Chronicles of Xiao Cha Bo

Future Itinerary

2011-10-16T00:47:00.000+08:00

Korea here we come!!!
2012 trip will be where hanguel font exists.
I have been practising to read, write but yet to converse.
I think this trip will break my budget record.

2013... south china??
Zhen yuan is comparable to guilin!!
Suzhou, where my bro is staying.. free loader!!!

I wish I have a travel partner who can plan everything for me!!!??

Malacca here we come
~~Probably, I'm going down for 1N2D trip with my sister.~~
~~Need to track down the best suan pan zi that I have tasted.~~
~~I tried almost everywhere in KL but can't beat the one in Malacca.~~
~~Mission is to avoid the weekend crowd so hopefully my sis will arrive in KL earlier.~~
~~Anyway, Malacca is all about food and the place!~~
~~darn.. another set of pictures to process.. I better get going with my china's before this.~~

Malacca plan is cancelled.
hmm...
My PC died.
what do i do??!!
Bought a dell laptop with i7
Moments ago, throttle with my antivirus so that i can bypass the activation.
forbidden city pics r on the way!!! yippy!!

~~Hatyai trip is on this December.~~
~~Planning to do some shopping.~~

Anyway, I've just finished my itinerary plan for Korea.
The others are satisfied with the places which we plan to visit.
Only things left to do are the domestic flight and accommodation booking!!!
I have been getting some feedbacks of my queries directly from koreans.
Thank goodness for that.. because there aren't much info about going the minbak-esque approach.
Jeju, Jeonju, Seoul... the 3 stooges are coming !!!!
get excited!
Updates : Domestic flights booked.

Well am I going to Pattaya for the International Choir Competition??
If I ever go there, i'll just opt for being a chaperone to them.
The greater idea is I'll just hang around or take pictures!!!
Nicely said!

Hosted a couchsurfer for a night.
I brought him to 'pasar malam' but personally, I think he lost out in trying Malaysian food just being vegetarian/vegan.

I'm spending Christmas out of KL.
Flying off...yet I still have lots to do.
Anyway, taking a break to feed myself well before starting work in January

Thailand 2011 Day 4 & Day 5

2011-07-24T01:34:00.000+08:00

Day 4
Nakhon Pathom

Sanam Chan Palace

50 bht

To get here was quite easy and direct.Just go to Victory monument and nearby there is van taxi station.

The ticket officer could speak a little english so just ask him to inform the driver to drop you off somewhere nearby the palace.

Marck from Philippines joined us as that was the last day for him before flying back at night.

This palace boasts a 100-year-old historical architecture with blends of Thai, English Tudor and French styles.The area is divided by a man-made river which connects to a small lake.

King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) was educated in England and had a high level of appreciation for the West.

This is a must-see palace.. ah... in fact I wanna see all the palaces.. *start count down*

The sour tang of fresh tamarind excites the tastebud!!My first time tasting the one not chemically preserved.Not known by many, the ones that sold in Malaysia are preserved by the chemical used for corpse.

The King's house is connected to this red house.

King's house.

I would skip this as interiorly, nothing much to see (The wooden house).Plus, we were interrupted by a bevy of students and saw a 'pondan' guide/teacher briefing them.They were scattered all over the place and blocked our passage to the display.A very long office house connecting to the temple and theater.

Other interesting misc.

Beside the palace, there is a university with many mammoth colourful statuettes.

Quite a sight and we spent some time there.

Amazing lunch, in fact the best tom yam so far!!

*cukup rasa but not spicy enough for me*

well everyone loved it!50 bht

Both misters ordered fried glass noodle as they saw many people mainly ordering that.

I thought the taste was just so-so.

Dinner when we firstly arrived saphaipee.

then..it's chatuchak market..till last day.

Food basically the ones we tried in Bangkok were not good.

Maybe we were unlucky not knowing where good food is.

Street Western Food .. we saw many people here.

Sightseeing nearby MRT stop
This is the korean/japanese backpacker spot.

Thailand 2011 Day 3

2011-07-23T00:44:00.019+08:00

Day 3
Samut Sakhon

We took a railway trail to Samut Sakhon.
It's better and fun.
Really enjoyed the morning slow ride and the hustle&bustle of hawkers along the railway station and the passengers hoping in and out of the train.
We were greeted cheerfully by the station workers.. love them.
He passed us tourist flyers in Thai!
Taking a 1-day trip outskirt of Krungthep (Bangkok) was easier through the train, but you need to coordinate the timing of 2 trains.
First train runs from krungthep to samut sakhon , for the next train is u need to take a ferry to cross the river to the following station.
Fortunately, for us we didn't have to after encountering with siam winery workers.

Lots of people definitely were looking at us and curiously asked about our nationality.
ticket 10 bht

We tried their curry puffs. The Thais always seem to like things in sweet, similiar to the Malays.
I guess that most chinese Malaysians always automatically expect salty fried food.
6 bht for 1

Poor fella.. he had to keep his distance away from me.
Don't u just love the background which is so classic.

Approaching the station.

So we took the van to somewhere near between the salt field and siam winery.
My plan was to visit the salt field but hampered by the raining season.
Without sun, salt is impossible.
30 bht

What is worst that the field is in the middle of their so-called highway.
Lucky for us, the salt owner gave us a ride to somewhere nearby the siam winery.
From there, again we had to take a ride to the siam winery as we were told it's kind of far to walk.
motor tuk tuk : 30 bht
We arrived there and bad news strucked again.. it's pruning season.
Siam Winery should have informed me about that when I emailed them.
However, lots of ppl told me that if they had told us, we wouldn't had gone there.
I guess I overlooked from the dribs and drabs that I picked out during planning.
They told us that we are their first customers that arrive by motor.
lol... that's what happens if one travels off the beaten path.

I would say we were lucky to witness and taste the grape as the delivery truck was there.
The grapes colour look very vibrant that i felt cheated when it tasted sour.
Perhaps I always assume that grapes should taste sweet.
The slides are in sequence.
The place was loud but we were the only visitors and were drove around by a van from one point to another point. I have to say that Thailand always serves the best hospitality!!!

Wine tasting session

Samut Songkhram

Unlucky yet still lucky
While chatting with our guide, we told the siam winery staffs our next stop.
They offered to drop us off at Maeklong station since the staffs were heading the same way.
Yeah to free ride!!!

The next spotlight was the Talad Rom Hup (Maeklong station)
We checked the train schedule and buffered our time for lunch and sight-seeing.
Really anticipated to see the train arrival and the market people.
Since we arrived early, we roamed around and tried some food.

Lunch
all : 35
A sweet dumpling for me and mr ng had noodle

Very sweet dessert but can't beat Vietnam's

this must be nice but I forgotten to try it

The range of sugar can't beat the vietnamese

The unique lifestyle of Thai.
The train whistle signaling its arrival.
The hawkers shuffled and dragged their umbrella backwards.
The train had slowed down and I gambled for time to take a more up-close and sharp image.
The whistle definitely deafen my ears.

There were few tourists here and most of us were anticipating the train.
All was over within few minutes.

We took songtheaw/baht bus to the floating market.
I can say that I don't regret missing it during my first trip to thailand.
This floating market is filled with locals.
I wish tour companies hog only the Damnoen saduak and leave the locals alone.

The rattling sounds of the boat engines and the chattering of strangers along the market was a great sight.
The boat hawkers zoomed to and fro, ferrying plates of food.

We tried out the seafood. Dirt cheap as most of the seafood were fresh caught.
all : 115 bht

delicious fried baby bamboo shoot/banana flower , fish paste and tamarind sauce
20 bht

Other interesting food

Deco items sold

Return to bangkok from Maeklong by van : 70 bht

Thailand 2011 Day 1& 2

2011-06-30T23:55:00.011+08:00

Thailand 2011
Day 1

Bangkok-Si Ayutthaya
I can't seem to avoid khorn Thai.
They are like a drug to the soul. No wonder thousands of people thronged to Thailand everyday.
Okay.. we came out of the airport around 9++ but had to wait almost an hour to get into the next van to Rangsit, a transit to Si Ayutthaya.
airport to rangsit :80 bht, rangsit to si ayutthaya : 80 bht
I warn you, don't try taking the van as it's more to those who can at least speak/understand thai.
But it's fun this way because it's so LOCAL...so do it but don't fret!!!
Basically, I would recommend anyone to travel by van rather than bus.
the van's route is more direct without stopover, while for bus, it depends on the type u take.
The only problem is that the timing is not fixed.
They only depart once the van is full.

By the time we arrived Ayutthaya, we had problem finding our guesthouse because no one seemed to know the street name in romans. Anyway,we took a tuk-tuk there.
so always ask the guesthouse to give the address in thai to print.
tuk-tuk : 20 bht

Ayutthaya hostel : 225bht for 2N2D
Our first lunch : Yam Wun Sen
Verdict: not bad but could have been better.

lunch + ice blended : 35 bht
We bought the all-in-one ticket and splited the visitation to 2 days.
ticket : 220 bht both
Here, it was quite sunny and practically burning but not as bad as cambodia.

The famous stupa standard pictures that must be taken!

Elephant riding which I experienced way back in 2005.
To me, it is way much exciting to have it in the jungle because u learn to balance while ascending uphill.
Anyway, the guy seemed to have fun.. the sheer happiness of solo travel.

Here, Mr Ng got harassed for a moment by this drunk fella trying to sell souvenir to him.

Love this picture

We got lost in such a small park, asking directions to the sleeping statue.
Everyone kept directing us the wrong way!!!!!!
for me, when that happens, trust the map more than the people.
we took the back road/shortcuts.

So serene with the red flower tree...sleeping buddha is taking a nap.

After our last stop for the first day, we walked passed a local market, and got lost again.
We talked to a police guy who thought we were cheated/robbed by someone.
He kept telling us that he's a good police and sent us off by bike to the police station.
what a misunderstanding!

fried potato with sauce made of peanut, tamarind, sugar, coriander leaves, maybe fish sauce.
verdict : delicious
10 bht

Dinner :
phat thai 50 bht
kuew teow 15 bht
coke 12 bht

Day 2
ah.. we had to rent a tuk-tuk to cover the distance ones.
150 bht

1st stopover
20 bht entrance
so majestic and love the brick colour harmonizes with the blue sky.

2nd stopover

We walked to si ayutthaya floating market as it is within walking distance.
use the back way..follow the elephant track
Very touristic , not really authentic but can la..

Food we tried : century-egg otak-otak, coconut ice cream 20 bht, otak-otak

A quite popular stall with celebrity photos

Other eye candies

Last stopover
Here the stupa are well maintained

that's it.. back to bangkok
For dinner, we ventured for street food.
So we arrived somewhere locals gathered to eat, at a nearby market.
We had BBQ fish and chicken
114 bht
pictures waiting for mr. ng!!

Year 2011 is a busy year

2011-04-30T02:29:00.003+08:00

I haven't been blogging about my journey to Penang.
darn..my pc is slowly crashing and
my speed of typing is faster than the letters are appearing on screen.

Briefly, I visited Penang... again!
well, just to exchange cars with her.
lol..not driving my brother's car.
My eye got bruised when I opened the car door.
ok..blame on my slow reaction.

Then we tried for the very first time to Hatyai.
It was quite an experience.
Only took about 2 hours from sg. petani to hatyai.
We drove to the border and parked the car in no man's land.
As soon as we crossed the border, we took the van that locals take for longer distance trip.
Basically, most of them were heading to Hatyai.
darn..we were 1-day late for songkran festival.
So many shops were closed and we were lost at first.
Clueless of what to do next.
It seemed like a ghost town.
Anyway, one thing for sure was to go to around lee garden's hotel where the most happening area.
We took a tuk-tuk to the market , with the help of a thai lady whom I bought som tam from.
Nothing much to brag about this place.
Food is ok...not much to shop.
My aim was to buy bok-bok.

About 4pm, we took the van to the border and did some shopping for instant noodles.
From this onwards, the real adventure begun.
Our car battery died.
Rain was pouring heavily and we had to wait.
Luckily, the thai guys were helpful.
They pulled the car to a shed and jump started the car.

On our way home, we tried to find a mechanic or auto part shops.
However, looking at the time passing 7pm, everyone's at home by then.
Again, almost bad luck but not totally, we found one that opened.
business finished and done.

Out and about in Singapore 2011

2011-04-13T16:42:00.005+08:00

12th March 2011

Just for the occasion of attending the Lion King Musical 2011 in Marina Bays Theatre.
Miss Kung never really explore Singapore. Unbelievable right??!!!

We arrived about 11pm.
The funny things was that Miss Kung and Jen Jen didn't have any smaller change.
All they had was 50 notes.
The ironic joke was the machine doesn't dispense more than 4 dollars change.
I exchange my 10 dollar notes with a Malaysian guy and left nothing for them..hahaha
Panic strike!!!
For the sake of joke, it was a good experience to laugh about.
We met the same guy on our return trip..fated!

Shopping time in Chinatown

They went praying

We discovered the cheapest and healthiest ?? meal in Singapore.
Vegetarian meal with side dishes and drink for 4 dollars.
Can you believe it?? Vegetarian all the way in Singapore??

After Lion King Musical

My Dinner
I think Singapore offers only good Western food.
Anything authentic from Malaysia tastes better than other places..

We waited till 8pm for the musical fountain but later found out we were at the wrong place.
Orchard road

13th March 2011

Bugis Street

Food Hunting at Bugis street
Rojak not so good.
Rojak from Nyonya colors in OneU is good. Perfect blend of taste!!

I love this ceramic mosaic wall!

We tried Mos Burger which I wish they have a store in Malaysia.

Hahaha... sayonara

6th June 2010, Beijing China

2010-11-09T22:57:00.011+08:00

6th June 2010
10th Day

Beijing - Tianjin

Immediately after packing everything, I left them at the counter.
Headed straight to the same tiny cake shop, this was my last moment that I wanted to just ponder upon everything that had taken place so far while seeping my cappuccino and biting my cake.

Subway

This is my usual station for GuLouDajie

Note : it was 11.13
Still you see a sea of human

Basically, I had tried all the subway lines in Beijing.
Well all of them are interlinked and you can just ride anywhere for just RM1.00
Holy Cheap!!! Banzai China!!

I switched and occupied the empty rows as a bed.
but this is not me..!

....the journey ends here....
Adios, my 2nd solo trip

5th June 2010 Beijing, China

2010-11-06T15:59:00.008+08:00

5th June 2010
9th Day

Great Wall
(Y$50 inclusive of insurance)
Bus to and fro : Y$24
Travelling with my China roommate.
Both first-timers. We took a local bus to the bus station.
When we arrived there, there were lots of people already.
We didn't take the roundabout route because it seems so long and my roommate has a plane to catch. Just went with the flow then.. if not I would have taken the longer route since I have lots of time.

These souvenir merchants are difficult to deal with.
If you are chinese, they probably act more rude because I kept getting the gesture from them not allowing any picture taken.

They have different pattern of small windows along the great wall.

The famous phrase that was so hard to get a proper picture.

The great wall trip was short but I enjoyed having a human companion at the least.
I stopped by a nearby restaurant for lunch.

Back to the dorm to take a shower and rest for a moment.
By then, I have a new roommate, whom I never had the chance to meet up.

4th June 2010 Beijing, China

2010-11-06T14:37:00.011+08:00

4th June 2010
8th Day

13 tombs (Y$30)
I really love going outskirt of Beijing.
The tomb area has a lot of orchard farm.
You can get cheap cherry in bulk, come here before your departure date.

I love the carved-stone table and stool around the tomb

I love the lanscape around the tomb

The archeologists took alot of time trying to open the door.
The security of the tomb was designed to prevent burglary from peasant.

Dragon and Phoenix to represent the emperor and the empress

Each brick has a name stamp, probably the brickmakers'.

Lunch Hour
Cheap but not nice.

A camel in Beijing?? !!

Scared way (Y$30)
With extra time, I took the local bus to get to the main entrance of the 13 tombs.
This was a long interesting entrance. Moreover, there weren't many people.
Funny but I think maybe most tour skipped this area or they went for other tombs first. Basically, most of the tombs are about the same.

Then, I tried waiting for the same bus that I took but after 2 hours.. I gave up.
Change of route ..took 2 buses..interesting ride
I saw a black running and taking the same ride as me.
I have to say I really enjoyed taking the local bus and seeing the locals.

Time for window shopping again.

3rd june 2010 Beijing, China

2010-11-06T13:33:00.010+08:00

3rd June 2010
7th Day

Yuan Ming Yuan (Y$25)
A totally ruin ancient city
You might not appreciate this place because there isn't much to see unless scenery and rumbles are your kind.
From personal perspective, I like to imagine how magnificient it was. From parts of the rumbles , you can see the carvings which are my favourite.

This pic was taken by an uncle that I befriended. He's a photographer.
It was great having someone to take a picture for me.
I think I should invest in buying a lightweight tripod.

The main attraction of Yuan Ming Yuan is this maze.
It was quite fun trying to figure out how to get to the tower.
Some people just gave up and climbed over which I think just cause damage to the maze wall.
Amazing that you during 'whichever dynasty before China fallen' time, western culture had infiltrated into the royals.
I always thought the West came during the opium time but this is interesting as it was way earlier than that.. is it??!!

Old Summer Palace (Y$30)
Back again, trying to finish the other parts of the palace.
This side is the garden and the lake.

Interesting street caligraphy
I didn't get to see it the other day. Lucky!

Have a short tea time at this cafe nearby the guesthouse.
There were many people in and out of this tiny place.
A little bit run down from the exterior but the interior was simple but cozy.
No doubt, the cake and drink were good...the prices were slightly higher...well cater to tourists.
But the taste was better than our exaggerated secret recipe cakes.

Time for window shopping.
The best part of GulouDajie is this place

Here you get to shop for souvenirs..
About few minutes walk from the backpacker.
So basically, I spent most of my nights here onwards.

2nd June 2010 , Beijing China

2010-11-06T02:09:00.007+08:00

2nd June 2011
Day 6

Out of memory spaces
So I went shopping for a mini hard-disk at their 'digital mall'

After stumbling upon a new backpacker house, I checked out and checked in to my new dorm. So basically, I wasted almost my whole morning doing all these.
Never mind, it was worth it. I got to enjoy hutong area.
However, Guloudajie backpacker house (Y$60 per night) is more convenient and has great access to many things nearby.

Ancient Observatory (Y$10)
I think this is the first in Asia or the world to build a set of humongous stuffs.
I really enjoyed this place as everything is genuine as it was from the past.

If you follow after Sungkyunkwan Scandal drama, this appears in the beginning of the first episode.
I was thrilled to watch how it actually works.. great intervention to create clock.

Astrology stuffs

Ancient clocks

One of my great moments of photography
My model too shy for my lens

Confucius Temple (Y$20)
Inside these pagoda-like building are the stones of something...haha.. don't know la..
These pagodas on both sides lead the way to the main hall.

In this enclosed area, this is where they place the 1000 pieces of confucius works.
The characters are fading so most of them are placed facing away from the sun.
It was a long walk but lucky to not have miss it as closing hour was near.
Besides, at first, I too thought this place doesn't have much to see but lucky I got to see this art work.

Day 6 was a much relaxing tour as I was gradually exhausting myself with all the walks.
Gave myself a pat at the shoulder.. good job.

I had an appointment to meet up with Carter.
We met at this station after his working hour and we passed through some interesting places.
Experienced the peak hour bus and subway ride.

He brought me along to his meeting at a nice cozy cafe.
Funny... do people bring their friend along for a meeting??
But it's alright. I got to chat with some of his friends.
They said I speak Chinese quite fluently.

1st June 2010 Beijing , China

2010-10-31T23:06:00.005+08:00

1st June 2010
5th Day

Temple of Heaven Park (Y$35)
I thought it was small. Madness! Everything built was humongous. It took me almost a day.
The park is the favourite hangout for the senior citizens. All kinds of recreational activities you get entertained by just watching them.

I want to learn to play this thing.
Keep it rolling and a nice sound you'll hear.

Bell and Drum Tower (Y$30)
Visiting the Bell and Drum Tower after this park was a perfect timing.
I got to watch live drum performance in the tower itself.
Get information on the performance schedule.
My my my... the sound was so great.

The last original drum

Well, time for roaming after serious excursion!
GuLou Dajie is where I found my second guesthouse.
It seems that this place is the hangout for the mat salleh.
Lots of bars at the tourist street, along the river.
More pics to come later..

First, Hutongs in this area

31st May 2010 Beijing, China

2010-10-31T18:30:00.006+08:00

Beijing,31st May 2010

4th Day

Forbidden City
Y60 + Y10(Gallery of Treasures)

Forbidden city pictures will have to wait. I haven't really fully processed it.
Well enjoy the after-visit , the hutong area where mostly the rich actually reside compared to the poor. I tried to find the genuine hutong but my roommate told me they no longer exist in Beijing. What we see are the 2nd generation hutongs.

Don't you just love the olden day's roof tiles and the door post...kyaboo

The much modern style of hutong

After the hutong, I was pretty much lazy to go back. The garden of Forbidden City opened till 9pm which is still beautiful , but uncomparable to the Summer Palace.

Night scene of Forbidden City
Love this shot. Some of the tourists were amazed at this shot that I showed them.
Helped a couple shot a photo of them.

30th May 2010 Beijing, China

2010-06-20T00:06:00.004+08:00

30th May 2010
3rd Day

Dead tired from walking for so long, I woke up late.
Anyway, who cares..
I don't want to pressure myself in waking up early in the morning
After all, I'm on holiday..

On my way to the subway, I was prying for breakfast and also shortcuts.
Based on my assumption, I just stalked a target.
Then I stumbled upon this shop that sells nice common local breakfast.
Dirt cheap. Y$2

The finished product.
The tastiest of all among other stalls I visited in Beijing

Old Summer Palace
To get here, take the subway and stop at Xi Yuan station.
I paid the full entrance fee to enter the common tourist spot.
Warning!! You can't finish this place in one day.
My favourite place of all

I love this man-made ship stone harbour
The details of it is really fantastic.
But no entrance :(

The emperor heard of the famous Suzhou street but unable to go out of the palace
Hence this was created for him.
The palace maid and eunuchs had to re-enact the scene under pretence.

Dan dan mian at suzhou street in Old summer palace.
Y$12
Verdict : Nice and spicy

28th-29th May 2010 Beijing China

2010-06-09T22:46:00.019+08:00

28th May 2010
1st Day

Tianjin
I took a bus to the train station.
By the time I arrived the station, there were many beelines at the counters.

Bullet Train station

Y$58 per ride, 30 min
Totally enjoy the smooth ride! Impressive!!

Well.. I arrived on 28th May at Beijing at 5pm..took me awhile to find my way through the subway map.

Beijing
Momentarily disoriented, I felt I'm in an alien world.. everything was so blur and lost. After some manoeuvring to look at anything interesting to capture.. I decided to rest earlier as I knew I had to start my day early in the morning.

A few reminders about China:
The Hutong place is reeked of heavy mix of urine, saliva and excretion.
I had to inhale deeply to grab some fresh air before passing by the public toilets around hutong areas.

Another nuisance about traveling in Beijing city : the constant security check!!
Everything has to be scanned in any crowded area..subway, tourist spot, etc..
I hate having to carry up and down my backpack!!

Once, the subway was packed and I gotten a seat.
Suddenly the stench of shit filled my nostrils the moment a guy stood in front of me.
Different country has different culture, but I can never accept the China's.
Malaysians bath everyday and use water after doing our 'business'.

The streaks of saliva everywhere and the gross sound of spitting while eating really puts one off.
I had to blocked out this noise with my MP3 music the minute I sat to eat.

There are CCTVs everywhere if you really take notice of.
The communist is so paranoid!!

29th May 2010

2nd Day
I was expecting at 6am it would have been dark but the rays of the morning sun peeped through the gap between the drapes.
Indeed, this world was different than usual..lol

Tiananmen Square
Y15

It's during the weekend that most chinese actually took the train to travel to Beijing for a visit.
I was actually lost for a moment here.. because it's so early in the morning yet so bright and every tourist spot is not opened till 8.30am.
Crowd flooed in as time passed by.

And there's a long queue for Uncle Mao's memorial hall
I didn't see his dead body, nothing interesting about that after the encounter with Uncle Ho.

Great Hall of People
Y30
It's for diplomatic meeting and the PRC's monthly meeting.
Nicely built, very spacious but the atmosphere seems dead.
Baggage check in is only for an hour.
I can never finish in one hour.. never..

Lunch at Mian Ai Mian, a Chinese-japanese fusion restaurant.

Seafood ramen

Had to go through many many gates and towers, just outside of the forbidden city.

I went up to Zhengyangmen (Y10/15) but nothing really interesting up there.
The misty morning still lingered and it was difficult to capture the vibrant colours of the structure.

I love the simple decor from bottom to top.

So after Qiamen Gate, I just walked through this rebuilt famous street during those Ming and Qing dynasties period.
This street is really long and you can walk till you reach the river whereby Drum and Bell Tower are located.

Ming's ruin city wall park

So you can imagine the forbidden city wall that extended to such length.
Layers of walls within cities.
I love this long long walk even though my feet pained.
It's very green here despite the cosmopolitan feel surrounding it.
Ancient meets modernization.
Failed to enter the tower because there's a jaguar exhibition going on during the weekend.

Zha zhang mien
Dinner which i think is about Malaysia's pricing.

Itinerary for Beijing

2010-05-05T14:28:00.001+08:00

My itinerary for China trip:
Slight changes as the day I will be arriving is on weekend.

Day 1:
Settle into my Hutong guesthouse... see i just have to choose the best place of all..hahaha

Day 2-3:
Other places:
Flea market
Bird's nest olympic stadium

A must for me is the art culture in every country that I visit:
LiuLichang culture street :free
798 Art Space :free

Day 4-5:
Forbidden city entrance fee RMB 60.
Summer palace :RMB 40
Temple of heaven :?

Day 6-7:
Great wall of china : RMB 45
Different section of The great wall trip ?how-to?
I'm thinking of Juyongguan section..and maybe hike down to badaling???
crazy?? I just want to absorb the scenery as long as I can.
Ming Tomb : RMB 60
seems like there're other sections for ming's tomb too...heck..i'm doing all

Day 8:
Other options: If only I'm there for a month!!!!
Hutong
Ancient observatory
Prince Gong mansion
SiHeYuan
LuGuo Bridge

Day 9:
travelling in tianjin if time permits...

Public Bus services

Well, I have my visa done,paid RM58 for all. I personally went by myself to do it.
The embassy staffs (malaysians) are efficient.

I have my pda phone filled with beijing map for GPS and chinese-english dictionary.

I'm still waiting to change some Yuan as currently the rate is dropping.

I think I will buy for a bigger luggage size for my return trip.

Count down.....

Nervous and excited... this is XCB's weathercast

Ho Chi Minh , Vietnam

2010-04-04T20:14:00.003+08:00

Ho Chi Minh City

27th - 31st March

I had totally forgotten about this post.

The downside of joining FB is that it's a one-stop social network.

However, I still love to maintain my blog as I can put in more details.

Some pictures are missing as I left my camera in the room while Sam carried his.

27th March 2010
Prior our departure, we made some arrangements with Irene who is currently an expat over there. She had friends from Malaysia that was visiting her too and wanted us to join tour with them. Anyway, we had our dinner together with them and decided that it's better that we didn't join them. I doubted our group clicked with them.
Irene recommended this restaurant.
The ambience was great and the place was quite packed.
Dinner : 347,000

28th March 2010
Breakfast : Pho noodle at nearby shop and coffee.

We rented a Inova MPV to travel for a day with the help from Irene's driver who knew some other drivers.
our driver was Phuoc. He barely could speak English and we communicated using hand gestures.

Van rental : 1,000,000

We stopped at ChuChi Tunnel. My second time.
We had lunch at the Riverside Restaurant.
Nothing impressive.

On our way back, we stopped at 2 places which we noted down earlier.
The pottery factory and the rest stop.

I'm not sure whether we were allowed to enter but our guide gave some words.

So we got to see the place.. they made pottery using traditional methods.
Plus, in front of the factory, there was a beautiful lake.

Vietnamese are very versatile, hard-working and clever.

They have this rest stop service which I don't see it in Thailand.

We stopped for coconut and sugarcane drink.

In the City, at the market near the roundabout, they offered quite a variety of good food.
At night, for dinner some of the shop lots sandwiching the market, offered interesting food.

My favourite : Vietnamese style of chee cheong fun

Sharing seafood noodle with Diana

With nothing plan, we just walked around aimlessly.
Apparently it was the Earth Hour night.
So there's concert and throngs of people hit the street that night.
The photography lesson began.

29th March 2010

So we visited the post office, church and unification palace.

I decided not to duplicate my post regarding the same places I visited previously.

30th March 2010

Chinatown of Vietnam

A place that I missed for my first trip to Vietnam

Chinatown was really a vibrant and lively place.

The people were much friendlier.

A great place to do photography.

I'm amazed by the vast selection of sugar in Vietnam.

No wonder we can never emulate their recipes.

I tried some street photography.
The people in Chinatown really welcomed us and not scared of the gigantic camera.
In fact, some of them posed some actions for us.

Inside the market

After that, we returned and they went for food massage.
I think it was RM30 for the massage.

Then, the girls rested while Sam, Vic and I went for some night photography.

31st March 2010
We split as the girls wanna go shopping again.
Sam, Vic and I headed to the Museum and tried their local dishes for lunch.

The blessing of going in group is that you get to eat dishes..
Must do it even if it's 2 people..in future.

Adios

My second solo trip to come :China

2009-12-23T22:42:00.007+08:00

Before china, I have to be the tour guide for a group of friends to Ho Chi Minh.

Hence, my new camera will be put to good practice.
What other attractions besides the one I had??
Mui Nee?

Back to China:
This really need to be celebrated because this will be my second solo trip after such a long time.
I have a week for beijing!!!!
I'm taking the bullet train for good!!!!! can't imagine it!!!so excited!!!
How safe it is to move around the city??
What to shop in Beijing??...present for myself..lol..need to celebrate
Where's the most safe and convenient location to stay?besides my fren's place.

Oh..VISA application..

I have picked a few locations that I want for the great wall of china.
There're really pros and cons picking the best spots.
By that time, it will be summer...hot..
Planning to spend 3 days in touring the forbidden city.
I'm feeling a week is not going to be enough. lol

I'm going to Singapore first to get camera backpack and travel backpack.
I'm targetting North Face backpack and Tamrac adventure 7 backpack.

Mulu (15th April 2009) Finale

2009-04-15T15:36:00.001+08:00

Finale

So we packed our bags to leave for HQ.
I, Miss Tan and Miss Teh were doing the Canopy Walk
Miss Tan even in pains , insisted on doing it when I told her she will get a stamp on her certificate for the canopy walk...hahaha

We were introduced to many rare species animals in the reserve forest by the guide

Our Guide

Well....we ended the trip with smiles and laughs and pains..

Mulu (14th April 2009)

2009-04-14T15:09:00.001+08:00

Day 5

We had our breakfast and said our goodbyes to everyone.
I knew I gonna miss this place alot.

This is Richard

Resting at the riverbank for a breather and absorbing the scenery

We arrived at our so-called resort room.
Pretty much disappointed with Larry's recommendation.
The place was without electricity during the hot day.
They only switched it on from 6pm to 2am.
The food was totally expensive.
Not worth!!

We had our short siesta
I took pictures of the after-effect of Miss Leau.
Poor soul..always get bruises and pain each time she follows me for trip

I insisted that we must go and see the bat exodus because it was our last chance.
We didn't get to see it the last time because it's been raining.
So we waited and called Ah Kiong to pick us up.
Arrived at HQ, Larry and Richard were there and telling us it's been raining for 3 days and the bats won't be coming out.
We just told him , we will try our luck.
After all, we were lucky with the pinnacle...how bad was our luck then....?
We started at 5pm from HQ which was already late.
It would took us 1 hour to walk the 3.3km.
So I solely decided to run for it, making in time in just half hour.
The rest of them, I left them to decide on themselves because I was determined to see what I had in mind.
~15 minutes after that, I saw 3 of them running.
By then, I already booked a place for us to sit at a right position to see the bats exodus.
Miss Tan and Miss Teh thanked me because if they didn't run, they would have missed all of it.

We had dinner at HQ (much cheaper) and we treated ourselves with coke!!!

Mulu (13th April 2009)

2009-04-13T14:28:00.000+08:00

Day 4

We were the first group to start
7.30am

Oh...all the vertical climbings

At first this was how misty the top
We were a bit disappointed
After having our lunch there, the wind blew the mists away!!!

As we descended the hill, the rains was heavy...heavy...
It made things even harder for us.
Miss Tan's toes were painful till she had to walk reversely.
Luckily, I was careful through my hike that I didn't put too much pressure.

We arrived and greeted with cheers from everyone who had arrived way earlier than us.
4.30pm
I danced in the rain with full of excitements that overwhelmed my soul.
I have made it!!!

The night was spent with chatting and joking with Richard and the rest of hikers.
He was jokingly telling everyone about his first experience taking a group of girls (us) to the top.
He mentioned me, Miss Tan and Miss Teh were like bickering with each other, and he thought the things said was very odd.
Actually, we were not bickering , we are really used to discussing which made people think we are bickering.
Well, with Miss Leau so slow in every steps of hiking , we got too much spare time to actually talked and joked around.
Richard just couldn't help laughing at our conversations.
So that night he was like a tape recorder that was played for all the other hikers to listen what we said during the ascend and descend.

Mulu (12th April 2009)

2009-04-12T10:52:00.001+08:00

Day 3

A boat ride to visit the Penan Village

Larry showing us the blow pipe

Nudin, one of our local guide

So we took a boat to vist 2 more caves, had lunch prepared by Larry and
walked 3.3km carrying our backpack.

A type of single petal flower plant

Time to sleep
The bunker we got was in the middle and no wind was coming in.
Bringing the sleeping was totally useless

Mulu (11th April 2009)

2009-04-11T11:35:00.000+08:00

Day 2

In the morning, we did adventure caving with HQ guide, Bagly.
Racers Cave, 3 hours
Intermediate Level

The guy took pictures of the adventure caving for us.
Now I'm hoping to get contact and download all the pictures

Everybody just look filthy

Miss Teh and I are thinking of coming back to do the advance level of adventure caving.
But before that, I would need to train up my arm muscle and lose more weight

Mulu (10th April 2009)

2009-04-10T21:47:00.000+08:00

Day 1

Jennifer brought us around to taste some local food.
How sweet of her!!!

Hanging out at Library and Park

Time to board

Our transport to HQ was arranged by Larry.

So finally in Mulu about 4pm
...Yeah...

So we settled in a room of our own
Wandering around the HQ
Dinner at cafe
Food was bad with most of the taste of burned curry

Bukit Tinggi

2009-03-01T22:48:00.000+08:00

I have so many things I didn't blog at all.
I'm getting busier and lazier.
This trip was with my LF, my first trip with them.

Animal Farm

A week before Christmas

2008-12-19T23:11:00.003+08:00

Woo.
Need to back-blog about this trip first.
We went south to shop for my hiking boots and sandals.
Plus, just window shopping and hanging out with old band members.
It was great

2008-08-24T01:23:00.000+08:00

24th August 2008

Hanoi

DIY to Tam Toc Cave
A very long 2 hours journey.
A mixture of fear and excitement.
Always bring extra petrol in a bottle!!

Something big also happened when were we on our way back to the town.
We entered the highway with low petrol.
I think this is my breaking point because I lost my temper at my sister.
The highway was not in the map, but there's a signboard which showed to Hanoi city.
I didn't follow my instinct this time and I just followed what she said.
We were actually rushing to go to Van Phuc silk village again.
Our second visit was to shop for clothes and silk!
So panic stricken and also tiredness, overshadowed my sense.
Poor sister of mine!!!

No picture for this onwards already..
This is it I guess.. the journey ends..Not posting anymore pic.

Backpacking in Vietnam (23rd August 2008)

2008-08-23T01:10:00.001+08:00

23rd August 2008

Hanoi

To Halong Bay, for the sake of being in Vietnam.
Don't think it impress me compared to Malaysia's.

Breakfast again at same place..what can we say??
It's cheap and good.

Lunch prepared on boat

One of the famous cave

I forget what we do at night..

2008-08-21T23:41:00.002+08:00

21 - 22th August 2008

SAPA and Hanoi

We decided to take a tour package from the GH we stayed because I'm dead tired of DIY.
Sometimes , it's good to have someone to do all the hassles for u.
No harm right...and at least we can rest and relax in this awesome paradise.
If..if i'm not wrong, it's USD$60 per pax inclusive of everything.
Again, don't forget your ticket less u will get stucked with complexity.
An hour drive to get to Summit Hotel.

Apparently, we were treated so well in this tour...first class berth!!
Good hotel room...cozy weather...decent hotel food.
What can I say!!!

Taking the train back to Hanoi.
All of us were laughing upon discovery that we were sharing the same coach again.
What a destiny!! Plus, they are such sweet people!!! :)

Arrived about 10am at the train station , with no one to pick us to the GH.
Anyway, since we pretty much know we were in vicinity.
DIY again la.. bus no. 11.

Again, the same restaurant for breakfast.

Then we have extra time to do.
So we visit the opera house in Hanoi.

Dinner

2008-08-20T09:00:00.003+08:00

20th August 2008

Hanoi

We rented a motorbike.
Because we had a train to catch at 6pm, we had to make this DIY rather than joining a tour.
Frankly speaking, it was a challenging trip on our own.
We got stucked at Big C hypermarket.
Apparently, a ticket is issued upon entry and must be kept till exit.

A ticket was stapled on the side mirror.
The personnel didn't give my sister another ticket (I told her to get it) which was a proof that the bike belonged to us.
We didn't know how severe the situation was without the ticket.
So when we wanted to exit, they stopped us.
With both sides not understanding each other, how to get the message across??
We argued and argued but they didn't seem to understand.
We approached someone who speaks english and tried to explain for us.
The guards didn't buy it. No one can explain to us WHY????
We showed the rental document and the guards called the owner of the bike.
But still no positive outcome.
So with panic amidst, I went and prayed along for someone from the managing department to appear before me.
Lo and behold, few seconds later I met with a couple who works there and spoke the same language.
So they went with me to rectify the situation.
Again we explained to them, they explained to the security guards.
They explained to us that theft is common so we need the original document for the motorbike.
We explained that we were tourist and had document for the motorbike rental but they didn't accept it.
They requested that one of us can go back and get the original document.
But I wouldn't want to do it because taking a taxi back will cost me more than my bike rental.
So, both parties discussed and compromised that I left my sister there waiting while I rode back to get the document.
It took me 1 and half hour, without my navigator (sister).
Well, I had to thank the couple for helping us out.
We were excited to see a big hypermarket but was disappointed by the whole scenario.

Lucky we had ample time for Van Phuc silkworm Village.
I shopped some fabrics for my grandma and mother.
My sister bought herself a blouse and I a silk scarf and blouse!!

Methods of making it into thread

The process of making silk fabric

Pattern board

Again we visited the same restaurant

On our way to SAPA, we took the tour provided by our guesthouse.
Here we were excited to try out their train and guess what.. we were not disappointed
erm ..except for the toilet!!

The journey of 15 hours took place!! zzzzzzz

Backpacking in Vietnam (19th August 2008)

2008-08-19T00:48:00.010+08:00

19th August 2008
Hanoi

Hanoi people are less hard working compared to Saigon.
They don't start work as early as 6.30am.
Maybe we were not familiar with the place, so we had to settle breakfast with just this.
$5,000d

We took a motor-cab USD$3 to visit Uncle Ho.
HCM Mausoleum

A display of his residential palace, his living environment.

HCM Stilt house

HCM museum

Inside this museum, abstract arts of propaganda or Vietnam culture.

Van Mieu

So, we went back to GH to take afternoon bath.
Hanoi is seriously hot!
On our way back here, we also saw this shop just around the corner of our GH.
They are famous!! To be honest, we spent everyday eating here either for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Mien Luoc $17,000d each bowl

Since we still had the extra afternoon free, we embarked on another crazy venture.
It's me taking the public bus for a charge of (ops! I forgot the price)
It's about 20 minutes ride.
I was so excited about taking public transport!!!
It was fun and found an empty bullet along the street

Museum of Ethnology
One of my favourite museum after the Art museum in Saigon!
All the mega-size architecture shrunk to tiny cutesy-size display

Cham House

Kinh house

Uber tall tribal house

Uber long House

Tay House

Another tribal house

On our way home, we walked past this railway track which criss-cross in the city.

We tried Vietnam KFC!!!
Not really good, $53,000d per plate

Backpacking in Vietnam (18th August 2008)

2008-08-18T22:58:00.001+08:00

18th August 2008
Hanoi

It's morning.
Hanoi is a hard place to find a good decent price room.
We paid USD$9 for a room without window, later we changed to another room with air-cond.

We explored the city within walking distance.
We met this london guy, Dominic, such a good looking fella who guided us to this cathedral.

We visited the Maison Central, so-called Hilton prison.

My sister modeled for the 45 degree slanted prison bedroom.
What a torture!

Hahah.. Horrendous
A foreigner volunteered to take this picture seeing how we were fooling around in this prison.

Dinner
The best seafood!! $65,000d
I can't never forget this!

This is the place where we noticed a big crowd of people squatting at both sidewalks.

Backpacking in Vietnam (17th August 2008)

2008-08-17T01:03:00.010+08:00

17th August 2008
Hue

I managed to surf the Internet about Hue during my stay at Saigon.
Morning bus to leave for Hue ( 4 hours drive)
Pardon the seating position!!!

At last, we arrived Hue, also picked up few leaflets for more accurate local map.
This was our brunch, a delicious one.
$40,000D

Our first bike expedition started in Hue.
At first, I wanted to navigate and my sister could ride the motorbike.
Unfortunately, the luxury of life (car) has made her forgotten about balancing.
So I took charge of riding and she navigated.
We rented the motorbike for a day ($60,000D) pretty expensive ler...aiyo so typical malaysian

Hue Imperial City aka Vietnamese Forbidden city of beijing
Completed in 1833
$55,000d per pax
Freaking huge and I can't imagine how the real size in Beijing would be.
With only limited time, we had to time ourselves lest we wanna get FFK by the bus.

This city has few layers.
We started with the outer part , slowly to the inner city.
We spotted dalmations and small puppies for sale.

The main entrance to the inner city

The Throne room

totally-destroyed-to-the-ground palace that can't be restored anymore

Duvet Thi Royal Theatre
A replica of how the roof was done.

Study Hall

Crown Prince's (Emperor Bao Dai) House aka royal administrative Hall

Tu Doc Tomb
About 20 minutes ride
Entrance Fee :$55,000d per pax
This tomb is more ancient than the forbidden city, built during 1864-1867
We kind of lost our way or lost track

Xung Khiem Pavillion

Luong Khiem Temple
It was Emperor Tu Duc's Residential palace but turned to temple upon dedication to his mother

I love the upside-down bell jar light
So ancient!!
Wanna buy one of that!

Anyway, we visited all the tombs including his adopted son, Boi.
Kind of surprised that ancient emperor was pro-adoption...me too!!!

Khiem Tuo Tomb
Tomb of the empress

I love how they built this beautiful stream

Entrance to Stone Stele Pavillion

A self-critical autobiography of Emperor Tu Duc
The largest in Vietnam, built of brick and stone

For other stops we managed to find a shower room but not at Hue.
We paid $3USD (suggested and agreed by manager) to bath at a guesthouse opposite Sinh Cafe office.
It's a must to shower and we were anticipating for our overnight bus.
Our 8.30pm bus to Hanoi
Anyway, we didn't manage to have dinner at Hue
But, the bus took a short break about 10pm at a restaurant.
Kind of like bringing customers to the restaurant and gaining some commission.
It's pretty much a common trick.
Those not eating or drinking were not allowed to sit inside, bus was shut down.

So, I cleverly..yes I'm clever (haha) looked around for something interesting.
I saw 2 hawker stalls nearby (not really that near).

So, we ordered Chao Ca (fish porridge)..delicious!!
$20,000d
Sugarcane drink $10,000d

We chatted with the hawker and her family
They were generous to offer us a tit bit treat

Hue has a lot to offer.
Sadly we only have about 6 hours in the town.

Backpacking in Vietnam (16th August 2008)

2008-08-16T02:09:00.005+08:00

16th August 2008
Hoi An

We arrived pretty much early in the morning
Another trick: They dropped off the tourist at an expensive hotel
So we ended up have to walk and find our way to Hop Yen Guesthouse where we stayed $6USD dorm per pax.
We also took the chance of doing our laundry for $10,000D while it's cheaper there.

First feast of the day ($25,000D)

for me

For my sister

On our way, again we dropped by a church (you'll start to notice that all pre-modern church look about the same)

Along Hoi An, you will get to eat this buah kekuk

This brought back a lot of sweet memories to me.
I used to climb its tree just to pick more and more

So we arrived To Dinh Chuoc Thanh
An old Buddhist temple with great ecstatic antic carvings.
The whole place itself was very quiet which tells that not many people visitt this place.
Then on our way back to the old quarters, we met a strange fella who insisted that we followed him somewhere greater.
We did but eventually, I got suspicious about it.
As he was getting more further away from us, we U-turned.

Hoi An Old Quarters
Tickets are sold at a particular street.
We chose certain places that we wanna see.

This is a famous Cau Nhat Ban
(Japanese Covered bridge) built in 1593

Along this Japanese bridge aka the river, you will get to see how they make the souvenirs.
It's much cheaper buying on the street than getting into the art center which is a rip-off.
At least here you can still bargain.

See his making an old man's face using the root of a tree

Tan Ky House
The people there got suspicious of us because we entered through the back door.
They thought we didn't pay for the ticket.
Relax, it was a blistering hot weather, we need to catch some breath before anything.

This chinese historical house was pretty much built with great pride and authentic to its owner's culture.
If you are a chinese, you could detect the air of cockiness or maybe it's just me...

The uncle (a member of this house) here speaks french fluently, so he is the french guide for the house.

Most of the old houses have disappeared as times goes by.

Visit their art centre to see the workshop and buy some stuff here.
To me, the price is over-rated here compared to Saigon.
You also can get it cheaper at the street nearby the Jap. bridge.
Some of the souvenirs here as Hoi An's specialty, so you won't find it elsewhere (I think so..)

Cho Hoi An @ Hoi An Market

Lunch
Cao Lau , ($15,000D)

a dish of rice noodles which are not quite as slippery as pho and a bit closer in texture to pasta. The secret is the water used to make it-- authentic cao lau uses only water from a special well in the city. The noodles are topped with slices of roast pork, dough fritters, and lots of fresh herbs and vegetables.

Beware of fish leaves!!!

Phuc Kien Assembly Hall
The only thing I like about this temple is the swirl-bell like joystick.
It's so nice to take a picture of them upclose.
A lot of people people pay to place their wish or prayer with the joystick.

Quan Cong Temple
Build in 1653
A dedication to Quan Cong, a Chinese General
Again, I just like artistic architecture

Apparently, I wasn't sure how far was the beach and we walked 5km to the beach.
5km seemed very far, luckily the weather was fine.
The good thing is we get to see great scenery.

Cua Dai Beach
is the cleanest and best beach that I ever experienced in Vietnam.
You can see the crystal clear blue water about 10m from the sand.
It's totally unpolluted and I know I would swim in it if I did bring my bikini.
Just look at the sunset!!! The streak of sunrays like a painting.

Then, we took a motorbike taxi back to town for $30,000d.

Fine Dining
We tried this really nice ambience type of restaurant (located along the river- 2nd and 3rd house from right side of the picture below) for the first time in my backpacking history.
Vietnamese also have their own seafood hotpot steamboat ($105,000d)..yes i know it's exp.
I tried mango blash smoothies- $17,000D, she tried pineapple shake - $15,000D

Backpacking in Vietnam (15th August 2008)

2008-08-15T02:08:00.004+08:00

15th August 2008
Nha Trang

We have our simple brunch $15,000D

We also rent bicycles for $60,000D a day
(very expensive-should explore other shops but no time)
Plan changed!!
We just grabbed some flyers about Nha Trang and decided on what to see and how to go.

Nha Trang Cathedral (Stone church)
It’s a well build church and easy to maintain since it’s pure stone
Very peaceful and they also operate an orphanage
So I donated a bit of money.

Lotus Buddha
In Vietnam, you need to pay for parking fee that the operator will take care of the bicycle for u.
A ticket will be given to you and they will scrible the number on your vehicle’s seat.
So you will see all their bicycle or motorbike covered with chalk.
It was chaotic when we arrived.
It seems like a lot of students were around.
See this mobile weighing machine.
As if they can’t afford for a weighing scale???

So, we took a bit of rest here because the flight of staircase is long.
It was darn hot.

When we arrived to get our bicycle, we asked how much is the parking fee. An honest boy told us $2000D. Then came a lady saying no no no…ONE DOLLAR!!! So I ended up arguing with her that he said that much so I’m paying that much, take it or leave it.
** The problem with Vietnamese or Cambodian is that if they can cheat u, they will do it! I’m talking about street people not involve in tourism, like just buying a drink at a hawker stall, toilet fee, etc..
It’s the mentality that needs to change one day, I hope so.
Not to say that Malaysians are good, but at least when there’s a fixed price for something (since already written) how can the person cheat??
I heard for taxi in Malaysia, they don’t follow meter for tourist
that’s cheating!! **

Thap Ba (Po Nagar Cham Towers)
Along the fishing river
A fee is charged upon entry ($15,000D?)

Then we cycled to the lovely beach

and on our way back to the town, we stopped by where I can take this super huge basket boat

For lunch, we went to the Nha Trang market.

We visited this generous Vietnamese aunty who gave us a double portion.
We got to know each other and she was happy that strangers like us commented her food is good (really good)
She was also bragging about our praises to her frens.

Visit her stall if you happen to go to Nha Trang Market

After lunch, we wanted to see how Vinapearl theme park is or maybe we could try the water sport.
But it seems so far far away....
So we just strolled along the beach which I don't think it's impressive but much better than our local beach!!
Lepak and waiting for bath time
Nothing to do until our bus come at 8.30pm

Dinner

A well done spagetti (cheese, milk, etc...)

Bye bye Nha Trang

Backpacking in Vietnam (14th August 2008)

2008-08-14T16:48:00.014+08:00

14th August 2008

People Committee Building

Notre Dame Church
We were lucky again
By the time we walked there, we met this lady just coming out of the church
We asked if we could enter..and yes...
It's only open at certain hour and rumours heard that sometimes it's not open to public at all
I think I like this church the best because it has a lot of artistic elements in each part of the building

So, with so much time left it's breakfast
We ate Hu Tiu Mi ($20,000D) and enjoy Passionfruit Juice ($10,000D- a bit expensive)

Next : R eunification Palace
It doesn't look like a palace right??
Because the once-build french palace was bomb during Independent Revolution
So this building was build on the same site
Most interesting I guess is the underground where you got to see all the classic stuff (kitchen) and the army operation rooms and equipment.

Almost all ancient stuff here are uber huge

I'm not sure what Museum is this?
Forgotten ..heheh will check
It's just nearby

So, we finished our whole morning earlier than we thought!!
Note : We did check out the Opera House but it's on renovation.
So, we decided to go back to go back first and rest.
The whole trip we had time to take a nap..unbelievable!!!

It was sunny!!
We tried this on our way home
Banh Flan $11,000D ??

As we walked towards the Ben Thanh Market
Lunch!!
Unfortunately, I already had a bad feeling about this uncle trying to be helpful whom can converse in English.
I knew deep down that he's going to cheat us when he was discussing price with the food seller.
How did he??
Well, we paid abit extra for lunch although I did mention to him it's expensive.
He said not expensive.. feel like wanna whack this fella!!!
Come on la..think I'm small girl is it??!!

$40,000D

$30,000D

Ben Thanh Market
Here, I have another story to tell.
The pirated backpack here has 2 types of quality.
If you buy the backpack from Ben Thanh market worker, it's much better quality but of course much higher price.. not as high as the original price!
If you walk inside of the market, you will find a much lower grade and bad-service promoter.
(test the texture inside the backpack)
She will give u sour face, not very friendly service, will curse u if u don't buy after bargaining or dealing with her.

Find these ladies street vendors with most customers

I guarantee the food is tasty.

Just can't resist this street fried radish cake
$10,000D

So it's time to go back and get ready to travel North!!
It's peak hour afternoon school
So in Saigon, the traffic is the worst in Vietnam

We had an earlier dinner at Lotteria.
This is like McD or Burger King in Vietnam, in fact it tasted so good.
$91,000D

Leaving Saigon at 8pm by Sinh Cafe bus to Nha Trang

We were so excited at the first sight of such bus!!
This is like a first world class bus.
It's clean, comfortable and minus diesel-smell (unlike Malaysia) PLUS clean toilet!!!
I'm mean where on earth would you find a developing country with a clean bus toilet??
Even Malaysia also don't have.
Don't get me wrong, this only happens in this type of bus in Vietnam.
Public toilet is still a far cry.

We took this sleeping bus for the first time and explored its cool system.
On board, you must take out your shoes and put them in a provided plastic bag.
Then you get to store it in a compartment of your bed (notice the black round-it's the opener)
A 500ml of drinking water is provided.
Tourist gets a free Sinh Cafe t-shirt(NONSENSE-IT'S INCLUDED IN THE FARE).
They have a cleaner that make sure everything is clean on the bus.
If any soil or dirt or whatever that contaminates the place, he will clean it immediately.
For those with big family, you can opt for the back-sleeping beds.

I love to travel if every country has such a Jjang bus system!!!!

Backpacking in Vietnam (13th August 2008)

2008-08-13T12:27:00.017+08:00

13th August 2008

I had been eyeing this stall so decided to try out their Banh Cuon
Location : just around Pham Ngu Lao

Just loving the taste of southern vietnamese food
Since it was cheap, we ordered each for ourselves
This is why I XOXO street foods!!!
Price : $7,000D

OK how the leng lui aunty make this

Mekong 1-day Trip Tour by TNK travel again
Again we have to take a mini bus to the harbor
We had to endure the cramp mini bus for 2++ hours
A pain in the neck

The boat ride along Mekong River

Along the way, we saw many water palm trees

This is where they dried the fruit after harvest

This is the longan estate along the Mekong River
They have variety of longans here.
Again to note : River is high in salt so they manipulated and fertilized the land to turn it into orchard
They dig the small canals for during high tide, so the whole orchard is filled with many long canals
This is what i think :Vietnam will beat Malaysia in agriculture sooner or later

Hello, ain't I 'kawaii'??

So we got to ride this cart to taste local fruit which I think it's common fruit in Malaysia

Photo group time with donkey/poney and uncle

We went to the bee farm

Jasmine tea served with lime and fresh honey
I drank alot of this..cups after cups

Sweet Coconut Ribbon and sugar-salt coated peanuts
Tasty!!!!

While lepaking, we were entertained with local vietnamese songs

Enjoying the rowing boat session along the Mekong River

Next, coconut candy factory which our tour guide mentioned only found here.
It seems like hard work so I'm guessing it's becoming rare now.

This is our last pit stop for Mekong Tour

Then we went to visit the Notre Dame Cathedral but only opens certain time(another day)
but proceed first to Post Office

Amazing architeture

The phone booth kind of brought out the feeling of Harry Potter

So we finally finished the post office

Dinner time at Ben Thanh market

This was our first argument since we were here.
My sister's feet was getting blister due to too much of walking.
She never walk far because of driving (manja ma)
So she sulked and complained she can't walk anymore.
I told her no point in sulking , should think of ways to solve the problem.(she did try to put medicine but not working la)
This is something my mom has mentioned will happen
So I suggested stockings will do the trick.

This is one of the things that I know a lot of people can't bear with my backpacking style.
Too much walking, too tough
Well if you want to keep the budget low, you can't expect to solve everything single problem with money
HELLO the whole 2 weeks we spent only RM2K each.. tell me can u do it or not??!!
So far I have not met anyone that can compete with my low budget style of backpacking.
If got, introduce to me.. I would love to backpack with him/her.
Even those who went in group also can't compete with my low budget
Anyone up for the challenge???
Damnit.. y do I make it sound like I'm bragging??!!
No.. I'm hinting on those who can join me laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Join la....

Stir-fried noodle :$22,000D

Shrimp paste Pancake :$15,000D

We had eyed this shop that sells cake
It turned out we felt that secret recipe is much better than these
It's just a random visit anyway
We spent about $50,000D

Well that's it for today

Backpacking in Vietnam (12th August 2008)

2008-08-12T12:05:00.007+08:00

12th August 2008

Ho Chi Minh City

The famous Banh Mi with Pork : $6,000D

The famous Banh Mi with omellete : $7,000D

Our first tour to Chu Chi Tunnel which takes about half-day
(I found out you can take a public bus to chu chi tunnel , much much cheaper if only i knew earlier)
Tour company : TNK travel
Tour guide's name : Nic
So before we could reached the tunnel, it's a custom for every tour to bring us to handicraft factory which will give them commission if we buy something from there.
Anyway, we bought 4 photo sequential frames for our mother, costing $135 USD!!!
We were thinking the street would sell much much cheaper ($20-40USD) but then the quality wise would not be so good.
The factory consists of handicapped people making handicraft for living

So here we are, briefing about how the chu chi tunnel system works
Well vietnamese are pretty amazing with their practical survival skills!!

Demostration by our tour guide , how to get into the secret hole!!

Strategic camourflage way to enter the tunnel

Another clever way that connects the undergound air-way system to the ground without being known by the American soldiers

Going underground

The area is bigger than my house

I doubt Vietnamese has big foot

You can try to shoot by paying a certain amount of fee

Fooling around with the rice paper

This was what the soldiers used to feed themselves, boiled tapioca and peanut with fillings of salt and sugar
Very nice combination

We got to know a guy from South Korea whom I helped to take a picture for him.
What a good way to struck a conversation.
He has been to Malaysia too.
Anyway, we met a female South Korean who sat with us to chat with an American guy.
There's this particular guy that we don't know his nationality (japanese or korean who join english speaking tour) because he was so quiet.
Note: he is good looking!!..
Forgotten to exchange email address with them..what a waste!!!

War Remnant Museum
The tour left us here since there's a lot of time left.
It was a good way of them to leave us here because it's convenient

This museum is interesting because we get to touch and take pictures with big tanks!! Yeah!
The museum offers the war history depicted in the form of photos and brief explanation.

Then rain came pouring down heavily.
We waited for an hour in the museum
We decided to buy raincoat $1USD (what a rip off) and walked ourselves home

Dinner was at Ben Thanh Market
My sister suggested we try this stall which was patronized by only locals rather than the other side which was filled with tourists and locals

Dinner time : Both dishes cost about $70,000D

Backpacking in Vietnam (10th and 11th August 2008)

2008-08-11T12:01:00.004+08:00

10th August 2008
We arrived Phnom Penh, Cambodia via AirAsia.
Without map, we strolled around to the river.
I still can remember the road and way to the palace which is river-front.

We walked out of the airport because it was much cheaper to get tuk-tuk outside
Capitol GH : $7USD room and bus ticket to Saigon for both person $20USD

My porridge dinner near Capitol GH : $3000R

My sister's dinner : sausage with pickled vegetables : $1500R

11th August 2008
Loading the ferry to cross the Mekong river
The journey took about 6 hours

This is something that the cambodian eat while travelling in the bus
It's sticky rice grilled-cooked with vegetables and beans in bamboo

SAIGON, VIETNAM

We arrived about 5pm at Pham Ngu Lao St.
We stayed o/n at a $6USD room which is situated at the main street of Pham Ngu Lao, wanting to simply crash a place first before scouting for a better one.
As you know, everyone loves to party till 3am and the main street never sleeps!!
The room we stayed on the first night was horrible(well..u pay what u get) : dirty ceiling, flies everywhere, bad bathroom, bad bed and noisy street!!

Lunch at Saigon at last!!
Pho pork :$15,000D
Just outside the alley of our GH, it's a make-do table and stool.

There's one vietnamese food writer who wrote on her blog about being aware of eating raw vege.
She mentioned to watch what the locals touch and eat
If they eat the vege or whatever being serves, then it is safe
This is my 2-cent : Not every vietnamese eats everything serves, so it would be a pity to lose out in trying great food due to fear.
Saigonese eat chili but Hanoist hardly eat spicy

Not wasting more time, we booked 2 tours : $16USD Chu chi tunnel tour and $??1-day Mekong tour with TNK travel.
The chu chi tunnel tour guide speaks bad english compared to the Mekong tour guide.

We bought our Sinh Cafe open bus tour.
Our route was Saigon, Nha Trang, Hoi An, Hue and lastly Hanoi, all for $40USD per pax.

Then since we had all the time, we strolled along the famous nearby tourist sites in Saigon.
This gave us an estimation of how far and quick for us to get around, plus familiarizing ourselves with the street system.
We found that we don't need to hire any taxi or tuk-tuk since everything is too close by.

We like Dat Huy GH (Dat Huy 185/18 Pham Ngu Lao St.) because it's $12USD with clean room, good beds, hot shower, cable TV and with quiet environment.
Normally the alley is not the popular choice, something I'm not sure why.
I prefer the small alley because it's cheaper, very peaceful and cleaner compared to the dusty main street.
Beats me why the kuai lo loves the main streets!!

Dinner is served : Fried glass noodle with crab meat $25,000D
Location : Ben Thanh Market

Dessert : both $39,000D

Am I ready for Vietnam?hm....

2008-08-07T02:11:00.005+08:00

I'm still arranging the guesthouse in Saigon.
The most cheapest I got response from is USD$12.
Still waiting for the details of the pricey room.
I'm thinking of arriving there and walk around to find a good cheap place to stay if time permits.
Well everything is flexible with me...

I'm still worry about my Sapa trip too.
Till now I haven't got a response.
Most of the Vietnamese only check mail once a week.
I think Internet subscription probably is expensive over there.
I emailed the people in Hanoi whether they can help me book a place in Sapa.

I found a site that offers many information on guesthouse like the lonely planet book.
That's where I got the email address that I have been finding for Hop Yen in Hoi An.
Lucky!!!
Well because Hop Yen is probably one of the most recommended guesthouse with cheap price.

As for Hanoi, I got a fast reply from darling-cafe guesthouse which has dorm.

Basically, I'm not very petty about crashing in at any place.
It's just a place to put the bag and sleep.
By the time I'm on the bed, I probably dead meat in 5 minutes.

My opinion on taking tour
I think it's OK.
Basically, if I choose to follow tour, then I would have to eat at places they bring me.
Often, those places are not very good
I would prefer tasting what the locals are tasting at the streets.

Oh.. I found this nearby Petaling Street
This is a dynamo torch light

and bought this super spacesaver at Jusco

Broadway Musical

2008-07-06T01:17:00.004+08:00

Splendid..Bravo
I think this is the first 'upgraded' version of broadway musical I ever watched in Malaysia so far
It was a blend of cinematic and live theatre / theater, in terms of visual
For audio, the harmony of synthesizer and live 'wind and percussion' orchestra
That's worth my RM123!

The Beast was great... he sang so wonderfully..
I'm impressed!!!
Gaston was great too!!! oh..minus the body figure though!!
Gaston would have been greater if he had added a bit of emotion on the song 'kill the beast'

One more thing, the stage props and background were awesome too!!!
I'll just never forget this event, ...ever!!!

Belle was a bit of disappointment.
One bad thing about being familiar with and heard the musical track, I kind of like have a wee bit of higher expectation.
There're so many parts which I expected her to emphasize on.
Surely that will give the kick or bring the emotions out of the song and lyrics!!
I know it's hard to sing live that moves the heart of an audience such as me...~~~

ah.. go read ah soo's comment.. more details

If this is not backpacking , then this is what?

2008-06-28T02:19:00.003+08:00

Printed the map
Label the places to visit, food stalls, place to sleep, tour agents
I have to say the map sucks.
I hope to get a good one when arrived there but somehow can't throw these away.
Made adjustment to places that're on the wist list
Planned the schedule
Yes , sure got schedule la.. I'm going to many places
Need to plan when to book tickets in advance
Duh!!!

what else??
book accomodation in advance
try to check local tour price
do my budget!!!

ok ok done.
I estimated my budget for this trip is RM 1.5K minimum if no extra spending on souvenir or etc.
So basically, I think bringing RM2K is good enough, just in case.

Felt like this trip is a bit big budget and extra long
2 weeks!!
What ya expect??!!

I think I can change my occupation to budget travel planner..hahaha

Birthday gift for little friend

2008-06-21T01:05:00.002+08:00

Nice or not my packaging..haha
Later I have to celebrate her birthday at McD.

Today will be a busy day till at night...
Too bad I can't join my friend to Midvalley...

In search of a good glasses

2008-06-18T22:46:00.005+08:00

I went KL town, SS2, anywhere I can see,
but not one is selling silver titanium rimless glasses without hinge

check out this link
It says that this brand is pretty famous whom I myself have not known it
So blur la me..I'm using it but i don't know

anyway, I'm ordering it since silver is rarely available.
Mind you it's RM1K (frame and glass)
cheap?? reasonable??

oh.. it doesn't matter anymore since I already placed a deposit and ordered it
case closed!

Idiots worry me!!!

2008-05-20T22:36:00.003+08:00

For those who never come to my house, FYI I have 3 housemates.
One couple and a single gal
So far the couple has created a lot of problem
Normally, I would called such people the uneducated and low class
Y? Y? Y?
Littering in and out of the house!!
Can you believe such a grown-up do such things?

Today, I confronted him face-to-face
Believe me!
I have tried many ways to avoid any direct confrontation because that's the asian way
But to me, it's more of like the 'kampung' way of telling people off since they are very 'kampung-e'

Our garbage men are very 'high-class ones'
They won't pick up rubbish that is not tied in the plastic bags, meaning any litter that lies around the road will be left as it is.
My house mate ,as I HAD told him many times, refused to throw his rubbish properly
How to deal with such people when I have already input some sense in my saying?
~~~~~hai~~~~~
I had to confront and give him a plastic bag, instructed him to pick his rubbish.
Worst, he gave me lame excuse like 'oh, maybe the tissue dropped out of the car!"
Hello..this is not just about the tissue...it's about everything..plastics , shoes lying everywhere!!

My point is that I'm not a person who loves to complain.
But rather, I would love if people appreciates my effort in keeping Home Sweet Home spanking clean.
I didn't even complain that I have to do all the cleaning because I prefer to do it myself and in one go, rather than waiting for people to do.

This couple is unbelievable too
When the house were dirty (when my bro did the cleaning), they complained it's dirty
Now when the house is clean, they are the ones that dirtied it!
wth?!!^*$)%*%&*$)%
Their stuff lying around everywhere and been told by me to arranged it properly
Nah..everything I said fell on deaf ears
I had to TIDY their stuff for them
Such a irresponsible person..own property don't want to manage.
So I told them off, not to buy more stuff

I found out that my single gal house mate agreed with me about them being filthy beings!
Y? Because in order not to falsely accused the couple, I checked with her whether she simply threw rubbish or not.
She said she didn't , of course I believe la since I know her trend.
She even said, they always dirtied the toilet everytime she washed it!
see what i mean!!

Oh..so lucky of them that I didn't throw my temper.
I find that whenever I'm angry, my blood pressure rises till my body trembles
Don't know if it's a good sign or not..but I find myself more aware of myself and able to control myself.
But of course, I did lose my temper too occasionally..hahaha
Normally, those that taste the brute of my temper don't want to befriend with me anymore.
Well... fine with me.. as if I care!
The truth : Go to Hell , go to hell!! is what racing in my mind..

fallen angel again...so what?!

We have extra cash!

2008-05-08T00:52:00.003+08:00

I was chatting with my sis, asking her to choose her toothbrush holder

Then she gave me a big surprise, telling me that our lovely dad is giving us RM5K for our trip to Vietnam.

thinking of staying at hotels..instead of B&B or buy food or stuffs
but to be disappointed a few seconds later...
she said, " mom said she wants half of that!"

I'm like...what??!!
chiew..sow heng only!!

Animal World Suction Toothbrush holder

2008-05-07T23:32:00.005+08:00

Hehehe....

I'm all smiling now

For a very long I have been finding suction toothbrush holder in Malaysia
The ones I found are sold very expensive like RM10.00 for just one.
Of course that ones are cute!!

Once, I shown Ee Lee I wanted one of those but she said expensive.
I thought so too

Then, suddenly as I was cruising in Jusco Midvalley, I found this reasonable price RM3.90??

Yes, I'm using that now... but I'm thinking of buying a nicer ones....this one i can bring it back to hometown n use..hahaha

Then, yesterday, I saw at Jusco One Utama...new stock..hehe..sales
So tomorrow I wanna go buy for mom, grandma, .... My sister also wants!!
Aiya.. I think I buy a lot so that everyone has something cute
It's RM9.90 for 2!!!

They're selling the ladybird ones too RM5.90 for one, which I'm still thinking should I buy that?
It's so, so so cute!!

So, if you're wondering, why not cat toothbrush holder?
DUH!! don't have ma!

Oh.. I also bought a new keychain holder..hahaha
A grey cat!! because my foxy already dirty
It's all from Nici
It's cute.. u got to see it yourself.
www.plushpaws.co.uk

I wanted to buy a rabbit but it's in white , selling in 1U, for sis
But the beige is out online , still got to wait till they import them

Even mine I have to wait for the jackson grey cat, because others are not so cute!
They have the tom cat...nah!!! and I just saw loopy cat??? it's so cute..
But u need to compare it in real life..because when i saw tom cat.. it's not so cute.

No more shopping after this!

I'm an Aries

2008-04-16T18:46:00.007+08:00

I didn't notice that Aries has such characters..but I guess it's true somehow for my case.
Who else is Aries? Love to meet some...oh ya I have a few.
But not all Aries are as stated so.

My little friend asked me "why didn't you mention about it?"
I said because I'm old,thinking what's the point of celebration.
At some point, it brings embarrassment but also amusement.

Embarrass for at such age I am still celebrated
Amuse for the people who gets so excited for me

So question is am I happy?
Yes, I am happy for the people around me whom are happy as well.

Early Celebration

2008-04-08T00:07:00.002+08:00

My little friends wanted to surprise me.. in deed they have with good food and gift
Love them to bits

Wind of 2008

2008-03-20T23:50:00.000+08:00

Wind of 2008 has arrived from corners of the earth,
unwillingly I welcomed it

Blind to the things I had started to lose
both...for the things I love and for the things I sacrificed

For many times, just for a split moment, I wish time would freeze itself
Allow me to embrace life
with all my heart, soul and mind

Where am I now or Where will I be from now on?
My heart choose not to answer
Afraid but curious
yet I decide to wait

Ask me not but the Wind

New Discovery for online games!!

2008-03-18T12:18:00.000+08:00

Last night, I was browsing for something else..i forget what already la...
but I stumbled upon one interesting blog when I read another blog stating her blog as Top 5 Most Disgusting Blogger in Singapore
which keep me awake till 3am, reading and browsing through her blog.
Introducing http://xiaxue.blogspot.com/
What did I actually benefit from her blog is this online game that the singaporeans are obsessing about.
http://www.viwawa.com
She was dissing about someone she chatted online with while playing the game.

I have to say I only love playing games if it requires me to think
I just don't like playing stupid games that doesn't really challenge my IQ at all.
No syiok ma!

So go check it out!

edit : really this site is a game hives!!

General Election for Malaysia 080308

2008-03-08T13:41:00.001+08:00

As a first timer, I'm pretty much very excited for this.
I had registered 3 years ago and have been waiting for this day to come.
Before this I was pretty much frustrated in getting myself to register as a voter
because I really dislike politics and wouldn't want to get involve in this matter.
But as I grow up, there're a lot of matters about the nation that creeps into my heart.
It's time to stop running away from problems but rather face it like an adult.
Matters of our nation are more eminent now that I don't think I can just sit back and ignore them.

Politics in Malaysia sucks!
The people don't even know what is politics stands for.
Politicians have lost the true purpose of a politician.
Everyone should be taught political science then only everyone will understand.

New Stuff for New Year

2008-02-15T02:59:00.000+08:00

I bought a new handphone
Sony Ericson K530i

and this is my mom

and a new bedsheet

I did it again!!

2008-01-22T00:58:00.000+08:00

A thousand times I warned myself
Not to be involved
since I told myself
enough is enough
Yet, somehow I'm still drawn to it

I guess music is a part of me
Singing is like blood gushing throughout my entire body
Expressing oneself in a unique mechanism which runs naturally

Please believe me!
for those who have been bugging me with the same Q
I have toned down my obsession to it as much as I can
Yet, now I'm being summon to song lead the kids
Damn it!!
My world is taking me for a spin ride but I'm not ready for it

I feel frustrated that I can't seem to grasp the meaning of it all
Wrath covers me for I'm clueless to where my direction is
I feel like I need to take a step back and look from another angle

ok.. enough said.

If you understand the profoundness of above statement, good for u!!
I won't begin with what I contributed to the choir KK9 since (if i recap) I wasn't really doing anything..
hahaha

Rehearsal slot
Fortunately, I managed to listen to almost all of the rehearsal from all choirs
To sum up, most choirs are improving in terms of techniques and performance
This is a GOOD sign which I realized choir kk9 has *raised the bar* over the last 4 years
It should have been this way after all, Festival Seni UM is a varsity level
Wouldn't it be a shame for varsity students to perform way below their par?

Thinking back, Festival Seni is supposed to create awareness and interest in art and music which commenced way , way long time ago
The standard should have increased but somehow descended along the way
Why it is so?
well.. LIFE goes on
Most people can only linger a period of time
Leaving a legacy which either was handed down or ceased
In my opinion, it's more of the latter

There's a lot of limiting factors which contributes to such halt
I won't be discussing it here since that would bring me into opening a new chapter of story

The competition
Live singing is so much glorious and wonderful to the ears
It can take both the choir and audience to a journey of psychological chaotic
positively or negatively
But mine is more than that , with physical chaotic (leg cramps)
I have to admit that I'm old now..hehehe

for more details , see soo's blog

As I mentioned above, that night was something to be remembered
It felt like...
everyone has put up their very very best to the very very last note

Morning after Morning

2008-01-12T21:36:00.000+08:00

When I wake up in the morning, I could hear You whisper in my ears
Then it was always a good morning.

There were some hard times in the afternoon & evening but I know it would be a good morning again tomorrow...

Then I could endure the not-so-good afternoons & evenings

Oh Christmas is over!

2008-01-03T00:02:00.000+08:00

I have to praise the designer for One Utama's Christmas celebration
I think it's the best so far since I've been in KL

For the occasion, I made this special cute message rope for a friend

Last but not least, after watching Coffee Prince I'm inspired to do this
I took me a long time to get hold of the water-based marker
I went to One Utama to find it but most of the craft shops don't have it
So yesterday, I spent about RM90++ on markers imported from Japan

Gone for Good

2007-12-28T00:54:00.000+08:00

Finally they left for Australia

Just couldn't send them off because I can't really handle the situation
I prefer avoiding this disheartening scene

Well, sob..sob..when I realized it's about time they are leaving
As I typed this journal of the day, my heart aches as well

......Sayonara.....

I wonder when did I pen this down?!

2007-12-14T11:43:00.000+08:00

No matter how much pain
No matter how much I hate living
No matter how much sorrow
No matter how much I hate this world,
in all the choices I made,
there still is you..

You that I can't let go
You that I can't seem to run away from
You that I can't seem to deny
You that lives in my heart.

I have pride in my life because of who I am

I pride in myself for passing through the trenches in my life
All of that, You crush my pride
The only standing I have in me
You take it away
Yet I find You there waiting for me
so I may seek You
forever where I might be.

Trailing Gunung Nuang

2007-12-14T11:03:00.001+08:00

Map

I took much longer time to upload the pic because I wasn't the photographer for the day

Journey to Pangsun : 1 hr
Backpack:
Lunch (mee hoon goreng)
Water
Salt (to eliminate the darn bloodsucking species)

So, this was the team that will hike Gunung Nuang
I kept the size of group smaller this time because hiking is not a joke
It's a serious matter because it's very very challenging for those who were first timers

Seriously, I hate this part alot
By making the road like this, our acceleration was badly affected by the friction of it and the steeply angle too!!
It took us about 1.5 hours to get to the starting point of hiking

Yes. On the way, we definitely need a rest
A nice place to see the Nuang damp (i think?)

An interesting 3-entwined-together trees

Kingdom of Fungi!!

One of the craziest part of hiking

Our stopover for lunch and the highest part that we could get there by 12 noon
The idea was if we still failed to touch down at kem pacat, we will just stop anywhere when it's 12 noon

Everyone is too exhausted
Camera was just passed from one person to another because no one wanted to stand anymore
Lunch tasted hella delicious when one is totally knocked out!

Journey back to square one took us 2 hrs ++
Our toes were screaming in pains because of constant impact when walking down that i-hate-you path!
I was holding my bladder till we arrived
There're toilets and bathrooms
I took a quick shower because of the stench and dirt
Wouldn't wanna dirty my friend's new car!!

We had pisang and ubi goreng and coke! because we were craving for it

A trip up to the north of Malaysia

2007-11-19T15:46:00.001+08:00

Rafting at Sungai Kampar and Caving at Tempurung Cave
17 November 2007

~~No pic!!~~
~~Darn!!~~

~~I'm abit disappointed since my frens who brought along camera, decided not to bring during caving or rafting.~~

Anyway, I hope the singaporean fella is kind enough to quickly pass the email down so that I can blog about it

Just a few words here
The adventure was really great with friends and strangers alike

The path to get to this meeting point was really treacherous and I love it!!

Okay !! Yahoo!!!!
Ready , get set, go!!

Get your arse into the water!!

Pretend to be drown if you want to catch this floater
Everyone is required to at least feel the water current or drink some contaminated water O_O

Let the games begin!

Oops ! Bummer... n bummer...n bummer

Come one peeps!! Row row row your boat...

Rest and Relax!

Not again... a common sight

Are we there yet!!!??

After rafting, we rest 30 minutes and had lunch
Waited for Micheal to arrive but he was late
There's so much confusion ..later i will elaborate on this

here we were waiting , squatting while others were coming through

We crawl and crawl, just like doing National Service

Walking downwards through an opening

Sliding down a very slanted slope

Finally, can u see the light!! Am I still alive?? -_-

Okay.. our trip was partially organized by MMadventure..why i mentioned partially??
ok..we reached there at about 9am sharp..
I'm always punctual n also Micheal demanded that we be punctual
so..fine..
But by the time we were there, no one to actually greet us on time.
We waited n waited , took our time to change clothes.
Then, apparently the person in charge was there but he didn't come over even though he saw us..@ _ @
And no one to receive the full payment.. sadly and dangerously, I had to carry the money along
That's a big amount of money ...ppl!!

After the rafting, once we were at tempurung cave again, there wasn't anyone to greet us or to direct us for the next programme.
I asked Miki, Miki asked me... cycle over cycle..
Still no one from MMadventure who supposed to be in charge of our tour
We just barged and had lunch with the Singaporean, without knowing whether our lunch is supposed to be together with them or not.
yes.. lunch is provided as stated..but MMadventure was really not professional in organizing a tour
I'm clueless from the start to the end

Rafting was just a collaboration of Nomad adventure with MMadventure
Miki is part of Nomad adventure..so I was told

No one has Micheal's number
So I had to make a call and asked "where is the person in charge of doing the caving tour?"
"I'm going to be there in 15 minutes.. just wait for me"
Then another uncle..(also very cunning person trying to steal business) told us "It's going to rain, if u wait any longer, u might not be able to go underneath the cave!!"
So.. confusion n confusion n lots of pushing here and there...
Eventually, we followed along with the Singaporean team.

After we came out of the cave and had our shower, MMadventure person-in-charge met up with me
First thing I loath about such organizer : No apology for being late!!
My 2-cent : You are an organizer.. you are supposed to stand by and wait.. NOT ME waiting for u!!
2nd thing I loath : Blaming their customer !!
My 2-cent : You are in this field n supposed to know or warn me that I should not just follow that cunning-business-stealer-uncle
3rd thing I loath : Giving lame excuses ..jam in KL!!
My 2-cent : I PAID U to be my slave for the day!!! so don't talk idiotic nonsense with me!
4th thing I loath : Giving me free t-shirt (low quality) and name cards - to promote for u!!
My 2-cent : I take that t-shirt n make it as my doormat and take the name card to warn people not to even consider your service!!

Annals of Journey to Cambodia

2007-10-08T13:54:00.005+08:00

Low-Budget Backpacking in Cambodia

How to survive in Cambodia for low budget travellers
Buy local drinking water with local words .. not English
Watch how much local people pay for their drinks or food..so you won't get rip off
For goodness sake, be wise by using your common sense

This drinking water cost about $500 / $1000 Riels depending on where you buy it
If they wanna charge you more than that, bargain or complain or whine!!! that you bought it for 500 riels...LOL!!

My 2 cents :
Drink lots of water if you wanna avoid getting sick
Bring along body lotion to moisture your skin because here it's dry
It's better to wear sandals ,not shoe or flip flop
At night, try not to bath in hot shower because it will cause the skin to dehydrate and causes skin rashes

Phnom Penh

Exchange rate : $1USD = $4000 Riels
Residence : Okay Guesthouse, Sothearos Road
Price : $8USD room with 4 beds
I forget to book/arrange accomodation earlier because schedule changes upon arrival and no 2-beds room
so we have 2 extra beds that the ghost can occupy them
We actually did walk to find other alternatives but too tired so we settled with this GH

Mode of transportation throughout Phnom Penh : Bus no. 11 @ Feet

We had our first dinner at a chinese-cambodian restaurant
How much these cost? Beats me.. apparently my friend threw away our expenditure notes for the whole trip
I'm guessing these cost about $3USD for both meals

Just the sake for anyone to actually see what we'd endured throughout the backpacking trip.

For goodness sake, I'm a backpacker that only will use the map and my feet to walk or cycle
No tourist guide or tuk-tuk or motordup unless necessary
Everything was self-reliant and communicating with the locals
The great thing about doing these was the funny scenario of "chicken and duck talking" between us and the locals
Sense of direction , I have no problem with that.

We found a great and cheap location to eat breakfast and lunch
It is situated nearby Okay GH and Royal Palace
Breakfast at 6.30AM

It tasted almost like Thai curry laksa, one of my favourite dish
Served with choices of vegetables (ulam) and salt, chilly , etc
Price : $1500 Riels

Tea is FOC
Every stall serves tea ..kind of like chinese style

On the way to find map ( we can't find any map at the airport) and found it when I asked a waiter girl.
I must say the map is complete and useful.

A nearby morning market, love the hustle and bustle of this market.

So we entered the museum.
Everything in the museum itself are very very huge... the doors, windows, displays and etc.

Inner Garden of Museum

We went snooping behind the museum and found some workers busy making statues.

What the heck is this?? I don't know. It's not mentioned

Okay.. Ee Lee lent me her cap and she said I looked like jap. So she took a picture so that I can see how I looked like.

Cam-whoring session

On the way to Royal Palace

Chatomuk Mongkul
The Royal Palace
Phnom Penh

Access only in the highlighted blue area
Price : $25,000.00Riels = $6.25USD -- double price from previous $3USD
Darn expensive with limited access inside each building
You will get the map and booklet for more details regarding the palace
Extra charge on bringing in camera.. $2USD
IMHO : Not worth the money..but since we were already there...heck ..just get in!

Preah Tineang Tevea Vinichhay : Throne Hall

Preah Tineang Phochany : Dancing Hall and Dinner Parties for Guests
No Entry

Pavilion of Napoleon III
A gift from Emperor Napoleon III from Ismailia (??) that was reassembled in Royal Palace
No entry

Preah Moha Prasat Khemarin
Use for foreign dignitaries visiting Cambodia
No entry

Ho Samran Phirum
King Sihanouk's museum
No entry

Preah Tineang Chanchhaya
Dancing Hall and for the use of speeches to the people and banquets for delegates
No Entry

We were heading to a smaller section of the palace area

This area focuses more on statues for prayers which are boring to me except for the miniature of Angkor Wat and painting on the wall (which tells some story / history)

Then the last section is where all the souvenir shops and Gallery of artifacts
Oh..these are the machine they used to make thread and fabric

Attracted by the music, I went up the wooden house

A display of simple lifestyle??

This building has drawings on the wall and display of puppets about the ceremony of coronation procession
Too crowded with tourist.. so can't get a full view
Oh.. you will get a booklet about it too

So this is where they display the giant fans, lanterns and etc.

..Finito..

We walked back to the gueshouse hoping to change to $6USD room
Hopeless..full house

Here we are savouring our very first taste of Cambodian coconut ice-cream
Price : $500Riels
Very excited because it's humid over here around 12 noon

We went again to the same hawker street nearby to eat our lunch
Menu :One Large salted fish and one type of vege dish and cambodia rice
Price : $6000Riels = $1.50USD = RM$9.75 for 2 persons
Sorry no pic!!! too famished

With a full and satisfied stomach,
we advanced to the Genocide Crime Museum about 12pm++ , hoping to be early before end of lunch break
We arrived there about 1pm++ and found out there's no lunch break for museum
So we happily entered the place with less crowd

I'm not interested in taking picture of what's inside each building because these places are where they were once tortured.
Ee Lee is too afraid to take picture here lest that the spirits will appear in the pics beside her or somewhere la... or torment her...pity soul

As for me, I always believe that the dead is better than the living
Maybe because I never have any history of evil-spirit torture

If anyone interested to know exactly what's in the building or the HISTORY, just google!!!

Grave to the corpses which were found there when firstly discovered

Building A
20 Cells for Interrogation, Jailing and Torturing of prisoners who had been high officials

The Gallow
Used for hanging prisoners while torturing them till they pass out

Building C
Consists of single cells made of wood,brick and cells for mass detention

Barbed Wires to prevent desperate victims from committing suicide
This is pure barbaric torture, the right to end your life is being stripped away

Building D
Gallery for photographs of victims and display of tools used for torture

The journey continued
We walked till we reached the bridge of Monireth Road
The weather started to fail us and we waited for rain to halt
Luckily we managed to get a motordup to fetch us from the bridge to killing field and back to Tuol Sleng Museum for $3USD
I pitied Ee Lee but that was the plan which I already decided to do

ES said that was backpacking ala Pol Pot

Killing Field@Choeung Ek Genocidal Center
The monument they built to place all the bones and skeletons found

The whole area filled with holes that were dug to find the graves of victims

The tree where a loudspeaker was hung to drown the moaning of victims

This I must storytell
These bunch of kids tried to bring us to deep ends to pester us for $1USD each person
Let me tell you..their standard living cost is almost as high as Malaysia
(or let's just say Malaysia is still a failure / lagging even after 50 years old)
Don't believe.. wait till u see la..

Just be prepared to bring ~~some~~ a lot of candies to distribute to the kids in Cambodia
No wonder they have so many dental clinics.. in fact we should stop feeding them sweets
Bring pencils!!

We were tasting the first joy ride of motordup

Three in one motor.. dangerous without helmet and while taking picture

Breakfast at the same hawker street again??No idea

Central market
Personally, I didn't buy any souvenirs at all because their prices are cut-throat
and I'm fed up of buying key-chains.. buy food.
Please save up money and go to Cambodia yourself and contribute your wealth by touring there

This is a very interesting one

Finito for Phnom Penh

We traveled to Siem Reap by Capitol Bus $4USD each for 6 hours
Every driver in Cambodia loves to horn and I think it's their habit ... so don't get offended

I had a thought before leaving Cambodia about why their bus schedule is during day time
Well this is because they don't have highways and no street lights along the journey between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap

Experiencinh Cambodian lifestyle has taught me to appreciate the simplest things in life and adapting to environment is a vital virtue

I think I smiled more when I'm over there than in Malaysia.. maybe should practise more courtesy to my fellow countrymen

Hello Siem Reap

We arrived about 6++pm and decided to stay at Baca Villa.
$6USD per night for two.. Room with 2 single beds and attached bathroom with shower
We loved staying there because it's nearby to the town and food
Plus, I think the people in charge over there are great

Dinner
This is Cambodia Ais Kacang with lots of fruits bathing in coconut milk
$2000Riels

Fried rice with chicken
$3500 Riels

So Angkor Wat here we come

FIY : We rent a bicycle (not a mountain bike..but the ones like our parents old times type)
We used them when we traveled to this park
XCB : $5USD for 3 days rent for charity
Ee Lee : $4USD for 2 days only

The red line : route we took to go to Angkor Wat Archaeological Park
The Light Blue : route to Roluos Group

The whole place is pretty much easy to go about
You can opt for guide that will explain to you in detail regarding everything from one wat to another wat..

Tips : you don't need guide ..just open your eyes bigger and watch out for any English-speaking guide hired by tourist and follow closely (don't stalk la) and listen to the guide's explaination
This is FOC..because everywhere we went, there're tourists with guide.
There are always pros and cons in hiring tour guide.

Start Point : Got a pass ticket at Main Entrance and admission

First Day : Small Tour Circuit (red line) , XCB & Ee Lee ...~ 50km

2nd Day : Grand Tour Circuit (Green line) + to Banteay Samre (Paved Road) , XCB alone.....~ 80km

3rd Day : Roluos Group (see both maps) , XCB & Ee Lee .....~ 30km

see map

I won't be uploading all pictures took during Angkor Wat
There're too many of them and I think it's pointless
You just need to be there to feel, see, touch,hear and experience yourself!

First Day : Mini Tour Circuit

FYI, they have banned tourist from climbing up to the highest tower of Angkor Wat
A notice have been placed stating that Angkor Wat will be in restoration process for dunno how long .
How did I know?? of course open my mouth and asked a lady tourist with guide
Her guide told her so...

So we couldn't climb up for sunset or sunrise
Anyway, sunset is impossible since it's been raining season
A little bit upset because I was anticipating on sunrise event

The famous tree

XCB's fetish for door

Ta Prohm where Tomb Rider was filme

Most walls have carvings on them

Last stop : Sras Srang (a pool made long long time ago)

Fastforward
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.
.
.
.

2nd Day : Grand Tour Circuit (only me)

I have my fun day because without Ee Lee I can do things at my own pace.
Lots of things that can be seen and done.
Ee Lee was dead tired of the mini tour and rested in the room whole day

So I found this wooden waterwheel
my goodness.. this is rare because it's not like everyday I get to see it
In fact, I never got to see it before with my naked eyes

I did watch the Painted Veil and there's a scene where a waterwheel was built
The location itself was at my very very ancestor's homeland (China..erm forget exact location)
It was stunning from the movie scene but much impactful in reality.

Water being collected from the river

Wheel spins, bringing the collected water up to flow to the upper tunnel collector

Collected water in tunnel flows

and finally stored in a tank

They used the water for plantation
This is actually a restaurant + garden + orchard (inside Angkor Wat area itself)
The whole park is not a closed-up park with wire or gate
It's actually like a village where the local people as well staying there and doing business

oh.. a dog was barking at me for invading territories
for the fun .. I'll take my risk

The tour continues
I went to Prasat Kravan
All wat/temple entrances were built facing the sunrise
The sunlight will beam through and they can do their rituals

Some inner walls are like this

Passing through Sras Srang again, heading to Pre Rup

Banteay Samre
I cycled through a very long lonely but exciting road
Wished I brought my mp3 player

On the way back going to East Mebon, this is what I meant as exciting
I love talking to locals and observing olden lifestyle of places I went
Cycling enables me to see little things like these that tourist often missed by taking tuk-tuk

The only option would be getting oneself into a tour to the villages to experience it.
Unfortunately, I'm not interested in tour.
Although I must say that I'd attracted a lot of attentions from other tourists and locals too because I was cycling alone for a very far journey under a very hot sun!!
It's a rare sight for locals too to see a female traveler cycling so far alone..

Mortar and Pestle

So they were making Cambodian rice noodle

This girl and her family welcomed me to try the noodle and she explained the process of making the noodle

Underground water pump

The following depicts the lifestyle of common villagers

Types of house

see.. they still using old wooden carrier..so cute

Outdoor stove
Only exists in village
In Siem Reap Town, you don't come across this

Well
This type of well, my aunt used to have it long time ago when I was young

At Prasat Neak Pean, I came across a boy with his pet.
I was chatting with a tourist about what kind of animal was it
My guess was a raccoon ..but the tourist guy said it's not
Anyway, it looks so *kawaii* (cute)
I was enjoying myself in touching it but it is very fierce one indeed

Well , I was on my way attempting to go to Baray by cycling
I saw this pregnant monkey which attracted a lot of locals
So I stopped by.
Although I had lived in 9th College, being surrounded by its kind everyday, never had I met any pregnant monkey
So how lucky I was huh!!

So one of the locals offered an ice-cream treat

As I said earlier, I was just attempting to go to Baray but thought it over after discussing with a local that it would be too darn far to just cycle.
Anyway, I got into here where anyone can hire a helicopter / air balloon ride.

Dinner Time
Since the day I stayed at Baca Villa, everyday I saw many people stopping by this hawker stall situated at a junction
I finally gave up trying to suppress the temptation of this noodle.
It always smell and look good from far
The noodle is instant ViNood noodle being fried with soya sauce, chili sauce, salt, sugar...etc
It's one of the best noodle too!!
$3000 Riels

So Ee Lee and I finally tried out this Cambodian Roti Canai which we had been eyeing.

3rd Day Tour
Roluos Group (~30km)

So we were on the way there and saw an open market along the road
I saw some people eating and got curious
We ate this porridge coaked using stove charcoal, accompanied by smilling strangers and severely-infected dogs
Everyone in the market was in deed very amused by our presence and us eating in such god-forbid-eating place
The food was good... for just $1000 Riels a bowl

Here we are!!

Just across the road we went here
We chat and learned about this uncle who actually crafts the Angkor Wat miniature
He even met Queen of Elizabeth!

While cycling around this area , we went into this school of art for orphans.

We found pisang goreng too..but much better taste than ours because they added in some dragon fruit seeds
Very tempting!!

How did it get into such shape??
Wrap inside a plastic bag

Press to flatten it and dip into the mixture of flour n etc

and fry them..yummy!!!

at Lolei we had this coconut ice-cream pate'
I wondered how they eat such a teeth-pulling bread?!
It's good to eat this bread if you need to pull out a spoilt tooth.

On the way back to town, we stopped by this stall which sells Ais kepal with syrup
I only managed to snap the equipment
Used to see this when those days in hometown eating cendol where the man would shaved the ice using such conventional method..now no more..

Okay some weird technology that I saw along the road
It's a measurement for overloading
When an overload lorry pass by, the light will shine

Near Baca Villa, there's a open cinema with 4 TV crammed in one space
You need to pay to watch but the ironic thing is that the only sound coming out of the whole place is the karaoke songs
So I'm kind of puzzled how they really watched TV !!

Huh!!! I saw my favourite Bank!!!

So here we were
Time to bid farewell
Feeling very glad to be going back home and sleep on my very own bed
This feeling is first time

....Here is where the journey ends...

Departure day to Cambodia

2007-10-01T06:43:00.002+08:00

I'm about to leave for LCCT at 0700 with Ee Lee fetching me .
My plane is at 1005 and reach at 1105 (Malaysia time) but 1005 (Cambodia time).
Feeling : Ecstatic

....See ya....

Very 'farny'

2007-10-01T00:10:00.000+08:00

Since when Engku aka Soon Eng owns a business??
Slimming business le....jadi ke???

....I wonder whether I can get free service or not....

Count Down to Cambodia

2007-09-25T19:40:00.002+08:00

This is the prelude to my 2nd Annals of Journey to Cambodia.
Of course the first and foremost is Thailand.

I have few more days before the great adventure begins.
This time I'll be traveling with a companion, Ee Lee.

Venue : Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Date : 1st -7th October 2007

I haven't really narrow down my accommodation choices for both cities
It's not a really tough choice but my budget daily is what concerns me
I'm estimating about
yeah..i know i'm really squeezing the budget..
After much research done, the whole budget for tourist spots I'll be visiting to is USD$70
With that, I'm guessing my whole trip budget would amount to ~USD$200 = ~RM$700
Well..this excludes the spending for drugs (eg:anti-malaria,flu,diarrhea) and hormones pills...the troubles of being a female
Well.. I believe the whole idea of backpacking is to challenge myself in proper planning and live within a small budget....not forgetting...FUN!!
Imagining this like entering Amazing Race!!
I'm not worry about myself but just my fren lest she can't take the challenge

I thought of cycling around Siem Reap but a fren of mine told me to just hire a tuk-tuk
I think I still wanna stick to my choice because I think it's good to embrace the scenery
I prefer the old-fashion way..(a kampung girl will always be a kampung girl)

As for Phnom Penh, I'm still thinking whether it's safer to take the tuk-tuk....??
Got to really decide what are my expectations from the city!!!

...Oh... wonder whether I might be joining the night life ....

Merdeka Special Firework

2007-09-11T08:56:00.001+08:00

I have to confess that I've been hibernating at home for so so long.
Of course not that I don't have company but more of me enjoying my very very own company... myself.
On 2nd Sept. 2007, Cyberjaya had the last day fireworks.
So I tagged along my choir frens to witness one of Malaysia's 2007 event.

We arrived there quite early so just ended up lepaking at Kopitiam first.
The idea is to double park so that we can escape asap.

The fireworks were awesome. It lasted for half hour.
The scenery would be far from perfect if accompanied by someone special or minus the crowd.

We managed to beat the traffic because apparently one BMW "triple park" so we were running wild to get to the car before the BMW moved.

This trip was worth the long journey and spending time with old friends was really great.
I really miss the younger days where we are more carefree.
Things are getting too much complicated as I aged now.

Good Aura

2007-09-09T22:26:00.001+08:00

Aura boy sensed that I'm lucky today. :)
Why??
One of the weirdest moment happened.

Let me tell you.....

Firstly, today I received a gift.
Out of nowhere, unexpectedly... I got

......Gyabo.....
This is a rolling pin that I have been searching up and down in Klang Valley.
I hate the normal type one.
This one is convenient if you are doing ramen.
Definitely I will cherish this gift.
***Useful as a baton too***
Thank you, Diana.

Let me tell you another one...

This morning, someone who never smiled or talked to me(even if I stand in front)..suddenly talks and smiles and ...
Weird... weird... weird..
casually dipped the spoon to my breakfast and tried it (telling me it's sweet)
..alamak..boya...what is happening??!!
Worst is I always claimed to not like this person at all.. suddenly this thing happen...

Must be the aura!!!!

So better don't hold this thought for too long!!!

XUM : Belaian Jiwa Final Rehearsal

2007-09-06T13:38:00.001+08:00

Due to the location, our starting was fantastic... i mean the "Ohhhhhh"
It sounds like in a church, compared to our usual rehearsal where we sardined ourselves in a cram room.

A little messy at the beginning...sampai ke akhir hayat ku...not together gether la...

Soprano sounds blended at the beginning
At some high notes, we are pretty obvious not so blended.. someone sounds either shouting (it's me??!! darn!!!) or are we just not blending at all.
The voices of soprano really carries out that it travels to the subsequent phrases ... that's disturbing for me.. maybe it's because of echo.
Overall, I don't like the sound of soprano at all.. very harsh and attacking.
We sound a bit loud and not blending well with the guys' voice.

Alto .. in solo part.. not well blended..melody not carried well..kau tahu betapa ku sayang padamu...
Plus, alto is very weak when we need their sound in harmonic chords and they don't really sound that nice at all ( if I compared with more better choirs)

Tenor .. is it drowning or.. it's me who can't seem to find their voices..
Well.. tenor is always carry the colour of the music together with alto.

I can hear bass well... somehow they sound strong here.

I'm not expert in guys section but I have heard how guys choir sound.

If you are insulting me as you read this, don't worry.
I'm not offended at all.
I admit vocally we are darn darn weak... and I'm pretty weak as well.
Scroll down... to know more why are we so like that!!

Maybe this is one of the not-so-good rehearsal after all....
I'm sure there are recordings of better ones ~*crossing fingers*~

No bake apple pie

2007-09-05T23:47:00.001+08:00

Oh.. Happy Day!!

Ee Lee is having bad mood!!
She came over to release stress.
Somehow my house starts to be her hangover spot.
So I made no bake apple pie as dessert for tonight.

Recipe : get it here

Merdeka Meal

2007-09-03T17:36:00.002+08:00

So this is the meal for Merdeka Special

Ingredients:
Chicken
Oyster Mushroom
Ginger
Garlic
Lemongrass
Bird-eyes Chillies
Shao Xing Wine
Salt
Sugar
Lime Juice

Verdict : Delicious

Aloe Vera Dessert

Ingredients :
Aloe Vera (American species)
Red Dates
Longan
Rock Sugar
Pandan Leaves
Ice

Verdict : Delicious too

Malaysian Youth Music Festival 2007

2007-09-03T00:28:00.001+08:00

For the very first time, Ex-UMers (maybe some outsiders too) teamed up to form XUM Choir just for the purpose of fun, competing in MYMF 2007. I'm indeed ecstatic about this team. XUM comprises of dedicated and passionate young adults who strives for music. Although (I must say) most of us are not musically inclined, I considered XUM takes pride in years of improvement and teamwork.

For MYMF 2007, practices only commenced 2-3 months ahead. This is considered a haste preparation, considering we were in a battles against unknown contenders. Pressures were slowly swelling through our nerves as time passed by till the day came. or.. maybe when we saw the list of contenders for our category. Honestly, tension struck me on the eve of competition day. Twinkling stars in the stomach, shuttled me back to the past when my first-year in Festival Seni UM. No doubt, this feeling had been tucked away for so long at the bottom of my heart after few years of hiatus in competition. MYMF 2007 totally has awaken that uneasiness.

I LOVE teamwork... that's what I have emphasized on and on. XUM has no ranking system regarding who is leader or follower or whatsoever. We exploited each other talents!!!LOL.. Everyone has some contribution to the team, be it ideas, jokes, advices or etc. We are constantly striving to blend as a entity. However in retrospect, there were some unpleasant-but-unavoidable scenarios. For me, I took it as being honest and prioritizing the team before oneself.

The only disappointment we have is MYMF doesn't appreciate other music categories except for piano. Special Master classes are only given by the judges in piano category. Vocal category is just like a puppet show for them....or... to raise more funds for the festival. Each team paid RM300 and there were 10-11 teams...amounting to about RM 3000++. The pathetic case is that trophy was the award..nothing more and nothing less. Winner has to perform for free at the night concert. For goodness sake, at the very least, the organizer should have common sense in providing simple meals as a token of appreciation for the team to show up for the night concert. But I beg to differ that we were idiots because we are really eager to be appreciated for the efforts and passion we have for choral music all these while. Personally, my unsatisfaction last night was pacified by the judge for the choral category. When she personally requested us to sing Belaian Jiwa (off stage), my soul was in peace. No turbulent of angers or agitation after that.

Did we deserve to win ?? I think the answer would be yes and no. Yes if it's judged in terms of showmanship and musicality and maybe techniques. No for vocal. I think vocally we lost to Klang Chamber Choir and also Green Meadows (A bunch of children). They totally beat us flat for that. I wasn't really expecting to win, knowing how vocally good they were. I wouldn't mind at all if the judge choose either Klang Chamber Choir or the Green Meadows. It was a pleasure exposure for such challenging event which we get to know what other choirs (other than UM) are doing and also some exchange of words with other choirs. We have been stuck in the circle of Festival Seni UM for so long that we know sometimes we were just topnotch among novice choir.

With all words said, I think I'm not eager for any competition..

A failed recipe....

2007-08-26T11:27:00.002+08:00

We sure do ageing faster than usual
After passing the mark of 25, I feeling like I'm 30++
Funny is that sometimes I can't believe how much have I grown
Weird is that I still hate growing up , having to be like an adult

Ginger Lemon-grass Chicken