Sizzling BBQ

Some days ago, I met ah man (my old friend) for dinner... Since he's muslim, we have to do pork-free or preferably halal. We went to Downtown East where they recently built a new mall, E-hub, pretty cool place with Cathay cineplex too! I like the idea of cinema when you're staying in the chalet/resort, something nice to do at night.

Anyway, we decided on this Korean place, Fresh Bulgoggi which is halal (read that it's similar to Seoul Garden where they also have this steamboat/BBQ). The service was really slow, probably because we went at its peak hours... either that or we have sat at the far corner and was left kinda neglected. LOL.

The fortunate thing is they have this computerised system, we can order food, ask for waiter's attention or even request for bill. So I had my finger clicking all the time... When we were half way through our meal, a couple sat besides us and they got the full service (waitress/waiter serving without laying a finger on the mouse)... Oh well, I guess blame it on the timing... they came at a time when half the restaurant was empty.

I would recommend it if you need a halal Korean restaurant, otherwise I think there's more authentic places around. We had this basic BBQ/steamboat set for 2 and it filled us up, we didn't manage to finish the whole lot of vegetables though. Price is quite affordable too.

My verdict: 6/10 (after -0.5 for slow service)

p.s: Just as I was searching for a more authentic place, came across Maru Korean BBQ, quite pricey but looks a lot better!

Yummy healthy boost

New found treasure... for health conscious yogurt lovers!

I love shakes, any kind. Milk shake. Fruit shake. Yogurt shake.

Yesterday, I was craving for Nasi Lemak, so I bought myself a packet just before dinner time and had it. Shiok. But too spicy, and I ended up in Cold Storage buying a cold drink. So while having the drink, I was standing by this stall, Pink Yogurt. There was a little queue, so I got curious and while finishing my drink I was staring at the menu and that huge variety of pretty looking ingredients and fanciful flavours of yogurt.

Yes. I was tempted. Very...

So I decided even though I was pretty full and despite having my thirst quenched, I would still buy one to try!! I thought it was a little greedy of me, but good things in life are not meant be resisted. I picked the combo of two of my favourite things: Oreo & Banana. A shake, by the way.

3 pieces of oreo cookies, a (slightly unripe) banana and scoops of gourmet yogurt... (I think he added some syrup which I assume it's coloring or some sort). Lots of ice. Blended. And here comes my "sesame looking" yogurt!!

Fragrant smelling (banana) with a bit of sourness from the unripe banana and bits of oreo cookies nicely blended in, finished off with some little jelly balls topping... A healthy boost and a very nice tasting one. I will definitely come by to try the others... :))

They have also awesome looking flavoured yoghurt which are topped with such pretty yummy toppings. They look like eye candy to me... I couldn't resist not snapping a few pictures to share with you guys :)))

The Olympics ordeal

I'm sure all of you have heard of the Olympics frenzy.

McDonald started one by introducing Olympics glasses for collection. When I first heard or saw the advertisement, I couldn't even be bothered. I didn't take a first look at the glass, not even a second. Anyhow, after being sick for a week, I finally recovered and had this McDonald meal craving.

"I WANT to eat McDonald!!!!"

At the same time, strangely something had gotten into me. Suddenly I wanted to have one of the Olympics glasses. Just one! To my disappointment, the promotion was over... I was 3 days late. I tried asking the staff and the manager but they said they had ran out of it. You know one thing about women, they prefer things hard to get (same goes for their men)... And so I was determined to get one!!!!!

Thanks to internet, I found somebody selling them in a forum (it's really funny to reveal what kind of forum that is) but anyway, I found them and bought them. Initially I got one for myself, one for my sister. But the glass looks darn good when filled with green tea... I decided to have another. Pea was tempted so ended up helping her to get two too...

Anyway my ultimate goal when I have this glass is to DRINK IT WITH COKE!!!!!!!

I know it all sounds a bit silly, going such a great length to get the glass... but it IS such simple things that bring me my pleasure in life ;)

Prost!

Should I... Should I not?

Camera is finally discharged today. So happy to have my baby back!

They didn't charge me any diagnostic fee because they couldn't diagnose what is wrong with it. I'm in good mood today, so am still considering if I should lodge the complaint. It has been almost 2 weeks, and my anger has simmered down. I can either lodge the complaint and phrase it nicely because I wouldn't want the poor guy to lose his job, maybe just change his bad attitude. OR. I can also forget about it and blacklist Fujifilm from the camera brands I will be buying (in future) all together. I shall think about this tomorrow.

I told you God is always testing my patience, and sometimes I wonder how long this is all going to last.

Super bad service @Suntec City FUJIFILM Digital Corner

I want to complain, I want to complain, I want to complain...

I will make sure this guy's evil presence is made known to the world... or at least to his employer. I'm so anxious, eager and tempted to make a complaint right now. But what will that a** do to my camera??? I'm so worried for my poor camera. Please remind me to lodge a complaint once I get my camera back!!


Okay, the story goes like this...

My camera ran into trouble 2 days out of the 5 in Cambodia, it was devastating to go on a holiday and unable to shoot those pictures as part of the memory to bring home!! My heart almost dropped the moment "zoom error" message came on the LCD and I couldn't snap anything. It came on almost every few times I turned on my camera, and it was only mere luck that I got it to work some of the times to take a few precious shots. Coming back home, my camera suddenly was back to normal. But having such a bad experience in Cambodia, I was considering to send it for a check (since it was only repaired near 3months ago - similar problem).

Yes I really should. The 3months warranty for the replaced part is up yesterday(15/08/08)! I could have it replaced for free if it's faulty. So on Tuesday, I brought it in to the service collection centre at Suntec. There was a guy and a girl at the desk... so I went up with the camera and told them the problem. The girl took my camera, kept on testing the zoom and was clicking away. I told them, the problem is intermittent, so it IS okay now but it still has a problem. Not convinced, the guy refused to take it in for me, and insisted that the repair centre will be doing the same testing as what they did earlier to assess it. I decided to test it the next few days and probably come back again.

So yesterday(15/08/08) I went back with the camera, this time I took out my battery and memory card knowing he would do exactly the same thing he did the other day. I told him I WANT to send it in for a check, because I have rang Fujifilm up and they said it was better to send it in since I have it under the warranty. That a** was reluctant, he was fiddling around to see if he had a spare battery to test it on the spot (AGAIN, god's sake), so I SAID IT AGAIN, the camera IS okay now but the problem is still there. I am very disappointed with the service, the previous time I sent it in, the girl handling was so prompt, polite and provided excellent customer service. But both this girl and this guy are horrible at it! How can they deprive customers their rights to send in for a repair?!? What rights do they have to stop ME from having my camera fixed at my own costs (hey, I bought it from your company/manufacturer, mister)??? I'm extremely unhappy about this...

SO I WILL WRITE IN TO COMPLAIN!

Overdue #4

Moo moo fight!!

Hog's Breath vs Outback Steakhouse.

Whose meat is better? More juicy and more tender? Of course, let our Missy go try them and share her views with you!!

So Ms Potatoe came back with very fair judgement on both. Even though friend very much prefer Outback's to Hog's Breath, she herself has a weakness for good avocado, the accompanying Bearnaise sauce made it even more irresistable. So she gives it a 7/10 (1 pt specially for avocado + Bearnaise sauce). Outback's Sirloin is super tender and juicy, the most important thing is it comes with wonderful complementing side dishes which bring it all out even better. I'm giving it a 8/10 (delicious all in all and very good ambience too). They also give you complimentary brown bread before your food arrives, how thoughtful... but you get really FULL after. Gosh.

Now now now... the chickens fight!

Hog's Breath's chicken salad is a good healthy choice but I guess they're better at their steaks. So for this, I would go for Outback's BBQ Chicken Quarter. The BBQ sauce is such an addiction, it made me goes "Oh my gawd..." *speechless* *yum* *gosh*... Plus the garlic mashed potato, it is almost a deadly combination, one you-can-die-for meal!

Overdue #3

Where to get good deal??? One of the best I have chanced upon, thanks to some friends whom shared this little wonderful find. Get a nett priced martini, before 730pm, you are entitled to free "Japanese" tapas too. They're not that great (cold as prepared long beforehand) but what can you complain about getting them free with a drink?

p.s: I think I'm helping them to get free publicity right now~ Good karma ;)

Overdue #2

And without forgetting my all-time-favourite pasta place, Sketches.

They allow you to custom make your own yummy pasta with plentiful of ingredients. Actually, they have also started to allow us custom make our own pizza!! Affordable place to have a good "italian" meal!

Abundant sauce, lots of pine nuts and my favourite must have - mushrooms... tomatoes.. oooo... hungry thinking of it now!

Overdue #1

A dinner I had over a month ago... which has actually surpassed my expectation. So worth a mention!

NYDC at Suntec city. Well, I had been reading up reviews and it didn't sound good. NYDC's standard was said to have dropped and only thing we could ever eat there was the mudpies. I love their Elephanccinos though very often I do not have the stomach for them :P (not big enough!)

Anyhow, picked the place for friend's birthday dinner and went with zero expectation, left the place with a big grin, happy customers. The food was beyond expectation, the oven-baked mushroom ham was generous with the amount of cheese and I almost couldn't have enough. The spicy b.b. king chicken sandwich wasn't too bad too, my friend actually loved it... we ended up sharing food because both were yummy.

I would certainly give this place a 2nd chance after reading those reviews now... a re-visit to eat those cakes which I didn't have the chance the last time round!

Siem Reap Chapter V - More, more, pls!!

The last day apparently.

After what happened the night before, we took it easy. Woke up 9ish, wifi, then went out for a bit of walk and lunch... nothing much to be honest. But during lunch, kids were coming up to beg for food and drinks and it really spoiled the mood. I couldn't finish my plate of rice, so ended up feeding them with it.

Ou Hok was happy to send us to the airport that day, Munky & Monkey initially wanted to buy him over but I knew he would rather send us off!! ;) Anyway the boys wouldn't dare to, he was ours from the start. It was hard to leave, with us screaming goodbye from the Tuk tuk.

Then came the horrific news. Our flight was delayed by 3 hours, meaning we wouldn't get back at the scheduled 10pm! *argh*

We were trying to see if we could extend a night or two by re-booking the flight but no way we could do it:( I was allowed to use the phone to inform friends & family, so I left Munky a message too. They even had a bet that we were coming back, LOL. So we wasted the hours away eating and sleeping at the airport, which was utterly boring except for the complimentary meal we gotten from SilkAir.

It was a long flight as we flew via DaNang (a place I will go next time!), but they did feed us pretty well along the way home.

I got home and I miss the boys terribly!!!! Cambodia!!!

So, where's next?? ;)

p.s: Alex informed me of my typo mistake, which I thought I should voice it out - lazy to modify my entries now! So it's not Munky & Monkey, its Mungo & Monkey! He wants to be the Mungo.

Siem Reap Chapter IV - My 3 boys

My 3 bodyguards. LOL. It looks like, but doesn't really feel like. These boys are still boys.

Anyway, I was saying Munky & Monkey arrived... we just chilled out in the room, talked a lot. They seemed to hit it off with C, so it was all good. We talked about the day trip tomorrow and all of us could share a taxi. It was a funny feeling to see Munky after 2 years (knowing him for over 7) .

We had some drinks in the hostel, listened to their Laos' stories and then headed out... We went to the night market again, then settled for a dinner with delicious Amok and Aspara dancing later on. It was an early night as these boys had been traveling, and we had a long day ourselves. I was happy to have more friends, the more the merrier...

The following day, before we left for Kabal Spean, a cute Asian girl just checked into our hostel. She chatted up C and was so keen to join us for the trip. The boys were delighted, of course. However, the taxi would only take 4 and poor C was so disappointed! Kabal Spean was a 1.5km climb and it looked easy but was definitely a test for agility and balance. The boys were like monkeys, so trust them in the jungle... Ian was very gentleman though, as he was always walking behind me when we went back down. The two other monkeys... *shakes head*

Curious of what's on top? Well it's a waterfall which is rumoured to purify your sins if you go under it. So a couple of us had a free hair or head wash, except Ian who claimed he is pure enough ;)

After lunch (which we temple-packed from the hostel - pretty neat), we headed for 2 more temples on way back.
1. Banteay Srei (very orange, unique, not too big)
2. Banteay Samre (massive and fun to run about & take pictures but kids are pestering for $; here I met 2 gentlemen who helped me to climb or jump over a gap)

It was also today Munky & Monkey started getting used to being pestered to buy souvenirs, scarves, t-shirts, etc. Poor them! Sometimes they bought it out of sympathy but there were really too many to sympathize with, it really wasn't a good reason to buy. I did it a few times myself, sometimes the kids would cry or put up a tantrum and it really wasn't pleasant. I had been giving out pencils I brought from Singapore, it worked most times... but by this time, I had ran out of them... Too many kids!!

Landmine museum was closed today, because it was voting day for the Cambodians!

Anyway, we headed back for some relaxing time... it was about late afternoon. So we were playing around in the pool, the boys were really good at bullying me - hitting me with the balls. But I got my revenge too. ( Ian doesn't swim.. so he was happy reading his book!)

It was C & my last night in Siem Reap, time flew!! So I said we needed to go party tonight!! However all of us were too comfortable back in the room, Ian took out his juggling balls and showed us his tricks. At about 8, I was starving so we made a move... YES, finally. Alex picked a place for dinner which turned out he was totally dissatisfied with! LOL. Luckily I had pizza and it was great, but still I was hungry... so we went around to some bars, ended up at Temple bar since it had the best deals. I ordered fries and the drinks began to come in...

There was something very wrong with this place. Their service was terrible. They always made mistakes, took the wrong order. As such, my red wine was white... I didn't pursue it further since it would only cause more trouble and alcohol does the same thing to me anyway. But we had our own fun, the boys played pool... Some local women came over and picked them up. We danced. One woman clung onto Munky and even offered free sex, LOL. Too bad, she was rejected and very bitter about it, she thought I was his girlfriend! Funny! I managed to pull the reluctant Munky & Monkey to the dance floor, it was tough! These boys wouldn't move an inch, thanks to those beers & 2 rounds of Sambuca.

I wasn't drunk but they were pretty wasted by midnight. C lost his mind and bit me for fun but he was later very happy with those women on his lap. At about 1, we left... Munky left that woman very sore about the whole thing. The boys each took turns to piggyback me back, still I ended up having to walk half the journey myself!

It didn't end yet! The fun! The boys went crazy, Munky went jumped into the pool at 1am (it was closed), then C followed and stripped everything off. Ian stole his clothes.. it was all very messy.. Haha, so C came up naked and the boys were laughing their heads off. So did I! Christ, now I know the things men do when they are drunk...!!

Siem Reap Chapter III - Munky & Monkey

And we made it!

4am, I was awake. The American brothers returned 3ish daily, so I used them as a rough estimate when to get up. But it was their last day, we'd have new roommates later today.

Sunrise @AngKor Wat was breathtaking... the morning fresh air, the light breaking in and it was serene despite a whole lot of tourists slowly trailing in to witness the same sight. I'd never regret waking up that early, and it was worth it - really! The beautiful colors, very blue and purplish... with slight tinge of yellow (on the contrast, friend B showed me his picture of sunrise which was very much reddish - guess it is still magnificient throughout the year, with its varying colors).

Dawn broke over AngKor Wat.

C was hungry so we went for breakfast, sat there for a while where I watched the local kidsrunning up and down in the restaurant.

Ou Hok drove us to AngKor Thom where we would finish Bayon and its surroundings. There is a saying "Save the best for the last" and indeed the last is really the best. I heart Bayon, the temple of Buddhas. The big faces of Buddha can be seen at every corner and you can't just not love it. My camera continued to be cranky but I didn't let it ruin my mood, continued to enjoy the sights and sometimes my little Lomo Fisheye got around on his feet.

There I bumped into an Australian (old man) whom I asked a favour from the day before (to help me take a picture). So we just kept bumping into each other, sharing our favourites of all the temples :))

A few places we saw in AngKor Thom:
1. Bayon (LOVE it! Buddha and its many faces)
2. Tep Pranam (a huge gigantic Buddha statue)
3. Baphuon (under restoration, no entry)
4. The Elephant Terrace
5. Phimeanakas (one of the highest climb... not much of a sight up there but more of a challenge to go up!)
6. Terrace of the Leper King (another very impressive one, must see)

And next, we left AngKor Thom:
7. Ta Keo (we didn't go up, Ou Hok told us it wasn't completed as lighting struck the temple during the building and it's said to be a bad omen to complete it)

It was enough temples for the 2 days, considering C wanted to do a daytrip tomorrow, I figured we better be having some rest that afternoon. It was an hour before noon, so Ou Hok brought us to see a few places, a workshop where they made the statues and some souvenir places. We also requested him to take us to a place we happened to catch sight of, where they commemorate dead soldiers with all these statues of 5 headed snakes/serpents named Nāga (if I'm not wrong). Right by the memorial place, there was a stretch of local market, being adventurous we did a quick browse and I bought my cheapest lunch there (quite risky, still wondering if I gotten food poisoning from that).
p.s: Found this online - "In Southeast Asian mythologies, the Nāga is revered as the original ancestor of the Cambodian people"


C headed back to hostel, while I carried on my little adventure on my own in Old Market area, had a fruitshake while I sat and people-watch, bought some yummy looking pastries from Blue Pumpkin. Got back to the hostel, wi-fi for a bit, ate the lunch (mmm quite an experience), dipped in the pool for a bit before we decided for a little nap... Munky & Monkey were arriving that afternoon.

At 3pm, I was awoken by some noises. Some new people just checked in (in our room)... I was half asleep. I took a peep under my pillow, and was smiling sneakily when I saw that familiar face! I pretended to sleep. Stole a few glances, by this time, he had realised it was me! So I showed my face and asked Munky (Alex),"What are you doing in my room???" It was a pure coincidence because he happened to book the same hostel (before he got my message) and then we didn't even pre-arrange to have the same room but ended up in one. Lucky indeed. So I shared the room again with 3 men (2 Americans left, so replaced by 2 Britishs whom didn't leave their stinking socks around). But they are all my friends, so it was like our little private room - aw, isn't it FUN!

Monkey is Munky's mate, Ian. I shall continue in a bit...

Siem Reap Chapter II - Ms. Piggy & overwhelming temples

YEAH! Sunrise!

SHIT! We saw the sunrise in our hostel room instead. I woke up @545am, to my dismay + shock + OH MY GOD THE TUK TUK DRIVER WAITED FOR US. Geez, I felt so so bad! We were supposed to get up at 4ish and left hostel by 5am to see sunrise. My alarm rang but being such a pig (seriously I was so tired!), I turned it off... THEN I woke up, unbelievably horrified, told C that we missed it and decided to go back to bed and do the normal day thing later.

I was reminded that Ou Hok must have woken up very early to get here @5am,so I put on a jacket, went down with the most guilty and apologetic face ever! I told him,"Sorry, we forgot and overslept! Can you get some rest and come back at 8am instead?" He still gave me a very warm smile and said,"OK, 8am, ok?"

It is going to be a long long day for day 2. We bought the 3 days pass and had a circuit to complete, and keeping the best for tomorrow so as not to overwhelm ourselves. The morning started a little late when C decided to be a copycat. LOL. I bought the headband yesterday and used it as a face mask as the road was super dusty. C wanted to go get one, so we stopped at the market first, bit of haggling, got it then back on track.

I am going to skip describing all the temples, they are stunning... You gotta be there to see them live. But here are the ones we covered (I think):

1. Preah Khan (gotta say I'm quite impressed by the first one already!!)
2. Neak Pean (small & ancient)
3. Ta Som (this is beautiful in its own way, green yet golden)
4. East mebon (my camera started to die on me, really upsetting!! but i got to see them live, the massive elephant statue!)
5. Pre Rup (camera was dying again... but this is another must see!)
6. Sras Srang (believe me, it looks like only a huge pool of water but the image on that camera is going to be so worth it!)
7. Banteay Kdei (by now, I AM a little tired of seeing a lot of the same things)
8. Ta Prom (no one will never miss this, the place where they shot Tomb Raider with all the roots covering the temples' rooftop, yes, very very impressive)
9. AngKor Wat + sunset (flooded with tourists, it was pretty, lots of nice places for pictures but I think I've expected more; people in the temple trying to talk u into leaving your $ to pray to the headless statues - detesting)

Dinner time! We wanted to let Ou Hok end his day by now because of the incident this morning! So we assured him we would wake up the following morning (by hook or by crook) for the sunrise. I promised myself.

It was dinner @Temple Bar, a famous place for travellers. Guess it didn't leave us a very good impression by the end of the trip... LOL. C went for his massage while I headed back alone to watch a DVD - The little Miss Sunshine! No one in the hostel was keen, so had it all to myself accompanied by plentiful of mosquitoes! Cute clever show... I slept very well after that!

Siem Reap Chapter I - Mr. Ou Hok

Someone, please pinch me... gently.

I finally logged in!

Enough of my virus stories, I'm back here alive and very eager to write before my memory starts to fade... This is why I need pictures. 5 days in Cambodia, guess what, I have over 600 photos. Not surprising since Ang Kor Wat offers a lot to see :))

Flying on: SilkAir
Destination: Siem Reap (Angkor Wat)
Duration: 5 days (minus the afternoon on the last day, wasted @airport)
Companion: Mr. C Meyers (American)

p.s: if you're going to ask me how I know him, yes he's a long lost ICQ/AIM friend
p.s.s: if you're going to ask if there's anything between me & him, trust me when I say NO, and yes he is a friend, I repeat, FRIEND - F R I E N D, thanks (it bothers me because everytime I travel with someone new, tongues start to wag!!)

The most welcoming smile I saw when I arrived at Siem Reap airport is our Tuk tuk driver's, Mr. Ou Hok. He had such an amiable face that we almost liked him immediately. I secretly wished this father-like figure to drive us around the next days. And wishes do come true. He worked for our hostel and coincidentally and was available to chauffeur us around - of course, at a daily fee.

And the adventures shall begin...

Our hostel was fabulous, we realised later on it wasn't the cheapest around. At 8USD per head, we could have easily gotten a private twins at only 10USD. But it was the facilities and the place to meet other travelers, I wouldn't give this up over the other choices. There were free wifi, a tiny fun indoor pool, pool table, cheap bar, free DVD rental, free games corner (huge Jenga & darts) and also hammock area. It is cool, very cool.

Our beds are awesome, big wooden bunk beds with solid mattresses. We were in a room of 6, and there were 2 other American brothers. Pretty friendly chaps, only thing that annoyed me a little was the stinking socks laying around... Otherwise, I'm pretty easy with them :)

The late morning, we spent exploring the place, used the pool... just taking it easy. At noon, we had some nice desserts at a cafe - Blue Pumpkin, and then took a little walk around the Old Market and Centermarket. We did the usual haggling, bought some stuff.

Decided not to waste the evening, we asked Ou Hok to drive us to view the Sunset @Phnom Bakheng. It was quite a climb, considering it was before dinner, we were starving by the time we were going back down. The sight up there wasn't magnificient, and were populated with tourists. GOD. Then it rained and people started to disappear... and it was very peaceful suddenly. I love that moment.

We also visited Night market where we came to realise is a much better place than the Old Market and Centermarket, prices are better and we spent less time and energy haggling. I found a very unusual stall selling tea and spices of Cambodia. The guy was very nice, offered me samples, explained the stuff and didn't push me to buying them. I felt a little bad so I bought some Cambodia tea (which is really fragrant!) and lemongrass to go with them. I was so tempted to buy the peppercorns but I don't have the right containers for them :(

It was a good first day and we decided to go for sunrise @Ang Kor Wat the following day.

I love my mami BEST

My mami bought me my favourite food (taro paste & sesame paste) when I'm sick and craving for them... she knows exactly sometimes what I want, and that's why she's my mami this lifetime :))))

I LOVE U MAMI!!

I know I haven't written for a long time... I have so many people and causes to be blamed on!!! C, my friend whom visited Singapore, yes, I have to blame him for taking up so much of my time... pretty much, I have NEVER spent this much time and energy entertaining a visitor (almost like a stranger after all the recent years' inactivity), he was here almost 3 weeks. The only fortunate thing is I do have very kind friends, like Cyn whom are very willingly to be their guide for a day or two. To be honest, I have fallen ill for over 4 days now, I can't say whether it's a virus or what the doctor suspected as Dengue fever or exhaustion from my dear visitor or just really I'm down on luck and my body resistance has weakened... I'm really tired, even after laying in bed for 4 days, getting crazy and ended up doing insane things and being mean to people I never intended to (best to avoid me now).

I'll come back on with the Cambodia's stories. So check back in a bit.