Amish Kabush Cathode Decon

Finding House

2010-03-30T11:23:00.001+11:00

1st place we viewed. Smaller than our current place. $420/week

Accommodation in Australia is freaking expensive. Period.

We used to pay $1820 per month for 2 bedroom 1 bathroom. That's equivalent to RM5460 ! wtf.

Anyway long story short, we got evicted cause the owner's moving back into the property. So we have to find a new place to move.

Kennedy St

We managed to locate a place nearby at Kennedy St. 2 bathrooms 1 bedroom 1 car space and an enormous rooftop bbq area with a view of the city, all going for $575/week.

We applied for it and were apparently the only one who applied. Great news! Got it. We even had the price reduced to $550/week. *starts to imagine having BBQ there during new years eve with a view of the fireworks *

Problem solved or so we thought.

Actually I told the agent I wanted another view of the place to measure the door cause we have a massive refrigerator that could potentially not fit through the walkway.

Went back there 1 afternoon with the agent and lo and behold she brought another potential tenant to view the place. A caucasion in his mid 30s. Next day the agent told us the other applicant has got the place.

Cibai.

I asked for the reason and she mentioned that it was the preference of the owner. Racist. ;(

2 bedroom 1 bathroom - $440-$460 / week (meek street)

After that we had to continue our search. The only problem was when we thought we already had that place, we gave a notice to move out in 3 weeks time. And we couldn't retract that notice.

So die die must move out in 3 weeks time.

2 bedroom 2 bathroom for only $460/week. Foryst st. (damn cheap)

There was 30-40 interested parties in the place and we had to line up just to go view the place. We didn't apply cause the place was quite dirty.

2 bedroom 2 bathroom 1 LUG - $625/week (Elizabeth street)

This one is super duper nice. It's quite new, only 1 year+. But it was quite pricey + the carpet smelled like someone's cat died there. *blueh*

Wifey also viewed another property - THE JAMES during the week. 2 bedroom 2 bathroom for $450/week. Good price considering it's landed property. It was our 1st choice when we first saw the ad on the net.

Turns out it was so pathetically small "it's meant for mouse to live, not human." (wifey's comments)

New place

After all the searching, thank god we managed to find our place. 3 levels, 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, 2 balconies and a car space. - for $450/week

What happened was I called the agent once we saw the ad on the internet. So he agreed to let us view the place on thursday, before the official inspection on Saturday. Once we saw it we applied for it and placed a deposit on the same day.

It was quite sneaky and I felt real bad when I joined the official inspection on Saturday. I wore a cap to avoid anyone recognizing me. The poor agent had to explain to them that the property had been taken and boy were they pissed!

Among them stood one of wifey's colleagues, Clancy. haha. She still doesn't know we were the one who went through the back door and placed a deposit on the place. I don't think she should ever find out. ;p

*It was actually a good thing we got rejected for the 1st place on Kennedy st. Now we get an extra bathroom and save $100/week. Plus it's only 100 metres from our current place.* Glee

Anyway we'll be moving next week. Busy busy.

.

CNY eve + Rita's Farewell

2010-03-18T15:49:00.001+11:00

Nice looking gift wrapped box

It was the 13th February, the eve of the Valentines day. I had previously went down to the city to buy a present for my babeh.

So I was contemplating whether to give her today or tomorrow. Finally decided to give it to her today, can't wait to give it to her. haha

She gave me a lovely V-day card the next day. Left it on the computer when I went to brush my teeth. So cheeky.

Earrings

It was a set of earrings from Gucci. Hoped she liked it.

Besides that, it was also the eve of CNY. So excited. But there wasn't any CNY mood at all. So sad. ;(

We went down to Chatswood Mandarin to catch a cantonese flick, in search of some CNY mood through the movie.

72 Tenants of Properity

We went to watch the 72 Tenants of Prosperity. Initially I assumed it was a CNY-themed movie with red posters and the launch coinciding with CNY.

But apparently it's a remake of a 1970s film from the Shaw Brothers. Not exactly CNY-themed but still damn funny nonetheless.

It had so many famous actors & actresses in it because it was partly sponsored by TVB. It also had scenes from famous TVB series as well. Really ROFL.

Fish Soup Beehoon from May's Malaysian

Before the movie we had lunch at the food court below the cinema. Yummy fish soup beehoon for about $9.00. Luckily we only ordered 1 dish to share as the portion was gigantic.

At night we meet up with some friends for Rita's farewell. She's going back to Shanghai after a failed attempt at marriage and under constant pressure from her parents to return to the motherland.

We gathered at a korean BBQ buffet for $30/pax. When we sat down we started to chit chat while waiting for everyone to arrive and got told off for that! What nerve! The taukeh simply came over and ordered us to start eating.

No exaggeration. ORDERED!

I hope the place closes down the next time we pass that area.

All the food

Anyway the atmosphere was like a kopitiam with air-con, with the buffet table located right in the middle of the establishment.

There was a huge selection of pork, beef & chicken marinated in different sauce. Small variation of seafood included prawns, squid, mussel.

It's quite a good value for that price if you feel like gorging yourself.

NOTE TO SELF:

Beware of eating buffet with PRC. They can't stop revisiting the buffet table to get more food eventhough they can't finish it themselves. The mentality is, "Since I've paid for it, I MUST get more value than my money's worth". Shoves all those food on the table and get others to finish it up.

.

Valentines Day 2010

2010-03-10T14:15:00.000+11:00

Chinese New Year 2010

It has been long hiatus since my last post. So here's a post on V-day 2010 to kick-start things for 2010.

Mr. & Mrs Sim =)

It was quite fascinating this year as V-day fell on the same day as the 1st day of the Chinese New Year.

This year for valentines we decided to go to AZUMA KUSHIYAKI in Chinatown. It's located in Chinatown just a few steps away from the cinema in George Street.

We initially wanted to try the branch at Chifley Square, the menu looked more delicious but alas they don't open on Sundays.

When we first entered the vicinity we were shocked by what greeted us. It's like a cafe style, noodles takeaway type of establishment. A far cry from the suitable dining place for V-day.

Environment

Thank god the actual restaurant is further inside the complex. It's a typical japanese restaurant setup with very "zen" lighting.

We opted for the Special Valentines Menu for $88. Actually we didn't have a choice as ala carte wasn't an option. But it was quite good value for 7 course degustation.

Appetiser (4/5)

Crispy Lotus Root marinated with Smoked Salmon & Avacado.
Grilled Abalone with Mornay Sauce.
Duck Breast Tatsuta Fritters.

We started off the night with the appetiser. Man this was really good especially the Crispy Lotus Root with that lovely sauce.

When we saw the menu and saw 3 listings under appetiser we thought that we had to only choose 1 option. So we were pleasantly suprised to get all three. ;)

Seared Tuna Salad served with Ponyu Vinaigrette (2.5/5)

Seared tuna was nice, but the gravy was quite salty. I'd prefer to have seared tuna on a sushi plate.

Simmered Silver Cod with grated white radish (3.5/5)

The cod was so fresh it literally melted in our mouths. The prawn was a pleasant addition but I did think it was a weird combination with cod, prawn and eggplant.

I did finish slurping up all the gravy.

Wagyu Beef Steak with Soy Garlic Sauce (4.5/5)

Near perfection.

Recently we had bbq wagyu beef at another japanese establishment and we were blown away by the tender sweet tasting taste.

Needless to say we had high expectations for this dish and it definitely didn't disappoint.

Simmered Scallop Soup (2.5/5)

Tasted like miso soup with lots of enoki mushroom.

Scattered Spring Sushi wrapped in Bamboo leaves (2/5)

Now this was a weird one. I kinda liked it cause I generally like sushi but Mrs Sim didn't. So I had 1.5 and she only had the remaining 0.5.

It quite sweet with some mince meat, salmon roe scattered around the rice. Extra points given to the presentation with the bamboo leaves.

I initially hoped that it was the triangular rice cakes that you find in japanese supermarkets. I don't know what it's call but I refer to them as triangle cakes. They taste really superb.

Japanese Chestnut Mont Blanc Cake (1.5/5)

Poor attempt at dessert. But I'm not a dessert lover anyway.

Overall it was quite a pleasant experience. Not overly romantic as I would have liked but still pleasant nonetheless.

It was also quite interesting peeping at the pair of hongkie cum japanese wannabes with full blond hairdos and japanese anime dressings sitting behind us.

I'm back

2010-03-05T07:47:00.006+11:00

So much had happened since my last post.

- Got married to a beautiful woman
- Ventured into business .... and failed ;(
- Shifted office
- Learned many things about myself, still trying to improve on the lousy bits
- Religionized myself
- Honeymooned in Bali

There should be a couple more which I can't recall. But if I can't recall it's probably not important enough.

Anyway its time to start blogging again.

.

Mr. Anonymous

2008-10-23T07:39:00.001+11:00

Dear Sir,

I'm terribly sorry I spat on your food. I feel humiliated and utterly ashamed of my behaviour. Trust me, it was an accident!

I, infamous for butter fingers was handling your food when you requested it to be recook/realtered for the uptheemth time. On the way to the kitchen a spider ran across my path and I'm terrified of spiders (can't explain why). I freaked out and your food dropped on the floor.

In my hurry to pick it up, i accidentally stepped on it. (your food, not the spider) But all's well because nobody saw me and I flicked off the dirt of it.

The fright of the spider sent chills down my spine, and activated my urinatory glands. So I rushed to the washroom to answer nature's call. I had to place your food on the floor because I broke the plate (spider) and you don't expect me to single handedly solve my problem at hand do you? (It got caught in the zipper once and it hurts like hell)

Don't worry about the hygienic level of our washroom floor. I mop it every night. ;o)

After that, I realized that it had been 7 mins since I fetched your food from your table. Being the responsible waiter that I am and respecting the "7 mins rule of waitering", I decided to return your food to you.

I tried to get some tap water to wash away the speckles of dirt but all the taps were occupied. Tissues don't work cause they leave bits & pieces everywhere. So I did the next best thing and spat on it.

And returned your food to you.

Have a nice day.

Your's sincerely

Your responsible waiter.

P/s. Don't mess around with us. We are your waiters, not some low life that you can fuck just cause you had a lousy day.

*****************************

I've been really busy at work now, but it's all good. ;p

Photography Session with Jenny Sun

2008-10-18T07:19:00.000+11:00

On the 25th September 2008, the wife and I met up with Jenny Sun, for a engagement photography shoot.

The duo in action

We had engaged her services 2 months back and were slightly worried if the weather would hold out. There's is no greater wet blanket than pouring rain.

Bright Orange Background

Sydney has tons of beautiful places for outdoor shoots. But after discussing with Jenny, we finally decided to select "The Rocks" district for our shoot. Initially, we pondered over a beach shoot idea but we had a shoot at "Coogee Beach" thanks to YM.

Sitting on steps

We were both excited yet apprehensive. We had been following Jenny's blog for quite some time now. She makes it known that she's very bubbly & talkative during her shoots and we were afraid that we would be a bore (we being the non-talkative bunch)

Leaning against each other in the alley

She brought along her friend, Joyce who's a hobby photographer/student currently in her final year of fine art photography course.

"So Jenny, is Joyce your apprentice?" I enquired.
"No, no. She's just a friend."
To which Joyce replied to us, "You have no idea how many people want to shoot with Jenny and it is such a good opportunity."

Jenny demonstrating how to pose

From their conversation, we could see instantly that Jenny was a very humble person. She's gaining recognition in the photography world but she's not Louis Pang's standard in terms of status, NOT YET at least.

However her photography standard is definitely on par with Louis Pang's.

Wooden door background

During the 4 hours shoot, we walked through every possible nook and cranny in "The Rocks" area. Jenny particularly likes shooting in alleys and other people's houses, which will be shown in later pictures.

FYI Jenny carries around 2 cameras on her shoulders and 2 other lenses in her camera bag. What a heavy load for such a tiny frame.

Bright contrast

Initially I expected the shoot to be all natural, where we'll just stroll around and do our own stuff as she shoots away. All the photos on her blog were so natural.

Outside someone's house

But the amount of posing that we had to do was tremendous. "Close your eyes" "Lean closer" "Stretch your legs out" etc etc

This shot was taken outside someone's house. I'd imagine the owner to get a fright of his life if he opens his door then. haha

Look at her on the ground photographing the wife's engagement ring

Jenny Sun is a really professional photographer, who ain't afraid to get down and dirty as shown in this shot above. She goes to extreme measures just to get the right lighting and exposure so that the pictures will turn out perfect.

Remains of an old house

She was also able to maintain an amazingly high level of energy and enthusiasm throughout the 4 hours. Her ability to lead her subjects (us) through the different shots and poses really prevailed. She kept assuring us that the photos will turn out great.

Tables & Chairs remains

Stairways to someone's house - AGAIN

This is another shot outside someone's property. She'll tell us how to pose, then ask us to creep up the stairs quietly which she remains on safe grounds. Then after a couple of quick shots we quickly went back down.

Feels like having an affair. haha

In the park

After much sneaking around we ended up in a lovely park overlooking the harbour bridge. We were never up here before and it was a lovely place to bring your dog for a walk and to have a picnic.

Lying down on the patch of greenery

Amazing view

Turning around like in a Bollywood movie

She made us chase each other around and turn around and around and around. Only element missing is a Bollywood tune playing in the background and some trees for us to play hide-and-seek.

Gazing into the sun

Risking our lives

It wasn't a very busy road but it was a road, nonetheless. She made us to sit down in the middle of the road for this shot. haha

Last shot of the day

To be frank I was very glad it was finally over. The 1st hour was pleasant and exciting and everything in between. As the clock ticked past the 2nd hour, it started to feel tiring and the muscles on our faces started to tense up.

By the 3rd hour we started experiencing cramps (joking) and started feeling fatigue. On several occassions I was tempted to tell Jenny, "Look why don't we call it a day and I'll give you a discount of 1 hour?"

It was definitely one hell of an experience. But I can't help but think, if I'm feeling so tired after 4 hours, how am I going to survive our wedding day next year?

It had been 2 weeks now and I can't wait to see how the photos will turn out. Fingers crossed.

Technorati Tags: Photography, Jenny Sun, The Rocks, Sydney

Ayam Goreng 99 Indonesian

2008-10-16T07:17:00.000+11:00

Ayam Goreng 99

Located just down the hill from our place, Ayam Goreng 99 is an eatery we passed by often but never ventured into.

We finally decided to give it a shot after Fung's recommendation.

Narrow but compensated in length

The shop was quite narrow, only just fitting 2 normal sized tables at it's widest. But it stretches all the way in till we reach the kitchen. Must be quite an exercise to be a waiter here.

We arrived at about 12+ pm and the place was packed.

The concept of ordering is similar to taiwanese eateries where you jot down your orders on a piece of paper and pass it to the waiters.

Teh Botol $1.50

Famous indonesian drink. Tasted in Batam before and was quite good. This particular one in paperpack version had a strange odour in it. (Like toilet smell) haha

Bihun Goreng $9.00

A lot of customers ordered this dish so we decided to give it a try. That's normally our tactic to figure out what's the best dish around, by observing what other customers are trying.

It's quite tasty and the rice vermicelli was tastefully prepared. Topped with fishballs and vegetable, it was steaming hot when it arrived. Felt it was slightly overpriced.

Ayam Panggang - BBQ, Java & Goreng $5.50 each

Each of us ordered 3 different varieties of Ayam Panggang (grilled chicken). When it arrived, we just starred blankly at the waiter. "How to differenciate the 3? They all look similar."

As it turns out, the waiter pondered over our question and wasn't sure as well. Only after affirming what our orders were did he manage to pinpoint the culprits. Luckily he didn't have to make sure by licking them. But I suspected that he wasn't very sure.

After tasting our chickens, the waiter was right! "I apologize for doubting your waitering abilities."

BBQ & Java was quite nice but the Goreng was quite normal. The indonesians really know how to bakar (burn) their chicken. ;o)

Pepes Ikan Bilis $4.00

We wanted the mushroom version but they were out so we chose the anchovies instead. It comes wrapped in pandan leaf, consisting of various bits and pieces not recognisable by our taste buds.

The taste resembles "lemang", a similarly pandan leaf wrapped breakfast snack sold in kuching markets.

Overall the food was delightful. Prices were reasonable but portions were quite small.

Technorati Tags: Sydney, Food, Indonesian

Central Locking Installation

2008-10-14T08:20:00.000+11:00

Black Widow Kit

Couple of weeks back I got my hands on a DIY 4 door central locking kit for our car. The used car we got doesn't come with central locking and it's really a hassle (call me lazy) to manually lock the doors.

The kit costs $69.00 and includes 1 master and 3 slave actuators, a whole lot of wires and 2 remotes.

The electrical diagram

Before I got the kit, I did my research online and found that it's quite easy to fix it up. But I didn't read the fine print (a certain level of understanding of electronics is required).

So I was quite stunned when I saw the electrical diagram. Even the guy at Strathfield where I got the kit from advised me not to do it unless I know what I'm doing. Leave it to them he says, but he probably just wants to earn my money.

It costs a ridiculous $65 per door to have it fixed. That's $65 X 4 + $69 = a whopping $329

All the wires from under the steering wheel

There are so many wires at the drivers kick panel that I'll be 80 by the time I identified everyone of them. I also risked electrocuting myself (slight exaggeration but 12V does hurt) and messing up the car's electrical circuitry.

There wasn't much chance for trial and error as I didn't want to end up with a few thousands dollars worth of scrap metal just for the convenience of central locking.

The various equipments needed

Taking off the door panel

Another main obstacle was removing the door panels to which I'm proud to say I'm an expert at now. haha It took us 2-3 hours (me & roy) to remove our first panel, which we did in the dark with a fumbling torchlight.

All the wires lead to a central control box

After installing all the actuators at the separate doors, I linked the wires under the carpets to the main controller under the steering wheel.

I was able to locate all the main wires except for the headlights, which will blink to indicate the remote has been activated/deactivated.

After an exhausting search (turning your head upside down and searching in a cramped environment), I finally gave up.

Fixing back the door panel

Everything works just fine now, without the indication. I am so proud. haha

It took me a total of 3 days spread out over 2 weeks to complete. Now I can include "Central Locking Kit Installation" into my resume.

Technorati Tags: Central Locking, Car

Cocolo Restaurant Randwick

2008-10-11T10:25:00.000+11:00

Cocolo Thai & Japanese

During the weekends we went over to "The Spot" for dinner. It's about 5 mins drive from our place and it's like the local entertainment place, complete with a small cinema.

We seldom dine here due to the inflated prices, and we could get better value for our money just a couple of streets down the road.

Interior

After browsing around the different eateries and being flabbergastered at the $25 noodles and $35 steak which is obviously inflated many times over, we finally chose Cocola with it's reasonable prices.

Cocola is an establishment that serves both Thai & Japanese cuisine.

Tom Yum Soup

The wife decided to go for the Tom Yum soup, which isn't spicy eventhough we requested them to rev up the spice factor. It's always the case for thai eateries in Sydney. Tom Yum doesn't really taste that good if it doesn't burn our intestines and make our lips swell.

But spice apart, the taste was reasonably good. Just they should probably serve it in a bigger portion. (and they shouldn't charge extra for rice)

Grilled salmon Bento Box

I ordered the Bento Box which was quite value for money. It included grilled salmon, rice, soba noodles, seaweed, tempura, adegashi tofu, 2 slices of sweet egg and miso soup.

Grilled salmon was quite tasty for a dish that's apparently designed for a value picker diner like myself.

Overall it was quite enjoyable to dine out and just to enjoy the evening out. =p

Technorati Tags: The Spot, Sydney, Thai

Blue Mountains

2008-10-10T07:45:00.000+11:00

Couple of weeks back we decided to head out to the Blue Mountains, about 2 hrs drive west of Sydney.

Honeymoon Lookout

We've visited this area last year but we couldn't see a thing due to the unrelentless fog. This time around, the weather was gloomy and thunderstorms were forecasted. But we decided to give it a shot anyway.

Queen Elizabeth was here

See how blue the mountains are

It doesn't portray in the pictures but the mountains really had a strange blue hue to it, hence the name "Blue Mountains". It remains a popular tourist destination and a holiday to Sydney would be incomplete without a visit here.

Three sisters (background)

The Great Ocean Road has the 12 apostles, and blue mountains has the "three sisters". It's basically 3 rocks that are strategically located in a pristine environment.

Legend has it that the 3 sisters fell in love with 3 men from a neighbouring tribe but the marriage was forbidden by tribal law .... link.

Close up

Some would claim that it's nature's creation. But to be frank, a rock's a rock, no matter how grandeur the name may seem. =p

The previous time we were here the fog was so bad that we couldn't make out any sisters and had to pose as the 3 sisters ourselves. haha

Gateway to the 1st sister

Steps going down

Now this is where we could actually climb/walk over to the 1st sister. It was quite scary for me (who's afraid of heights). The last time it wasn't that bad as the fog covered up everything. The clear weather today ensured that everything was in sight, all the way down below.

Walkway to the 1st sister

Entrance to Scenic World

Naked statues outside the Scenic World

The old me would had taken a shot like that as well, but considering that my status is now "Not available" I decided against it to prevent conflict. Besides, the wife was just beside me. ;)

Next we moved on to Scenic World, where we paid $28.00 pp for 3 rides, the Cableway, the Skyway & the Railway.

The Railway

The railway was quite an exhilirating ride as the inclination when it descended was 45 degrees or almost that. Eventhough the ride only took about 1 min but it did feel like a roller coaster ride and set the hearts pumping.

Look at how steep it was

The rails

The tracks were used to transport minerals from the mines down to the towns. It's actually quite amazing that the tracks are still in tip-top condition considering that mining started in the 1800s.

The platform - I just wonder what'll happen if the brakes doesn't work?

Miners from faraway land

The mines

This is a replica of how the mines looked like in the old days. The only modes of transportation back then was horses and human legs. Moving tons of minerals without mechanical assistance is no mean feat.

Rest houses

Life back then was probably quite miserable. The climate here is much cooler than Sydney, even with all the green house gases. So one can only imagine how freezing it was back in the old days, when there's no heaters and electricity.

The Cableway

After a supposedly 10mins walk (ended up spending 45 mins walking around due to different detours - the worst being the treehouse thingy that took 10 mins to reach but was an absolute disappointment) around the old mining area, we used the Cableway to get back to the Scenic World entrance.

In the Cableway

The Cableway is a huge cabin that ascents and descends via the cable. It can probably take more than 50 people and the view of the waterfalls and the surrounding scenery while we slowly ascent was quite memorable.

The Skyway

At the Scenic World entrance, we then took the Skyway, which is a horizontally moving cable-cabin.

See-through glass

We were offered the view of an entirely different section. But the Skyway was unique in the sense that the mid section of the cabin consisted of glass that become see-through whenever the operator flipped the switch.

Wentworth falls

This place was actually quite amazing and we would have given it a miss was it not for Roy's persistence. It was just a small street located in the middle of nowhere, literally. And it took us more than half an hour to locate it.

It's still in the Blue Mountains area but its in one of the small towns.

The view was breathtaking

We knew of this place through a traveller's magazine. Strangely there isn't any sign whatsoever that pin-points the location.

The place was deserted

It was actually a good thing that they didn't advertise the place with signboards and stuff as it is very rare to actually find a nice spot with amazing views not swarmed with tourists.

Carvings on the stone floor

Someone carved a date on the stone floor everytime they were up here, once a year since the 1970s until it stopped abruptly in 1994 .....

Cars that went overboard

..... that's probably what happened in 1995 before they had the chance to carve the date on the stone floor.

R.I.P.

Technorati Tags: Sydney, Blue Mountains, Three sisters

Testicle Pizza?

2008-10-08T07:55:00.000+11:00

A serbian chef is publishing a new cookbook titled, "The testicle cookbook - cooking with balls". A fitting title for a cookbook that offers various recipes to cook testicles. Read more here.

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I also wanna buy this house for $2.20. I had better surf ebay more frequently to get offers as such.

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The attack of the bare breasted bandits. Need I say more?

Frankly speaking, I don't mind being attacked. hehe

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!! Chicky Feet

2008-10-03T11:10:00.000+10:00

I'm sure caucasians will freak out when they touch this. haha.

Chicken Feet complete with nails

Not many butchers stock up chicken feet, and even if they do it is often not displayed. Except this particular shop in chinatown that proudly displays an entire bucketfull of chicken feet, despite the stares from revolting caucasians.

Personally the only chicken feet I take is from Yum Cha, dipped into delicious black sauce. Did I mention the chicken feet here are humongous? Probaby twice or even three times the size we're normally accustomed to.

And they're damn cheap. Only $1.80/kg.

Process of cutting the nails

Despite the delicious crunchy texture, chicken feet are actually quite hideous, even scary for some in it's natural apperance.

It looks and feels almost like a human's fingers, baby fingers. And the worst thing about buying our own chicken feet is that, we need to cut the toenails. *shivers*

It feels like grabbing some dead guy's fingers up and clipping his nails for him before burial.

How it looks like without nails

The sound the nails make prior to its breaking point, *kleak* or *crack* just sends shudders down my spine. You know that eerie feeling you get when your nails break or you hear someone else's bones breaking? It really feels disgusting.

Look at that! How's disgusting is that?

I wouldn't dare to touch the feet after the nails had been clipped even if you paid me to. FYI this procedure was conducted with a pair of scissors.

Leftovers nails

I wonder if the chicken felt any pain?

Mooncake Shopping

2008-10-01T13:50:00.000+10:00

Mooncake shopping in Sydney was relatively trouble free. Contrary to our opinion that trying to find mooncake here would be like finding needle in a haystack.

Market City

All we had to do was to browse through the gigantic selection of various mooncakes available at Market City & World Square. Both are prominent shopping complexes in the heart of Chinatown.

Assortments of mooncakes

Mooncakes from HK, Vietnam, Malaysia etc in various sizes and colors were all available. The variety was really impressive.

Display Hut

The last time I went mooncake shopping was in Malaysia, during my secondary school time ... at one of those grocery shops at Green Road. We would make tea and shift our mahjong table outside and eat mooncake while playing with lanterns.

Even while we were in Singapore the only celebration we did during mid-autumn festival was to visit the lights show at Chinese Garden.

Strangely being here, we had a strong urge to buy mooncake, play lanterns, celebrate and just to find back that little bit of "chinesy" feel in this white land.

Fruit flavoured mooncake

I wanted to try this fruit flavoured mooncake. But was afraid the taste would be too weird. It looks really cute doesn't it? All the different colors.

Initially we tried to find the 家好月圆 brand from the HK TVB series. But the closest we could find was XXXX from vietnam. I'm sure the TVB series wouldn't use a mooncake brand from Vietnam wouldn't it? So in the end we ended up with this particular brand.

Retail price is $18.00

For 4 pieces of mooncake

Brand name imprinted

I like the way the mooncakes always seem to glow in their skin. Inviting you to eat them..

Lotus with single yoke

The lotus was very chewy, not too sweet and the yoke adds a subtle salty taste. The crust implements the chewy factor with a little bit of crunch.

:P

HAPPY BELATED MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL!

We were checking out the story of mid-autumn festival on wikipedia and there are so many versions but were all quite interesting. I like the idea of a medicine pounding rabbit.

This year's theme at Chinese Garden Singapore was HELLO KITTY! Looks very nice.

Technorati Tags: Mid-Autumn, Mooncake

Moon Cake Festival

2008-09-29T13:35:00.000+10:00

Opening ceremony

During the mooncake festival, we went down to Chinatown to check out the celebrations in store. One shop chose this auspicious date for their opening ceremony so we got to watch a lion dance.

A band rocking on stage

When we entered the main atrium of Market City, we were pleasantly suprised to find a stage in the middle with a rocking band on stage. The only strange thing was why recruit a rock band for mooncake festival?

And they were singing in English. wtf this is supposed to be a chinese festival.

Dancers from Mongolia

The band was actually quite good, but they were playing really loud and it didn't really blend in well with the mooncake atmosphere, with lanterns hanging and decorative stuff. So it became pretty annoying after a while.

After that came the mongolian dancers. Swinging and swinging their dresses and swinging and swinging....

Cute little ones with umbrellas

Next up were the little children with umbrellas. Some of the mini dancers were really young and it showed in their somewhat disorganized dance. But it was a good effort nonetheless.

Kudos to one particular kid who had a hard time catching up to the rhythm of the other kids, but he tried relentlessly. hehe really cute

Puppet face

Then came the puppet faces, those that usually accompanies lion dances.

Adult umbrellas

The adult with umbrellas weren't as entertaining as the kiddies ones. Probaby because some people (myself included) find adults acting cute with umbrellas slightly revolting. haha

Technorati Tags: Mooncake, Chinatown

Yearbook

2008-09-22T11:55:00.000+10:00

Last week we had some fun reminiscing about the past, the wife and I. We recalled stuff from the 1950s, when we had tea with my teenage grandparents at the courtyard opposite the city's main bus station.

Then, owning a car was a rare luxury only afforded by the filthy rich. There wasn't even a proper tar road and most of us ride bicycles on muddy roads.

1952 (Going for my 1st interview)

I rummaged through my old drawer and found this old picture of myself from that era. It depicted a young me groomed for an interview. I remember it was for a clerk position at the local bus station.

1976 - Rock & Roll

Inside the drawer there was a 1976 photo of myself, when rock & roll with elvis the king were in their prime. Every youngster including myself had bell bottom pants with long flowing hair and rock parties were aplenty.

1982 - The year I was born

Strangely, this baby photo of me already had an afro and decked in cowboy pattern shirt. I'm unsure how my mum got me to grow an afro that quick but don't you think I look good in that?

haha

Go here to get an old picture of yourself. See if you look like your dad. ;p

Technorati Tags: Yearbook, old image

Australia = No. 28 snicker

2008-09-19T07:55:00.000+10:00

"Australia is ranked 28th on a 42 nation study by MBA students of Oxford University which highlighted each nation's ability to cope with next-generation web applications. THe study focused on countries in Europe, North America, the OECD, Brazil, Russia, India & China"

Best Broadband nations:

Japan
Sweden
Netherlands
Latvia
Korea
Switzerland
Lithuania
Denmark
Germany
Slovenia

They were properly to chicken-shit to include HK & Singapore, equipped with state of the art broadband infrastructures as well and would properly be sitting on the top tier.

But that's beside the point, it was a real slap to the face for Australia and I must say it felt really good. Australians are really proud of themselves, mate. And they have obvious reasons to be so. Strong economy, high standard of living etc etc.

But when it comes to technological stuff like computers, ipods and stuff. It has to be one of the last countries to catch on to the latest gadgets. (The only exemption being the 3G Iphone which was first released in here)

Other stuff like mobile phones, the highest memory card you can score, the speed of the current processor etc is pretty below par compared to technologically fast-paced asian countries like japan/korea/singapore/hk.

I'm not saying that they don't have high tech gadgets, it just takes longer for it to arrive on Australian shores, and that causes the price to inflate. For example, for SGD$100 you can get a 150gb external harddisk but for AUD$100 you may only get a 100gb model. (dollar to dollar comparison)

That's why most asians here (myself included) opt to get their tech stuff from overseas and ship it here. But aussies still prefer to buy their tech stuff here albeit the higher price. "What if the items are faulty?" they say. "But there is no warranty!" they complaint. "Non-australian items are of low quality."

I've even heard one of my colleagues complaining about entering Malaysian websites. He asked me why are Malaysian websites full of viruses? He's planning a trip over there and is searching for accomodation etc and he claims that whenever he logs on to Malaysia related sites his pc gets attacked by virus.

Have you heard anything more absurd?

Back on the broadband issue. Would you believe that they actually put a cap on most broadband plans over here? It is so annoying to have to keep track of our online data and avoid having to pay for excess usage. I mean, broadband is supposed to be unlimited. There is no other way around it.

At the beginning of the year they released the ADSL2+ which has theoretical speed of 20mbps. (i'm currently on this plan) Truth be told I felt the 6mpbs plan I used in Singapore was about the same speed but more stable compared to the ADSL2+.

So in your face Australia! Your broadband sucks and you deserve to be No. 28. haha

And to my colleague: "You'd better not travel to Malaysia. Our country is swarmed with viruses and they will eat you alive the moment you step foot on our tanah tumpah darahku!!!"

Sushi in house

2008-09-17T07:52:00.001+10:00

When my sister was in town last month, we had a feast of seafood bought fresh from the fish market.

Salmon & Tuna Sashimi

The sashimi was very very fresh, without any fishy smell whatsoever. It seemed the only way to taste fresher fish is to eat them alive, while still kicking away in your mouth. There was a tinge of sweetness as we engulfed every single piece.

Check out the color of the tuna as well. I've heard before that the freshness of the tuna is linear with the brightness of the red color. (which part of the tuna probably plays a factor as well) But my mouth says its fresh and I'll believe it without a benefit of a doubt.

It only costs $12.XX for the whole lot. Imagine japanese eateries selling 6 slices for exhorbitant prices of $5.00 or more.

Oysters

Next up we had oysters, which was divided into the sweet OR salty type. To be frank I couldn't really tell the difference. But they all had the seawater taste.

Close up

The price for a dozen of oysters is about $14 - $17 depending on size or origin. The supposedly good ones are from tasmanian oysters.

Thinking back it was actually quite amazing no one had a serious bout of tummy-the-pain-ache considering the amount of raw/uncooked stuff we consumed.

Technorati Tags: Sydney Fish Market, Sashimi

The cat

2008-09-15T08:25:00.001+10:00

Cat in the house

On a few occassions, we came home to a cat that was frolicking on our doorsteps. We knew he belongs to someone else. How else can a cat with so much fur maintain its shine?

At first, we didn't pay much attention to it. Until one day when it decided to pay our home a visit. Plus it was raining so it was probably just finding a temporary shelter.

Roaming around

It came into our house and roamed the grounds. Sniffing around and familiarizing itself with the new surroundings. It was definitely one of the cutest cats around this neighbourhood. No doubt assisted by it's fat and chubby outlook.

Check out the video:

It knows a neat trick where if you "meow" at it a couple of times, it will stop, sit and raise it's paw at you as if to shake your hand. Damn cute. Too bad we couldn't capture it on video.

The cat is so cute I feel like abducting it.

Technorati Tags: cat

Lame Jokes part 1

2008-09-12T08:31:00.001+10:00

My colleague Nigel has a weird sense of humour. Weird, because I think so .... sense of humour, because he imagines he has one. (imo non-existent)

I've told the wife a couple of times about his miserable attempts to crack a joke, but had always been left dumb-struck when she asked me for examples and I can't remember any. (Mainly because of my poor memory + some things are better left forgotten)

So during Nigel's latest attempt, I promptly turned on the computer and scribbled it down.

**************

He was having a mandarin orange, so I asked him, is it sweet?

He replied, "No, it's sour. Do you want one?"

"No! I don't want sour mandarins."

Then he throws his arms up in the air and exclaims, "No one likes sour mandarins anymore, what's the world coming to?" (with a grin on his face, starring at you)

Normally I wouldn't give a damn. But he keeps starring at me, grinning and waiting ... for me to LOL at his joke. I swear I could hear the crows going "croak croak croak"

I mustered all my energy and coerced myself into a tiny grin and 2 soft whispers of "hehe"

(the type that we normally reserve for parents that ill treat/thrash us, but we can't fight back cause we're still young and need to rely on them for food/accomodation but yet deep down we know that once we can survive on our own we'll take the giant chopper from the kitched and cut open their skulls and pull their brains out. Yeah, that's for forcing us to smile at that feeble attempt of a joke)

Beautiful Contortionist

2008-09-10T13:34:00.005+10:00

Check out this video. Spotted on Darling Harbour couple of weeks back.

"It's all in your mind. Bend the spoon!"

Technorati Tags: Sydney, Contortionist

Administrative Fee my ass

2008-09-06T07:58:00.001+10:00

Last month while we were in Melbourne, we hired a Kia Carnival from Europcar. Payment was made using credit card and everything was settled.

3 weeks later, an odd entry in my credit card statement appeared. Apparently I've been charged $38.50 by Europcar. "Dang, must be some speed trap fine." I thought to myself. The T&C clearly states that the hirer has to settle all fines and any infringements that occurred during the duration.

So I called them up, out of curiousity rather than inquiry. The guy confirmed my suspicion that we had indeed violated some traffic offence. "So does that mean that this $38.50 that you're charging me is to settle the traffic violation?", I enquired.

"Oh, no. That's just the administration fee. The actual summon will be sent to your residential address at XXX."
I was like, "WTF So what's the purpose of this administration fee that I have to fork out for?"
"It's for us to inform the traffic police that the offence occurred while you were in possession of the car, and to provide them with your address so that they may send the summon to you."

So f**k it, now I have to pay the summon, on top of the exorbitant admin fee which serves absolutely no purpose whatsoever. I mean, to pay $38.50 just to pass my address (which is already in your database and all you have to do is to type my name in) over to the traffic police seems pretty dodgy to me.

If all you have to do is input the customer's name, inform the traffic police and you'll get $38.50, then I'll say you must have the best (work to pay) ratio in the world.

I've been waiting for 2 weeks and there isn't any traffic summons in my mail yet. I think I'll call them up on Monday to interrogate them on why they're swindling my money.

And there was that time when we were joining Fitness First, we had to pay them an administration fee of $70. According to them its "ADMIN FEE - Is a fee used for all set up costs of a new or renewing membership."

And do you know what they did? Grab a pen, fill in a 2 page form with our information, that's it! (One would think they should be able to read our minds and fill up the forms themselves with the amount we're paying) Probably because the pen weighs a ton, or the form consists of some high-tech crap that uses a lot of energy/expertise to write on, because it costs $70.

ADMIN FEE is just an elaborate scheme to deceive us consumers!

Sushi Chronicles Part 1

2008-09-03T07:07:00.000+10:00

Tuesday nights are always the busiest. There's a promotion going on where every plate goes for only $2.50. The line of customers waiting to get their tummy filled never ceases till late at night.

I was making my rounds, taking orders and filling up their cups of water when I noticed the 3 girls making their way into the shop. They had "tudungs"(head scarfs) that covered their precious heads from the prying eyes of the XY chromosomes. I was sure that they're malaysian malays by their dress code & speech. (plus I asked them)

Initially I didn't pay much attention to them. I resumed my usual activities around the store until one of them signalled me over.

"Can I have that?" (while pointing at the table)
I starred at the table, then back at her.
"I'm sorry?"
"That one", she continued.
"Fuck, what does she mean?" I thought to myself.
Realizing that I'm not getting the drift, she said, "That one .... the plate ... to put the sauce."
"Oh, okay... I'll pass some saucers to you."

So they were all merry and cheerful for half an hour while they dined, then another girl signalled me over.

"Excuse me, but what is this?" (pointing to 2 gyozas that were originally sets of 3)
"That would be pork, miss." (Then it hit me, OMG she just had pork!)
".............." (Her face went totally blank)
(Regains composure after 5 secs) "Cann...I... please have a .... glass of water?"

For those who don't get it, malays (muslims) are prohibited from consuming pork. In certain parts of Malaysia, the muslim cashiers at the supermarkets wrap their hands with plastic bags when attending to customers purchasing luncheon meat.

Anyway, I know I shouldn't be laughing at her misfortune but I found it quite amusing. I'm totally against prohibitions by religions. Be it constraint against food, or touching animals, etc etc. What's the big point about consuming pork? Will they transform into bad muslims that fall in the same league as murderers and rapist and such? That's utter B.S.

Besides, "Those who do it unknowingly is not at fault" (chinese proverb). haha She is probably one of the lucky muslims who will ever got to taste pork.

Technorati Tags: Sushi

Western Meal (By a super chef)

2008-09-01T07:36:00.000+10:00

The menu today is lamb shank (medium rare) served with mashed potatoes (butter & salt) accompanied by chips (COLES gravy flavour) and washed down with a glass of white wine.

I'm thankful my wife is a good cook. Actually she's an excellent cook. We were watching a taiwanese series "It started with a kiss" where the girl can't cook if her life depends on it. haha. I'm glad she's not my wife.

Come to think of it, not many girls nowadays like to cook. The strive for equality in sex means girls need not make an effort to please men by being good cooks, as the old saying goes - "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach."

These days, we(guys) can't demand our wife/gf to be able to cook an egg, fry some rice or even operate the microwave without some involvement from the fire department, because that would make us chauvinistic and that's totally unacceptable by today's standards.

8 out of 10 girls in Singapore can't differenciate between salt, sugar and ajinomoto, let alone cook. In fact, 70% of these 8 girls have never even set foot in the kitchen before. The other 30% enters the kitchen on a daily basis, but only to go to the toilet, which is behind the kitchen.

Like a famous man once said, "There is no bad chef, only a lazy chef."

Flip through the magazine, browse through the internet ... There are tons of recipes that can be easily prepared, which are kind to the taste buds and healthy to the body. Some of the instructions might be slightly misleading but one need not be a PHD holder to understand the common terms used in recipes.

Example:

Turn on fire. (Mum! How do I light the match stick?)
Mix 1 egg into the flour mixture and blend thoroughly. (Remember to remove the egg shells. They are not edible. I repeat! EGGSHELLS R NOT EDIBLE!)
Pour the contents of the instant noodles into a pot of water. (Don't forget to remove the packaging. And the sachets of flavouring goes into the noodles, not the pot of water)

So girls. Cook, or you shall be cook!

P/s. I wanna take this opportunity to apologize to our neighbours, who had to endure months of agonizing torture where they could only sniff at my wife's delicious cooking when she's cooking, but not being able to taste any of it.

Technorati Tags: Ladies, Cooking, Meal

Doreamon

2008-08-29T07:01:00.000+10:00

Frontal

As a kid, I adored Doreamon, the blue robotic/mechanical cat. He belongs to 小熊 , who attracts bullies like the light attracts bugs.

Winking

Doreamon has a penchant for saving 小熊 from the bullies, by withdrawing cool gadgets from never-ending pocket. Who could forget the helicopter cap, or the desk that transcends time etc etc?

I'd imagine I was 小熊 and Doreamon's my pet. He'd run with me when we're chased by bandits and just as they're about to kill us, he'll fish out a cool WMD from his pocket and totally pulverize them!!. haha

That's probably why I have imaginary chats with my soft toys.

Look at his cute tail

OMG to see Doraemon in the flesh is like a dream come true. Too bad the pics were meticulously stolen from the wife's friend's facebook that obviously doesn't belong to me.

So cute

/me relishes my childhood. I'd spent hours on end lapping up every single story of the blue cat.

In those days, a blue cat is all it takes to keep a boy happy.

Technorati Tags: Doraemon

If tomorrow never comes ....

2008-08-28T07:06:00.004+10:00

If tomorrow never comes...

If I knew it would be the last time that I'd see you fall asleep, I would tuck you in more tightly, and pray the Lord your soul to keep. If I knew it would be the last time that I'd see you walk out the door, I would give you a hug and kiss, and call you back for just one more.

If I knew it would be the last time I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise, I would tape each word and action, and play them back throughout my days If I knew it would be the last time, I would spare an extra minute or two, To stop and say "I love you," instead of assuming you know I do.

So just in case tomorrow never comes, and today is all I get, I'd like to say how much I love you, and I hope we never will forget. Tomorrow is not promised to anyone, young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance you get to hold your loved one tight.

So if you're waiting for tomorrow, why not do it today? For if tomorrow never comes, you'll surely regret the day That you didn't take that extra time for a smile, a hug, or a kiss,
And you were too busy to grant someone, what turned out to be their one last wish.

So hold your loved ones close today, and whisper in their ear, That you love them very much, and you'll always hold them dear. Take time to say "I'm sorry," "Please forgive me," "thank you" or "it's okay". And if tomorrow never comes, you'll have no regrets about today.

Everyday I'd come in to work, and keep looking at the watch, waiting for the time to go home. I'd peek at the calendar, fuck it's only tuesday, another 3 days to go. Always waiting for the weekends to arrive. When its sunday, I'll feel depress and be looking forward to the next weekend. This viscious cycle goes on continously. I'd feel that time flies by pretty quick. It's already the 8th month of 2008.

But what I fail to realize is that, I spent so much time waiting, for that next weekend, that next public holiday, that next event that I forget to actually live "this moment". I'd be secretly wishing that time would fly, hell I'd skip a few months if that's what it takes, to our next trip back to Malaysia.

Take for example our wedding receiption next year. I'd treat all the planning, the venue selection, the invitation card making as a chore rather than a pleasure. I'd hope that everything gets done ASAP so that everything will be in place for the actual event. That's so wrong! All that planning & arranging etc etc is actually part of the fun of the receiption. They should be partook with a happy attitude rather than a reluctant heart.

Too much emphasize on the results, and never enough on the process.

My point is, to stop glancing forward to the future ... and start living the moment. What are you doing right now? Probably something boring and mundane and tedious, something you do everyday but take for granted. Sweeping the floor? Massaging your dear's back? Cooking dinner?

Ask yourself one question, "What if today is my last day?"

You're back from work, your kids want you to help them with their homework. Fuck it! I'm so tired from work and still need to be bothered with their homework. What if they're killed in a car accident tomorrow? Will you still find helping them with their homework a chore?

Your aging mum wants you to accompany her to the clinic for her monthly checkups. Damn it! It's the weekends I still have to waste time at the clinic. What if her liver transplant few weeks back was rejected and she passed away the next morning? Still a waste of time?

....

Live life like there's no tomorrow, and you'll have no regrets in life.

....

I know I will.

"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present."

- Kungfu Panda

Technorati Tags: Tomorrow, time

SKYDIVE @ Sydney

2008-08-27T06:55:00.000+10:00

Gathering spot

After chickening out on the Bungy Jump in Macau Tower, I was adamant to follow through on this, to redeem my self esteem.

I'd never expected it to be so soon due to price constraints and I ain't rich. But sis and ym gave the go ahead and I figured it's better to have company, lest any misfortunes happen.

On the bus

We gathered at the office in the CBD before departing to the drop zone in a van. After a 45 mins drive, we ended up in wilderness, in the middle of nowhere.

With 1 of the instructors

Was rather suprised at the bareness and unkept of the place. A couple of wooden single storey buildings in the middle of a large field with an tiny airplane parked beside it.

Notice how the instructor's suit is torn at the knees? I was having a bout of queasy and nervousess at this point. But hell I've paid $100 deposit and no backing down.

Wind out south is queer, same wind blows ym's
face in one direction and mine in the other

Our group of about 20 jumpers were too large for a single flight. We were on the 2nd flight, giving us ample time to iron out our fears, have a cup of coffee and just tour the area.

On the other hand, it amplifies the nervous factor because we had to wait. And as we all know, waiting is damn agonizing.

Pftt.

The plane

Beware of dropping objects

I wonder if they comb these fields for dropped valuables? I wouldn't mind getting smacked in the head by a mobile phone or a diamond ring, but I'd get really aggitated if it was a boot.

Gearing up

Finally, the announcement on the speaker for us to gear up. Slightly frantic now, legs are wobbly and heart seems to be dropping into a never-ending abyss.

We had a brief orientation on how to position our bodies during the drop and touch down. We are tandem-jumping with a qualified skydiver strapped on our backs. (AUD$260)

Parachute

This is where I got introduced to Phil, my partner to jump. I was fiddling around with the parachute atm and he came up to me and said, "Don't play with that or it'll fail, we'll be using this one for our jump".

We went for the dvd package for an extra $100. So check out the video:

Scariest point - Him sitting on the ledge and my entire body is hanging in the air before we jumped. We experienced 60 secs of freefall and 3-4 mins of gliding and view after the parachute opened.

We jumped at 14,000 feet, that's the [QUOTE] highest altitude we could go without donning special equipment. [UNQUOTE]

Here's an animated review of the jump courtesy of YM.

Relieved

Certificate

So i did it! I jumped out of a plane and survived!

Technorati Tags: Skydive, Adrenaline, Sydney

Sushi Samurai (Pyrmont)

2008-08-26T07:13:00.000+10:00

Main Entrance

We had a department luncheon a couple of weeks back our reward for our decent performance for last financial year's figures.

Quite crowded

The usual Japanese greetings "Irrashaimase" greeted us as we entered the establishment. The chef and workers seemed to be predominantly japanese.

The interior is comfortably decorated with japanese wordings on the wall & subtle lightings. The shop is small and was slightly crowded especially during the lunch hour crowd.

Samurai Seafood Salad - $9.80

Generous portions of salmon, tuna and kingfish sashimi plattered on a bed of salad dressing and covered by a sweet syrup and tobiko. If heaven had a taste, this is what it'll taste like.

Samurai Chirashi Sushi - $15.80

Tuna, salmon & kingfish sashimi served on an oyster/mussel shell. Sliced raw cuttlefish placed in a bowl with ikura on top. The raw seafood had the taste of seafood freshness, with a tinge of sweetness.

Premium Wagyu Beef Steak Yakiniku (Teriyaki Sauce) - $12.80

The teriyaki sauce which flavoured the beef was overflowing with flavour. The beef tasted pretty much like your regular beef. Paled in comparison with the rest of the dishes.

Deep Fried Prawn Dimsum - $7.80

Fried to perfection, the sweetness of the prawn oozed through the crust as our teeth sunk into the dimsum.

Pork Belly Peking Duck Style - $12.80

We ordered the entree with only 4 pcs. It was definitely not enough! The tenderness of the belly melted as it met our salivating orifice. OMG it was truly delicious. There's a stamp "trademark" on the dish in the menu, aptly so!

Teriyaki Salmon - $16.80

The salmon was sweet, tasty and so scrumptious that it will convert a vegetarian to a carnivor. The flavouring seeped through every inch of salmon flesh, ensuring every bite is returned with a big grin on everyone's mouth.

"Absolutely brilliant" - says George.

Main Tempura - $18.80

Battered fish, prawns and assorted vegetables.

Sushi Main - $19.80

Me, Ping, Nigel & George (Left - Right)

The whole experience was exhilirating for our taste buds. It's very rare to come across an authentic japanese shop that offers food that's so good - people will abstain from sex for it. The total bill came to $120.

After every company meal, I will convey my special thanks to the company's coffers for making this luncheon such a success.

Technorati Tags: Sydney, Japanese, Pyrmont

I Killed Someone

2008-08-25T09:43:00.000+10:00

I had a dream the other night. Which was weird cause I'm not much of a dreamer, except when I day-dream at work. The thing about my dreams is that, no matter how vivid/lurid the dream may be, I can only remember fractions of it after I'm awake.

In this particular dream .... I killed someone. As it turns out, I don't know this person. But what I did do, is chuck him into the car boot discreetly before anyone found out. Then I went to work, and parked the car .... in the car park (obviously).

When it was time to go home, I went to the spot that I left my car at this morning and find that it's no longer there. And then I woke up.

Not much of a dream, I know. But this isn't the 1st time I've dreamt of killing someone. It isn't always the same settings, nor the same victims, but these dreams all had a common ending.

Unfazed, I searched the www and found this:

********************************

being killed	The idea that some person or situation is attempting to take power from you or victimize you, especially mentally or emotionally. For example, dreaming that a co-worker kills you may represent when she got assigned the project you wanted last week, and you're blaming her for your not getting that opportunity. A fear of ill will, being taken advantage of, manipulation, or victimization See also: killing being attacked menacing executing killer jumping coffin death of you missing person violence lose your life force dying executing hunting being shot weapon or ammunition Category: Events
killing	Killing or wanting to kill often represents a desire for power or control, often based in feelings of powerlessness. Killing someone can mean: You'd like to take power from whomever or whatever that person represents in your real life, perhaps so you can feel less powerless You are angry at them in real life You're feeling unwilling to deal with the problems or hassles you feel they cause you Killing someone in self defense can mean you're feeling attacked somehow (mentally, emotionally, physically) or that you need to defend yourself or stand up for yourself somehow. Killing someone accidentally can mean you're afraid you'll accidentally hurt that person, that something you do may be detrimental to them somehow, or that your subconscious mind is thinking things through to make sure this doesn't happen. See also: being killed attacking someone executing killer violence executing being chased hunting weapon or ammunition Category: Activities
unknown person	A person you don't know can represent many things, such as: A real person you actually know, or a particular person's role in your life A characteristic or general type of person A type of person you'd like (or wouldn't like) to know A general threat or fear (not a person) A problem, challenge, issue, to-do list item, etc. A religious figure or helper For clues about what the person represents, consider their characteristics, what they're doing and how, what stands out about them, and your emotional reaction to their presence.

********************************

I think my dreams are listed under "killing some accidentally" OR "unknown person". I seriously can't conjure any memories about being afraid that I'll hurt someone. So its probably an unsolved problem/issue/to-do list that's nagging my conscience.

The only thing left to do now, is to figure out what is it.

I bet it has something to do with the wedding planning. Or the multiple things to accomplish in my Nokia N73 to-do list, which I scan through 4-5 times daily. I have a constant phobia that I'll forget to do something, and the wife will get upset. Because many a times I've forgotten to do certain tasks eventhough I had been reminded by her millions of times.

I know its my fault, for having poor memory. (or I could blame my mum for not serving me pig's brain soup as a kid) But I think it has improved, maybe .... just a little. But I'm still constantly checking my phone, lest I forget .... hence the dream.

Just maybe.

Technorati Tags: Dreams

(TACT) MELBOURNE - The City

2008-08-24T12:14:00.000+10:00

Hot breakfast

After the bathing boxes at Brighton Beach, we headed to the adjacent St. Kilda beach for some hot breakfast. The big breakfast set was enough to feed a family of 10. The spanish ommelette is aptly named, for it was as huge as a spaniard.

Melbourne City map

It was relatively easy to get around the city. The CBD and everything else is boxed up within the square-shaped city tram tracks. We decided to rent the car for another day (bad mistake) as it was too troublesome to walk to city (30mins), spend a day there and walk back to apartment (30mins) to collect our luggage.

Besides, we're cool folks and cool folks don't walk.

Big Church

Small Church

Shopping center

I didn't know half of these buildings, I still don't. There isn't much to do in the city, except shopping. We filtered through the streets without a definite plan, and just ended up dozing off in the parked car, in the middle of a busy street.

Insufficient sleep makes us do crazy stuff. Passerbys must had thought we were goners.

Melbourne Central Station

The photo has a university kinda feel doesn't it?

Driving in Melbourne sucks, like a fat sore dislocated thumb. As if the hook turns aren't irritating enough, the tram runs adjacent to the cars. On single lane streets, all the cars will be piled up behind the tram as it makes its way around the city, stopping ever so often to pickup/drop passengers.

Had coffee/chocolate here

Town Hall

Horse Carriages

We tried to locate these horse carriages which were supposed to be in the Swanston St. vincinity. The only one we found had passengers and wouldn't stop for us. No one seemed to have any clue except advising us to wait.

Waiting in line to cross the road

A dog pissing under a tree

Random building

The buildings in Melbourne are newer, more unique and definitely more asthetically pleasing than those in Sydney. The only nice buildings we've got is Central Station ... and St. Mary's Cathedral.

Flinder's Street Station

City Circle Tram

It moves around the boundary of the CBD and the best part is that it's free. We took the tram after failing to locate the horse carriages. After the tram ride, we returned to our parked vehicle to find that (to our horror), we got fined - for overdue parking.

CCB. Luckily the parking warden informed us that they can't book us twice in a day. So once we're booked, it's free parking for the entire day. And to think we wasted $10 paying the meter when we should have just gotten the ticket ($57) from the beginning.

Telstra Dome

Considering that a majority of australian companies' head offices are in Melbourne, the pace here is pretty slow. That aside, its packed with students & asians. Weather wise, it wasn't as cold as expected. I would say it's a pretty nice place to reside in.

Technorati Tags: Melbourne

(TACT) MELBOURNE - Brighton Beach

2008-08-22T07:15:00.000+10:00

Bathing Boxes

Looks familiar? You've probably spotted these colorful huts before in advertorials. They're one of the trademarks of Melbourne (at least that's what my mind makes me believe)

Brighton Beach

It's located 15-20 mins drive from Melbourne City, although a certain friend tried to dupe us into thinking it's 45mins drive away.

He might had been confused with the ones at Mornington Peninsula, which is a great deal further.

Each box had a different color scheme

We had to visit the beach, eventhough waking up damn early 3 days in a row was starting to drive us insane, eventhough the beach was deserted at 8am, eventhough the wind brewing was so cold we could have produced ice cubes by spitting in the wind.

I mean, who could resist those bathing boxes, so many colors .... emitting happy vibes.

Jumping with joy

....

Come to think of it, nobody noticed if the boxes were locked, let alone try to open them. I have a sudden urge to take a peek inside.

Technorati Tags: Melbourne, Brighton Beach, Bath box

My bragging colleague

2008-08-21T15:05:00.001+10:00

I just stepped back into the office. Feeling a lil' drowsy from the afternoon sun. Barely warmed up my seat when Nigel started to speak to me.

Nigel is a 5o+ yo guy that sits opposite me. He has a penchant for bragging and has no qualms in telling everyone he bought his mazda at the cheapest price, or that his 42in plasma isn't the biggest, but it certainly portrays the brightest and clearest picture, or that his house by the beach has unrivalled scenery .... + he bought it at the lowest price .... etc etc.

So he tells me, "You remember the time I used the company camera (a 5mp digicam) to take a photo and the lighting is yellow? Well I brought my Fuji 10mp digital SLR in today and guess what? (insert big grin on face) It's perfect! No more yellowish hue on the photo."

I just nodded & smiled. (What I normally do while hoping that he'll stop)

He went on, " With the company camera I had to spend so much time focusing and adjusting the settings before I could get a decent shot. But with my camera I just went snap snap, (insert bigger grin on face) and it was perfect!

I continued smiling while contemplating killing myself if he doesn't stop.

But he goes on, "And you know what's the best thing about my camera? A single charge can last me for weeks, and I can put thousands of pictures on my 4gb SD card." (still grinning)

I replied, "You've got the best camera in the world, mate."

He stopped. I glanced over, and saw him with biggest, largest & widest grin ever seen on his face. Now he's happy (and quiet) and I'm happy.

Technorati Tags: Colleague, Brag

(TACT) MELBOURNE - City @ Night + meeting YunWui

2008-08-21T08:15:00.000+10:00

Arrived back at the city circa 8:00pm. That's a helluva long time cramped in a vehicle (13 hrs to be exact) Did you know that being confined in a vehicular container for lengthy periods of time can lead to hallucinations and occassional verbal spurt of gibberish?

ENERGY - dangerously low levels. (Sleep deprived + amassing negative thoughts at alarmingly fast rate)

Melbourne chinatown

It was drizzling. We would had been drenched had we decide to walk there instead. The apartment we stayed in was advertised as 15mins walk to the CBD. It was more like 30mins walk, which would feel like 45 mins in the freezing weather. (Add 15mins for the rain)

Bamboo House Restaurant

Traditional chinese restaurant

Dined at the Bamboo House Restaurant. Supposedly quite famous in this part of the world.

Peking Duck

Seafood delight, Mapo Taufu & Kailan

The Peking Duck was awesome, as in finger-licking. The rest of the dishes were rather mediocre. Wasn't too impressed when most of the other customers were caucasians. We have a simple mathematics linear equation:

No. of caucasians in asian eatery (up) = chances of getting duped (up)

Almost fainted when the table next to us (7 ppl) had the bill over $1000! Luckily ours stopped short of the 3XX figure.

Ex-classmate

We met up with YunWui, ex secondary school classmate who had been M.I.A. for 5-6 years. The last time I met him was when he had industrial training in Kuching. He told us tales about life in Melbourne & his exceptional 3 days drive from Perth - Melbourne. (Particularly interesting was a long stretch of road that has no houses, no lights, no receiption and no water. You even have to pay to use the tap water at the petrol station)

He appeared different as depicted in my memory. An older and more experienced version.

Collected a small monetary prize from him after our wager on the recent Roger - Nadal tennis match. haha

Southbank area

Had to take a photo with the tower. Too cool in blue. Minus evelyn who had a bout of i'm-tired-fuckit-going-to-sleep-in-car-nomood-take-photos-with awesome-night-scene.

Weather was freezing

Best pic of the night

The resemblance to Clarke Quay, Singapore is uncanny. Shops+eateries lining the 2 banks of a river flowing right through the city almost guarantees an instant success.

The night view of Melbourne city is pretty amazing. Romantic.

Federation Square? I'm not sure

Building with L.E.D. decorated exteriors

Some random church

There are quite a number of exquisite victorian styled churches around the city. Adds a subtle european touch to the city. We just went around capturing photos, without a clue in the world what structures were around us.

Pretty quiet in the city, we presumed that most folks were at home sleeping/ makingout/ watching telly at 9.30 on a sunday night.

Rain started to fall ....

Our apartment in the city

Went back to the apartment to catch a few winks. Damn our rented apartment looks like a war zone where US and Iraqi troops just slugged it out.

I wonder what the management has to say about this.

Technorati Tags: Melbourne, Chinatown, Bamboo

(TACT) MELBOURNE - Great Ocean Road

2008-08-20T07:38:00.001+10:00

Our decent cabin + trusty giant carnival

Day 2 - Woke up pretty early (6+) and started our journey to the Great Ocean Road. Everyone was still pretty exhausted.

Our plan today was to drive along the GOR as leisurely as possible. Fuck the timetable and drop all the watches. We will be free as the wind and go wherever our hearts desire.

Was lucky to witness the sunrise

The PRC-made GPS navigation system was probably agitated by the lack of sleep and decided to go where "her" heart desires. It's a "she" because of the female voice, and because it nags, and the voice is quite irritating.

15 mins into our drive, the sun started to rise so we pulled over by the side to take some scenic photographs.

Passed by a beach

Check out the reflection of the sun

Next stop was a beach near Torquay. Saw 2 vans releasing doves and it was mightly spectacular. The doves circled around the man as if thanking him before flying in spirals upwards towards the blue sky.

We want that for our wedding next year! Or maybe butterflies, or I'll even accept pigeons if that's all we have.

with amazing views

Footsteps in the sand, left by an unknowing jogger & his dog

"We'll cross the bridge, when we come across it"

Leisurely drove along the coastal road,

Made a couple of pit-stops along the way. The GOR passes through some small towns but nothing note-worthy to make a lengthy stop.

.... and stopped whenever a scenic panorama caught our view.

Split Point Lightstation

Answered nature's call by following a sign that trekked over mountains and seas. Finding that toilet wasn't a fluke after 15mins walk was like finding gold at the end of the rainbow.

Me, eve, roy, lisa, ym & wife.

The Ocean Road sign board

Observation:

Why isn't the gateway located at the start of the GOR at Geelong? It's located almost 1/4 of the way and we were almost worried we were going in the wrong direction. What with the crazy GPS and all.

"I will carry you .... when the boots aren't made for walking. "

Favourite pics 1

Favourite pics 2

Failed attempts at human "O I K"

For some strange apparent reason, we decided to make "OIK", which is absolutely meaningless. haha But credits to Roy (left) who went all out to create a lovely "O". (Notice how consistent he was in all 3 photos?) The "K" is always vitamin deficit causing the lower arch to be constantly bent.

Had a lunch picnic stopover

We had roasted chicken, chips & wine. Enjoying the brisk break, baking in the sun. I think we were at Anglesea, (TBC)

Had a couple more stops, snapped a couple more photos

Had a sniff at mini lavender farm

drove 15mins off course to sneak at a light house, which we decided not to enter

Check out this video we directed, filmed and starred in: (Pay great attention to stuntmaster Roy who risked severing his head by dangling his body out of the car window)

The 12 apostles

It signifies the final destination/end of the Great Ocean Road. Some have claimed there are attractions that stretch beyond the 12 apostles. But let's be realistic here, it takes 8hrs to reach the apostles, if we'd continue driving we would have reached Adelaide.

There were only about 7-8 of them left

"The forces of nature gradually eroded the softer limestone, forming caves in the cliffs which became arches and when they collapsed, rock islands as high as 45 metres were left isolated from the shore"

- Official website

Here you go.

8 photos for the 8 hours drive it took to reach here. We'd probably took the most photos here. It took me ages to scan through the photos eliminating the bad ones.

Everytime I have to go through a whole lot of pictures, both good and bad ones I'll think back to the days when film cameras roam the earth. 12/24/36? ISO400? For a 3 days vacation, we'll bring a camera & consume 2X 36film rolls, at the most. And the worst bit was only being able to view the photos after they've been developed. So if you blink, that's it! If you finger blocks the lens, that's it! It was almost always impossible to take a decent group photo in those days.

Now? A short half an hour ride to the beach with 3 digital cameras will guarantee at least 100-200 photos. (before deleting) Which is good as we can capture random shots, humourous shots and embarrassing shots.

I almost always feel like I'm back in that place whenever I browse through my old photos.

2 apostles isolated at the other side

They reckoned I look like a korean director

Group photo 1

Group photo 2

Loch Ard Gorge

Look how far down it goes

Canyons

Place 2 statues at both sides and it'll resemble the naruto-fighting with Sasuke scene.

Stalagmites

The rock is as high as it looks. (No camera tricks)

The End

The Great Ocean Road has rewarded us with mind-blowing views and magnificent scenery. But somewhere along the 8 hrs drive, the soul had left the body.

While the panorama was spectacular, it ain't worth the 8 hrs drive. (esp when we're on a tight schedule) It is best done with all the within 2-3 days as recommended. But like a true asian, we tried to cramp as much activities as we can as a limited span of time.

P/s. Photos taken were excellent. Credits to everyone in the photography department. ;o)

Technorati Tags: Melbourne, Great Ocean Road, 12 apostles

(TACT) MELBOURNE - Phillip Island

2008-08-19T07:43:00.000+10:00

Went up to Melbourne for a short vacation 2 weekends back. Part of the TACT (Total Australia Cities Tour) that has covered Gold Coast, Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide and now Melbourne.

Rented a Kia Carnival at the airport, hugeass car that could fit an entire village. Abandoned the plan to rent a convertible due to overwhelming population, & wintery weather conditions.

Long, straight road

We rented a GPS (made in PRC) that kept going bonkers on us. (AVOID PRC electronics whenever possible)

"I'm not going to turn left 200m ahead into a road divider GOD DAMMIT!!"
*Turn left 200m ahead* (The repeatative voice looming in the background)
*BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP*

:o( *&^%$#&)*

Some scenery along the way

After a detour in the city to pickup Roy + some lunch we were on our way to Phillip Island, to see fairy penguins. It is 140kms from Melbourne (est 2 hrs) so we had to rush there in order not to miss the penguins.

It's in the wild and they come home at 6:00pm in August. Miss it and you're basically screwed.

Country side feel

There seems to be a distinct difference between Melbourne & Sydney. Sydney feels just like a big city, aka Taipei, Singapore, HK etc etc. On the other hand, Melbourne packs a more caucasian punch.

Sunset

Sunset Pic 2

Passed by some amazing landscape along the way but couldn't stop to snap due to time constraits. Thinking back, it would be damn humourous had we driven so far down south and missed the penguins.

Penguin Parade

After 2 hrs + we finally arrived at The Penguin Parade 15 mins before 6pm. Talk about arriving on time.

Phillip Island is no small pea, driving from the entrance of the island to the end (Penguin Parade - the viewing area) takes about 20 mins - at bordering speed limit speed.

Obligatory shot taken at main entrance (while there's still light)

To note:

Just get the $20 ticket. We were lucky the $35 ones sold out. Can't see much on the beach anyway, most of the action is along the stretch where their homes are, and it's basically free.

No photography/videography of any sorts during the viewing. But I managed to sneak in my cam and took this video: (The warden caught me and gave me a warning)

And another one. Close up of the penguin as its walking back home: (Taken along free stretch)

The Penguin's World

Highlight of the show was supposed to be when the penguins come out of the water onto the beaches in packs. Everyone packed the stands, withering in the freezing temperatures until we saw like 6-7 .... 10 at most penguins. But they were all so fucking and small far it could had been a seagull for all I know.

A totally dismal performance. We were lucky to catch some close-up along the stretch to the beach. I snickered at those who paid so much. (Some tickets costs $75 pp) haha

Things about penguins I never knew:

High divorce rate.
They find their way home based on the calling of their partners.
They do enter the wrong burrows. (which leads to point 1) After all, they're just penguins.
I want a penguin fur coat.

Stuffed penguins

After braving near zero temperatures outside, we hurried inside for some warmth. There's a museum of sorts that tells you interesting facts (albeit useless) on penguins.

The fella from Happy Feet (i think)

They put see-through class on a couple of the burrows so we could peek at them. Check out this pair endulging in some intimate foreplay.

At the souvenir shop

I detest souvenir shops. Yes its fun to have a momento to remember the fun time you had during your vacation. But what are you going to do when all this momentos pile up in a corner of your home and collect dust?

Then you're gonna regret ever getting it in the 1st place because now you're stuck in a dilemma. Throw it away and admit that you're an idiot for getting it in the 1st place or suck it up and leave it in that corner.

Except fridge magnets, ... and key chains. Those are cool. But I seldom get them anyway. I'm a cheap and practical person. I take photos. That captures everything and yet takes up 'almost' no space in my home.

Italian Restaurant

After the viewing, we dined at an authentic italian restaurant along the way. We booked a cabin at Geelong, which was 200-300 kms from Phillip Island.

Medium Rare Steak

Traditional Pizza

Salmon Pizza

The food tasted really good. The pizzas were absolutely fantastic, maybe because we were really hungry. The portions were titanically hugemongous so we ended up packing up some stuff.

Riverglen Cabin

It was almost midnight when we parked into the driveway. 1st day of Melbourne was predominantly spent in the car, travelling from point to point.

Cabin for 6 was AUD$165 per night. Basic commodities which includes "central heating" that roughly translates to "one single heater" in the living room. Thank god we had a spare heater w us.

Didn't really matter cause we were in that cabin for no less than 6 hrs.

KNNCCB. so late still play counter strike!

Good thing was we were already at Geelong, the entrance/start to The Great Ocean Road. I have good feelings about the trip thus far.

Ratings so far:

Money - tons
Energy - abundance
Weather - breezy
Feeling - anticapted

I love all these colours. Don't you?

Technorati Tags: Melbourne, Phillip Island, Fairy Penguins

Boy from Penang ....

2008-08-18T09:15:00.000+10:00

"You see this one, so many people in the disco. How can run away?"
"Wait later I show you another one, from JB disco one, even better ...."

I've decided that I want my kids to be english educated. I do not want my kids to churn out English that's full of vocabulary mistakes. It is common for msian kids (esp a majority of chinese educated ones) to speak "manglish" (malaysian english).

Example:

It's because I didn't go to school that's why got scolded loh. You promised me, but you never bring the dvd to school right?

And the list goes on ....

I overheard the Penang boy's conversation with a caucasion teenager. Mr. caucasian teenager didn't critic, nor did he complaint, he probably figured this was the way we spoke English. Which was quite a disgrace.

No it's not your fault, Penang boy. You were never exposed to much english as a boy. The only english you spoke was in secondary class when the teacher asked, "How are you?" to which you replied "I'm fine .... loh". When the msn/mIRC wave hit, you joined the masses, engaging in chatrooms where the only language used, was English. You thought that you could improve your english then. But the only useful phrases you picked up were a/s/l?

As a young adult studying in university, your command of english improved slightly but the grammatical and pronounciation errors that etched itself to your system was near-impossible to rid. You still communicate with your peers in chinese/cantonese, which didn't help much.

You're currently eating at a sushi place, engaging in a conversation with your friend, a blue haired caucasian teenager, who listens diligently to every word from your mouth because he, (like me) knows that missing a few words would make your sentence uncomprehendable.

I hope that you get to stay here for a couple of years. Improve your english before going back, and one day when you hear someone speaking manglish on the streets.

You will understand what I felt, that winter night, when I heard the Penang boy speak ....

Disclaimer: I don't speak ascented english like a causacian, my english is not perfect either. I'm just a regular guy who doesn't want my kid to turn out like the Penang boy.

Technorati Tags: English

Larger Font ( + houses )

2008-08-15T12:46:00.005+10:00

Is it just me? Or are my fonts uncomfortably small?

Maybe that's why no one's reading my blog. I'm pretty sure I have my contacts on. Or maybe it comes with age. WTF I'm 26 this year, no house, no property, no pets & no shares. I want to buy a house. Damnit it gets so frustrating having to refrain from buying that salt & pepper shaker/ lurvely furniture/picture frame ....

It's not about the job or the financial stability. We don't have a place to call our own mainly because, we're undecided where we want to settle down. ( that and we have to save for our wedding next year ). Multiple discussion sessions had been conducted, but has thus far failed to yield any constructive answer.

We're basically deciding between Singapore, KL, Australia (syd/mel/perth) or Kuching. Each has its pros and cons.

Sometimes I feel like just flipping a coin to decide. My sister has 3 flats to her name. All I've got is a red scooter, and a wife. ( Babe, you're definitely worth more than her 3 flats )

I want a house, where my feet can touch land. With a garden where I can rear dogs, and maybe cats. Near the remote controlled gate I'll build a fish pond, with a miniature fountain (maybe). I want a light switch beside my bed so I can lay in bed and do whatever then just turn over and flip off the lights. I will ban all food from the bedrooms. Each room will have its own theme and colour scheme. Cordless telephone is a must!

Been browsing through real estate pages, f**k the prices in Sydney is sky-rocketing. Add that to the 9.XX % interest rate I'm kissing my house dream goodbye. Let's look at some place a lil' further.

*sigh*

A man can only dream ....

Technorati Tags: Home, Sydney

Sushi Girls

2008-08-12T13:38:00.004+10:00

Chloe

Chloe is from Seoul, Korea. She's here to improve her English before formally pursuing her degree next year. She's cute, lovable and loves to tell jokes.

Jill

Jill is from Taipei and is here on a working holiday visa. She looks exactly like a Japanese & loves to explore the city with Jack. Her next destination is Melbourne.

Both of them work at a sushi parlour, hence the term sushi girls. Not these sushi girls. ;p

Technorati Tags: Sushi Girls

My angel

2008-08-12T12:13:00.007+10:00

Once upon a time，
An angel in the sky，
Made comfort every night，

Once upon a time，
The angel loved me so，
It's a miracle in the snow, my heart won't be cold

My dear,you are my angel，
Tell me what you know，
Something should be told

My dear,you are my angel ，
Tell me where you go，
I will breathe behind your love.

The prelude and aftermath of the ROM ....

2008-08-12T08:02:00.000+10:00

The past week had been utterly exhausting. Went up to Melbourne with Roy, YM & 2 sis. Drove the Great Ocean Road and got a parking fine.

Returned to Sydney and had to work for a week before the big day. Went sky-diving mid week and spent the entire week preparing for the major event in my life. Didn't have much time to bring YM and sis around sydney, sorry about that.

It was planned to be a simple event and I didn't expect to had to handle much prior to it. But as the big day beckoned, I realized I had no ring pillow, no deco for the cars, no champagne and worst of all, no ring!!!

When the big day arrived, I was quite nervous and had to work the entire day, so did the ex GF. I've upgraded her status to "MRS" for now, provided she's obedient.

Arrived at the celebrant's place slightly late, but thank god the rest of the night's proceedings went rather smoothly. We had video and like a dozen cameras capturing the event.

Last I check we had 5gb of photos + videos. Haven't had time to filter through them as yet. (I can't imagine how many more we'll take of the wedding receiption next year)

Next day we had an informal photo shoot at Coogee Beach. Again the weather was lovely but just a tad cold towards the end. The weekends were spent bringing Roy around Sydney and his departure back to Melbourne yesterday morning marked the end of a roller coaster ride.

Lots of thanks to all those who sent their best wishes.

XOXO

/need to rest lots.

Technorati Tags: wedding, love

Final Chapter. MACAU TOWER - TOP OF THE WORLD (ALMOST)

2008-08-11T10:51:00.000+10:00

To the few of you who actually drop by, this is the last chapter of an overdue story. ;o)

Macau Tower

After sight-seeing around town, we headed to Macau Tower for some adrenaline rush.

Our tickets

At the ground floor we purchased our tickets for the "activities" + the entrance to the tower. We were actually quite dumb because there's a ticket counter upstairs as well.

It's recommended to buy the entrance ticket downstairs and the "activities" ticket upstairs after a preview. That way you can decide if you have the balls for it.

61st Floor

That's 223m of height. The height of the actual tower is 338m. We used a fast speed elevator to ascend to the top. The view as it's going up was quite fascinating.

Check out the video: (Tilt your head to 1 side, my bad my bad)

Top Floor

We arrived circa 5pm and the top floor was literally packed with people. It was buzzing with activity and felt more like a market place than tourist spot.

Jumping platform

Weather was gloomy and wet

It wasn't a good day to be outside facing the elements. Rain hasn't ceased and was still dropping occassionally. ;o(

A bunch of goners

When we arrived, there was a group of american kids preparing for their bungy jump. Yes that's the process of tying a rope around your legs and jumping off a building.

Then if you're not dead (from the fright or the jump) take the elevator back up to write them a cheque for throwing you off the building.

There were 3 siblings who took the plunge together, while their parents watched. (I'll kill my kids if they were to jump together) If by some weird coincidence the rope breaks and they all RIP? Waste my milk powder money.

@$#$%!&$%!# Look how far up we are !!!

My feet shudders everytime I step up to glance down at the many meters of elevation that differenciates us from ground zero.

Yes I have a fear of height. Ever since I first peered over the railings on top of Civic Center and felt the earth shake, I knew I wasn't built for any height related activities.

Awesome power machine

That's suprisingly quite a small scaled equipment considering the immense task & responsibility of supporting a human weight as it plummets down.

At Macau Tower, there are 3 main activities:

Skywalk X - MOP $388
Skyjump - MOP $688
Bungy Jump - MOP $1288

All 3 prices are exclusive of photos and videos + tower entrance. Both will set you back another MOP $300-400. Prices ain't cheap. ;o(

Gearing up

The GF & the housemate decided to go for the Skywalk X, which is simlar to the Sydney Tower walk they recently endulged in. I suspect they're addicted to it.

All ready to go

Simply put, Skywalk X is walking the circumference of the tower, 233 feet off the ground while hanging to a wire rope.

There are no railings, no path & the surface was slippery. A wrong footing or a strong gust of wind would send them plummeting to the ground below.

Just stepped out, taking a view

Walking along

Single leg aeroplane

The girls were accompanied by a guide who doubled as a camera man. He brought them around the circumference of the tower. They were asked to do a series of poses for the photos.

Sitting on the ledge (Look at how small the roads look)

I felt this was the scariest pose. Sitting on the ledge while your legs swing in "nothing-ness". *shudders* It was also drizzling and rather slippery.

Be careful! Don't fall over ....

Hanging by the rope and leaning towards the edge

The return

After about 15-20 mins of adrenaline rush, they finally made it to the finish line. Slightly wet but the view was definitely worth it.

Rather tall it is

Bits of bungy rope for souvenir

Jumpsuits

Show the bungy bear some love

Any regrets?

Strapping in

I was initially all gungho and ready to take on the bungy jump. But ~~I was too chicken~~ the price was too steep. ;o( So I went for the Skyjump instead.

Dictionary:

Skyjump = bungy for pussies. (It's exactly like bungy, cept that you're falling at a controlled rate)

All geared up

He's the guy manning the equipment

The good thing about Macau Tower is that the high adrenaline activities here are runned by AJ Hackett company, and the main personel/s (whom I trust my life with) are angmohs.

No offence to other race but I'm sure you wouldn't want to look at the guy behind the machine and see a KFC eating, kancil-driving malay.

Waiting lounge

I had to wait like forever as they prep the machine. Waiting is really agonizing, take it from me.

There was a guy before me doing the bungy jump who had to wait like 20 mins at the ledge while they prep the machine. Imagine that.

Outside (Taken w their camera)

The scariest bit was the moment they signalled me to the spot, right at the edge of the building. I swear I'd turn and run away like a scaredly kitten if they weren't holding on to me.

I asked, "Can you push me if I don't dare to step over?" He told me not to worry .... WTF NOT TO WORRY????? I'm jumping down a building in a few secs, not walking down the streets.

Miraculously I had to nerve to step off the edge (but with eyes closed). I felt free fall for a few seconds before the rope held my weight. (it was sooooo fucking scary)

Hanging in midair

Next thing I knew, I was hanging in mid air and they shouted for me to look up. I still didn't dare to look down atm. I hung there while he took photos for what felt like an eternity.

Blurry photos

You know what's worst than waiting? Waiting while hanging upside down in mid air at 233m altitude. (For him to take photos)

After he's done, he bade me farwell before releasing the rope..........

Anyways check out the video:

The verdict:

It wasn't as scary as initially anticipated. Partly because it was a controlled drop rather than gravity induced. I imagine it would had been 10x scarier had it been a bungy jump.

The view on the way down was quite mesmerizing and for a moment I actually forgot I was falling off a building. Felt almost like in a descending elevator.

Drawback:

We had to wait like 2-3 hours until we finally jumped, wasted an ample amount of our time. By then, it was rather dark so pictures & videos turned out rather crappy.

Got a free T-shirt

And a certificate

I did it!

So I was immensely proud of myself, eventhough I chickend out on the Bungy Jump. I instantaneously regretted it when I was falling down because

Skyjump is not cheap either.
It wasn't as scary as I assumed.

So that's basically the end of our HK, Macau, Bangkok, Chiangmai trip. We headed back to Kuching for some R&R (1 week) + prep for the wedding next year.

Adios.

Technorati Tags: Macau Tower, Sky Jump, Bungee, Adrenaline, Sports

8th August 2008 (8-8-8)

2008-08-08T11:00:00.002+10:00

Today is the 8th day of the 8th month of the 8th year. Needless to say it's an auspicious date for us chinese. That's why me and the GF have decided to sign on the dotted line today. Feeling slightly nervous at the moment.

Things yet to be done:

Call Roy to make sure he's at airport 8.30
Call YM to tell hertz location 9.00
Get car at 4.00
Call celebrant to cfm time.
Prepare decos and stuff.

**************************

Year 20XX:

And they called it puppy love

It was slightly chilly, I saw her at the veranda, alone. Finally here's my chance. This is the only time I've seen her alone during the entire trip. Fuck it its now or never. I grabed my balls and walked over. Made some small talk and asked her .... to be my gf. She accepted ... 3 days later.

Fast forward, we're at a beach (bintan to be exact). Having a romantic candlelight dinner at a seaside restaurant. Feeling the breeze passing through our hair while enjoying the food. I had sneaked in a ring and prepared flowers to be ready.

Candlelights and champagne go together

After the meal, the waiter (my accomplice) brought in the flowers and passed it to the GF. She was suprised, turned over and saw me on bended knees, with a ring in my hand. "Will you marry me?" the words stuttered out of my mouth. She accepted ... 3 secs later.

**************************

Our initial plan was to sign during the wedding reception next year. But priest says must be in church. JPN guys must be in office. The association uncle must sign at the association. How f**ked up is that?

So what the hell, since having an overseas marriage cert is a rare commodity we must as well sign here. ;o)

I've always felt that "the one" phrase is so passé. Until I met her. She's almost everything I want in a wife and a mother to my children. Notice how I sneaked in the word almost?

But yeah I believe she's "the one" for me. Despite the occassional nagging and the pin-pointing of my butterfingers fault. We cried, we laughed, we jumped and most importantly, we were madly in love.

I will carry you for the rest of your life

XOXO - love you lots ....

Technorati Tags: Love, Wedding, Marriage

Chapter 41. DOUBLE SKIN MILK ( 双皮奶 ) + PORTUGUESE EGG TART

2008-08-07T07:20:00.000+10:00

义顺

The name 义顺 is often associated with 双皮奶 in Macau. How do we know? All thanks to TVB company HK. ;o) It is located right at the Senado Square, which partly contributes to its hugemongous customer base.

Look at all the 双皮奶 on display

We've watched so many TVB episods where they come over to Macau and take this 双皮奶. (Double Skin Milk) So it was definitely a "no miss" for us to try.

Packed

We just ordered 1 to share as it was just mins ago that we've had our portuguese lunch. (We opted for the cold version, I think hot would taste like TAUFU FA) The shop is very old school but packed with patrons.

The boss sits at the counter with the most "lansi" face I've ever seen. Can't blame him though.

Next door bakery

There was a cute mini bakery next door that sells Portuguese Egg Tarts, another macau delicacy. We got another one of that to try as well.

Portuguese Egg Tart - MO $7

Egg Tart is very tasty. Crush is thin, crunchy and well baked. Egg innings are slightly burnt and yummy yummy.

双皮奶 - MO $16

OMFG this is so fucking good I could die on the spot right now. If I weren't so god damn full I'd order another 10 more to go. (This coming from someone who doesn't like desserts)

It practically melts in your mouth and creates a heavenly sensation with the cool and sweet flavours. Must be some special milk used to create this phenomenal dessert.

Maybe I'll have another one later?

Along the way we saw a lot of "Pork Bun" shops with customers lining up. OMFG must try must try!! Too full.

:o(((((((((((((((

Technorati Tags: Double Skin Milk, Portuguese Egg Tart, Macau, Food, Dessert

Chapter 40. RESTAURANT SOLMAR (PORTUGUESE CUISINE)

2008-08-06T07:20:00.000+10:00

Main entrance

Prior to Macau, my only idea of Portuguese cuisine is Porguese Egg Tarts. Despite residing in Malacca (another portuguese settlement) for 4 years.

Interior

The restaurant is quite small but it retains a relaxing and calm ambience which is essential. After all, Macau is a small town and food should be enjoyed in a relaxed manner.

Even the menu looks old

Restaurant Colmar is recommended by the hotel receptionist. There's another more famous restaurant, but it's in Taipa. (Too far) ;o(

Solmar's history dates back to over 40 years. They used to cater exclusively to upper class customers and only opened to public after tremendous public requests.

Solmar Vegetable Soup - MO $30

It has a green leafy texture that needs some getting used to. I'm guessing this dish is probably created using yesterday's leftover vegetables. No meat no nothing, just vegetables.

Portuguese Style Baked Chicken - MO $115

This is an "authentic" portuguese dish, according to our waiter. It taste slightly similar to curry chicken, more herbs and less spicy version.

According to Solmar's website, the "must try" dish is the African Chicken. The entire restaurant is associated with this famous dish. "Why the fuck didn't our waiter tell us that?"

Fried Bacalhau Balls - MO $46

I presumed it was some coconut/potato balls or some sort. But it's made of salted dried codfish. It has a lot of fibres that gave me the coconut/potato impression.

Crunchy on the outside and chewy in the inside. Strangely there's absolutely no taste of fish in the balls. But I'm all for anything that's fried.

Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce

This is Bacalhau's partner in crime. Having them together is supposed to enhance the Bacalhau's flavour. It's a fermented liquid condiment (whatever that means). It's just like soy sauce, much thicker, less salty + lil' sweet taste.

Portuguese Fried Rice - MO $63

It's fried rice, cooked in Macau by a Portuguese chef. Thus the name "Portuguese Fried Rice".

Our table

Our dishes were ordered based on our waiter's recommendation. Just slightly pissed off why he never recommend the restaurant's most well known dish. ;o(

Final tab

Total damage = MO $279.40. Decent price for a decent lunch. Overall Portuguese cuisine has a rather unique taste. But if there's a Portuguese restaurant next to a Japanese restaurant, 80% of the time I'll choose Japanese over Portuguese.

Technorati Tags: Solmar, Macau, Portuguese Food

Chapter 39. MACAU

2008-08-05T07:20:00.000+10:00

Ferry

Early in the morning on Day 8, we took the cab to the ferry terminal to commute over to Macau, the last leg of our trip. Sea was less chompy today.

We sat next to a HK couple who was kind enough to recommend some excellent places to visit and food to sample.

Metro Park Hotel

At the ferry terminal, all other hotels offered free feeder buses, except our hotel. KNNCCB so had to join a long taxi queue to get a cab.

To make matters worst, the driver hadn't a clue where Metro Park Hotel is located. He wants the mandarin/cantonese name. "How the fuck would I know the mandarin/cantonese name?"

Superior Room

We finally arrived at our hotel and checked in for USD $125 per night. (superior room) Suprisingly hotel rooms in Macau are rather expensive too. (Probably due to close proximity to HK)

Initially we had the notion of staying at The Venetian but the USD $400 per night tag is too steep. Besides that, the location of Venetian is at Taipa, half hour's drive from the main island of Macau.

Nice hotel (not ours) ;o(

Lisboa Casino

Our hotel is located fairly close to the main casino strip, which includes Lisboa, MGM Grand, Sands etc etc. After freshening up, I had a quick chat with the hotel receptionist to plan our day's itinery.

Macau is the only place where we do not have a "to do" list, apart from Macau Tower.

Grand Lisboa

Big shopping complex

From our hotel, we walked (25-30 mins) to the Senado Square area. We had our lunch at a Portuguese restaurant along the way, but more on that later.

Post Office Building

Largo Do Senado - Senado Square

See how fat I've become ;o(

Senado Square was constructed in 1918 and has always been the city centre. In the past, this was where the governors inspected military troops and the police force when they took up their posts.

Nowadays, many celebrations are still held at this venue. Link.

Colourful Architectures

It was a really beautiful place. With yellow, white & pink buildings, a really colourful and condusive environment to hold celebrations.

Sign Post

Santa Casa da Misericordia

St. Dominic's Church

The main altar

St. Dominic's Church was originally a wooden structure built in the mid 16th century. The baroque Filipino style church was built by the Spanish Dominican friars. It was rebuilt in concrete in 1828. (Same structure as we see today)

Confession Booth

Holy statue

Btw it's a fully functional catholic church. It felt really surreal walking through the grounds, feeling the old stones, catching a glimpse into life back then. An aura of peace and tranquility overwhelmed me.

Peering outside

This is probably the view the church goers of the 16th century saw as they were leaving the church grounds. Probably less people, less concrete and muddy roads.

Another view of the church

Macau has a strong portuguese influence, being an ex-portuguese settlement. Every road and sign name in Macau is in Portuguese language.

Plenty of tourist

After the Senado Square, we headed towards the most famous wall in Macau. Along the way, there were a lot of retail shops offering souvenirs and local delicacies.

Rain is bad for holidays

Unfortunately for us, it started to rain. Lucky for us it ceased after a short pour. The entire HK-Macau region was doused in occassional rain. In Guongzhou, it was so bad that certain areas were flooded.

Statue of love ( I L.O.Ve You)

It is called the Jesuit Square fountain, which illustrates the Portugese Sailor & the native chinese lady. They are the parents of the Macanese.

The ruins of St. Paul (Ignore my bulging waist line)

The most famous monument in Macau

"If you have not taken a picture with the wall, you have not visited Macau."

It is part of St. Paul's Church of Mater Dei (Mother of God) built in the 16th century. It was destroyed by a fire in 1835. All that's left is southern stone facade and the crypts of the Jesuits monks of the Church.

The church was part of the St. Paul's College Cathedral and was upgraded to a university in 1594, the 1st western university in South East Asia.

The view from right below

The old complex must had been huge, figuring from the size of the wall. It had been a waste to lose such an amazing architecture to a man made fault.

The back of the wall

Walk through the archway and you can climb up the stairs to take pictures. We passed as "climbing stairs = exercise" and exercise during holidays are a big No No.

The metal structure seems to be fabricated to support the old wall.

The Crypt

Behind the wall, there is a Museum of Sacred Art & Crypt. Entrance is free so there's nothing to lose. Old artifects and relics are displayed at the museum.

(Including a painting by St. Michael Archangel 17th century, the only work from the ancient college)

The crypt holds the bones of the founder of the college, Father Alexander Valignano. It is erected at the exact same spot the ancient church once stood.

Another view of the great architecture

66 steps to the ruins

Look at the mountain people mountain see behind

One of the many local delights store

Peanut snacks

Some round cookie

We bought some souvenirs here. Wanted to buy some Portuguese Egg Tarts back but they only last 1 day and we'll be leaving Macau tomorrow early morning. :O(((((((((

Waiting for the housemate

Hotel Fortune

Rio Casino

There are a lot of Africans in Africa. That's how many casinos there are in Macau. Everywhere you turn you'll spot a casino. It's like a asian version of Las Vegas. (Or an alternative to LV if your tree at home doesn't sprout money)

Diamond Casino

Check out the video at night taken in the taxi after Macau Tower.

First impression of Macau, it's more suited to be a stop over destination. There's not really a lot of sights to take in and the food here isn't really that unique that it warrants a 3D2N visit.

Of course that's my view cause I don't gamble. An avid gambler will probably love Macau to bits. Few regrets of Macau trip:

Didn't visit The Venetian. (Had an indoor canal with gondola & really exquisite decoration)
Didn't visit Rua Do Cunha. (It's the food street of Macau with alotalotalotalot of good food)
Didn't visit any casinos.
Didn't jump. (More on that later)

Apart from that, we've more or less covered Macau. Final observation - Macanese are very fierce and impatient. (Worst than hongkies)

Technorati Tags: Macau, Senado Square, St. Paul's ruins

Chapter 38. FOODIE HONG KONG

2008-08-04T07:30:00.000+10:00

Day 2 lunch - Tsim Sha Tsui area

The heat was soaring, so we asked the uncle, "Got AC or not?". He candidly replied, "Of course got. No AC how to do business?'

Authentic HK cafe

Small coffee shops were all over the place. It's a cheaper and tastier alternative to the fast food restaurants. Only drawback? The menu is 98% mandarin & the waiter keeps rushing you for your order.

Milk Tea - HKD $14

Rice w Beef Brisket - HKD $28

Mixed Beef, Beef Brisket & Tendon Noodle Soup (Trademark Dish) - HKD $38

These 2 dishes were god sent. It was so slurpingly excellent we licked the bowl empty. I really love anything with beef in it. The soup base was overflowing with flavour and definitely deserved the "trademark" tag.

Mee Pork noodles

Yung Kee Restaurant

Look at all the roasted geese

Day 2 supper was especially reserved for Yung Kee. It's located footsteps away from Lan Kwai Fong and is well known for its roasted goose. Most of the internet forums have rave reviews for this restaurant.

I saw posters inside for roasted goose bak zhang. Wonder how that'll taste like.

Look at the all the customers

We were still full from dinner so we opted to "tapao" the goose back for supper. The place was so crowded for a weekday (Thurs), testament to its popularity among diners. We had to wait 15-20 mins for takeaway.

I was so happy ;o)

Roasted Goose (1/4 hind) - HKD $110

Bear in mind the goose comes with a high price tag. HKD $110 for just a quarter of a goose. But the meat practically melts in my mouth. The meat was succulent and juicy, (even when cold, can't imagine how good it taste if it's heated up).

Lan Fong Yuen

After packing our supper at Yung Kee, we'd initially planned to have some "drunken prawns", "nine big ghost" ( 九大 鬼 ) at this "dai pai dong" called Lan Fong Yuen. According to the internet it is one of the oldest "dai pai dong" around central.

What I never bothered to check was the opening hours, which are early in the morning till the evenings and it was famous for its ( 丝袜奶茶 ) esp for breakfast.

I imagine it would be so "HK feel" to sit on the wooden bench, wrap one arm around a knee and raise one leg while drinking the 丝袜奶茶. ;o)

Dessert Store

許留山 has more branches around the Kowloon region than I have fingers. There are 3 outlets just in the vincinity of our hotel. (2-3 blocks radius) It's logo is "Healthy Desserts" and it serves ice shaven desserts coupled with fruits.

Aloe Vera in Mango Juice - HKD $18

Glutinous Balls w Mango & Strawberry - HKD $30

Very colourful

The shop deco and the desserts were full of zest and colours. The desserts were quite good and fitted right in with the warm weather. There were tons of different combinations on the menu. Check it out here.

Price was a tad steep but is expected for HK standard.

Day 3 - Breakfast

Weather was gloomy - raining again.

For breakfast we visited another one of the authentic HK coffee shops adjacent to our hotel. There are so many of them and everything looks so nice.

鱼楠粥 - HKD $27

车仔面 - HKD $20

I had the 车仔面 (little cart noodle), the GF had the 鱼楠粥 (Fish brisket porridge) while the housemate had the 艇仔粥 (little boat porridge).

All 3 dishes are popular delights among hongkies for morning breakfast and ... on our "to eat" list. ;o)

Fried economy noodles - HKD $8

The 车仔面 is just like regular noodles with lots of taugeh. I did not try the 艇仔粥 but it has a lot of ingredients (but cheap price) such as fish, lean meat, cuttlefish, peanuts etc.

The highlight was the 鱼楠粥 which was utterly delectable. The porridge was cooked till every grain melted into a watery paste. The fish brisket added a distinctive flavour and it was bursting with flavour. Perfecto!

So good that we had it again for breakfast the following morning.

Hong Kong island fish cake noodles

Unique deco

This shop is located at TST near Grandville St. We had our breakfast about 2 hrs ago and the stomach was still full. But it was too tempting to resist. (Had to try ..........)

Just ordered one

The decoration of this particular shop was quite unique, with a black & white polka dot theme. They were still very full so I just ordered 1 for tasting purposes. I had the milk tea to go along with it.

鱼蛋粉 - HKD $31 (Including milk tea)

The 鱼蛋粉 was quite nice, just too salty and we weren't able to finish it. I dropped 15 strands of hair by consuming half of that. ;o(

Milk Tea, Ying Yong (my favourite) & Horlick

Ying Yong is my favourite drink while in HK. It is basically a mixture of tea and coffee. It might be my imagination but Ying Yong from other countries don't taste half as nice as from HK.

Day 3 - Lunch

We had our lunch at the Jordan area. The shop had more of an upscale feel and served various types of dishes.

Rice with BBQ Pork - HKD $35 (inclusive of drinks)

Roasted Goose with noodles - HKD $49 (inclusive of drinks)

Just in case you haven't noticed, HK food is generally classified as CANTONESE cuisine. Noodles, BBQ meat, soups are few of the main dishes around. (Ku Lou meat is canton food)

It is true that these dishes can also be found in Msia/Singapore. But the hongkies seems to emphasize greatly on the taste and flavouring. So much that the dishes seems to taste better in HK.

(Might be the imagination acting up again)

有骨气 Steamboat

We were deciding either to go 有骨气 (TST) or 小绵羊 (Mongkok). Both comes highly recommended by a hk food forum.

Our table

We finally decided to go to 有骨气 because 小绵羊 is from china (i think) and we're here for HK food! Not china food.

Beef slices

Various types of balls

Apparently hongkies like steamboats (esp now raining season) and one actually has to book in advance to dine at 有骨气 . Luckily they managed to secure us an empty table.

There was the option to have buffet or ala carte. Stupid me decided to have ala carte. In the end the total bill almost totalled the buffet option. Half way through we requested to change to the buffet option but the manager refused.

He's a bad man. ;o(((((

Pork Ribs soup base

The soup was thick and "oomph" with flavour. I had imagined myself taking a piece of beef slice (with shopsticks) and rummaging it through the hot soup before consuming it. (like in TVB haha )

Frankly it didn't live up to its expectations. I had imagine the steamboat in HK to be so tasty that we'll shoot through the roof. I mean it was good, but just not good enough. ;o(

Total damage = HKD $485 for 3 ppl.

許留山 again (some honeydew concoction) - HKD $7

Herbal Egg (my love) - HKD $10

Hui Lau San + Herbal egg for supper.

By now (Day 7 of our trip), the pants are feeling slightly thighter. *sob*

Stanford Hotel room

Final day in HK, we had our breakfast at another coffee shop just next to the one yesterday. Found out later that it's actually 2 shops with different names, but sharing the same kitchen & workers.

Thick toast with peanut butter & milk

Yau Cha Kuai

鱼楠粥 again ;o)

With sad hearts we bid HK goodbye and headed over to Macau. I felt this HK trip was more for food than sight-seeing. (I'm not complaining). The only regret was:

To Eat List

Never tried 九大鬼.
Never tried "drunken prawns". (Pour alcohol/beer on live prawns till drunk, then cook them)
Never tried Dai Zai Hai.
Never tried Stinky Tofu (Heard the ones from HK is more foul smelling than from Taiwan)

Yummy yummy. Looking back at all the pictures sure makes me drool. ;o)

Technorati Tags: Hong Kong, Cuisine, Food

Chapter 37. HONG KONG WALKABOUT

2008-08-03T07:46:00.001+10:00

Stanford Hotel (Mongkok)

We stayed at Stanford Hotel for USD $132 per night. Hotel rooms in HK are definitely pricey. (And we're only in Kowloon, not HK island itself) Stanford Hotel had great locality, to shopping and great food.

Mongkok shopping area

There are so many retail shops in Mongkok shopping area that we spent quite a large amount of our time here. We did most of our shopping here as we probably couldn't afford the large shopping complexes.

Note: (Cosmetics & beauty products are cheap here)

Authentic butcher below flats

Flats are practically all over the place. (aka mushrooms after the rain)

The old Hong Kong

Hong Kong is such a fascinating place. Apart from the hustle and bustle lifestyle of a metropolitan, you can find peace and relaxation in certain nooks and cranny around the island. It has everything for everyone.

HK Museum of History

HK Science Museum

FYI we didn't enter the museums. It only costs a paltry sum and I'm actually a fan of museums, but we skipped it due to time constraints. (Time not enough!!!!!!! ) ;o(

Near the museums (Tsim Sha Tsui area)

Tower clock at Kowloon Pier

Hong Kong has great similarities with Singapore, another island city. Efficient public transport, superb education system, limited space (actually HK is much more dense and cramped) to name a few ....

The Shaolin 3 dots

Tiffany & Co

Central Area

The drawbacks of Hong Kong is the ultra speed pace of life. Everything's fast fast fast. Even the escalators are faster. Another would be the high cost of living, which actually leads to good service.

Go shopping in HK and be amazed at the distances the sales ppl would go to secure your sales, for the commission. But some will get edgy and pushy if you consider for too long and might even scold you if you decide not to buy.

The HSBC lion

Open top bus

After the peak, we took an open top bus to Lan Kwai Fong. Too bad the top was full so I just went up to take a photo.

Lan Kwai Fong area

Main street

Lan Kwai Fong is mainly a clubbing area that's so famous it has became an icon by itself. A lot of TVB dramas were filmed here. Basically everything we know about HK comes from TVB dramas. ;o)

Signboard

Popular TVB location

This is another spot that's frequently shown in the dramas. It's just 2-3 blocks away from LKF. We walked from LKF to the Hong Kong Mtr station, about 20 mins walk.

Along the way we strolled past a very long escalator, which I've just found out online it's the world's longest escalator. LINK.

Hong Kong MTR Station

In my humble opinion, Singapore is too organized, everything's so well planned that life becomes boring. (Everything is in squares) KL is too disorganized, everything is in a mess it's a headache to figure out the mess.

Hong Kong is like a combination of Singapore + KL. It's efficient and organized, but walk around the city and you'll never know what suprise you'll find behind the corner. The weather is quite nice here too, with warm & cooling seasons.

I wouldn't mind relocating here for a few years.

Beijing Olympics countdown

Miramar Shopping Center

Day 2 Hong Kong. After our steamboat dinner, we walked from TST area towards Jordan area, heading for Temple St Market. There are also lots of retail shops around the entire "Mongkok-Kowloon-Jordan-Tsim Sha Tsui" strech.

Food stalls

It's a night market that sells souvenirs and clothing. Much like our Chi Cheong Kai, Temple St. Market is also infamous for its vice and gangsterism. It's one of the more rowdy areas so keep in a group and stay away from dark alleys.

We had wanted to try "drunken prawns" but the customers at the stalls are all foreigners. So we'll definitely be "cut throat" if we dined there.

Shop selling porn DVDs

In Chi Cheong Kai they show you a book and pass you the "porno" after you've made your selection. Here? It's all out in the open. Only thing missing is the red carpet inviting you in.

Temple St. Signboard

Hong Kong is definitely a fun place to explore. If only we had more time to visit other areas such as Lantau Island, Shek-O, Disneyland etc etc.

We had struck off a majority of main attractions on our "To Do" list. We stayed a total of 4D & 3N, definitely insufficient time. But how I wished we had more time ....

I *heart* the city of HK, where gold literally lined the streets. ( 满地金 )

Technorati Tags: Hong Kong, Temple Street, Stanford Hotel, Lan Kwai Fong

Chapter 36. MADAME TUSSAUDS WAX MUSEUM HONG KONG

2008-08-02T06:52:00.000+10:00

The post ahead will be pictureful and wordless. Some photos have fondling and sexual content so please process with caution if you're under 18.

Madame Tussauds' Wax Museum

Kelly Chen

Naomi Campbell

I *heart* Mrs Smith (My hands couldn't control themselves)

Play the piano and Jay Chou will sing along

Elle "The Body" Macpherson

Cher

Louis Koo (one of the unexpectedly tall guys)

Meryl Streep

Funnyman Eddie Murphy

Superstar Aaron Kwok
(Must grab that muscle!!! )

Mel Gibson

I *heart* Ayumi Hamasaki
(She looks very fake though)

Cecilia Cheung (They should put her with Edison) haha

No idea who's she.

The late Leslie Cheung (I'm as tall as him, with a little tip toe)

The lovely Princess Diana (Damn tall)

The newly throned "Princess" + royal family

Mr. Ass Hole

Giving a presidential speech - flanked by my aides

John Howard

Saddam Hussien

Nelson Mandela

Mahatma Gandhi
(Should make a good couple with Mdm Tussaud)

All hail HITLER!!!
(Rumours has it he only has 1 testicle, I wonder if Tussaud replicated that)

Pavaroti (The great singer)

?? Harry Potter ??

This cute & adorable little one is Madame Tussaud herself

Picasso the art maestro

Mozart (Never knew he was so young)

Lee Kuan Yew

Some japanese dude (I stole his glasses) ;o)

Albert Einstein
(Rub his hair to gain some brain growth)

007 - License to kill

HK Opera Singer ??

Andy Lau
(The resemblance is 99.9% and he's so damn hansem)

Winter Sonata
(He's very tall & very looks girly - can't see why girls like to hug him)

Marilyn Monroe has a TWIN !! ?? !!

Indiana Jones - Returns with a apprentice

Cycling with Leon Lai

Shooting a hoop with Yau Ming (can't even reach his armpit)

Playing soccer with Ronaldinho

Examining the pitch with Tiger Woods

Having Tiger Woods as a caddy ;o)

Sumo Wrestler - The suit was damn heavy but damn funny. ROFL ;o)

Muhammad Ali - The King of the ring

Elvis Priestly - King of Rock & Roll

Kylie Minogue (Looks too dark, bad replication)

Michael Jackson
(Most of us can't recognize him, must be before all his operations)

Madonna (Looks like a robot)

The Beatles

Teresa Teng (My mum would love this)

HK Pop Duo - Twins

Joey Yung

Miriam Yeung / Sammi Cheng
(I think she's Miriam but the GF thinks she's Sammi)

Beckham (Too bad he wasn't in the museum)

Overall we had an enjoyable time in the wax museum. It was one of the must go spots we marked prior to the trip. Luckily we had the tripod as the lighting in the museum was inadequate.

Pic + flash looks fake while pic (without flash) = blurry + crappy. (I *heart* my tripod)

It was actually a great effort by the museum to have the stars in various poses including sitting, hand-shaking, singing, mimicking famous scenes from movies etc etc. The wax figurines were casted in exact heights so it was quite a suprise to see some of them taller/shorter than expected.

I had a wonderful time at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum HK. I'd like to visit the original one in London if I get the chance.

Technorati Tags: HK, Madame Tussauds, The Peak, Wax Museum

Princess Chunk

2008-08-01T12:36:00.000+10:00

Princess Chunk

OMFG it's so cute can diedotcom. A 20kg lost cat found in New Jersey and is up for adoption if the owner doesn't claim him.

Famous last words ....

"He's built like a quarterback."
"How could someone lose a 20kg cat?"
"He could pass for a dog."

*Gooble gooble* Passed out from super duper cuteness.

Chapter 35. THE PEAK TRAM (VICTORIA) HONG KONG

2008-08-01T07:30:00.001+10:00

The Peak sign

This monument is at the foot of the hill. I think its near-impossible to miss it as one walks towards the Tram station. We walked from the Central Pier and it took us about 15 mins to reach there.

Signs were available occassionally, and gone the next instance. (Like a maze) So by word of mouth we finally reached. Luckily never go Holan.

Peak Tram approaching

Another iconic trademark

As mentioned before, The Tram is as, or even more famous than The Junk as HK's icons. Sadly it had been raining cats and dogs so we weren't sure if we could see anything from The Peak.

Even the driver of The Junk advised us to go the next day as we could see a thick layer of fog covering The Peak during the Junk ride.

Peak Tram Logo

We were lucky we never heeded the Junk driver's advice, for the next day was the 120th anniversary of the Peak Tram and tickets were sold at HKD 0.30 each, the same price as when it first started in the 80x.

"Why lucky when its cheap?" Well that's because the queue to take the tram was 5 hours long when we heard the news on radio in the morning.

Spacious

The tram cabin was quite spacious, ensuring a comfortable ride all the way to the top.

Starting off

Even before disembarking, the tram is already at a inclined angle. As it moves further up the rail, the inclination angle seems to increase, almost like a roller coaster ride.

There's no AC in the cabin, no need as the natural ventilation breezed through the open windows.

Check out how steep it is

The entire journey up to Victoria Peak takes about 10 mins. In the old days, there were a few stops along the way which passengers could embark and disembark. as the tram was the only way up to The Peak.

Nowadays with roads leading up, The Tram is more of a novelty ride rather than a mode of transportation.

It costs HKD 30 for a return trip, but we paid HKD 150 (inclusive of entrance to Madame Tussauds museum).

Check out the video.

This is Hong Kong

Sadly the view was too foggy to make out much of the HK skyline. A lot had changed since my last visit. We used to be able to come off the tram and enjoy the view from an open space area.

The view from Burger King

Now they've constructed a multiple storey shopping center and a Sky Terrace, where people can gaze at the amazing HK skyline, for a fee.

I'd much prefer the old times, where you could come with your date, enjoy the view and pakto, so romantic. It's too commercialized now. ;o( (Just wanna make money)

This is the best pic of the night

We wanted to enter the Sky Terrace but the lady at the ticket booth suggested otherwise. It would be too foggy to make out anything, she said.

See see view view

So we ended up outside Burger King, where there was a small railed area to take in the view, for free. There were a lot of people there, and we had to take turns to at least take a photo of the view for remembrance.

I had wanted to show The GF how mesmerizing the view on The Peak is. I had also brought the tripod, new camera, fresh batteries to capture all the beautiful scenery. But everything was destroyed by the fog. ;o(

A far cry from the magnificent view from my last trip (clear skies)

Maybe next time then. I'm quite sure we'll be back.

The view on the way down isn't half as bad either. Check out the video.

Technorati Tags: The Peak, Tram, Victoria's Peak, Hong Kong

Another New Sports Shoes

2008-08-01T06:00:00.000+10:00

New pair - FILA (AUD $50)

Last weekend I had to shop for a new pair of sports shoes. My old pair finally died after numerous attempts to resuscitate it.

My sports shoes' lifespan average 12-18 months with vigirous usage or 1-2 times a week, which is rather short in my opinion.

The GF says it's because I always buy the cheapest pair on offer. (cheapo) But I think it's because of the weather. ;o(

Amish Kabush Cathode Decon

Finding House

CNY eve + Rita's Farewell

Valentines Day 2010

I'm back

Mr. Anonymous

Photography Session with Jenny Sun

Ayam Goreng 99 Indonesian

Central Locking Installation

Cocolo Restaurant Randwick

Blue Mountains

Testicle Pizza?

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!! Chicky Feet

Mooncake Shopping

Moon Cake Festival

Yearbook

Australia = No. 28 *snicker*

Sushi in house

The cat

Lame Jokes part 1

Beautiful Contortionist

Administrative Fee my ass

Sushi Chronicles Part 1

Western Meal (By a super chef)

Doreamon

If tomorrow never comes ....

SKYDIVE @ Sydney

Sushi Samurai (Pyrmont)

I Killed Someone

(TACT) MELBOURNE - The City

(TACT) MELBOURNE - Brighton Beach

My bragging colleague

(TACT) MELBOURNE - City @ Night + meeting YunWui

(TACT) MELBOURNE - Great Ocean Road

(TACT) MELBOURNE - Phillip Island

Boy from Penang ....

Larger Font ( + houses )

Sushi Girls

My angel

The prelude and aftermath of the ROM ....

Final Chapter. MACAU TOWER - TOP OF THE WORLD (ALMOST)

8th August 2008 (8-8-8)

Chapter 41. DOUBLE SKIN MILK ( 双 皮 奶 ) + PORTUGUESE EGG TART

Chapter 40. RESTAURANT SOLMAR (PORTUGUESE CUISINE)

Chapter 39. MACAU

Chapter 38. FOODIE HONG KONG

Chapter 37. HONG KONG WALKABOUT

Chapter 36. MADAME TUSSAUDS WAX MUSEUM HONG KONG

Princess Chunk

Chapter 35. THE PEAK TRAM (VICTORIA) HONG KONG

Another New Sports Shoes

Australia = No. 28 snicker

Chapter 41. DOUBLE SKIN MILK ( 双皮奶 ) + PORTUGUESE EGG TART