For most of our trip to KL we ate, hung out at cafes and generally avoided the touristy must-see places. Had we done this in Krungthep, we’d think of ourselves as wasting away our time. But since we were on holiday in another city, it was quite alright.
Very close to our hotel was the Pavilion Mall. This very large, very high-end mall is equivalent to Paragon in Krungthep except that it has a very nice open-air space that is lines with restaurants and cafes. Lots of outdoor seating and – I swear! – the largest concentration of gay men I’ve seen anywhere in Southeast Asia. The area is apparently nicknamed “The Catwalk” for reasons that quickly become obvious.
Outdoor dining is something largely missing in Krungthep, especially middle- and upper-tier restaurants. Streetside noodle vendors are a baht a dozen, of course. There was a nice Illy “Espressamente” Cafe situated at the end of the catwalk.
The menu included a wide range of little bites from panini to olives to cheeses. From upper left, clockwise: olives, air-cured beef, and fresh cheese served with toasts; “arancita” fried rice ball with beef inside; a latte made with heart; grilled panini sandwich.
In the afternoon, we went to Central Market, a restored two-story market with many small vendors selling trinkets and souvenirs, some very local and others looking like the same things you can find at any market in Asia. Next door were some art galleries so we stopped in to see an exhibit.
Below, Icsse KHOR Chin Tin’s “Snow Falls in Malaysia? Who Knows?” – mixed media on canvas.
Mohd Iqbal Badaruddin’s “Unforgotten” – mixed media and silkscreen on canvas
CHIANG Lup Hong’s “Seven Deadly Sins” – ink and acrylic on paper
Detail of “Seven Deadly Sins”
Azmi Aris’ “Bersatu Padu” – acrylic
Hudri Hayat’s “Kepulangan II” – oil on canvas
Many thanks to Pong, Otto and Han’s friend, who introduced us to the gallery.
christao408 
I really like the seven deadly sins one!
I have been to KL many time, but on business trip. Did not get much chance to play tourist or relax watching eye-candies walk by.
I like the last one oil on canvas, quite relaxing on my eyes!Catwalk! I don’t even know about this name until now. While I was there, sipping ice-coffee in one of the open air shops, no wonder I saw so many EC’s! LOL
have your tried the “Kopi” which most of the Malaysians drink like water everyday?
I love small little art galleries like that. The fish painting is amazing. I love it!
May be “cafe culture” could save the energy and cool down the hot weather if it ever happens in Bangkok.
The Seven Deadly Sins keeps drawing my eyes back to it: traditional and fresh. I should have had breakfast before I sat down here. The food looks too inviting. Now I must go find something to eat.
Lovely art. I liked them all, but thought the one by Chin Tin most interesting. Reminds me a bit of E. C. Escher.
@brooklyn2028 – @SuSu – I ended up spending a lot of time standing in front of that painting as there is an incredible amount of detail and it has a very nice balance to it. Sadly, my pictures come nowhere close to doing justice to the artist’s work.
@stevew918 – There’s a lot to see there, even if there isn’t a lot to do. Hope you get another chance to visit KL so you can experience some of it.
@curry69curry – “EC”?
@agmhkg – Is Kopi the “white coffee”? We went to Old Town Coffee in the Central Market and had some of that very strong, very sweet coffee, similar to the “cafe boran” (“ancient coffee”) here in Thailand.
@TheCheshireGrins – The fish painting is a lot of fun, isn’t it?
@blue_beau – I think about that open space between Paragon and Siam Centre – if only it had a lot of trees and cover for some shade, it would be a really pleasant place for outdoor dining. Especially with the fountains.
@jandsschultz – Something that I wasn’t able to capture in the photo is the texture of that painting. The flakes of snow are very three-dimensional so the appearance changes as you move left-to-right.
I like the fish (2nd last one). I think EC stands for eye candies. By I’m only guessing. Who knows what’s on Gary’s mind. I’m too innocent.
@christao408 – ta’s right their verson of white coffee
I esp. like “The Unforgotten.”
You two had to be the best looking couple there. 🙂
@jojobaDESIGNS – It was a pretty empty gallery – we were the only people there. =P
@ElusiveWords – Oh… makes perfect sense but I would have never thought of it myself. If you’re too innocent then, by extension, I must be Mother Teresa. (singing) “I am 16 going on 17, innocent as a rose. Bachelor dandies, drinkers or brandies, what do I know of those?”
Nice and thanks. You need to know hand-painted oil painting – Amazing museum quality oil paintings ;