Will continue where I left off... :D
Like I said, we went to KL City Centre, and our first stop was at Petaling St, which is also 'home' to Chinatown. Nice cheap place to get food and shirts. Definitely a must-visit when you go to KL City :) But of course, it's usually imitation stuff there.
Next we hopped on another train ride towards the Twin Towers, and we walked along Jalan Ampang, which is home to Zouk, as we managed to find out. Interesting place, I'll post the pictures of Zouk later :p
The Twin Towers is definitely breathtaking. In fact, it could be seen across the skyline of KL itself. And to be there in person, I was taken aback by the stunning structure. Indeed, it is not only 2 skyscrapers, it is also home to a shopping mall (which looks like a extrapolated version of our very own Raffles Place) and a concert hall. Seemingly, I've the feeling that their malls are way better than ours. In terms of traffic flow and no. of tenant units, theirs will win hands down, definitely.
After that, we proceeded to take in this breathtaking view of the twin towers, as the sky slowly transited to that of a night sky. It was without doubt that I would like to be up in the towers, enjoying the scenery one can have when being upthere.
Our next stop was Hard Rock Cafe at Concorde Hotel, and it was short walk away in fact. The maps we got aren't really that accurate, but we still managed to find the hotel. As usual, it was a restaurant filled with ang mos :) Hopping onto a train at Bukit Nanas, we proceeded down to Bukit Bintang to visit Lot 10 (sounds like Lot 1 huh? :P). Along the way, we saw a Ferrari gathering at one of the hotels. Gosh. It was over 20 Ferraris of different designs parked side by side! In a way, it was great to see that downtown KL is so happening. At 10pm and yet the traffic is still coming in.
At Lot 10, it was basically more for makan and the outlets dotted around the shopping mall consisted of Planet Hollywood, Starbucks, and even a food court with live band! Exciting, aint it? :) Not to mention, all along the area, there were road shows of the F1 cars and even a chance to touch it! The entire area is just too happening to be true. Moreover, there ARE a lotta foreigners thronging the area, so it was very very lively and seemed like a festive period. And we even visited the bakery to get some bread, so we could sneak into Sepang, as the food was really expensive there. RM7 for some bread! Good aint it? :D
And we realised that we were thronging close to a midnight period, so we quickly decided to take a train out to KL Sentral (yea they spell all stuff which are supposed to start with a 'C' with a 'S' instead lolx) and took to Asia Jaya, following which we decided to catch a cab, and were lucky to do so too.
On reaching back Sunway Lagoon, we decided to walk around the area, as it seemed quite noisy despite the shopping mall itself having closed for business already. For one, the bars and some eateries there are still open and full of customers, a mix of teenagers and foreigners. The pubs definitely played chinablack-like music, but we never joined in the fun. Really happening area, even in suburban mall! We went over to the nearby 7-11 to get some water for the next day, and retired to our room.
The 2nd day was the 1st Qualifying Race for the drivers, with the practice session at around 11am and the qualifying race at around 2pm. The circuit was not really filled, and my only guess is that most of the people would come on the actual day itself. Moreover, the cars are racing along the track one by one, and it did get a lil' boring at times :)
But my personal opinion was that the Ferrari cars seemed sluggish in comparison with the BMWs and Renaults...not too sure whether MS could come from behind to snatch a podium finish, as he was placed in 13th position after today's qualifying. With another qualifying race tomorrow, it was surely interesting to see how he would fare the next day.
The only gripe I have? Not bringing a camera which is strong enough to take the shots of the cars. Problem was, I had only a normal consumer camera which had around 10mm lens (3x optical zoom), and I probably require an SLR with 600mm lens to get a good shot. Probably, I'll get the EOS300D b4 I go up to Sepang again -shrugz-
The evening was also R&R, and Lionel brought me to meet his friend Mark, who is part of the Takuma Sato Fan Club. An interesting Briton, he brought along some of his jap fans (ladies) along :) Met over at one of hotel bars at Swiss Garden Hotel in the city area. Too bad, Sato's outta the race, with Anthony Davidson deputising for him in the Malaysian GP. A blow, definitely, to the Japanese contingent there to support him, as well as BAR.
Day 3. Finally, the 2nd Qualifying Race and Actual race. To break up the qualifying into 2 days was pure stupidity, added to the fact that now the qualifying is based on only 6 rounds in total, and each car is given a chance to race w/o any other cars on the track. Furthermore, the new rules of engine and usage of the same tire for both qualifying and actual races sound pretty stupid. In fact, I think Michellin would be able to give more stability as compared to that of Bridgestone. An interesting fact is that almost all teams use Michellin, whereas only Ferrari, Minardi and Sauber use Bridgestone tires. Interesting, aint it?
After the 2nd Qualifying, MS is placed 14th on the grid, with Alonso retaining his provisional pole position. In between the Qualifying and Actual races, there were some other highlights, for example Montoya making his appearance, as well as the diffrent stalls. I also bought my Ferrari polo-tee, so that makes me one of their fans...haha :P Despite having a 2-polo-T-for-RM400 sale, I din get that, 'cos Lionel already had one. So I immediately changed into the polo-tee to lend support to the team which I had followed since sec sch, but I'm not that fanatic a fan :P I support soccer more (AC Milan rocks!)
There was also a drivers drive-past, and that was very cool! Looking at the drivers seated atop those vintage cars driving a lap around the circuit. Followed by an air-show of the M'sian MIGs. They rumble so much and there is so much burnt aviation fuel smell that one wonders whether they are gonna crash. lolx.
The race commenced at 4pm, and the weather was slightly bad due to the sudden descend of a light haze. The track temperature hovered around 51 deg celsius, and humidity and air temperature still the same as before, high as ever. Nonetheless, Sepang IS a demanding circuit, so it also required technical skills.
The race commenced with a blistering start, with all drivers turning in comfortably and jostling for the line at Turn 1. Nonetheless, Button's Honda blew, letting go oil on the race track at Turn 1 3 laps into the race. This resulted in a spin along Turn 1, till he was able to get back properly. Friesacher in Minardi spun out due to Button's oil slick, and could not carry on. After Button's engine blowing, Anthony's engine also blew into flames, a chance to shine squandered. It was ironic, as they were the only team to skirt around the '1 engine for 2 weekends' rule.
Meanwhile, Alonso led the race the whole way, and was in an unstoppable position. From to pole to finish. Trulli in Toyota finished second, Fisichella laid in third during the race, with Nick Heidfield, Mark Webber and Ralf dicing for 4th placing throughout the race. There was an exciting period where Fisichella allowed Mark, Ralf and Nick, in that order, to creep up behind him. Mark tried to overtake Fisi, but oversteered exited out of shape, allowing Ralf to take a shot down the straight into Turn 15. Both of them touched on exiting Turn 15, but were otherwise unscathed. Nick managed to catch up with both of them in 6th position, and had a go at his team-mate on the exit of Turn 15. Mark got the better of Nick at Turn 1, and Ralf fought back to be side by side with Nick into Turn 2, but ultimately conceded the place.
In another exciting moment, Mark and Nick went hunting down on Fisi, with Mark getting the better of Fisi somewhere along Turns 11 to 14, and Nick was looking for a gap when Fisi ran down the inside of Mark as they blasted down the back straight. Fisi dived into turn 15, Mark went around the outside and put the squeeze on him as they entered turn 15. Fisi being on the dirty side of the track, was unable to brake and locked up into a 4 wheel drift. Mark suddenly realised that he wasn't leaving Fisi enough space and started to go wide but it was too late. They touched and Mark started sliding, b4 Fisi collected him, and then bounced right over the front of the Williams when the rear wheels of the Renault slammed into the front wheels of Mark's car. Pieces shattered off Fisi's Renault as it slammed back onto the ground, as Mark's Williams lay in the grass off turn 15 with both front suspensions broken. A gleeful Nick then slipped past to take 3rd.
Räikkönen drove excellently today, with him having posted the fastest lap on the circuit, but after his 1st pitstop he had a blown right rear tire which forced him to complete almost half a lap, before pitting immediately for a replacement tire. Without the blown tire, he would be able to gain on Fisi, who was having a problematic day. Kimi definitely has the pace, despite the blown tire. He finished 9th, in the end, after coming out of the 2nd pitstop at 14th position. Montoya started from 11th and chased till 4th, helped by a good pit strategy and few moments of inspired driving :) Nevertheless, Kimi has the edge over Montoya in terms of pace.
Red Bull Racing did superbly with Coulthard finishing 6th and Klien coming in at 8th. MS finished in between the both of them, and he was lucky to gain due to the misfortunes of the front-runners. Reubens had to retire due to some mechanical problem. Just find that the Jap tires dun seem to work well under this sweltering heat, which just goes with the fact that all things which are Jap simply melted in the heat :P
The rear of the finishers were the Saubers of Massa, the Jordans of Karthikeyan and Monteiro and the Minardi of Christijan Albers. An interesting observation: Karthikeyan finished the race a whole lap ahead of his teammate. I do believe he has significantly outpaced his teammate considering they were both in the same machinery. And Friesacher in Minardi also outpaced his teammate Albers by over a second a lap. It was a real pity he slid off on Button's oil.
JV was unfortunate to spin off at Turn 1, roughly halfway through the race. He was following MS throughout the race, and it was interesting to note that both former world champions on the grid had performed terribly the whole afternoon. A shift in power in F1, maybe?
After the F1 race, it was a rush to get back to Singapore. Traffic jam along the way out to the Expressway, so it was a time to get some much needed snooze, which I did anyway. Following which, we headed down the N-S Highway and stopped for 2 pit-stops, the first for some dinner, and the second for reliving oneself, before reaching the Tuas Checkpoint at 11:00 pm. Cleared immigration swiftly, with a lot of Singapore cars also clearing Cusoms at the same time. Those should be from the GP :) Reached our Bus Departure carpark behind California Fitness at Somerset area at 11:45, and Dad picked me up, so it was great :)
This one says it all ^_^
Photogenic Lady ;)
Marlboro Lady
McLaren Mercedes
Sauber
Looks like Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters :P
Another look at the promoters ;)
Hazy view of the straight along the Start/Finish line
Supporters of Ferrari and Kimi...they mix? lol
All in all, a great race, a great holiday, and boy! Am I glad to be part of the GP! :D
Current Mood:
ThinkingCurrent Music: Cai Chun Jia - Pei Wo Kan Ri Chu
Exhausted
Hyper
Sleepy
Fuming...but cooling down
Awake 'n Going!
Compfused