Ikea, Ikano and The Curve are not places to go if one does not own a car. Wuan and I were there last Saturday. The cab fare from Pandan Perdana to Ikea was RM20.00. That was slightly more than what we paid for the trip to One-Utama for the Bloggers Meet in January. As long as the cabbie charged us according to the meter, we were happy to pay.

We went looking for a disabled toilet as soon as we go out from the taxi. The problem with disabled toilets at Ikea is that the male and female disabled toilets were located inside the respective normal toilets. Wuan was a little reluctant but we used the disabled toilet in the male side anyway.

Photo by Wuan.

The toilet was just large enough to fit a wheelchair in with some room for maneuver. There was even a button to call for help – the first I have seen anywhere in Malaysia. The sink was fitted at a height that was easy for people on wheelchairs to reach conveniently. Next to Mid Valley Jusco’s disabled toilet, this gets high ratings for functionality and a well thought out design, except for its location.

Photo by Wuan.

We had lunch at Manhattan Fish Market while waiting to meet up with De Book Worm. Wuan ordered Baked Fish in Garden Herbs. I had Crunchy Garden Salad. The salad was nothing to shout about. It was lettuce and tomatoes and some other vegetables with Thousand Island Dressing. The fish was served in a pan with rice. I stole a few bites. The rice was especially delicious.

Just as we finished our meal, De Book Worm arrived with hubby and daughter in tow. She had put up an entry on that meeting in her blog. As usual, I was the quieter one. Still, it was nice meeting up with someone whom I have only chatted with through Yahoo for the past few months. We parted ways at around 3:30pm and loitered around Ikano.

At around 7:00pm, we hopped over to The Curve for a light dinner and a quick look-see. We had planned to go back at 8:00pm. It was all quiet there, very unusual for a Saturday evening. When we passed Marche, there was a long queue waiting to get in. We were very tempted to eat there but decided otherwise. We did not want to be late in going back.

Photo by Wuan.

There were no taxis outside The Curve. We spotted a few parked at Ikano just across the road. Traffic was heavy but it was a good thing there was a pedestrian crossing. Cars stopped as we crossed. At Ikano, Wuan indicated to the first taxi in the queue that we wanted to go to Pandan Perdana.

“Empat puluh ringgit,” the cabbie said.

Wuan and I looked at each other in disbelief. We told him that the fare was only RM20 for the same journey that morning. He went on and on about the distance and that he had waited for a while there. We ignored him as he babbled on.

“Brapa lu mau bayar?”

We shook our heads.

“Dua puluh lima ringgit.”

We shook our heads again. We would not get into his taxi even if he went down to RM20. These are the dishonest and lazy cab drivers that are giving the industry a bad name. Wuan called a radio cab but the operator said there was no response. There were several people waiting across the road at The Curve. We thought we could hail a passing cab there too. After waiting unsuccessfully for a while, we thought about William and called him up to “rescue” us.

“Have a drink first. I’ll call you when I’m there” he said. William stays at Pandan Perdana too.

Photo by Wuan.

We went browsing at Ikea instead. It was almost closing time. I got a few packets of tea light candles. Wuan bought several other items not available elsewhere. William called while we were at the checkout counter. After paying, we tried to get out of Ikea the same way we went in that morning but the guard asked us to use another exit. That main entrance was locked and he did not have the keys to it.

Cynthia and Wuan wasted half an hour looking for an exit, she from the outside and Wuan from the inside. That was ridiculous. Obstacles that were put up to prevent the shopping trolleys from being taken out of the premises also prevented my wheelchair from going out. There were no signs to indicate where people in wheelchairs could exit after closing time. Thank God for caring friends like William and Cynthia who got us out of sticky situations like these time and again.

Kim Laksa, Balik Pulau.
Photo by Wuan.

Peter took Wuan and me on a quick trip to Balik Pulau. Wuan is partial to the Siamese laksa there sold by the stall known as Kim Laksa. She had missed it on her past few trips here. Her trips to Penang will not be complete without a bowl or two of that. The stall is located in a kopitiam just beside the Balik Pulau market.

Kim Laksa, Balik Pulau.
Photo by Wuan.

On the other hand, I am not fond of the coconut based gravy. The asam laksa is still one of my favourites although I have stopped taking it. The gravy of the asam laksa consists of tamarind, sardine or mackerel flakes, belacan (shrimp cake), among others, and topped with shrimp paste (heh ko). Mackerel, sardines, belacan and shrimp paste are food I should avoid to reduce the amount of uric acid in my blood.

Balik Pulau native product – preserved fruits.
Photo by Wuan.

We did not stop to eat-in because the sky looked like it would rain again any minute. After she had bought enough laksa to feed a small family, she went into the market to buy some of Balik Pulau’s famous native product to take back to Kuala Lumpur. Nutmegs and mangoes from the nearby hills are preserved in syrup and make nice titbits to nibble on.

Stall selling cheh hoo, Balik Pulau.
Photo by Wuan.

When she came out from the market, Peter and I pointed to the cheh hoo stall and indicated we wanted one packet. Cheh hoo is a platter of shredded cucumber, yam bean (sengkuang), crispy prawn fritters, tau kua (hard bean curd), potatoes, eggs, prawn cake and topped with a gravy made from sweet potato, chilli sauce and crushed peanuts.

Balik Pulau durians.
Photo by Wuan.

Since we were at Balik Pulau and Wuan absolutely loves durians from there too, we got three durians from Peter’s cousin for RM30. One of them is the famed hor lor (gourd), an award winning fruit that is quite popular among durian aficionados. The King of Fruits is rather expensive now as it is just the beginning of the durian season and fruits are rather limited at the moment.

Related entry:
Tsunami File: Southwest Of Penang

Images of my Kuala Lumpur trip in January have been uploaded to the Gallery.

• Flight from Penang – 14 images
• KLIA and KL Sentral – 32 images
• Berjaya Times Square – 15 images
• One Utama Bloggers Meet – 36 images
• Post-Bloggers Meet – 6 images
• Miscellaneous Photos – 8 images
• St. Francis Xavier Church – 13 images
• Kuala Lumpur to Penang – 74 images