We Got Hitched.....yowwwzaaa..!!!

Happy Chinese New Year!

2012-01-23T23:03:00.001+13:00

Happy Chinese New Year to all our faithful readers! So Year of the Dragon eh.... been told (countless of times) that it's a 'good year' to have babies presumably because the dragon symbol - long associated with emperor, power and intelligence - will also bring wealth and luck.

Seriously?

Did anyone pause to consider the fact that 20-25 years from now, an influx of job seekers would flood the market, all hoping for an 'awesome' job simply because each and every one of these 'dragon babies' think they're 'special'?

Seriously? Did no one think of that?

Gimme a break lah.

You are what you maketh yourself to be - your luck nor fate does not belong to your birth symbol (or horoscope too, for that matter).

It's quite amusing that the news media are always quotoing 'celebrities' who were born in the year of the dragon - e.g. "Jeffrey Archer, Michael Barrymore, Count Basie, Julie Christie, James Coburn, Bing Crosby, Neil Diamond, Matt Dillon, Placido Domingo, Kirk Douglas, Michael Douglas, Marlene Dietrich, Tom Jones, John Lennon, Nick Nolte, Al Pacino, Elaine Paige, Gregory Peck, Cliff Richard, Martin Sheen, Ringo Starr, Shirley Temple" - just to prove that dragon babies really 'make it big out there'.

But nobody stops to think about this...

How about doing a count on Dragon Year convicts who are now spending their life behind bars for their crime(s)?

Bet you can find equally as many of them in jail ...if not more!

Losing Weight is a Collective Effort

2012-01-17T14:01:00.000+13:00

So Albertus finally got new batteries for our digital weighing scale last week and boy oh boy were we both shocked when we weighed ourselves.

Both of us have effectively put on 2 kgs from my Bday-Graduation-Xmas-New Year's binge!!

#SHOCK
#HORROR

So in an effort to reduce our weight (don't be silly - I don't think we can ever get back to our pre-NZ weight....) but we both feel like we have to lose what we've both gained during the holidays!

No, we can't do a detox plan... plus we love our meat too much (spoken like a true foodie!).... but we are going to at least try to cut down on a few things (more realistic approach:-

1. Less sugar
2. Cut down on rice portions (I deliberately bought Basmati par-boiled rice - apparently 80% nutritionally similar to brown rice)
3. More white/lean meat (chicken, fish)
4. Reduce oil usage in cooking (as I'm always quite generous with oil/butter)
5. Cut out coconut milk in curries (also cut down on curry meals)
6. More freshly-prepared veges (fresh salad leaves and DIY dressing, or none at all)

Will we succeed? LOL Well, it took us 3 wks to gain that ~~damn~~ 2kgs... so I reckon it might take us about 2-3 months to lose that 2 kgs (cmon... be realistic lah... CNY coming soon okay!)! LOL

Wish us luck!

What $500 a night gets you

2012-01-15T02:03:00.000+13:00

We were lucky. Very very lucky indeed. I initially booked a self-contained apartment in Paihia for our Xmas break for $225/nite wayyy back in November (which comes up to roughly $56 per person, which is quite cheap already) only to be told a week before my parents arrived that the motel double-booked us!

Fortunately they offered us an 'upgrade' to this 'luxury cottage' priced at $500/nite in Russell - at the same rate of $225/nite!

Sweet as.

Seeing that I haven't been to Russell before (I've stayed at Paihia before in 2009) - I thought to myself, "Why not?". Besides... I've never (and will never) stayed at such a fancy schmancy accommodation ... especially for $500/nite!

So, curious to know how a $500/nite accommodation looks like? Delight in viewing the pics below!

Living room with massive couches

Massive massive space!

Massive bed!

No pillows were harmed in the capturing of this picture

Both rooms opened out to an outside 'verandah'

Dad loving the couch

Me joining Dad on the couch
(keeping in mind that we are both giants... sitting on that couch and still having some space at the edge was comforting!)

Mom checking out the fridge

My ideal kitchen counter top layout

Love love love the kitchen

Albertus love love loves the long dining table
(He later remarked "This is my kinda dining table lah"... referring to our future dream home)

The place came equipped with a full laundry room

Both bedrooms came with an ensuite shower + toilet

As much as I like the bathroom design, the weak water pressure could use some work though... we were later told that Russell depended entirely on rainwater... so if heaps of people were staying at the cottages that night, the water pressure drops - and in this case, the management would have no choice but to 'purchase' water...

The cottage side exterior - lots of plants, shrubs, trees... we like!

No doubt - we utilised the outside dining area too (the swimming pool and jacuzzi area is in the background)

Have I told you how much I love love love the kitchen?

Dad dominating the TV (it had SKY, to Albert's delight)

Private verandah outside

Our living room also came with an electric fireplace - pretty cool eh. We didn't get to use it though - it wasn't that cold, to be honest!

Mom's turn to check out what's on TV

View from the dining area

Relax max...!

Me utilizing the kitchen ... preparing a Mexican dinner

Serious dinner talk

Dad saying, "Ok ok I take away your MMU loan as long as you promise me 2 grandchildren by 201X!"
#LOL

Pretty neat cottage, eh?

What would have cost $1000 for our 2 nights in Russell - we only paid a fraction of that price - $450!

SWEET AS.

This Pic Looks Oh-So-Wrong!

2012-01-10T01:32:00.000+13:00

Just look at this product label.

Seriously.

Whoever thought of this should have him(her)self fired...!

Seriously...!

(Spotted at a tourist centre in Dunedin)

Christmas with Family

2012-01-05T00:54:00.000+13:00

We haven't celebrated Christmas with family in years... so having the opportunity to do so last year was definitely a blessing. Not only did I have my parents with us, but we also had Albert's cousin Lydia and her family too - Sika, Jessica and Josefina.

What an honour to be celebrating Christmas with our loved ones this time around. What an even greater honour to have them sample Albert's famous BBQ skills too! LOL

Here are some pics of the most wonderful time of the year....

Albertus@Masterchef of Federal St

Mom with our brand new 7 feet Christmas tree

Dad hogging all the presents under the tree

Lydia and Jess enjoying the BBQed #nomnoms

The men having a serious discussion about politics and retirement

Albert and a cheeky Jess

View from outside the house

Lydia, Sika, Jess and I (@Chef's Hands)

Albert and his angels

Dad entertaining the crowd as usual

Sika was obviously enjoying Dad's stories about marriage while Albert nervously bites his fingernails...

Lydia and my mom

Josefina opening her presents

Jess wonders what she's getting from Santa this year

Yeay! A shower gel set!

Just what every lady needs - a beauty & bath set!

Lydia and her pressie

Sika opens his present excitedly...

... and breaks out into a wide grin when he sees what it is (he's a motorcycle enthusiast)

Family potrait

My family

Hope your Xmas was a blessed one too!

One Chapter Closed

2012-01-03T01:24:00.000+13:00

Dec 17 2011 - I graduate with a PhD from the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. Our purpose for ~~getting stuck~~ being in Dunedin in 2007-2010 officially ends.

Can't believe how time flies. I still remember thinking to myself (during one of those late nights at the office hammering away at the thesis), "Will I ever see the light at the end of the tunnel?" ... Back then, I never thought I'd see this day.

But I did... eventually! Funny how life turns out sometimes!

Click here to go to the original website

It was great to have my parents with me this time. I gave mom the honour of parading down George St with me - after all, this was also in her honour (without moms, where would we be today?). She was shy at first (saying "No one's walking with their parents lah!") but I told her "Who cares, ma?! Don't bother what people say or think. C'mon, just walk with me...!" After having come this far - I honestly didn't care what people would think if I had my mom walk with me. This was my time to shine - so my moment, my rules, eh? :- ) #TakKisah

Many thanks go to dad, who was busy taking pics at the side... and of course, Albertus who busied himself by capturing some videos too...

The highest order of thanks definitely go to Albertus, for 'bearing' with a temperamental me in the last few years of finishing my PhD. The ups, downs, highs, lows - you name it, we've gone through it.

Look at the fler - always on the phone nia... trying to look 'cool'. Cheh.

Here are some videos (taken by yours truly as I paraded down George St.)

And some of the graduation ceremony itself:-

This is me - walking away from the pains of the PhD and looking forward to its gains!

Carpe Diem!

Live to Eat - Viva la #NomNoms!

2012-01-02T00:01:00.000+13:00

Having the folks over to celebrate my birthday, graduation and Xmas was a good reason to indulge in all the different types of food we've grown to love (to the chagrin of our expanding waistlines) over the years of being in Nuu Zeeland.

From the southern tip of Dunedin, to the smelly throes of Rotorua .... we've really enjoyed them all - some more than others, of course. Not to mention my (ok lah, can pass) cooking.

Here are some pics for you to salivate over. I am happy to say that we managed to try at least 10 different types of food over the last 3 weeks (all thanks to New Zealand's melting pot of cultures) - Kiwi, Irish, American, Mexican, Indian, Thai, German, Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Vietnamese, Italian...!

Warning: Graphically torturous to the hungry.

Let's start with the mains...!

Beef pho at a Vietnamese restaurant called Saigon Van in Dunedin. I've always been a huge fan of Vietnamese food, so this was a plus for me!

Dinner at a Japanese-Filipino fusion restaurant called Manila Grill in Dunedin.

Manila Grill's most popular dish, roasted pork (huge big slab of pork + bone!). Very yum if you're a huge roasted pork lover!

Oooh lala, best seafood ever... at Fleur's Place in Moeraki Boulders, Dunedin.

Simply divine, as described by my dad. Fleur's NEVER fails to impress :-)

Just look at the size of the clams... and mussells!! At Fleur's Place.

One of my most favourite Italian restaurants in Dunedin - Etrusco's. I love their spinach pasta (far right)!

Paua omelette at Plato's in Dunedin. Yummy, but it was far too rich tasting to my dad (I ended up finishing his lot by swapping my seafood chowder with him)

Speight's Alehouse, just right infront of the Speights Brewery.

Mom's pork ribs was so huge it attracted stares (and laughs) from a group of Americans sitting behind us! LOL They must have been wondering "How is that little Asian lady gonna finish that?!"

Dad's Speights steak

Alas, after having 3 days of Western food, dad got tired and asked me to bring him somewhere for 'noodles'. LOL This was at a foodcourt in Rotorua... their home made wonton soup noodles weren't so bad, to be honest!

Mom got a bit addicted to seafood chowder in New Zealand so we ordered this for her lunch at Dixie Brown's in Taupo.

Dad's cottage beef pie at Dixie Brown's

My salmon and prawn salad at Dixie Brown's (nothing much to shout about... but their avocado dressing was yum)

Thai food for dinner in Taupo (parents found it a wee bit too spicy... but for me, it was YUMMO!)

Bet dad's soup tasted extra salty with all that sweat of his dripping down his face! LOL

Brunch at Verve Cafe, Parnell

Dad's banana + Maple syrup pancakes at Verve Cafe (a bit too rich for him)

Mom loved her 'mini Verve breakfast' though (to her, it was still too big... )

My cream cheese + bacon bagel at Verve Cafe

Ahhh... of course we cooked! How can we not, especially with our absolutely fabulous BBQ grill? LOL This is Masterchef Alberto doing his steak thing.

Of course, I cooked too. This is a stuffed chicken with orange + cranberries... We had garlic bread, mushroom soup + braised asparagus ... yummos!

Nom noms... beer battered mussels and oysters at Russell - right from the fish and chip takeaway shop!

FRESH Pacific oysters (bought from an oyster farm in Russell). Dad loved it (we bought 3 packs of these babies) while mom took a couple of sniffs and said "YUCK!" (but she was sporting enough to eat 2-3 pieces anyway... good on her!

Cottage beef samples (compliments from the chef) at The Gables Restaurant, in Russell

Our starters at The Gables... fresh northland scallops with pea and mint puree

This was possibly the best and freshest fish we've ever tasted... the 'catch of the day' - a Bay of Islands snapper! Yummos... kudos to the chef at The Gables!

Just in case the fish wasn't enough, we ordered prime NZ scotch fillet too (but really, when the fish came, we knew we over ordered already... nevertheless, the steak - always medium rare for us - was tasty too)

Mexicana - prepared by yours truly

Lots of fresh ingredients here...

Yup - it was tortillas! DIY dinner ;-)

We also tried Indian at Rotorua - Indian Star, which was pleasantly yummy too! Loved the curries!

Dinner at an Irish Pub called Muddy Farmer, Auckland.

Bratwurst dinner at Elliot Stables, Auckland... at this German cafe called Frankie's Wurstburde

Mom's bratwurst

And now..... moving on to desserts... !

Tiramisu at Etrusco's, Dunedin

Cappucino creme brulee at Plato's, Dunedin - very yummy (one of my favs)

Mom's favourite - sticky date pudding (Plato's)

No visit to Auckland is complete without Giapo gelato - this is orange fennel flavoured gelato - who knew they'd go well together eh?

Mom enjoying her ice cream scones at Movenpick (still can't beat Giapo tho)

Dad trying his first NZ beer - good ol Steinlarger

I can't remember which dessert is this at Fleur's (they change their dessert menu quite frequently)...

This dessert at Fleur's was one of the best I've ever tasted... some kinda strawberry sorbet infused with mint... really really yum!

Chocolate mudcake and Tiramisu at Etrusco's

The good ol Flat White and a savoury scone at Croc-o-dile Cafe in Dunedin (Botanic Gardens)

Dad trying Speights's Golden Pale Ale

the range of desserts at Dixie Brown's, in Taupo

Ahhh fresh cherries and a glass of sparkling wine at Russell

White chocolate and lavender summer brulee at The Gables Restaurant in Russell

The classic (and fresh) Kiwi fruit Pavlova (which dad really enjoyed)

Our dessert after the heavy mexican meal - Kapiti vanilla bean ice cream, apple pie and some cherries ...

Ahh...gotta go to the gym extra times now to work off all this holiday fat! :-)

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T12:14:00.001+13:00

Thank you for staying faithful to this blog... And a Happy New Year to all of you...!

We just sent off the folks at the airport yesterday...so trying to get a bit more rest before we both return to work on 4/1....

Image courtesy of Josefina - our niece :-)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Merry Xmas and Happy Holidays

2011-12-25T18:05:00.001+13:00

Drawn by our niece - Josefina

More entries to follow.... We're in the midst of entertaining the Chuas...

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

#Nomnom Goodies from Home

2011-12-12T17:37:00.000+13:00

Boom!

Need I say more?

Busking is an Art...you think?

2011-11-30T01:26:00.000+13:00

I have a lot of respect and admiration for buskers... simply because...

#1 You have to be really thick-faced to stand up infront of everybody,
#2 Be funny and unique enough to attract a crowd,
#3 Be confident about your skills to successfully pull off a few tricks (i.e. show them what you know), and lastly,
#4 Get the crowd to actually like you enough to (and this is perhaps most important) part with their money (however little it may be)...

I have even more respect for this American busker who actually travelled halfway across the world to lil Nu Zeeland to put up a show involving skating boards, fire and swords.

Yup, on our way back from dinner one day, we spotted this lil chap juggling and putting out fire torches with his mouth...

Trust me - he had to be at least in his mid-30s...

Not only did he delight us with his juggling and skateboarding skills... but he was a pretty funny chap too...

Imagine doing all that while balancing on a rickety old table, a briefcase and your skating board... Not easy, I tell you.

For his efforts, we gave him a good $5 of our hard-earned money.

For his sake, I hope he got more from others. LOL

Some videos of him (he received some taunting by some loud kiwi guys...who eventually put on an impromptu haka for him at the end of his show... not sure if it was to honour or taunt him even more).

To be living that sort of lifestyle when you're about to hit your 40s... I honestly don't know to be happy or sad for this guy... well, I hope he's doing something that he actually likes...

Santa Parade Auckland 2011

2011-11-28T00:16:00.001+13:00

The only Santa Parade we've been to was the one sponsored by Cadbury's in Dunedin. This year, we got to attend our first Santa Parade in Auckland - woopeedoo! Hosted by Farmer's (the supermarket), it definitely showcases a wider range of floats and more entertainment features (ending with a concert at Aotea Square)... and the whole parade lasted > 1 hour! C-O-O-L! Here's the slideshow of the Santa Parade.

Some videos for your viewing pleasure...

Part 1: Mister Potato!

Part 2: Scottish bagpipe music!

Part 3: Lonely Pikachu!

Part 4: More fun!

Part 5: Donald Duck!

Part 6: Santa Claus!

ITU Triathlon World Cup 2011

2011-11-26T23:57:00.001+13:00

Auckland struck the iron while it's still hot as it played host to the ITU Triathlon World Cup 2011 last weekend. It was an unusually hot and humid day... so honestly, my hats off to the participants (both young and old, amateur and elite... and even the volunteers and spectators) who braved the heat to be part of the event that day!

Albertus and I were able to catch bits and pieces of the cycling laps by the female participants... and if you listen carefully to the second video, you can hear him saying 'See, see no cellulite...!' as we were ~~debating~~ discussing about triathlon athletes having to build muscles to be fit for such a race and thus can never have cellulite... (that's his argument) - but I begged to differ as I believe most women have cellulite (dimpled skin, orange peel, whatever)... so he was pointing out the ones who were dressed in swimming suit-like outfits (like you see in the picture below, i.e. the outift worn by Andrea Hewitt, who is this year's champion btw) that they did not have cellulite. Yes, I said they may not have so much cellulite (at least not noticeable ones) hence they were brave enough to 'show off their thighs' but I still believe that there were some participants (esp those who chose to wear 'hot pants' that day) who had cellulite - so NOT ALL triathlon athletes are cellulite-free... - they, I believe, are as cellulite-ridden as yours truly!

Anyway, no point continuing the debate - athletes are athletes... what they make up in muscles and leanness, they lose out in the boobs and curves division. LOL.. ok ok, lame way of ending a debate, I know - but the best way for us to put the topic to rest, I tell ya. After a while (okay, hardly 10 minutes out in the sun), we later retreated to the cooling interior of our living room to watch the rest of the event ...on TV.... in HD. I'm proud to say I watched til the end while the other fella dozed off halfway.

As mentioned earlier, yes, we did win the race this time (funny how I slid in that whole 'we' implying that I'm a Kiwi or something.... lol maybe that's how I feel now that I have voted in this year's elections....)

Anyway, as I was saying... New Zealand won the ITU Triathlon World Cup this year... (both male and female division - thanks to Andrea Hewitt and Kris Gemmell... Japan came a close 2nd for the female division while Australia came in 3rd for the men's) and I must say, it was a magnificent win (heaps better and much more well-deserved than the #RWC win.. sorry folks, this is my opinion). The triathlon athletes were wayyy ahead in the race and very consistent in their stride (and strategy?). Both the male and female champs (Kris and Andrea, respectively) even had time to smile, wave and touch the hands of the spectators lining up beside the road as they literally strode to the finish line. These people were true champions.... in every sense of the word. What is most terharu was the fact that male champion Kris Gemmell (who grew a 'mo - in honour of Movember) donated all his winnings to the cancer foundation (he also dedicated his race to his cousin, who is suffering from cancer). Legend.

Bevan Docherty (Silver - NZL), Andrea Hewwitt (Gold - NZL), Kris Gemmell (Gold - NZL), Ryan Fisher (Bronze - AUS) & Mariko Adachi (Silver - JPN) on the podium.

Below are some more snapshots of the triathlon event captured using my Samsung Galaxy S1...

Crowd awaits the cyclists coming in for their next lap

Oh, just so you know, the participants started off with swimming (at the Queens' Wharf), then went on to cycling and lastly - running... Iron man material, I tell ya. The whole thing took a little more than 2 hours for each division.

Honestly, I could never do what they did - too much training and I'm just too darn lazy (some more, Albertus and I had dimsum lunch that day... so lol... watching them working it off in the heat as opposed to us sitting our butts down in a cool restaurant stuffing our face like pigs.... just made us feel very fat.. but then again, will I give up my dimsum for a chance at winning a gold medal at a triathlon event like this - no. We will just have to accept the fact that we are both not 'sporty individuals'.... )

Whole of Albert Street and Auckland Central Downtown blocked for the Triathlon event

Last weekend was a truly beautiful day, as seen in this picture of St Patrick's Cathedral with Auckland Tower as a backdrop.

2011 has been a good and bad year for New Zealand in general (I'm expecting a special edition thicker-than-your-usual-10-page newspaper pull-out or something as NZHerald does its recap of the year or something) - BAD being the Christchurch earthquake of course, but GOOD because we're now not only Rugby World Cup 2011 champions, but also Triathlon champions...!

The One Where We Became #RWC Champions

2011-11-17T00:46:00.000+13:00

So, unless you've been living under a rock all this while - you would have known that we won the Rugby World Cup 2011.

Did we deserve to win? Some may not have agreed (the French, of course)....

If you ask me (Disclaimer: although I'm NOT a rugby fan, I do know how to tell if it was a well-played match or not)...#IMHO, I would have to say that it was a SHITE game for a #RWC Final game; the French were clearly better (and stronger) than the All Blacks. But having said that, I would have to say that we fought hard and well to defend the little points we garnered over the French. Which begs the question (again) - did we deserve to win? No, we didn't deserve to win... but we EARNED it.

Big difference here: DESERVING vs EARNING a win. If you can't tell, I feel sorry for you.

Anyway, since it was a momentous occasion (how often do you get to be in a country that was hosting something international, eh?) - we made it a point to go out that night and be part of it all... and ended up in Upper Queen St and Aotea Square to watch the game.

Here are some videos and snapshots that tell it all.

Albertus, Iggy and Branislav

Crowd control is of utmost importance during huge events such as the Rugby World Cup - and I must say, Auckland City Council did a great job in their events management area by setting up a few 'hot spots' (complete with big screen TVs) in several parts of the city to 'distribute' the crowds... Good strategy, I say!

This was the crowd at Upper Queen Street

Watching the All Blacks performing their hakka on-screen

I must say, watching the All Blacks performing their ritualistic hakka before the game is the ONLY thing I enjoy when watching a rugby game

Now here's a video showing you how ecstatic everyone was as the All Blacks were about to play...

When New Zealand scored their first point

After the break, we retreated from Upper Queen Street to Aotea Square to watch the rest of the game...

The last few minutes (no hands in the air means everyone was very 'tension') before the end of the game... close call between the French and the All Blacks, I must say....

The electrifying moment when we WON the game.

This group of guys starting stripping down to their pants and dancing around in the crowd... they must be VERY HAPPY for New Zealand... or...plain drunk.

Did I capture a video of the post-win?

OF COURSE!

When NZ won the #RWC 2011

The aftermath ... hats off to the unsung heroes of the day who have to clear this mess after the RWC event...

Our Barbie Grill...

2011-10-22T21:36:00.002+13:00

Officiated our barbie grill today! Woot woot! First BBQ dinner for the year, with plenty more to come! :-)

The barbie grill was actually very rusty (let's face it - no amount of scrubbing is ever going to save it) - so we might have to purchase a new grill. The thing is, we're not sure if shops do sell grills sans the whole set! *crosses fingers* But for today, we washed it the best we could, and placed some aluminium foil on top. Nobody's going to die from cancer today, no no no, not on our watch, at least! LOL

Anyway, the steaks turned out a lil overcooked (very, very 'well-done', in other words). Fyi - I prefer mine medium or medium-rare. So this was required quite a lot of chewing for me (especially since I 'lost' my lower left gigi geraham last year - gosh, I feel like an old lady already). Luckily the baked potatoes turned out okay and were yum (I made sourcream + onions + garlic + cheese filling to go with the potatoes).

Now that I know the barbie actually works, I'm going to buy some salmon fillets, prawns and scallops on skillets, capsicum pieces, etc.! And of course, for the meat lover (Couuuugggg....albertus...hhhh!!!!) - more sausages, pork, burger meat and beef steaks! Any more ideas?

So happy the grill actually works. Can't wait for December now!

Something About the Hakka

2011-10-15T22:22:00.001+13:00

Three more games to go before we hit the finals....

As mentioned earlier, Albertus and I are not huge rugby fans. And even until now, with 3 games left, we still haven't caught a single game at Eden Park (not like you can get the tickets now anyway) or stayed for a full game at the RWC fanzone or The Cloud - the only time we went anywhere near the fanzone on a RWC night was the match between Samoa and South Africa. That too, was simply because we had a friend staying with us and being good hosts, we thought we'd bring her for a bit if a walkabout in the Viaduct area. That night, South Africa won, of course, but man it was a passionate game alright! The Samoan fans sure know how to cheer their favorite team on, watch them lose, and still be good-natured about it.

Now back to talking about rugby in general...

Honestly, the only thing I like about rugby is the beginning, where the national anthem of each team's country is played and you can really see - almost feel - the emotions on the players' faces (esp when the camera does a closeup of the player's faces, with tears streaming down the faces of some of them). And of course, i also like the rituals that some of the teams go through before starting the game, especially the hakkas by the Samoans, Fijians, Tongans and the All Blacks. Here are some shots captured of the All Blacks doing their Hakka on the opening night (their first match against Tonga).

Check out the fella in the red shoes! So striking kan? He's Ma'a Nonu... what, you say? Mana Nonu? Tatau.... I say!

This is Dan Carter, one of the hotties in the All Blacks. It's hard not to know who he is, as he's the spokesperson for Rexona Men (deodorant) and Bonds (underwear)... Huge billboards of him seminaked sprawled all over the city. Unfortunately, he injured himself during training BEFORE the quarter finals and had to undergo a groin surgery. Sigh, so sedih la... I tell you the whole nation was grieving for him the next day lah.

With Carter gone, a lot of people are speculating whether the All Blacks can even make it to the finals, let alone win the World Cup...! Well, all I can say is sometimes people need to realize and understand the meaning of 'team spirit' and have more faith in the rest of the All Blacks players! I mean, so far the All Blacks have been doing well, they've successfully progressed to the semi finals...!

However, tomorrow's match against the Wallabies (Australia) is going to be a tough one, especially with the long standing rivalry between the two teams AND countries... So I can assure you.... it ain't gonna be pretty!

Ok, more Hakka pics...

And of course, the climax of the hakka - sticking the tongue out (which always gives me the goosebumps)..!

Turning 37

2011-09-10T22:13:00.003+12:00

I celebrated my birthday on the 17th of August.

A big yeay! Another day older, another year wiser.

It's getting closer to my 40s but all you need is to have good friends and what you can have is a good party. For the last 12 months, I have been working closely with people that I have met from different backgrounds and different nationalities. One thing for sure, no one would be able to guess which nationalities each person the picture below belongs to.

Wonderful world of SAP (www.sap.com). The IT product implementation that let's you meet different people from all over the world. Nothing like sharing your birthday with a bunch of people for all over.

I get to celebrate my birthday with Americans, British, Swedish, New Zealanders, Indians and my wife. Oh I forgot to mention the Aussie who had to go home early.

(L-R: Narayanan Kannnan, Knud Pinholt, Mahesh Pandian, Tim Park, me, Martin Sahlin, Paul and Sue Osorio, Rebecca and Karl.)

Then there's me and my wife and my partner of about 5 years (dating included!) Oh yeah, this was an ugly looking picture of me with my Liverpool FC jersey. Big thanks for everything dear from cooking and bearing with me all this while. I am not easy to live with but I know I make it up with loads of patience of lurve.....

And when everyone went home.......guess who was left with the cleaning up?

Happy 37th Birthday Albertus Lim............another day older and another year wiser.

Rugby World Cup 2011 Madness

2011-09-09T20:43:00.002+12:00

This was how jam-packed and crowd-crazy Queen St was on the first day of the Rugby World Cup mania.

We naively thought we could get dinner in the city earlier, but gave up in the end. Went back home to slurp down some good old fashioned instant noodles instead! LOL

Crazy time to be out tonight. Whole city's pretty noisy, but it's really cool, coz there's a very strong sense of excitement in the air! :-)

Another video of us, as we made our walk back home!

Exciting Times Ahead

2011-09-07T16:17:00.002+12:00

Image source here

Two more sleeps before RWC kicks off in New Zealand.

Staying right in the heart of Auckland's CBD certainly has its privileges. Firstly, we get easy access to all the funtastic events ('Fanzone') happening around the city (e.g. parties, concerts, live viewings, etc.). Secondly, we get to observe the many types of tourists who will be flocking down to Queen Street. Thirdly, urm.... just being a part of it all.

Lots of new things opening up - just in time for the 6-wk RWC event. I've already been to a few of them; the opening of the new Auckland Art Gallery and Wynyard Quarter. Gonna pay a visit to the 'Giant Rugby Ball' and 'The Cloud' one of these days.

We must admit though - we're hardly stirred by the excitement of the upcoming RWC matches... but definitely more stoked about the events associated with it! LOL

Marriage Encounter Weekend

2011-08-20T23:33:00.002+12:00

The last time Albertus and I attended a session like this was the 6-week 'Evening for the Engaged' course facilitated by a couple from Assumption Church in PJ. Yes, the one that all Catholic couples have to go through before getting married.

That was more than 4 years ago... So yup, about time we realign our priorities as a married couple and renew our spiritual commitment to each in front of the eyes of God.

I've been jotting down some notes throughout the course, so I will definitely write a reflection about the retreat soon. Back tomorrow night, so stay tuned!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Entry on Aug 25, 2011.

It has been a few days since our return from the Marriage Encounter weekend. I have to admit though that I felt apprehensive about going for it in the beginning. However, as the weekend wore on, I actually feel that it was a weekend well spent. I have been working late nights and sometimes during weekends and to be honest, this has created some friction between Adeline and myself. I can't tell everyone what it was like or what happened. All I can say is that now I am fully aware of what needs to work in a marriage.

My father in law once gave this speech, "A great marriage is not when the 'perfect couple' come together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences" All I can say about the Marriage encounter weekend is that it gave me a new understanding to Being Married.

So there..........

as posted by Albertus

Death by Durian

2011-08-07T15:25:00.000+12:00

It's durian season now in Malaysia. Tired of reading the endless Facebook entries of friends feasting on durians, durian cakes, etc., we finally made our own (single) durian purchase.... at an exorbitant price of NZD$24.99 (RM63.99)!! Yes - imagine how many locally-grown durians you can buy back in Malaysia with that kind of money, eh?! LOL Furthermore, the durian we bought wasn't even fresh (imported fruits get aerated when they enter NZ, and they usually arrive at the shops frozen)...ah well better than nothing right?

The durian we purchased was imported from Thailand, so am pretty sure it's not of the usual 'D24' variety you get in Malaysia. Oh well, it's still a durian after all. I left it on the counter for 2 days for it to defrost and 'ripen'... and when Albertus opened it yesterday night... fuyooo..... the stench (or to some people, 'pleasant fragrance') was just unbelievable; it permeated every nook and corner of the house! LOL I believe if you brought a CSI team to the house and got them to use their scan devices, you'd be able to see traces of the durian stench lingering everywhere in dark green colours... lol

But ah - for the love of my sayang. Let him be happy lah. To be honest, I don't fancy durians as much as most Malaysians do. Don't know why - just never liked it. Back in Malaysia, I always ended up getting a sore throat (apart from bad breath!) after eating durians! I just don't know why people like it so much - I remember my parents eating durian with plain rice - to me, that was just yuck!

But tak pa la... for the sake of something familiar, aka 'home' - I tried 2-3 small pieces. Surprisingly sweet.. but unfortunately, the texture wasn't firm, due to the freezing process, I reckon. Oh well. I thought I'd have some durian leftover to make durian cake... unfortunately, the NZD$24.99 durian only yielded us 12 fleshy pieces. Sigh! Yeah, if you add it up, it's prolly NZD$2 per piece! Mahal kan... siao.

Funny how some fruits that we take for granted back home suddenly turn into memorable priceless pieces when you're in a foreign country! Much like these dodol and gula melaka sweets one of our friends brought back to us from their trip to Malaysia.

Hahaha... swear to God, I never liked these sort of sweets back in Malaysia (too sweet and sticks to the teeth in a rather unflattering way) ... but when presented to us in New Zealand - you end up savoring the taste of each treat in your mouth.... closing your eyes as it reminds you of the familiar comforts of your homeland - Malaysia. Ahh.... pelik tetapi benar.

Combating Winter Ailments

2011-07-26T07:52:00.003+12:00

Are you struggling to stay healthy this winter? Feeling sniffly? Dry scratchy feeling lingering at the back of your throat? Coughing like an 80 year old smoker?

When I fell gravely ill earlier this year (due to a very very bad flu), I had a very interesting discussion via email with a Tweeter acquaintance (@lin_nah) who offered me some really good advice about staying healthy. With her permission, it is my hope that by re-purposing some of her advice here, it would help some of you out there who's in the midst of battling a cold/flu this winter (or any season at all)! Good luck!

Have hot showers, as the hot steam helps you to breathe better by clearing up your lungs' passageways. It may not have a lasting effect but it does provide you a welcoming, albeit temporary relief. Even soaking yourself in a tub of hot water helps too. Yeay - good excuse for a soak in the bath! And while you're at it - try sprinkling in some aromatherapy bath salts too, if you have any. Lavender bath salts are especially soothing. Personally, I am a big fan of Lush's bath balls/salts/soaps range and oh my - they are yummy smelling too!

Get some ginger tea bags. They are commonly sold at your local supermarkets. Alternatively, you can make your own ginger tea! The healing effects of ginger tea are tremendous; it calms the stomach, particularly if you've been feeling nauseous or dizzy. Feel free to mix your ginger with some lemon or honey! If you have New Zealand Manuka honey (particularly the ones with high UMF), mix half a tablespoon of that (be sure to use ceramic or wooden spoon when scooping the honey out of its jar, to avoid affecting its properties) with some warm (not boiling) water, squeeze in a slice of lemon and voila - a yummy drink for winter!! However, if you don't have honey or lemon, a simple hot drink like hot tea would suffice. Any tea would do - Chinese tea, Japanese Green tea, or even English Breakfast/Earl Grey tea. Sometimes, I like to try the Healtheries Tea range (my personal favourite is the liquorice tea - yes, acquired taste, I know). Heck, even a glass of warm water (with a slice of lemon) works too, as it helps you to breathe easier by 'warming up' your throat.

Vicks VapoDrops Cough Relief or Difflam Anti-Inflammatory Lozenges are true lifesavers! Don't even bother with Strepsils - I think most of us are pretty immune to its effects already (I've never met anyone who's sworn by the healing properties of Strepsils). It's more like a candy to me now... Anyway, back in Malaysia, what would have really helped me would be Fisherman's Friend (I've been told that it's an acquired taste! LOL). Unfortunately - it's hard to find them here.

If you have paracetamol at home - take them. Or anything that has 'paracetamol' in its ingredient (e.g. Sudafed, Nurofen) - they easily remove aches and pains. I would advise taking this as the last resort - only when you cannot 'tahan' anymore. Just bear in mind that there's no cure for cough, colds etc. Pharmaceutical products such as Sudafed only alleviate flu-like symptoms while making you feel more comfortable (e.g., taking the PAIN away from your throat due to coughing).

If you feel like an impending sorethroat is coming on, gargle with salt water. Some people swear by this simple home remedy! If you decide to try, make sure that you use warm water (not too hot, not too cold). I reckon the salt has some antiseptic qualities.

Always make sure that you're 'covered up' (no, it's okay, don't have to wear a burqa. LOL). Most importantly, make sure that your chest/neck area is covered when you go out. At home, try wearing socks, if possible (doesn't matter if it makes you feel less sexy at night - your health is more important here)! LOL

At the end of the day, I think it is a matter of trial and error in knowing what works for you. Some of these remedies may or may not work for you. As you experiment with the various types of home remedies, just remember what works and what doesn't.

So, stay warm this winter, drink lots of water, and if you're really serious about getting better - consider taking some time off work to really get rid of it. It is more tiring if it lingers for weeks as you struggle to balance your work and trying to recover.

How to Pick a GP in Auckland

2011-07-21T10:24:00.000+12:00

In Malaysia, it is pretty easy to seek treatment whenever you're sick. Just get yourself to the nearest doctor, pay an average fee of $15-45 (which includes the doctor's visit + a plethora of medication) and voila - you're sorted! However, in New Zealand, the system is very different altogether. The general principle is to go to the doctor's only if you're really... really... really sick. You're always advised to take some time off work and 'medicate yourself' first before having to resort to seeing a doctor. But of course, if you're like, on the edge of dying (not literally lah!) and have exhausted your medical supplies of Panadol and cough syrup/drops at home - then you would have no choice but to see a doctor lor. Well, that shouldn't be a problem lah, right? Just pop by the nearest clinic/medical centre.... right?

Wrong-o. Unless you're prepared to pay a BOMB for your first (deemed as) 'casual walk-in' visit, make sure you're enrolled (i.e. registered) with a GP first! And no, you don't have to be sick to be enrolled with the GP - in fact, it's better to enrol BEFORE you actually fall sick (preferably within the next 3 months - as enrolled names are sent to the District Health Board in order to qualify for your next subsidised visit). E.g., if you're thinking of enrolling with a GP now, make sure you do it before mid-August as that's the cut off date for medical centres to send their list of enrolled patients' names and details to the district health board for approval.

I learnt this the hard way. I got really sick (due to a very bad flu) in March this year and popped by the nearest clinic. Being an ignoramus, I assumed that NZ residents would be 'sorted' by paying a low cost for the doctor's visit + prescription. Little did I know that it is generally NOT a good idea to visit a clinic on weekends (or after office-hours) as the rates are significantly higher (Your visit is only subsidised if it's on a weekday and during office hours) - irrespective you're a NZ citizen/resident (or not). Furthermore, as that was my 1st visit - I ended up paying a 'casual walk-in' rate (which was really expensive, i.e. the type of fees usually reserved for tourists!). So how much did that particular visit to the doctor's cost me? NZD$200... Yup, I kid you not... for less than 5 minutes of doctor-patient time. Sigh! I could have had my appendix removed for that kinda price in Malaysia! And mind you, that was 3/4 of our weekly rent. Needless to say, Albertus was not happy.

So since then, I've been researching about this health care issue and how it works in New Zealand. In theory this is what happens:-

When you go to a GP, you pay a fee and the Government gives the GP a partial fee for your visit; this covers the full cost of your visit. How much the GP gets for your visit depends on whether you are enrolled with them or not. If you're not enrolled with them, they get less and so you end up paying more. However, most clinics charge a higher fee for after-hours care (i.e. evenings, weekends and public holidays) - if they are open, that is. This supposedly covers the cost of staying open to dispense medical services (to compensate higher labour charges, perhaps?). Of course, in practice who knows how much these GPs make in profit by providing a simple service (e.g. remedying a patient who has a cold or cough)...

As for prescription costs, this also depends on whether it is issued by a GP that you are enrolled with or not. If it isn't with someone you're enrolled with, then it could be a higher cost. A general idea of what to expect in terms of GP fees and prescription costs in Auckland can be found here. However, even if you don't go to the GP often (i.e., you rarely fall sick), make sure you pick a GP who's convenient for you to visit anyway, and especially one that offers a wide range of services along with reasonable fees. Ensure that you register with them so that when you do have to visit a GP, it would be cheaper than a casual walk-in visit.

So if you're thinking of enrolling with a GP/medical centre first, here are some things to consider:-

Convenience of location. No point going to a medical centre that's 20kms away just because they are cheap or good. Remember - when you're ill, the last thing that you feel like doing, is drive. Or even if you don't mind driving - think about traffic and parking too. Hence, it might be a good idea to pick one that you can easily get to by car or bus. Bottom line is to ensure that you choose a medical centre that's close enough to home (or your workplace). Also, convenience in terms of opening hours (accessibility/availability) is important too. What days are they open? How long do they remain open for? If they are open on weekends - what are their hours like (most might close just before lunchtime).

Charges. Do some research online; most medical centres have their own website along with a listing of fees. If they don't, don't be afraid to call them up and ask. If they can't tell you their charges up front (particularly before an impending visit), be wary. As seen here, fees vary between $10 to $45 per visit. Now that, my friend, is a BIG difference. So choose wisely.

Rapport. To some people, how easily they deal with their GP is important. To them, no point going to a GP if they are not comfortable talking to him/her... especially if you want to discuss medical issues of a more complex/sensitive nature. Of course, 'building a rapport' could also be related to language concerns that you might have. If you are more comfortable consulting a doctor in a language other than English (e.g. Hindi, Mandarin, Russian, Japanese), look around for doctors who offer consultations in the language of your choice (most medical centre websites have separate pages of their medical staff, with some even demonstrating a bit about their background).

Size/Flexibility. Best to pick a medical centre who has more than 3 GPs or part of a medical network (e.g. Procare, Alliance Health ). The idea is that if your regular GP isn't there, there's a locum or another GP that you can see without having to find a new clinic altogether.

Reputation. Seeing a 'bad' doctor would most likely be the last thing to expect, as doctors are required to behave professionally at all times (they took an oath, remember?). But alas - the world is not perfect (urgh, this is starting to sound like an ANZ Bank ad!) and there will be some 'bad doctors/medical centres' around. In New Zealand, you can 'check up' on any particular GP for anything negative (or positive) that was written about him/her or the establishment itself here .

Well, I hope these tips help your search for a 'suitable' GP. You can find more information scattered on several health websites such as:-

Auckland District Health Board

New Zealand Ministry of Health

Good luck!

The Largest Polynesian Market....

2011-07-17T14:30:00.007+12:00

....in the world. Yup, that's what it says about Otara Market here. So we decided to visit it last Saturday and true to its word, Otara Market may indeed be the largest Polynesian market we've ever been... not that we've been to many (or any, for that matter). LOL

Along with Polynesians, it should be added that Asians, too - hold a strong presence in the market. Oddly, most of the Asians - particularly Indians and Punjabis were selling fresh vege/fruits while the Chinese sold cheap Chinese trinkets/toys/mobile phone accessories/household goods (so typical, right). We only noticed the Polynesians and Maori people sold crafts (iwi-themed Tshirts, paintings, jewellery, sourvenirs)...

Like these..

The Otara Market kinda reminded me of the SS2 Market in PJ, except that the weather at Otara Market was cooler, and the premises - cleaner! Hahaha...

Unfortunately, similar to Dunedin Farmer's Market (which is the only other market I've been to since being in New Zealand - yes, Albertus and I are lazy like that - not exactly morning creatures, especially on weekends) - there aren't any stalls selling fresh meat or fish lah. The most 'raw' stuff you can get from open-air markets in NZ (I assume) would be veges and fruits...

But lots and lots of stalls selling T-shirts lah. I honestly didn't know you could have your iwi (tribe) emblazoned on a $10 dollar Tshirt! Haha... I joked to one of our friends, Iggy - that he should have a custom-made T-shirt to read 'Vilnius... South Side, Rezpect!' Haha... or maybe I should have an 'Alor Star... North Side, Reprazent!" T-shirt too! LOL Heck, I believe I saw a Tshirt with the words "Maori Boy - For Life!" Like, srsly, what else can you be if you're not born Maori...and for life, too? LOL Kinda reminds me of this music video by JGeek and the Geeks singing "I'm a Maori singing in the sand, Got no money I don't understand, Do I ever get annoyed, Coz I'm a Maori Boy... I'm a Maori Boy":-

Okay, back to Otara Market.

The strong Polynesian ~~presence~~ culture was reflected by the array of Polynesian CDs featuring Samoa, Tongan 'island music' ... along with an odd mixture of 'rastafarian' stalls selling Bob Marley memorabilia (with his reggae tunes blasting in the background)... I didn't get a picture of these stalls (a bit takut lah). Haha.

But we did encounter the ex-Mongrel Mob leader-turned-author Tuhoe Isaac selling his book 'True Red' ....on his Harley-Davidson bike.

You can read more about him here - and be sure to view the videos (esp the interview - really inspiring - also, you get to hear how the Kiwi-Maori accent's like). You can view the short film "Day Trip" starring Tuhoe here.

He was selling his autobiographical book 'True Red' for $35, along with a CD. He even offered to autograph the book for free. To be honest, it was a hard sell... but we didn't buy it this time. Maybe next time.

This is one of the many stalls selling Polynesian-themed T-shirts.

A few cheap clothes stores owned by Chinese can be seen too (lingerie, pajamas, pants, blouses, etc.) - much like the stalls you see at the SS2 Market in PJ.

I reckon the market is a good place to purchase your weekly stock of veges and fruits - especially if you have a big family to feed. But for minimal vege and fruits-eating homo sapiens like Albertus and I - hehe, it doesn't make a big difference if we bought them from Pak N Save/Countdown or the market lah. The price wouldn't be a big difference to us. If they sold meat, maybe (as we are big meat eaters) - but fruits and veges, not so (Bad I know!).

Yes, I was thinking the same thing. "Maori potatoes"? Haha... no, we didn't buy it - actually in hindsight, I regret not buying it lah, you know, just to try it out.

But to be fair, the range of veges and fruits sold at the Otara Market was quite amazing lah, and significantly cheap too. Just the day before, TV3 news was broadcasting about the rising cost of food, particularly tomatoes - which was at their all-time high (close to $15 per kilo). At the market, it was significantly cheaper; we saw some stalls selling tomatoes for $7 or $8 per kilo - but they didn't look too appetising lah (small and green). Again, Albertus and I don't eat a lot of tomatoes, so its absence in our daily diet didn't impact us in any way lah.

I reckon going to the Otara Market to purchase fruits and veges would be good if you are planning to cook up several big meals over the week lah... and if you have guests staying over. So I'm sure we'll be paying the market another visit when my parents come down to spend Xmas with us end of this year lah.

The regular crowd at Otara Market (or any place in South Auckland, for that matter - or so I've been told). I reckon our friend Iggy was not used to seeing so many Polynesians in one place, as he commented "My God! I saw this dude who was sooo huge (in size) - I didn't know they made clothes that size here!! Where would you buy them from?" ... Haha, I think he needs to go the States for a wee trip!

I find it amusing that some common veges get rebranded when you're abroad in a gwailo country. 'Chinese turnips', 'Shanghai bokchoy', Malaysian 'stir-fry' veges... Don't believe me? Check out this Wattie's Wok Creations brand of frozen veges that is normally sold in Countdown (I can't include a picture here, too small!).

So what is the cheapest vegetable item that I saw at the market? It has to be 4 bunches of Spring Onions for $1.... and the most expensive? Red chillies for $39 per kilo! (CRAZY RITE!).

Now that we've been to the Otara Market, our next 'to-visit' market is the Avondale Market in West Auckland...

It's supposedly bigger, and significantly closer to us... FYI - Otara Market was a 20km drive from the City Centre but I wanted to visit it as it's a main attraction in Manukau (and a stone's throw away from MIT, too).

Disclaimer: All pictures uploaded here were sourced from various websites online. None of them belong to me.

Four Whole Years

2011-06-23T00:37:00.001+12:00

It's been F-O-U-R years, eh? Well, it feels like forever... we've been through good and hard times; last year was especially rough for the both of us (especially during our stay in Dunedin). Hint: financial worries, career issues, PhD challenges, visa matters, the list goes on.

But I guess these are the types of challenges that really test one's relationship, eh? They either make or break your relationship, and I'm happy to say that we survived it. Reflecting on what we went through last year, I am able to tell people that we have hit the 'lowest' point in our life and know what it's like. Heck, we were literally living in limbo - I don't want to reveal too much here, but let's just say we were living in uncertainty; we couldn't control the factors that would eventually determine our life (and needless to say, happiness). All we could do was wait ..... and pray. So yessiree, it wasn't easy.

How did we 'survive' it? Well, all I can say is COMMUNICATION is key. I can't remember the countless number of times the both of us stayed up late at night - in bed, just mulling over and talking about things. Plus, being the worry wort that I was (and still am - you know how antsy/anxious I get when I'm not in control of a situation), I also literally drew up a tree chart, something like a 'decision tree.' Yeh, I was that worried. Haha.

So a year later, here we are, in a much better place (well you know what they say - "When you're down, there's no where to go but up!") and within a much happier context. Communication + Prayer = that's all I can say.

So for our 4th wedding anniversary this year, we used our Spreets voucher to treat ourselves to a dinner at Jungle Flavour Thai Restaurant in Balmoral and were very pleased with our experience.

To be honest, I did read the string of reviews posted about the restaurant here and as you can see, some were pretty scathing, especially for voucher-users. Needless to say, I was pretty apprehensive.

But I think the key is to go on a non-busy day, i.e. NOT a weekend. We tried making reservations for a Saturday night earlier but it was always fully booked and was advised to book at least a week earlier. Yeah, crazy right - imagine booking a week or so earlier just for a simple meal at a Thai restaurant. C'mon, we're not even talking about a Michelin star restaurant here! So after some thought, we decided to go on a weekday.

Surprisingly, it was pretty empty that night. So it was not surprising that they gave us their utmost attention and care, always asking us if we wanted to fill up on rice, how was the food, clearing our plates, etc. Which was really impressive okay, coz we've been to restaurants which were empty and we STILL didn't receive good service!

Food had both quantity and quality. The deep-fried snapper with tamarind sauce was excellent. Fried red beef curry with stir-fried vege was yum and the killer was the tomyum goong (we went for Thai spicy for kicks and very well deserved it. We were both crying by the end of the meal, but in a good way. Haha).

Great experience, cosy atmosphere and authentic food, we would definitely come again.

Our tom yum goong - it should be named killer spicy! haha.

Fried red curry with beef slices and stir-fried veges... oh, and we added on cashew nuts! yum yum...!

Fried snapper with tamarind sauce... which was awesome! The fish was reasonably-sized, so we were very pleased with this dish and left nothing but the bonessssssssss.... heh heh.

We ended up only paying $15 for our drinks (I had rum+coke, Albert had a glass of red wine), as our voucher was for $75 worth of food (I paid $35 for the voucher) - I think our food order didn't even reach $65... but hey, no point being greedy, you know? Just order what you want to eat and enjoy the experience.

And to top it off, I bought Albertus a slice of passion fruit cheesecake (as the Thai restaurant only had ice cream for desserts, so not worth paying $7-10 for! hehe).

Here's to many more years of marriage, Albertus Lim Ket Seng.

So how did we end the night? Don't worry - nothing happened - with a tummy full of good food, guess who ended doing what on the couch?

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz......

Selamat Datang

2011-06-22T14:50:00.005+12:00

... ke rumah baru kami. Oklah, let the pictures do the talking. Sien wanna write more. Ok, so this is the view from the main door, there's a wee courtyard to the right (where the bbq grill is, as shown in a previous blog entry).

This is the view that greets you as you walk into our main door. It's a 2-storey apartment with an interesting layout. You actually have to climb up 4 flights of stairs before reaching the level where all the apartments are located at. There are only 12 units altogether; 6 units on each side of the terrace, so plenty of privacy.

For years we've been struggling for space (yes, you do tend to accumulate stuff over the years). Finally, we have an abundance of space in this house! Happy happy joy joy... many nooks and corners and 'secret' compartments to store our stuff in. For example, the space under the stairs:-

Which is also where the hot water tank is, so it's a 'warm' room - that's where I get to dry some clothes too!

This is the living room area. Yes! Finally a flat screen TV, as compared to our tiny TV back in Dunedin... haha...! Actually, I think this was the defining factor for Albertus (i.e., the flat screen TV).

View from living room. As for me, the deciding point in signing the lease to this apartment was the kitchen, more specifically - the kitchen counter. :)

Very pleased with my kitchen - at least it fits 2 people. As compared to the kitchenette at Quest, this has an actual kitchen counter! Happy happy joy joy, a place where I can finally roll my bread/pizza dough! :-) Honestly, it was the kitchen counter that sealed the deal for me... true story. I'm quite fussy about my kitchen. Ok, I better stop obsessing about kitchen counters now...

A tiny room at the back is where the washing machine and dryer are, along with a toilet (not seen here).

On the first floor, we have the guest bedroom. Sorry for the mess. At the moment, that's where I leave all the folded clothes for someone to pick up. See that chair and on the right - yup, there's a work desk there too. So that's where I do most of my computer-related work - yes, the old 2005 Acer computer, which, by the way, is held together by a piece of cellotape.

No kidding. True story.

Oh, by the way - Albertus is more than happy to work downstairs, right infront of the TV. He's the TV addict, not moi. I'm an ONLINE TV addict. haha.

Bathroom upstairs, comes with a big bath (tried and tested with Lush products - which are very yummm by the way - oh, with this long and wide bath, I can actually stretch out my legs! Epic win!), toilet and shower too.

Main bedroom gets most of the sun, so sometimes we hang clothes there.

The door you see in the picture opens out to a mini balcony.

The upstairs portion of the house has very high ceilings and a couple of 'air wells', which is really good, as it circulates the air in the house. And because it doesn't get deathly cold in Auckland (as compared to Dunedin), we just leave the air vents open. No, rain doesnt come in either, I think it's been built at an angle that doesn't allow raindrops to pour in.

The view of other units from our balcony

Another plus factor - all the rooms come in with 2 sets of closets! Yup, just like the ones we had in Dunedin. So like I said, lots of space now!

Apart from the apartment (it came fully furnished), the rent includes water, basement carpark and a storage room downstairs too. So now we finally have a proper apartment to keep us happy and entertain/host friends as well.

Changing Sceneries

2011-06-08T00:12:00.004+12:00

From view such as this...

or this...

and this...

TO THIS!

and this...

and finally this...

...yes, that's a BBQ grill!

Ahhh.... wait for our next blog entry!

Round and About Waiheke

2011-05-07T23:30:00.010+12:00

Possibly one of the last few sunniest weekends in Autumn

Haha. I can't believe I didn't publish this post in April! Shamefully embarrassed, not to mention an epic fail on my part. I've always told myself - no matter what, something has to go up every month! Aiseh...tu lah, the responsibility of updating this blog has solely fallen on my shoulders.. :-( @thealbertus is not even bothered these days. Sedih kan? Sigh.

Anyway, I've had this blog in draft mode for quite some time. So I better get down to it! Thanks to the online coupon site DailyDo, we managed to score two Around Waiheke Tours tickets worth $45 for only $15 each. Yes yes, epic win on our part! We actually purchased the tickets way back in December, and scrambled to use by its due date in April. Good timing too - as it was possibly one of the last few sunny weekends in Autumn (yes, Auckland is truly blessed to enjoy long periods of sun over Summer and Autumn, I doubt Dunedin's that lucky).

Without further ado, here are some pictures of our 1-day tour of Waiheke Island!

See uncle's face? Muka mau tido. You can't believe how much I had to bribe the old man to get out and actually enjoy this trip with me. Most of you who know @thealbertus would know that his 'ideal' day out is golf... on the piss. Anything other than that - nah, not interested. "You go ahead, dear!"*rolls eyes*

Now you know where and how Santa Claus spends 11 months of the year...

Just look at those UV rays beaming from the sun. Did I get sunburnt this time? Thankfully- no... as we were mostly driven around Waiheke in a mini bus, only getting out to take pictures and listen to the odd commentary by the bus driver.

Our bus driver + tour guide pointing out Rangitoto (volcanic island).

You can even spot the Coromandel Peninsula and Bay of Islands from Waiheke (yes, on a clear day, you can actually see them!)

Wine tasting. Brand of wine: Man O War, apparently owned by this guy who owns 1/3 of the island.

This car has a higher IQ than the politicians in Malaysia combined.

We visited an olive grove (Azzuro) too. This lovely bottle of garlic and ginger infused olive oil was finished within 2 wks! It was THAT yummy!

Funnily, I spotted some of my sister's best friends, happily grazing away on the green green grassy fields of Waiheke. They must have floated all the way here from KL.

@thealbertus contemplated on smuggling one of these cocks home for dinner that night. Ayam kampung mah... healthy, no? LOL Apparently loads of people dump their unwanted (or useless? LOL) cocks at this spot (making it a COLONY OF COCKS. Dont laugh ah, rude! LOL) ... I wonder what do these cocks do for fun? Hmmmm *thinks aloud*

Uncle trying to act cool.

Anyway, with a view like that, aiseh... I can only wish we had summer all year round!

So would I have paid full price for this tour? Honestly no. I mean, being driven around the island was pretty cool lah, but I wish the driver didn't use the phrase "I read from Wikipedia that..." SO OFTEN (when he regaled us with stories/facts about the island). Ahh... wikipedia, one can never escape you!

The Art of Candle Carving

2011-04-27T16:30:00.003+12:00

Watching this video reminds me of the set of colourful candles mom bought from Hawaii when she was there on a guided tour with my maternal grandma and auntie wayyyyy back in the 90s. It's similar to the candles featured in the video, but instead of a 'flower and birds' theme, it had a little Hawaiian girl doll at the front. Something like this:-

Just imagine - instead of Lulu, u have a Hawaiian doll looking like this (see below) :-

Cute kan?

I bet if you popped into my house anytime today, you'd find the same candles in the showcase, with bits of wax melted off over the years (or chomped away by the moths and cockroaches of Alor Star). LOL

Speaking of my 'ah-ma' (grandma) - weird, I've been dreaming a lot about her lately. I miss her. I guess until today, I still harboour some guilt that I didn't get to attend her funeral in 2007.

Easter Greetings

2011-04-22T09:00:00.000+12:00

Blessed Good Friday and Easter weekend to all of our blog readers.

None of all that commercialised Easter Bunny Chocolate crap, eh? Anyway, may you have a meaningful weekend! This is a good time for all of us to reflect about our life in general, our misgivings while counting our blessings.

God Bless.

The Feel Good Factor

2011-04-18T21:52:00.002+12:00

Taken from www.stuff.co.nz's website here

HELPING HAND: Helen Emile, Adeline Chua, Marie Young and Maryanne Apiseka Papa line up to serve the homeless at Auckland City Mission as part of worldwide Servolution week.

'Love Thy Neighbour' is the message as the worldwide Servolution movement hit the streets of Auckland this week.

The project began 16 years ago in the United States and now involves 140 churches representing almost 300,000 people.

Auckland based organiser Lui Ponifasio says the event aims to put the biblical verse, 'love they neighbour' into practice.

"The motivation of Servolution is to give to the community, showing love in action, and expecting nothing in return."

Volunteers will be painting out graffiti, picking up rubbish, checking residents have smoke alarms, providing school makeovers, and cleaning parks and reserves throughout the region over the next few weeks as part of the exercise.

For more information visit www.servolution.co.nz.

Foodie Club Auckland

2011-04-13T19:11:00.007+12:00

We've established a mini foodie club with a couple of friends in Auckland. Funnily - all of us are originally from Dunedin! LOL Now that we've all moved up north, we're ecstatic to be faced with plenty of opportunities to try out the wide range of food outlets here!

In fact, before this 'foodie club' was established, Albertus and I made a pact to try a new food establishment every time we decide to eat out. And oh - just in case you're wondering, no - we don't eat out often (mahal lah!) but we do try to make it a point to eat out once a week (usually weekends) - just to give me a break from cooking! Always good to try new types of food and places anyway - furthermore, living right smack in the middle of the city helps too! Plus - being typical Malaysians - hahaha, we 'live to eat' kan?

So along with a Frenchman ("Mr. Oui Oui"), Lithuanian ("Mr. Bow-Chicka-Wow-Wow"), Kiwi and 3 Malaysian Chinese - we've so far tried Malaysian, Italian and some home-made Lithuanian food! Okay la, we do sometimes get together at Mr. Bow-Chicka-Wow-Wow's apartment for food (we did potluck once), so the rules are pretty relaxed lah - the point is, we try to gather once a fortnight - just to keep each other updated about our lives, tell stories, laugh, tease each other - all over sumptuous meals. Ah - what is life if it's not for the living eh?

Some of the food we've makan-ed so far:-

That's Amore! @ 42, High St (Metropolis Building), Auckland. Yummy as!

Nasi lemak @ Angie's Kitchen. Authentic as

Yes, I do sometimes have the hankering for a up of good ol-fashioned Malaysian coffee. But this time - I'd settle for neslo (Nescafe + Milo) - the Malaysian version of 'mochacino', I guess! hehe. This was from Angie's Kitchen

At That's Amore, I think we ordered 4 types of pizza that night, along with a bowl of gnocchi.. :-) Very yum!

Nasi lemak @Angie's Kitchen

Pizza marinara @ That's Amore!

I can't remember this! LOL

Many thanks to Mr. Oui Oui and Kiwi Brett for some of these pics!

Our next foodie appointment is Korean-Japanese BBQ Buffet! yeay!

Auckland Lantern Festival 2011

2011-02-19T22:38:00.002+13:00

We took the chance to pop by the lantern festival happening in Albert Park today. That's another awesome thing about living in the city; the park is right in front of our apartment - only a 5 minute walk. No hassles with parking or whatsoever.

To be honest, we were quite skeptical about it, you know, in case it ended up with a cringe factor of 10 for being cheesy (vivid memories of similar festivals held back in Malaysia ... esp canto pop singers and dancers... Ah Bengs and Ah Lians in their 'jeng'est best).

But to be honest, we were completely bowled over. It was a very well executed festival. Much effort has been placed in making it work; security, garbage disposal, abundance of food stalls, several stages for performances; beautiful, intricately-designed lanterns strategically placed all over the park - I can say that every inch of the park was fully utilised. I was very very very impressed. What I liked about the lantern displays was the fact that there were inscriptions/'plaques' explaining some of the lantern ensembles' significance to the public. Very very informative.

Very well-done indeed. Some mainland Chinese people even commented that it's more "Chinese" than CNY festivals held in China. Phwoarrr...!! 'hen piao liang ohhh' That has got to be the BESTEST compliment to the organisers behind the Auckland Lantern Festival. Kudos to the team.

Star Cafe = Choice!

2011-02-13T00:29:00.003+13:00

We had a relatively quiet CNY celebration this year... Well, it wasn't really a 'celebration' lah, more like makan session. :-) Organised a small CNY dinner do with some friends, the usual 10-course dinner (including appetiser & dessert) at a Malaysian/Hong Kong Restaurant called Star Cafe in Epsom. I found out about it online (via food reviews) and recommendation from friends.

And boy oh boy - were we glad! The service was immaculate - you know a restaurant is really good when they deliver top-notch customer service; the waiters were attentive to our requests, always had an eye on our table (e.g., if we needed to shift the bits of a previous dish into a smaller plate so that there's enough space on the table for new dishes to come in), always refilling our Chinese tea - despite it being a hectic night for them as well (the restaurant was F-U-L-L and noisy!). Imagine, it's actually quite a tiny restaurant (at most, they only had about 10 tables or so?) with only 2-3 waiters on call that night! The icing on the cake was when the lady boss threw in a complimentary dessert dish (coconut sago and rock melon) for us. Yes, F-R-E-E! You don't get that often in New Zealand! Awesome!

Here are some photos. Sorry, no pictures of all the types of food served that night - we were more excited eating them to remember to take any pictures!

Since none of us had ever been to Star Cafe before, it was really nice to know that at the end of the night - we were ALL converts of Star Cafe's awesome food! :-) No doubt we'll be leaving the restaurants as advocates for them!

Everything was yummy - from the yee sang (called 'sashimi salad' here), roasted duck (or also known as 'special chicken' to the kids...so as to encourage them to try something 'exotic'), steamed fish, fried yee mee noodles, broccoli/oyster dish, crispy chicken, vege soup, fried kang kung, the delish coconut sago (with bits of rockmelon) and one more dish-for-the-life-of-me-I-cannot-remember! LOL Sign of aging la tuh...

So this cafe is highly recommended. If you're in Auckland, and craving for some good old fashioned Chinese FOOD - try Star Cafe!

STAR CAFE

266 C&D Manukau Rd

Epsom

Auckland

Phone: 09-520 0261

"Mari Hisap Dade...": Top Samy Vellu Quotes

2011-01-25T21:10:00.002+13:00

Image source here

Disclaimer: This post was not written by me. I got this off the web from a variety of sources: here and here.

Without wasting any more time - Let the laughing begin!

Datuk Seri Samy Vellu finally and officially resigned from his post of the longest MIC President ever live, after leading the party for almost 31 years. The Malaysian Insiders has its story, here. Frankly, I will miss him very much especially for all his funny quotes he made all these years. Like what our Prime Minister said in the 2010 Barisan Nasional Conference, “We will miss DS Samy Vellu because he add a lot of color … sometimes a bit too much color”. Therefore, as a token of appreciation, I just wanna share his famous quotes ever made by the one and only, Samy Vellu.

1. Samy Velu commented on Pos Laju's services:

"Besoh kirim, hari ini juga sampai"

2. On TV when he tried to say he felt very ashamed about a certain news item:

"Ini prekara sangat memalukan saya dan kemaluan saya sangat-sangat la besar"

3. Samy said in one of his “ceramah”:

"Kita akan bina satu jambatan wuntuk worang2 kampong di sini." Then one pakcik asked, "Datuk, sini takde sungai, buat apa bina jambatan?" And Samy gloriously replied, "Kalao takde sungai, kita bina sungai"

4. Samy's most favourite quote on the news for the decade is this:

"Toll naik sikit, banyak marah saya. You worang ingat semua ini toll saya punyer bapah punya kah!”

5. During water crisis:

"Semua worang diminta jangan membuang aiyerr!"

6. On society's social problems:

"Worang2 muda sekarang banyak suka hisap dade"

7. During blood donation's program at Sungai Siput:

"Marilah kita semua menderma dare"

8. His welcome speech at most of his functions:

"Selamat datang saudara-mara semua" (It should have been “saudara-saudari”)

9. During the height of the Al-Arqam's saga, he said in a press conference:

"Saya gumbira bahawa didapati tiada pemuda MIC terlibat dalam kes Arqam"

10. At an opening ceremony for a new building:

"Mempersilakan Datin Paduka Rafidah Aziz naik dari pentas wuntuk membuka kain"

And of course the world's greatest joke of all times:

Dato Seri said "Bagi saya, ini adalah satu pembaziran atas duit rakyat. Kita sepatutnya tidak hantar mereka ke bulan, tapi hantar mereka pergi matahari. Barulah USA, Russia respect sama kita.

The jounalist replied "Tapi Dato Seri, matahari kan panas, macam mana mahu pergi?".

Dengan cool nya Dato Seri replied "Itu pasal la u takda jadi menteri, saya sudah lebih 30 tahun jadi menteri, saya mesti ada penyelesaian. Kita jangan pergi siang, banyak panas. Kita pergi malam, baru ada sejuk"

There you go, folks! Can't expect much from a Minister whose highest education is Standard 2 and sports the same hairstyle that magically stays black over three decades.

Outrageous Fortune Exhibition

2011-01-20T21:12:00.000+13:00

I recently attended the Outrageous Fortune Exhibition held at the Auckland Museum, which opened its doors to the public on my birthday (Dec 17th) and ends sometime middle of this year. I must say that I shamelessly LOVE this NZ-made TV series (although some may argue that it is a little lebih (over the top) and hence, a gross misrepresentation of how New Zealanders behave).

Anyway, regardless of the criticisms others have for this TV series (some of my Kiwi friends cringe when I tell them that I LOVE this show) - the fact that it has won so many awards AND even been given a US remake (the American version is called Scoundrels - I doubt it's any good though! I've watched the first 3 episodes and can't help but feel the NZ version is heaps better) - surely it deserves some respect lah!

The exhibition entrance is $10 (I know what you're thinking - yeh, I agree that it's pretty pricey too!) and it starts with the writers' original materials on display, the original actor casting videos, make-up, wardrobe, set props, an in-depth 'psychological' analysis of each West character (along with a 'shrine' that captures their essence), a replica of the West home (see below) and a short 3D movie that Loretta supposedly made ('dug out from Grandpa's caravan when it was demolished'). The exhibition ends with a short survey on a touch-screen about the visitors' expectations, feelings and thoughts of the exhibition.

The interior of the West home constructed on set (kitchen and living room areas only)

Picture source here

Hmm...doesn't quite look at the original (note the chairs and kitchen items), but it would have to do.

Here are some pictures taken of the exhibition (in case you were wondering, yes we were allowed to take pictures).

Funny that they had museum helpers sitting on the couches on the set. I reckon - maybe to deter people from nicking some of the displayed items?

Typical Kiwi kitchen, eh?

Good to know a lot of PAM products are (supposedly) consumed by the West family. LOL

Where the West family congregates to scheme their next big 'project' and sample Cheryl's famous fish pie

As far as I can remember, this is Grandpa's most favourite spot (the couch)

The 'make-up studio' that has an array of 'transformation pictures' of each character and the host of products used by them.

Some of the clothes 'Grandpa' wore

Some of the lingerie from Cheryl's Hoochie Mama business (they were all designed by the wardrobe people behind the show). I would have to admit - some of them looked really purdyy!

The infamous 'muffin-top' Cheryl West in her leopard-print dress

Very happy to be seeing it on display here

I fell in love with this dress when I saw Loretta wearing it in Outrageous Fortune

And was very very excited to be seeing it at the exhibition too. Since then, I've always been on the lookout for tube dresses like this with motifs that stand out at the top

Some of the accessories worn by Cheryl (apparently, most of them came from brick-a-brack shops!)

I've always admired Pascalle's accessorising style.... so I was really excited to see them on display here *inspired*

Funny to think that every West member has been in the 'can' (polis lokap) before!

Haha...can't believe they transported the Tool Guys van to the museum!

Aptly using the plate labelled 'H00ch1'

Needless to say, it was packed with 'stolen goods'

The 'shrine' used to honour Loretta (you might recognise it from her escort business (a.k.a brothel), as introduced in the last season)

Cheryl West, depicted as Jesus here; 'the centre of attention'... the thread that holds everything together, etc. see, using The Last Supper in this context is seen as tongue-in-cheek, something funny, humourous. Bet if they used something from the Quran and depicted Cheryl as Muhammad or something similar, New Zealand would have been bombed by the Taliban by now!

Yup, we were given 3D glasses to watch a short clip (around 6 minutes or so) at the end of the exhibition (parental guidance recommended)... lol

Just before exiting the exhibition doors, you were asked to deposit your 3D glasses into the box representing your 'most favourite' character. Not surprising that Van has the highest votes, with Jethro having the least - although ironically, both characters were played by the SAME actor :) LOL

Who is MY favourite character? Loretta, for sure. I love her ingenuity, her hard-headedness, her street smarts as well as the softer side of her (grudgingly kind and loving).

One of the survey questions was if viewing the exhibition gave me any 'closure'. Unfortunately, it didn't. In fact, it made me miss the show even more (despite the crappy quasi-incestuous relationship between Pascalle and Judd ending).

Meh. But still, I would dare say it's one of the best TV series I've watched. Ever. :-)

Outrageous Fortune's official website can be found here

Albertus the Cookie Namesake and What's been up

2011-01-16T18:32:00.009+13:00

Nice to have someone bake cookies for you as your namesake. It's not everyday that this happens to you.

Yea! So if all you guys have anyone bake a cookie with your namesake, you know you've made it. As they say over here in New Zealand....Sweet AS!

Thanks dearie for baking the cookies.

Anyways, it has been a while since I last added an entry. The last couple of months have been rather busy as I have been busy settling into living in Auckland. Different lifestyle as I now work in corporate forsaking the previous working life as a blue collared laborer. If there is one thing I know, it's a newfound appreciation of the working class fella working hard to make ends meet. Also, because of the heavy work, I lost weight and lost it like massive.

Here's what I look like then:

This was back in 2007. I was 115kgs then.

This picture was taken back in July 2010. I was 85kg.

I am open for any advice and consultation. Honestly, nothing but sheer hard work and sweat to lose them pounds and some good mates to work with.

This is Albertus logging off.

Car Update

2011-01-08T23:09:00.000+13:00

Finally sorted out the car. We were really lucky that the spray paint used to vandalise the car was easy to remove. All we needed was some soapy water, car wax (to soften the spray paint marks) and several couring pads (and occasionally - our fingernails, if the scouring pads didn't do the job for the more stubborn stains).

We have a temporary car 'window' now, made of clear plastic and held up by some cellophane tape - the Smith and Smith guys initially brought the wrong glass during our appointment today (they brought a rear end window for a Lancer instead of our car model, which is a Mitsubishi Mirage) so we have to wait for tomorrow for the accurate glass fit.

Armed with some food, water, clean wipes, rags, coins (for the self-operating car wash machine) and dressed in our worst (we were going to be pemburuh asing for the day mah) - we scrubbed off most of the spray paint stains (except the ones that landed on plastic, tyre rims and wheels - don't know how to get that out).

I have a new-found respect for the Indons and Banglas who tirelessly clean, scrub, wash and buff the cars for a minimal amount back in KL. It is truly HARD work.

Amount of time spent: 3.5 hours

Amount spent to fix carL ~$500 (as opposed to the thousands quoted to us by car repair shops for a full paint job)

Phew.

Christmas with the Tans 2.0

2011-01-07T02:24:00.001+13:00

I'm sure you remember our entry about the Tans spending Christmas with us in Dunedin in 2009. For 2010, we were lucky enough to return the favour by spending Christmas with them in Melbourne, Australia.

The only difference this time was the single addition to our 'gang': a wee boy named ANDREW. Yes, Anthony and Siow Lan's first born son! I still remember a 6 weeks preggars Siow Lan when she and Anthony spent Christmas 2009 with us - they only found out about her pregnancy the week before! My my my, how time flies, eh? This time, we got to spend Christmas in Melbourne with 6-month old Andrew! :-)

Isn't he adorable?

Spending time with the Tans is always fun. You see, we're all not too big on sight-seeing, preferring instead to enjoy each other's company eating, drinking, and be merry! Ok ok, a bit of shopping also lah... but more time chillaxing.

Check out the range of food consumed during our holiday.... crazy right? Result: 3 kilos gained. LOL Many thanks to the Tans who spent quite a fortune cooking and ordering special food (e.g. authentic Malaysian satay) and procuring beers/wine/liquor for us! HUGS. Thanks guys. You are awesome!

If Xmas 2009's holiday highlight was the poker/blackjame game nights played nearly every night, Xmas 2010's highlight has got to be Wii! Both Anthony and Albertus spent literally every night battling Decepticons (Transformers wii) and Russian terrorists (Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon wii) til the wee hours of the morning (we're talking like, 5-6am, okay). Boys and their toys eh?

We also managed to catch up with some other Melbournian friends as well as visiting Malaysian friends. Always good to see familiar faces. Thanks for meeting up with us!

What can we say? Our Melbournian holiday was a well-deserved break from a hectic 2010. Now excuse me while I go fo a run around the city......not. Meh. *eyes a packet of M&Ms*

City Life Is Like That

2011-01-06T01:26:00.004+13:00

Came back from our Xmas hols to discover some fantastic artwork on our car.

Not only that, but these hooligans also decided to give our car windows a more rugged appeal.

A typical case of 'cheak par thai eng'.

No doubt, they deliberately signed off with their 'gang name'.

New Zealand = Zero crime? I beg to differ.

Worse still, we are paying a monthly rent to this company named Tournament Parking Ltd to 'securely park our car' in the city.

'Security', my foot.

'Valuable customer service', yeah rite.

The car's sitting in the car park now - CLOSE to the entrance of their company signage - a testament for all the word to see how 'valuable' their 'security' is.

Cost of repairing car: At least $500 (estimate)

Cost of their reputation: PRICELESS

Needless to say, Tournament Parking Ltd sucks A**.

Quick to take money from its customers.

Slow in response to incidents like this.

Banoffee Pie Bday Cake

2010-12-19T12:50:00.011+13:00

I decided to make my own birthday 'cake' this year. Finally got the recipe from Chu (who inspired me to make this myself; she assured me that it was an easy recipe). I've always been a bit iffy about cakes/pies with cookie crumbs as base (think cheesecake) - they never turn out the way I want it to! LOL

But heck, if you don't try, you won't know right? :)

So I did.

This is how I 'shop' for ingredients. I just take a snapshot of the recipe (on my computer; full recipe here) with my phone and hunt for the ingredients at Countdown. Easy peasy. Tak payah tulis recipe on a piece of paper and end up fumbling it out from your backpocket while trying to balance your grocery bag.

Finally made the cake and brought it along as dessert to dinner yesterday. We met up with @Sukesh + co. to try out this Malaysian Nyonya Restaurant in Howick. It was FULL house last night, but the wait was worth it lah. Outcome: Yummy authentic Malaysian Nyonya food and a grand finale (the dessert).

See, happy faces:-

Me and Sharmini (the missus)

@Sukesh and @thealbertus

Reya who entertained us with her rendition of "Baby baby baby oooooh.." (YES! *horror of horrors* JUSTIN BIEBER! LOL)

Aryan (who had 2 helpings of the pie - *so proud*)

If you love caramel, bananas, chocolate - I'd recommend you give this recipe a try. Allow me to guide you step-by-step :)

Crush the biscuits in a food processor then add the melted butter and pulse to combine.

Press the mixture into a 24cm tart tin, with a removable base, in an even layer.

Heat oven to 160 degrees (fan bake option is best, so that the cookie crumbs are thoroughly baked). Bake the base until it's light and toasty (~1o minutes).

Once cooled, spread the caramel over the biscuit base and chill for 1 hour.

Slice 2 big bananas.

Arrange bananas on top of the caramel - leave in the fridge while you prepare the topping.

Whip the cream and sugar to form soft peaks.

Spread it over the bananas.

Melt the chocolate in a microwave or in a bowl set over, not in, a pan of simmering water.

Allow to cool slightly, before drizzling over the cream

Enjoy it with a bottle of Southern Australian wine (Sparkling Shiraz). We had Asian food - hence the choice of wine :) Thanks to Iggy who got me this wine as a gift for finishing my thesis! :) Much love!

That's how my birthday was spent. With hubby and close friends :) Ahh... I reckon, as we age, birthdays aren't 'celebrations' anymore, but more of a 'reflection'. :)

Sudah 3X. *sigh!*

Fascination with Bread

2010-10-25T15:52:00.011+13:00

Been trying to save some moolah by making our own bread lately. Hey hey, it's healthier too! I followed very basic bread recipes and substituted some ingredients, such as replacing plain flour with wholemeal flour, reducing the sugar, using olive oil as the shortening.... little things like this - I like to think it makes a difference.

I'm also super pleased with the apartment oven - Fisher and Paykel brand okay! Been looking forward to using a proper oven for AGES, as our oven in Sidey St was old and couldn't be depended on to handle mega baking projects. Oh well, it was an OLD oven anyway.

Check out some of these pictures of my string of bread-making projects. I'm slowly learning the basics of bread-making and am experimenting with different ingredients, styles, etc. Well, that's what the bread experts say 'It's all about experimentation'.

Mixing up the flour

Making sure the texture is consistent

Rolling it into a huge ball

Leaving it to rise in the 'warmest' spot in the hall

Punching the dough to release the air

Giving it one last knead

Here is another bread recipe - but this time with cocoa powder and chocolate bits

Double yummo - check out the choc bits!

I also made spicy (and cheesy) tuna filling (with reduced cream) for some of the rolls

(not the chocolate rolls lah)

I was talking about these rolls!

Aren't they pretty!

I also made 3 different types of pizza (kinda ran out of plain flour, so substituted it with a wholemeal pizza base... lol ... Finally put my Italian cooking classes (which I took in my first year in New Zealand) to good use!

And once everything is done, just place them in the oven and let the heat do its work!

Voila! The pizzas I made

Nom nom...yup, I cracked 2 eggs in this one!

Yes, go on and salivate :)

The wholemeal loaf I made

Very pleased with its consistency :)

And so easy to slice too!

Once cooled, it's time to bag and freeze them! :) (many thanks to Chu who taught me how to ration baked goods) .. lol

*nom nom nom*

Because I'm so lazy to type out the recipes here - please let me know if you'd like them (and which one), and I'll share them. :) LOL

Maori Performance

2010-10-22T22:59:00.002+13:00

Taken at the Visitor Centre at the Waimangu Volcanic Valley, Rotorua

jIH chenmoHta' tIr Soj DaHjaj

2010-10-21T00:30:00.001+13:00

I made 'seed food' today.

With a proper oven.

In Auckland!

Yup, I'm finally here for good! :) More later.... still settling in!

The Malaysia that SHOULD be!

2010-09-16T17:26:00.002+12:00

My dad forwarded me this transcript by Dr. Seri Kalimullah Hassan's inaugural speech at UTAR's Convocation. I love it. Very inspiring.

So thought I'd immortalise it on the Internet.

By the way - Happy Malaysia Day! Let's hope what Dr. Kalimullah's wisdom inspires us all to be better Malaysians and not let those 'extremist, charlatans' break our spirits.

The Malaysia that could be — Kalimullah Hassan
* Datuk Seri Kalimullah Hassan is a veteran journalist who delivered this
speech at the UTAR Convocation

August 21, 2010

It is a great honor for me to be here today and I want to start by congratulating you and your families on your success.

Although I did not attend university — for a variety of reasons, chief being that we were not rich and that I was not smart enough to be given a scholarship — I have, every moment in my life, acknowledged the value of a college or university education. There’s always that tinge of regret in me when I hear my friends speak of the fun they had in campus, the pranks they played, the girlfriends they met, the midnight oil they burnt during exams and the pride with which they took to the stage to receive their scrolls and enter the new phase in their lives.

Today, it is your turn to feel the pride of receiving your scrolls after having worked so hard. Today is a great day for you. You are young; you are raring to go; you want to make your name; you have dreams; you have hopes; you have your whole life ahead of you.

Many of us here on stage are in our twilight years. We have lived our lives as best as we could and made our mistakes along the way. Some learn from their mistakes; some don’t. It is those who learn from their mistakes who make it in life. For those of us in this twilight stage of life, time is a luxury we don’t have. But you, graduating students of UTAR today, you are on the fringes of a new beginning with all the time ahead of you.

The only thing that remains is for you to set your goals; work hard; believe in yourself; persevere; and God willing, one day, in the future, you will be able to say — I am proud of what I have achieved and I am proud of what I am.

Graduating students, respected audience, and friends:-

As you prepare to go out into the world, I would like you to share one thought with you. In my life, the one thing I have always been proud of is my belief that this is a great country which could be greater; and that I am proud to be a Malaysian — first and last.

Today, the theme of my message to you is that only you can decide how you are going to live and that it is you who will decide what your Malaysia, your future generations, and your world will be long after we are gone. At a time when Malaysia is seeing daily debates on race and religion, you have a heavy burden to bear; you, the young generation, will decide which direction Malaysia takes and I hope today, I can share a little of what our generation went through so you can learn from our mistakes and build on the right things we did.

While we learn from our own mistakes, we should also learn from history. Unfortunately, human beings are prone to forgetting history. Allow me to talk about one personality who has shaped many lives and changed the course of at least his country, the United States of America. I want to talk about the American civil rights leader Dr Martin Luther King Jr, a great man, who like us, had a dream. I want to talk about him because his thoughts have bearing on us as well.

Dr King died for his dreams but the whole world can continue to learn from him; especially us, a country that is multi-racial, multi-cultural and multi-religious; a country our founding fathers had hoped would symbolize the dream that they had; that was no different a dream from the dream Martin Luther King Jr had. I quote Dr King in one of his most famous speeches, where he spoke about his American dream. He said:

“I look forward confidently to the day when all who work for a living will be one with no thought to their separateness as Negroes, Jews, Italians or any other distinctions.

“This will be the day when we bring into full realization the American dream -- a dream yet unfulfilled;

“A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men will not take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few;

“A dream of a land where men will not argue that the colour of a man’s skin determines the content of his character;

“A dream of a nation where all our gifts and resources are held not for ourselves alone, but as instruments of service for the rest of humanity;

“The dream of a country where every man will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality.”

Today, more than 40 years after that speech, a black man is the President of the United States of America; a black man, it is proudly said, lives in the White House. Today, to a large extent, Martin Luther King’s dreams have come true in his country. Remember, even in the 1960s, after Malaysia had become independent, after the United States had been independent for almost 200 years, blacks and colored people were not allowed to eat at restaurants which were reserved only for white people; they could not drink from the same tap as the white man; they could not ride on the same bus as the white man; and in many parts of rural America, the Ku Klux Klan regularly lynched and killed blacks for sport. Therefore, America took major strides in civil liberties in the last four decades that countries throughout the world can learn from.

As I say this, today, I stand here and ask you — have the dreams of our founding fathers been fulfilled?

Some people say that it took the United States more than 200 years before the true American dream could be realized. They say we are a young nation, only 53 years old, and we should be proud of what we have achieved. Yes, we have achieved a lot. Yes, we never had the kind of discrimination and civil rights abuse as the United States had for more than 100 years. But that doesn’t mean we too should wait 200 years to realize the dream our founding fathers or we have.

I believe that if our founding fathers were looking over us right now, they would be proud to see the physical achievements of our country; but their hearts would break to see the path we have taken in addressing each other as fellow Malaysians. If they looked at the news; at what right-wing charlatans and extremist groups are doing and saying; at the daily racial baiting and taunting, they would weep.

And, no, we cannot wait for 200 years like the United States of America to expect change because today, the world moves at too fast a pace and we are already lagging. If we don’t change, then we will forever be known as the “the Malaysia that could have been.”

Once sleeping giants like China and India can transform themselves from two extreme ends of ideology — one the world’s largest communist country, the

other, the world’s largest democracy — to seize the opportunities, and from slumbering giants, catapult themselves into the forefront of the world economy; countries once deemed backward like Indonesia and Vietnam are charging ahead; all around us we see that those who dare to take the brave step forward, move forward. So, no, we cannot afford to wait 200 years to
realize our dreams of the “Malaysia that should be.”

Graduating Students,

As you go out into the world today, your Malaysia is different from the Malaysia I grew up in. My Malaysia was the Promised Land; it was a Malaysia where our differences mattered so much less than our similarities and our shared dreams; it was a Malaysia where we ate at each other’s homes, where we played games together, where we grew up together and where we have remained friends even in the winter years of our life.

Your Malaysia is a different Malaysia. It is a Malaysia which, unfortunately, is today again struggling to find an identity, more than half a century after independence. It is a Malaysia where every day we find our differences accentuated. It is a Malaysia where it seems the spirit of family, of togetherness, of oneness is a spirit which only the twilight generation reminisces about.

My Malaysia was a Malaysia where we dreamed of venturing out, seeking opportunities and building our homes and prospering our country. Today, my Malaysia is a small part of a global village where opportunities abound in
the world around us. In your new world, you are an international citizen, shackled only by the limits you set yourself.

In the year 2007 and 2008, almost half a million Malaysians left this country to work abroad. That, respected audience, is almost 2 per cent of our population — and probably accounts for more than five per cent of working professional and skilled Malaysians — a disturbingly large number for a developing country like ours.

A study by the Institute of Gerontology, University of Kuala Lumpur, showed that we are an aging country. The number of older non-working persons in Malaysia doubled from 1980 to the year 2000 from 700,000 people to almost 1.4 million; in 2020, it will be 3.4 million people. Against this backdrop, half a million skilled Malaysians of working age leaving the country is unsettling. Will we end up being a country of old people?

We can see the phenomena in many small towns and villages in rural Malaysia where the young have left for opportunities in the cities and abroad and
their kampongs and home towns become dwellings of old folk. They build a new life and return perhaps for the annual festive holiday or balik kampong, and don’t look back again. Magnify that at the level of our country — if our young and skilled continue to leave for opportunities abroad, is it possible that we, too, could one day become a country for old men?

There must be reasons why Malaysians want to leave such a wonderful country. Could it just be diminishing opportunities here and better opportunities elsewhere? Unhappiness? Politics? Marriage? Discrimination? Or what?

It cannot be an easy decision to leave your country because we are, I am sure, all familiar with the saying: Hujan batu di negeri sendiri lebih baik daripada hujan emas di negeri orang.

How many times that I have been abroad on work or leisure for extended periods and I remember how lonely it feels after just a few weeks. That feeling of emptiness is real. And there have been times when I have been to certain countries ravaged by poverty or infighting and war; then, the only thing I want to do is literally kiss the ground the moment I land at KLIA. Why then are people leaving?

There was a time when people from other countries wanted to come to Malaysia because it was seen as a land of opportunity and a land of promise; a land of honey and sunshine; a land where dreams could come true.

That, ladies and gentlemen, was my Malaysia, the Malaysia I grew up in.

It is still a great country, and we owe that to our founding fathers but it is a different Malaysia today; a sad Malaysia. In that respect, how could anyone fault you if you say our generation is to be blamed for giving you the Malaysia you inherit?

But please do not mistake what I am saying. I believe that Malaysia has very good people and God’s given treasures; we can still be a great country - but only if we work towards making it great.

Let me now talk about my Malaysia. I wonder how many of you are fans of Lat, the cartoonist?

Many of my generation grew up on Lat’s cartoons. He is an extraordinary human being who epitomizes the true Malaysian spirit which, I believe, our forefathers envisaged. In Lat’s cartoons we would always see the portrayal of Malaysian life where all Malaysians worked together, played together and lived together in harmony. But there was one cartoon by Lat two years ago which showed all his multi-racial characters huddled under an umbrella made out of the Malaysian flag; they were taking shelter from politicians, right-wing activists and chauvinists who spewed racial invective.

To me, it was a sad cartoon. It was a tragedy of the new Malaysia that we live in today. Two years after that cartoon, not much has changed. In fact, if anything, it has become worse.

Yes, it is true that it was not all glorious sunshine and camaraderie in our country since 1957; and yes, it’s true that we did live through the madness of May 13, 1969. But save for that stint of insanity in our history, we have largely had good years.

I want to remember the good things we had, the good friends we had and my story is not different from the story of most of us who grew up before and

immediately after Independence. The childhood I had in my hometown Kroh (Pengkalan Hulu now) on the border with Thailand, and later in Penang, was
similar to that of Lat in Perak.

Today, most of our childhood friends still keep in touch and though we do not meet regularly, we are still friends. You see that in Lat’s cartoons over the last three decades as he rolls out his own life story.

Where did we take that wrong turn in nationhood that we ended seeking refuge under the flag? When did racial baiting and taunting become an almost everyday affair?

My Dear and Respected Audience,

I don’t think anyone of us can say when we started taking the wrong fork in the road to come to where we are today. Perhaps, the undue obsession with politics over the last decade, perhaps greater awareness of a generation unscarred by the hardships of a post-independence era, perhaps greater and more open access to information, and perhaps more awareness of civil rights and liberties has contributed to accentuating differences. The question is - can we do anything about it? I believe we can.

As in everything, character is normally shaped in our formative years — at home, in our neighborhoods and in schools.

In the book Character-Building Thought Power the question is asked whether we have the power to determine at all times what types of habits shall take form in our lives. In other words, is habit-forming, character-building, a matter of mere chance, or do we have it within our own control? The answer is yes, we have, entirely and absolutely. Look at the case of the United States and Martin Luther King Junior. Would anyone in America have thought in 1960 that one day, a black man would be President of that great country and those minorities — blacks, Indians, Hispanics, Chinese and Jews — would occupy senior positions in Government? If there were any, it would have been the most optimistic of `human beings who would have envisioned that.

The book states that there is a simple, natural, and thoroughly scientific method to build character - a method whereby old, undesirable, earth-binding habits can be broken, and new, desirable, heaven-lifting habits can be acquired — a method whereby life can be changed, in part or in its totality, provided one has sufficiently will.

The key to it is thought. Everything you do, every conscious act, is preceded by a thought. Your dominating thoughts determine your dominating actions. Repeated actions crystallize into habit; and the aggregate of your habits is your character. In simpler language, practice makes perfect. If you practice negative acts, for example lying, stealing, cheating, it becomes natural to lie, cheat and steal. But if in your mind, you believe that lying, cheating and stealing are bad, are wrong, and you tend to do the opposite as much as you can, you will become a truthful, honest, do-good person.

It is a simple psychological law that any type of thought, if entertained for a sufficient length of time, will, by and by, reach the motor tracks of the brain, and finally burst forth into action. Murder can be and many times is committed in this way, the same as all undesirable things are done. On the other hand, the greatest powers are grown, the most God-like characteristics are engendered, and the most heroic acts are performed in the same way.

The thing clearly to understand is this: That the thought is always parent to the act. In other words, you are what you think.

Here let us refer to that law of the mind which says that whenever one does a certain thing in a certain way it is easier to do the same thing in the same way the next time, and still easier the next, and the next, and the next, until in time it comes to pass that no effort is required, or no effort worth speaking of; but on the contrary, to do the opposite would require the effort. It’s like playing tennis or badminton or football. If you learn to smash correctly, to lob properly, and do it again and again, you will never lose that skill. But if you don’t set your mind to it, and don’t practice, you will never get it right and always leave it to chance,
or to a fluke shot.

Thus a simple effort to control one’s thoughts, even if at first failure is the result, and even if for a time failure seems to be about the only result, will in time, sooner or later, bring one to the point of easy, full, and complete control.

From the individual to the society; every earnest effort adds an increment of power that will eventually accomplish society’s objective.

Now, allow me to go back to that path we took in our road to nationhood that has led us to where we are today.

If we subscribe to the belief that thought leads to character building, then how we live with each other in a multi-racial, multi-religious society begins with us, at home, with our children, in the neighborhood we live and in the schools our children go to.

My wife and I grew up at a time when most parents strived to send their children to English medium schools. Although I come from a small rural town my late parents sent my two elder brothers to an English medium school in Baling, Kedah, more than 10 miles away. Today, that distance does not seem very much. But think back 1960 in communist infested jungles around Kroh, narrow winding roads, irregular bus service, not enough trained teachers and you will see what sacrifices our parents made to ensure we received a good and balanced education.

The character of schools was then different. The students were from all races and denominations; and let’s face it; children are the most innocent and least prejudiced beings in the world. They grow up accepting each other, no matter what their color, no matter what their religion. Those formative years formed our thoughts and our character and thankfully, most of us carried that on into our adulthood.

Our elders, too, were not as prejudiced, living with each other in mixed neighborhoods, accepting each other’s differences, each other’s cultures
and each other’s different beliefs. Sure, it was not all hunky dory but they were, although poorer, a happier society.

But despite that, May 13 happened and it shattered the myth of one happy country and we tried to rebuild ourselves. We had campaigns in earnest such as the “muhibbah” campaign in schools; we had the Rukun Negara; we had
Rukun Tetangga; our leaders strived to salvage our shattered dreams and we did recover, largely because it was a societal effort. But there was terrible cost to pay and many people migrated during that period, most, never to come back again.

Today, again, we seem to be taking the wrong path again – churches being burned, mosques and temples desecrated; right wing groups touting race over nationality, threatening those who don’t think like them, discriminating
and differentiating…..

Today, as a parent of four grown-up and growing children, I want to state that despite trying to put all our prejudices aside, my wife and I found that there were occasions when we were shocked at the things that our children picked up in school. They would utter things in innocence which displayed prejudices we did not impart upon them. It was after a lot of soul searching that we concluded that in our schools today, children were separated because Chinese parents preferred to send their children to Chinese schools, where they felt the education system was better, and, generally, Malay and Indian kids went to national-type schools. That has resulted in unintended consequences where bumiputras are the vast majority in national type schools and the Chinese, the majority in Chinese-type
schools. In each environment, those outnumbered felt more comfortable within their own race group, their own silos, and some, across the spectrum, displayed the prejudices that their own parents had. There is something seriously lacking in our education system today; but unfortunately, change has not come despite all the negative fallouts where from young, our children are deprived of growing up in a true Malaysian environment.

Since my wife and I knew that we could not change the system, we asked what could we do?

I can tell you that it was not easy. We exposed the children to our friends, so much so that many of our old friends and their children, of different racial and religious backgrounds, are also today their friends. We encouraged them to learn about other cultures and other religions as much as we encouraged them to learn about their own religion. We have visited temples and churches in places we have gone to and we did not discourage them from sleeping over at the houses of their friends and vice-versa, no matter what religion, culture or race.

At times, we felt we were fighting a losing battle because growing up in the impersonal city is so different from the kampong or small towns where camaraderie is easier, where prejudices are less. But today, that the kids
are adults or near adulthood, we are grateful that we persevered because they have grown up shedding prejudices and accepting people as people, rather than as Eurasians, Chinese, Malays or Indians.

It has also helped that there are many inter-racial marriages within our immediate and extended families and weddings and family get-togethers bring together our Chinese, Kadazan, Indian, Pathan, Iban and Malay relatives.

But it has certainly not been a smooth ride because societal pressures have often threatened to derail our own dream of a one Malaysia.

When the kids were overseas — the two elder ones are back after graduating — my wife and I used to take them and their friends out for dinner. We enjoyed taking them out as well as listening to them talk, and marveled at their innocence, at their inability to grasp why people should look at each other and evaluate each other by race, religion or colour. They are idealistic but I wish that more of us shared this idealism.

Listening to the children and their friends, I often felt a great sadness because I knew that one day soon enough, they would finish their education, come home to Malaysia, and if things did not change, they, too, would eventually get a little influenced, become a little prejudiced and lose a little of their innocence.

They would find it a little disconcerting to be referred to by their race because overseas, they just find comfort in hanging out together; because in their mind, they are just Malaysians in a foreign land. They are not black. They are not white, yellow or brown. They are just Malaysians.

Maybe I have become too cynical but I often wonder what people would say if I were to ask them “what race are you?”

Take my nephew, Johan, for example. My brother’s wife is Chinese. Johan looks every bit a Chinese. What race is he? My wife is of Malay, Gujarati and Sinhalese descent. What race are our children? You will be amazed to know that because of this inability to determine what race we are, my children are deemed to come from different races, as stated on their MyKad.

My eldest is listed as a Pakistani; my second and youngest as Malays; and my third child as Indian. I refused to argue with the National Registration Department because as far as I am concerned, my kids are all Malaysians — first, second, third or last.

I can give you other examples. My friend Mervin is a Malayalee who grew up in Kuala Lumpur and Kuantan. He married a Kadazan from Tamparuli in Sabah. They are Catholics and they now live in Hong Kong, hoping to come back in a few years when he retires.

Their daughter, Natasha, married Reza, a Shia Muslim, originally from Iran, born in Pakistan and who moved to London. Both are working in Singapore now. What race is Natasha and what race would their children be?

I could talk about Ayub, my Indian Muslim buddy, and Alya Chew, his Chinese wife, or about my friend Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad and his Australian wife;

about my cousin Shakeel and his Canadian wife; or his brothers Atique and the late Shamin and their Chinese wives; or my long-time friend Maniam @ Wong Joon San s/o Alagan, a Bahai from Muar, who married his Chinese sweetheart Jenny Tan, and who are staying in Hong Kong now.

What race are they? What colour are they? Who is the Malaysian? THEY ALL ARE.

One Malaysia, Bangsa Malaysia, Middle Malaysia – all these are slogans, designed, I believe, with ostensibly noble intentions. But as long as these slogans and intentions remain on billboards lining the highway from KLIA to

Shah Alam; as long as they appear only in advertisements on television and in the newspapers; as long as they remain merely on our lips, we will not achieve anything.

Who among us does not want these dreams achieved? But if we want these dreams to come true, one Malaysia must be in our hearts, not only on our
lips.

Graduating Students, respected audience,

Barack Obama said people have a choice — they can either remain as bystanders and go on with their lives and let others talk about the world they want build or they can work towards building that world.

I have been inspired by many of Obama’s speeches. He said, of people who want change, that:

Throughout your life, you will face many challenges in seeking change; and there will be many periods when you will be at the crossroads, wondering whether it is worth your while; whether you should not just narrow your interests and get on with your own life than trying to be a crusader for the larger good.

“But I hope you’ll remember, during those times of doubt and frustration, that there is nothing naïve about your impulse to change the world. Because all it takes is one act of service - one blow against injustice - to send forth what Robert Kennedy called that ‘tiny ripple of hope’. That’s what changes the world.”

So never give up. Never allow disappointment to stop you in your tracks. You have to pick yourself up and go on. And if you do that, you will do well by yourself and by your country.

Graduating students of UTAR,

My generation is fading into the twilight of our sunset years. It is now up to your generation, to transcend this challenge. And you will be doing so in a world that is as different from ours as night is from day.

The globalised, interdependent, interconnected era we live in today means that when you leave this hall and set forth on your journey of life, you will do so not as Malays, Chinese, Indians, Punjabis, Ibans or Kadazans.

Perhaps not even as Malaysians. You will undertake the journey as GLOBAL citizens, competing and collaborating across communities and across borders. The IT revolution has placed in your hands the tools and the opportunities to fashion this world in line with your own ideals and hopes.

The future is in your hands.

And now, having imparted those words of “wisdom”, allow me to relate an old Indian tale.

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said: “My son, the battle is between two ‘wolves’ inside us all.

“One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

“The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”

The old Cherokee replied: “The one you feed.”

As you leave this evening, and go on to a new life and new future, just ask yourself one question – which wolf will you feed?

Before I end my speech, let me come back to Martin Luther King’s dream. Something else that Dr King said perhaps bears context to our Malaysia today. He spoke about the lack of the spirit of human generosity in today’s world and I quote:

“When we look at modern man, we have to face the fact that modern man suffers from a kind of poverty of the spirit, which stands in glaring contrast with a scientific and technological abundance.

“We’ve learned to fly the air as birds, we’ve learned to swim the seas as fish, yet we haven’t learned to walk the Earth as brothers and sisters.”

So go out today and make the Malaysia that should be. It is in your hands how you want to shape our country.

God bless and thank you.

Welcoming Valentina

2010-08-30T04:19:00.002+12:00

Finally managed to meet my niece, Valentina yesterday. Seeing her online actually made her seem more 'real' to me - seeing her pictures on Facebook tak cukup lah, you know? But seeing her online and listening to her (baby) talk on SKYPE really made my day!

Of course, she wouldn't have known who I was, neither could she see or hear me... and the funniest thing was every time my brother-in-law placed the microphone near her face, Valentina kept on opening her mouth as if wanting to 'eat' the microphone! Poor girl must have thought it was something yummy *nom nom nom*! :)

Feeling quite gutted I won't be able to meet her this year though. Tak da duit for flight tix. But hopefully we'll be able to save up some moolah for flight tickets home next year though.... and make it for her 1st birthday in April 2011! :)

Isn't she the cutest?!

Valentina has grown quite a bit since we last saw her pics on her very own website. Yeah, isn't she lucky?! She has her own website! ..You can visit it here.

Man...babies grow really fast, don't they?

Ahh....babies...

Moving to Auckland

2010-08-12T21:41:00.000+12:00

We’ve finally settled down in Auckland, well, at least for the next 6 months or so. I flew up with Albertus last week to help him sort out accommodation and you know lah, the usual wifely duties – setting up the place, cleaning, ironing his work clothes, stocking up food and cooking/freezing up curry portions for HRH. Lol.

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We arrived in Auckland on Tuesday night and immediately went to town for some dinner. Found a Chinese restaurant that offered an awesome dinner deal ($20 for 2) – rice, soup, BBQ duck, crispy pork, vege and sweet sour pork! Yummy!! We haven’t had crispy pork and duck for AGES we literally ate the fat (yuck, I know! But oh so yummy!) with delight!

Just look at that...nom nom nom!

Check out that sweet sour pork! nom nom nom...

I must admit, it was slightly disorienting walking around the city area, it was about 9pm and the streets were still full of people…. I mean, coming from a small ‘city’ like Dunedin (IMHO, it isn’t a city, if you ask me - more like a ‘big town’, well at least by my standards) – coming to Auckland was like……HOME (KL, without the bad air!). LOL.

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I LOVED it. I’ve always loved big cities. Put me in Hong Kong or Sydney and I’ll be happy to walk the streets from one end to another. I mean, Dunedin is fine lah, but I think, after a year or so – it kinda bores you to death. Same old coffee places, limited eateries, places closing at 5pm, etc. Boring sial lah. But Auckland – fuyooo…syiok! Firstly and MOST importantly, the food variety is great (and authentic!!) – as you know, being a Malaysian, that’s numero uno! J So, hey my perception of NZ may actually improve after all! J And of course, the shopping is heaps better too....but of course atm, I can only window shop lah (no money!).

Bay of Islands

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Cathedral Cove, Coromandel

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Rotorua

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Another thing great about Auckland is that it’s close to some really beautiful places to visit – Bay of Islands, Coromandel, and just a wee bit down south – Hamilton, Rotorua, Taupo, etc. Basically, it’s easier to ‘get away’ on weekends if you’re living in Auckland, as compared to Dunedin, where there are not many places to go without considering the long drive – you only have Queenstown, Christchurch or Invercargill (who are we kidding, who goes to Invercargill? U gotta be kidding). So yeah, although the South Island is definitely more beautiful (nature-wise), North Island is where the 'action' is…

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Anyway, after dinner, we walked around Albertus’s office area, jotting down ‘apartment for rent’ notices. We initially scheduled to see 7 apartments the next day (Wednesday), but ended up seeing….wait for it….wait for it…… SIXTEEN places! Yup! Crazy, huh! We started at 10am and finished at 6pm; we saw an average of 2 places an hour. And trust me, we walked A LOT. If I were to triangulate the areas that we were walking in Auckland City by KL/PJ’s standards in distance, I would say we walked from BU ---> TTDI --->SS2. No joke. And it was RAINING. I didn’t realize my shoes (which lasted me a good 3 years) were coming apart (hangus) so I nearly slipped and fell a couple of times! Poor Albertus had to prop me up so that I could ‘cling’ on to him while walking, macam helping an old aunty to walk.

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Anyway, we saw a variety of places, ranging from really crappy (and funny smelling) units to posh ones. Our budget was initially less than $300 a week, but soon realized that any units below $300 would be a shoebox – not conducive for giants like us.

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So we had to settle for something higher. Furthermore, we were really particular in finding a proper 1-bedroom flat; we didn’t want to stink up a studio unit especially when we were cooking curry! We met several types of landlords and property agents; some friendly, some aloof, some downright sneaky. The sneaky one was quite a laugh, actually. I remember it was the 1^st appointment we had for the day, and we were supposed to meet this guy on Wakefield Street (student area, near University of Auckland) to show us a 1-bdroom flat, which later turned out to be a studio. What he did was, he merely segregated the ‘sleeping area’ from the ‘kitchen area’ with…..a wardrobe. This – despite Albertus calling him earlier to check that it was a ‘1-bdroom apartment and NOT a studio unit’. LOL. I guess this guy was pretty desperate, as he reduced the rent from $280 to $260. But seriously, the whole place smelt funny (someone could have died in that unit for all we know), so we didn’t bother with that one.

Renting in Auckland is really expensive, almost two times more than Dunedin prices. Imagine, in Dunedin we were paying $180 per week for a 2-bdroom flat + garage; in Auckland we are paying $350 for a 1-bdroom flat w/o car park! Crazy expensive, but I guess that’s how it is to be living in the CBD area. Plus, we later found out that you had to pay for water in Auckland (in Dunedin it’s still free). But thank goodness a lot of the places that we saw included water in the rent. Another thing that we found out was this atrocious ‘letting fee + GST’ (agent’s commission) in Auckland, where apart from the usual 2-3 wks of Bond and 1-2 wks of Advance Rent, you were also required to pay this letting fee + GST (which could come up to 1-1.5 wks of rent!). Crazy expensive. So imagine, if you were renting a place that cost $350 per week, you would be required to shelve out more than $2100 for all these extras! That would have been a HUGE dent in our savings!

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At last, we settled on Quest on Eden serviced apartments. I know, sounds flash, but it’s pretty affordable, as compared to the other apartments. Firstly, Quest on Eden did not require any bond or letting fee or advance rent – you pay as you go – that itself is a HUGE relief, but of course, they required credit card details (incase anything went wrong). Secondly, the building manager (who also owns the place) LIVES in the building so that’s really useful as we reckon he’d be familiar with the apartment facilities (i.e., if something didn’t work, he’d attend to it immediately, as compared to contacting the property agent who might take a day or two to get someone contracted for the job!). Thirdly, the rent includes 4 free SKY channels (yeay for Albertus, the couch potato) – we’ve been so used to an 11-inch TV with the usual 4 TV (national) channels, getting the additional channels + PRIME (we couldn’t get this on our old TV last time) is…flash. LOL. Fourthly, staying at the Quest entitled us to gym privileges at Waldorf just behind our apartment! And lastly – staying at Quest on Eden is only 2 blocks away from Albert’s office (only a 5 minute walk)…! Occam’s Razor, indeed. The simplest solution is the one right infront of you, in our case – the closest to his office! LOL.

After settling in, we blew 1.5 wks of rent on shopping for groceries and other necessities to set up the apartment – yup, despite it being a fully-furnished apartment. It’s amazing how much the little things add up, and this is where the savings come in handy (from not having to pay the ~$2000+ worth of bond/rent advance/letting fee). I can’t imagine how much other families have to pay when they’re moving from one place to another, esp if it’s unfurnished. Relocating is really expensive, it has cost us around $3K (flight tickets, moving costs – sending 4 boxes of stuff, yes you do accumulate stuff after being in NZ for more than 3 years, set up costs – power, Internet accounts, groceries, necessities, etc.). Crazy expensive.

Aerial view of Dunedin

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Anyway, I’m back in Dunedin now, as we still have lots of things to settle (remaining flat stuff) and also, the PhD. Because I don’t have a computer right now (can’t use Albertus’s one, as he’s currently using it for his work), I have no choice but to fully depend on the office computer and Internet access at the moment to finish up my work. Sigh…how miserable! But tak pa…sabar, sabar…maybe can get a Mac notebook later, have to recoup our losses and ‘kumpul duit’ first.

Soon, soon, my love...

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Hopefully, once I’m more satisfied with the PhD progress, I might finally move up to Auckland end of September *crosses fingers*. So Albertus is going to be a bachelor for the next 2 months…LOL…good la, don’t have to listen to me nag nag nag. LOL

Plus, at least it’ll give us some time to ‘save’ on future car park costs in Auckland (yup, it costs between $50-70 per week just to store your car….macam renting another room, kan?). Tu laa….city living.

Here are some pics of our new wee apartment...

Alas...I have a dresser!

The bedroom - really pleased that it gets lots of sun!

The Kitchenette

The living room with the balcony outside

Small TV, I know, but tak pa...at least it's bigger than our old one in Sidey St :)

Shower

Bathroom/Toilet

This is Albertus, getting ready for work

His first day of work! Be proud of him! :)

He's worked so hard and waited so long to get here...