We were given a larger room this time.
Rather unexpectedly- it's not always that we get an upgraded room on one of the upper floors.
But I'm not complaining.
I take a fancy to high floors, and the perspective it brings.
The room we had this time was on the 19th floor.
I know, because it was on the very same floor that had their high-rise pool.
Don't laugh at the plainness of this pool.
You might not get so much of a tree or shrub or even a clear view of sky, but it's got some sort of a waterfall at one end of the pool and may I say that the sound of water gushing into the pool itself was therapy to my ears?
What's more, the pool looked gloriously beautiful in the late afternoon light.
I myself was surprised by the glow that bounced off the whitewashed pillars and walls.
I hadn't known sunsets this part of town could be this beautiful.
I've said that higher floors give one a different perspective, and really, it is true.
Because this is what I saw every time I looked out of the long, ceiling to deck windows, and despite all the solar film and the not-so-blue sky, this view made me think.
There're times in life where circumstances make us forget who we are and what we are.
There're times in life where we keep looking up and out but we see nothing else but the same blue/white (hot) sky and the same situations as we are in now.
It's hard.
And we forget.
We can easily forget.
But being here had me thinking of how charming the heritage shop houses in Little India below me were, how tall those Downtown CBD skyscrapers in the distance were, and what worlds there were that existed within them.
Not just the buildings, of course, for beyond those skyscrapers- in the far distance- despite the cloudy humid overcast sky, I knew there was the sea, and she beckoned.
All this had me deeply considering who I was right now, what I really wanted, and who I didn't want to be.
In fact, so focused was I on the view ahead that it didn't matter to me that right in front of my window stood the facade of another hotel- the Holiday Inn, with its logo huge, large, and glowing (at night) right at my eye level.
I was too busy gazing ahead.
What helped me, certainly, was the space from which I gazed out to this view.
You know how they say a person thinks better in a wide, uncluttered space?
Well, this room certainly was wider, and larger, than some of the other rooms in the same hotel I had been.
I was especially delighted with the space of the glass-topped work desk (although, as it turned out, I didn't use it much).
I was also delighted with the arm chair.
It made me feel cosy and comfortable for a morning, and evening task which I had to do- but had no desire to.
Then, of course, there was the bath tub.
Which I unfortunately did not get to use.
Or maybe because at this point I didn't need it as much as I would have needed it later.
Our stay this time included breakfast, so down to the restaurant by the pool we went the next morning.
Theirs seemed to lean heavily on the Continental side.
You didn't get much variety, but you had the usual offerings of breads, pastries, butter, jam, a selection of noodles Chinese-style, some simple dim sum, a selection of roti pratas with curry, eggs (done however you liked), yogurt, and fruit.
I think I took a bit of pastries, some noodles (me being the type who can't resist), eggs- omelet, and fried= and a serving of rock melon, watermelon fruit.
I can't remember whether I took the dim sum or the yogurt.
I might have.
I think I sampled a bit of their cheese selections and cold cuts too.
There wasn't much around this area that we did during this weekend breather, but we hung out at City Square Mall and Mustafa alot.
I was quite determined to go to Mustafa only at night- it's less fun during the day time- so we went there around 1030pm and checked out the organic herbs, the snacks, the frozen naans, and their selection of toiletries.
Mustafa has one of the widest range of body sprays in this country, by the way, and also the only place, I think, where you have hope of getting a Yardley Lavender body spray.
It wasn't just the shopping at Mustafa.
There was also of course the food.
One can't come to Little India without wanting to have some favorites in the eating houses around here.
I know of some who like Ananda Bhavan or Komalas.
I also know of some who like Muthu's Curry or Gayatri.
Me, I tend to go to Sakunthala's quite a bit.
Most of the time we go to the one at Syed Alwi Road opposite Mustafa, but on occasion, like today, we went to the one at Race Course Road.
My friend prefers this one.
There's better (restaurant) ambience, the pappadums come served in a little basket, and somehow the dish of butter chicken seems to be larger.
I'm not sure.
At both places they look the same to me.
But, yes, there's the ambience, there's the crowd, and the briyani does look a tad more mountainous compared to the other side.
I pretty much liked my butter chicken.
A pity we were unable to tapao the gravy back, so we finished up as much as we could, and let it be.
Indian cuisine wasn't the only thing we had whilst here in the Little India area.
On the other side of the enclave, close to the Jalan Besar side, was Swee Choon.
And anyone who knows me long enough knows that I'm a huge fan of their dim sum, and I won't hesitate to say it so.
I however do think we ordered a little bit too much this time though.
Because whilst I had thought we would only order our regular favorites of xiao long bao, mee sua kueh, cheong fun and crispy fried tofu with pork floss, on the table suddenly popped up a plate of char siew baos, a plate of char siew sous, two deep fried balls with infused lychee within, a plate of guo tie, one plate of salted egg fried chicken, plus two more purple-colored sweet potato balls- with a filling of which I've since forgotten what it was- inside.
I very much had a calm time at the weekend breather this round.
Perhaps there were things I didn't yet figure out.
Perhaps there were things I thought I could still handle.
But one thing I realized.
I'm someone who digs a space where I can read and write and concentrate and talk and think without being bothered.
If there be a chance, I might consider having a room that grants me access to their lounge.
It's neat, unostentatious, soothing, and spacious enough for one to have a quiet chat, a quiet read, or a quiet write.
And it's right next to the sound of the gushing waterfall.