In conjunction with the release of their 4th and latest album 'Get Your Heart On!', we were lucky enough to have Simple Plan right here at our Malaysian soil as one of their stops for their tour just yesterday afternoon.

Yup, you read right.

The band rocked Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at 8pm in KL Live last night!

I arrived at 2.30pm to attend the press conference with my assistant of the day, Pamela

Thanks for all the help & company!

Wow. Talk about dedicated fans.

There was already a queue as early as 6 hours before Simple Plan's concert!

CEO of Tune Talk Mobile Prepaid, Jason Lo, welcomed us and spoke extensively regarding the concert and what to expect for the night. 

"This is the first of many to come! Our next acts will be Avril Lavigne, Jessie J and more,"

Jason Lo shares

I bet all Malaysian Simple Plan fans were ecstatic being able to catch their favorite punk rock band perform right in front of their eyes.

Well, guess what? This is just the beginning.  

Jason Lo speaking

Simple Plan was brought down to Malaysia thanks to Tune Talk – in collaboration with JS Concert Productions and Fat Boys – as part of their 'No Big Deal lah' series of concerts.

Next was local band 'The Revellers', winner of the band search competition to open for Simple Plan's gig

They were personally handpicked by Simple Plan

When asked why they were chosen, Simple Plan said that it was "all about the music…"

Good on yall, guys! Make Malaysia proud hey?

Simple Plan being welcomed by the MC

During the interview, I managed to ask them a couple of questions.

Jessicat: What is your favorite song from your latest album 'Get Your Heart On!' and why?

Pierre: "I would say 'Can't Keep My Hands Off You'. It talks about getting down, know what I'm saying, gurl?"

Nice one! Oh I definitely know what you're sayin' Pierre. *winkwink*

Next question:

Jessicat: Where's your next stop after Malaysia and what are the future plans?

Pierre: Singapore is the next stop.. then Indonesia, Japan. We'll be doing a Canadian tour, a European tour, Australia… all over the world.

Cool beans. Looks like there's no stopping the band after 10 years! Amazing 

They were part of my teenage years, my friends' and I's all-time favorite punk rock band ever.

I'm sure many can relate!

Members of Simple Plan sharing a light banter with the MC

When asked, they mentioned that they loved the Malaysian heat!

Chuck Comeau (drums & percussions) speaking:

"It's -15 degrees in Canada, a snow storm at home right now.

We're very happy to be here, wearing shorts & Tshirts, it's awesome!"

Bumped into Jason (and his adorable son)

(his head happens to be at the bottom of the photo LOL!)

He asked me, "Are you ready for tonight? You better be!"

Is that even a question? Hell to the yeah I am!

Their concert was amazing. Take it from me, a true Simple Plan fan since their old skool days of 2002.

As a teenager, I used to have posters of them back then, compiled all my favorite songs of Simple Plan's albums and blast them in my room, rocking out all by myself while jumping on the bed playing an air guitar 

Stay tuned for the coverage of Simple Plan's concert last night.

Heaps of photos + videos coming your way!

Just before we ushered in the new year, I was invited by Resorts World Genting to witness their new resident show: a multi-million ringgit production of Ice, Magic & Entertainment aptly named 'FREEZE'.

Throughout the past month, I've been playing host to many caucasian buddies of mine here in Malaysia.

December felt like a month of not only sharing & introducing Malaysia, my culture, my lifestyle, my food and my people to friends from abroad but also getting more in touch with my own country on a totally different level.

Believe it or not, being a constant tour guide does have its profound impacts on a local. 

I can vouch for that in its entirety. 

But to be honest, being a tour guide/host is not an easy streak as constantly going out and about to never-ending places of interest is more than likely to render me strapped for cash; draining my wallet of its dosh. $$$$$$$

En route to Batu Caves!

Don't get me wrong. I enjoy it regardless – well proven with my 1st Australian guest I hosted last month.

So…. bring on round #4 of bringing foreigners around in a month! 

Batu Caves, the 400 million year old sacred Indian hilltop temple of worship

was one of the touristy destinations I took 'em all to

That 140 feet Lord Muruga statue we have is the tallest statue of its kind in the world! *proud*

Currently it's not so pretty as they are re-doing paintworks – hence construction scaffoldings around it.

Birds will flock together in unbelievable amounts! 

I've seen the entire walkway covered with a sea of birds on certain evenings

Oooh tiny boy chasing pengui – - wait, I totally meant pigeons.

Honest mistake there. Unbackspaced for shits and giggles 

Anyway, I've been frequenting Batu Caves so many times in a month that I think I could totally climb up the stairs in under 5 minutes now. It's not exactly that tough, trust me 

300 steps all in all – 272 steps to get up there and another 20ish steps inside the cave.

But seriously, please, what can 300 do to you?

Oh wait…. right. 

*gulp*

Right, so…. the next time I pay a visit to Batu Caves will be to bring le boyfie for the (much dreaded) staircase hike, the Ramayana cave, the Dark Cave tour, the Indian blessings and to simply witness the picturesque sights of KL & the Klang Valley from up above

Only a halfway mark? I kid you not.

What's also wonderful at Batu Caves is the fact that you will see so many tourists/foreigners/expatriates flock from all over the world; curious to know the ongoings within the walls of our sacred cave. 

My Aussieguests Allyce & Lauren attempting the climb!

Armed with their cameras of all sorts, maps and escalated enthusiasm, people of different races and religion come to this limestone hill which bears home to arguably the most popular Hindu shrine in South East Asia. 

Incidentally, I made few new friends up on the steps too

This is Anamika. She hails from India and is in Malaysia for a holiday & to pay her respects to Hindu Lord Murugan

Finally arrived the peak! Batu Caves beckons us

Amazing view of nature from waaaaay up here!

And part of the Klang Valley from the look out spot

inside the main cave of Batu Caves – the Cathedral/Temple cave!

Stalactites and stalagmites come in abundance!

So much more to see inside! Ancient Indian paintings line the walls of this enclosure 

Intricate statues and devotees getting their blessings by the Indian monks as they murmur spiritual incantations and sprinkle by holy water onto them are not to be missed! I watched closely too 

Not gonna show you anymore – you have to see for yourself!

So here's a photo of the staircase as we head back down to the foot of the hill again

David – my Swede buddy and I having a refreshing coconut drink after the climb

Insane amount of pigeons were still around!

Cave visitors and devotees often buy food to offer these pigeons

I shall now award this t-shirt to a specific someone

TO THE PIGEON WHISPERER

Amongst the flock was a rather aggressive – AND HUNGRY – monkey

Who I felt was rather indignant that they get all the food and he doesn't

He took some for himself

Correction : took ALL the food to himself

And the birds soon surrounded him. Hah! You're outnumbered now, lil monkey

It was quite the spectacle, if I do say so myself. A funny sight to see although eventually, more visitors started to bear them more food. That certainly put an end to the food wars LOL!

Batu Caves has never failed to be an experience for me.

Neither will it ever be for anyone – both believers or non-believers! 

Here's to hoping that the paintworks on the Lord Murugan statue will be finished and the scaffoldings will be taken away by the time I bring le boyfie to visit. He arrives Malaysia in 3 days!! *eggcited*

T'was a stormy night – so much so that it flooded the front of Sunway Lagoon Surf Beach and its vicinity

Pitbull took to the Malaysian stage yet again for his Asia Tour 2011. This marks the 2nd time I've attended his gig; watching him live in concert! He's such a performer, in every sense of the word!

The 1st time I've watched him was at his 12hour LIVE with Chivalry gig held early last year.

And this time, Pitbull is back again hurrah!

I arrived there slightly late due to some complications but fortunately, I was just in time for Pitbull's gig

The moment I entered the surf beach, I could hear "HELLLLLOOOO MALAYSIAAAAA!!"

He was just as sharply dressed as I'd imagine him to be again

Mr. Worldwide blasted the crowd to Planet Pit alright!

His stage performance was so energetic!

Pitbull was interacting non-stop with his guitarist, drummer, bassist, DJs

And the crowd, most definitely

The stage setup was stellar! 3D visuals, laser lightings and whatnot were being projected onto the backdrop which ensured a very smooth synchronization with the live music booming from the speakers.

The visuals kept changing ever so often, but the spotlight remained on our star of the night, Pitbull

His suave nature on-stage and heavy Spanish accent kept his female fans swooning the night away

it's International Love, baby!

Pitbull really knew how to get his screaming fans in a frenzy.

He belted out his latest singles like 'International Love', 'Give me Everything', 'Rain over Me' and 'Hey Baby (Drop it to the Floor) from Planet Pit as well as popular favorites from Rebelution like 'Shut it Down', 'I Know You Want Me', 'Hotel Room Service' and 'Krazy'.

I started jumping and letting my hair down when he made us JUMP UP, LET'S GET KRAZY! 

MOVE MOVE, SHAKE SHAKE, NOW DROP!

But that's not all, this talented Cuban-American rapper-singer-songwriter-producer injected the crowd with some Latino magic! I could remember him serenading us with his songs sung in Spanish and boogeying it down at his previous concert as well.

 
I could tell he really stays true to his roots and enjoys sharing a bit of his culture to us 

Pitbull hitting up some salsa, cha-cha-ca, Miami bass and merengue Latin American dance!

He then took his coat off – I couldn't quite imagine how he was relentlessly performing whilst sweating buckets underneath thick layers of clothing!

The crowd (myself included) was perspiring by the minute despite being in an open-aired area, let alone Pitbull in that heatwave of a stage. 

Sweat towel needed after all that dancing and entertaining!

Keep singing with the towel slung around his shoulder!

I'll carry my trusty sweat towel all around stage with me!

For the show must go on!

The previous concert saw Pitbull stripping down to only his white singlet and silvery-grey pair of slacks.

But this time round, he only removed his coat and unbuttoned his black shirt.

All eyes on you, Pitbull!

His 2 hour set ended pretty quickly though

When he thanked us for having him and performed his last song, I was like, "ALREADY?"

A true performer makes you breeze through his performance yearning for more all through till the end of the gig.

Pitbull, has undeniably proven his worth to us again as he came back up on stage after a bellowing encore from us! 

Now, that's satisfaction brought to you by Pitbull, the man himself 

Thank you for an amazing show and for making Malaysia one of your stops during this Asia Tour 2011!