Our stay at Holiday Inn Glenmarie last May

Ravi had his annual Universiti Malaya reunion held at Holiday Inn Glenmarie at Shah Alam.  Sarah and I tagged along.  We drove to KL right after work on a Friday late afternoon and reached the hotel around 9:30pm.

My husband booked a month in advance for a room with balcony.  A very strong musty smell greeted us when we opened our room!  It was bad enough to trigger allergy for my sensitive companions.  Both father and daughter were coughing and sneezing the whole night.  The next day, we opened up the balcony doors to air out the room.  We complained at the reception desk but we didn't smell any significant difference when we got back that night.

The hotel common areas was recently refurbished.  We liked the airy lobby with a classy yet traditional feel.    Breakfast fare was good, with enough variety for the two times we dined there.  The pool has a kiddie area which Sarah enjoyed very much.  If not for the room's musty smell, we would have nothing to complain about of this hotel.

Well lit reception desk

Spacious sitting areas in front of the reception desk

Lobby lounge

Kulit shot at the waterfalls

Sarah loved the big armchair. 

The balcony is one of the biggest I've seen!  It looks out to the golf course

Filling breakfast

The pool and the main building.

This was a nice touch on the pool towels.

She had the kiddie pool all to herself.

Marbles as toilet countertop, good recycling effort.

Sitting on light balls on our way out.

Date night at Vino Vino Bistro

One of our date nights last month was at Vino Vino Bistro, near Queensbay Mall.   Vino Vino has a wine bar and a separate whisky bar on the second floor.  Food items are from the yakitori grill menu.

My drinks - Tequila Sunrise and a Sanpellegrino Chinotto. 

Ravi tried The Macallan which he said tastes very good.

Very cosy interiors with good and soothing music. 

Medal misspelled!

Apparently, folks who ran last June 14, 2015 completed the first Penang Bridge HAIF Marathon!!! 

This race event actually was much better organized compared to last November's full marathon, except for this spelling blunder :)

Misspelled!

Learnings from my half mary

Below are my nuggets of wisdom from my first half marathon experience.  

• Stick to the training plan.  I had a training plan from the Runkeeper app, which asked me to run three times a week - 2 easy runs then a long run in the weekend.  Training prepares your body well for the rigorous half marathon.  Don't be lazy, be disciplined!  Listen to your body, adjust the frequency of runs if you feel discomfort or some pain.   After completing the half marathon, I now know better to follow the training plan as much as possible.
• Carbo load and immune system boost up.  The last few days before the half marathon, I did major carbo loading to store enough muscle glycogen.  Most meals consisted of rice, pasta, whole grain bread, fruits and veggies.  I also took multi-vitamins, CQ10 and fish oil for a week before the race.  In retrospect, I should have taken all those supplements much earlier.
• Fuel aka food.  Oatmeal with honey and raisins was my early Sunday breakfast.  The night before, I took out the seeds of several dates, sprinkled them with salt and stored them in a tiny plastic bag.  A medium sized banana, 1 slice of wholegrain bread with peanut butter and the salted dates were all inserted in my flipbelt.  I consumed all during the 21 km run, taken whenever my energy dropped.  Water and Revive drinks were courtesy of the 7 water stations along the way.  I bought some energy gels but was not able to try them during training.  They said don't try anything new on race day.  Apparently energy gels can upset your stomach and nobody wants that when running.
• Use hands-free belts.  A week before the run, I spied a Flipbelt at one of the travel stores at Gurney Paragon.  It works like a charm and I love it!  I saw different types of belts and backpacks worn by runners along the way but the flipbelt is the best in my honest (and unbiased) opinion.  The major draw for me is its inconspicuousness, I wore it under my singlet and nobody can see it.  It was also just the right size for whatever I needed to store which included my car keys, a RM50 bill and my banana, bread and dates.

Flipbelt image courtesy of flipbelt.com

• Music/podcast + camera.  In my case, a dose of The Morning Rush.  The kikay barkada kept me company.  I had my smartphone in a waterproof arm band, with earphones glued all throughout.  I resisted in taking selfies, the stop will distract me and will slow down my running flow.  I did take several shots of the bridge's main span during which my running app was accidentally paused.  Found out much later on when I realized there wasn't any voice prompts anymore!  I had to reset it, but it was no good anymore. 
• Pre- and post-run stretching.  With the typical early morning start of half and full marathons, our muscles need to be awake and ready for the next hours.  Proper stretching of about 15 minutes and some light walking worked for me.  After the race, deep stretching helps combat muscle fatigue and lessen muscle aches and pains.
• Ice bath.  I soaked my feet and legs in an ice bath the moment I reached home.  From my online sleuthing, ice bath apparently helps in repairing muscle tears and minimizing soreness. It worked!  After a couple hours of sleep, I was at the department store shopping for Sarah's costume for the school program the following week.   Leg muscles were sore but tolerable enough to drive and walk around.
• Motivation.  When the running gets tough, remember why you signed up in the first place.  It may be because running is part of your weight loss program, or you're running for a cause, or maybe even it was a simple dare.  Whatever it is, keep on running.  Visualize yourself crossing the line.  Think of how proud you will be upon reaching the end; how you will look with the finisher medal over your head.  Think of the associated weight loss from all the running and cross-training.
• Invest in proper attire.  A good running pair of shoes will do wonders for your run.  Choose shoes that protects your feet in comfort.  Stylish shoes are not for serious running.  Get some dri-fit shirts, do not use cotton shirts if you don't want to be drenched with sweat.  For women, use a good sports bra.  I wore double socks when I run. Last November's 10km fun run, I ended up with 2 black toes on each foot.  The nails eventually dropped after three months before new ones replaced it.   I used to run using short running shorts but I experience chafing between my upper thighs.  The moment I switched to a capri (also dri-fit), the problem disappeared!  Chafing occurs from repetitive rubbing of skin during the actual running; it may happen on the thighs, arm pits and nipples for men. 

My first half marathon experience

Completed my first half marathon at the Penang second bridge, woohoo!

Early this year, I had the brilliant idea (enter sarcastic voice!) of challenging myself to do a half marathon.  The distance of a half marathon, also called a half mary, is 21 km or 13.1 miles.

I signed up for the Penang Bridge Half Marathon, slated June 14, 2015.  I have a 3-month training plan but halfway through, laziness took over and I failed to do the required long runs (runs above 10 km).  My practice runs ranged between 3 - 6 km, twice a week at most.  Then six days prior the race, I finally pushed myself and managed a 10 km practice run.  It was a measly training, which made me apprehensive and anxious on race day itself.

Site and Route map courtesy of penangmarathon.gov.my

D-day came last Sunday morning.  Flag off was 4:30 am for all categories - Open, Men, Women, Junior.  Adrenaline and excitement coursed me through the first 15 km before fatigue set in.The last 6 kilometers were mentally and physically tough. Legs were tired and wobbly, and there was some ankle pain, so I started walking.  I started running again when I saw the last 2 km marker, literally pushing and encouraging myself to the end.

Clockwise from bottom left:  Hurrying to the starting line;  runners off at the 4:30am start; reached the bridge's main span.

I'll be honest, even though it may seem corny, but about 100m to the finish line, my eyes welled up a little.  It was an intense feeling crossing over that line, a mixture of exhaustion and exhilaration!  My official time was 3:05:14, but then I had a toilet break at the 3rd water station, with ~5 minute queue.  But my time was well within the 3.5 hours qualifying time, so it's all good.

Clockwise from left:  main span on the way back;  check out how far the main span is when I took the photo; the crowded finish line

Now that I know its doable, I want more half marys!   My ultimate goal is to finish a full (42km) marathon before I hit 40 years old.  That's two full years ahead, enough to train well.   That night, I've signed up for half marathon at the Asics Penang Bridge Marathon 2015 this November 22, aiming for a personal record of anywhere between 2:30-2:45 finish time.

A heritage weekend at Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion and Penang State Museum

The very opulent foyer of the Blue Mansion

Two weekends ago, we hopped around Georgetown with Ravi's visitors, Greg and Prashant.  We took them for a guided tour at Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, better known as the Blue Mansion.  Guided tours are scheduled at 11am, 1pm and 3pm daily with a RM12 ticket.

Had an Italian lunch at Via Pre along Weld Quay before we visited the Penang State Museum with a RM1 entrance fee.

Look up!

Door knocker

Sarah preferred the garden outside.  It would soon rain afterwards.

Stained glass windows

Outside the main house

Stolen shots of Prashant and Greg

Old floor tiles

The captive audience

One of the restored stairs

The inner courtyard

Sarah played in the rain!

The tour continued at the upper floor.

The courtyard was flooded from the rain.  There's hidden drains that keeps the water out after a downpour.

Last part of the guided tour.

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Penang State Museum.  Sarah walks by the three dominant races in Malaysia - Malays, Chinese and Indians.

Stolen shot of the boys.

Samples of different spices.

Insignia of the British East India Company

Trying the rickshaw

Congkak in Malay or sungka in Filipino

Kris (sword)

Traditional Malay wedding

Relatives visit at Ipoh

One weekend in May was reserved for visiting Ravi's relatives at Ipoh.

The first family was those of Uncle Krishnan, Ravi's father's brother.  He had his second grandchild a couple of months ago and we visited Uncle Krishnan and the young family.

The 4-month old baby was sleeping by the time we left so she was not in this group photo.

Next we dropped by the house of Puspa and her family for a send off visit to her two kids.  Brinda and Selva are off to the University of Selangor the following weekend.  We wished them good luck in their university days and dispensed some well meaning advice.

Brinda and Selva are the kids wearing red shirts. 

DIY tile grout whitening

The apartment floor tiles needed a face lift and previous attempts to brighten it up using baking powder and vinegar did little to clean the tile grout properly.

I purposely chose May 1 (Labor Day) to do this home improvement project, how apt right? :)

A week before, I bought the necessary tools.  The local hardware stores does not sell any grout scraper and the next best things are wood art chisels from the book store.  With the art chisel, a ready made grout paste, old rags for wiping/cleaning, lots of patience and hard work and we successfully completed the DIY project, yey!

It was a laborious process over three days but well worth it!  We cleaned up the tiles in the living/dining area, hallway and kitchen.  The rooms were left alone as they are haha

Dark tile grouts before the make over

Wood chisels to the rescue!  There were lots of dirt and grime stuck to the grouts.

Look at these beauties after grout paste application!

Just a side by side shot for comparison.
(It was warm lighting at this part of the house, hence the yellow tint of the photo.)