Archive for February, 2007
February 19th, 2007 -- Posted in festive |
... and gone is the year of the DAWG~ 
Nothing beats the ties with sibblings…
This year’s gathering isn’t that much different from the past, but I do notice the growing size of the family (just like a corporation, as one cousin jokingly commented).
... and the growing size of the family members.
Many young members…
... and new members.
Who’s your Daddy?
... practicing body language of a BOSS.
”... it was THIS long…”
”... pappi… I’m not a piggy… help~”
... and a HAPPY NEW YEAR to all!
February 16th, 2007 -- Posted in travel |
Second day of the trip.
First stop was… of course… TimSum Breakfast. How can we go on a long day without enough food?
Gone are small dirty eateries. These are huge timsum restaurants of greater China.
... and off we went on our roadtrip to Zhuhai, gate to the west (or east).
One of the many bridges for the highways through China…
More bridges…
Toll station… looks so chinese, doesn’t it?
Finally here at Zhuhai…
Zhuhai, or “Pearl Sea” when literally translated from mandarin, is a prefecture-level city on the southern coast of Guangdong province in the People’s Republic of China. Located in the Pearl River Delta, Zhuhai borders Jiangmen to the northwest, Zhongshan to the north, and Macau to the south.
Before heading for the immigration checkpoint to Macau, we checked in Catic Hotel, a spacious new modern hotel with a minimalist’s touch.
Lots of glass and lighted space… I like.
Dad at the check-in counter… or desk.
Just like how most uber modern lobby look… stiff and neat.
View from the inner corridor… Lots of mirror (a lil bit too much)
Now this is what I call lounge couches…
Nice bedsheet that reminds me of home.
Nice tones of yellow and grey.
Separating the bathroom and bed is just a pane of glass.
Nice clean shower and toilet… without the sewage pipe backdraft like the GZ apartment.
Now it’s time for our excursion of the day to Macau. For those who do not know, Macau is just a tip corner of the larger Zhuhai. To get to Macau from Zhuhai is just a short walk away through the immigration center.
Large square outside the immigration center.
Before…
... and After.
Macau, or also commonly known Macao (Traditional Chinese: 澳門, or informally known as 馬交 maa-gau) is a small territory on the southern coast of China. Administered by Portugal until 1999, it was the oldest European colony in China, dating back to the 16th century. The administrative power over Macau was transferred to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1999, and it is now one of two special administrative regions of the PRC, together with Hong Kong.
Fact about Casino industry in Macau: With the opening of the Sands Macau, the largest casino in the world as measured by total number of table games in 2004 and Wynn Macau in 2006, gambling revenues from Macau’s casinos were for the first time greater than those of Las Vegas (each about $6 billion),making Macau the highest-volume gambling centre in the world.
The name “Macau” is thought to be derived from the Templo de A-Má (Temple of A-Ma or Ma Kok Temple (媽閣廟), a still-existing landmark built in 1448 dedicated to the goddess Matsu.
Next stop, the Macau Tower. It’s not the first time I’ve been here, but it’s definitely one of the best view to catch of Macau.
Nice view of one of the many bridges of Macau.
... a view of the world through our feet.
After the Macau Tower, we were starting to get hungry again, so we headed towards the Fisherman’s Wharf.
Sunsun spotted this nice flower along the way to the wharf…
Recreated Portuguese styled buildings.
... and building of various other eras and parts of Europe (?) I’ve never been to Europe, so I can’t be too sure.
The BIG GOLDEN glass building of Sand’s Casino.
... and next to it is just this Tang City.
Sitting in the middle is a replica a volcano.
A floating restaurant… these things just never go away after all this while.
Colorful lightings on the casino buildings… can never beat Las Vegas.
Right after the WOO~ and the WAH~ at the musical fountain in front of one of the casinos (I can’t remember which), we went in for some tries at the slot machines, playing at HK$20-50 each round. After several rounds of wins and losses, we decided to call it a day and headed back to the immigration center back to Zhuhai for dinner.
Initially Dad wanted to bring us to a nice restaurant at the hotel, but by the time we got there at 10pm, it was already closed. At 10 pm? Strange. Think it might be closed even for the day.
So we just headed to a nearby restaurant joints and found this interesting place serving chilli-oil boiled fish…
This is how the sliced fish get cooked… in a bowl of boiling chilli oil.
This is when the oil cools down and the fish slices are cooked.
To this point, I wasn’t yet aware it was oil. I was about to taste a spoonful when the waitress stopped me… “It’s OIL. Don’t drink it!”
Well… that’s it for the second part of the trip. Next will be the Hong Kong part. Been there countless of times, but never tired of the city…
February 12th, 2007 -- Posted in travel |
Here are some of the pics we took during our trip to Guangzhou/Macau/Hong Kong last December. I know it’s been 2 months since the trip and I haven’t shared any of these… I apologize, but there’s just too many photos taken and I’m still not sure how to share them.
With the city population of 6 million and a metropolitan population of 12.6 million, it is third most populous metro area in China. Being the capital of the Guangdong province and frequently referred as 廣東省城 (“the Canton Province Capital City”) or simply 省城 (“the Province City”) by Cantonese people, it is the very birthplace of the romanized name of the dialect Cantonese.
Now before the food, let’s take a look at some pics of the city…
We stayed at 天河区 (“Tianhe District”), which is about half and hour drive from the inner city area. We were heading to 中山四路 (“Zhongshan Rd No. 4“) for lunch. The sign shows the entry into the series of Zhongshan roads.
This was the scene of China I remember from my childhood trip to Beijing and Shanghai when I was 12.
Lots of historical buildings and monuments.
... and this is the modern side of the city, which is today MOST parts of the city.
An interesting old movie billboard featuring the first ghost movie made in China. I’m not sure if it’s the billboard content or the age of the billboard that scares me…
Reminiscence of the past along the modern street.
And now, on the FOOD.
FOOD STOP #1: The famous 陶陶居 （pronounced “Taotao Ju”)
When we first stepped into the restaurant, we got the options of “restaurant” or “timsum”. I didn’t understand at first but Dad explained they meant to ask if we wanted the ‘restaurant’ table, where we can have the full menu other than just timsum, while ‘timsum’ table only served… well… timsum.
The restaurant is 4 or 5 story high and on the floor we were brought to, we had a nice open top small garden just outside there room where our table was.
The door way to the room was simply… WOW! So cultural and well maintained (I heard the restaurant itself was a few hundreds years old).
Mind you… the place is popular amongst locals as well as tourists. It takes a while before the food comes.
“Let’s take some pics while waiting for the food~”
A semi-traditional dad savoring the traditional tea
Then came the food… FINALLY!
First, the herbal soup (Sorry for the small pic… I haven’t resized this one)
Then the rest… just look. I will not try to name them 
When I can’t describe how good the food is, I can at least mention how CHEAP the meal was. Just about S$10 per person. I almost cried…
DINNER : Village of the Fish Porridge
Not the usual fish porridge we commonly know in most chinese cuisine. This restaurant does not serve congee with sliced fish or fish head. Rather, the main idea of the restaurant is on hotpots, with porridge soup instead of the regular bean stock.
Fresh sliced fish… Better than sushi around here
They don’t waste the fish! The rest are nicely fried for side dish
Impaled prawns… They’re still moving!!!
Oysters… someone gonna be working tonite
So that’s that for a day’s meal. More will come in the next post… Zuhai: Gate to Macau
February 11th, 2007 -- Posted in rants |
Yes, next week will be Chinese New Year! Gong Xi Fa Cai!
... but this rant isn’t about CNY.
It’s about how we tend to do the “next week” thing when we decide when to do certain thing… or at least I tend to do so. I know it’s just spelling out LAZINESS from this, but I really can’t say how else I can response to it.
Try imagine this… I spend 14 hours a day at work from Monday to Friday, and all I’ve only 2 days to do the ‘other things’. So what can I do in 2 days in a week? Not much, really.
First and foremost, I can’t do things where offices are also closed during weekends. That takes down half of the lot of ‘to-do’ list.
So for the remaining, I tend to prioritize half my time for errands and half for leisure. While my errands list tend to get longer than leisure plans, most of which I end up doing involves things around the house and which takes up MOST of the time.
And then comes the leisure… when I’m just at the YAY! I’m finally enjoying myself mood, it’s also time for the ‘I’m tired, let’s go home’... WHAT A BUMMER!
But there is not violent resistence. I try to be understanding. But sometimes I just have to rant about this non-issue… I guess I just need to let it all out in a rant sometimes.
I miss the times when I was inspired by boredom to paint and write. These days, I’ve hardly any chance or time to find a muse. I miss painting, but I figured nobody will ever expect me to paint for a living. I’ve just so much obligation to people I love.
When I imagine myself ending up as a parent like some of my uncles and aunts, I shiver. What BORING LIFE! But no disrespect… I believe they do enjoy their lifestyle.
But perhaps, who knows, I might take up painting again when I retire…
(Btw, I’ve always wondered why CNY primary greeting 恭喜发财 is always associated with monetary fortune. If chinese culture associates money as the key measure to success, then I’m a lil disappointed. I would have expected ‘wisdom’ to come first… I’d very much prefer secondary line 万事如意... Success for what you do.)
February 10th, 2007 -- Posted in rants |
Went to see an accupuncturist today… Not a pretty sight (pardon me on my hairy belly) but thought it’s interesting to see so many needles sticking out of my skin…
... and this is what they connect to the ends of each needle for some electric pulse into me…
February 7th, 2007 -- Posted in birthdays |
I turned 33 yesterday!
Thanks for all the wishes and reminders… I’m already starting to feel the age when some people say I’m old and some thinks I’m still young. Strange age for a working family man who still lusts for life.
Anyway, the day started with a surprise birthday song by my small team of colleagues. We were all huddled in a huddle room working on some forecast reconciliations, when our boss came in asking some business related question to one of the girls… and the answer turned into “Happy Birthday to you… ” song. Totally unexpected!
Then the day went on as per normal. Work+Work+Work+... etc.
Until evening came. Plan for the evening was dinner with family.
Sunsun came to pick me up after I asked for early ‘release’ at 7:30pm. We proceeded to meet my sisters Becks and Annie at dad’s house before heading to the venue.
It was a small cozy Italian restaurant tucked in a residential area at Rifle Range Road called Valentino. Becky made reservation for 8:30pm and though we were late for 20 mins, the table was still saved for us. And instead of getting the ‘why-are-you-so-late’ looks, we were still welcomed with such warmth I almost felt I was welcomed home.
Food! The choice on the menu was not extensive but not boring. There’s all sorts of pasta and pizza, some of which I can picture while there are those I’m curious to try.
For appetizers, we had a salad (I can’t remember the name) and a dish of raw beef sauteed with olive oil and vinegar. Very nice…. very appetizing.
While the appetizers are being served, I get to open my gifts from my sisters. Becks got me a really nice baby blue Raoul shirt for work. I think she thinks the shirts I wear for work everyday are boring (Is that true?) Lil Annie got me a cute lil fat RUSS cat… I think we called it Meow (was it supposed to remind me of someone?) LOL
Then came the main courses. We had for each of us a variety of lambs, pasta and Italian rice. Don’t ask me the name of the dishes or what they are. I just don’t remember… All I know is they’re all YUMMY.
If you noticed, the serving are not excessive. It’s supposed to be served in a portion just nice for desert space. So without much ado, came the birthday cake with the waiters singing aloud another round of “HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU…” for the day. Nice cake (but sorry no pic of it. Forgot to take). Just nice for four. But I think the attention was turned to deserts. I couldn’t wait.
Lil Annie on her lemon sherbet…
By the time we had the desert and finished the wine, I realized how late it was and we were the last table around. Time passed so quickly when you had fun. Another round of warm goodbyes by the owner and waiters/waitresses, we left just before they closed.
I must say I’ve always enjoyed birthday celebrations in the family. Though my dad and other sis Jerri are usually missed, we’ve always had our fun and great food. Only regret I have is that with all the tight schedule with work and family, I always have to delay/forfeit my celebrations with friends. I hope I’m not making anyone feel left out… coz you’re NOT.
February 4th, 2007 -- Posted in people |
Call me cynical, but I’m sometimes disgusted by the behavior of the filthy rich…
While shopping for new clothes for CNY today, I browsed into Sincere (a high-end watch retailer) to check out on the latest designs in the market. It was meant to be just a minute browse when I overheard a family of father and 2 sons looking at some IWC watches.
“Is this the latest range?” asked the father.
“Yes. It’s the new XXX range, a popular model…”
“Then this is not what I’m interested in. What I want is the latest limited edition… you know? The rare ones?”
“Ah, I get what you mean… We have one in stock, but it is not the latest. They’re 2005 LE model…”
“Yes, that’s just the one I want… How many piece of this have you got in Singapore since it was launched?”
“Just this one…”
“GOOD!”
“Do you want to see it… It’s not here, but I can bring it in tomor…”
“No need. Just charge it now and I’d come to collect tomorrow.”
HUH? I’ve thought watch appreciation is about the design and the architecture of the movement. This guy just want to get the LE watch just because it’s limited and (most importantly) EXPENSIVE.
WTF???
I don’t argue that Darwin’s theory of Evolution has itself evolved into a modern version, ‘only the rich will survive (comfortably)’... aka the idea of meritocracy… whoever works smarter deserve to be richer. In English… you work hard and smart, you live more comfortably.
So issue is not being rich, but rather how one can get so compelled to show it. Nothing wrong to want to do better than others. But if one has achieved that level, is it really necessary to broadcast it?
“Of course… if not, why work so hard?”
Yeah right. Having the ability to show of doesn’t mean having the right to overdo it.
I pity the two sons. Rich Daddy-O is simply exposing the perception of an illusion that THIS IS HOW YOU SHOW THE WORLD THAT MONEY IS EVERYTHING AND NOTHING. Richie Rich in the real life…
February 4th, 2007 -- Posted in rants |
Global warming… bad news for most parts of the world. Bad flooding in Indo. Crazy storm in US. Bangkok now has winter…
I hate to admit but temperature here in Singapore is just comfy. It’s 10am and it feels 26”.
(... and the pic of Cobie has nothing to do with global warming. Don’t blame the innocent. He’s just enjoying the cool morning air with some sunshine.)
