Do you want to subscribe to a time share?
This is purely my view only so if you have had a bad experience with time shares I sympathise. Thus far, mine are fairly decent ones. I am a member of a time share where essentially, we pay RMX and get Y nights a year to stay at any hotel or resorts locally and worldwide. I actually got my package at a good price so I won’t complain too much.
I have used the time share nights allocation both locally and internationally and both times, I have no complaints. In fact, its saved me a ton of money on hotel rooms and vacation rentals which I would otherwise have to pay anyway!
If you are looking for a time share, you might want to bear these points in mind:-
- There are usually annual fees payable which aren’t that high but can add up.
- If you don’t use up your allocated nights within a certain period they are forfeited which means you end up losing money on them.
- If you don’t book early you risk not having any space available at your chosen hotel or resort or having to pay extra surcharges for an upgraded room
- You have to plan your holidays well in advance.
- You won’t be able to use your allocations in all hotels – some hotels might require a surcharge.
As I have said above, I have had decent experiences with my time share company (I will not name them) and my savings from overseas accommodation has far surpassed whatever I paid to join. So, for me, I would recommend it for those who plan their vacations in advance. Otherwise you might just want to stick to booking your hotels online.
Where to park when going to Pavilion Kuala Lumpur?
Since expressing my horror at the high parking rates at the Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, I’ve since worked out how NOT to incur that sort of wallet crippling parking charges. There was once when I went for a movie and ended up paying something like RM9 for parking alone. That’s nearly the cost of a movie ticket! Worst of all, you need some high powered eyeglasses to see the parking rates because you will zoom by so fast when you pick up your ticket at the machine as you enter.
So, these days, when I plan to visit the Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, I don’t park there, but at Starhill Gallery right across the street. Starhill Gallery might house some of the most high end upmarket brands in Malaysia, but their parking is so much more affordable compared to the Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, especially if you go in the evening.
Starhill Gallery parking rates are RM5 flat rate after 6pm on weekdays and flat rate of RM5 on Saturdays and Sundays. I think that a short walk across the road is no inconvenience at all for a savings in parking charges! 
Promotions at Guardian Pharmacy
If you are anything like me and refuse to buy the newspapers due to the lack of news and proliferation of advertisements, you might find yourself missing out on the latest promotions at our local pharmacies like Guardian and Watsons. Of course, it also means you have less temptation but heck, what is life without a little tempation yes? 
I just found out that you can read some of the ongoing Guardian Pharmacy promotions online at their website. This is useful for when you need to stock up on things like shower creams or toothpaste or even diet supplements for those times when they have 3 for 2 promotions.
Currently, the ongoing promotion at Guardian Pharmacies until 30 Nov 2008 is a 50% off the 2nd item promotion. So, buy the first item and get the 2nd at 50% off. Not only that, you can get the new 2009 table calendar with purchases of RM80 and above in a single receipt. Yes, its the end of the year – time to stock up on 2009 calendars!
Tips on buying the Asus EeePC or any PC
I just bought the Asus EEEPc a few days ago. It was bought on a whim which is not always a good thing.
Fortunately, I am quite used to buying computers from Low Yat Plaza so I knew what I had to do. Here are my tips for buying a PC at Low Yat Plaza:-
- Research online for specs so you know what it should contain
- Read a few online reviews of the product you are thinking of buying
- Take a walk around a few vendors to check prices of the unit you have in mind
- Compare prices
- Stop for a break and think about which vendor has the best price or best value package
- Always ask if the software provided is genuine. I cannot stress how important it is to get genuine software especially when it comes to updates and problems in future. One vendor tried to tell me that the unit came with windows etc for “free” but when I asked further was told that it was illegal software
- See if the freebies offered are worth it or if not, try to ask for a further discount if you don’t take the freebies
If you buy in bulk e.g. 2 you usually get a lower price. However, the EeePC was going for a standard (nearly) rate of RM1299 throughout the whole of Low Yat plaza for a 4G HDD unit with 512MB of RAM. An upgrade of RAM to 1G was RM60. So, you do the math.
Either way, its a cheap little portable PC and I’ll be reviewing it soon!