Hohoho! Merry Christmas~

It's the time of the year again whereby gifts & blessings are exchanged between friends & loved ones. For me, it's time for me to put on the Santa hat & paint the town red! Nah, just kidding XD. This year's celebration is a wee bit fun for me as I joined some of my colleagues for a casual Christmas dinner & less wild drinking session on Eve's Day. And a simple, nice date with someone dear on Christmas Day ^^.

The good thing about working is that exchanging gifts becomes a common practice regardless of whether majority of us are Christians or not. Here's where the fun part comes about - the tendency to receive weird pressies from colleagues whom you'd least expect to pick your name. Otherwise, you'll still get nice, decent gifts from those who are not so naughty imaginative in selecting the perfect present. I heard that last year one of them was incredibly creative that he bought a pack of condoms for his lady boss. How funny!

My lucky pick was one of the Marketing managers who's obviously a chain smoker. I supposed no other item that can please him more than an ash tray that complements his smoking lifestyle. And so I gave him one that has a slight hint of humour in it to add on the uniqueness. After all, just a normal ash tray is way too common. As for me, I got a pair of pretty earrings (my favourite!) from a sweet female colleague. Sankyuuuu~ Looking forward to wearing it to the office...that's if I'm not too freggin' lazy to dress up a little. XD I'd have to say, this year is one hell of a fun Christmas sans the crazy partying. I'm satisfied :)

It's called the flocked dress with tulle

This dress that I bought a month ago...

...the brand is Morgan & Co. And it did ring a bell when I saw the label in the dress. It sounded so familiar, I thought. Curiosity got the better of me & I decided to search it up on Google. The search results came with many URLs that link to Amazon. I clicked one of them & guess what? This pic appeared before my eyes.

THE SAME DRESS!! Only a different colour. What a coincidence! Anyways, the price was listed at USD100+ which clearly explains why my dress was RM370. I thought my dress was unique cuz it's (supposedly) the one & only piece in Malaysia. Much to my surprise (shocked I would say) that I found the exact colour as mine at Dress Me, 1 Utama. What's even more frustrating is that the boutique is selling at RM399. Thank God I paid a slightly cheaper price or else the dress might've cost a whopping RM400+ -_-". I bet the shoplady will get some sounding from my aunt cuz she already spent on dresses worth RM1000+. Btw, I didn't know the style of the dress is called flocked dress XD. That's definitely something worth taking note. Tee-hee!

Boo!

This is really embarrassing.

You'd probably wouldn't believe what I'm about to tell you. While shopping at KLCC yesterday, I did a (really) stupid thing. Actually, I was searching for my sis who was trying on clothes in one of the fitting rooms. As I approached the fitting room door, I knocked to check out whether anyone's in there.

No reply.

I knocked again. I even called out her name too.

No reply.

Finally, I knocked at the door loudly & said "BOO!" out loud.

Guess what? The door opened & there stood a young Indian lady looking puzzled staring back at me.

OMG... *dies*

-___________________-"

*runs to the corner & hide*

Girl meets vampire

I was pretty excited when I heard about the movie Twilight coming to the silver screen. Reason being the trailer looks promising (typical...) & it's gonna be another saga adapted from the bestselling books. Part of the excitement probably came from the press as I found that the good, clean-cut hottie who played Cedric Diggory in two Potter movies was casted as the male protagonist in the upcoming vampire movie. Besides, the casts - Robert Pattinson & Kirsten Stewart playing Edward & Bella respectively seem to look like they're having lots of chemistry here. What can be more romantic than a forbidden love between a mortal & an immortal vampire? ^^ The poster looks so hauntingly beautiful.

Honestly, I haven't read the book yet though I bought it two months ago. I knew that the book should be really good considering the fact that it has established a global cult consisting mainly teenage girls & young women alike. Furthermore, the movie was apparently touted the next big thing after Harry Potter since tales about the wizard boy is coming to an end real soon. Therefore, I'd rather be mesmerised/impressed/bored by the movie first before I'm being drawn into the mystical world of Twilight. It's just that...you know how good books are ruined by poorly adapted films. There you are highly anticipating the movie to be equally or almost as good as the print but turned out awfully disappointing. Just like Da Vinci Code.

The movie? I was right, after all. I wasn't impressed with the movie so to speak. It was slow but the slowness does have its advantage. Most of the scenes between Bella & Edward were pretty romantic. The closeup shots of Bella & Edward staring intently at each other further heightened the love tension. And it definitely pulls every girl's heart strings. The movie has celebrated the beauty of almost-kissing shots between the star-crossed lovers. That's how the movie was beautifully done in that aspect of romance. Otherwise, the action scenes while playing baseball seems a little tacky - reminding me of those poor CGI in vampire TV sitcoms.

New Moon is due for release next year & I'm definitely looking forward to it. Despite the less impressive first movie, it had spur me to follow the saga. I'm gonna start reading the first book real soon. Anyways, which girl wouldn't wanna imagine having a love relationship with a mysterious, handsome vampire? XD

Chill out

It was my first night out with my colleagues on a Friday night. Sanctuary was the hangout place for the night as they wished to finish up the remaining Hennessy bottle that they signed up for months back. So, I've decided to accept their invitation out of gratitude for them being so nice to me. We had dinner at this Thai restaurant called Sutra which is situated at The Curve. Much to my oblivion, I have the faintest idea that this mall is the "in" place to be on every Friday night. There's so much life & music at the outdoors. In addition, a bazaar is on each night (I think) to satisfy the needs of budget-conscious shopaholics. Guess I should go out more & absorb the night air.

As we all know, it's the jolly season again. Yup, that time of the year. Without doubt, malls are decorated with their most extravagant Christmas decorations to date. And The Curve is definitely not missing out. I took a snapshot of the famous nightwalk cuz it was so dazzling. It's a pity that I left the camera at home. This is the best I could get out my miserable 2mp camera phone.

Food was not too bad though Thai cuisine is not particularly my preference. On the other hand, Sanctuary was good. The DJ played good music too, imho. What's more, it gets better & better after each song. Much better than Club Quattro. I didn't drink much - only 2 glasses of dilluted Hennessy with lots of Coke & ice. This is how an alcohol intolerant person would consume his/her pint. Even so, my eyes were reddening despite only taking merely 2 glasses. It's a good thing that my colleagues aren't being pushy about these things & that gave me opportunity to escape from being drunk. All I did was danced wee bit & groove to the sounds.

I left the club at 11pm. Not the right time to leave as the night is still young. People are starting to swarm into clubs & party the night away. But what can I do. I have a curfew & family's calling. After all, I'm not the kind who likes to stay out too late. Midnight is still fine but 1am...nope, I don't think so. It was fun nevertheless ^^.

Wedded at noon

It's a once in a blue moon thing to be able to attend a wedding in the afternoon. It still seems odd to me to have a wedding reception at such a bright hour; not unless if it's a garden wedding. Last Saturday, one of my relatives had his big day at a ballroom of Palace of The Golden Horses. Technically speaking, he's my Dad's cousin bro from the paternal side. This officially makes him my uncle. Btw, having a wedding in a ballroom sounds really nice despite the fact that banquet food sucks. The venue makes the event more grand & pompuous in which allows you dress up as glamourous as you can. Sadly, people here don't really conform to the formalities of a ballroom attire although the invitation card had clearly stated otherwise. Fortunately, my family are one of the few who did dress up prim & proper. And I'd have to say that we were among the best dressed by far. *smiles proudly* XD

Honestly, I had no intention to get a new dress as I was on a strict money saving regime. I made sure that I don't spend on unnecessary things before I lay my hands on a job. Now that I have one, I still have to be savvy on my spending cuz I'm on my own now for most things. Besides, I already have a few dresses to suit the occasion. People say that you don't wear the same dress twice but I don't give a damn. I suppose it was purely coincidental that I found the perfect one a day prior to the wedding when I accompanied my aunt to collect her altered cheongsam. Never in my life I've managed to find one that fits my petite (or rather thin) body so well. And whats even weirder is that I fell in love with it the minute I laid eyes on it. Is that supposed to be pure coincidence or fate? I was quite reluctant to purchase it cuz it was really way of my budget for a dress. No doubt it's absolutely beautiful but the staggering price is enough to burn a hole in my pocket soon enough once my half month salary is in. Ah well...T.T I bought it anyways.

There's nothing of significance throughout the wedding. As expected, many guests dressed inappropriately but seriously none of my concern. No typical loud & rowdy yam sengs among the tables (Thank God!). Just a simple yam seng toast by the groom & bride (plus immediate families) as to pay respect to our traditional customs. And then a toast by the couple at each table before the photographer takes the shot. Now if only the dearly beloved couple would take the stage & give some speech. That way the wedding is perfect, just like what I wish how mine would be in the future XD.

Food is okay, nothing great. Like I've said earlier, ballroom dining is never ever good. Pics are up on Facebook so feel free to click here for your viewing pleasure. Boy, I look stunning XD.

First job

I assure you there's no better way to start the next chapter of my life by securing a job not too long after my convocation. As most of y'all are well aware that I've started working a couple of days ago. In a company that manufactures Asian drinks i.e. soya milk, chrysanthemum tea, sugar cane & etc. I'm not saying names reason being to avoid putting my career at risk. I reckon some readers may be spying on statements that I make. Hence, the importance to be extra cautious is greatly highlighted here.

So far, I did learn new stuff that I had no opportunity to do so in previous jobs that I took on a part-time basis. Getting familiar with the employees & their operational systems are part & parcel of the job but given the access & responsibility to use SAP sounds so glamorous. And I need not go through any SAP training. My good ol' senior passed on the knowledge to me, patiently guiding me through. Ain't she sweet? ^^

Speaking of colleagues, they're a bunch of lovely people. Very hospitable, indeed. A little bit crazy at times; joking around & laughing real hard at each other's silly jokes. Glad that they make the work environment less dull. At least there is a reason for me to look forward to going back to the office XD.

First day was pretty interesting. Almost the whole Marketing department went out for lunch courtesy of the GM. It was more like a meal to welcome the newcomers into the "family". Coincidentally, the first day on job was the birthday of the other newcomer who came in on the same day as me. What an interesting day for her, eh? Today was my senior's birthday & so you could imagine having to eat free cakes for two consecutive days. It's pretty fun when all the colleagues remember & celebrate each other's birthday. How exciting can the my working life be? XD

Animal ears from "Madagascar"

Just cuz it's so darn adorable that I have to lay my hands on it though everyone knows so well that it's not that worth it. It's time to shake your bum & get movin'. Go eat McDonald's or pay RM5.90 to have one on your head now. Fyi, I'm not paid for doing publicity on behalf of McD. Had to talk about it cuz the ears are soooo irresistible XD.

Pose, smile, snap...

I went for a photo shoot this afternoon to have my graduation portraits taken. Oh boy! I didn't know that photo shoots can be such a fun activity though pretty exhaustive. At least this one did compensate for the lack of photo sessions with my buddies on Friday. And of course, the pics will turn out absolutely stunning as compared to those taken on that day. I can't imagine how the pics those graduands who decided to shoot their portraits on that day will turn out. Everyone was sweaty all over & faces so greasy that overly shiny appearance without doubt will be reflected in the portraits.

As for me, my family had a peaceful & relaxing time having the photographer to tell us how to pose yadi yada. It was definitely a great time for family bonding. We had decided to get cousin bro to put on the robes too since he missed the opportunity to do so months ago. What's better than having two graduates to taking pics simultaneously? ^^ The tiring part was making poses as instructed by the photographer himself. Sometimes the position was so darn awkward that we end up feeling pretty stiff & uncomfortable during the session. Seems like posing in front of the camera to achieve that best shot is not so easy after all. This futher proves how professional models are while on the set when they don't even need the art director or photographer to provide word-by-word directions to them.

Anyways, the proof shots will be ready by next week for us to select the good ones to be made into a 5R album & a an 11R size that comes with canvas & frame for my solo shot. Pretty cool, eh? This whole package costs RM399~ Ouch! Worth it, I guess. *shrugs* Here're some pics at the studio that we quietly took with my phone before the lady caught us red-handed. Fyi, cameras aren't allowed in the studio -_-".

Total opposites: Giant & midget (Cousin bro & me)

Partners in crime XD (Me & lil' sis)

Aunt Choo & me ^^

Here comes the big day!

The day has come & gone. In one of my previous posts, I mentioned that this thing about graduation seemed like a distant thought. Little did I (did we) expected I'll be graduating soon I've graduated. And sad to say, the ceremony turned out to be a little disappointing. Reason being the schedule was untimely (evening) & no thanks to an incredibly long-winded irrelevant speech presented by one of the VIPs drove the ceremony to a standstill. Having minor aches pounding against my head continuously only made matters a lot worser.

I was feeling very anxious most of the time cuz I had no one to pass my handbag for keep's sake. Graduands weren't allowed to bring any bags into the ceremony hall & unfortunately my parents decided to be fashionably late. There I was, at the sports complex fidgeting nervously while almost tearing up the small piece of paper in my hands that even the tall guy sitting next to me that I got to knew for a couple of minutes had to calm me down. As we exited the complex towards the multi-purpose hall passing by the canteen, I realised that the piece of paper I was holding earlier was missing. Ran I did back to the canteen & searched frantically, hoping to find the purple sheet. Thank God I found it at the canteen not too far away from the hall; lying on the floor crumpled but still in one piece. I swear I would've have had a heart attack if it was nowhere to be seen.

Next, I squeezed back into my position in front of Kenneth & behind that tall dude. *sighs* What a klutz! When we were about to enter the hall, I was in a panic situation cuz Mum was not at sight as promised on the phone when I told her to come collect my bag. I couldn't imagine I'm in such bad luck for the entire day. I cursed "Shit!" out loud; tossed my bag on an empty chair near the door & entered the hall unceremoniously, quicken my pace to try catch with Kenneth & that dude - while the graduation anthem was being played. I kept texting Mum to get the bag & she replied that she couldn't find it. WTF! I'll be so dead meat if it's lost cuz my IC, credit cards, cash are all in there.

When I was steps away from receiving my certificate on stage, I told myself that I have to forget about that damn bag. Now's my moment...that's all I should be looking forward to. And it all happened so fast. Walk to the chancellor, smile & thank him when he congratulates & presents the cert, turn to the front & pose for the cameras, descend the stage while flipping the tassle to the left. Officially graduated! In the end, it was all good cuz Mum managed to find my bag. Some good samaritan (apparently the guard) found it & kept it in case someone comes to claim it. Thank God once again...*phew* The only depressing thing is that my family (parents & grandparents) insisted that we leave immediately as it was getting rather late. I mean, I barely took any pics at all. And so we quickly snapped some shots, rushed over to the sports complex to meet up my buddies, do whatever we need to do & left.

It's so sad, really. It was my big day but my own family complained so much that the event was so lengthy & insisted to go home without bothering about how much I wanted to mingle with my buddies just for a little while to snap pics. I thought they were supposed to be so supportive... =(

For more pics, click here.

Cheesey delight

What better way to conclude a sumptuous dinner before settling down for TV time? A delightful dessert, of course XD. What kind of dessert, you ask? Cheesecake, babe ^^. My aunt brought home a 3kg cake (I think) after lunch at Imperial Hotel, KL (formerly known as Sheraton Imperial). This time, it's a heavenly Boston Cheesecake with a soft biscuit crust as the base of the cake.

I love how each bite of the cake melts in the mouth, leaving a lingering creamy-buttery taste. It's incredibly soft & smooth, unlike those less pricey cheesecakes available at your local bakery which are overtly oily & smells like cheap, bad margarine due to excessive use of margarine, eggs, cheese...you name it. No wonder this dessert costs RM100+ o_O Btw, it's fattening. And the best part is - I'm not afraid of getting fat by eating all this stuff. Are you envious?? XD

Growing up

I've collected my graduation gowns several days ago while there's still one more week before D-day. The "graduation" word seemed so distant then each time I stopped to ponder about it. I was only 12 when the first thought came into my mind. Then came next year. And the following year; each year passing by so quickly that whatever happened in the past remained as faint memories now. I didn't even realise that I'm coming of age when my 21st birthday came. Never knew that I'm old enough to leave my cocoon & ready to take on the world. It never really dawn to me that I'll be wearing that mortarboard so soon.

At this very minute, I had flashbacks on the day I first reached puberty. My God. That was ages ago. I can't believe it. And I'm one decade older now. A full-grown woman. To be precise, a petite sized woman. Who dreams to embark on a successful career in the future. There I go...applying jobs offered by MNCs & large companies alike, hoping that I would be selected at least for an interview. Tough luck so far as there were very few replies. Nevertheless, I was determined to continue. This is no time for slacking. I just need to try harder, I told myself.

I wondered, if I was born as someone else...would I take on an almost similar path? Would I be able to see, feel & enjoy what life has to offer? Or would I be fortunate enough to live on until this age & beyond to tell the tale of life? Would I be this, that? It's just that I felt a sudden feeling of relief that I'm so blessed with what I have now. Though I may not be gifted with the most intelligent of minds nor will be able to leave a legacy, the fact is I feel proud being me. If only I could choose to be me again in the next life. And hopefully make-do for all the mistakes that I've made in this chapter of my life. If only all of us could...

Five star service

I've been to, dined & stayed at 5 star hotels before but never once being treated like a princess felt much pampered. Or perhaps back then I was too young to understand how a 5 star service is like back then when I used to travel a lot. Not to forget, I hardly frequent those exclusive places nowadays. Anyhow, I was fortunate enough to have a taste of exclusivity when my aunt decided to pay a visit to the Lexus showroom at Mutiara Damansara.

The showroom is actually situated right behind Cycle & Carriage Bintang showroom & it's only less than 5 mins walk from Ikano Power Centre. Painted in deep brown & with many glass panels installed, the building gave an impression of a place for people of wealth & sophistication. There was a guard stood at the entrance looking prim & proper; saluting each of us upon entering the grounds. We saw 5 different luxurious car models of various specifications & price ranges were displayed at the spacious, airy showroom. The moment my aunt approached the car model that interests her, one lady in a classy black suit followed briskly towards my aunt.

Without wasting any min, she explained everything my aunt needs to know about the product; showcasing her technical know-how. Meanwhile, another lady came by with a tray filled with glasses of apple juice. The tea lady immediately went to fetch a glass of water for Grandma when my aunt complained that it was too sweet. Omg. I was thoroughly impressed. Not only the service was unrivalled by many, even the salesgirl & the tea lady were gorgeous women.

As we left, the salesgirl gave my aunt a catalogue, pamphlet & a door gift as a token of appreciation for visiting the outlet. Again, I'm amazed at Lexus' effort in paying attention to every finer details to capture the hearts of it potential customers. Just look at the catalogue...O_O

Hard-bound car catalogue that doesn't even look like a catalogue at all. More like a photobook that can be kept for novelty. And who actually distribute biscuits (green box with yellow ribbon) as gifts to potential customers anyway?? Wow. Honestly, Mercedes' service is not even on par with this fairly new Japanese luxurious car brand. What an experience I had! ^^

Four seasons...nay~

This might sound a little embarrassing but believe it or not, I've never been clubbing before in my entire life. Last Friday was my first experience clubbing in the heart of KL. It was the Grand Opening Nite of Club Quattro at Avenue K, Jalan Ampang that I attended with cousin bro. Being a noob clubber, I have no idea what to expect. Anyhow, I was expecting an out-of-this-world decor considering the club claimed that their rooms have 4 different seasons. Each room decorated & temperatures adjusted in such a way to allow clubbers to experience spring, summer, autumn & winter...all in one place.

Here's a sneak peek on how the club looks like.

Autumn Club
The interior walls were painted red with Japanese lanterns hung up high in the ceiling. Waitresses were clad in geisha-inspired satin jackets to add some Japanese touch to the surrounding. Disappointingly, the lights were so dimmed that I couldn't see much. Honestly, there weren't much decor to reflect the autumn season. And gosh, it was so stuffy in there that the supposedly cool temperature during the autumn felt more like summer. :/

Spring Lounge
This one is partially open-air as it occupied the space facing the road. Since this is a lounge, there's a small corner for live bands & comedians to entertain the club-goers while enjoying drinks from the minibar while soaking in the breeze & "rain".

Winter Bar
Most favourite among the four. Only measuring 8 Celcius, it made the environment so comfortable. There's a special partition with temperatures below freezing point & decorated with chairs, sofas, tables sculpted from ice. I couldn't even stand another minute or two in there. What's more, my rather thin black dress didn't help either -_-. Hence, sitting even only at the edge of the icy "sofas" hurt real bad on my bum. The bartenders, waiters/waitresses were all warmed up in winter clothing to complement the chilly season. Brilliant idea, I'd say.

Summer Restaurant
This alfresco-style restaurant has a minibar & table seats which span across the room as well as outdoors. Definitely for those who loves dining at the sidewalk. Not me since the air in Malaysia is so uncleaned & polluted. The air at the roadside might not be friendly to the nose, at least the view opposite Quattro is pleasing to the eyes. ^^ I didn't capture many shots of this restaurant cuz the low lights made taking pics pretty difficult.

Vodka & whisky were on the house from 8-10pm, hence me & cousin bro quickly grabbed a glass each before the time ran out. Interesting taste, indeed. It is a concoction of zesty lemon flavour with alcohol bitterness that burns the throat if taken pure without dilluting it with ice. Such is the greatness of vodka. Okay, um...not that great to some of you frequent drinkers out there. C'mon, it was my first time tasting hard liquor. I'm a noobie in this kinda stuff. Overall, I would give a 7 out of 10 rating for Club Quattro for that unique concept but falls short on the decor mainly cuz it failed to impress me. Seriously lacking the WOW factor.

I had a VERY good sleep that night after one shot as I have low tolerance for alcohol. I wasn't drunk, thankfully but I remembered having white patches all over my body when the alcohol effect kicked in. Till now, I still have the faintest idea trying to figure out what that is. It's not alcohol rash cuz it didn't itch. What the hell is that?? Hmm...

Find out more about Club Quattro at www.clubquattro.com

Under my skin

Ahh...it's been a long time since I last blogged about my beloved Dong Bangs. I have nothing much to blog about them for the past few months cuz they were pretty busy with their schedules in Japan & probably in the midst of preparing for the 4th Korean album release. Now that they're back with a brand new album; sporting different images & hairstyles - they're set to take the world by storm, bigger & better this time.

To celebrate their comeback, many fans made parodies off their latest single Mirotic by changing the lyrics. It's not like they did it on purpose to offend the boys but it's just another fun way to share their love for Dong Bang. Purely for good laughs. On the other hand, I don't usually look up on Dong Bang parodies so the decision to click on one of it was rather surprising. Mainly cuz the title of the video parody was Moronic. ROFL.

Unfortunately, this wonderfully done parody brainwashed & poisoned our minds in dbsg LJ comm that we have the tendency to hear the funny lyrics instead of the actual one. This is seriously bad news~ XD In case you got confused, here's a rough intepretation of the song by another member.

The boys are "more than cousins" close, they do not cheat on each other with girls, because they're so gay!

They did the jiggy-iggy on the beach when the monsoon came and rained baboons :O

The children kidnapped them and locked them in a box on the ship. The boys got hungry and made sushi on the red ocean (coz the sun set reflected on the water, yo)

Then some boy Mitchell came to join the orgy boys and they asked him the hand over the syrup (for their sushi), and tricked him (Yunho pinned him down, kudos to his mom, aha!)

No naked special pajamas and no naked Mitchell becoz 5+0=1 and 5+1=0 :O:O

Bwahahha children cannot top them, because they're so gay!

Credits to myvibrance@LJ (video parody) & jealous_sky@LJ (lyrics intepretation).

Is it not paper?

While slacking busy job hunting & running daily errands, I took some time off to learn handicrafts. I do enjoy making stuff though I won't deny that I'm actually good at it. I haven't been serious in this hobby for some time reason being Mum thinks that too works of art creates what we call...rubbish :/. She's right in a way cuz my room is seriously lacking space to accomodate more trash.

Anyways, I've decided to try out something new this time & flowers popped into my mind. Fyi, I do have fondness for flowers so it's kinda easy to get my attention (guys, take note!). I wanted to try making paper flowers; whether it'll be made into a bouquet & given to someone as a gift or just as a home decor. In my quest to gain this new skill, I looked up on Google for paper flower making walkthroughs. There I found a template & started working on my first crepe paper rose. After 2 failed attempts, this is what I've made...

The rose obviously didn't look right at all. I ordered a Martha Stewart crafts kit off eBay cuz I was determined to try again in order to perfect the rose shape. Alas, I made the right decision as the 3rd stalk looks exceptionally beautiful but still with minor flaws. From there I found that the problem arised from the template. The one I got online didn't allow me to get the shape desired. Martha Stewart's did. And I'm awfully happy that my masterpiece looks good & received compliments from others. Patience is a virtue, indeed.

Now I present you...the enchanted rose~

Any plans to give your beloved a bouquet of rose that doesn't wilt & lasts really long? Lemme know ;)

Bird's nest ain't that fun

For the past few days, I've been doing things that I've never done before in my life. And that is - cleaning the bird's nest. Most of you probably won't understand how great this delicacy is among the Chinese for over 400 years. It's believed to contain lots of nutrients which would enhance one's health. Some people find it disgusting to consume an animal's saliva for the sake of good health. Honestly, bird's nest doesn't look that bad after cleaning & soaking it overnight cuz it looks like gelatin. What's more, it's tasteless unless it's cooked in a soup with sugar or salt added to taste.

Eating bird's nest is delicious but the preparation is no easy task. In fact, it's a nightmare if you purchase the raw ones unlike those that you get from Chinese herbal shops such as Eu Yan Sang. There's just so much to clean before you can pop them into a pot to boil soup. First off, the bird's nest needs to be soaked overnight to allow the fibres to soften.

See the black spots? Those are swallow's feathers -_-

After soaking the bird's nest overnight, it needs to be clean under filtered water; gently shaking it using a sift to filter out the feathers. Here comes the no-fun part. Left-over feathers still stuck in between the bird's nest is to be painstakingly taken out using a forsep. Yes, I mean it.

I think I'll go blind if I do this everday. *sighs*

The feathers taken out by the forsep is to washed in another separate bowl of water. This is to prevent the feathers from sticking elsewhere & possibly fall into the bowl of bird's nest again.

Look at the immense amount feathers~

Now, do you still wanna drink bird's nest soup? Heh. Well, just go get the bottled ones by Lor Hon Kar to save the hassle. But I heard stories that bird's nest suppliers actually use bleach to clean their products before packing & sending them to manufacturers. Does this make you feel disgusted about eating bird's nest?? I do. As a matter of fact, I'd rather not eat at all.

Chocolate indulgence

A chocolate a day keeps a girl happy. Couldn't you agree more? I gotta tell ya that I'd tasted one of (probably) the best chocolate cake in my life. Like, seriously. This delightful cake was courtesy of my aunt who dined at Le Meridien KL recently with her fellow gal friend (aka my neighbour).

What's so great about this cake, you ask? Every bite you take on that slice of cake taste like heaven. It's incredibly rich in dark chocolate - my favourite! - that its natural bitterness works its magic on the tastebuds,. Guys probably won't understand this crazy feeling but girls...the chocolate-obsessed ones especially, I can assure you that this cake will drive you up the wall.

If you can't afford the whole cake, just grab a slice. After all, girls can't possibly finish the entire cake as it'll leave stuffed within a few hours. And bet that the weight conscious girls will regret eating them as they'll start counting the calories to be shed off for the perfect body. :/

The hotel name says it all...

Oh, heaven!

Black tofu

Have you eaten black tofu? No, I presume. Let me tell ya, it tastes as good as the usual white tofu that we normally eat in Chinese restaurants. The best part is that that it's organic - which mean it's healthy aka no artificial colourings nor preservatives. I have no idea how the manufacturers turned these food into black considering they shouldn't be using any colouring at all. I'm guessing that they used black soybeans to produce the black stuff. Fyi, I ate these for the first time at Summer Palace so I'm pretty sure you can find it there. The black colour indeed sparks curiosity. Go try it. You know you want to~ XD

So...black tofu, anyone??

Thank you for the music

Dear Nuffnang, I'd promised you that I'll ♥ you forever if you grant me tickets to the premiere of Mamma Mia! The Movie. You have my words & I would like to express my utmost gratitude to y'all who made my day. Thank you for the joyful night of music & laughter! It was such an awesome movie that never failed to keep me entertained. Honestly, I was tapping my feet in unison to all the songs featured in the movie for the whole night. The song selections were absolutely perfect - it's as if ABBA has created them for a future musical.

To those who have yet to watch it, what are you waiting for? The plot is easy to digest & not too cheesy. Though I can't guarantee it for guys who strictly don't enjoy musicals at all. I mean, most guys just don't fancy men singing, dancing & prancing around gleefully. Right? XD