I met the real double 0 seven today at TESCO

While I was escorting my other-half for our usual weekend shopping spree this morning at our favorite and friendly shopping mall, TESCO Mutiara Damansara, I got a real glimpse from an action sequel of the legendary 007 movie. At first I didn't suspect anything, but when a burly in-house security personnel and several bouncers confronted a man I suddenly realised something big was going to happen. There was however, no gunshot or tyre-screaching car chase in the scene, but what followed was a small commotion between both parties. It turned out that the unsuspecting man was actually an employee of a rival shopping mall, Giant which has just opened nearby, doing his routine espionage work on his arch rival business. The funny thing is, this Daniel-Craig wannabe didn't seem to bother to cover his identity at all, because he was wearing a shirt with big Giant logo on it and taking photos on the price tags like a National Geoprahic photographer on assignment. Now I have to be more cautious as the "mata-mata gelap" could be anywhere. What a bugger!

From time to time, I will receive some discount coupons from these giants, persuading us to buy their products ranging from nail clippers to 50 inch plasma TVs. Apart from that, one of their ingenious way in adding our collection of non-biodegraded plastic cards, was a loyalty card.This is to encourage us spending more of our quality time at their place. I know, in 20 or 30 years these cards will be a collectible item, that if Ebay is still around.

The good thing is, the price war is here. This is good for us, the customer. Eventhough I've just found out that my baby's pampers is cheaper by RM0.70 in a nearby sundry shop run not by a local but by an Acheh, but I still go to these hypermart because of their ambience. Sounds classy isn't it. Ambions. It seems that these Acheh-run grocery shops are flourishing like mushrooms nowadays and you will most likely bump into them even in the public toilet. Initially I thought they were washed ashore after that big tsunami, but I got a feeling they were attracted to the smell of "tempe" a delicacy which was very popular in Selangor once.