Girls Day Out - How to Train Your Dragon

From the moment I watched the trailer for this animation, I knew I have to watch this movie ! And so I did. Since Alicia was back for the weekend, a girls day out would be good. Woke up at 9am despite having just 5 hours of sleep, got my laundry and chores done, and off to One Utame we went.

Had our lunch at Subway, yum...and walked around till our movie time. From the moment the show started, it was all a good watch till the end. I personally felt that there was a balance amount of laughter, action and suspend, being an emotional one, there was a part that nearly got my eyes to well up in tears. I shall not reveal any spoilers for you, if you are a fan of animation, and totally dig Scottish accent. YOU HAVE TO WATCH IT !!

The only people I've heard of in the voiceover casts was Gerard Butler and American Ferrera, so if you have not google the movie already, then try to listen out for them. There was another character in the show which has the cutest Scottish accent ever - Gobbler (voice of Craig Ferguson). Reminded me so much of my friend Jack whom I met in Queenstown last year. Lurve it when he goes "No worrrries". Ahh.. I love Englishmen and their accent. muahahah.

Now back to the show, it was probably the best movie I've watched this year, so far. Wouldn't mind catching it again in 3D ( too bad they weren't showing that on Sunday).

"No worrrrrries"

A slice of indulgence

The pastry Chef's famous moist chocolate cake. Yum! He made it specially for a colleague's farewell party.

Greattt Weekend

For some reason, I felt that last week gone past in a zoom. Hmm, would that be the right expression? Week 2 at work was quite a breeze and I'm slowly picking up things around the office, including that my skirt was a bit wee too short, and I need not wear a collared shirt under my jacket. Great ! Saves me from ironing any ! The week gone past, and came the weekend. Initially, I was looking forward to a quiet weekend at home, having the mentality that I have only have a one-day weekend. But then, the social side of me needs to get out and meet some ppl, so I was out all weekend !

After a half day work on Sat, I was out with Mom and her friend from Taiwan. Had to wave goodbye to the plan of bringing her up the skybridge after checking out the massive crowd at 7.30am, and I thought I was early! So we brought her around to visit her old school, SM Confucian, and then made a stop at both our house + grandma's.

Had a dinner appointment in the evening, it's been a while since I've seen this friend, so I went along for dinner with his friends at Alexis, Ampang. Recently I've been rather skeptical about meeting new ppl ( yes, some of you might find it weird to hear me say this), but all his friends were nice and fun, and sissy tagged along last minute. For dinner, I picked something from the menu, which had a rather interesting description. It was Angelhair Aglio Olio - served with grilled yabbies. A yabby is a name given in Australia to two different kinds of crustaceans. (Wikipedia). It was a lil costly, but it was worth trying.

After dinner, we went over to Zeta Bar @ KL Hilton for drinks and dancing. We did not get home until about 1am. It was a good night out, have not done this for a while.

*kiap* kiap*eat me*

Angelhair Aglio Olio

(Wish I can do it a bit more justice, but I didn't have my camera with me)

The colour of the day is...

GRAY.

xoxo

My one-day weekend

It's 5pm, that means my Sunday is coming to an end already. I appreciate weekends a bit more since I have to work on Saturdays now. Yesterday was pretty eventful, I got to work at 7.15am, yup, you got me right there. Headed to the staff kitchen, and was determined to have a good breakfast, unfortunately nothing appealed to me. It was difficult cos I was hungry and wanted some food to start my day!! Then Chef Tammie came to the rescue when I asked her if she serves cereal, and she gave me Milo pops ! That was the best way to start my day, am definitely going to ask her for cereal everyday.. and probably that way, I could lose some kilos.

After work, I popped over to KL Convention Center, there was a Asia Trader & Investor Convention. Don't get me wrong, I do NOT have the money to invest, was there to investigate! I was reading through the invitation that they sent me, and saw a familiar face on the speakers' profile. Was determined to find out if this speaker from MIMB was my Management lecturer n-years ago, and since I had a free ticket to the expo, why not! Anyways, I left the expo without a definite answer, but a guy from MIMB told me that Dr.Nazri was indeed a lecturer before he joined the bank.

Took a slow walk over to Sg Wang, was suprised to find the post office was still open, apparently they close at 6pm on Saturdays. Got the required stamps and it's all set to be mailed. (Watch out for the postman hun!) The mission to seek for a pair of comfy and presentable shoes for travelling to work failed. Saw this stall outside Sg Wang, they were selling fake Crocs ( probably real ones, but simply 'escaped' the lorry bringing them to the real Crocs store. Lolz
Didnt get home till about 5pm, and was whisked out for a drink by bro cos 2nd uncle +family was down in KL. We had a quick bite at Happy City foodcourt, am pretty suprised by the crowd and the quality of the food there. Will definitely make another trip there.

Was totally shattered when I got home at 6+, decided against the banana leaf dinner appointment.. Sorry to @dapest ! After showers, I collapsed on my bed, and it was a long nap before I woke up at 11.30pm.. for a light but late dinner. Haha. Then I watched Time Traveler's Wife with sissy. Ooh, Eric Bana was so hot in the movies, especially when he time travelled.*winks*

Today is a total relaxation, did chores, cooked, watch Paranormal Activity on DVD, it was.. urmm.. weird. It was more like documentary rather than a movie, and if I was in the cinema, I would be very tempted to walk out cos it was just boring. Hrmm... speaking bout the cinemas, I think it'll be a long time till I have time for a movie.. unless I wanna watch with the huge crowd on Sundays.

Oops.. it's 10.30pm.. bedtime.. Good nite world!

Presidential Suite at Mandarin Oriental KL

Since I was given a chance to tour this luxurious suite,I felt that I needed to do it justice by sharing the information with my friends.

The below description has been extracted from the hotel's website.

Presidential Suite

From its exclusive location on the 30th floor, this suite commands a panoramic view of the spectacular city skyline. With 50 acres of landscaped gardens, in the form of KLCC Park, and the amazing Petronas Twin Towers, it takes a sumptuous suite to live up to the view. But the Presidential Suite succeeds – with luxury to spare.

The grand master bedroom is a haven of refinement, intricately decorated in muted gold with its enchanting, curtain draped four poster bed. The rich wood writing desk and classic mantelpiece clock add to the air of extravagance, which is followed through in the lavishly decorated living room with its plush red and gold fabrics and deep piled, hand loomed carpets. Entertainment possibilities abound, both traditional and high tech, thanks to the baby grand piano and DVD/CD player and a 34” Flat Screen remote control TV.

The separate, private dining room overlooks the magnificent Petronas Twin Towers, while the fully equipped kitchenette is perfect for dinner party preparation, with its own elegant silverware, fine bone china and crystal. You even have the services of your own personal butler to do the serving.

And if anything, the magnificent marble bathroom is even more luxurious, with its private sauna, whirlpool bath with inbuilt entertainment, personal gym equipment and separate double showers.

Oriental antiques, paintings and fresh flowers abound throughout the suite. Guests also have access to all the luxurious facilities of the Mandarin Oriental Club.

Approximately 335 square meters/3600 square feet.

Suites Facilities

• Master bedroom
• Living room
• Luxurious marble bathroom with separate bath and shower
• In room entertainment including DVD/CD, HiFi and VCR
• Full turndown service including complimentary mineral water with complimentary sweets and special kids amenities
• 24-hour room service
• Laundry and valet service
• Egyptian 600-hundred thread count bed linens
• Guest washroom
• Individually controlled air-conditioning
• In-room safety box
• Personalised welcome letter
• Personalised stationary
• Colour television with movie, news and music channels
• Complimentary fruit basket, daily newspaper, tea and coffee making facility
• Broadband Internet access
• International Direct Dial telephones
• Personalised voicemail
• Refrigerator
• Hair dryer and iron with ironing board
• Asprey bath and beauty amenities
• Premium bathrobe and silk yukata

Just to add a lil note of detail, it's 3 units of flatscreen TV, a 8-seater grand dining table, a lovely grand piano, and ENOUGH wardrobe space = an entire walkway of 2 doors closets for storage. And all this for a price of ..... well, I was told today that it's 29K a night! Wow.. what a luxury.

Day 1 . Survived

It's only Day 1 and I can't feel my toes already.
Borned with a really huge pair of feet, encased in a pair of Size 8 pointed court shoes for 10 hours, that's catastrophe.

It has been a long but interesting day at work, especially enjoyed the tour around the hotel. Was brought up to the Presidential Suite, it is really a jaw-dropping experience. Forgive my 'jakun-ness' , but I have never ever seen such a luxurious suite, and HUGE one too. They have a grand piano in the hall mind you! The spacious bathroom is equipped with a tub,a jacuzzi, sauna, a huge glass showers, and an exercise bike. Spacious is almost an understatement when you can comfortably stand 10 person in the showers itself ! Hrmm, this is definitely not a good way to promote the hotel. Will write a proper post for it. Other than that, it has been a good day of training, had a chance to try the hotel's buffet, and I must say, their service is impeccable! I've also received a set of jacket and skirt, and was shown to my desk. The desk that I'll be spending long hours at. Hehe.

Well for now, I'm going to create a record. Turning in before midnite for the first time in 2010! Woo hoo.

Good nite world.

My Last Weekend

Am I leaving the country again? I wished! After watching Under the Mountain yesterday, I really wished I could zap myself back to NZ. The movie was filmed in NZ and revolves around the volcanoes in Auckland - namely Rangitoto, Mt Eden, Lake Pupuke and a few others. It was a movie that we picked by chance, and I was quite glad we chose that. Oh, watching the movie reminded me so much of my awesome 6 months, and that kiwi accent that I'll never pick up !

Well, it's my last weekend of unemployment. I'm starting work tomorrow, yay! - I actually can't wait to start. You would too, if you have been home for 3 months *gulp*
I definitely did make the fullest of my last UE weekend, was in KLCC on Friday night. Went down to celebrate Karyn's bday, we had dinner at Chinoz on the Park. Spaghetti Carbonara was highly recommended, thus the multiple orders at the table, but as I'm not a fan of creamy pasta, I ordered Fish n Chips. Though it came late, it was not a disappointment at all ! A huge piece of fish, served with mashed peas and tartare sauce. And the chips was serve separately. It was quite yum ! I couldnt make out what fish they used, but it's probably not the frozen dory that many restaurants would use. comparable to some fish n chips I had in NZ! Can't wait to try out Magnificient Fish & Chips @ Changkat. Heard so much about it, but haven't got down there myself.
Karyn's friend made her cupcakes - I don't know if there's a name for it, but I would call it Oh,so Sinful! She used Kahlua in the rich chocolate cake, and Baileys in the butter icing - finished with silver beads. Wished I brought my camera.
Though some of them were going to Zouk, I made my way home. Was feeling a lil sleepy plus having an early rise the next day.

First half of my Saturday was spent in Bentong. We had breakfast at 'Big House' and then spent some time in grandma's house. We also dropped by Daddy's newest obsession at Bukit Tinggi, his new 'resort' , there's a pool, a lil hut, andtoilets at the mo. Pictures will be posted later. Later part of the evening, I met up with a dear friend and his beloved in Mid Valley. They came down from Ipoh to attend a friend's wedding in Klang. We headed to Spaghetti Grill for dinner, that is after dropping by Mac to have a look. ( She informed me,*in disappointment,* that there's no Mac in Ipoh, and MNG only opened in the past 2 years)
Dinner at Spaghetti Grill was a lil disappointing, as the food turned out to be so-so.However, the set dinner priced at RM16.95, consisted a soup, main course, bottomless beverage, and dessert, it's quite a catch. But I realised we left the restaurant without being served dessert. Oh well, according to the waiter,they were serving JUST vanilla ice-cream.

After dinner,I then met up with See Ying for a 9pm movie. That is after changing into flip flops from her car. What a relief for my permanently scarred heels. The story begins like this - I wore my new pair of court shoes to MV, thinking of breaking into it, unfortunately, it gave me blisters after 30 mins of walking in them, and the blisters broke, and I was in the worst agony.Even plasters didn't help then. (Gray called me a softy for this, no I am not!!) . I just hope I'll be alrite tomorrow.

And now, good nite people.

Another day at home

This is my last week of unemployment! Yay... Will be starting work on Monday, and for the first time, I am actually looking forward to it! Oh yea, very much.

Yesterday seemed like an eventful day, had breakfast in the market with Mom, and stocked up on some greens. But I felt so guilty for not bringing the basket or an eco-bag, cos we kept collecting plastic bags with every purchase! Tsk..tsk.. tsk. That just can't do, will definitely remember the next time we go to the market!

We had a Mcdonald's treat for lunch cos Abby got her SPM results , so it's her treat! As I had a heavy breakfast, I only had a strawberry sundae. Then I spent all day on Facebook, was expanding my farm and busy editing food pictures for upload. Speaking about food, I made dinner last night, and tried out a new way to cook chicken wings. Found a recipe for Buffalo Wings, it requred Tabasco sauce and butter. I have them both in my fridge - Perfect! Bro said it was good, but sissy find it a lil spicy though. As for me, I did not have any of it, as I was having a terrible gastric, could only force down a bowl of soup with a lil rice. *Sob*

Buffalo Wings Amanda's style !

Long beans with Egg.

Baking day

Sissy is so bored sitting at home, and then she decided that today is the day! To bake her chocolate chip crunch that is. Well, it's actually a recipe I found, and the original recipe called for cashew nut, white choc, and oats.Well, she omitted all these once, and so it became her 'cookies'. She rummaged through the drawer of all my baking supplies, and got everything out, from the scale to the baking tray! I was there to mock and tease her, after all, I'm the expert. (as compared to her of cos !)

Behold, the finished product !

Decided to make a batch of Anzacs as well. Sent them hot n fresh to YL later.

*I need a hug*

Full stop.

We ♥ Fish

Well, just not today.

This is the story of the bitter fish.

2 weeks ago, on a Saturday, we went back to Bentong for breakfast. After savouring our delicious plate of 'Wan Tan Mee' , we headed to the fresh market. Dad spotted a Malay guy selling freshwater fish, so he bought 2 catfish - the usual type that we love eating. They were killed, cleaned and then stored in our freezer till the 'steaming' day.

Today, since bro is back at home, Mom thought she'll steam a fish for dinner. At 7.30pm, strong gingery smell was coming from the steaming wok. As we all sat down at the dinner table, we begin picking at the fish.

First remark was made by sissy.. "Eeee, the skin is bitter!"

And dad went, " Don't eat the skin, just take the flesh lor."

As I took a bite, " Yeah hor, it's really very bitter."

As we took turns to 'examine' the fish, we found it being worst than a bittergourd - as Sissy puts it. Dad assumed that the man must have broken the gall while killing the fish, hence the bitterness. Then again, he also wondered if it was poisonous.*Gulp* I remembered that article where a man caught a Fugu, which he fed it to his family, and they all died from the poison in the fish. It was a waste, but we discarded the big fish, and dinner was cut short to just one dish - the stir-fried Chinese cabbage. For the first time, right after dinner, we sat around munching on snacks - bring out the egg rolls, peanuts, CNY biscits and chocolates.
A funny moment in this weird experience was when Dad puts down his pair of chopsticks and clasped his hands together (in a praying manner) and said " hopefully nothing happens". Thought that was quite funny. Then again, if I die tomorrow, at least you will know what's the reason.*I am touching the wood*

Nien Gao

Nian Gao, a sweet snack that almost every Chinese household will savour during Chinese New Year. The Chinese have preserved this traditional food for 3000 years. Learn a couple of simple ways to cook Nian Gao in this video.
http://thestaronline.tv/v/5120

I have been reading this excerpt on the side panel of my TV guide for the past few days. Been meaning to check out the video on thestaronline, but my Internet was down for the past few days, so I never did. This morning, the technician finally came by to have a look at our connections, it turned out that the problem wasn't in our house, but on their end. Oh well, what's new?.

Had a heavy breakfast of Nasi Lemak, so we all skipped lunch. As I opened the fridge to look for a snack, I spotted the Nien Gao that an aunty gave me. Hmm... so I whipped up a simple batter of flour and egg, and fried a few pieces of the sweet cake. It did not turn out as expected, but hey, it's still Nien Gao! I don't remember the last time I had this sweet bite, must have been at least 2 years ago, as I definitely did not have any last year. Back in my uni days, I always had some really yummy ones whenever JM went back to Malacca. His aunt would sandwich them with sweet potato and yam slices. And of cos, I would always pick out the yam, not a big fan of yam cooked this way. Ooh, I wish I can savour one of them right now!

This is how my attempt looks like. Again, do not judge it by the looks, it was actually quite yummy. I'll try it again once I have watched the video on the star.com, and maybe with sweet potato slices this time!

Backdated: Yong Tau Foo night

One of the days last week, mom cooked "Yong Tau Foo". This is not your usual plain fish paste YTF, it's the Guang-xi style YTF, that requires so much slaving over! The filling is made from a combination of fish paste, pork and chives. And, to get the ideal texture, the pork is carefully diced into small pieces - both the fat and lean meat . You may also subsitute it with minced pork, but it won't taste as good. This is a proven and tested theory! Being the filial daughter (ahem!), I spent the entire hour cutting up the meat, and the chives. Mom did the mixing and seasoning, corn flour or oil is also added to create a better texture.

Our favourite is the white tofu, followed by the 'tau foo pok'. As we couldnt get hold of the usual Bentong 'tau foo pok', the local ones will do. Mom also bought bittergrourd, so we had a yummy pot of soup with it.

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Bring it back on !

I was disconnected for days ! 4 and 1/2 days to be exact. It was so difficult, I must admit that I have turned into one of them, the internet dependant bunch! I felt so lost without it, I wasn't able to check my mails, which is 3 diff account mind you, I can't update my twitter, no blog updates, and not to mention, I can't harvest my crops on Farmville!! Good thing I've got remote helpers :)

Meant to put up these pictures before the end of CNY.. but as usual.. I procrastinated. These are some pics of Bai Tian Gong that I have put together. Every year, we would visit Grandma's house @ Jln Ipoh to join in the prayers. Ever since she opted for the 'vegetarian' option, it's least fuss and less fun. :( It used to be a wide array of offerings on the table - pork, chicken, fish, prawns and crabs are a must! Today, it's all just fruits, cakes, sweets, rice, noodles and dried vegetarian products. Mom recalled her childhood days, where Bai Tian Gong was a big hoo-hah event, as they prayed and then patiently wait for it to be over, so they could bring all the food into the kitchen and cook up a big feast! Hrmm... Seafood Mee Sua at 2am! anyone?

I snapped a few pics at Grandma's, and a few pics are from upstairs - that's great granduncle's family. They are still with the 'meat option', so the pictures look more interesting. Lol