So Japan Beauty Week is over, and boy, what an experience it was!

Kelly and I, who both had the chance to test-drive the Suzuki Swift through one weekend before Japan Beauty Week, were invited on stage to share our experiences driving the car, and why we think it is a 'women-friendly' car.

We didn't colour-co-ordinate our outfits!

They had a beautiful white Swift next to the stage whilst we were talking, and it was decorated with Sakura blossoms - which actually tied into a competition that Suzuki had going on during Japan Beauty Week. Whomever guessed correctly the number of Sakura blossoms on the Swift would win a Suzuki prize pack. Sadly, I wasn't there when the winner was announced, but I definitely tried once or twice to count the number of flowers without crawling all over the car!

You can see the beautiful white Suzuki Swift just off  to the left of this picture of Kelly and I with our gorgeous emcee, Kaylee.

We spoke a lot about how compact the car is, and how it is extremely easy to drive around the streets of Malaysia, and to park on the streets of Malaysia as well. It is a fabulous little car, and it's perfect for beginners as well as ladies who want ease of use with a car, particularly around the jam-packed streets of Malaysia. One thing I do have to say against the car is that I wish it had a hybrid version, because that would make it even more fuel-efficient, and I'd have the whole package in a little car.

Kelly loved how small and easy to drive it was for her, and I loved the big mirrors and double-unlocking features. For a full review of the car, click here.

If you'd like to learn more about the Suzuki Swift, head over to the Suzuki Malaysia Facebook page to get connected :)

As I mentioned in my previous post, I am speaking at Japan Beauty Week from the 27th of February to the 2nd of March. As one of the exhibitors at the event, Suzuki invited Kelly and I to test-drive our very own Suzuki Swifts.

I received a lovely, bright blue car for the weekend, and made sure that I made full use of it! I drove over to my sister's place, attended a wedding, went to visit my fiancé at his place of work, and had brunch with a friend, all in that same weekend! Talk about efficient :)

So instead of bore you with the details of my weekend, I'll just skip ahead and share with you quickly my thoughts on the car.

1. It is fuel efficient.

I spent the entire weekend driving all over creation (Klang, Setia Alam, Subang, KL, Kota Damansara, Mutiara Damansara), and managed to only use one tank of petrol.

2. It is comfortable.

Air conditioning powered up and started working immediately after I turned on the engine - and this was after the car had been sitting under the hot sun with no shade at all for a while! The inside of the car is spacious enough for my legs.

3. It is easy to drive.

Its steering wheel is extremely easy to turn (I have the weakest arms known to mankind, I swear) and the car manouvres so well. A huge plus point? It's small, and therefore very easy to manouvre into parking spots.

4. It is power-packed.

I hate it when I'm on the road and a driver in the middle lane is going extremely slowly, but I cannot overtake him because there are too many cars going very fast in the lane on my right. So I really want to be able to have some 'oomph' in my car's engine when I find an opportunity to cut into the fast lane. With some cars, you try and try to speed up, but as much as the engine is making loud revving noises, the car itself isn't really moving -.-

With this car, I was able to easily pick up speed, overtake the car before another car came up behind me in the fast lane, and then cut back into the middle lane with ease.

5. It is safe.

One of my favourite little features in this car is its unlocking mechanism. When you first press the unlock button on your remote control, it only unlocks the driver's door. Press it one more time, and the rest of the doors on the car unlock. In a country like Malaysia, you have no idea how much of a gem a feature like this is. It makes your car (and yourself) so much less vulnerable to attacks from car thiefs, because only the one door is unlocked, and they probably won't be expecting that, too. Kudos to Suzuki for coming up with this feature - it is fantastic!

6. It has large sun-shades and built-in mirrors.

As a girl, I value large sun-blockers. In the evening, right before the sun goes down, it is intense and shining directly into my face and eyes whilst I'm driving. These shades (visors?) that you can pull down are large, and easily shield most of my face from the sun. The built in mirrors are another favourite of mine, because they are quite large, and that helps when you're putting on makeup (from the passenger's seat, of course!).

All in all, this is one fantastic little car, and perfect for ladies :) It is compact, cute, and easy to drive. If you want to take a look at the car up close and in person, come to the Japan Beauty Week in Pavilion KL this Thursday to Sunday to check it out and stand a chance to win a Suzuki hamper. I'll also be speaking at the event, so I hope to see you there! More details about Japan Beauty Week here.