockroach, unfortunately, the 'smart' waiter just waved away the cockroach instead of 'killing' it. We were like, aren't he gonna kill it and let it continue roaming around?!
All of us adjourned to the empty table behind us to continue with my birthday cake. We were quite disgusted with the cockroach and quickly ate our slice of cake and get out of the restaurant.
Definitely, we're not coming back again after the incident...

Shoe Locker in Celebrity Fitness, Lot 10

I've rented the shoe locker in Celebrity Fitness Lot 10, as I'm tired of lugging my sneakers. RM90 for 6 months it's quite expensive, but well, what the heck.
I gave them the locker number and I can immediately use the shoe locker. I immediately put my shoes in the locker and felt my bag so much lighter.
However, on my second visit to the gym, I noted the locker hooker was very loose. I went back down to the reception to inform them and asked if they can get it fixed. So I was told they will call the technician to do it, which will take a couple of days to do it and told me to empty my shoe locker.
So fine, I lugged my sneakers back home. The next couple of days I returned to the gym and noted that my locker is still not fixed yet. Frustrated, I went to complain and they said the technician can't come because of his tight schedule, the technician can't go into the lady's changing room, bla bla bla bla....
I was so sick and tired of their excuses that I demanded to change my locker. They were pretty reluctant at first, and my mood immediately changed. I have to bite my tongue to prevent myself from spitting 'fire' at them. I have f**king paid for the rental and they can't even let me change to another locker and wants me to continue to use the faulty locker. Where is the f**king logic?! But eventually, they allowed me to change my locker. What a night, really.

Signing Up for Celebrity Fitness

I have officially signed up for Celebrity Fitness --- in Bangsar Village 2. At least the consultants there are not extremely hard-sellers *phew*. And I was given pretty good extras, which intrigued me to sign up. Anyway, I will frequented the Celebrity Fitness in Lot 10 as I worked near there. And I'll probably will drop by to Bangsar Village during the weekend or public holidays.
So I hope things will run smoothly for me while I'm there... *fingers crossed*

Implementation of RapidPass Touch 'N' Go

To be perfectly honest, I don't find this method any convenient at all. Not one bit. Instead, it brings a lot of inconvenience. First, the Touch 'N' Go machines in some stations are always faulty. Second, you need to queue up with the rest of the commuters at the gates to get out. Third, more time wasted if the machine unable to read your card or when it said your card is invalid in that particular station, when it is valid at the previous station you came from. Fourth, the RapidPass Touch 'N' Go only valid for 30 days (so how about the months with 31 days?!)
I don't understand why the Prasarana management have to implement such method. Why can't they just improve the punctuality and the efficiency of the service? I scoffed at the remark when they said

"Rapidpass Touch 'n Go is actually a superior product as it offers more flexibility in terms of usage"

 (Excerpted from http://www.mmail.com.my/content/35984-rapidpass-only-30-days)

I seriously feel the manual Rapidpass is much more convenient. Reasons?

1. NO queue. Just flashed the pass to the guard and out you go.
2. NO reload or activation, etc and other inconvenience.
3. NO need to worry about faulty machines.

I'm not the only one who disagree with Prasarana's method. Check out the following links:

• http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2010/7/31/central/6763789&sec=central
• http://blog.thestar.com.my/permalink.asp?id=31392

See, Prasarana created so much inconvenience and disadvantages for frequent commuters like me. I don't believe all the bullshits that come out from their mouth about convenience and following the trend or technology. All bullshits.

Been Stood Up

I hate it, no, let me rephrase that. I totally detest people who stood me up. I find that very irresponsible and disrespectful indeed. You must be wondering who stood me up. Well, it's none other than my Fitness First personal trainer. He did not stood me up once, but he actually stood me up THREE (3) times. The reason? Well, this are his excuses: "I have this other client who can't make it for their session so he swapped my session with them". Or, "I forgot his clients are coming at this time as well, so postpone our session another day". Or, "I forgot to let you know that another client booked me already." And he always like to use his favorite phrase, "We're supposedly have training today..."
WTF?! Who the hell he thinks I am? Hello, I'm your client, too. He thinks that HIS clients can't make it, that doesn't mean he got the rights to SWAP my timing with his clients? Don't you think that's fair for me? So, that means you respect your other client, but you don't respect me? I don't deserve the amount of respect from you? Just because you cancel or postpone once, that doesn't mean you can do it so often. My schedule is not very free as well. I'm a working professional and I can only make it for the training session after work. And it's not I make last minute arrangement. I always did it 2 to 3 days in advance. Isn't that enough notice? I hate last minutes, too, that's why I never want to practice it unless it's a real emergency.
I was so pissed off with him. He seriously took advantage of me. He still owes me 3 sessions, because throughout the rest of the sessions, he always have to leave 15 minutes or 20 minutes earlier, due to the fact he got other clients waiting. WTF? I starting to wonder if he's treating me as a fool here. Just because I'm a woman, he can simply take advantage of me. HELLO! I paid for your sessions. I don't get it for free. And the personal training sessions are not fucking cheap, you know. I have to work my heart and ass to earn that money to pay for your service, and this is how you treat your client?
The only credit I'm gonna give my personal trainer is he manage to get me back into the size that I always wished for.
I really felt so duped. Why Fitness First like to dupe people? Or is it just me? Maybe I'm a magnet for bad luck, I encountered bad people who enjoys bullying weak people like me. This is so sad.
My friend told me to write a complain letter about his performance. I'm still contemplating whether I should or should not do it. All I can say, I am really disappointed and I felt disheartening to even step into Fitness First now. There's no way I wanna continue working out here.

KL Monorail Broke Down

My God! Today the monorail broke down in the morning. And I'm running late for work. Supposedly, I can reached my office in time, but with the monorail down, I have to look for another alternative. Stupid monorail. I always stressed out when monorail broke down. Why can't it be as efficient as Ampang/Sri Petaling Line (formerly known as STAR LRT)? STAR LRT rarely has problems (except for their air conditioner as sometimes its not working) and I'm always confident and at peace when I ride in STAR LRT. However, for KL Monorail, practically everyday I have to pray that the monorail worked.
The waiting area is already small and the crowd is building up, thus the area became very hot and stuffy. I felt really dizzy that I can't take it anymore. Of all time the monorail broke down. It just have to break down during peak hours
And that's not it. In the evening after work, the stupid monorail is not working AGAIN! Oh My God!!! What the F*** is wrong with the monorail?! This is really frustrating. Why can't they rectify the problem?! They certainly enjoy causing misery and inconvenience to passengers. If it wasn't for the horrible KL traffic, I rather drive to work than to take KL Monorail. DAMN, monorail.

Faulty Machines in Fitness First, Menara MBF

Today a few things doesn't work in Fitness First. The water cooler and the soft drink dispenser broke down; the water cooler in the female's changing room never worked; and a couple of the exercise machine broke down, too. Hmmm, what's wrong here? 
Even though they provide warm water and hot drinks, but after a workout, I rather drink something cool to quench my thirst and rehydrate myself.
I hope they can get them fixed soon. I don't care of the exercise machines, 'cos there're other machines I can use. I just need the water cooler to work.

First Impression of Fitness First

I have signed up for a 3 month contract package with Fitness First. Upon signing up, I wasn't informed that there's no stock of the starter kit (consists of backpack, water bottle, face towel and headphone). And, I was so-called offered a 3 month free shoe locker service, unfortunately, after I signed up, then I was told that there's no availability of shoe locker. And I was indirectly called short, as the front desk personnel said only the higher shoe lockers are available for tall people. Short people like me, have to wait. I was quite insulted after hearing that. I mean, if the sales consultant could honestly tell me earlier there's no availability, I wouldn't have signed up. So I was sort of felt duped by their sales strategy.
They told me to wait, for only God knows how long. This is so disappointing.

Sales Manager at Celebrity Fitness in Lot 10

I have went to 3 fitness centres. The scariest of all the sales persons are Celebrity Fitness in Lot 10. The first sales person who assists, is very friendly and not so agressive. A pleasant young man, named WN. He showed me around and promoted the club's facilities and membership. I was quite sold, and preparing to sign up, until when he mentioned about a HSBC credit card promotion. Well, since I have HSBC credit card, naturally I want to know what HSBC has to offer. However, he is not certain of the promotion, thus he walked back to the reception counter and brought along a man with him. And that's when the nightmare began. 
WN brought with him Mr. Halim, the Operation Manager of Celebrity Fitness. He is extremely aggressive and totally hard-seller. I was totally freaked out, that I told him many times that I would like to consider the deal. However, he insists of asking me to consider it at the spot. He's not willing to let me go. I felt like, he literally wanted to chain me to the chair and want me to sign up right there and then, without any consideration and wasting both of his time and mine. I started to really boil up. When I finally insisted that I want to think it over and will come back in 20 minutes time, he finally relented.
When I stepped out of the club, I actually heaved a long sigh of relief. I felt like I have been released out of prison. There's no way, I'm going back there, since it took me 'ages' to get out of there. My God, that is one scary dude.