Images from Berjaya Times Square - One of the World's Biggest Malls

In recent web posts from Forbes and Yahoo, they released their list of the world's largest shopping malls based on "Gross Leaseable Area" -  the number of square feet the property has for revenue-generating activities like retail, dining and amusements. Forbes notes that, "Asia is home to 8 of the world's largest malls; six of them were built in the last 3 years." Three of these come from Manila (Philippines) - SM Malls owned by Henry Sy's conglomerate. And if you think they're done building these behemoth entertainment, retail and lifestyle complexes, think again. More SM's are opening all throughout the country. Davao City's 2nd SM is opening soon.And there are 2 or more SM Malls at the fringes of Cebu (Consolacion, I think).   

Most of these venues are mixed complexes. In KL, my favorite Berjaya Times Square has a hotel, convention center, recreation and children's park, cinemaplex, restaurants, spas and salons, and 1,000 retail shops. Berjaya ranks 7th in the world, lagging behind SM Megamall. The mall opened in 2005 and boasts of a leasable area of 3.4 million square feet. I've featured Times Square here several times before, but here are recent glimpses of this mall from my March-April travels.

This is the Eye in the Sky!

David Teo's "7 Petala Cinta" has an interesting premise about a  newly graduated romantic who, upon further studies in Yemen, handwrites the Koran as a wedding gift to his girlfriend. The movie itself is a different matter: with dated ideals about religion and tradition, the film wallows in manipulative events soaked with unnecessary melodrama. It sure felt like a waste of my 10 ringgit. While I am very fond of Malaysia, I dislike their movies with a passion. Malaysian film makers are among the worst in the region. Meanwhile, Taiwan's "Love" (below) follows a roundelay style of storytelling involving some of the most gorgeous people and some of the most charming characters I've ever had the pleasure of watching. This is a must-see if you're into quirky, smart romcoms.

12-story high roller coaster at Cosmo's World. The screams surely gave me the shivers.

I usually find myself at "Food and Tea Restaurant" whenever I go to the cinemas in Berjaya. The restaurant is beside a 7-11 and the cinema's ticket booth.

A small fountain at the Jalan Pudu side of Berjaya Times Square.

Tall buildings rise along Jalan Imbi's side. You could see the monorail tracks.

Jalan Imbi side where the hotel and convention center entrance is.