anjalispeaks*

far-nee sign*

2009-07-17T08:10:00.004+08:00

This funny sign was taken in Indiana, USA sometime in February this year.

I love funny pastors, don't you?

what a character*

2009-06-26T23:09:00.006+08:00

zee avi, a surefire voice to be reckoned with*

2009-06-20T14:00:00.013+08:00

As most of you know, I only promote songs, or musicians who I really, really believed in. A good example would be my son, to whom I had somewhat predicted in 2003 how successful he would be. In more ways than one, that prediction sorta came true. *ahem*

Well, here is one more of such phenomenon from our very own Malaysia, who comes in a small package by the name of Zee Avi. There is something about her voice that attracted me - she sounded so 60's but yet so fresh. Zee may only be 22 years old, but she has already garnered quite a bit of success already, especially by getting signed up by Brushfire Records owned by Jack Johnson. And this week, she is opening for Pete Yorn in USA!

So go check her music out here and go youtube here music video as well. You'll understand soon enough why I believe she will be BIG.

lucky shot*

2009-06-14T13:12:00.004+08:00

As most of you know, I enjoy travelling a lot. Sometimes with friends, but mostly on my own. One of the favourite things I enjoy most about it is that I am able to practise my photography skills with interesting subjects and landscapes. And those who have travelled with me know that I seldom take photographs of myself amidst every stop. Camwhoring is not me, I suppose. Heh.

This is one of my favourite shots taken recently on my way up to a Candi Ceto in Solo, Indonesia. I have asked my driver to stop coz I wanted to take shots of the shown arch, when these three kids rode by on their bicycles. One lucky shot indeed.

new look, hopefully = new discipline*

2009-06-13T10:35:00.004+08:00

I had wanted to change the look and feel of the blog for a long time now. So finally, I decided to do something about it. Also the fact that I finally have broadband at home helps as well. Tremendously.

Some have mentioned to me that I was being somewhat schizo with my decision to stop blogging only to reverse it soon after. Please allow me to explain - the decision to stop blogging was due to many accumulating factors, some include many blogger friends have also stopped blogging, facebook seems easier and this blog is no longer private as the news somehow spread to several unwelcomed mute readers (who surprisingly seemed to enjoy my writing but talk about it to others intead of me.) But what peeved me most was the fact that in my job, I have to market my client's products via online, thus I have to work with some of the top bloggers in the country whom I personally think write crap of craps when they don't camwhore themselves to death. These are the same people who are generating high side income and rising popularity. That was when I decided I had enough.

Thereafter, it dawned upon me that by stopping, I am at the losing end. Six years of effort thrown away. And facebook is not the platform to share intimate thoughts, as not all friends are friends, if you know what I mean. So screw the camwhores, I am back for good...so hereby, I proudly present to you the new face of anjalispeaks* and I hope to blog much more often now.

So watch this space, y'all.

what do i call him now?*

2009-05-14T13:28:00.008+08:00

I took Smokes for his yearly vaccination jab last Monday. While I was there, the vet asked me how old he is. "6 years old," I told him. And then he told me that in cat years, he would be in his 30s.

Wa liau eh. The revelation hit me - my baby is now the same age as I am. So the million dollar question is - Can I still call him my "baby"? Also is it right for the vet to refer to me as his "mommy"?

And if he is my age, maybe we can go on dates now...Can't be a case of incest now, can it? Heh.

i miss blogging*

2009-04-09T20:39:00.004+08:00

Can I come back? :-(

the end*

2009-02-21T05:50:00.003+08:00

After 6 years, I guess the time is finally here. It is now.
Thanks for all the visits and comments.

missing my baby*

2008-12-29T16:55:00.008+08:00

It has only been 10 days since I left and I am really missing my baby. Even though I get his updates here and then from my catsitter, Ally, it is just not the same. I wish he is here with me.

This is a picture I took of him sleeping next to me on the living room sofa. As usual, my hand is his bolster of sorts, and my palm his pillow.

10 days before I left, I had finally got him neutered and that was quite painful, for him and for me. But it had to be done. Soon, baby, I shall return soon. In the meantime, the Lord shall be with you.

XXOO.

blessed christmas & 2009, y'all*

2008-12-24T15:21:00.007+08:00

Heya, we finally put up our Christmas tree. Took a mere 5 minutes! In case you're wondering, that's the Charlie Brown Christmas tree. Cool, isn't it?

Here's wishing you all a wonderful, blessed Christmas and a successful 2009! XX

guess where me is going?*

2008-12-05T14:06:00.006+08:00

I am going on my biggest trip yet. Leaving on the 21st and will be away for 2 months. Am gonna be with the love of my life. Guess where I am heading to?

heya, i've been good. how about you?*

2008-10-02T16:32:00.016+08:00

Hey. It has been a while, yet it didn't seem that long. A lot of things have happened in the past 6 months and I have changed as a person. Here are some updates to share:

I celebrated another birthday last week. Usually, I would spend the night before and actual birthday pondering over the past year and what I want to do in the next. This year, I slept like a baby at 10.00pm on the eve. For the first time, my future seemed so secure that I can confidently say that I am truly happy. No more pondering required.
I quit my job. I will be serving my notice until mid December, which is great timing as I surely do not want to carry this ugly baggage to next year. It is so hard to work in an political environment filled with insecure peers, who are out to stab each other, at whatever costs. While I had been naive to believe that if I could just go to work and not get involved, it proved to be hard when I hold a senior position. Somehow, one way or another, I got roped in. I hate that. I really, really hate that. When I realised my 2 bosses had violated my trust, I need not think twice of quitting. At the end of the day, it's just a job - it does not define who I am as a person.
After the resignation, I am finally able to lead a decent lifestyle. I work from 9.30am to 6.00pm and am now able to catch up with friends and some episodes of Oprah. That's priceless.
God has been very good to me, all the time. For that alone, I feel blessed.
Last and most importantly, I have finally found my other half, someone who complements me as a person and me him. It tooked a long time, but it is definitely worth the wait. No word can describe how much I look forward to spend a simple and fulfilling life with him soon.

In a nutshell, I have decided to declutter my life by letting go of some not so important stuff, to welcome the important new ones. It really feels great. I leave you this word of wisdom borrowed from Jemima.

i will be back...*

2008-09-19T13:11:00.000+08:00

...very soon. I promise. Give and take 2 weeks.
Got miss me or not?

a proud mother boasts...*

2008-05-31T16:25:00.006+08:00

Well, what can I say, my Genius son has done it again! He birthed the idea of recording a song in multi-artists format, whereby it involves artists of various genre, various communities as a united contribution to national unity. The song is called "Here In My Home" and below is the video.

o For more info on the project or to download the mp3 or to download the video, click here.
o Also, if are a Maxis or Hotlink user, you can download and set your caller ringtone to ‘Here In My Home’ by sms, just type the following codes on your mobile phone, then press ’send’:

*131*95910# - for ringtone 1
*131*96158# - for ringtone 2
*131*96159# - for ringtone 3
*131*96160# - for ringtone 4

Now, go spread the word too!

Smug,
A proud mum

what a woman should know*

2008-05-11T09:50:00.004+08:00

This 1997 Glamour article has become a popular web chain letter, usually titled “Maya Angelou’s Best Poem Ever.” To set the record straight, it was written by Pamela Redmond Satran. Off and on, I still refer to this list because I think it is very wise. I hope you will be as inspired as I was with this piece of gem. Enjoy! :-)

A woman should have...

1. One old boyfriend you can imagine going back to and one who reminds you of how far you’ve come. (Not yet, but I am sure in the future I will...)
2. A decent piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in your family. (I own all my furnitures, but I keep some small pieces from my childhood.)
3. Something perfect to wear if the employer or man of your dreams wants to see you in an hour. (I am fine in this subject...I know when to dress up and when to dress down. The trick is try to be in your best shape at all times.)
4. A purse, a suitcase and an umbrella you’re not ashamed to be seen carrying. (Not necessary...am not a Gucci girl.)
5. A youth you’re content to move beyond. (Oh definitely.)
6. A past juicy enough that you’re looking forward to retelling it in your old age. (Oh definitely this one too!)
7. The realization that you are actually going to have an old age—and some money set aside to help fund it. (Yeah, for sure. I am not being cheap for no reason.)
8. An e-mail address, a voice mailbox and a bank account—all of which nobody has access to but you. (For sure. I have 4 email addresses!)
9. A résumé that is not even the slightest bit padded. (Nope. I don't pad anything. Not even my bra. Don't need to.)
10. One friend who always makes you laugh and one who lets you cry. (Yeah, I have 2 who can do both!)
11. A set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill and a black lace bra. (Don't need the first two. You just need a good helper contact who is available on-call, anytime!)
12. Something ridiculously expensive that you bought for yourself, just because you deserve it. (Yeah, just got that one after mulling over for a long time! But my "expensive" is still cheap in comparison to other woman's spending.)
13. The belief that you deserve it. (Oh yeah. I am a L'Oreal girl. I'm worth it.)
14. A skin-care regimen, an exercise routine and a plan for dealing with those few other facets of life that don’t get better after 30. (Still finding that...)
15. A solid start on a satisfying career, a satisfying relationship and all those other facets of life that do get better. (Satisfying career - check!. Satisfying relationship - none. Other things - gets better all the time!)

A woman should know:
1. How to fall in love without losing yourself. (Yeah, just learnt that one...)
2. How you feel about having kids. (Knew that I don't want any since I was 8. I am too selfish to be a mother. Mothering a cat is the best I can do, ever.)
3. How to quit a job, break up with a man and confront a friend without ruining the friendship. (Yeah, I am beginning to be a master in all three.)
4. When to try harder and when to walk away. (Yeah, just mastered that one too.)
5. How to kiss in a way that communicates perfectly what you would and wouldn’t like to happen next. (Work in progress.)
6. The names of: the secretary of state, your great-grandmother and the best tailor in town. (Useless information, this one.)
7. How to live alone, even if you don’t like to. (Mastered this one long, long time ago.)
8. How to take control of your own birthday. (I travel on my birthday.)
9;. That you can’t change the length of your calves, the width of your hips or the nature of your parents. (Yeah, I stopped whining about that a loooooong long time ago. Last whine was 10 minutes ago.)
10. That your childhood may not have been perfect, but it’s over. (Yeah, I am all grown up now. And wise. And lost all my past baggage.)
11. What you would and wouldn’t do for money or love. (Love and money are two separate elements. Have money first, then find love.)
12. That nobody gets away with smoking, drinking, doing drugs or not flossing for very long. (That's why I am happy to be an advertising misfit - I don't smoke, drink or do drugs. But I floss. One out of 4 can't be bad. I never claim to be an angel.)
13. Who you can trust, who you can’t and why you shouldn’t take it personally. (Yeah, I learnt that when I first started working. One can't be too sure to differentiate a friend from foe. Both have two legs. )
14. Not to apologize for something that isn’t your fault. (I don't do that anymore. It's too degrading and you will lose the respect of others.)

for a coupla hours, i was 15 again*

2008-03-23T13:29:00.009+08:00

[All pixs courtesy of Tim . You can view more pixs here]

All I can say is this is the closest I can get to fulfil my lifelong dream to be at Top Of The Pops show. I mean, I was a true blue TOTP fanatic and being in this concert with Paul Young, Howie Jones, Bananarama, Johnny Hates Jazz and Limahl was just awesome beyond words. Great concert, great company, what else can I ask for? Yeah, maybe a dinner date with Paul Young would be great. And then some, afterwards. Heh. I am surprised I still drool at the sight of Paul's long legs and firm thighs. This man, though no longer young, except for his surname, is still hot.

There was a 10 min short break after Paul Young. It was then we got upgraded from having free tickets at the left side of the stage to the RM700 seating areas! Oooh, how heavenly! It is great to have friends with connections. Smirk.

Right after, Howard Jones came on. His vocal was as great as I remembered him. When he sang "New Song", he just made my ~~day~~ night. Then Bananarama made it perfect with their energetic rendition of "Love In The First Degree". Tim's memorable line of them -"Waa...these old birds can still move la. Terror woh." Ha.

This is definitely one of the highlights of my life. Without a doubt.

me is going. don't jealous yo*

2008-03-10T21:01:00.002+08:00

hermitsville makeover*

2008-02-20T22:45:00.008+08:00

When I returned home from my Jakarta trip, I felt that I soooo needed a makeover for my home. There were so many things that just do not fit anymore.

1. The main curtains have to go, for something that can create a more warmer mood and also fit better to my ruby red wall. Key word is "ambience".

2. Some dying plants just needed to be thrown away. To me, dying plants = bad vibes for the house = bad for me. Not good if I want 2008 to be a prosperous year for me.

3. I also need one more giant plant for the living room area - I had in mind a 10-feet tall plant with huge leaves. When I say huge leaves I mean each leaf has to be bigger than the size of my face. And as you know, I have a big head, to fit my big mouth. Ha.

4. The dining are need to be enhanced in terms of lighting. I hate eating under flourescent light - they just make the food look unappetising. Bland. Bleh.

5. The kitchen needs more plants too. At least 2.

6. Last and most importantly, I need to get a new mattress, to replace my current 8-year old and also a proper bed.

So the week before Chinese New Year, I got myself extremely busy and did my own home makeover. I must stressed how very pleased I am with the result. I think I have a good future in interior decorating. Most of my deco items are not expensive, and I love to mix and match purchases from different home deco outlets, so that they reflect my personality. As it should, since I spend most of my time at home.

Without much ado, I present to you the "new" Hermitsville.
(You can compare how it used to like before here)

gordon gordon, you're the man*

2008-02-08T12:33:00.000+08:00

Since December, one of my favourite shows on AFC is "The F Word" which features the celebrity chef, Gordon Ramsay. There's something about him that makes my eyeballs hooked to the TV screen - his sarcasm, the deep wrinkled face and the "toot" sounds that's supposed to erase his swearing in the kitchen. Like duhh, the show is after all called "The F Word", like I don't know what that "toot" sounds are meant for. Fantastic, perhaps? Or Fabulous? Fun? Fickle? Funny? Fantabulous? Oh stop already.

There was one episode which showed him having to give up his 2 lady pigs to the slaughter house. He was all restless and felt uneasy to the task ahead - that only makes me wanna hug the TV screen, pretending it is him, all square in shape. Heh.

If you have not watched the show, go catch it. I am sure you are gonna fall in love with this foul mouth who cooks. And when you do, remember I saw him first. So hands off. Heh.

wow. what a room*

2008-02-03T15:16:00.000+08:00

Hey you. It's been awhile, ya? Missed me? Heh. Don't answer.

Anyway, I was in Jakarta last week for work and stayed in the most gorgeous hotel room, ever. Ever ever. I mean, I had logged onto the hotel website the night before. Thus I knew it was a boutique hotel and that each room is uniquely designed. But wa liau eh, when I opened the room door and saw what unfolded before my eyes, I had to literally picked my jaw from the floor.

The room was a beauty. It is huge in size, nearly as big as my apartment, only much nicer. A whole lot nicer. A world of difference nicer. Super posh. Everything about it spells L-U-X-U-R-Y.

The bathroom was as big as my room - it has a walk-in closet area, the bath floor area is made of wood panelling...like those u find in Bali. Really nice. And the shower products are all from L'Occitane. Shamelessly I admit, I sapu everything into my bag. Heh. Ya ya, like you wouldn't do the same. Puh lease la.

That night as I lie myself down to bed, I said a word of gratitude for this new job of mine and absorbed myself fully into the luxury around me. And part of the lyrics from "Sit Down" by James echoed in my head..."If I hadn't seen such riches, I could live with being poor."

I can't wait to go back to Jakarta again. Another room this time.

shy also*

2007-11-13T21:40:00.000+08:00

I was in Singapore last Thursday. In the evening, I went to my cousin brother's house and was asked by my nephew to play this 'stacked word game'. Since I have had some practice playing Scrabulous on Facebook, I took the challenge. I mean, how difficult can it be to play with a 4-year old...

Not until I placed the letters F-I-C on the board.

He asked me what FIC was.

"It's a fruit la," I replied confidently.

"Isn't that spelled F-I-G???"

today, we visit croatia*

2007-11-06T09:41:00.000+08:00

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear 'Croatia'? Is it the Serbian war back in the 90's? Bosnia-Herzegovina? Or plain blank? For me, it's just the war. That's about it. You hardly hear about the country in the news nowadays.

Well, the name cropped up again 2 days ago when the handsome and talented Monsieur Cedric asked if I'd like to see some of the pictures he has taken of his trip. Of course my answer was an overexcited YEEeeSssS! With minimal pleading, he has given permission for me to post some shots on the blog.

So boys and girls, I present to you...Lastovo and Dubrovnik from Croatia.

LASTOVO is a municipality in the Dubrovnik-Neretva county in Croatia. The municipality consists of 46 islands with a total population of 835 people, of which 93% are ethnic Croats, and a land area of approximately 56 km². The biggest island in the municipality is also named Lastovo, as is the largest town. The majority of the population lives on the 46 km² island of Lastovo. Read more here.

DUBROVNIK is an historic city on the Adriatic Sea coast in the extreme south of Croatia, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its population was 43,770 in 2001 down from 49,728 in 1991. In 2001 the absolute majority of its citizens declared themselves as Croats with 88.39% (2001 census). Since 1979, the historic centre of Dubrovnik has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. Read more here.

Gorgeous, isn't it? I always believe in sharing travel pictures with friends, coz it is the next best thing to visiting the place yourself. And sharing is always a good thing anyway.

If you have enjoyed the pictures, then be polite and say, "Terima Kasih, Cedric!". Yeah, this French fry speaks Malay too. Ha. Talented or what?

[Excerpts taken from www.wikipedia.com]

heaven knows i'm miserable now*

2007-10-30T22:34:00.000+08:00

Sometime in June last year, I wrote the para below in one of my posts:

One of my favourite bands during my teens was The Smiths, with frontman Morrissey. I still remember the first time I saw him on Top Of The Pops – he had a short tree branch hanging out from his right jeans pocket, and he was swinging around in lame circles singing ‘The Boy With The Thorn In His Side’. That particular geek-twirl totally sworn me over. Even as I write this, I can still remember that bop vividly. As though it was engraved on my memory bank.

Well, here is the video of the said song where you can see Morrissey doing that lame dance, minus the tree branch.

But anyway, it is THIS song that connects to me so well when I get disappointed with human beings in general. Tonight, this song becomes me. Somehow.

halong bay - you jump, i save you*

2007-10-27T08:24:00.000+08:00

Hey you. This is part 2 of the Hanoi travelogue.

Prior to the trip, I had asked a few friends who have been to Hanoi and Halong Bay was always mentioned as a "must-see". And I have also seen it on the Discovery Travel & Living shows. So while I was doing the Walking Tour at Old Quarters, I booked a 2D1N tour, to occupy my 2nd and 3rd (and last) day in Hanoi. The cost - USD131 (including the Single Supplementary of USD30). Honestly the trip was worth every cent as we were served 4 main meals [lunch & dinner of first day and breakfast & lunch on the second.] Every meal has soup, crab, prawns, squids, fish, 2 dishes of vegetables and dessert.

There are only 5 cabins in the junk; which means it can only occupy maximum of 10 visitors. Which was great, for a hermit like me. My fellow junk boarders were majority Australians, with the exception of another Korean girl and me. I made friends quite easily with all of them, except for the Korean girl and her boyfriend, Matt. They instantly irked me with their PDA [Public Display of Affection] overload, which continued throughout the 3.5 hour bus ride to Halong City.

This is my hurried landscape shot of Halong Bay, which will give you a good impression of the overall view which is really beautiful. My immediate thought was that it looked like "12 Apostles X1000". Honestly, I think any picture taken doesn't do the place justice.

You can see lots of other junks around you at the bay.

In the evening, we stopped by one of the islands and I climbed the mountain, I think there were about 300 steps in total. This shot was taken from the mountain top. Halong Bay at dusk. Nice eh?

That night, while I was talking the night away with Bianca, our junk softly collided with another stationary one. But there was no damage and certainly no casualties. In my silly excitement, I told her this is a bit like Titanic. Aiyo, choi! Heh. Just hours earlier, I told her and Ffion that I wanted to replicate the "I'm the king of the world" scene, but my Leonardo was missing in action.

The next morning, we were greeted by this lady on a sampan. She sells foodstuff like junk food, mineral water, wine and cigarettes at competitive prices.

Thereafter, we took a smaller boat to visit one of the lagoons. Again, the view was simply fantastic. For those who took the 3-day trip, they get to do kayaking as well. After that, it was basically free and easy. Most of my travel mates decided to do some swimming, and jumping down from the upper deck for extra thrills and fun.

That was when the PDA couple made all of us rolled our eyes. Matt, the guy, had already jumped into the water but the Korean girl, standing at the corner of the upper deck, was being hesitant. And the conversation went like this...

Matt: Come on baby, jump down! It's fun.
K-Girl: I'm scared...
Matt: Awww...no need to worry, it is safe.
K-Girl: I'm scared...
Matt: Come on baby. You jump, I save you!

Well, she jumped. Finally. If she hadn't, I would have gladly pushed her down. Hehe.

"You jump, I save you!" - that's the revised (not necessarily improved) Titanic script for you, boys and girls. Watch out for it! Coming soon at the cinemas near you.

The best irony to this was that on my way to the airport that night, my taxi driver sang a broken duet with Celine Dion. The song "My Heart Will Go On".

desiderata*

2007-10-23T06:48:00.000+08:00

Yesterday was my mum's 6th death anniversary. Somehow, I am always hit by a sudden pang of despair and loneliness on this said day. It could just be psychological, with a bit of emo involved...I don't know. So for the past few days, my heart and head are in a state of chaos. Then a friend from afar sent me Max Ehrmann's Desiderata. Enjoy! I hope it gives you the same sense of hope as it did me.

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

P/S Thanks, Ash! :-)

hanoi on my mind*

2007-10-18T08:42:00.000+08:00

This has to be my favourite shot taken from the recent trip. This uncle is a street artist, seating on his low wooden stool painting away as the world passes him by. I watched him from afar for a bit, before deciding to inch closer to admire his work. He turned and gave the most sincere smile I have seen in a long, long time. It warmed my heart.

After a short chat, I asked if I could take a shot of him. He replied, "Ok. But wait!" and quickly stood up to wear the traditional hat and also the traditional black shirt, sat down and gave this pose. Awesome.

hanoi - in search of the pain-in-the-arse ice cream and other stories in between*

2007-10-16T20:20:00.000+08:00

Some of you may be aware of it, and maybe some don't - I am of the weird breed that do not like to work on my birthday, so that I can be my hermit self, take time to reflect on my life, past, present and future, which usually takes about 5 minutes. This year it took longer - 8 full minutes! Don't play play. Ha.

Anyway, I decided that I wanted to do something different this year. I wanted to be in a different country, which would include having the immigration stamp bearing the date on my passport. And the chosen place was Hanoi. This plan nearly went awry as I missed my 6.30am flight, coz I overslept and woke up at 7.05 am instead. But after slapping myself silly, I drove to KL Sentral and bought another ticket for the evening flight. Luckily for me, Air Asia flies twice to Hanoi everyday! Phew!

I reached Hanoi at 7.25pm local time (8.25pm Malaysian time) and by the time I won a high octave argument with the taxi driver and finally checked in the right hotel, it was already 9.20pm. The driver tried to pull a scam on me by taking me to a different hotel. Little did he know that I only have 2 extreme levels in my voice - (i) super whispering low and (ii) super screaming high. In my offense for defense, I chose the latter mode and insisted that he sent me to the right hotel or I will not pay him a single cent! He shrivelled and obediently obliged.

I woke up the next day to the spiritually calming sound of the church bells of St. Joseph Cathedral in the heart of Old Quarters, Hanoi. That was my first stop before breakfast. It is located 2 lots away from my hotel. The church's neo-gothic stature was built similar (well almost) to that of Notre Dame de Paris. It was really awe-inspiring to see; the French influence on the olden architecture amid the new ones, which are narrow in width and stacked vertically. Both equally appealing.

After a quick breakfast of Pho [pronounce as "fur"], the infamous beef noodles, I decided to spend the day by doing the Old Quarter Walking Tour, guidance from The Lonely Planet - Vietnam. The starting point was Ngoc San Temple, situated in the middle of the Hoàn Kiem Lake.

The walking tour was very scenic. Each turn brought me to different specialised streets - at one turn you will encounter a whole street selling nothing but shoes, moving on to another street specialising in inticate handcarved gravestones, to jewelleries, to straw mats, to skillful blacksmiths pounding away on metal, to herb sellers, to tin box makers, to mirror shops to leather goods etc. Every turn was a wonderful and surprising treat to all the senses.

And I love the fact that the place is so safe and mostly peaceful. Besides the occasional invites by the Cyclo riders, no one haggled me to buy anything. I was left to walk in peace, in my own slow pace. I succumbed twice to the strong brew of the local coffee and sat with the locals on the low chairs, resting my tired feet while enjoying a bit of people watching and also the motorcycle traffic. There's load of motorbikes here, and bicycles too.

As I called on different bikers to get around the longer routes, my sick mind reminded me that I am just like a town "biker". Haha. Get the joke? "Biker" in place of "bicycle"? Oh, never mind.

At the end of the tour, I decided to take a cyclo ride to the other side of the lake, in search of the so-called celebrated Fanny Ice Cream. What was ironic was the fact that it took me 1.5 hours to look for it. The cyclo guy gave up after going round in 3 circles. So I continued the search and asked nearly 15 locals before realising that I was at the wrong street after all. The shop is at Pho Le Thai To [Pho = Road] while I have been walking in circles at Pho Ly Thai To instead. Honestly, it was a frustrating journey.

But at Pho Ly Thai To, I stopped at the park to watch the local men squat around to play chess. It's really amazing to see how dedicated they were to the game. At the other side of the park, there were also old men and ladies playing badminton together. Really nice.

Well, I finally found my Fanny Ice Cream Shop and decided to buy the one with the caramel. It costs me VND45,000 (approx USD2.80). Honestly, I thought it was kinda overated. I moved on to another ice cream shop, which apparently is a favourite among the locals, located 2 streets away, approx 10 minutes walk. A cone costs VDN4,000 (USD0.25) and I had two - rice and coconut flavours! The taste - heavenly beyond words!

After the desserts, I decided to have dinner - cha ca [pronounce as "cha ka" and not like the dance] According to the Lonely Planet book, is apparently one of Hanoi's food specialties, perhaps best thought of as sumptuous little fish burgers. I thought it was lovely. The fish fillets sautéed with the spring and bombay onions, eaten together with the local rice noodles sprinkled with fried peanuts and the chilli dips. Sedap sekali. The meal costs a whopping VND70,000 (USD4.70) but it was worth it.

After the meal, I walked around looking for some souvenirs and made friends with a local DVD seller. He convinced me to get the Woody Allen Movies Collection (all 44 movies in 1 DVD for only USD10.), Six Feet Under - Season 1- 5 (for USD10), Grey's Anatomy Season 1- 3 collection (for USD5) and 3 other movie DVD for USD1 each. The movie titles were 'Thank You For Smoking', 'After The Wedding' and 'Garden de Buffles". I came home to find that the Woody Allen collection and Smoking DVD were faulty and Grey's Anatomy so-called Season 1-3 only contained 2 episodes!!! I am keeping those DVD and will throw them in his face when I revisit Hanoi again. Soon. Cheh!

...to continue

mad about mads*

2007-10-14T21:03:00.001+08:00

I spent my afternoon today watching "After The Wedding" on DVD. I bought it in Hanoi for USD1, which I thought was a steal. It came highly recommended by the video shop guy, who revealed in a whisper, that he has 2 price tags for his DVDs - (i) Asian price and (ii) White price. The latter is priced double to the former.

Anyway, this movie was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film in the 2006 Academy Awards. It is also here that I found a new hearthrob in Danish actor, Mads Mikkelsen. Aiyo, holy mother of all masalas, this one is sizzling HOT! With minimal googling, I found out that he also played the villain, Le Chiffre in Casino Royale. Oooh, I gotta go watch that one now!

I have a slight weakness for villains - they are always so yummy looking! So much of character in their faces - the scars, the diamante, the tattoos and whatever nasty looking marks on their faces - such a turn on. Yum. Meanwhile, I'm gonna go get me some Danish pastry for lunch tomorrow.

my desktop*

2007-10-10T23:48:00.000+08:00

Sweet Consuela tagged me on this when I was in Hanoi. Sorry I took awhile to do this, babe. The picture shown was shot by a friend, who is a French photographer. He lives his life like a dream - kayaking to the ends of the earth and then take beautiful breathtaking pictures.

I won't tag anyone in particular. But if you feel you are up for it, go ahead and do this tag. Cheers.

hanoi ahoy*

2007-09-26T16:35:00.000+08:00

I am off to Hanoi at sunrise tomorrow. 4 days trip. It's something I decided to do a week ago - felt strongly that I deserved a break. Ciao. Take care of you.

jane's cake*

2007-09-16T17:16:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, I attended Jane's wedding. I must say that the whole thing was done in superb style, which was very personal whereby it was attended by people that she and her hubby, Kenny chose to have on their special day, but best of all, you can see that a lot of details have been thought through and were evidence to Jane's personal touches - from the self-made wedding invitation cards, to the special J&K logo she created, to the candid wedding photos taken by a photographer friend and best of all, the two-tiered handmade wedding cake.

Above is the picture of the ornament on the cake. Cool, isn't it?

love letters*

2007-09-12T04:20:00.000+08:00

Okay, it is now 4.11am in the morning and I can't sleep. Even after an hour of chatting with Apoo, my lids are as light as feathers. So I decided to check my spam mails, while waiting for him to type his replies at the speed of 1 word per minute. Heh.

Then I found these 3 so-called love letters from one fella by the name of James, amid hundreds of other offers to increase my penis size. I seriously didn't know I have one to start with, what more of its miniscule size. Hmm.

Speaking of which, this reminds me of the lyrics for the song 'Vicki Waiting' by Prince...

I tell her the joke about the woman who asked her lover - "Why is your organ so small?" He replied, "I didn't know I was playin' in a cathedral." Vicki didn't laugh at all.

Heh. Did I tell you that man is just BRILLIANT, besides being the sexiest, sexiest, SEXIEST man alive! Yum. Anyway, I digressed.

Letter 1:

Good day, my dear friend. We've got only one life to live and I want to live it as good as I can. I've found you and now I can't imagine how I lived without you for my entirelife?! I want to get used to you, I want to learn you, I want to accept you as you are. I try to imagine you and in my own imagination I am already getting used to you: I am used to your eyes, soft and wise, to your hands, to your gentle touch: I haven't seen you in real life, but inside, in my soul, I already feel how warm and happy your heart can be just from love. I realize that there can be another sitting by your side, touching your hair, watching you, hugging you: However I know that, you can't imagine my confidence, but I know that we can match. I don't think that our silence will help us, so I am here, at http://healthelovesite.com/wearelove, and I hope that you will touch my heart with your letter soon, my dear. Waiting for your reply.

Lenochka

Letter 2:

Hello, gentleman. I'm sure you are interested in my preferences in life. I love the sun and the sea and all water sports, especially free diving, swimming and waterskiing and I try this kind of sport just once a year when I go on seaside.I enjoy going out with friends, to a cafe or to a club to listen to good music. You can see that I enjoy enjoying life, may be you want to enjoy it with me?You know sometimes I dream about romantic evening with my beloved at home having a glass of good wine by the fireplace. I like the movies, especially the films that show real life stories. I like to read good books of any subject. I know that you think it would be great to share everything of this with me.I know that you also want to contact me just like I did, so I am waiting impatiently at http://joindestinies.net/kissme to read your emotions: Looking forward to get a letter from you.

Katyusha

Letter 3:
I saved the best for last...

Womens always laughed at me and even guys did in the public toilets! Well, now I giggled at them, because I took MegaDik. For 5-6 months and now my dick is much bigger than "average" size.

Honestly, what use is there to have an above average dick and still end up giggling. I'd say laugh your gut out loud! Or to quote Russell Peters - BE A MAN!

I need some sleep now...

conscience. and ego.*

2007-09-10T08:53:00.000+08:00

Sometimes when I read about our leaders (of all three main parties), I can't help but to paraphrase this line from Mike Gayle's new book, Wish You Were Here.

Conscience?
They have none.
I think they had it surgically removed to make space for their egos.

Sigh.

petition. sign up please*

2007-09-06T22:41:00.000+08:00

The Selayang Municipal Council is offering RM15,000, RM13,000 and RM11,000 cash prizes respectively for anyone who can catch 150 strays or more within the period of six months. Those monies mentioned are for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes. 50 years of independence and what do we have? - this prehistoric barbaric idea from the morons. And people ask why I can't wait to leave this God-forsaken country!

Please kindly take the trouble to click here
to sign the petition to stop this nonsense.

In fact, let's raise fund to reverse the idea and catch idiotic morons who call themselves leaders of any kind. Click here for the poster wonderfully done by Mob1900.

To read more, click here.

Sheeeesh!

buah tampoi, anyone?*

2007-08-25T17:24:00.000+08:00

Last Wednesday, I had a package sent to my office. It was from my second sister.

"Weird", I thought. I had not asked her to send me anything.

So I ripped the package open and was met with a sweet surprise - my favourite fruit, buah tampoi. It's a jungle fruit which is grown in Kedah and some parts of Perak and also Borneo.

The fruit looks like mangosteen, but it's a bit more chewy and sourish in taste. But I love it to bits! Have you tried it before?

it's a girl!*

2007-08-20T19:24:00.000+08:00

Am proud to announce the arrival of Sydney's newest babe, born on August 12th - Arianna Michaela Petch. Congratulations to the proud parents - Yvy and Ted. Bollywood, get ready!

Also, you know what I am thinking...? Last June saw the arrival of Sydney's newest hunk. Now, there's a new babe in the city. Put a hunk and a babe together and you get - (In Apoo's own vicious words) Arranged Marriage! Ha. Am I brilliant or am I brilliant?

Check this out - matching towels!

sin-jia-por adventures*

2007-08-20T14:48:00.000+08:00

I was in Singapore over the weekend. Even though I wasn't feeling too good the past week - lack of sleep and stressed over involuntary work politics, I decided to go ahead and took the evening bus on Friday after work anyway. Nothing was gonna stop me from seeing and hearing Dr. Joyce Meyer preach. No siree.

I had written a long version of this trip, but decided to give the summarised bullet points instead...

Saturday, 18 August 2007

o I had lunch with my cousin sis-in-law and her 2 children; i.e. my niece and nephew. Being with her on that 3 hours reminded me why I do not want to have any children. These little beings can bring out the worst in anyone. I mean, I have always known M to be the most mild-mannered sweet woman that my cousin married, but on that day, I saw her transformed into a screaming monster who threatened my niece and nephew that she will not move the car despite the endless honking from the cars at the back of hers, until they decide to behave themselves. As I said, a good reminder it was to me.

o I ate my favourite rojak buah at Food Republic, Wisma Atria. Though it turned out to be an unfortunate thing...details coming soon.

o I went crazy at Charles & Keith sale and bought a pair of wedges.

o I went even crazier at the G2000 sale and bought 2 pairs of pants for S$19 each!

o I ate my favourite roadside sliced sweetcorn ice-cream on coloured bread at Orchard, something I never missed to have when I am in Singapore.

o I queued for 1 hour amid sardine-packed crowd and serious case of BO. Halfway through, I decided to move away from the crowd only in the nick of time time to throw up near the Esplanade. Ha. Twice some more! What an embarrassment. Ya, I had food poisoning from the rojak! Sigh.

o I managed to watch the National Day Celebration Fireworks display though.

Sunday, 19 August 2007

o I headed off to City Harvest Church to witness Dr. Joyce Meyer. She was awesome. The key message was to love oneself, in order to be able to extend that love to others. And she made everyone pledge to do something nice to someone every day. It's a little bit like the message in Pay It Forward. Also a little bit from Jemima's latest post. We have to be happy in order to be able to spread some happiness. And most importantly be able to love ourselves in order to spread some love to others. Amen.

I end with these words of wisdom:

HAPPINESS

is not about what happens to you,
but how you choose to respond to what happens.
That's why it's called happiness and not happenness;
though it could be called hopeness.
You must always leave room for hope
that all has happened for good cause.

attacks of the smug married*

2007-08-11T16:30:00.000+08:00

Two months ago, I met up with H, my neighbour who resides at the opposite unit to my condo. H is a relatively shy person, who speaks only when you throw him a question or two. Without which, he is just as happy to wish you a ‘Hello” or ‘Goodbye” should we meet at the corridor or in the lift and just leave him be. That is absolutely fine with me. But on that day, H was as chirpy as a nightingale on dope. He was basically wearing a grin which stretched from ear to ear. A Cheshire grin, as some would call it.

“By next month, you will have a new neighbour. Someone is moving in to my house,” H chirped.

“Oh really? Are you renting out a room?” I asked.

“Err…no. I am getting married!”

“Haa… Alright. How silly of me. CONGRATULATIONS! Am so happy for you!” was my embarrassing reply.

“Haha. Thank you. Thank you.”

By which this time, I reached the ground floor and quickly said “Goodbye” and made my speedy exit.

EPISODE 1:

It was until 2 months later, when I was waiting for my lift one fine morning. I heard the grille being opened and decided to leave the lift open, waiting for H, who came in with a lovely and equally chirpy female ~~bird~~ lass. H introduced the girl to me as his wife, whom I have forgotten her name. So we will call her “C”, short for Chirpy.

“Hello, nice to meet you. Congratulations on your wedding! When was it?” was my introductory note.

“Oh! We got married 2 weeeeeks ago and we just came back from our honeymooooon in Phuket! And seeeeeeee, my wedding ring!!!!” she said as she placed her puny stone six inches away from my nostrils. I wasn't sure if she meant for me to smell it.

“Aaarh. Nice. Heh.” (Blardy show-off.)

Thank goodness I reached my lower ground floor, and again I said my goodbyes and made my exit.

“Byeeeeeee! Nice to meet you and see you again!” she shrieked from the lift.

“Haa….yeah, see you again!” (Not!)

EPISODE 2:

The week after, I met the 2 lovebirds again in the lift. I was in my baby-T, shorts and sport shoes, heading off to Bukit Jalil Park for my weekend morning run. They were also in their sports attire.

“Hi there! Where are you off to?” Ms. C squealed.

“Off to Bukit Jalil for my run.”

“Waaaaa. So healtheeeee. We are off to Taman Jaya for jogging tooooo!”

“Oh. Isn’t that a bit far?”

“It iiiiiis. But we are going to meet up with some friends! It’s so much more fuuuuun to do things together with friends!”

At this point in time, I wasn't sure if I had been insulted without even feeling the punch. It's called an Invicible Penampak. So I gritted my teeth, forced a smile and said, “Yes, I supposed so…”

“Neveeeer miiiiiind. Maybeeeeee, next time we can join youuuuu in your run!”

Ouch!

“Sure, that’s a cool idea!” (NOT!)

I left the lift at lower ground floor accompanied by her now irritating chirp, “Byeeee! Enjoy your ruuuuuun!”

EPISODE 3:

Last Friday, I reached home at about 9.30pm and realized H’s main door was open and saw three overnight suitcases lined outside. When I reached for my keys to open my own grille, Ms. C and H came out and said hi.

“Hi. Where are you two off to?” I asked.

“Oh. We are leeeeaviiiing for Penaaaang! You know, to spend some quality time with my iiiiin-laaaaaws!”

“Ah okay. Drive safely and have fun then.” I said and quickly entered the safety of my smug-free home. But I wasn’t quick enough to escape her “Okaaaaayyyy! Byeeeeeee! Haaaaave aaaaa goooooood weeeeekeeend!”

Yes, I am now encountering the dreaded "smug married" Bridget Jones episodes! Help me quick...before I do an Osama and shoot them!

attacks of banu's tags*

2007-08-10T18:50:00.000+08:00

Decided to spare some time to follow the command of Banu's tags.

1) BIRTHDAY TAG - 27 SEPTEMBER

The rules for this tag are simple:
(i) Go to Wikipedia and type in your birthday (month and day)
(ii) Write down 3 events, 2 births, 1 holiday, and tag 5 friends.

3 Events:
o 1821 - Mexico gained independence from Spain.
o 1937 - Last Balinese tiger killed.
o 1998 - Google was established.

2 Births:
o 1942 - Alvin Stardust, English singer
(The one with the hit song "I Feel Like Buddy Holly". I like.)
o 1961 - Andy Lau, HK actor and singer
(This one gets yummier with age. Like wine.)

1 Holiday:
o World Tourism Day
(Could this be the reason why I love to travel so much?)

5 Tags:
Jens, Bawang Merah, Lex, Nawooz and Apoo, my hero.

2) WHAT WOULD I DO WITH RM1 MILLION?

Honestly, I would just do these 4 things:

($1) Give 20% as tithes.

($2) Distribute 20% among my siblings,
close relatives and some friends who needs the dough.

($3) Go budget travelling around the world and
stop by Mumbai to take Apoo out for endless pani puri!

($4) Take the balance and migrate to Australia.

So there! Phew! Finally! Heh.

fried cempedak*

2007-08-05T11:52:00.000+08:00

Today, as soon as I stepped out of the restaurant where I tapau-ed the famous PanMee in OUG, I chanced upon a roadside stall selling fried cempedak! I haven't had them since my mom's passing in 2001. So I bought some - 5 pieces for RM3.00. It's not cheap, but it's an okay price to pay for some simple, nostalgic cravings. They taste heavenly with Aik Cheong's piping hot Kopi-O. Yum!

come back, tim!*

2007-08-04T19:22:00.000+08:00

Last Wednesday was a sad day. It was the day local radio died. It was the day Mr. Tim Ho left the radio, in specific RedFM, for good. He has decided to be a paid beach bum. Good life I know, and I am sure he would be most happy with the new sunny and beachy lifestyle, but aiyo Tim, how selfish can you get? What about the rest of us? Haa.

Some of you might remember my sarcastic post to rebel against Tim & Shareena's dismissal from the morning show back in March last year, and he was placed in the evening show instead with Terry. So switched to evening shows I did. I was elated when Tim got back on the Morning Breakfast Show recently in May, with Will "British Accent" Quah. But obviously this happy feeling is shortlived, coz now he is no longer on the airwaves.

So I will miss that wussy laughter. I will miss that Ah Pek voice. I will miss that sniff he makes whenever he needs to make a statement. I will miss that occasional song dedications for me. I will miss those funny jokes; i.e. the latest one being the 'Hisap' joke by a caller who wanted to be known as Mr. A. That's honestly a classic la..

In case you are wondering what this 'Hisap' joke is about, I will try to give the summary of it. The topic for the 'The Morning Chat' session that day was 'Maids from hell'. So this Mr A called to tell the story of how his father-in-law saw the Indon maid smoking at the nearby bus stop near his house. The F-I-L confronted the maid in the evening, with a simply but angry, "You ada hisap?" [Translations: Do you smoke?] To which the maid replied, '50 Ringgit!'

Aiyo Tim, without you ah, panic is back. Permanently. Come back already la.

Sob. [Anjali trying to shed some croc tears. Can u tell? Ha.]

vegging out with the veggies*

2007-07-22T09:59:00.000+08:00

Recently I decided to finally use the relatively expensive juicer which I bought last year. It has come to that time of the year when I am feeling kinda lazy to even chew on my food. And I am getting jelak (tired) of drinking my protein shake and even my hot mug of Milo. So I decided to get into drinking healthy fruit juices. Here are some yummy concoctions, which I've learnt from a friend. Do share with me if you have other recipes, k?

Carrot + Ginger + Apple
To boost and cleanse the system

Apple + Cucumber + Celery
To redusce cholesterol and improve digestion

Tomato + Carrot + Apple
To improve skin complexion and stop bad breath

Apple + Cucumber + Kiwi
To improve skin complexion

jailhouse rock*

2007-07-21T22:02:00.000+08:00

Many thanks to Consuela for nominating me as a "Rockin' Girl Blogger". This is very humbling considering (i) I've long gone past the "Girl" age group (ii) I don't do any rock - jailhouse, rock n roll, hard rock or even mat rock. Heh. So as I said, I am shocked speechless with this nomination. So thanks very much, my dear Hawaiian Rockin' Girl. (I'd also like to thank my mother, my stalking cat Smokey...)

And as the ruling states, I have to nominate 5 others to pass my ~~tiara~~ badge to...jeng jeng jeng *drumroll*...they are:
(i) Visithra (ii) Cupcake Queen (iii) Metria (iv) Banu (v) Lex

Girls, what you have to do is to copy the badge above (just the badge) and wear it on your site with pride and nominate 5 others.

it's a boy!*

2007-07-18T21:47:00.001+08:00

Am proud to announce the arrival of Sydney's newest hunk, born on June 27th - Ranil Dhillon. Congratulations to the proud parents - Jag and Serene. Bollywood, get ready!

favourite food*

2007-07-15T22:59:00.000+08:00

This is specially for Banu. I am so sorry it took me ages to do this tag...I beg and plead for forgiveness. Ampun Tuanku Banu, hamba minta beribu ampun agar hamba tidak disula. Hah.

The whole idea of the tag is to state my favourite food from my state or country. Honestly, I have no idea what my favourite food is. I am from Kedah, so the best one I know is the Pasembur from my hometown. I eat according to my mood. These days, I eat mostly Indian and Malay food on week days and nights. That's because (i) I am eating whatever that's available on walking distance, coz I like to have quick lunches. (ii) I am too lazy to think too much about what to eat. I am not fussy in that way. (iii) I don't like to walk too far with my bimbo 3-inches heels.

Then on weekends, I make sure I eat only Chinese - things like Chicken Rice (at Taman Melawati), Curry Laksa (at OUG) and Prawn Mee (Restoran Bintang, Puchong) and my tea time snacks of Pisang Goreng and the Yutiao, to dip with black Aik Cheong coffee aka Kopi-O.

But when I get tired of eating out and am really in the mood, I will cook for myself. Here are some shots:

(from left) (Click to enlarge pix)

o Chicken Curry, which I love to eat with white bread.

o Fried Wanton, this I made recently for a potluck. Own filling recipe of prawn, chicken and water chestnuts.

o Macaroni Soup, with porkballs and lots of vegetables.

I cook a lot more than these 3 recipes, just that I don't have the picture. Maybe in the near future. If I get in the right mood, that is...

i swear this is love*

2007-07-15T19:35:00.000+08:00

I swear, since seeing Your face,
the whole world is fraud and fantasy
The garden is bewildered
as to what is leaf or blossom.
The distracted birds can't distinguish the birdseed from the snare.

A house of love with no limits,
a presence more beautiful than venus or the moon,
a beauty whose image fills the mirror of the heart.

- Rumi -

a portrait drawn in hell*

2007-07-01T22:01:00.000+08:00

Sometimes when something bad happens, one just needs to take the shortest time to wallow in sorrow (coz you are only human) and then quickly stop taking oneself seriously, by making a big joke of your own self. It's easier to have people laughing with you (or at you). I was caught in similar down situation lately, and was automatically perked up when I read Apoo's recent post. [Apoo, you are fast becoming my hero!] Iyer's caricature reminded me of the same retard portrait taken of me in Montmarte, Paris.

So for those who are curious to know what I look like, ladies and gentlemen, I proudly present to you - my retard self! Look, even my breasts are lopsided! Sigh!

P/S Please promise to continue loving me after this. Have a heart for the unfortunate.

movie nostalgia*

2007-06-03T21:18:00.000+08:00

Last week has been a good week for movies for me. I watched 3 movies from the 7th French Movie Festival hosted by GSC. They were 'Priceless', 'You Are So Handsome' and 'By The Pricking Of My Thumbs'. As said by CupcakeQueen, French movies are quirkily funny and highly entertaining, especially their romantic comedies.

Then this morning I chatted with Apoo. After what seemed like endless torturous hours of yawning details of his dinner, pani puri and thereafter, about his non-existent sex life, we came to the topic of Bollywood movies. I mean when you chat with an Indian man, one who is homesick, the topic of Bollywood is bound to crop up. Most often, from experience, this will happen sooner rather than later. Ha.

So I asked him about the title of this movie which I used to love (and still do) when I was still angelic in looks, thinking and what comes out from my mouth.

Details:
Name of movie: Yaadon Ki Baarat
Synopsis: Read here. The plot was really classic la - siblings separated by fate, then one grew to be a gangster, one a rich man's son and one a singer. I love the actor Dharmendra, such a hot ~~rod~~ stuff even for a non-pubescent girl like me back in the 70s. Aiyoyo kaade vaa leh. You should see him in Sholay, where he stars with Amitabh Bachchan, how to concentrate on movie plot when you donno where and how to concentrate. Bwahaha.
2 main songs: Yaadon Ki Baarat & Chura Li Hai.

After the excitement of the topic, I decided to find the clips of the songs in YouTube. So here they are, hope you enjoy them and maybe they bring back the same good memories to you as they did me. If this is the first time you've heard of the movie and the songs, I am sure they will stay in your head for years to come. Enjoy!

[This is the part where Dharmendra realised that the singer
and the rich man are the brothers he had lost years ago]

[It's funny how I just realised that the Zeenat Aman and the guy
just held and posed with the guitar and did not actually play it. Heh.]
P/S If anyone knows how I can get hold of this Yaadon DVD, please let me know. Another movie clip which I found was also Haati Mere Saathi. Oooh nice. And Apoo, the one with the roller skating ring is "Hee Aze Lak Jah", but I can't find it on YouTube. Maybe I got the spellings wrong. Please help check with your mum for me. We will negotiate rewards later, ok? Wink.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update 4 June 2007: Here is the clip of the song which I really, really loved from 'Aa Gale Lag Jaa' called 'Tera Muj Se Hai Natha Koi' though i prefered the one with the small boy in crutches singing it...Doesn't matter, this is great too. Enjoy!

malaysia travel guide*

2007-06-03T21:00:00.000+08:00

Honestly, if there is one website that is doing its darn best to provide proper unbiased detailed guide to Malaysia in line with VMY2007, it has to be Malaysia Travel Guide which is created by PK Tan. I have read through some of the pages in the past month, and I really think he is doing an awesome job with the interesting details, good writing and nice pixs too.

So do help out and spread the word about Malaysia Travel Guide and make it a success it so deserved. Kudos and good luck, PK!

a street name called...*

2007-05-30T15:01:00.000+08:00

A friend recently went to Beijing and stayed in a hotel on this street. He said he had to be extra careful in his pronunciation when he directs the taximan...

pictures of lithuania*

2007-05-07T13:06:00.000+08:00

Jag, my friend from Sydney, just sent me some pictures from his recent business trip to Lithuania. I thought the pictures were awesome, especially the architectures. I've always enjoyed travel pictures, mine and others alike, especially if they are taken beautifully. Not those narcissistic ones followed by endless "Ooh, this is me taken in xxx and this is me having lunch in xxx and this is me blah blah blah" commentaries. Bleh. Thank goodness my friends are not like that.

Anyway, i digressed.

So, without much ado, and with Jag's grand approval, I hereby present to you the picturesque tour of Lithuania. Commentaries are by Jag. Enjoy!

Vilnius from the top of the hill, where the old fort
is located, was used as defence in many wars.

Vilnius Old City (700 years old)

Pic from a bridge across the East side.

Statues of freedom fighters across a bridge.

Old art gallery.

Clock tower in the old city centre.

Church from 1300s.

Church from 1500s.

Rebuild church from 1700s, originally
1300s but destroyed many times by war.

Former KGB HQ. Now the Genocide Museum.
The basement of this building is where the KGB detained
anyone against Soviet rule and teachings.

Names of famous Lithuanians who died at the old KGB HQ.
This wall is on the base of the old KGB HQ.

1 & 2 - KGB Prison cells

3 - KGB Standing room,where new arrivals to the
prison are locked up without any clothes for days.

4 -KGB Execution Chamber where hundreds of Lithuanians
were shot dead during Soviet rule till 1991.

my narcissistic feet*

2007-05-06T07:56:00.000+08:00

Just when I spoke too soon about how irritating those narcissistic travel pictures were, I am going to demonstrate the irritation now...

On the left is me comparing my right foot to one of those statues' in one of the temples in Angkor.

On the middle is both my feet up against the temple walls in Bayon.

And on the right is both my feet again doing peek-a-boo in the boat, going for a 1-hour tour on the Mekong River in Laos.

Haha. I am so full of shit sometimes...

But even so, I still get to be in Simontalks' Top 5 Fave Blogs list. Waa, felt so honoured. Thank you, dear Simon. In that list, he also mentioned about EatingChaos's travelogues. Go check it out, I really think it's very good.

sungai petani, my hometown*

2007-04-29T10:50:00.000+08:00

Last month I went back to my hometown for a couple of days. So I thought it would be good to introduce this town which I grew up in – Sungai Petani or S.P, as what people of the northern region would simply refer to it as.

Nowadays, one can hardly call it a small town anymore as it has boomed from a sleepy one-main-road town (which you would've most probably missed if you had blinked long enough when you passed through the town like 20 years ago! Ha.) to a booming industrial town – it has 2 main industrial areas, the old one being at the south and the newer on the north.

Contrary to what was written in Wikipedia, I believed the town got its name from the river which runs through the town, which is also called Sungai Petani (or in translation simply means Farmer’s River; Sungai = River and Petani = Farmer) It was also by that river, where I hung out mostly at the riverfront eatery place after school, which was famous for its 30 sen ais-kacang, dry noodles (in Hokkien it’s called ‘Tha Mee’; translation Tha = Dry and Mee = noodles), beef ball noodles, rojak buah and my favourite drink Thor-Tau Kar (ice-blended peanuts) with generous Milo powder topping.

I once lied to a penpal from Lisbon saying that the riverfront was somewhat like Venice, which was pure BS. At that point, I had nothing much to say about this town, which was as boring as seeing Mawi’s face. And maybe much more. Honestly, I could not wait to leave the place when I was young. The town was so small, I felt claustrophobic and trapped, like I have no personal space to breathe. And as much as I don’t necessarily fancy KL either, I now own the freedom I craved so much.

Anyway, one of the two main architectures which I loved most in SP is the main landmark of the town - the clock tower. It was given by a Tawkey Lim Lean Teng to commemorate the reign of King George V from 1910 – 1936. It’s very colonial and super unique. I don’t think there’s any town in Malaysia that has such a nice looking clock tower. I did however see a similar shaped clock tower in India though. And yet it fall victim to hooligans, as the picture showed. Sigh.

And while we are at the subject of clock tower, I’d like to show you the infamous corrupted new clock towers located sporadically about town. About 10 of them. What ugly pieces of shit. And mind you, each of these towers cost a whopping RM39K of good taxpayers’ money. Obviously some arses got rich on this silly project and thus, it was no surprise when ACA decided to dig deep into the matter a couple of years ago. But as usual, in our Bolehland, the following-up on the matter was unheard of, ever again.

Anyway, the second piece of unique architecture is the glorious HSBC building, which also bears similarities to KL’s old railway station. Again, it’s very colonial looking and I love it to bits. And both landmarks are situated within 100m radius from one another, on the main road of Jalan Ibrahim.

Besides that, there are 2 places in SP that I will not miss whenever I’m there, considering I only go back on the average of once a year. One is the famous Indian mixture shop called Thulasiraman. The mixture here is so freaking good. So good that my girlfriend’s husband from India also loves them to bits; and that honestly, speaks volume on how yummy it is. You can also get them in Giant hypermarkets in KL.

Next stop will prove to you that I am a weird loyalist. I only have one dentist and he is Dr Yong. No matter how short my trip is, I will never fail to make that dreaded yearly visit, mainly to check on the condition of my teeth and to do scaling which only costs RM45 (approx USD13). Here’s the weirder bit – I always see him right after lunch, and I won’t floss or brush my teeth prior, which I would normally try to do after every meal. And without fail, he would sigh aloud and go through the drill on the importance of flossing and gargling with mouthwash. Little does he know that I used to handle the brand Listerine in my past agency, and I even know the key formulation of the mouthwash and what it does etcetera blah blah. Ha.

Another thing you need to also know is that I only consume the Camel brand light soy sauce, available only in SP. It was my mum’s choice of soy sauce, and hereditarily, it became mine too. I also buy my supply of dried prawns, anchovies and belacan from here too. Weird but true. Chuckle.

Also the picture on the right is of McDota – the first fried chicken / fast food outlet in SP. It was there way before KFC and McDonald’s. Though the fried chicken is just so-so, it is still in business after all these years! My hat’s off to the owner! Super!

KFC opened its first outlet in SP in 1987. At that time, eating is KFC is like the best fine dining in town. You should see those SPM school leavers who worked here while waiting for their results – the sense of pride was commendable, like they were working in 10 Downing Street or something. Some were even arrogant about it, like they have ‘arrived’. Ha.

After such a long hiatus, I decided to visit the Sri Sithi Vinayagar temple at Jalan Hospital, which I used to go to during Thaipusam. Thaipusam is quite a big event in SP, and against my mum’s naggings, I used to witness the piercing of the flesh. There’s my favourite, where we referred to as ‘Superman’ where the guy was hung horizontally by at least 40 – 50 piercing to his back. I would secretly, in spirit, danced to the “vail vail” hollers and to the beats of the drums.

And I would end with my two favourite stalls in SP. One is the chicken rice stall at the corner restaurant in Jalan Dewa. I was too busy feeding my face that I forgot to snap any photo, but it’s not as though you don’t know what chicken rice looks like either, eh? This has got to be my favourite chicken rice in the whole wide world, and the secret lies in the chilly sauce, which consists of the potent cili padi and loads of garlic blended into a perfect sauce. I drool even while writing this.

Lastly, the one dish I delight in is the Pasembur or what the KLites will call ‘Rojak’. Mine is a special order of just the toppings, with extra dried squid and prawn fritters. If I am greedy, I will order the Mee Rebus too, which also score a full 10 points in drool scale. The stall is always full of people, any time of the day. The owner is actually from India and has passed down the business to his sons. He goes back to India every year to attend to his many wives. That’s why I believed food business is the best. Guaranteed cash flow!

That’s my simple tour of Sungai Petani. Hope you’ve enjoyed this short tour.

P/S Of late, I have been experimenting with the Photoshop CS2. I had a short tutorial by a graphic design lecturer friend, Emelia. I finally got the software with my new laptop, and it’s like my new toy. Smug.

let’s learn some japanese*

2007-04-26T15:48:00.000+08:00

Have you ever met someone for a brief while but he / she ends up making such a big impact that you remember them for a long time to come? One such person was this Middle Eastern chap who I met at the AsiaWorks motivational seminar back in June 2005.

At the end of 3-day event, I sent him home to Puchong because he was running a high fever and it was drizzling. And I wanted to talk to him some more. He was definitely the most interesting 23 year old I have ever come across and he exudes such positive aura, I could not help to be attracted to him. Mind you, only as a friend la. I am, after all, and unfortunately, old enough to be his grandmother!

So recently, I thought of Omar. I don’t know what spurred the thought, but I missed him all of a sudden. To cut the story short, I called him and we met up for dinner. Joining us was Sha and her hubby, Rakesh whom have heard me going on and on and on about Omar like he was my favourite toy-boy. Heh. Of course, they had their reservations about my positive Omar ramblings. But when they finally met him, they were floored. He was all that I said he was and more.

When Omar comes into the room, he practically OWNS the room. Here’s why.
o He is quite a looker.
o Relatively quite tall too.
o He has abs to kill for – 6 packs yo. Slurp! He is a part-time instructor in Fitness First. That explains the abs. Double slurp!
o He always looks for ways to improve himself - he is taking Japanese lessons part-time, as he plans to work in Japan when he finished his degree. And he digs Japanese girls. (And not grandmothers! Sigh!)

The 3-hour dinner passed by swiftly as he amused us with his stories and taught us some basic Japanese. So here’s how to remember the numbers in Japanese, Omar-style.

1 ichi

He started scratching himself and asked
“You scratched because you feel...?”

2 ni 3 san

Think of the car brand.

4 yon

What do you do when you feel sleepy?

5 go

The opposite of come is…?

6 roku

This is what you call a Japanese rookie

(Heh. Okay okay...I forgot this one, so I made it up.)

7 nana

Think of banana, without the 'ba'.

8 hachi

This is how Japanese sneezes.

9 ku

The song Negara...?

10 juu

Just remember it's juu...

And if you see the writing, from the numbers 1 - 10, they are actually similar to Chinese characters. From the numbers, Omar continued to amuse us with the similarities between Arabic words with Malay and Japanese words. That's what I really liked about him - it's never boring around him. Such a brilliant man he is. Honestly, if I was much younger, I would have jumped on him. But I am not. I am old and civilised. Damn!

P/S Lastly, the number 10,000 is pronounced as ichiman. Ha!

pitaya*

2007-04-16T21:22:00.000+08:00

I headed to this beach town called Bagan Lallang over the weekend with some new-found Mat Salleh friends to do some research work. It is actually situated after the town of Sepang, where the Selangor government organised a Pesta Air (translation -water festival), in conjunction with VMY2007. On the way over, I came across a few dragon fruit (the proper scientific name is pitaya) plantations and decided to buy a few kilos - the red flesh kind with seeds that pop like poppy seeds.

After making my payment, I asked permission to snoop around and see up close the funny looking trees. I have been eating the fruit for many years now and I have no idea what the tree looks like. I am sure most of you urbanites have no idea as well. It looks somewhat like a cactus plant (it has lots of thorns too) and it's interesting to see the fruit hanging at the end of the stems.

The plant's flowers bloom at night. To view the picture of the flower, click here. Gorgeous, eh?

hacked*

2007-04-04T23:11:00.000+08:00

If you remember from my interview with Joe Blogs last February, I stated that my favourite blog is tequilamockingbird, but she has since stopped writing. I thought that is a sad thing - for her to stop writing because I think her writing skill was simply awesome. I just visited her blog today, and I saw this new header.

This is really unfortunate indeed. Why would anyone want to do such thing is beyond my comprehension. What joy do you get from inflicting another person with such pain? What an arse!

I feel for you, Julia. And I do hope to see you blogging again. I really do. Hugs.

on hold*

2007-03-28T18:57:00.000+08:00

Hey you,

I have been hit by a spate of bad luck. Firstly, my radiator overheated on the black Monday morning, and then on the same night, my laptop was stolen from my car. All my Oz Adelaide to Alice Springs travel pictures are left to just memories in my head. Same goes with my picture taken with Damien Rice. MY Damien Rice. Not to mention some precious emails kept in the archive. Sigh. So yes, I am damn pissed with myself. So until I pull myself together and get myself a new laptop, I have to keep all posts on hold. Keep me in your prayers.

Love,
Anjali*

2*

2007-03-22T00:54:00.000+08:00

It was about this time back in 2005 when I received an email about one manja stray tomcat. The long and short of it - I responded and brought Smokey home. I wrote about that too. How time flies, it's been two glorious years and I love this bugger to bits. Have I ever told you he is able to call out my real name? I kid you not. He is so brilliant that I am thinking of enrolling him into Harvard.

Now you can wish us 'Happy Anniversary'. Heh.

i see televisions, everywhere*

2007-03-13T11:57:00.000+08:00

Mr. Teo seems to be on a roll with the production of his music videos. First it was “Lost In America” which premiered on 8TV’s Quickie last 25 Feb. And now, there’s another one for the song ‘Carnival Hall”. Despite calling himself an uber superstitious Chinaman, the duration taken to produce those videos contradicts that claim. First one took 4 months, and the second only 4 days. Hm.

So have a look at the new vid. It is directed by Kamal Sabran, under the Nokia ‘You Make It Reel’ contest sponsorship. I think it’s cool. And super fun. The old tellys made it even more ice-cool.

I like it. A lot lot. Hope you do too.

theWRITEtherapy*

2007-03-13T10:09:00.000+08:00

Over the weekend, I helped a friend to set up a new template for her equally new blog. She is an ex-journalist who decided to venture into the ~~boring~~ world of banking last year. Since then, she has been itching to write. Hence the blog. So, please kindly go and check out her blog here and don't forget to drop a note to say Hi.

score*

2007-03-07T10:59:00.000+08:00

Got my results for the English exam I took last month. Am elated! So, don't play play wei...coz as of now, my England is officially confirmed as powderful. Chuckle.

leave my country [pt 2]*

2007-03-02T09:25:00.000+08:00

After 3 ½ days in Siem Riep, we left for Phnom Penh by bus on the morning of Feb 18. The journey took about 6 hours, but it somehow felt shorter. Maybe I was too engrossed with the book ‘First They Killed My Father’ by Luong Ung, which was about the author, who survived the Khmer Rouge ordeal when she was 5 years old. It was very compelling. I had bought it from one of the many book peddlers, for USD$2 along with the Lonely Planet Cambodia for USD$4. Books are among the few things that are reasonably priced in this country.

When we reached the bus stop, we went down to grab our backpacks. It was there I stood behind to this perfect looking hunk, who has crossed my path a couple of times when we were at the Angkor temples. Though I have never liked Keanu Reeves coz I think he looks like a girl, this hunk represents the macho Keanu [if this even makes any sense!] He’s got the perfect height of 6ft 2in, slightly golden-tanned skin with equally golden rusty blonde hair to match, super sharp features and a perfectly chiseled toned body. If I had died from dehydration then, you can bet your last dollar that it was not because of the El-Nino temperature. Heh. But unfortunately, he’s with an equally gorgeous lady companion. I can’t help looking them and go, “Gosh, what a perfect life-sized Ken and Barbie pair.” When he talks to her, it seems as though nothing and no one else matters in the world. Lovely. What a rare breed indeed.

Anyway, I digressed.

So there I was, standing behind Ken waiting for my turn to pick up my backpack. When he bowed to pick his, I could not help but to be awed by the sight of his perfectly toned cheeks of the behind. I hastily pulled up my wet tongue from dirt road before anyone noticed. And then I foamed at the mouth. There seemed to be a strong magnetic force from his butt to my right hand, coz I really felt the strong urge to grab his beefy right cheek. I thought - just one quick tight squeeze before I scurry for safety. Then it dawned upon me that his legs are as long as a mile, and with one easy mighty leap, he might catch up and beat me to a pulp. On the other hand, he may end up enjoying it. Me squeezing his butt, I mean, and not beating the daylights out of me. But as usual, I was too chicken to find out if he shares the same fetish. Another unsolved mystery it shall remain. Instead I closed my eyes, grabbed my own wobbly cheek and imagined it was his. I also made a mental note to take a cold shower. Sigh.

After checking into the hotel, we went to the Royal Palace but decided to visit it the next day as we only had 1 hour to closing time. So we took a stroll around. In comparison, I liked the capital Phnom Penh better, even though it was somewhat dirtier. But the colonial buildings were gorgeous and you don’t get harassed that much.

As some said the Angkor monk shots were somewhat ‘artificial’, here are some candid shots – two monks walking near the Royal Palace walls, a monk taking a rest in some building and two monk robes being hung to dry.

We walked along the Sisowath Quay, which faces the Tonle Sap River. Along the whole stretch of the quay, there were a lot of people there – some strolling with their families, lots of peddlers, lots of kids swimming in the malodorous river, adults looking at them etc. It was about an hour to sunset so we sat around as well.

It was also here when one silly insect bit me on the inner thigh, and for the first time in my life, I had the excuse to behave like a typical man – I scratched my crotch area. In public. Everyone was looking at me, but the pain and the dire need to scratch took precedence over pride. Over what the Chinese and Malay call ‘water face’. I scratched away till the pain subsided and let out a quiet sigh of relief. And I must say, it felt kinda nice. Ha.

As it was Chinese New Year, there were lots of water lilies being sold as offerings to the Buddha. I like how they fold the fully bloomed lilies so that they resemble lily buds. The combination of the red and white lilies is pretty. Some traders were also selling birds, as the act releasing birds to freedom is akin to releasing good luck to oneself. Unknown to most, these birds were apparently trained to return to the cage.

On the Tonle Sap River, there were also a lot of boats of all sizes. We decided not to take the boat cruise as there was nothing much to see along the river. They don’t come cheap either.

After much wait, the sun finally set. These two are my favourites – the left one was shot in tribute to my current favourite show ‘Heroes’ starring the adorable Adrian Pasdar, though I liked him better as a lawyer in ‘Judging Amy’, versus his politician role in the aforementioned show. And the cottony-like cloud on the right shot is really cool too. The building you see is the National Museum.

The next day, we went to Royal Palace. When we were there, some Australian embassy people were having some formal event at the main court. I thought it as a good sign, as they were also at Angkor when we were there too. Damn good sign, if you ask me. But that’s a different topic all together.

The architecture of the Royal Palace and its surroundings is very Thai, except for one building called ‘Pavilion Napoleon III’ which was very French. Below is the shot I loved most.

There’s different kind of nice blooms around the palace. The one in the middle is the most gorgeous and the most unusual. I purposely took the angle so that it looked as though Buddha is wearing a flower.

Next we went to the Choeung Ek Genocidal Center which is referred to as ‘Hell On Earth In 20th Century’.

Excerpt of history from the Center’s admission ticket:
Choeung Ek Genocidal Center is an unique and special place which reflects the most barbarious and cruel crime committed by the Ultra Communist Khmer Rouge Regime (UCKRR) during 1975 – 1979. Here, about 20,000 people including 8 foreigners were executed and murdered. Obviously, 129 mass graves and about 8,000 human skulls at the site bear testimony to this unspeakable crime. In order to remember the spirits of victims at the site and as well as over 3 million victims throughout the country, a Memorial Charnel was built in the center in 1988.

Row 1 [L to R] – the Memorial House, the approximately 8000 unearthed skulled placed inside the Memorial House and one of the many mass graves surrounding the area.

Row 2 [L to R] – this tree is the most unusual, where the branches coiled as though it has mangled itself as it witnessed the brutal killings; there were still clothes strewn beside the unearthed mass graves and two molars on the ground.

Thereafter, we went to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. This place was initially a high school when it as taken over by UCKRR and turned into a prison known as Security Prison 21 (S21). It became the largest centre of detention and torture in the country. Between 1975 – 1978, about 17,000 people were held here before being taken to extermination camp in Choeung Ek.

When you reach this place, you cannot help but to feel downcast and depressed. Here at Tuol Sleng, you bear witness to photos of the callousness mentioned – victims found burnt of the metal beds, the prison cells, the torment modus operandi, and thousands upon thousands of mug shots of the victims. I managed to cajole myself to go through all the buildings except for the prison cell block. Upon reaching the entrance, my hairs stood on ends and I could not bring myself to go in. It’s nonsensical how such brutality could have happened. Such strong hatred brewed from one man to his own nationality. It’s lunacy, that’s what it is.

I will end this post with this picture, which I named ‘HOPE’. Even though futile darkness may consume one’s past (as illustrated by the dark border and also the torture tools on the floor), there is always hope for a brighter and better future. (as depicted by the light from the outside and the growing tree.)

May the victims’ spirits rest in peace.

leave my country [pt 1]*

2007-02-26T10:39:00.000+08:00

Hey there. I am back and hope that the New Year has been porky fine to you. This was actually the first time I am away on CNY, mainly because I could not find myself going through the painful “tong tong chiang” tunes, mistakenly passed off as festive music, any longer and decided to get away. Only to be somewhat disappointed, coz it somehow managed to stowaway and followed me to Cambodia. The phrase ‘You can run but you cannot hide’ fitted the situation appositely. Sigh.

So…do I like Cambodia? Mostly, I enjoyed visiting the temples of Angkor. Not to mention the good company I was with. But I was exceptionally disgusted with the locals, children and adults alike. Having said that, I did meet quite a number of nice people and monks (yes, you get them in abundance in Cambodia as well) so that sort of stroked a balance for me; between the sweet memories and the uglies-you-wanna-erase-from-your-memory-bank types. In a nutshell, I’d just like to say that this is one country you need to visit once in a lifetime - to witness the awesomeness of Angkor as well as trying mightily hard to comprehend the callous Khmer Rouge bloodshed of the Killing Fields. And then you leave the country, never wanting to return, ever again.

As always, I will start with the sole cam-whore pix of my own shadow. This time, I will only show the one I loved most. It was taken in front of the Bayon temple south gate, where I stood sandwiched between two of the devil warriors with the rising sun at the back of me. I think it’s one of the nicest shadow shots I’ve taken so far, if I may say so myself.

So, without much ado, let’s start…

DAY 1 - SIEM RIEP

[From left to right]

o We arrived in Siem Riep about 11ish local time. I like the Lat cartoons on the plane. (Pssst…Datuk Tony Fernandez, this is me promoting your airline. So please feel free to pass more free tixs my way, eh? I’ve scratched your back already, this is my cue for you to scratch mine, eh?)

o This is part of the deco in the Siem Riep International Airport, after you passed through the immigration. That must be the biggest golden disco light I have ever set my eyes on. I could almost hear Abba’s ‘Dancing Queen’ playing in the background. Yeah, that’s the bimbo side of me doing some blog contribution. Heh.

o To escape the scorching heat, we hung out at The Blue Pumpkin. I ordered my second cuppa in Siem Riep – creamy Mexican coffee which came with a piece of ginger biscuit. Price USD$1.75. (At this point in time, the concept of anything and everything here wearing the USD$ price tags has not hit my thick skull just yet. ) The coffee was super strong and nice. Just when we were getting cozy and my eyelids grew heavy, the electricity was cut off. Maybe that was their subtle way to kick us out…

And I needed to soften the shock I had during lunch an hour before – After saying the millionth no’s to a boy who harassed us to buy his pirated books for the past 10 minutes, he hissed his poisonous, “You leave my country!”. It was then I decided that I don’t like this hardscrabble country very much. And this feeling lingered on throughout the entire trip. Can you imagine being chased off a country by the 2nd hour upon arrival? And then we were asked to leave the country again the next day! How fun was that? Sheesh…

Basically the above showcased some of the brief window shopping one can do around the Old Market area. While my partner-in-crime was practicing her price-haggling skills, I decided to have fun with the figurines displayed. Heh.

For dinner, I need to mention that we had the Cambodian barbeque, which is similar to the Korean barbeque where they have the charcoal grill and the soup areas. We had 4 types of meats – chicken, fish, prawns and my favourite - yummy kangaroo! I've been dreaming of having kangaroo meat since I left Alice Springs in May last year.

DAY 2 - ANGKOR WAT & PHNOM BAKHENG

We decided to visit Angkor Wat at sunrise. We had bought a 3-day pass which costs USD$40. As I entered the main door into a dark hallway, with the magnificent sight of Angkor at the end, the whole experience reminded me of when I visited Taj Mahal. Both equally breathtaking.

Excerpt from Siem Riep Angkor Visitors Guide:
Angkor Wat is visually, architecturally and artistically breathtaking. It is a massive three-tiered pyramid crowned by five lotus-like towers rising 65 meters from ground level. Angkor Wat is the centerpiece of any visit to the temples of Angkor. Angkor Wat is surrounded by a moat and an exterior wall measuring 1300m X 1500m. The temple itself is 1km square and consists of three level surmounted by a central tower. The walls of the temple are covered inside and out with bas-reliefs and carvings. Near 2000 distinctively rendered apsara carvings adorn the walls throughout the temple and represent some of the finest examples of apsara carvings in the Angkorian era art.

While we were there, we met up with 3 gorgeous looking siblings and they were more than happy to pose for us. Their bright red colored t-shirts against the brown grey walls created such brilliant contrasts, resulted in really beautiful portraits.

We returned to the hotel in the afternoon to rest a bit and for me to charge my battery. My only battery died on me right after we reached Bayon. I had lost the back-up battery somewhere, which remains a mystery till today. In the evening, we went to Phnom Bakheng to see the sunset. Honestly the place was overcrowded and the sunset was not spectacular that day. But we met a group of Thai monks. They were super obliging and such great posers. It didn’t take long before they became the centre of attention as nearly everyone paparazzied away. They must have felt like celebrities walking down the red carpet of Angkor.

DAY 3 – ANGKOR THOM, BAYON & TA PROHM

We visited Angkor Thom and Bayon for 2 days, one in the late morning the day before and today, in the early morning, shortly after sunrise.

Excerpt from Siem Riep Angkor Visitors Guide:
Angkor Thom (Big Angkor) is a 3km square walled and moated royal city and was the last capital of the Angkorian empire. There are five entrances (gates) to the city, one for each cardinal point, and the victory gate leading to the Royal Palace area. Each gate is crowned with 4 giant faces.

The giant faces of Bayon have become one of the most recognizable images connected to the classic Khmer art and architecture. There are 37 standing towers, most and not all sporting four carved faces oriented toward the cardinal points.

I really enjoyed Bayon; being in midst of the stillness of the morning glow, before the invasion of the herds of noisy tourists. Seated among the giant carved faces, I absorbed the tranquility to my inner being and felt really peaceful. And before anyone says anything, this peace has nothing to do with religion; I just welcomed the nice quiet feeling after having to brace myself in the concrete jungle’s rat race for too long.

After lunch, we headed to Ta Prohm. Though the temples looked almost the same after awhile, this one stood out because of its ‘tree-in-temple’ atmosphere. And it is also in this temple, we came face-to-face with the celebrity tree, which was made famous in the movie ‘Lara Croft Tomb Raider’. Being in its midst made me feel like David, facing my Goliath.

It was also at Ta Prohm, that I met this boy whom, for once, I did not felt irritated from his lengthy harassment to buy some stuff. He looked really pitiful, I decided to give him 1000 Riel to leave me alone. I really liked the shot of him.

During sunset, we had dinner seated on the straw mat placed facing the moat of Angkor Wat. I had roasted chicken (USD$4.00 per chicken) which I shared with our tuk-tuk driver and one char grilled corn. Though the meal was simple, it was really nice. While eating, we had the pleasure of the company of three dogs, which finished up all the bones. Thereafter, we went again to Angkor Wat to see the sunset. There, we met the same group of Thai monks. They remembered us and asked us to take photographs with them.

As we left Angkor Wat late, we were fortunate to see the test run of the light & sound show (sans the sound). This was its fifth night of test. It was really awesome beyond words. My battery died on me again that night, so I did not take any shots. But if I get my hands on some, I will try to post it. Promise.

[Update 27 Feb - here's a shot courtesy of my travel partner, who wants to remain anonymous for now, of the light shot I told you about. Isn't it awesomely gorgeous?]

DAY 4 – BANTEAY SREY & BANTEAY SAMRE

On the third and last day, we visited Banteay Srey and Banteay Samre, which were located about 38km away from Siem Riep, and it took about 90 minutes by tuk-tuk. These two temples are worth the distance as the wall carvings were much more intricate and delicate.

Excerpt from Siem Riep Angkor Visitors Guide:
Banteay Srey loosely translates to ‘citadel of the women’ but this is a modern appellation that probably refers to the delicate beauty of the carvings. Built at a time when the Khmer Empire was gaining significant power and territory, the temple was contructed by a Brahmin counselor under a powerful king, Rajenravarman and later under Jayavarman V. Banteay Srey displays some of the finest examples of classical Khmer art. The walls are densely covered with some of the most beautiful, deep and intricate carvings of any Angkorian temple. The temple’s relatively small size, pink sandstone construction and ornate design give it a fairytale ambiance.

Banteay Samre – Large, comparatively flat temple displaying distinctively Angkor Wat-style architecture and artistry. Banteay Samre was constructed around the same time as Angkor Wat. The style of the towers and balustrades bear strong resemblance to the towers of Angkor Wat.

On the way back, we stopped again at Angkor Wat. This time, to go inside the temple and climb it. The climb was scary, but we did it anyway. And the view on top was rewarding enough. And if you think going up was scary, climbing down was even worse. The stairs were narrow and steep. I think they should consider including climbing Angkor Wat in the Amazing Race Asia 2. With that in mind, I prepped myself up in anticipation of that, in case I decide to enter. Smirk. I let the pictures show you how scary it is.

I end Part 1 with another set of portraits I took of a small adorable boy in Angkor Wat, who tried so hard to smile for me. And no, my maternal instinct has not kick in yet. I hope you had fun reading this. Part 2 coming soon. I hope.

an interview with joe blogs*

2007-02-25T10:28:00.000+08:00

My blog was interviewed recently by Joe Blogs. Imagine, my first interview. Regarding the blog, that is. It felt nice, makes me feel goooey like a melting marshmallow. Below is the interview.

Name : Anjali
Age : I stopped counting after I hit 21. That was only last year.
Location : Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Vocation : Advertising
Philosophy : Life is short – live it fully and have no regrets.

Sum up what your blog is about.
It’s a platform for me to express myself. To tell my my life stories; be it my thoughts, my emotions and my travelogues. To leave bite-size pieces of me before I leave this world.

Why are you doing your blog?
I had initially started writing short stories about myself and saved them in my computer. One fine day, I shared some with a friend and she advised me to post them on a blog. “You write good s**t”, she said. The rest as they say is history.

What’s the funniest entry on your blog?
I think there were a few wicked-humoured ones, but if I have to choose one, I’d most probably choose this one called ‘Save me from this misery’. It still makes me laugh when I have a bad day at work.

What is your writing style?
I prefer it to be conversational; like talking to your best buddy. It’s more sincere that way. I can look back at all the foolish things I’ve done and laugh about them aloud, without fearing what others think. I take myself less seriously on my blog.

What do people commonly say about your site?
People liked my wicked humour with a touch of sarcasm. And the blog attracts the same breed of people, so that’s great actually. Most also like my travel photographs.

What would you be doing if you weren’t doing your blog?
The same thing I do outside of my blogging hours – work, read, cook, being a slave to my cat, daydream and travel a bit. I have a life besides blogging, y’know.

Why should someone visit your site?
Simply because they should. Heh.

What did you learn from your first love?
Two things – (i) It’s important to love yourself first. (ii) No man can love you as much as God and your pet. There was a quote I read once which says, “If you want loyalty, get a dog.” A cat who thinks he is a dog works just as well too; like my Smokey. *wink*

Climate change is caused by man. Myth or reality?
Definitely reality - women are too kind for that kind of destruction.

Are there any blogs, you enjoy reading?
I really loved Tequilamockingbird, but she has stopped writing. Now, my current favourites are PostSecret and Karen Cheng’s Snippets Of Life.

If you could invite anyone to a dinner party who would it be and why?
Oooh that’s easy. I would love…no, lust actually, to invite His Purple Highness Prince. He is obviously the sexiest man alive. He will be my dinner and we will party like it’s 1999.

What one website would you recommend and why?
I would recommend PostSecret, because it is real. At most times, amid all those secrets, you find one [sometimes a few] that reflects exactly how you feel. And that’s awesomely powerful and equally freaky at the same time.

Tell us a random funny story that comes to mind.
I remember this scene in ‘Monk’, whereby a girl was irritating Monk with this riddle - Pete and Repeat are sitting in a boat. Pete fell of, so who’s left in the boat? Obviously the answer is Repeat. So the riddle became an endless annoyance.

What advice would you have given yourself 5 years ago?
None really. I am what I am now because of what I’ve gone through.

Any interesting travel stories?
When I travel, I love to bargain and squeeze the traders dry. When they agree to the price I asked for, I negotiated further discount. I realized I pushed the limit a little too much when one Indian trader in Jaipur snapped at me, “Madame, you not only chop my hands, my legs and my head, you also throw my head outside of my shop! Your price, madame, NOT POSSIBLE!”

What’s the most incredible thing that ever happened to you.
Many years ago, one rainy morning, after avoiding church for 2 months because I blamed God for my breakup, I finally dragged myself out of bed and drove myself to church. I asked God to heed my sign to prove that He will sail through the pain with me. The sign in specific – after the worship and before the sermon, I wanted the pastor to call me out. Just me alone. After the worship, the pastor walked toward the pulpit and pulled out a note from his bible and read aloud, “Will the car owner of XXX1234 come out and attend to your car coz your headlights are on.” I froze at my chair. That was my car plate number. So God is truly alive!

Now it’s your turn! Ask me one question, anything you like.
If you can be a superhero, which one would you choose and why?
Joe Blogs : I'd choose Superman. I like his range of powers, strength, speed, flight, able to freeze, and heat things. Batman has no powers just gadgets. I like the idea of saving people. And the cape of course. I'd have to listen to the Superman music by John Williams to gee me up, great theme music.

eye on malaysia*

2007-02-25T10:20:00.000+08:00

Based on a fellow blogger’s cue, I headed to Taman Tasik Titiwangsa last Saturday night to witness the spectacular fireworks show. And of course to see the Eye on Malaysia in its full glory. The fireworks lasted about 15 minutes or so. I think the last fireworks I saw were when I was in Jodhpur, India. It was on the eve of Diwali and we were seated on the rooftop of Fifu Guesthouse, watching the fireworks from the fort and from the village area along the desert. But it was not as spectacular as this current one.

But I had fun.

oh noooooo*

2007-02-13T09:59:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, I saw a relatively large cockroach crawling on my freshly-mopped-with-Dettol floor. It came out of my housemate’s room. I was mightily impressed when Smokey crept towards it, almost immediately, like a jungle warrior and watched over the crevice on the chest which the pest had crawled into. I decided to move the chest to expose it and let Smokey pounce on it and do his hero thing, whatever it might be.

So moved the chest, I did. And exposed the 6-legged [I hope this is correct! This time!] creepy crawly, I did that too. But to my dismay, upon seeing the bugger, my assumed warrior went running and hid under the dining table. In a flash!

So in the end, I had to execute the damn roach with my bare hand. It was then I had to face the ugly truth - I’ve raised a wuss! Sigh.

swoooosh.zap.and off i go*

2007-02-08T13:03:00.000+08:00

Hey. I am off to Cambodia on Feb 14 for about a week. Lots of friends have warned me about the possible draught and hot weather, but the reason for the rising temperature is obvious - coz moi is there. Heh. Yes yes, shameless...I know. It's an incurable disease.

So, here's wishing you a horny VD (use some rubber!) and Happy Oink New Year!

Catch up soon.

don't get lost, get hooked*

2007-02-05T22:17:00.000+08:00

Mr. Teo has completed his new video for "Lost In America", which took 4 good production months. Am not sure if it was purely coincidental, but it seemed that the 1st song in both his CDs get a video. First it was "Arms of Marianne" and now it's "Lost In America". Hm. This man is not that complicated after all.

So enjoy the vid, which I am sure will be nominated in this year's AIM awards for Best Video again. And as equally uncomplicated, I think he will win. Again. For sure.

See if you can spot the faces featured in the vid. They are:
Jason Lo [Rambo] Nell Ng [Marilyn Monroe] Serena C [Rocket Girl] Sharifah Amani [Minnie Mouse] Gavin Yap [Mickey Mouse] Ismet [Ronald McDonald] Rashid Salleh [Superman] Justin Guber [TV Heads & Cowboys] Patrick Teoh [Uncle Sam & Businessman] Sharifah Aryana [TV Girl] Tony Pietra [Vegas Elvis] and Pete Teo [Singing Scrawny Slouching Guitar Man with Constipated Look. Heh.]

chicken legs*

2007-01-30T22:07:00.000+08:00

Recently, James wrote about how men love fried chicken.
Trying to be a smart aleck, I wrote the comment below,
which only transparently exposed my stupidity...

exam*

2007-01-30T21:44:00.001+08:00

ma lao*

2007-01-23T13:15:00.000+08:00

Watch this space.
Stories will be up by Friday.
Till then, do some breathing exercises.

---------------------------------------

Friday is here, but the new post is not.
Work is madness, and I sort of, err, forgot.
So I apologise, for my head is in a knot.
Come Monday, I will fill in this slot.
And this time, I bluff you not.

[translation : ma lao = monkey]

hello, old friend*

2007-01-17T18:32:00.000+08:00

On 22 Feb last year, I posted an entry about 3 penpals during my teen years. And how I prayed that one fine day they would be narcissistic enough to google their own names and find the said post. I would love to resume the friendship from where we left off...

Well, guess what?

After a 13-year hiatus, I received an email from one of them yesterday - Abang Aszman.

Is that like the most awesome thing ever? Glee.

indy 4*

2007-01-11T23:21:00.000+08:00

I must admit I fell hopelessly in love with Harrison Ford when I first saw Raiders Of The Lost Ark back in 1981. My hormones went on a rampage even before I hit puberty!

So I did some research. [or stalking, whatever you wanna name it] Found the address to his fan club. And wrote him a ~~love~~ letter. Two months after, I recieved a reply with a signed autograph [see right pix] which sent me up to the cloud 9 of fantasies. All chimerical. Obviously.

Even now, at age 64, I think he is still yummy. One of those few who aged well. Another being Indy's father, Sean Connery.

Have you heard? The script for Indiana Jones 4 is ready, and Steven Spielberg will start shooting the movie in June this year and movie will be launched in May 2008. Oooo...I am so excited already.

election day*

2006-12-26T23:07:00.000+08:00

While we were at the border town of Nong Khai, we visited this large garden called "Sala Kaeo Ku" which houses many strange statues that depicted a combination of Buddhist and Hindu gods and goddesses. It was built by Luang Pu Lua, who believed that all religions are integrated. This is also the same guy who built the famous Buddha Park in Lao P.D.R.

Anyway, the one thing that caught my attention was this whole stage of dog statues surrounding an elephant, as though they were all worshipping the huge mammal like a leader. The amazing thing about those dogs was that they all had erected penises. All of them, I swear.

And that made me wonder. Which led me to this theory:
In the land of the dogs, the elephant, by sheer default of being the bigger creature, held supremacy in politics. But our dear elephant believed in diplomacy and doggies' right to vote. So came the Election Day, and its doggy supporters decided to hold a rally for him by chanting "Election! Election! Election!". The only problem was all the dogs were Chinese. They had mistaken the chant as Erection instead...

Heh.

mumbles*

2006-12-06T12:55:00.000+08:00

<1>
I read somewhere that it is lonely at the top.
It's true.

<2>
Nowadays, Mr. Smokes only responds to me calling him "Porky Pork". This is what I refer to the Laotian grilled pork floss, which he loves to bits.

<3>
Last week I told Jens that I have been sleeping in my new pair of Levi’s. She asked, “Isn’t that bad for your crotch?” I dunno. Is it?

<4>
Someone recently asked me why I am so against relationship. I corrected her - I am only against BAD relationships. If you don’t think your current partner is right, then bloody well leave and be happier.

<5>
I hate the hypocrisy that is so blatant in the ad industry.
That’s why I am leaving it. Soon.

<6>
I dislike Chinese men. I loathe them even more now.
Does that make me racist?

<7>
I once thought I am never the type to drop everything for the sake of love.
I proved myself wrong. Twice.

<8>
I think Damien Rice writes his songs in a lovemaking formula. He starts with a slow foreplay, builds the rhythm up to an intense climax, and ends by hugging you gently, before softly letting go. Then he repeats it in the next song. And the next.

jump*

2006-11-23T11:06:00.000+08:00

When I was in Bangkok last month, I managed to catch Larry King Live in the hotel room. In that particular show, the controversial documentary “The Bridge” by Eric Steel was featured. The documentary showcases footages of 24 suicidal jumps at the Golden Gate Bridge in the year 2004. Some of those footages were shown as well as interviews with families of victims and also one bloke who actually survived his leap of death.

The whole show brought me back to my own case. The year was 2002 and I was in the deepest pit of my own depression. Both my personal life and career were going downhill. One by one, things just went wrong. My mum passed away suddenly. 6 months after, my 7 ½ year relationship crashed. I had a super bitchy boss. I was broke. I felt hopeless. Useless. Stupid. And ugly. I hated what I see in the mirror. I felt even more depressed knowing that I was depressed. Worst of all, I felt God had abandoned me and all the promises bestowed upon me were just plain old lies. It was a long dark tunnel with no trace of light at the end. I saw no reason to continue living. And everytime I was at the edge of my 10th floor apartment balcony, I heard coaxing voices cheering me to jump.

As I have the tendency to think too much, I thought of the repercussions if I did jump... Definitely my body would be smashed to pieces and the Indon cleaner downstairs would have to clean up the mess. As I am also a neat freak, the thought of having someone to clean up my bodily mess just kills me. And I couldn't stand the idea of my brain end up squashed like tomato puree. So that stopped me for a while.

But finally one day, after having gone through the depression for 4 months, I felt that I had had enough and mess or no mess, I was gonna do it. As I was standing at the balcony, apologizing to God for the action that I was going to partake, I heard a sarcastic, sniggering voice instead.

“You want to jump ah? Go ahead! Be my guest. This problem of yours ah, it’s just a piece of cake la. You have gone through worst shit before this, like [examples snipped], but God helped you sailed through them, didn’t He? And for this molehill you want to jump ah? Then jump la. But before you jump, think about this – If you can’t take this simple, passing shit, do you think you could endure the fires of hell for ETERNITY!?”

The words 'ETERNITY' and 'fires of hell' caught my attention. Being an uncommitted person when it comes to anything long-term, eternity seemed extremely, extremely like a very long time. And the ‘fires of hell’ spelled hot and sweaty discomfort. It was then, I realized that jumping down to end my life was never an option. And those words still scare me till today.

So when I saw footages of those people who actually took the plunge, I felt sad for them. Sad because maybe they didn’t have the opportunity to know God, hence no such voice to throw some cow sense their way at those crucial moments.

Looking back at my life back then and what it is now, I can honestly say I am truly blessed for this second chance in life. God continues to honour His promises to me via a prophesy which said He will give me all my heart’s desires if I honour Him. That's why I love Him so, more than I can ever imagine. God is so good. All the time. Really. Get to know Him today. He never disappoints.

it's better than alright. it's brilliant*

2006-11-23T10:24:00.000+08:00

My Irish hearthrob, Mr. Damien Girl-Holding-Dick-Doodle Rice has just launched his second album. It's simply called '9'. Thanks to Tim for the alert!

There's mixed reviews - some say it's better than 'O', some say it's nothing new, some say it's more melancholic...Well, everyone's a critic, isn't it? For me, I took an instant liking to it. [But of course, it's Damien Rice! Even his fart would smell nice. Heh.] The lyrics are beautiful. As gorgeous as his snorkel blue eyes. So all I can say is - go get it!

Hey Damien, I still want to marry you. Is that alright with you? Heh.

[P/S You can experience Damien singing all songs in the album live on a KCRW Radio interview here. It's simply brilliant! ]

Enjoy some Making Of vids:

Damien Rice - The Making of

The Making of '9'

undilah*

2006-11-17T13:21:00.000+08:00

This is the obvious case of the shameless stalker's plea for help.
I need this bugger to win so that I can keep my stalking activity going. Smirk.

Pete's first single off ‘Television’ - ‘TOM’ - has been nominated in the HitzFM Malaysian English Top Ten awards. It’s an award that relies on listener SMS votes to determine the winner. If you live in Malaysia, please vote for the song!

So, please help by following the simple instructions below.
Please send in your votes by 9 December 2006. Thanks!

run, monks, run*

2006-11-03T10:45:00.000+08:00

Whaddya know…I have decided to be a little bit more efficient this time and post the first entry on my Laos trip early. The only disparity is that I have decided to be ~~lazy~~ brief and let the pictures tell the story.

For starters, here is my signature shadows montage. Of course, this time they’re of my Lao shadow. This habit of shadow snapping is basically a self syok-sendiri habit, but a fun one, if I may say so. My favorite is the fourth one from the left, coz it has some Lao alphabets in it. And on the far right shot, you get a sneak peek of my sexy legs. Bwahaha. Shameless is me.

Anyway if you must know, my most enjoyable newfound hobby in Lao P.D.R [People’s Diplomatic Republic] was to run after and shoot all the monks. ‘Shoot’ as in snapping shots of them la. Aiyo, what were you thinking?

Honestly, some of them monks were serious eye candies. I lie you not. And most are actually just novices as they are below 20 years old, but they got very well-toned bods. I can only predict they will soon grow to be the new breed of metrosexual monks. Nice. Very nice. I like. I like lots. Lot lots, actually. Heh.

Phooh. Let me take a breather.

The one on the right is my favourite shot of all. Taken at sunset, at the waterfront of the Mekong River in Nong Khai, the border town. He had run down the stairs and took a high leap, thrashing his slippers while doing so. Then he jumped and sat on the barricade to read his scriptures. I sneaked quietly but he caught me, gave a smile as a gesture of giving permission to snap. So I paparazzied away. Aiyo. He is so handsome la. Don’t you think so too?

The one on the left is equally cool. He amazed us all by conversing excellent English. He told us that he just joined as a novice less than a year so that he could get his higher education paid for. And we also exchanged email addresses, coz he wanted to further improve his English. How cool is that?

After the second day, my newfound travel mates got into the concept of my new obsession with monks, and started looking out for new victims for me to ‘attack’. That was kinda funny.

Below are five more shots which I liked, especially the 4 monks enjoying the simplistic yet refreshing Nong Khai iced coffee which costs 120 baht per cup.

So how? Like the shots or not?

i’m too sexy for this tee*

2006-10-30T11:26:00.000+08:00

Hello there. I am back!

One of the first things I did the morning after I reached home was to dress Smokey in the FBI t-shirt which I bought from the Jatujak weekend market.

I honestly thought it looked really cute on him, but our opinions contradict…In the failing attempt to get out of the tee, he decided to appease himself by scratching me on both my arms. Most friends thought I deserved the ill-treatment; rationalizing that what goes around comes around. Sigh. All I wanted to do was to get him a souvenir. Obviously he has no understanding of that concept.

Or maybe he felt uncomfortable coz the tee was a bit too small for him. I had underestimated his plumpness.

Anyway, I personally interpreted FBI as Feline Body Inspector. Heh.

hey ma*

2006-10-17T13:29:00.000+08:00

This coming October 22nd marks the 5th anniversary of my mum’s sudden demise. Though I have learnt to place her memories at the back of my mind in other months of the year, I still find October a stiff month to pass by. Maybe this explains why I try to get away at around this time, in attempt to numb the pain. To numb my missing her sarcasm. Her wit. Her dirty jokes. Her sharp tongue. And it’s tough sometimes to face the fact that I no longer have someone to call ‘mother’.

One of her nicknames is ‘Alice’. Simply coz she loved the song ‘Living Next Door To Alice’ by the band, Smokie.

She was around 21 when this picture was taken. She’s such a beauty, isn’t she? Gosh, I miss her so.

[Read Bonda]

Laos ah, wait wait, I am kambing soon*

2006-10-16T11:27:00.000+08:00

Being raised in a small town, I have this thing for serene landscape; peace and quiet, away from this concrete jungle with hazardous hazy skies called home. I am always game for anything that includes mountains. That’s why I believed I could be a mountain goat in my past life. Mmbeckk!

Taking advantage of the long festive holidays next week, I made a split second decision join a tour group to visit Laos. I will also be in Bangkok for the very first time; and my friend Gib will be my personal tour guide.

Here’s the itinerary:
Oct 19 KUL - overnight bus to Hatyai
Oct 20 Hatyai – overnight train to Bangkok
Oct 21 Bangkok – overnight train to Nong Khai
Oct 22 Nong Khai
Oct 23 Nong Khai – Vientiane
Oct 24 Vientiane - Vang Vieng
Oct 25 Vang Vieng – Vientiane
Oct 26 Vientiane - Nong Khai - Udon Thani – Bangkok
Oct 27 Bangkok (Shopping!!!)
Oct 28 Bangkok – KUL

Take care now.

P/S
Happy Deepavali and Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri!
Think of me when you feed your face with muruku, vade, lemang and serunding.

do you love me?*

2006-10-12T16:26:00.000+08:00

This morning Mr Smokes meowed at me for food.

I asked him if he wanted the wet food in a sachet.
He replied with a soft meow.

Then I asked him if he knows that I love him.
Again a soft meow.

Then I asked him if he loves me.
Silence.

I asked again.
Silence.

Then I told him if he does not love me, I will not open the sachet.
He gave a loud roar.

HELP WANTED*

2006-10-11T12:02:00.000+08:00

A good plumber to be specific.
Cat getting too fat.
Kept sitting in the toilet sink.
Now sink is broken and near collapse.
So please help, if you know of any good one.

If good looking with good bod, better still.
Heh.

Thanks in advance.

what a difference a day made*

2006-10-04T13:00:00.000+08:00

Yesterday was quite a bad day...but it turned for the better at the stroke of midnight.

First I realised I had misplaced my passport. I know it is somewhere in the house; but the question is in which crevise is it hiding? I looked high and low, turned the house upside down but it was not to be found. I can't go for my hols if I don't find it! Aiyaya...

Then I had to make a big deposit in the toilet. When I flushed, my specs fell down and got flushed away. Shite!!! (Pun not intended) Guess? brand some more! Now I am as blind as a bat! And have to spend unnecessary money to get a new one. Looking at my current circumstances, the beggar down the street is richer than me! Sigh.

Thereafter, I did my weekly laundry. When I placed my clothes on the balcony temporarily while I place the clothing on the hanger one by one, my red thong decided to take a dive and commit suicide. Again. Double shit!

Failing to comprehend my luck, I rallied a few friends to help me pray together about the passport. Then at the stroke of midnight, I had a strong hunch to open my book cabinet, took out an envelope on the 3rd bottom shelf and walla! the passport fell onto my lap. God is so Great!

So all ended well...
I got my passport.
The shit in the sewage can see better now.
And the Indon cleaner has a new red lacy thong.
Yay?

nothing like home*

2006-09-22T20:06:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, we helped out at a shoot of a local tv station's weekly segment. The location - a datuk's villa up on a hill overlooking Damansara and KL city skyline. The size of the mansion was unbelievable, considering it was actually 4 houses under 1 roof, each with a separate entrance. The hall has 3 chandeliers, countless gold colored or plated household and decorative items. And then there's the Olympic size swimming pool and can you believe this, a helipad! In summary, it was filled with L-U-X-U-R-Y.

Then I went back to my own small apartment. Where the only small hint of luxury is my new L-shaped sofa. After the shower, I slipped into my old pyjama pants and RM3 pagoda tee and thereafter laid on the sofa with a good book in hand and a mug of hot Milo kosong. Yeah Yeah Yeahs were crooning in the background. Thereafter, Smokey came and laid sideways on my left.

It was then it hit me. Even without all those luxuries, I would not swap anything. I am already in my own heaven with Angel Smokey on earth. I'm blessed.

Have a great weekend, y'all.

a plan gone awry*

2006-09-05T11:38:00.000+08:00

6 random facts*

2006-09-04T12:29:00.000+08:00

Consuela, this is for you, babe.

This is another meme, which I am supposed to write 6 random facts about myself.
Only 6??? Ha. Here goes.

I am like a cat; I am very scared of water but I do try to bathe at least once a day.
I can’t swim and I have a phobia of drowning.
When I was 25, [which was last year! Ha!] I realized I have 2 left feet – to my horror, I could not follow Paula Abdul’s Cardio Dance steps, even after it was played on super slow motion. But I think it’s Paula’s fault mostly, her instructions were as confusing as her comments on American Idol. Bleh.
I am a caffeine addict - I drink at least 3 cups of coffee daily.
I forced my mum to send me for Jawi tuition from a Quran teacher when I was 9, after getting “F” scores for 2 months, and I hated having a red mark on my report card. Oh, after the tuition, I scored ‘A’ all the way. But I can’t remember anything beyond alif, ba, ta now. Sigh.
In 2003, when I was on holiday in Pulau Manukan, Sabah, I met an old Norwegian chap from Oslo who lives next to Morten Harket’s parents and had wanted to introduce me to him. I was stupid, I said no, when my heart said yes. Sigh.

genius strikes again*

2006-08-29T11:34:00.000+08:00

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, let’s begin the induction of a rare breed by the name of Pete Teo. Why a ‘rare breed’, you ask? Good question. Now, the problem is I don’t know how to answer that. Coz this man is too deep and intelligent, I don’t know where to even begin…

The fateful date: 9 August 2003. I got to know this man who shattered two of my personal childhood beliefs and I am still recovering from the tremor. Even at the tender age of 8, my beliefs were: (1) I would never take any interest in a Cinapek. (2) I had buried the idea of motherhood, simply coz I don’t ever want to. But this man got me hooked like the possessed from the first line of ‘Arms of Marianne’, with his voice, his wit, his hardcore passion for what he believed in, his powderful England, his insomniac ways, his humility and most of all, his never-say-die attitude towards life. (This is kinda ironic considering the ‘suicidal’ theme of Rustic.). He represented the new breed of Cinapek; the one who looks like the head gangster of Kepong Baru but with the upbringing of Nottinghill. Ha. And the more I know him, he ended being the poster boy I want to paste on my wall if ever my maternal instincts decide to raise from the grave and give a hard kick. Next to his twin sister by the name of Dakota Fanning. They represent the type of children I want to have – obedient, clever and speak articulately. Heh.

So I began spreading word about him better than I spread the gospel, so much so that people began tagging me as his stalker, which is funny coz it was those who called me his stalker that did the stalking work for me. At most times, I am at the comfort of my sofa reading or drooling at Colin Firth over the 100th time of Bridget Jones Diary and I will get smses informing me of his whereabouts, what he is wearing, who he is with, which paper he appears in, which page etc. The information given were so detailed, I can safely tell you that on 31 March 2006, he was at Restoran OK in Taman Tun buying a pack of chicken rice wearing a purple shirt and denim jeans. After that, he also bought a pack of ciggs. Am I scary or what? Trust me, not really. I was actually on my way to Singapore to have Damien Rice for dinner that night. Ha.

Again, it’s ironic that I also got hold of his second album, called ‘Television’ on the same date 3 years later – 9 August 2006. I cannot stress enough how great this album is. Every song is hit worthy; superbly written and so intelligently arranged, you cannot help but adore this man to the core. Or stalk him to the centre of the earth. As you know, all the musicians I had written about so far are those I really believed in. In my book, Pete Teo leads the pack.

Go check out his new website here which he created himself after much digging into the html and javascripts books. That’s why I call him Genius, simply coz he is. Go say hello on his guestbook and tell him I sent you. Go enjoy his pirate jest on his blog section. Go read his studio diaries.

Go buy his new album called Television, which he wrote in the 2 months when he turned into a couch potato. But it took approximately 18 months to produce. According to Pete, if you scrutinize his lyrics and the chord sequences, you are bound to stumble upon fascinating repeated motifs; some hidden, some not. If you do, go tell him your new find.

Go, go, go buy…This will be the best investment you ever made in 2006. I vouch by it.

[Read ‘A Rustic Analysis’ here]

incest*

2006-08-28T15:23:00.000+08:00

This morning at 4.16am, I woke to find Mr. Smokey biting on my right jaw and nibbling on my earlobe with a funny erotic purring. I wacked him hard on the head [the top one la!]

I swear, one of these days this cat is gonna rape me...
Help!

just a peck*

2006-08-22T10:24:00.000+08:00

If you think the wedding of the year was yesterday, think again. It happened on 12 August 2006 la. In the industrial town of Kulim, in my home state of Kedah. Where two soul mates merged to one in holy matrimony – one from an under-developed town and one from down under. Heh.

Though I had to drive 3.5 hours to be where Yvy is, I think it was worth it. And the long drive allowed me time to think and ponder over some crucial life details. Prior to the long drive, I finally got myself a CD player in the car [Yay!], so I was well entertained along the way. I had loads of crooners hitching the ride with me, in the likes of Benjamin Costello, Damien Rice, Thom Yorke, Cat Power, Nick Drake, Death Cab For Cutie, Josh Rouse, Ben Harper and Pete Teo. Along the way, I finally saw some blue Malaysian skies, but not as blue as the Oz skies I had come to love.

The wedding was simple and most lovely. I learnt from Yvy’s friends from Kluang that her mom sewed her wedding gown as well as those for the flower girls. And also her sexy bareback olive green sari dress, which she got to show off her fairy tattoos. Awesome is the word.

The dinner was quite fun, they had a live band playing the oldies, old couples went up dancing the cha-cha and some tuned up the old hips with some Chubby Checker’s twisting. Some young blokes also went up to show off some odd moves, but all were done in the name of fun.

I sat at the same table as her hometown friends from Kluang. So I learnt new things about Yvy from people closest to her and made new friends. That night, her two friends, Geraldine and Nick bunked in with me and entertained me with their twosome philharmonic orchestra of sorts. Luckily I was dead tired, so I slept through like a baby. The next morning, I had a good chat with Nick who is doing his medical practical in Moscow. Nice guy.

We all checked out around 11.00am. I returned home to Sungai Petani, the town famous for various wrong reasons – the RM39K town clocks questioned by the ACAs, the hospital baby snatching cases, rape case at the Cinta Sayang golf course, and also the place where Datuk K married the first wife. Bleh. It was to be a short trip home, but I managed to eat my favourite chicken rice, special pasembur and tapau the mee rebus for dinner. My aunt cooked her signature dish – perut ikan (translation: fish stomach) and gave me a whole pot to bring home. Yum.

Anyway, last Sunday, Ted and Yvy came down to KL to sort out some nonsense tail-ends for their registration. We were to celebrate their 1st week wedding anniversary! So I met up with them along with Wendy, an old friend of Yvy’s. Ted wanted to play pool (or was it snooker?) so everyone got roped in. Yvy referred it as my ‘virgin’ pool game, which turned out quite all right considering I hit home some balls. Me quite good with the stick. Heh.

During the game, I asked Ted what’s with the peck on the cheek after they were announced as husband and wife. Honestly, that was like an anti-climax. I was expecting some wicked lips chomping from him, but nooooo, all we got was a simple pecking. If I had blinked, I would have missed it! For a moment, I wondered if she married an Ah Beng instead. Just a peck! Aiyo. Who would have thought! Yvy, seriously la woman…

But I damn forgiving. They compensated the hot kissing bit during the dinner tho.

Ted & Yvy, this siao char boh wishes you both to be surrounded with endless love, good sex [Bondi Beach?], good communication sampai ke anak cucu cicit tot mot mat salleh. God Bless.

sunset in motion*

2006-08-14T13:24:00.000+08:00

My dear Apoo, this is for you.
Eat your heart out!

silly bird*

2006-08-13T10:29:00.000+08:00

This is specially for BM. Hope it works!
Took this at Ayer's Rock. I think it's funny coz he is attacking his own reflection!

ozcapade* [Pt 3b]

2006-08-09T12:21:00.000+08:00

I had actually missed out these 2 shots earlier. I find the Glendambo sign hilarious. Don’t you think? Anyway, there were not that many flies as stated as it was drawing close to winter. Summer is the peak season, apparently. Glendambo is a service centre on the Stuart Highway and was the last fuel stop we made before heading to Coober Pedy. As said earlier, the road leading to Coober Pedy is all desert, whereby when you get bored, you can play a road trip game called ‘Spot The Tree’. The landscape is so flat; it could easily be the new benchmark to some unfortunate women’s chests. *evil laugh*

Day 8 – Coober Pedy to Uluru

We stopped for breakfast at Marla which is situated at the northern end of the Oodnadatta Track; it’s 160km away from the Northern Territory border, population 150. It replaced Oodnadatta as the official regional centre when the Ghan railway line was re-routed in 1980. I had wanted to buy 2 of the Marla fridge magnets, which bears the same signage design as per the shot, but reduced it to 1 upon realizing that it costs AUD$5 each. The old man at the counter was so kind; he gave me, the tourist on tight budget, a free cuppa of coffee with the purchase. When I asked if he was sure about the freebie, he said “Oh sure, love, it’s only sugar, coffee and water.” Such a sweet man. And I like how the elderly, both the men and women, always refer to me as “love”. Nice.

We then stopped at Curtain Springs Station to fuel up and to empty our bladders. Prior to that, on the road, Christian and I were grinning like doped pigs upon seeing Mt.Connor, which we mistaken for Uluru. See if you can spot the diff. You could? Liar! Pants on fire! Anyway, Christian seemed happy seeing the camels in front of the station, stating that he had finally met his long lost Australian relatives. Haa.

We reached the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, at around 4ish. We visited the Cultural Centre, where we shown various documentaries on the Anangu (local Aboriginal traditional owners) version to the origin of Ayer’s Rock’s formation. From the cultural centre, you can see the Ayer’s Rock, which is the world’s biggest monolith, from a distance. Honestly, from this point forth, I was uplifted spiritually. I was high with excitement that I am finally seeing this mother of a rock. It has always been on my list of places to visit before I die.

At around 5.30pm, we headed to the designated viewing area to witness the sunset. It was slightly disappointing as the sun was not very strong, so we didn’t get that infamous vermillion/orangey color formation. But we had loads of fun goofing around; taking various group pictures i.e. Asian, Brit, German, Men, and Women teams. Watto prepared some assorted biscuit bites with 3 delicious dips. And there was also champagne to celebrate the moment. I thought for once I shall not be a party pooper and decided to take a drink, but after 2 sips, I felt like throwing up and decided to give the balance of the drink to Justin, a young Brit bloke. Drinking and smoking just do not get along with my system.

That night we stayed at the Ayer’s Rock Resort. For dinner, we had Watto’s special beer bread with 2 different types of chicken stew. I helped to make the coleslaw. And thereafter, the rest of the team had BBQ kangaroo’s tail, which costs AUD$7.50. Even though I yearned to taste kangaroo meat again, I decided against it as I was 22nd in line to take a bite off the tail, and honestly, I don’t fancy tasting other people’s saliva. Bleh.

Also, we were asked to make a decision whether to climb Uluru or to take the base walk instead. Though climbing is not prohibited, the Anangu people prefer if you respect their wish not to do so, as the rock is sacred to them. Honestly, I was torn in between, so I made a small prayer leaving the decision to God instead.

That night was the first of 2 nights of camp out; each to sleep in his/her swag (a canvas-covered bed roll used in the outback). Fearing to go through another freezing night after the bad night at Rawnsley Park, I decided to sleep inside the tent. At around 4.00am, I woke to the sounds of pitter-patters around me. It had rained. You can’t imagine how glad I was to be inside the tent. And it also meant, God had made the choice obvious - I was to do the base walk as the climb is closed due to the rain.

Day 9 – Uluru to Kata Tjuta & Kings Canyon

We left the camp at around 6.00am to Uluru again for the base walk. The rain has stopped but the air was still damp and the temperature was cold. The 9.4km base walk took about 2.5 hours. Surprisingly I didn’t feel tired at all. Along the walk, you could see various parts of the rock which was awesome. At one point, the sun was so strong; we managed to capture the majestic orangey color formation on the rock. That was spellbounding. Another awesome moment was when we caught a small rainbow next to the rock. Brilliant. In my heart, I thanked God all the way for this magnificent moment, which is due to the said drizzle. Apparently, this is the first rain in a long, long time.

After the walk, near to our bus, I witnessed these 2 birds doing some sort of ‘synchronized wings-flap’. They alternate the flapping of their wings from left to right to wade off the rain. So cute. And what was also noteworthy was at that moment, I heard "Duelling Banjos" by Eric Weissberg & Steve Mandel being played, by Watto on the bus. I have not heard the song for a long time! I've always liked the sound of banjo, which is why I like Travis. So in a way, I was not surprised when he started playing Travis' songs after that. Nice.

After lunch we headed to Kata Tjuta (The Olgas). To the Anangu people, Kata Tjuta means ‘many heads’. Apparently there are 36 of them ‘heads’ in total. At a certain angle, the place resembles Homer Simpson sleeping on his back, with his hands above his tummy. Look at the bottom right shot and tell me if you see that uncanny resemblance. Head on the left, legs on right. Can you see it?

We walked through The Valley Of The Wind, which was breathtaking. The walk took about 3.5 hours, but it was well worth it. Honestly, I like this better than the Uluru base walk. The scenery was much more splendid.

On the top row, 2nd shot from the left, is the shot of those dome-like bushes, which look so cushiony comfortable. According to Watto, if you ever sit on any one of them, you’re likely to spend the next 2 weeks plucking those damn thorns from your ass. Sounds like a good place to push your enemy to, eh?

On the short walk back to our bus, Bertie was insisting Eri to reveal her age. I lied and told him she is 31 years old and he decided I was lying. I defended by saying that we Asians always look at least 12-15 years younger, and that I was actually 45 years of age. He asked for my secret to staying youthful, which I replied “I drink virgin blood once a month!”. Of course he didn’t believe me, and was persistent to know the secret. “Do you smoke?”, he asked. I replied no. “Do you drink?” and I replied no. “Damn! That’s where I went wrong!” and started cursing in murmurs. That was funny.

After the walk, we drove to Kings Canyon’s Resort to stay at the campsite. This was the last night on the road trip, which made me kinda sad. Time really flies when you’re having fun.

Dinner was great, especially the Honey & Soy Chicken. This Watto chap is a damn good cook, I must say. After my return, I tried the same recipe and it turned out just as wonderful.

Day 10 – Kings Canyon To Alice Springs

The next morning, we were treated to a sumptuous breakfast of chicken sausages instead of the usual peanut butter and jam or cereals. We left about 7.30pm to climb Kings Canyon, which is located at the Watarrka National Park.

The initial staircase climb was called the “Heart Attack Climb” as it was very steep and scary. This climb took approximately 1 hour. After that terrifying stage, it was all hunky dory. The view at the canyon was both scary and magnificent. You have to crawl slowly on your tummy to the edge for the view of the canyon walls which soars over 100m high.

Along the way, we were also shown the ‘sexiest’ tree in Australia – a ghost oak tree – which gives off natural SPF properties from the white powder from its bark. This tree is also unique as it is also the natural habitat for 2 pigmy koalas! You have to go and see these koalas yourself; they are out of this world! Each of them is only 5cm tall! Awesome!

Towards the end, we walked through a narrow gorge to find the waterhole at the Garden of Eden. There, Nancy and I decided to take our shoes off and dip our legs onto the cool water. Bertie decided to take a swim!

There are lots of movies being taken at Kings Canyon; the famous one being ‘The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert’. I have yet to watch the movie, so I can’t elaborate. And I doubt if I can get hold of it now. In case you’re interested, it stars Hugo Weaving.

After a heavy lunch, we headed towards Alice Springs, our final destination. The drive took about 5 hours. It was on this journey I learnt from Watto that in Australian English, ‘dawn’ is referred to as ‘sparrow’s fart’. Chuckle.

We reached Alice Springs at around 6.30pm. Nancy and the 2 Japanese girls (Eri and Seiko) decided to join me in staying at Annie’s Place. We were all supposed to meet at the Melankas Restaurant cum Disco for dinner at 7.30pm. I had kangaroo BBQ, of course! All I can afford to say is that it was delicious beyond words. I shall stop here while I have some form of control over my drooling.

1/2 Day - ALICE SPRINGS

Excerpt from Lonely Planet on the origin of Alice Springs:
The Alice, as it is usually known, started life as a repeater station built in 1871 on the Overland Telegraph Line between Adelaide and Darwin. The station was built near a permanent waterhole in the bed of the normally dry Todd River. The river was named after Charles Todd, Superintendent of Telegraphs back in Adelaide, and the waterhole was named after Alice, his wife.

What else can I tell you about Alice Springs? Not much actually. I did not allocate time to stay longer as I had to catch an 11.00am flight to Melbourne. The night before, Nancy and I took a quick stroll to Todd Street, the main shopping street. It’s somewhat like Adelaide, I guess, neither too big nor too small. Population - 28K.

In Alice, there are also lots of festivals. But one which I would love to come back and witness is the ASSA ABLOY Henley-on-Todd Regatta, which happens on every September. It’s an unusual boat race. Watto aptly described it akin to the Flintstones’ style of boat racing – whereby all the boats are without bottoms (see the bottom right pix) and are powered by feet! And the Todd River has to be dry. It was recorded in the Guinness World Book of Records as being the only regatta ever cancelled because the river was flooded. Amazing, huh?

3D4N Melbourne

I reached Melbourne around 2.45pm and Tracy came to fetch me at the airport. I have not seen her she migrated in March. I spent hours telling her about the road trip, some details more elaborated than others. We had Nando’s for dinner. She then fetched me to Lisa’s house in Doncester East. That night, I had a great sleep on proper warm bed. And that’s how I started being lazy.

I guess it was being in the comfort of a home after roughing it out for 2 ½ weeks in and out of hostels and dorms and camping tents. And my wallet was running thin. So I only went about the city for 2 days, where I visited my ex-boss who is currently working around St. Kilda Street area and mostly had the most enjoyable 2 nights of cooking for Lisa, Joe the husband and Stephanie the sis-in-law. On one night, I cooked my signature dish - ‘Spicy Tuna Mushroom Spaghetti’ with fresh mushroom, fresh tomatoes and a few sundried tomatoes. Gosh, that version has to be the most delicious ever. I swear. It must be those sun-dried tomatoes la.

On the 3rd night, I bought some raw ingredients from Prashan Market, next to St.Kilda Street and cooked a ‘ciplak’ version of Assam Laksa as we lacked some other key ingredients. It turned out okay too. Ihad wanted to make another of my specialty - Yam Cake, but we could not find any yam. At Prashan Market, I got myself some fresh nougats and tomato pate. The shop owner thought I was still a student. Ha. You have no idea how boosted my ego was. But having said that, I love visiting markets in any western country. The fruits and food always look so fresh and makes me hungry.

On the last night, we had dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant in BoxHill. It was so yummy. Thereafter, Lisa and Joe took me for a drive around the city before dropping me at the airport in time to catch my 1.00am flight.

I have chosen Stereophonic's "Dakota" to remember this trip by. [As per James Blunt's "Goodbye My Lover' for the Indian trip and Nick Drake's "Pink Moon" for my trip to Paris. Soundtracks of my life. Heh.]

Lastly, I will end with Bugs Bunny’s - “That’s All Folks!” pic. From here onwards, I will be taking a short break to attend Yvy’s wedding this Saturday, and also to go back to my hometown to sort out some personal errands. Till then, be good.

ozcapade* [Pt 3a]

2006-08-04T10:19:00.000+08:00

Hello. So Friday is finally here and so is the final part of the Oz trip. I thank you all for the high level of tolerance shown in cutting me some slack on this. I’ve taken the trouble to make the postcards slightly different, somewhat less rigid (i.e. square) and I like the result of this painstaking effort. As said, I enjoyed the outback best. I hope you like them too and that it is worth the wait.

Unfortunately though, I have to split Part 3 into 2 parts as I found it waaay too long.

Day 5 – Adelaide To Parachilna

We waited at the ATA (Adventure Tours Australia) office, situated behind our hostel block, about 10 minutes walk, at 6.30am for the bus. There were about 11 of us from the Melbourne to Adelaide trip who will continue on this 6-day excursion as well; so it was kinda nice to see familiar faces. Nancy (the American Chinese girl) and I had planned to quickly register and park our asses on the front seat, right behind the tour guide. We decided that it is best to be seated in front as the view is better, and also for the slightly deaf like me, I could hear better.

We left slightly after 7.00am. Our tour guide’s name is Watto, akin to one of the Star War’s alien characters. But no, he does not look like an alien. In fact, I thought he looks uncannily like Thom Yorke; only brawnier and taller, and without the lazy eye. Upon hearing the name, I tried to tell a joke to Nancy by imitating Eri, one of the 2 Japanese girls on the trip. It goes something like this…

Eri: Err harro, wat-to neh is your name-o?
Watto: Watto
Thinking that he had asked her “What?” after failing to comprehend her question, she repeated the question and the cycle goes on and on.

I gave an evil snort, pleased with my own joke, only to be met with Nancy’s rolling eyes and WTF expression. So I quickly shut my mouth and moved myself to the passenger seat next to Watto, which provided the best view of all.

About an hour into the trip, Watto asked us to introduce ourselves with the following facts – (i) Name (ii) Age (iii) Profession (iv) First and Most recent kiss (v) Most memorable place of visit (vi) Reason to go Alice Springs. I was second in line after him. Being in the advertising line, I had mastered the “If-You-Can’t-Convince-Them-Then-Confuse-Them” trick. So I used that to get away from telling my age and about most my recent kiss. Honestly, I simply cannot tell of my affair with Keith Urban, I do not want to be the target of unnecessary envy. And I am not the type to kiss and tell. Heh. So I gave the bluffer’s version of my first kiss story – I was 8 and having lusted over Kurt Russell, I kissed him on the TV screen. And I also told about the millionaire Italian gem trader I met in Pushkar.

Honestly, no one can accuse me of a boring introduction. It may be filled with BS, but definitely not boring. Ha.

We stopped at Clare Valley, the favourite wine region of many South Australians, for breakfast. We (the group of 11 from first trip) headed to the only opened deli. The pastry repertoire was quite impressive and I decided to have vegetarian quiche with a hot cup of latte. I must say the Australian coffee is extremely aromatic and delicious. After that, we passed by the town of Laura before we stopped at Melrose for lunch. I had earlier asked Watto why the towns along this stretch are of female names. He actually took the trouble to find out that the town Laura was named after the local station master’s wife. Women power reign here, yay!

As I was still full from the quiche, I decided to skip the sandwich for lunch and take a quick stroll around Melrose, situated 265km from Adelaide; population 200. I found the town charming and artistic in its own subtle way. Like the Flinders Explorers metal sculpture and the floral paintings on most of its lamp posts. I visited the Serendipity Art & Craft Gallery nearby which had an exhibition titled “Our Mother’s Work” which showcased a lot of handmade needlework like quilts and croquets, old wedding photographs which I am a sucker for, old costumes etc. This is in conjunction with the Heritage Week celebration. At the gallery, I met a friendly old chap who greeted me “Selamat Makan” upon knowing I am Malaysian. I think he meant “Selamat Datang”, but I didn’t think it was polite to correct him. He had visited KL and Penang last year.

Nearby the outdoor area where we parked for lunch, there were 3 mobile homes which I found unique. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. Nice. And somewhat funny. It’s really amazing that such a small town as this has so much to offer.

We passed through the Southern Flinders Ranges, renowned for its unique ruggedness. I honestly cannot remember if we had passed through Quorn, the historic railway township as stated in the itinerary. The first hike on this trip was to view the Aboriginal rock art at Yaurambulla Caves, which I found to be just so-so as most of the paintings have been washed away. But it was a nice, short hike.

Around 5ish, we reached Parachilna, which has the population of 5 – all of which are the hotel and hostel staff. Funnily enough, there was already a school ready in case any of the staff decided to start a family there. The classroom, according to Christian (one of the German tour mates, and one of my favourite people during the trip), was fully equipped with tables, chairs, blackboard etc.

Parachilna is a favourite place for movie makers. The Prairie Hotel has been featured in many movies like Mad Max. I think it is really beautiful and very cowboy-like. The deco inside the hotel pub and restaurant areas is very homely and full of warmth. Here, they serve all sorts of meat such as kangaroo, emu and camel. They also serve rabbit satay for AUD$2 per stick. They serve satay, can you imagine? I felt at home for a bit.

Apparently, the house next to the hotel belongs to the original Mad Max, whom the movie based the character on. So I made sure I took shots of Mr. Max’s front and backyard and his cactus plants. I would gladly show you the pics for AUD$5. Heh.

What excited me most about Parachilna was the fact that the dam and railway station at the back of the hostel were featured in the movie ‘Rabbit Proof Fence’, as you can see below. Nice eh? If you have not seen the movie, you should. It’s a heartwarming true story of 3 mixed Aboriginal kids who found their way home from the detention place with the guide of the rabbit proof fence, which is the longest fence in the world at 1837km (1139 miles).

Oh, I forgot. The sunset here is also awesome. It’s not as picturesque as The Twelve Apostles, but it’s definitely unique. We caught the 2.85km long coal train which passes through from Port Augusta. Most of us followed Watto’s tip to place coins on the lines for the train to squash them flat. In the whole excitement, I had forgotten all about it, but was lucky enough to find one for keeps.

That night, I had my first bite of kangaroo meat for dinner. It was the best tasting meat I have ever tasted! If you think Australian beef is yummy, this is ten times yummier. I shall refrain myself from elaborating on this, lest I drool all over the keyboard. I still dream about it on some cold nights. Yum.

Day 6 – Flinders Ranges & Wilpena Pound

The next morning, we arrived at Wilpena Pound to climb Mt. Ohlssen-Bagge. The hike took about 6 hours. As I mentioned before, while I enjoy hiking as an outdoor activity, I seriously dread the ascending bit. So is it any wonder that I was the last one to reach the peak? Not really. The view from the peak was quite breathtaking. I told Watto that I had told Jen if the view had been disappointing, I would have thrown him down. At some parts on the hike down, I was walking next to the Germans; namely Christian, Noab and Stefan. Having my eyes closed, I can almost imagine being taken hostage to a detention camp by a group of Nazis. Think of movie 'Life Is Beautiful'. Haa.

After the hamburger lunch, we took another short 2.5 hr hike to Arkaroo Rock to see the Aboriginal cave paintings. I was completely drained out by this time and for once, I was whining. So when Watto asked if we have any questions, I quickly asked if this was the last hike. “For today, it is,” he snorted his reply. Not a brilliant question, I agree, but definitely relevant in proportion to my energy level.

We stayed the night at Rawnsley Park sheep station. Upon reaching our respective dorms and picking my bed, I quickly took a shower. Unashamedly I tell you I did not bathe at Parachilna coz I was too lazy to. After that, I headed to the dining area and got acquainted with the 2 French girls – Miss Ingrid and Anna. I shared with them the places of interests in Thailand and Hong Kong as they were heading there in the next month.

After that, Watto asked if I know how to cook rice. Without thinking, I told him I was good at it and that it would only take 30 minutes. When the answers left my mouth, I realized that I have only cooked rice for 1 pax all this while and with the help of a rice cooker. Damn. I’m screwed. So in fear of getting scolded, I struggled to cook the rice for 25 pax, in a giant pot over the stove. Even though the weather was cold, I think my forehead was drenched with sweat, fearing the rice will be uncooked and hard and inedible. Most of all, I feared having the hard rice being thrown to my face. Anyway, the rice turned out slightly uncooked [shy also!] but everyone swallowed their meals like hungry crocodiles. I think it was Watto’s Green Chicken Curry and Beef Stew that saved the day. I secretly told myself to never volunteer to cook rice for the rest of the trip. Anyway, at the end of the meal, Christian and his wife, Mrs. Ingrid complimented that the rice tasted good. I think they were just being nice.

That night, after a short session heating ourselves at the campfire, I felt pooped and decided to call it a night at around 9.00pm. I woke half frozen at around 12.30am and couldn’t sleep after that. It was freezing cold as there was no heater in the room. And even though my bladder was full, I was too scared to run to the bathroom, situated 100m away, for fear of snakes. I finally dragged myself out of bed at 4.30am to empty my bladder and thereafter, headed to the kitchen to toast my hands on the toaster. This has to be the worst night of all. I was lucky I didn’t get frost bite on my toes!

Day 7 – Rawnsley Park to Coober Pedy

The journey to Coober Pedy, the findings were awesome. After passing through Port Augusta, we could see bits of Spencer Gulf, which will be the last time we will see any water coastline along the road trip. Hereafter, it’s land and desert all the way to Alice Springs.

We had lunch at a park in Woomera, a quiet government town with a very interesting history. Woomera was used to launch top-secret experimental British rockets and conduct tests in an abortive European project to send a satellite into orbit during the 50s – 60s. So it was not a surprise when we chanced upon the Missile Park, which showcases all the remnants of the said rocket tests and satellite launches. It’s very interesting, if you ask me.

After which, we took a short stroll to Lake Hart, a salt lake where they shoot the rockets over. So we were not allowed to walk too far onto the lake. The view was awesome. I loved every shot taken here. The combination of the khaki-ish ground amidst the brilliant blue sky and white clouds was awesome. On the bottom right shot, you can see how big the lake is judging by how small the people are in proportion. Amazing!

After Lake Hart, it was all desert till we reached Coober Pedy, the opal capital of Australia. This place is a melting pot, for a population of 3000, but of 47 nationalities. How amazing is that?

Excerpt from Lonely Planet:
The name ‘Coober Pedy’ is from an Aboriginal language and is said to mean ‘whiteman’s hole in the ground’. This aptly describes the place, as about half the population lives in dugouts to shelter from the extreme climate: daytime summer temperature can soar over 50°C and the winter nights are freezing cold.

We visited the church, with an underground altar. I liked the stained glass cross at the entrance. Don’t you think it’s gorgeous? Then, we visited the Umoona Opal Mine & Museum where we were shown a documentary on opal and opal mining. At the galleria, I bought an opal fridge magnet to remember this place by. It’s by far the most expensive one – AUD$12 (approx RM35).

Coober Pedy has been described as the ‘end of the world’, due to it’s flat landscape and cones of opal mines which befits the landscape of most sci-fi movies. A lot of movies were shot here, like ‘Max Max III’ and also ‘Pitch Black’ starring Vin Diesel. At the bottom right of the postcard is the spacecraft featured in the said movie. I can almost see Yvy drooling in excitement reading this…

That night, we had dinner at an Italian pizza place, highly recommended by Watto. We had like 6 types of pizzas. All yummy. Thereafter we headed to the local pub cum disco at the 4-star hotel. I didn’t stay too long there as I was sluggish from lack of sleep the night before. We slept in dugout dorms, which was truly an experience. Tomorrow, we leave at 5.30am.

(To be continued)

main bola*

2006-07-21T16:45:00.000+08:00

I am not sure if the WC dust and head-butting jokes have settled, especially now that we're in the midst of Malaysian Cup. Bleh. Anyway, 3 Saturdays ago, I joined Emelia and her Bangsar church members to Tapah for a full day of OAlympics. [OA stands for Orang Asli]

There were many sporting events happening simulataneously; i.e. football for the men, handball for the women, tug-of-war rope pulling for everyone, gunny-sack jump etc. While we were there, I was stalking this 5-year old boy who was wearing Beckham's jersey. [Oi, cradle snatching ah???] After a while, I think he got sick of me following him around like a dog. But I managed to get him to pose for me on the above shot. He's such a heartbreaker, isn't he?

your brain, i want to eat...then your tongue*

2006-07-10T14:49:00.000+08:00

Have you heard? Thom Yorke's coming out with a solo album. It's called "The Eraser". Here in Malaysia, it's only available sometime next week! Oooh...that's way too long. Sigh.

Anyway, read the Rolling Stone's review here and check out the album website here.

I want to have his brain for dinner!!! Heh.

[Updated 17 July - "Great minds think alike." Check out the lyrics for my fave song in the album "Atoms For Peace". Heh. Big time perasan case la tuu..
Peel all of your layers off. I want to eat your artichoke heart. ]

oz-capade* [part 2]

2006-07-07T09:35:00.000+08:00

Hey. We meet again. As mentioned before, Part 2 will cover the first 4 days of the road trip. I will try my best to include as much details as possible, bound only by the information absorbed during the trip, as well as relevancies from brochures. Enjoy the ride.

Day 1 – Melbourne via Great Ocean Road to Princetown

At 6.15am, I was already waiting eagerly at the Xbase reception for the bus to arrive. There were 3 others with me; Samantha and Siobhan (pronounced as Cher-Von and not Sio-barn) from Ireland and Mikyung from Korea. As always, I brought up the topic on music as the ice breaker. So I told Siobhan about the Damien Rice concert experience, which surprised her as she didn’t think he would have any fan base in the AP region. I also acknowledged that she shares the same name as one of the Bananarama girls. That almost floored her. She then told me about her experience at KLIA, about how one of the immigration officers gasped in excitement, “Aah, you from Ireland! Same country as Westlife!!!” Though I managed a snigger, the embarrassment for the country was borne on my shoulder. I still feel the ache.

With Mikyung, I raised the subject of Bae Yong-Joon. Heh. She was stunned when I mentioned movies like ‘April Snow’, ‘Christmas In August’ and ‘My Sassy Girl’. Not forgetting the drama series ‘Winter Sonata’ which escalated Mr. Bae’s fame. In response, she fed me some interesting gossips, which immediately sealed the Asian sisterhood bond.

We left about 7.15am. There were, in total, 15 passengers, excluding Mark, the tour guide. Until now, I am clueless on how to describe him. He’s somewhat a crossbreed between a medium-fed Neo (when he wears his RipCurl sunnies) and stoned John Cusack in 'High Fidelity'. He’s got quite an extensive taste in music though. I can almost imagine him as a deejay in the RAAF Radio Station, which was kinda nostalgic.

We stopped at Torquay, the capital of Australia’s surfing industry, for a quick breakfast. I believe the brand RipCurl was born and bred here. There’s lots of surfing brands shops here, Quiksilver included. Shortly after, we cruised along the famous Bells Beach, and then we embarked on the famed Great Ocean Road. Jag had warned me to bring along some sour plum, in anticipation of the curvy roads, but I was fine. In fact, I could even read my book as usual. Akin on the Indian trip, David Sedaris and his oh so wicked humour accompanied me throughout the trip. The book - Me Talk Pretty One Day. On my next trip to Ladakh, I may just give him a piggy ride in exchange of daily personal humour. That would be fun. The sister, Amy could tag along as well.

Then we stopped to watch koalas, passed through Lorne and then stopped for lunch at Apollo Bay, a fishing town and beach resort. Near the market area, there housed a series of wooden sculptures by three local artists. That’s where I took this shot. Can you see the wonderful natural formation of the love shape? Amazing, eh? From Apollo Bay, we stopped to be in the midst of the Californian Redwood trees, reputed to be the biggest trees in the world, which can squeeze approximately 21 people inside its hollow base. Being amid those trees felt surreal; I can almost imagine the Little Red Riding Hood prancing around to grandma’s house with the big bad wolf waiting behind one of the trunks, calculating the best time to pounce on her. And eat her up. And then maybe Warrick Brown will come to investigate…

Thereafter we headed to Cape Otway & Otway National Park, which houses the Otway Fly, a 600m long canopy walkway, made from over 120 tonnes of steel. The Spiral Tower is 47m above the forest floor and the climb up was scary as it rocks! View from the top was awesome, as you can see.

Next destination was Port Campbell National Park, where we watched the sunset at The Twelve Apostles. In the past century, it was called the ‘Sow and Piglets’. This has to be one of the best sunsets I have ever witnessed. The rock stacks (only 8 of them left) are actually remnants of a retreating limestone coastline, with erosion rate of 2cm each year. Every picture taken came out postcard perfect. Breathtaking!

One of the stacks fell down last year, which made headline news. It was then the lyrics of the Peter, Paul & Mary’s classic came to me.

“How many years must a mountain exists, before it is washed to the sea…The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind. The answer is blowing in the wind…”

We spent the night at a hostel called the 13th Apostle. The barbecue dinner was yummilicious beyond words.

Day 2 –Princetown To Grampians NP

The next morning, we walked down the Gibson Steps to the beach to view the The Twelve Apostles up close. Thereafter, we headed to Loch Ard Gorge, named after the wreck of the Loch Ard in 1878, with 2 survivors named Tom Pearce and Eva Carmichael. The media tried to pair them up but nothing blossomed.

Further down, we visited The Arch, The Razorback, London Bridge (which did fell down), The Bay of Martyrs and The Grotto. The splashing of the waves were so forceful, I sincerely don’t think anyone will make it alive if he/she were ill-fated to have fallen over.

We stopped at Warrnambool, famous for its whale watching attraction, for lunch. I finally had my Chinese takeaway, like those you see on TV. It’s just for novelty sake, as the fried noodles were horrendous. I guess that’s one of the downside of being able to cook, coz I tend to rate food quite critically. But seriously, the noodles were awful. Portion was humongous and I only finished one fifth.

Next we reached Halls Gap, the most central town at the Grampians NP, where we visited the Brambuks National Park & Cultural Centre. The building was built to the shape of a cockatoo (brambuk) and inside, I really enjoyed the Gariwerd Dreaming Theatre multimedia narration of the traditional story of the formation of the Grampians, and the portraits of the aborigines. Honestly, I am a sucker for olden day’s photographs. They’re just awesome, in their sepia toned prints amid the red earth walls.

Thereafter, we hiked up The Pinnacle, then The Balconies and Reeds Lookout. We reached there quite late and it was almost dark when we reached the lookout, so there’s nothing much to see. But along the walk, we were surrounded by new shoots on tree trunks which suffered the wrath of the bushfire last year. It will take at least 3-5 years for full recovery. Looking at those young shoots, I felt both overwhelmed and inspired. Here’s nature’s example of picking itself up from a dark phase, moving on with life one step at a time. It’s called survival. No grouching. No whining. We humans should learn from nature sometimes.

That night, Mark cooked spaghetti. After we helped him with the preparation of the ingredients and the salad, he shooed us off to leave him with the cooking. He’s one of those solitary cooks who like to be alone in the kitchen. All of us waited anxiously at the living room area, amused with the banging sounds from the kitchen. At 9.00pm, dinner was served. Overall, the sauce looked dull with everything mashed up, somewhat like hog’s vomit, but the taste, lo behold, it was awesome! Unashamedly I tell you, I actually ate 2 plates and so did most of my tour mates.

Day 3 – Halls Gap To Adelaide

The next morning, we hiked to the bottom of the MacKenzie Falls and thereafter the Hollow Mountain. The hike took about 3 hours. We took a group shot at the peak, which was gorgeous.

After lunch in Horsham, the main commercial centre of the Wimmera, we ventured into South Australia and Bordertown. Here, we gained 30 minutes. Mark teased us if any of us had wanted to tell anyone to reveal any secret crushes; this was the chance to take on life’s challenges.

I had wanted to yelled out the infamous joke of “I love you, Mark. I want to have your baby!” People here do that all the time at gigs. And I wasn't sure if it was solely a Malaysian thing and feared the joke may just backfire. And also I’m chicken shit. So I quickly swallowed all the accumulated words from the tip of my tongue before they had the chance to fly out. I wasn’t sure how he was gonna take it and the last thing I want was for everyone to feel awkward. That would be awful.

Anyway, at Bordertown, we saw the rare White Western Grey Kangaroos and then, the Land Rover on stilts. After crossing through the Murray River, the longest river system in Australia, we reached Adelaide around 7.30pm. The first part of the road trip has ended its course. That night, most of us went out together to have Chinese dinner at Chinatown.

Day 4 – Adelaide

It’s free and easy day. In the morning, several of us walked around the Adelaide city (also the capital of South Australia) It was Sunday, so the whole place seemed serene. Adelaide is also known as the “City of Churches”; on the postcard you will see the Holy Trinity Church, built in 1838, the first Anglican church in SA.

I had lunch with Nancy, an American Chinese, in Chinatown. Thereafter, she wanted to spend a lazy afternoon at the hostel. So I ventured out to the beach town of Glenelg riding on the vintage tram from Victoria Square. Each trip costs AUD$3.50.

On the bottom right of the postcard is the picture of Victoria Square Fountain, which depicts the three rivers which Adelaide sources its water – the Murray, the Torrens and The Onkaparinga. It was created by South Australian John Dowie.

At Glenelg, I visited the Rodney Fox Shark Experience, a museum set up by Rodney Fox (of course!) who was listed in Ripley’s Believe It Or Not for surviving a horrendous shark attack in 1963. He has since dedicated his life to researching about sharks and has been called to consult on movies like Jaws.

I also visited the Bay Discovery Centre which showcases the history of Glenelg and the federation of Australia. The exhibition was very impressive. The town has lots of interesting and gorgeous looking murals which I found fascinating. And I couldn’t resist 2 scoops of Copenhagen ice-cream too.

I reached the hostel close to 9pm. We had free apple pie that night. With a hearty dessert sitting comfortably in my intestines, I finished 2 stories from Me Talk Pretty One Day and decided to call it a night. Tomorrow, a new adventure awaits.

what the...*

2006-07-05T14:51:00.000+08:00

Paris Hilton - Stars Are Blind

I don't mind spending some time
Just hanging here with you
Cuz I don't find too many guys
That treat me like you do
Those other guys all wanna take me for a ride
But when I walk their talk is suicide
Some people never get beyond their stupid pride
But you can see the real me inside
And I'm satisfied, oh no, ohh

Even though the gods are crazy
Even though the stars are blind
If you show me real love baby
I'll show you mine
I can make you nice and naughty
Be the devil and angel too
Got a heart and soul and body
Let's see what this love can do
Baby I'm perfect for you

Can someone please explain to me why this song is polluting the airwaves?????

oz-capade* [part 1]

2006-06-28T12:45:00.000+08:00

Hey you. As promised, here is the first part of my 21-days travelogue in Australia.
Itinerary of trip: 3D3N Gold Coast – 3D3N Sydney – 1D1N Melbourne – 10D9N Adelaide to Alice Springs Adventure Trip – 1N Alice Springs – 4D3N Melbourne.

Breakdown:
Part 1 – Week 1; covering Gold Coast, Sydney and Melbourne.
Part 2 – 4 days road trip from Melbourne to Adelaide.
Part 3 – 6 days road trip from Adelaide to Alice Springs and Melbourne.

If you think the Moomoo Vista was painstakingly verbose, you will soon discover that its definition can be stretched. Much, much further. While it’s partly sharing my adventure, I seriously am doing all this for my own benefit, so that I can read and reminisce them with hysterical laughter when I am old and haggard, left with only one tooth and a gigantic wart at the tip of my nose, adorning a high black tip hat, with only good memories to clench on while sipping bullshit potions. On weekends, I bake and leave sweet lollies trail to entice the young ones…

Initially, I wanted to tag the song “Down Under” by Men at Work to this post, but good taste precedes this cliché and I decided against it. Actually, honest to goodness, I have no freaking idea on how to tag it. Heh. But we shall stick to the first excuse to make me look good and keep my ego in check. Agree? Good.

I had mentioned earlier that this trip was a blessing as it was partially sponsored. And two weeks prior to the trip, I was introduced to a printer who used to print Lonely Planet books, and he gave me a free copy on Australia. The book proved to be most useful throughout the trip.

It’s been almost a month since I returned and not a day goes by without me waking up hoping and wishing I had the super power to turn back the clock to the first day of my road trip. Somewhat like Groundhog Day, but with a cycle that lasts for 10 days. I tremendously enjoyed the outback (except for those irritating flies), versus the cities.

As starters, below are 7 shots of me at various venues. I didn’t realise vanity has possessed me, but I think the shots are cool nonetheless. They were taken in the following order: Sydney, Great Ocean Road, Parachilna, Mt Ohlssen-Bagge, a park near the Missile Park in Woomera, Lake Hart (a salt lake also at Woomera) and Yulara, overlooking Mt Connor (aka the bluffer Ayer’s Rock). Upon placing the shots in a row, I discovered that my hips tend to park on its right when I stand still, as though the gravity pull is dominant on that side. Or maybe it’s was the bad hip replacement job…

GOLD COAST

The only 2 things I liked about Gold Coast were Movie World and Harbour Town.

Movie World was fun because I finally get to touch the BatMobile. Batman went AWOL throughout the trip or maybe coz it’s still daylight and he has to hibernate. Dunno. Don’t care. And I met and posed next to many famous characters such as Frankenstein’s monster, Marilyn Monroe, Addams Family, Shrek, Police Academy team, Tasmanian Devil, Zorro, Flash Gordon and many more. The rides were extremely fun especially Superman’s Escapade and Lethal Weapon. I came out from each ride discovering my hair could actually defy gravity!

In anticipation to “Superman Returns” the movie, I got myself a Superman dog tag. Since young, I’ve always been captivated by Superman. And no, it has nothing to do with the red tights. I think it could be the square jaw.

Harbour Town was the only time I went shopping frenzy in Australia. I bought myself 1 Nike hiking shoes, 2 pairs of boots and 3 Nine West handbags!

On the second night, on Yvy’s recommendation, I had steak at Hog’s Breath Café, an Australian local steak chain. It cost AUD$25.00 but it was yummy and worth the price, especially when someone else paid for it. Heh. But we couldn’t finish due to its gigantic portion. Next time, I know better – to order the kiddie meal instead! Thereafter, I parked myself on a bench outside the main street at Surfer’s Paradise to watch a 2-piece teenage band perform while licking my 2 scoops of Copenhagen’s ice-cream. Yum. Outside of Hard Rock Café, I took a shot of Crowded House’s star on the sidewalk. Nice. Also John “You’re The Voice” Farnham’s.

The next morning, I visited the weekend Carrara Market, which turned out to be a bore. But I managed to get myself a set of 3 miracle dirt-trapping cleaning cloths [I am, unassumingly, very domesticated.], Jennifer Weiner’s “Good In Bed” book for only AUD$3.00 and placed new battery on my watch. There, I nearly got cheated by this old Chinese woman, but she soon realised it is my face that’s pasted next to the word “cunning” and “sly” in the dictionary; not hers, so she admitted defeat. C’mon, even the Indian traders shivered at my presence. To paraphrase Phua Chu Kang – “Want to cheat me of my money, never die before leh…Don’t play play.”

SYDNEY

I reached Sydney at late Sunday morning and had to wait over an hour for the free shuttle bus to take me to my hostel – XBase Backpackers at Kent Street. That perk was offered with every 3-nights stay, and which was the reason I chose to stay there. Me is cheap.

This shot was taken from the plane and I love it lots. It gave me the impression of heaven and earth separated by a thin line of clouds.

As soon as I checked in and tidied up a bit, I headed to Queen Victoria Building to meet up with Lynn, an ex-client turned friend. She treated me to sandwich and coffee at one of the deli, over some catching up and girlie yaks. Then we headed to The Market at The Rocks, which is a weekend flea market aiming at the tourists (like me!) with knick-knacks galore. Most of the stuff was quite pricey like the cats and rooster made from some tree bark and the hand painted Ned Kelly masks. I managed to get some decent souvenirs of Sydney here though.

Thereafter my mission was to witness the 2 icons of Sydney – the Harbour Bridge and Opera House. To finally see them in their full majestic presence, the feeling was astounding. Akin to having a dream finally fulfilled after a long wait. See, I was supposed to visit Sydney back in 1998 on a client sponsored trip but my jackass of an ex-boss decided to revoke it a week prior because I had thrown in the towel. I even had the flight ticket in hand already! And I was supposed to go with this cute colleague I had lusted over the longest time! We were supposed to have a week together! Ass! Anyway, no point crying over spilt milk…I was finally there!

That night, I met up with Jag at Darling Harbour for dinner. We had Indian food. Jag was an ex-colleague, from one of my first agencies, turned great pal. He migrated to Sydney 5 years ago. He and Keepz, a Chinaman who is now happily married in Thailand, used to wait along Jalan Damansara for me to drive past and they would closely trailed my car from behind. My duty was to deliver newspaper materials to the media owners every morning. I had just passed my driving license and it was no fun driving the MD’s car. So they both will laugh their asses off every time the engine died whenever I stopped at traffic lights. I used to call them the “CB Boys” - one is Chinese and the other a Bai. Get it?

For me, nothing beats catching up with old friends. Especially great guy friends, coz they are my key sources to understand the complicated male psyche. I hold them close, especially those who saw me through various chapters of my life, and likewise, me theirs. These are friends you wanna grow old with. Geographical distance matters not, coz they are always close in your heart. Their friendship – Priceless.

Dinner lasted till about midnight. Jag had to fly to Canberra the next morning for a week-long assignment there. That was also the reason why I did not bunk in with him.

The next morning, I walked along Sydney Cove and Circular Quay, sipping coffee facing the Opera House and being trigger happy. In the afternoon, I went for my Bridge Climb. The climb lasted 3.5 hours. My session started at 4.05pm; so I saw Sydney changed from dusk to bright illuminating night lights. The climb was not as hard as I anticipated. In fact it was really fun. This is definitely one of the highlights of my life. My climb instructor was Pete, a mid-forties Robin Williams look-alike with equal funny bones in him. As I was the Slone Ranger in the group of 12, I tagged behind Pete and I had fun chatting with him. And you can trust me to ask stupid questions like “What’s the yearly suicide rate on the bridge?” etc.

Here’s copy from the fridge magnet which best illustrates the experience:
Bridge Climb Sydney – Ascend 134 metres above sea level in 252.5 metres horizontal distance, with no barriers, no sense of time, no going back, just onward, just upward, the ferries the size of matchboxes, the Opera House shrinking away across the harbour. 1,337 stairs, 1 ½ football fields above the water, and a breathtaking view of Sydney, surrounding suburbs and all the way to the mountains. My heart pounds, my legs shake, I feel every breath…and I climbed it!

After the climb, I met up with Pete and we had pancakes for dinner at The Rocks. Conversation was so superb; we extended it to the park nearby for another 2 hours. Mostly I shared with him about some testimonies on Jesus’s great blessings in my life. At the end of the night, he teasingly proposed. Twice. Though I did not take it seriously, I felt nice. I think he was really uplifted with the testimonies.

The next day, I joined a day tour to the Blue Mountains. Though the weather wasn’t very accommodating, mostly cloudy and gloomy, we managed to see the Three Sisters. The Katoomba Scenic Railway ride was fun with the 250m vertical drop. Apparently, at 52°, it’s the steepest incline railway in the whole world! The view was captivating. The tour guide was Jeff, a Jerry Seinfeld look-alike and sound-alike. On the journey, he asked some trivia questions and I managed to answer two – (i) What does QANTAS stands for (Answer: Queensland And Northern Territory Aerial Services) and (ii) Name one Australian Female Singer (I answered Kylie Minogue.) I think he was quite impressed and rewarded me 2 candies.

2 key tips when you travel in a tour group is to make sure the tour guide (i) knows of your existence (ii) remembers your name. So in the event should you get lost, you will be missed, though not sorely, but at least you can be certain they will come and find you. Make sense?

So on this trip, Jeff tagged me as “Miss Malaysia” which is okay with me as well. It’s not everyday you can pretend to be a beauty queen representing your country…

We stopped at a small town called Leura for lunch. I opted out from the tour lunch which cost AUD$15 and decided to have lunch on my own. I had fruit salad and a slice of beef lasagna, which was the best I’ve ever tasted. While munching away, I met a male husky who has David Bowie’s eyes, meaning he owns one brown and one blue eye. So I named him David Husky. Isn’t he just gorgeous? The blueness of his eye is so clear; I wanted to snorkel in it! Heh.

The tour included the ferry ride back to the city. So that experience was wonderful. The ferry docked next to Luna Park and that’s where I took the night shot of the Harbour Bridge. I thought it turned out very well.

MELBOURNE

The next morning, I flew to Melbourne – Avalon airport. I reached XBase Backpackers at St. Kilda around 4.00pm. After checking in, I texted Metria to confirm our dinner date that night. I teased her if she was gonna wear a red rose, and she replied she will adorn herself in a purple sari. Ha. We agreed to meet around 6ish at Xbase entrance.

In between, I took a slow stroll around St. Kilda area and I stumbled upon the Palais Theatre. Foreigner was playing that night. I checked out the ticket price and found the AUD$86 and AUD$126 pricing too steep. And I was not such a fan anyway and I think I only know 2 of their songs. I also found out that Beth Orton performed there on April 17 as part of her Comfort Of Strangers tour. Damn! I would have loved to watch her sing. Damn!

Anyway, I finally met Metria. We had Nando's. I really like her. There was no awkward feeling and conversation flowed freely. Like old ~~wine~~ friends. She wowed me with her fairy tale romance story with Mr D. The hour passed swiftly and she had to leave. We bid our goodbyes. After that, I hung around Palais Theatre to just hear the concert. I reclined against the wall closest to the stage for a good 40 minutes and then decided to bugger off before I froze myself.

So I walked back to the hostel and checked out the live performance at the adjacent bar. The singer hooked me with the cover of Stereophonics’s “Dakota’. At 11.30pm, I went to bed with great anticipation of my road trip the next day.

Trivia: Why has David Bowie got odd looking eyes?

He has a condition called aniscoria, which is the medical term for unequal pupils. In 1962, aged 14, he got punched in the eye by his school friend George Underwood, during an argument over a girl named Carol Goldsmith. George's knuckle caught David's eye and dislodged something. David was admitted to Farnborough Hospital, where it was found that the sphincter muscles in his left eye were damaged and he underwent two eye operations. He has an enlarged pupil that remains permanently open, giving the effect of different coloured eyes.