Hong Kong - 4th Day

Today we went on the 1/2 day city tour. Again, we went to McDonalds to have our breakfast. At 9am, we boarded the bus, but it was not as comfortable as the shuttle we took from the airport to the hotel. The bus also picked up tourists from other hotels. In total there were about 30 of us.

As the bus drove through the city, we saw the "pigeon holes", flats and apartments that Hong Kong people stay in. The tour guide told us each unit is only about 350-400 sqft ! I think my house kitchen is bigger than their house !

Our 1st stop was a "sampan" ride. Their so-called "sampan" is actually a motor boat. Each of us paid HKD50 for the ride. It took us past the big huge floating Jumbo restaurant which is owned by Stanley Ho, and at the end of the ride, we also saw Li Ka Shing's boat.

After the ride, the tour guide took us to Repulse Bay and showed us Jackie Chan's house, Stanley Ho's 1st wife and 4th wife's house, Karina Lau's apartment, etc etc. We stopped at the Tin Hau Temple. There is now a man-made beach, and a shopping mall that is almost nearing completion.

Near the man-made beach, there is a "horse" which reminds me of the cows surrounding Starhill. We took the opportunity to take photos with it, pretending that we are leading the winner of a derby. Hahaha...

Our next stop was a jewellery factory where they introduced their special pendants, etc. Then we were led to the showroom where they had gold, jade and pearls on sale. We didn't buy anything as they only use 20K gold (known here as 835 gold) whereas we in Malaysia prefer to buy 22K gold (916 gold).

Not many of us bought anything. Our last stop of the 1/2 day tour was at The Peak. Unfortunately, because of the weather, the view from the Peak was so blurr. We decided not to follow the bus back to the city because we wanted to visit Madam Tussauds Wax Museum. However, we asked the tour guide for a nice restaurant to have dim sum.

Once inside, we went crazy taking pictures with so many "stars" !

Poor Angelina Jolie had to loan me her Brad Pitt

Sis "molesting" Cecilia Chung

Ade "molesting" Utada Hikaru

You ! I think your country's currency is too high !

.... And you know, I think some of your foreign policies need changing....

Hello, hello (wah, we so popular)

I think your tie's crooked

"Yat ahhhh yip, hing zhaooooo hui ahhh"

Take me around Shanghai

Evelyn blissfully happy in Bae Yong-Jun's embrace

Wah... SOOOOO tall !

C'mon ! Let's see who's stronger !

La la la la la la

I look slimmer like this

The Peak's tram station

From the Peak, we took a cab down to Kowloon's Sportful Garden Restaurant. Yeah, very weird name, but the food is good ! The captain advised us to order this set (HKD238) as it gives value for money.

The first thing that came was the soup. It had chicken, some herbs, snow fungus and coconut bits. A whiff of the soup tells us that it will be delicious, and the first spoonful did not disappoint. It was really tasty, and don't think we can get it in KL.

Then came the char siew. It was also delicious, almost comparable to the char siew from Salak South.
The "Ham Sui Kok" (at least we think it is lar..) was not that great, but since it came with the set.....

The crystal skin dimsum was wonderful ! We really "tabik" the chef for being able to make the skin so translucent and full of fillings, yet doesn't break when we pick it up with our chopsticks. Talk about skills !

A dish of veges came next, and it was fried together with some sort of shellfish which we had never tasted before. Quite delicious.

We ordered their "chee cheong fun" but it was so-so lar..

This vege dish is also very delicious. Quite different from what we have back in KL.

Being gluttons, we ordered additional "Lotus Leaf Rice" (hor yip fan), thinking that the set would not be enough. It was quite nice, and filled us up so much we could hardly walk.

The egg tart was also ordered separately. It's very dainty and delicious, and not too sweet. Very nice indeed.

After the meal, as we walked towards the exit, we saw this HUUUUGGGEEE fish in the tank, and couldn't resist taking pictures of it. See ? Here's proof that it was a very very huge fish.

From the restaurant, we decided to go visit the Golden Bauhinia Square, near Wan Chai. We followed the instructions given by sis' friends, and it took us through a few complexes, one of which had these cute little miniatures on display. They are really small, yet the details are so fine. A little boy was crying his heart out because he wanted to buy them, but they were only for display.

As we pass through the Hong Kong Convention Centre, we saw this sight. Just look at those escalators, and it will give you a guide on how big the centre is.

Blurr view from the Square

The Golden Bauhinia

From there we went to Soho and Lan Kwai Fong by cab, since Ade and Eve have never been there before. We had to take the cab because our legs (well, at least mine and sis) are almost detached from our bodies !

View of Soho from one of its elevators

In Soho, we stopped by a Krispy Kreme donut shop and ordered some "refreshments". Hehehe

After the refreshments, we then continued our journey towards Lan Kwai Fong street. We passed by a stall selling lots and lots of beautiful tanglungs. Then we also saw this shop, which looked so yummy ! Slurrrrpppp ! Just look at the rows and rows and rows of char siew, roast duck and roast goose. And below them, alternating dishes of roast chicken and steam chicken.

We decided not to have dinner here, so we continued on to Lan Kwai Fong. Finally we reach the street and took a photo as remembrance.
From Lan Kwai Fong, we decided to take the MTR back to Tsim Sha Tsui as we wanted to walk around in Harbour City. On our way to the Central MTR station, we passed by this Hong Kong Jockey Club station, but didn't buy any tickets.

In Harbour City, we chose Crystal Jade La Mien Xiao Long Bau Restaurant that had a lot of people waiting for their queue, since people normally queue only for good food. Again, we were not disappointed as their food are delicious.

First off, we ordered this 5 grains fried rice. Very delicious and unusual.

Then we ordered this dish where very thinly sliced pork meat wraps around some veges and are topped with spicy sauce. Nice, and it's a cold dish. Then of course we had to have the xiao long bau. Delicious....

Since Hong Kong people always order roast pigeon, we ordered one as well. Taste like... duck, but very much smaller. Not really that great, if you ask me.After our dinner, we just had to go to Sweet Dynasty one last time for our desserts. Hehehe.. Couldn't resist ma.... We ordered Mango Pudding this time and of course the Walnut Soup. After the desserts, we decided to call it the day and started on our journey back to the hotel. However, barely 10 minutes into the journey, sis needed to visit the ladies, so we went into one of the malls nearby. It was already 11pm at that time. While waiting for her, we saw 2 Japanese restaurants still opened for business.

The ladies were just nearby the entrance of one of the Japanese restaurants, and as sis passed by, she happened to glance at the menu. Then she came towards us and said that we should have eaten here, as the prices were cheap and reasonable, and some of the items looked really delicious.

Ade and I looked at each other, then told her, why not we go and have our supper there ! So, all of us trooped into Watami Restaurant for our supper. We ordered a green tea and black sesame ice cream (HKD16), a dish of salmon sashimi (HKD39) and their "Anago Cooked In Sweet Soy Sauce And Shrimp Sushi" (HKD44). Everything were delicious. The salmon sashimi was so fresh and delicious, but we were already so full, we couldn't order another plate. What a waste.

The ice cream was so delicious that we were already half way through before we remembered to take a picture !

The salmon sashimi, altogether 7 pieces. They were really fresh.

The Anago Cooked In Sweet Soy Sauce And Shrimp Sushi

Hong Kong - Last Day

Our last day in Hong Kong, we used the time to the max . We woke up early and took the MRT to Wong Tai Sin Temple. We actually found out the night before that using the Octopus card is cheaper than the published rates so we had enough for the fare there and back. We decided to go there first, then only look around to see if there are any good places for our breakfast.

The temple had quite a number of people although it was still quite early. Apparently it being a Saturday and coupled with being the 15th of the lunar month, a lot of people went there to pray to the Gods.

Aside from a lot of aunties selling joss sticks and etc at the MRT entrances and exits, there were also stalls like this in the temple's vacinity.

After a visit to the temple, we walked towards the nearby mall. One thing about Hong Kong, almost every MRT exit we went to had a mall or shopping street nearby. And although it was only 9am in the morning, the mall was already opened.

On our way there, again we saw another horse that seems to be a pair with the one near the Repulse Bay Temple, so of course we had to take another picture.

We found an eatery already opened in the mall and we ordered something which we always hear when watching Hong Kong serials.... Polo Bun. Basically it's a normal bun but the top has crusts made with pineapple juice. Emmmm.... it was Yummy ! We also ordered an egg tart, and it too was delicious. Smooth and the sweetness was just right. Surprisingly, we actually find Malaysian egg tarts sweeter !

I ordered pork chop with macaroni. Nice, but I find the pork chop a tad too "porky". Hehe. We also "tapau" some polo bun in case we got hungry before our flight.

After the breakfast, we went walking around the mall. My niece saw a G2000 shop, finally after so many days, and it was on SALE ! Did you know what we did ? We actually knocked on the door and asked the sales girl (who was having her breakfast) whether we can go in and buy something, because we have a flight to catch in the afternoon. She was so nice that she actually let us into the shop.

After trying on a few garments, Ade decided to buy 3 pieces of garment. As we were exiting the shop, another lady also enquired whether the shop is opened and whether she could come in to shop, but the sales girl told her no, they only open at 11am. We were really so lucky !

We went back to the hotel as the shuttle bus was coming at 12pm to fetch us. Before we exit the MRT station, we returned the Octopus card, and got back HKD40+ per card. It was really so convenient to use, whether on the MRT, bus, ferry, anywhere !

We really shopped until the last moment, because sis bought a watch for herself in the Seibu departmental store adjoined to our hotel. Although it's so near, we had never actually shopped there because each time we reach the hotel, it was already closed !

At 12pm, we took down our luggages, checked out and finally boarded the shuttle to the airport. It was sad leaving Hong Kong as we still had a few places we haven't gone yet, like Ocean Park, Stanley Market, etc. But we were glad to be going back to KL because our legs were really too tired and won't be able to stand much more walking ! Hehehe..

At the airport, just before we boarded the plane, I was walking past a shop and suddenly saw that it was selling ODM watches. I just had to go in and have a look. Guess what ? I saw, decided and paid for a watch all within 10 minutes ! Hehehe... no regrets though.

The watch has a scrolling text and it says "Never too late to action". Yeah, must be written by a Chinese. I just changed it recently (had to do it in a shop in KL selling ODM). Now every morning when I wear the watch, it greets me "Hi Gorgeous". Hahahaha.

One Year Older

Just celebrated my birthday recently, with sis taking me out to have a nice nice dinner with the family. Of course I can't have any cakes (sugar mar...) but I did receive a lot of SMS, calls, emails and MSN messages to wish me Happy Birthday. Thank you everyone for your wishes.

Well, again I am 1 year older. Hopefully 2008 will be a good year for me. 2007 is not that great, with my health problems and also the company MSS. But everything is now is the past, and I look forward to a good year.

I have delayed my operation to 21st April 2008. Just too much work that I have to complete, and I'm afraid that if I go ahead with the operation, I won't be able to have a peaceful recovery. There are also other reasons, but regardless, at least I have some breathing space. And since the operation will be after all the moving, etc, I should be able to have a nice quiet peaceful recovery period.

I think my Chinese New Year should be quite enjoyable, except for the fact that I can't take anything sweet. Sigh.......

The Day Is Drawing Near

4th January 2008 is the day that I will be admitted to Universiti Hospital for the final checkup before my operation. If everything goes well, my operation will proceed as planned on 7th January 2008.

It's sort of like a blessing in disguise that the original date of 20th December 2007 was postponed, as it allowed me to celebrate my Tong Festival, Christmas, New Year and birthday. Unfortunately, I won't be able to enjoy a cake during my birthday as I need to watch my glucose level..... sigh.....

I am quite surprised at myself, as I still am quite calm about the whole operation thingy. Perhaps I will start feeling anxious the night before my admission to the hospital. Also, with so much work to do in the office, it's keeping me very well occupied from morning till night, weekdays and even weekends !

At times, it's a wonder that I can actually complete certain tasks, since I am multi-tasking so much most of the time. I even find myself starting something, then when other things crop up, I actually forget all about it until the end of the day, or even the next day ! Getting old and stressed out !

With so little time for myself, I don't actually have time to dwell on my issues at all. I do hope that my operation will go well, so that I can actually recover fast. I am also worried as during the time of recuperation, my office is supposed to move down from the 18th Floor to the 14th Floor, followed by the holidays for the Chinese New Year.

There are tons of things which I have yet to pack or to transfer from the 18th Floor server room to the 14th Floor server room. Also, there are so many files that I should transfer and pack into boxes for easier transfer. I feel like going nuts just thinking about all these ! Having to handle all these alone is not an easy task, I tell you.

But, be rest assured that after my operation and during my recuperation, I will not trouble myself with office work, lest it interferes with my recovery ! I shall just be laid back and relax, and let other people suffer the work until I come back ! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Well, so much for now. Cheerio everyone and have a Happy New 2008 !

Stampede !

On Christmas day, I went to Starhill's Jogoya for lunch with a friend and after the meal, we went to the Pavilion. As we exit from Starhill, we saw a WHOLLLLEEEEE bunch of cute cows lining up, ready for their photos to be taken !

Each and every cow had a different design, and looked cute. Some even had "owners" such as TNT, DHL, Maxis, etc. I even saw one that was quite similar to my Chinese zodiac. I was born an Ox in the Year of the Tiger, and this "cow" had tiger stripes. Hahahahaha.

How am I, you asked ?

I am at this very moment tired and my back is aching from moving FOUR servers ALONE from the 20th floor to the 18th floor. I will have to move them again next week from the 18th down to its new server room on the 14th floor. Why am I doing this alone ? Well, because there is no one else here to help me !

Currently my health is not that good. Just found out last week that even when I fast, my blood glucose reading is high, and now I need to take pills to lower the reading. Luckily the pills seem to be working fine, since my reading is back to normal.

As for my operation on the 21st, well, it has been postponed by the Professor, since he had to take leave. Now I'd be admitted on the 4th of January 2008, and if everything checks out ok (i.e. BP is good, glucose is good) then I'd be allow to leave and check in again on the afternoon of 6th. My actual operation is scheduled for 7th January 2008.

With this delay, it actually gives me a bit of breathing room since I was rushing to complete a whole slew of tasks due to the Corporate people moving to a new location. What with having to arrange for network cabling works, moving airconds, shifting servers, managing a faulty SDSL internet line, reconfiguring email accounts, and in between solving users' problems and helping them to source for items, I have virtually no time to rest ! Nowadays, it's lucky if I can leave the office by 7:30pm.

Also, the postponement allows me to celebrate the Winter Solstice (oklar... will eat less "tong yuen"), my favourite time of the year which is Christmas, and also my birthday (hint hint... presents/angpows will be happily received ! Hahaha)

So, this is how I am now. Hopefully after my operation I will have a very good rest, which I think I have earned !

Toyota Classics 18/11/2007

Last Sunday my niece Ade treated me to Toyota Classics. Both she and her sisters were all dressed to the nines, all dolled up and looking really pretty. Me ? Usual lar... hehe....

The orchestra group were from Spain, and they also had a tenor with them. All in all, it was quite enjoyable. Initially I was rather reserved, since I was afraid they'd be playing from stuff like Hadyn, Handel or Mozart. I'd probably fall asleep !

Luckily they didn't, and it was really quite enjoyable. The only drawback was that the venue is rather hot, as the conductor requested for some of the air vents to be turned off, due to noise. Talk about perfectionist....



Two of the orchestra members are also quite handsome, so it was not only pleasant to the ears, but also to the eyes. Hehehehe.... hopefully can go again next year :-)