Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra: Music from Anime

I was totally couldn't wait for yesterday night 😃😃😃

The Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) is presenting a concert; Music from Anime, that features the wonderful music from the most popular works from three iconic Japanese anime composers; Takashi Miki, Joe Hisaishi and Hiroshi Miyagawa; that span from 25 May to 27 May 2018, for 3 timing shows.

Source: MPO Facebook Page

Joe Hisaishi is no stranger to Studio Ghibli fans worldwide. Known for his musical versatility that fuses Japanese classical, Western classical, experimental electronic and minimalist, Joe Hisaishi has composed many of the Studio Ghibli animation soundtracks, including those from "Princess Mononoke", "My Neighbor Totoro", and the Oscar-winning "Spirited Away".

Having grown up with masterpiece films from Studio Ghibli and also been listening to the "Studio Ghibli 25 years Concert" conducted by Joe Hisaishi for countless of times on DVD and YouTube (omg you should totally listen to this concert! It is the most amazing and wonderful concert that I can listen to over and over again), I just couldn't let go the opportunity to listen to live orchestra music from Studio Ghibli! 🎶🎷🎹🎺🎻

Source: MPO Facebook Page

The fact that I only knew about this concert 3 days ago despite the tickets have been selling since last year has kind of made me feel upset and aggrieved. It was almost sold out for all sessions and left only some 'Premium' seats and limited number of 'A Reserve' seats. Luckily though, I was able to get an 'A Reserve' seat for the 25 May show, at concession rate for being a MAS Enrich member (15% discount!) 😅

Travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore by Driving A Car

Two years ago when my little brother had to travel to Singapore for a business and a few of us grabbed the chance to visit the country for fun, we decided to drive instead since driving would be more economical than flying for a group of 5. Having no experience of driving to the Little Red Dot (well, we travelled by road to Singapore before but that was like 30 years ago lol), we did a few internet searches and asked here and there of what we should know beforehand; yet nothing beats our personal experience. It's actually not as daunting as we thought; instead it was easier than what we have anticipated :D

Recently, we drove to Singapore again and my memory kinds of refreshed again of the 'process' to drive Singapore from Kuala Lumpur, which took about 4-hour journey. I think it's good to share my experience with all and hope it's a good guide to first-timer!

WHAT TO PREPARE BEFORE DRIVING INTO SINGAPORE?

Well-maintained Car

I definitely do not want my car to break down in the middle of highway or in Singapore; I'm sure you are too! So ensure your car is in roadworthy condition by sending your car to workshop for check and service, days before your departure day.

Touch n' Go with Sufficient Credit

Wherever you are travelling from West Malaysia, ensure your TnG has sufficient credit to pay the tolls (i.e. PLUS Highway) to reach Singapore AND back to your home location when you leave Singapore.

It's no fun to queue long at the top-up booth which would be wasting a lot of time. Not only the PLUS highway, there's also a short expressway within JB - Lebuhraya EDL that charges toll fee.