winner of the best dinner of 06

had one of the best dinners of the year!! steamboat or some ppl called it shabu-shabu at kien's!!! nothing beats a nice dinner with a bunch of cool friends!!
the night only got more exciting when the playing cards came out of the pack. haha..that was when all those eccentricities popped out like hundreds of bubbles from a bath tub. it was really funny and it was laugh till you roll on the floor (literally!!!). oh, the chocolate banana cake was the dessert. yummy!!! i wish there is a piece in front of me now. was too full to indulge in more than one piece :(
cheers to all of you my dear friends. wishing u guys all the best for 07.....our toasts:.....get fit, get rich, and get boyfriend!!!


ready to boil? get set, go!


taraaaa...time to lift the chopsticks and dip in and tuck in....


the must haves...eerrrrrkkkkkkk!!!...excuse me (how can one not belch with so much gas in the tummy?)


the fun begins....bring out the cards and the coins will start rolling in (..or out, depends whether u are on the winning or losing side)


ok..this is what i meant...laugh till u roll on the floor. no pun or any word play as seen here.

the year that was...

well it is that time of the year again...time to reflect on the year that was.
aren't i supposed to feel melancholic at this point of the year (well, which i always do)....but that melancholy does not seem to find me at this point of time as i am so knackered that even my bones feel the exhaustion. too much partying? me? you must be kidding...i ain't a party girl. just do not have enough sleep and these few days have been filled with activities non-stop throughout the days. tonight is no exception...going out soon for a drink and usher the new year in with a couple of close friends.
activities these few days: exams, meeting (aarrgghh...more tasks instead of less!), dinner with friends, shopping, and entertaining cousins at home.
2006 was an ok year...i am still in one piece aren't i? have i achieved anything extraordinary? can't think of any. just feel thankful that i am still here. everything is one day at a time for me, so as long as the day is fine, i will be fine. if you are happy, i am happy. but i seem to be losing a bit of patience. i have noticed that i tend to get irritated easily, so this is one thing i need to work at.
well, time to go....happy new year!!!!

art attack

yo! yo! art attack at home!! this is what we did at one of the walls. cool or not? i used stencils to create those stars and seahorses. the paint used was water colour from zhong's collection. he was the one who sponged the colours onto the wall. the idea? i got it while watching one of the episodes of gilmore girls. the wall looks more lively now. we can't reach the upper part of the wall, so you can see the contrast of the old and new paint. but never mind, seeing those stencils already brighten the day as you walk down the stairs once you wake up.
as for those hand prints, the green one is mine, blue belongs to atticus and red's zhong.

christmas morning...

as the clock struck 12, christmas arrived. what were you guys doing at that time? just came back from the church mass? in bed dreaming of santa coming down the chimney? still digesting the turkey from dinner?
well, whatever you did, it was christmas.
yours truly spent it in front of the television watching 'a christmas carol- the musical' staring kelsey grammer with her 2 brothers. so it was still a little family gathering all right. the rest were already in bed. this is one of my favourite stories for the season. i have read the book by charles dickens before and the story was refreshed watching the musical. another favourite is The Gift of Magi by O' Henry. everyone should read this once and learn the virtue of sacrifice and sharing. that is what the spirit of christmas is all about i think.

movie weekend

yeah!! i finally managed to find the opportunity to go to the cinema and catch 2 movies on saturday. it had been a while since i last watched a proper movie ( i dun count animation as a movie...the last time i went to the cinema was to watch 'flushed away').
i watched eragon and curse of the golden flower...
i enjoyed eragon very much. please do not compare it with the lord of the rings...you will not enjoy eragon as it is if you have LOTR at the back of your mind all the time. one of the better dragon movies out there i will say. and putting ed speelers as the main protagonist is a breath of fresh air. jeremy irons as the mentor was great. he is the man!! although the movie was rather short (90 mins), it was an enjoyable journey as there was no time to get bored. i love their british accented english. nothing beats those clipped pronunciation of words. there is definitely a sequel coming but i hope read the book first as bro is planning to get hold of that book. good old bro. the book is said to be quite dull compared to the movie version, but my dragon fantasies have been ignited once again. nothing beats a one-part-brave, 3- part-fool rider on a magnificent dragon. move over knights in shining armour!!!
on the other hand, the curse of the golden flower was.....aaaaaahhhh....a curse to sit through! the movie was BIG in its setting and customes, not to mention voluminous in the bosom department, but MINUTE in its acting and plot. mr Chow is always seen with the same expression and gong li's acting was nothing to shout about as well. surprisingly (ok...i can never imagine myself praising this fellow, but here i am doing it....deep breath now...) jay chou did a better than decent job portraying one of the princes. (exhale...aaaa...) the setting and customes were really out of this world; elaborate, intricate, pompous, and glittery to the extend of blinding. and the amount of flesh shown in the bosom department is a distraction...well, i was distracted. (dun tell me you actually sit through the movie without noticing any cleavage ok!) a guy friend mentioned that the corsets worn were not even half cup! hah...see i told you, these things are noticeable. yeah, so watch the movie and drown yourself in esctasy. haha! the battle scenes were very well choreographed. and dun forget those dead pan one liners which made everyone chuckled. man, the script writer was something. the dialogues were supposed to be dead serious, but you had the audience in stitches. go wonder.
oh, and i finally caught the devil wears prada on dvd (thanks kwei). meryl streep was really in her elements as the vicious miranda. ooh, the mere mention of her name made everyone shiver with fear and awe. but i was glad i read the book first. some of the dialogues were lost in miranda's deep voice and the film makers seemed to assume that everyone who watched the movie would have read the book. it was a feast for fashionistas eyes watching the movie. the clothes! the shoes! the accessories! they are to die for. and yes, andy you have the job a million girls would die for. (i am one of them!!!)

so what's next? i have dvd of 'the holiday' staring cameron diaz and kate winslet waiting. so that will be the next on the list.

merry christmas and a happy new year

3 days ago......

rm300..where art thou?
oh..i remember. dumped into a course with the hope of learning something new and adding another feather to the cap.
the course?
yeah, u know....training others to use english to help tourism.
hmmm...so??
got into a class of 30. participants from different fields. given a course book and tasks to do. attended the course for 3 days as required and grumbled and cursed for those 3 days too.
hahaa
imagine....u...a waiter..join this course....let yourself be trained to learn english in 2 days!!... a miracle i will say. and u will be taught by a non-english teacher.
who?
well, basically anyone who speaks ok english, has a presence and looks neat, will be qualified to teach u that.
huh? they know how to teach english like in school those teachers?
what do you think? of course not. as long as they can bluff their way through and give you the most basic, their job is done!! voila!!!
oh i see.....are u being sceptical here?
sorry can't help it. hmm...a bit pessimistic also hor? what to do...i feel that way. anyway, met some different people loh. new tricks? it was more like a revision and recalling of what i have in my memory bank unutilised since ages ago. hmm..leaving the house for a few days was a change.
so u interested to train people in english?
waaaaaa!! help!! i am in the comfort zone and i dun feel like getting out of the cocoon. how how?

(the headache came...left to be unanswered for a long time to come)

lethargy is finally setting in after a few weeks of mundane, inactive life of the so-called annual year-end holidays! aaarrggghhhh!!! the head feels like cracking now. have anyone felt this before?
sleeps have not been that sound either with dreams every night. and mind you, i did not see my knight in shining armour in these dreams...sucks!
the temper should be flaring if anyone dares to ignite it within a touch. i feel i can burst at any moment...just like a bubble. can somebody just get the needle here? better to burst than to keep everything.
will be in kl this weekend. no traffic jams please. don't let the headache be replaced with something else.
yikes...what is happening??

mcdonalds...oh...ty....oh....mcdonalds....oh

how! how! why! why! just when i thought i was going to stop err...or rather slow down lah...on my collection of ty beanie babies, suddenly i received a flyer from mcdonalds in the newspaper today. how can anyone resist them? i know i can't. that is why i have sent smses to 'appeal' for help! help! help!
i am only going to one next weekend! gosh, how many am i missing out already?

* my collection has already started! i got the brown beanie, the one on the far left in the first pic. yeah!! thanks queen!!! oh and queen's friend who helped me actually.
** thanks kien kien. this time 2 more added from the happy meals collection. the last two in the bottom row, the Birthday bear and Fries, the bear. yeah!! thanks!!!
***kien, you da gal!!! haha...another to the collection: Happy Meal, the bear. how can i thank her enuf!!
****ok, the first collection is complete!!! all the rm9 bears are collected...haha..without me stepping into an outlet. the miracles of having friends!! thanks queen.MUAH!!!
***** yi shin helped me to get one happy meal bear too!! the first one on the list. a yellow one..sob..i think the beanies that come with happy meals are finishing fast. so many still left uncollected. ...okok..dun be so greedy

the king is back!!

the durian season is back....not sure whether this season is going to be a bountiful one. but hope the rains nowadays do not ruin the harvest. been having durian for 2 days in a row. yeah, call me a durian lover!!!
i tried looking for the goodness of durian...and how disappointed i was. the first site: whfoods.org (called itself the provider of information for the world's healthiest food). looks like durian is a bane for dieters.
but i found something else. haha...really funny...see what a gwailo thinks about our famous fruit here.

here is an excerpt from the review on how bad the pungent smell can be. haha!!
Some quick research on the web revealed the following, less scientific, descriptions of the scent of this most odour-ridden of foods:

* a backed up toilet
* carrion in custard
* rotting fish
* unwashed socks
* a city dump on a hot summers day
* clogged drains in August
* the flesh of some animal in a state of putrefaction
* the diapers of a baby that had diarrhea two weeks ago and was not looked after

AHOY THERE!

OK THIS IS FOR THOSE WHO ARE READING MY BLOG FOR DETAILS OF MY CRUISE. FOR YOUR INFORMATION, YOU HAVE TO DRAG THE MOUSE TO THE FIRST DAY OF THE CRUISE WHICH STARTS FROM THE DAY 1 POST. I HAVE RECEIVED SOME COMPLAINTS THAT IT IS DIFFICULT TO FOLLOW MY STORY BECAUSE THE LATEST IS RIGHT AT THE END. HOPE THIS NOTICE WILL HELP.

sign my christmas tree

someone sent me an MTV christmas tree and i find it kind of cute as well. it will be cuter if you add your wishes and i get more glass baubles. ;)
just click here and go to the tree. you might want to make one for youself. tell me and i will leave ya my sincere wishes too. it is good to share ;)

ho! ho! ho! christmas is just around the corner. but does it have any significance to me? sadly, no. hmm....just want to psych up myself here on the blog since there is nothing happening real life. wonder if anyone has any plan for dinner or a gathering? hint hint.....
or i will just be sitting at home and watch those cheesy christmas shows they have lined up on tv loh. hmm....save money loh..hahhaa...
oh, but when christmas comes, it means it is back to work soon. sigh. what kind of year will it be for 07?? well, the big 3-0 is calling soon. that is something...err..not to look forward to ...haha. keeping my fingers crossed that it will be an ok year. not asking for much actually. and i hope everyone's year will be good too. when u guys are happy, i am happy too!!

verdict of a land cruiser turned seafarer

hmm...what can i say? it is a different experience all together. the mode of transportation here is a ship which moves you from port to port. your time on the land is quite fixed and everything is like touch and go. just as you get to know the place a little, you will have to leave to the next port of embarkation.
it is more suitable for those who want a relaxing, just cruise along sort of holidays. those who want to get a tan, this is your place: deck 8. i still prefer those where you get to stay at a place for a few days and explore every lane and corners at your own pace and make discoveries as you stumble along kind. i feel too relaxed in this trip. haha. most of the passengers on the ships are in their golden age...happy couples enjoying their pension years...70% whites. the rest are malaysians who boarded in port klang. food was great, the dessert corner was my hunt. you will feel so sick of seafood after the 3rd day. the cabin i was in was rather cramped for four persons. two is ok. we did not check the price for 2 in the first place. so we learned from this mistake. just a little difference in pricing.
and the stop at phuket left a bad impression due to the attitude of the locals, might not be a second time there as there are still so many wonderful places in the world yet to be explored.
so all in all, this trip was all right. something different from what i was used to.

fourth stop: langkawi (day 5)

the last stop before disembarking at port klang. the ship docked at porto malai which was 40 mins from kuah town. initially only planned to walk at porto malai. but on the way out, met two couples (one from england, the other from scotland; not together) who were talking about offers made by the taxi drivers outside. so i decided to stop and asked them what offer they got. the drivers wanted to charge them rm45 per hour! cut throat big time!! so i asked if they minded joining our group of four to the underwater world, cable car ride and kuah town. we told them the price was not as quoted by the drivers. so yours truly was unofficially elected the leader of this pax of 8 now and started bargaining with the local driver. as rented cars here were the only transport out, there was no other way except to rely on them. we finally settled for rm25 each. still expensive compared to kuah's price, but what peanuts the foreigners had to pay. they were more than happy to get on the van.
so to the underwater world, followed by mount machincang and finally kuah town for some duty free goods. the foreigners got their beer and rum for a 'party' on the cruise! the english couple even added an extra rm5 for me as a tip when i collected the taxi fare at the end of the trip. so funny. of course i denied. they said if i decided to quit my current job, i would make a good tour guide. thanks mike! it was fun going with them and knowing that i had done a lil part in giving malaysia's kind hospitality to them albeit the short time.

• porto malai
  

• langkawi underwater world. what a letdown. malaysians have to pay rm28. not that worth it as it was not that impressive. luckily the foreigners did not go with us. it would be a shame if compared with what they had seen in US.
  

• the breathtaking ride up mount machincang. worth every dime you pay. a not-to-be-missed when u are on the island. not for the faint hearted. 2 from the group skipped the ride for fear of heights. i think that is the telaha tujuh waterfalls u can see via the cable car ride.
  

• aah..beautiful sunset at langkawi. fishermen returning after a catch. how tranquil. how mesmerising. how beautiful.
  

• crew extravaganza night. yup it was the night where some of the crew members took over the slockquote>tage to entertain the guests. nothing mind blowing. get a seat to pass that 45 mins.
  
  

third stop: phuket (day 4)

the ship finally found a docking port at deep sea port phuket. it takes about 40 mins to reach the famous patong beach. so going out was not that convenient. you will have to bargain with the taxi drivers waiting outside the port. we booked ourselves on the tour bus again for transport out to patong. it was the pre-peak season in phuket and the weather was fabulous. blue sky and bright sun. but the same could not be said about the locals attitudes towards asian. a worker sweeping the walkway outside a stall along the beach were heard grunting 'huh, chinese!' (how rude!!!) and a stall owner chased all customers out of his shop for taking too-long-a-time bargaining and looking for goods. he shouted 'only look-look see-see, come out, come out'. sigh. and i thought they were still recovering from the tsunami! my friend was saying what was the use of helping them with all the aids when tsunami struck.
i spoke to a local thai chinese shop owner, she was much friendlier and more humble. i told her what i experienced with the locals and she was shocked at the treatment given as well. she showed me a photo of her shop when tsunami struck and she was still in the midst of opening her shop. loose wires were seen in the newly renovated shop. hence, lunch was at subway instead of any local eateries...which was scarce anyway. you see the stretch of road littered with bars and western food eateries. the encounter with the locals have definitely left a bad taste in the mouth. bali island is a better choice...u still get the beautiful beaches and the locals are definitely friendlier and more hospitable. you won't see so many local women with their Farangs either in bali.

• the stretch of road in front of patong beach. all shops selling imitation goods and restaurants
  

• cool huh?? this is self-explanatory
  

• the famous bang la road. it is only for the pedestrians at night where all the activities are centred. bars, clubs, transvestites (lady man), etc.
  

• patong beach. sitting on the chairs come with a price.
  

• central festival: the most upmarket mall in phuket. still no lv or gucci lah.