land of the -est!

why do i say the land of the "-est"... well, Dubai is a place where they like to compete for the bigg-est, tall-est, long-est, high-est....etc and because i've been there twice, it's a wonderful place and it is safe i kid you not! you can leave your grocery trolly filled with groceries, leave it outside a shop and you can go in, without worrying bout ppl stealing your trolly! yeah!! i promise!!

this place can be very hot, yet there's cool breeze once in a while AND it's dry, so you don't have to worry bout sweat, oily face (noticed i had clearer complexion? now i'm back, my face is filled with bumps, like as it is on a revenge), perspiration and etc.. love it there but try not to go during summer time, that's when you actually BURN!! lol

so here's my short summary of my trip, thanks couz again!!

surprise #1 was a sand dune ride!! it's from Arabian Adventures by Emirates Airlines. rollercoaster type of ride on a 4x4! if you get travel sickness, better take your pills! or use travel bands like what we used! checkout my 2 short clips of the ride, here and here.

at the end of the ride, there were camel riding, the kids went on that, then there was dinner waiting for us with belly dancing and henna! i did my henna on my hand and ankle but it came off after 2 days.. :( but it was ok, loved the design!

camel ride just before dinner!

local dinner! i LOVED it!!

the next day (yea, everyday also got something planned! hehe) it was the day out in the sun and water, no beach this time, its ok, i've experienced the beach the first time i was there :) this is Wild Wadi, water theme park just NEXT to the Burj Al Arab! yea man, THE BURJ!!! hehehe i know i already took pics with it few years back, but one cannot ignore and NOT take pics with it again!!! and so there were a few pics taken, thanks to Max help! :)

as you can see the other famous hotel is next to Wild Wadi, another icon in Dubai!

it's the Jumeirah Beach Hotel

so next to the Burj and Wild Wadi, 5 min drive, we reached to Madinat Jumeirah, it's like a shopping mall, but it's not really a mall, it's like small shops, stalls under one roof, air-con, lots of souveniers, funky stuff, lots of cafe, clubs, restaurants, the view outside is wonderful as you can see what's at the background, yea! the Burj again! hahah shopping here, well, can be abit $$ but that's how it is in Dubai.

then we went driving around, taking in the sites and buildings and also for me to get some pics...

the worlds TALLEST (see what i mean) building at this moment - The Burj Dubai

someone told me that this is Donald Trump towers...

or maybe not.. but i do believe Mr Trump has some BIG ideas and plans for Dubai himself!

latest attraction - The Atlantis

they have another water themed park, huge aquariums in the rooms!!

we didn't go in, maybe that could be my next stop the next time i go there! LOL

this is their Independance flag, i believe its in somewhat the heart of town...

ooohhh and i love these cupcakes!! they're called Sugar Daddy's!!! about RM12 each though!

locals chilling under the trees in a public park

sitting in a RM1 million (it seems) BMW 6 series 630i

then i met up with a fello ex-dlinker!! Lawrence!! in The Mall of the Emirates! that's where i got the dates for ppl at home! so eventhough it was a quick hour, it was good to have met up with him, catching up on updates on each other and the team! hope to see you again in KL!!

then came surprise NUMBER 2!!! the biggest surprise ever! i never would have guessed!!! an hours ride in a stretched LIMO yo!!! it was parked outside the house!! i was told to get ready with nice nice clothes, and this was the reason!! of course the destination also!!

this was a Chrysler and it was customized stretched for the limo company!! wow! i'm still amazed!! check out the inside!!

the inside yo!! blinking star like lights on the roof! drinks! with fancy glasses! tv! music!! my oh my!! wonder if there's such things in msia!! this would be soo cool!!!

as i said the ride was about an hour, and the driver drove around Dubai, he also passed The Atlantis. we could see the outside but ppl outside couldn't see the inside! how cool was that! we could see the look on ppls face in the cars outside, all trying to look in, wondering which big shot is sitting in this limo!!! ahaks ahaks!!!

and... the destination was at Zheng He's at Jumeirah! (check out reviews) yes! around the same place at Madinat Jumeirah, the shopping place. the food here is lovely, kinda slow though but then it's all worth the wait, cause service is good the background scenery (yup, it's the Burj .. again) was awesome! i had a lovely time!!

after dinner we walked to Madinat Jumeirah to see what's happening and i tell you, alot! we passed by a club and my oh my... all i can say, my eyes became tired (if you know what i mean) heheh... then i think there were more shops opened at night, as i don't remember some when we were there during the day! lovely lovely!

and of course there were so many other places that we went, too many pics to put up!! hahaha... - we had lovely Sri Lankan food at Coconut Grove in the Rydges Plaza Hotel located near the "flag"
- then of course paid a visit to the LARGEST mall - The Dubai Mall, where they had the BIGGEST aquarium IN IT! check out my YouTube here
- we had home-delivery and also homecooked food and breakfast! yum yum!
- saw a Proton Wira on the streets, it looked very sad cause all the cars in Dubai are HUGE ones, like 4x4, Ford Explorers, BMW, Audi...
- we had awesome home-cooked BBQ! with pizza hut! in the backyard...heheh
- oh!! and also lovely Thai food at Bai Tong :)

just an insight about Dubai (not thinking bout the price) the food is actually good!! calling myself a foodie, i can strongly say that food there (local or not) is kinda good! even the mall food court type of food is good! hahah i don't know if it's because i was on a holiday? or not... but yea, no complaints bout that!! will be blogging bout the food soon :)

going home was sad, not only the holiday ended, but the dread of flying about 8 hrs to reach penang.. but it's all good! i did some sort sleep on the way back but with a weird posture! lol..

overall it was a great holiday, short, funfilled 5 days or so! good to take mind off things. really appreciate and thanks to my cousin and her family for having me over! hope to see you all soon!! missing you lots!

hugs and kisses!

so for those who have a chance to go to dubai, GO! dun think too much, at least go once in your life time! i tell you it's worth it! do your homework on where to go and wat to do, be a smart budget-er, and i'm sure u'll be able to see as much as possible even in a few days! ENJOY!

CHOICE 54 - Penang

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord
"plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future"

Jeremiah 29:11

"Never will I leave you;
Never will I forsake you"

Hebrews 13:5

People always leave...

Is it me? Am I the reason people always leave? Am I the reason all these things keep happening to me? Maybe I'm just destined to be alone.

~ Peyton Sawyer ~

in the clouds!

i'll be hanging with the clouds for 8 hrs on monday night and another 8 hrs the next monday! gonna be a very tiring, yet exciting week!!

:D

Canton-i @ Queensbay Mall, Penang

Canton-i is situated in Queensbay Mall. i didn't know bout this until my cousin (as usual) introduced this place to me! hahaha well, she IS the food blogger! thanks cher! what i loved bout this place is the interior. it's quite similar to Delicious in KL (because of the ceiling-bird-cage lenterns) and it gives me the cosy feeling. food wise? quite good!

not too sure bout this, but i think it's black pepper beef


duck and char siew

the red bean one, don't order, the beans tasted like it was just out from the tin to the bowl, we got it exchanged for another type of dessert - the mango one was nice though!

more reviews here!!

Mom's Kitchen @ Tanjung Bungah, Penang

this is a review that was due long long time ago. what happened here was the first time eating the food here and first time meeting rosies beau! lovely food and lovely company!

Mom's Kitchen is actually owned by a friend and i believe "Mom" here refers to his mom! hahah. it's situated in Tanjung Bungah, near by TAR College (after the winding road from Pepper Estate). the concept of this place is very simple and they serve Thai food! recommended by my cousin and Rosie and the rest of the gang to come try the food here and give support to our friend. so finally, i tried it.

i believe this is Belacan Rice

Pad Thai (Thai Char Koay Teow)

Thai Buffalo Wings?

(gosh its been a while i forgot what we had! LOL)

fried Kang Kung

had to try their Tom Yam soup

pork knuckles!

Tom Yam fried rice - i think

nangka dessert! quite nice

prices here are alright, but i recommend at least a group of 4 to eat here so that everyone will be able to try out more from the menu. What i like about this place? its because of....

hehehe

if you want more reviews, get it from Cheryl ! :D

bits and pieces

here are some pics taken over these few months. enjoy!

(seems those photo albums look like blog posts!.. oh well.. like they say, a picture can say a thousand words...)

Chinese New Year
- before, during and after
- short KL trip
- MyviClub TT
- CBM 98 reunion
- dinner with parents

Healing journey
- dinner with the cousins
- KL-Urbanattic and Datacom peeps, and new FB poke-er friend
- arrival of Tom and the start of sun-tanning
- brief meet of friends from 8 years ago

my FAVOURITE place with Tom
- Longbeach @ Perhentian Kecil
- happy with the sun tan

more outings and makan with the English people!
- Tom's farewell lunch
- the Church's farewell dinner and "pudding"
- swim and tea @ Rasa Sayang

next up... i'll be on a jet plane soon!!! :D

ohh... and
Happy Birthday Pauline! Hope you had a great time! Really miss you loads!

quick updates

just a quick short updates on how i'm doing... not bad cause i've got some "distractions"... first up, over-the-sea cousin came for a short trip, it was good to have met the both of them (missing the kids though.. ) and having adults only around, lots of subjects were covered... hehehe...

first, i just had to make that trip to KL again, just to "refuel"... i did feel better after that trip as i've did some serious spilling to some victims... i really appreciate you guys for listening, that's what i needed...

as usual, i paid a visit to Albert for detailing, then some ol friends, then of course the Dlinkers (or what's left of it), then finally met up with a FB "poker" friend (regretted not meeting earlier when i was in KL)

of course, i had to visit Urbanattic, i think that's gonna be my hangout spot in KL! :) that night i went (with Monica) it was Fashion Flirt, first time attending a fashion show and sitting just AT the catwalk! how cool is that, but then.. i don't really fancy the clothes, it's abit TOO colourful for me and i bet they don't have my size, so i'm not bothered... company was great, managed to meet up with Monica for a while and of course Luna, Ramesh, Chocky and some from the gang.

with Monica

with Luna

then before i left KL to go back to Penang, i fetched my cousin Tom from England another over-the-sea cousin. so he, my godma and i all went back to "Middle Hill" together in my humble whitey :)

tbh, i was kinda nervous in meeting Tom, cause he's only 18+ and i have no idea what 18 year olds like to do and/or talk about... but because of our frequent FB messages and sms's i got comfortable with him and yea, he's such a fun guy to be with - he makes me feel young!! O_O hahahah...

and back in Penang, as USUAL when over-the-sea relatives come to visit us, we the Penang family, will ALWAYS bring them out to EAT!!!!! yea man!!! not one meal, two or three, but EVERY HOUR! hahaha (ok maybe i'm exaggerating.. a lil... hehehe). i think i'll let Cheryl to tell the makan story!

with Tom at Swatow Lane aka New World Park

at Gurney Drive hawker stalls

the 3 cousins!

because my working hrs/days are abit weird, i got some free time during the week, so Tom's been handed to me from Cheryl and family... hehehe... and since they were feeding him non-stop, i decided to starve him instead! hahaha nah... i meant, i'll let Anna wow him with her cooking this time. yea, eversince Tom reached penang, he never tasted Anna's cooking!!

and! since he has yet to visit Batu Ferringhi, i brought him there to soak up the Penang sun (and for myself too!! hahaha bad idea actually, cause i got burnt in 3 hrs or so!!)

Tom's having some sum boi

the cam whore at work! LOL

yup i made him do hand stands!

AND... it seems like it's starting to be a tradition, i took him to SS (Slippery Senoritas). tradition you asked? well.... few years before, his elder brother Terry paid us a visit, i brought him clubbing (the Cafe.. i think, i can't remember) then, later when his elder sister Talullah came too, i brought her to GLO (at The Garage) and now!! i HAD to bring Tom clubbing (cause if not, it'll be unfair to him) to SS!... i think he enjoyed himself, but i know the drinks are teeny weeny bit expensive...

at SS

it's been swell, meeting up with Lynn, with my KL friends, ol friends and new, AND Tom! they have been great, they've been supportive, layan-ed me and took my mind of things. i really appreaciate it, and i thank all of them for it. i do miss my current friends though, but then i guess the timing's not right as they have something on going for them.. but i guess i'll see them.. soon.. i think, i hope...

it's been a month, and i never went a day without missing you. yes it will take a very long while to move on and stop missing you but i'm still glad that we had our time and memories together and i'll always cherish that. it's gonna be hard for me at times but i know its something i need to go through. i will always love you and i pray that u're safe, well, and that good things will happen to you...

hoping that dose would last

my trip to kl was splendid, saw the team i adore, caught up with news, saw noreen and lil one in the tummy, saw an old friend, went to the spa, detailed my car - it's CLEAN again!, caught up with the gang from Urbanattic AND finally saw my english cousin after all those FB wall-to-wall messages!! LOL

it was very hectic, driving half the time, stuck in traffic but it was alright. familiar friendly faces, familiar places... but something was missing this trip - KL food! yeah, i didn't indulge in the food here, no bloody time!!! in fact, when i came home, i lost 1kg!! O_O

but having my cousin with me, the penang family will be feeding him like nobody's business and at the same time feed ourselves, so which means, i can say hello again to that missing 1kg! sigh... oh well..

how am i feeling? still like that la.. it will all come back when i'm alone, at this moment, i'm glad that my cousin's here, cause he takes my mind off stuff, he's been great... i'm just afraid of the day he leaves, who will then take my mind off stuff? just hope i won't be back to where i was about 1 month ago, i still can't do this alone...