The Travelling Teddies

Its Been A Year... A Full Year!

2011-06-16T17:46:00.005+08:00

Since i wrote anything on this blog!

And so much has changed in between. Yep, i changed my coat to a different shade, got a haircut, lost a job and failed to try out for Cirque Du Soleil (well someone told me they are in the circus business??? Surely they need bears!?....), grew a little fatter (just a little) and a year older, made new friends, lost a few and still getting wiser...

This blog is definitely not forgotten. I read it often, mostly as a visitor (to my own blog) - shuttling between airports and cities but Cubbies' been so wrapped up with school, work and travel (even on the personal front) that I just haven't had the opportunity or energy to pick up from where i left off. Apologies for that.

But second half of 2011 seemed to give me a better hope at completing this journey.

At the end of the day, the only thing i really enjoy doing (apart from travelling) is writing. So I am determined to continue.

Now... where do begin?

I Love Meat Pies, So I Have To Write About This One...

2010-04-16T14:21:00.003+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

First of all, let me wish everyone a Happy Happy Friday!

Well.. I started out my Friday just like everyone else say we should - sleepy, groggy but happy its the end of the week Got myself a cup of hot roasted black coffee and bounced all my way off to work (like a little happy cubby). I sent out a twitter via my uber-sexy bold and sat at my desk, turn on the computer, open my favourite news page online and wind down, slowly sipping my cup of coffee...

I was so ecstatic that Meebops and I bought a couple of pies each last night from this outlet called PIE KIA (in hokkien, loosely translated as "Gangster"). Name is cute and fits the purpose eh. They have a long story behind how the name was carved and how the pies came to be... Cute cute... All very cute.

Except the pies themselves lah! First, they're tiny and they cost S$1 each, cheaper by S$0.50 of the rates they published online. Second is quality of the flakes; the pastry top is the only part that's probably made of a little small sheet of cheap filo pastry while the bottom is those prebaked cup you can purchase off the shelves at Cold Storage.

What the... Where can like this Mr. Kia!!? You cheating lar!

This is the Mexican Pie Kia (not gangster hailed from Mexico ok... Heh). Tomato based gravy with bits and pieces of mixed veggie and chicken meat (i think..).

Just like the above marked "M" on top, this one is marked "B" to symbolise Beef Pie Kia. Filling has bits and pieces of carrots, potatoes, meat cooked in beef stock.

How a pie kia really looks like inside (pun intended). Mush...

And this is him doing a topless pose.

As you can see, the innards are dry and bland cooked in a concoction that seemed to come from canned sauces - the Mexican pie kia (tomato based and chicken) tasted like those taken from Del Monte pasta sauce and the Beef pie, which has probably 2 strands of beef, some leftover potatoes were cooked in chicken stock until dry.

Oi Mr. Pie Kia!

Very disappointing lar!... And for a good reason too. Because i love pies and i was really craving for a good, wet pie innards that really oozes out goodness on the first bite. You know, those white creamy chickeny veggie sauce thing that you imagine all pies should have in them? Or meat pies that are full of bits and pieces of meat covered in a pool of rich dark brown gravy blessed with just a dash of black pepper..? Those kinds. Wet and scrumptious.

In Singapore, you don't have to worry about getting some really good hawker fare or malay nasi padang, we have those and is pretty good at it. But pies and savouries - FAIL! Big Time! Alas, i've succumb to the fact that Singapore food producers and retailers cannot make good oozy meat pies. All we get is day-old pastry with pathetic, bland, dry and meatless meat type. Sigh...

After that disappointing evening with the pie-kias, we wandered off the the bistro next door, called Qi Jii. I don't want to be rambling much about what i ate here, but i took a picture of what i think is the most, THE MOST, ridiculous signage EVER.

You want to separate gravy, PAY EXTRA dey!

And coming from a country of many extras, we have to put in all the extra effort in everything we do; wake up extra early in the morning to get to work, stay extra late, work extra hard so we can buy a new condo, or a new car, buy extra food, pay extra money because you don't want ice with with your sugarcane juice... and just like the above photo - where we were asked to pay extra because we want to separate the laksa gravy with the noodles. Errmm... I don't even know where to start.

I know 20 cents is not a lot but What The...! Don't want my noodles soggy by the time i go home also must pay extra hor aunty!

Bearlicious Breakfast Food...

2010-04-15T16:06:00.002+08:00

So i've got to say something about the stuff i ate for breakfast a couple of days back. So good... Its Uberlicious.

We first found it when we headed West to Causeway Point. It was Cubbies first time ever at the Mall and it was a pretty delicious one too. We were roaming around aimlessly that fateful evening, hungry, scanning and were fortunate to sample free aromatic smells of meat and spices from stalls around the mall, as well as the scent of a wonderful whole roasted duck sold at the Cold Storage on basement 1. As our eyes were trailing the smells, we caught sight of a small little shop tucked in between many other small little shops.

They call themselves, My Genie Gourmet.

It didn't take us very long to realise that they sell snacks and delicacies like Chee Cheong Fun, Soon Kuey, Curry Puffs and Paus. Never tried the latter two but we sure dig in to the Cheong Fun and Soon Kuey alright. Hooked, totally... They've got the mushroom variety, original soon kuey, gu cai version(the green stuff used to add colour as well as enhance the taste of mee siam) but the most delicious was the rice kuey - I LIKE!

I don't have the photos for the other kueys except for my favourite. Basically, they tiny, moreish snacks that are quite healthy since they're steamed instead of fried or something. Usually vegetarian but i guess you can also add bits and pieces of meat inside. The mushroom and original ones tasted almost too similar to distinguish which is better but they're both good, and fresh, and i can definitely taste the hint of udang kering (dried prawns) used in the veggie mix. You get the idea. Now for the ones i had for breakfast:

There ya go... the box that kept all the beautiful stuff inside it. Yup, definitely like rubbing a genie's bottom... i mean... bottle.

And here is how i like my rice kuey. Black smeared with sweet soy sauce and chilli for that extra oomph!

The rice kuey skin is slightly sticky but the glutinous rice was gorgeous... Absolutely gorgeous.

Sooo Much To Say but So Little Time!

2010-03-04T16:08:00.002+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Where have all the time in the world gone to! Class has ended and time is now supposedly on my side - but wait! There isn't much of it by my side since i've been really busy with work and a little bit of teaching of little baby bears (now that i'm a Senior and no longer a Sophomore) Heh... So there, been quite busy.

But even then, i don't neglect my insatiable desire to see the world! I made sure that for whatever little money that i have, it will now be spent on my travels and on my food during my travels. Meebops will do the shopping - just watching her shop makes me feel like an empty wallet. So that is her turf so we won't blog about it here.

My suitcase however, is often filled with food. Food from everywhere! - from the streets, restaurants, recommendations by friends, guides, internet as well as those where you just decide to walk-in and give it a shot.

Speaking of which, i remembered when i was in Mexico (about 6 years back) and tried that big-a** drippin' wet bean burrito loaded with cheese and hot sauce from a street cafe, packed to the brim with people - it was totally by chance but like first love, you never really forget about it. I've been trying to get a similar tasting bean burrito since but of course, its only made in Mexicana. And besides the now defunct Taco Bell restaurants in SG, there aren't many restaurants serving Mexican food here, for obvious reasons. The ones who does... well...

So i'm thinking that since i'm headed nowhere this weekend - no dates, no fun in the playground (cos its been too hot lately) and only a week before our trip to Bali (YES!!!!!! We are going to Bali AGAIN!!!!!! WooHoo!), i figured why not spend some moolas and cook me up some good comfort food at home eh...

Here's a list of what i wanna cook this weekend:

Bean Burrito - I call it, Kick-My-Butt Beanie Boo

Why look at that... Isn't that just one heck of a sloppy kick-a** burrito right there. Yup, that's what i'm gonna make me some this weekend. And yes, before you come firing my behind for not citing where the photos came from, the pictures are not mine but you get the idea what it looked like. Once i've done it though, i'll put mine up.

Here's another one dressed on a casserole dish...

Beer Battered Onion Rings (substitute Beer with Soda Water or something) - I named it, Steer-Me-Thick

Hush Puppies - Err... Haven't named this one yet since the originals sounds really pretty.

Fried Okra - Maybe, "Me-Lady's-Fried-Fingers"

I might just add one more to the list - but its a surprise treat.

So Bali's coming up in exactly one week - I CAN HARDLY WAIT!

I know i know... Haven't been putting up pictures from 3 most recent trips we had - Last installment to Melbourne, Bali and Kuala Lumpur. Stay tuned. I can see a bloody packed weekend, which i am sooooooooooooooo looking forward to.

Later now.

Finally... Its Over... For Now!

2010-02-12T18:44:00.000+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

My school term has finally ended and my exams are over and yes, i'm still in one piece and still broke as ever.

But here's the good thing, i expect to write a little more in the next few days / months before neglecting it again for a short while when my school term starts. By that time, i'll be a Senior Cubby (and no longer a sophomore)... hehehe!

Long weekends up ahead and i'm just reeling in the freedom, one bite at a time. It's Friday, its the end of another long work week and its the Chinese New Year weekend too... So i'm off to KL tomorrow evening for a little mini holiday, which i can't wait. Been an awfully long start to 2010.

For now... Let's just chill and take one thing at a time ;)

Here's One For the Road...

2009-12-18T14:24:00.004+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Hello there...

Well... My last post was weeks ago. And i haven't been blogging - really busy with assignments and everything BUT - it will all be over soon (for now at least) and when that time comes - I will be back writing my last post on Australia and a NEW, lip-smackin' dirty sexy and delicious post on my eventful trip to Bali last week... so sexy it sizzles *tssssssss!!!!* Heh...

And before i unpack my bags, I'm taking them out on the road again to Kuala Lumpur for the New Year! Woohoo! I'm loving my almost hobo-ness lifestyle... wouldn't trade them for the world :)

In the meantime, We promise... We'll bear right back!!!

Off To Bali Again...

2009-12-07T12:02:00.010+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

And so we are off to Bali, Indonesia once again, for the super long weekend we planned for since August. It was on a moment's impulse that we booked for the trip - scanned, booked and now, go.

Will be off for 5 days. A little mellow on the preparation this time maybe because we've been to Bali once before and while we spent a limited time in Bali itself, its a familiar ground and much less preparation is therefore needed. Another issue is of course, budget - but we shall not go there or this post will be one long, draggy, whiny post - when it should be something fun, exciting and full of enthusiasm!

A few things we can look forward to during this trip, which i am VERY VERY excited to share:

Self Drive - There's really nothing stopping me from revving up the engine and driving, wherever i may be in any nook and cranny in this universe. If i can sit and make the thing move, you know i'll be driving it That is, since i am a fully licensed, fully qualified driver now :) Meebops gave in to me most times, agreeing to my incessant desire to drive. She prefers to be driven instead of driving anyway ;) So yes, we are going to self-drive in Bali. We will give our account on driving in Bali when we're back! Note: Researched many differing opinions on this option - but i guess its just the general sense of care that you need to take wherever you may be. Look at everything before moving off and take proper care when on the road with the smaller guys, the motorcyclists.
Villa - We are staying for a full 3 night in a private villa complete with a private swimming pool. I simply, WE simply, CAN'T WAIT for this most definitely.
Bali itself... What's there to complain? Its relaxed, down to earth... yes a little touristy, but all in good fun :)

Picture borrowed from here

Till then... Selamat tinggal! :)

What A Bad Bad Blogger I've Been...

2009-11-09T10:45:00.003+08:00

Yes, i've been a bad bad blogger. Don't write, don't update... I've just been really busy - with work, with school and time... Time is such a rare commodity these days. Haizzz...

Don't know how long i can keep up with this... BLEARGH!!!

Friend: You look like shit dude...
Cubby: Gee, thanks man.. for the compliment *rolls eyes*
Friend: You're welcome.

I know... I don't just look like crap, i feel like crap. BAH!!! BAH!!! BAH!!! :(

This is how tired i am these days - i sleep anywhere and everywhere.

The Daily SHOOT! - Sunday Market, Chiang Mai, Thailand

2009-10-27T17:07:00.001+08:00

Nothing like a good afternoon nap..., originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Nothing like a good afternoon nap... :)

Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne! - PART 4

2009-10-26T15:05:00.002+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

So we're gonna continue from where we left off in Melbourne.

Day 4 & 5: Touring the City and Off to the Beach Town of St. Kilda We Go!

So here's the deal... When you purchase 2 tours from the travel agent, you'll get a free City tour - that is a half-day sightseeing (mostly done while you're on the bus, but sometime you get off) to key landmarks and areas within the Melbourne CBD. This came free after we purchased GOC and the Penguin Parade tour and thank heavens it is... I'll tell you why i said that!

But first up, pictures i took that was interesting enough to snap from the bus:

How can this be interesting? Come on... Its Louis Vuitton... 'nuff said.

And a neo-gothic Church

I'm guessing that at least a good 90% of those who was on the City Tour got them for free. But for those who paid a whopping US$60 for the 3hrs 45 mins tour - God Bless You :) You have done Melbourne tour companies proud because it was probably not worth the time nor the money spent :) But, yes, you get to see places you don't think you'll go on your own anyway! So................

Some of the places they'll take you on the tour include Federation Square (Hint: You board the bus from Fed-Square), Queen Victoria Market (lovely little paradise), Chinatown (every city has one... whaddaya see, Chinese!), Flinders Station (famed train station next to Fed Square), Arts & Cultural Centre (across the bridge from Flinders Stn), Royal Botanic Gardens etc.

Demonstrators at Fitzroy Gardens promoting their cause. We have this back home too.

The Epoch Times. Hate the word, Epoch, by the way... Don't know why.

I guess the only place that i truly enjoyed during the tour was the visit to the Botanic Gardens. Cubbies love gardens and parks - walking, pouncing, pawwing, relaxing, stretching and playing with dried autumn leaves... that's the only treat of the tour :)

And that... That's Meebops' feet :)

I personally think the quality of life of children in Australia is so much better than its Asian neighbours... that's just my point of view, being a kid meself... haha! Asian parents are, sad to say, too uptight, very demanding and hard on their kids sometimes, especially when it comes to grades.

More beautiful tree-lined parks such as this one at Fitzroy Gardens. Makes for a nice walk on Sunday morning or early evenings.

OK so you've heard... Cubbies didn't thoroughly enjoyed her free tour (even though she likes free stuff) and slept for the entire 3 hours journey on the bus, waking up only to pee. Besides, the commentating by the domineering "cat-woman" tour guide sucked anyway. Her monotonous yakkating and all that fake smiling and hostility - uurgh! Either that or she's simply edgy, like she's trying to quit smoking or something. So... Cubbies didn't tip her! Hmph!

They also promised a souvenir at the end of the tour, but we didn't get any (maybe because its free?).

TIP! For those discerning travellers who probably thought that the money could be better spent buying souvenirs for loved ones at home - YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT! If it comes free, what the heck, hop on the bus, pay attention for the next 3 hours and then go do whatever you need to do. But do not fork out US$60 for it. Cry tears of regret if you do. Unless, of course, you have loads of moolas to spend :)

After the tour ended, we went back to the hostel and checked out. Not before we had lunch first! We cooked some dinner the night before - made use of the free rice and pasta every day and finished some wrap / fish we bought couple of days back. The thing about moving place to place is that you don't quite get to "mark your territory" as often as you'd like. So TTT had to clear out the food before we left the hostel. Things we can reuse, we take them to St. Kilda; things we can't like leftover bread, hummus, we left it on the shelf so others can use them before it expires (you'll be surprised at the speed of which these perishables... perish!).

Urban Central's kitchen.

The fried fish wrapplicious i made *curtsies curtsies*

And a tad too dry pasta Arrabiata.

Meebops didn't take these very well (appeared very blurry) but you get the picture :) Meebops also didn't like my pasta nor my wraps - but hey, beggars can't be choosers. She is a bloody picky eater too :)

Then it was BUH-BYE Urban Central!

St. Kilda is 6km away from the City Centre and takes 2 tram change before you arrive at the heart of it all. All in all, from where we boarded the tram, it took us approx. 10 mins and VOILA!

We stayed at the St. Kilda's X-Base hostel - which is a nifty little establishment - clean, very very small (toilet door hits the side of the bed when open it!) but funky little crowd. Not as warm and diverse as you'd get from UC but good enough for a night or two. Here are some pictures of the interior:

A club that runs from god knows when till god knows when. Especially crowded on weekend nights.

Communal area - good for merry making and reading.

After a few hours of resting our tired little paws, we were out exploring the town area.

Our first impression of St. Kilda??? A quaint haven, cosmetic town that is akin to all beach town the world over. Cosy little streets punctuated with palm trees, background music courtesy of street buskers, children, lollipops, cakes, fairground and to top it all off, tourists amidst the small eccentric crowd.

That's the beach town of St. Kilda. Main attraction - The Beach!

Quaint shop houses lined the streets of St. Kilda's Acland Street.

Eccentric much? Harley enthusiast showcased their pride on the littered pavements - making it quite difficult for passer-bys to pass through.

The reason why all people should be in St. Kilda - honest to goodness cakes.

Lots and lots of them!

What we had that evening, together with a nice hot cup of latte... Cubbies had a knack for double-layered cream Blackforest cake - a classic birthday cake number. Meebops said maybe i didn't have enough birthdays as a baby. Whatever... *rolls eyes*

Meebops had the super-sweet Turkish pistachio halwa.

And a blueberry pie - which was simply kick-a** gorgeous.

Incident No. 2: Both Meebops and i were quietly enjoying our deserved cup of hot lattes and a big lip smackin' slice everything above, while we people-watch along Acland Street on that lazy Saturday evening. Seated right next to our table was an odd, old and unkempt couple who were almost too pitiful to look at (Cubbies has a soft spot for very old people :( by the way). Husband was reeking of alcohol; probably a drunkard since that's all he smelled like. Wife was just pitiful looking :(

Anyway, after a glass of wine each, they both wanted to move off. Hubby who was a little stronger stood and moved off first. Wife, who was definitely very very tipsy and who has a major case of arthritis going on, with painful bony parts of her arms and and legs sticking out, stood up wobbily and PLOP to her back, down to the floor, with her head hitting the concrete curb! It was a pretty hard fall for an old lady and she MUST'VE HURT REALLY BAD but thankfully she wasn't bleeding or anything. Cubbies went rushing to her feet (like how Mighty Mouse would've donw it) and helped her up. Haizz.. It broke Cubbies' little heart to see such things happening to what was once probably a strong beautiful woman in her heydays :( So Cubbies asked if she was OK - she nodded. Then came 2 other Italian-Australian ladies who spoke to her, called the ambulance and everything and stayed till the Ambulance is in sight. TTT stayed too till everything was under control.

Oooh... whatever happened to the husband you asked? He went away, disappeared. At some point he realised wife was missing, saw the commotion, walked past the old lady and pretended like he didn't know her. Yes, he's an a**. But what good can you expect from someone who care more about where he can get the next booze?

You think that was some sort of bizarre behaviour? That is equally the attraction on Acland Street! So when you're there, pick a spot, order a steamy cup of your favourite brew, a nice big slice of heaven (i mean, cake...) and people-watch - you won't be disappointed! :)

The rest of the evening was spent buying snacks and light breakfast from Woolsworth supermarket. We were just outside the iconic Luna Park when it was closing for the day at 6pm. Then we strolled along the beach, sitting, chatting and gazing at lovers smooching under the starless night sky... it was love. Love for life :)

That night we cooked up a storm, God knows why. There were fried noodles (which Meebops cooked), eggs, excellent frozen spinach, and some nasty canned peas, plus, calamaris. It was a buffet! One guy commented: "I'm impressed by your cooking..."

OK i just have to show off my plate and the way i like me eggs...

We woke up late the next morning, had some cup-a-soup and bread breakfast and walked around the Upper and Lower Esplanade areas - all the way to the beach jetty. Entrance to Luna Park is free but rides are pay per entry. They had some Corporate event going on that Sunday so the rides are totally out. Besides, we're not crazy about thrill rides either.. heh heh heh..

So here are more pictures of St. Kilda...

Boats and yachts littered the sea front... With a view like this, what more can you ask for? Tsk...

Isn't this just stunning?

What i want to do when i grow up... Fish and bask in the chilly winds under the sun. Doze off and find yourself in Hawaii... why not.

That's right, the iconic big-mouthed clown of Luna Park. Always laughing, always welcoming.

After the long stroll, we headed for our last stop before moving back to Melbourne - Monarch Cake Shop who probably had its interior preserved in a bottle and presented in a time machine.

And i'm talking antiques people. They even kept the original cash register alive and running ka-ching ka-ching!

Their house speciality - the MUST TRY KUGELHOPF. Can't miss this one folks, its a must-have. I'm drooling just thinking about it. Its of Polish origins, it has chocolate fillings covered in savoury pastry... what more can you ask for? Real honest to goodness - no bull about it.

So that was it! St. Kilda was a purrrfect weekend getaway for TTT - and a much needed one (after all the touring!).

We packed our bags and checked out. Hopped on the tram and off to our next accommodation - Pensione Hotel on Spencer Street!

Oh before we go off, i just have to put up this picture of 2 little girls riding on their skate-scooters along the beach - one enthusiastically paddled on and the other, confidently rode with her pink tutu on. Guess what happened next? The one in tutu hit a lamppost and fell. Cried ever so loudly. You know why? Cos she wasn't paying attention to what's coming up ahead! So be mindful of the future, cos if you're not prepared, that's when they getcha!!! Ha! Ha! :)

Till the next post: Day 6 & 7 - Puffing Billy, Petting Zoos and Wake Up! Its The Fire Alarm!

The Daily SHOOT! - Prague, Czech Republic

2009-10-06T13:11:00.001+08:00

A Street in Prague, Czech Republic, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Yup... Just a street in downtown Prague, Czech Republic.

I love how the streets in Europe are all perfectly lined and linear. Although most of the cities in Europe looked like they are cut out from cookie cutters, they're really beautiful and a perfect vacation spot for LOVERS and married couples alike.

Lovers and married but still head-over-heels in love couple :)

Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne! - PART 3

2009-10-05T12:36:00.002+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Oh yes, i'm baaack with our new post on Melbourne the Great Victorian City! :) This time with accompanying animals.

DAY 3 - Sleep-In Day and My God, Aren't Those Tiny Penguins Bloody Exhibitionists?!!

Well well... So the Penguin Parade gig starts only from midday, so after the GOC (and all the walking and climbing and my little pink paws hurting), we were thankful that we get a little more rest before our next tour. Though we usually do not follow schedules and tour timings very well (we're really, travellers who prefer our own self-made itinerary...) we were thankful that we get a little more rest before our next tour. We slept like there was no tomorrow and woke up only at 11am. Talk about getting knocked out! :)

The REAL Penguin Parade tour starts only at 7pm, so the day time was spent visiting Phillip Island itself. But before that, we created a ruckus in the kitchen at Urban Central. No actually, we just made lunch! :) Some unidentifiable wrap that has some salad and whole fried breaded fish thing. Meebops refused to eat it. "The problem isn't in the wrap or the fish... It was the lack of ingredients!!!" Cubbies said.

Anyway, driving out of the city centre at midday is less than desirable for me especially when the sun is at its peak and even if you "blasted" the air full - the sun will still give you its shining glory. Meebops is better at such things because she's more "heat" tolerant. Too much heat will cause me to develop red little patches (Meebops said its "nappy rash") and my furs won't glow. You know, we're really starting to think that we're probably from different species of bears? Like i'm very much white fluffy Polar ones or light fluffy Panda ones... and Meebops is more the grizzly or black brown-zoon type? Mwahahaha!! :P

Anyway, Melbourne has the strangest weather changes in the history of us travelling from country to country - see, it will get very very cold early in the morning, fog and all; then by about 11ish or so, it starts to get really shiny, still cold but the sun shines... It can change from hot to cold anytime during the day, but by evening, it gets even less cooler (yes! its the warmest at night!) but of course it can also change from warm to cold to warm again at any time. So as they say, Melbournians always dress prepared! :)

Moving along, the tour on Day 3 was very interesting i must say, cos we visited the nature park, the conservation centre, saw rocky sections of the ocean with a cute name - all to build up the anticipation of the main attraction, which was the little penguins.

So enough talking - more sightseeing. Here goes:

What did i tell you about the sun? Me don't likey.

First stop was the Phillip Island Nature Park, which is really down at Churchill Island.
Well this is what Churchill / Penguin Island looks like - stunning scenery isn't it? Oh... I can live here and watch this forever :)

These are some of the baby animals down at the Nature Park - they're actually really friendly and tame, so you can touch them - which Cubbies did at a moment's notice!

Ummm... that's Mr. Kangoo right there... I'm just saying, maybe its a "Mr", cos he looks kind of... masculine... you know... like... Gggrrr!!

Believe it or not, this was my first time touching a baby sheep!!! (ummm... so?) Ooooooooo it was fluffy, definitely very fluffy woolly... erm.. fluff. I wanted to take one home but Meebops, as usual, wouldn't allow me to. This was the sheep i stroked and played with (i literally did!). Oh very fluffy!

And here's another with the wool sweater, probably taken from his cousin.

And here are even more photos of the Koala (you'll see a lot of these in the blog...) - the iconic world famous Australian Ambassador. These were taken at the Koala's Conservation Centre and what you do is take a stroll on the boardwalk and see them closer in their natural habitat - which is atop the Eucalyptus Tree, either eating, sleeping or painfully bored. Haha! Here's one dozing off:

There's one busy eating... "Nyum Nyum Nyum... These leaves are Da Bom' i'm telling ya... " So said the Koala... Taken from atop a tree at the Koala Conservation Centre - Phillip Island, Victoria (can't seem to upload it to Vimeo, so i'd have to use the Flickr! one..)

And the one looking painfully bored, "Sigh... Pathetic fools. They must think i'm Ooooo so cute! Bleargh... What am i to do with these bozos..." :)

After the Koalas and the Kangoos and baby Sheep - we went off to lunch at the local winery (which Cubbies drank and

Believe it or not we have no pictures of the tiny penguin parade!!! Why?! because were were not allowed to! No cameras no nothing... just eyes to witness. That is so that the penguins won't get so freaked out by the flash from those cameras and they will not want to swim back to shore. See the penguins do that on a daily basis - early morning, swim out to sea. At dusk, swim on back home to shores where homes are nestled in between the rockies and shrubs.

TIP! I gotta tell you though - do put on some seriously warm outfit and long pants if you're there at any season other than maybe, summer. While it is a really fascinating experience - what with watching untamed waves crashing in front of you and the sound of hungry seagulls searching for that last catch before heading home, and you, waiting patiently for the tiny wild creatures to return back to shore - it is still an open, unrestricted ocean - and it is COLD. Victoria has one of the coldest water temperature in all of Australia, possibly because it is within close proximity to chilly chilly Tasmania down South / South-West.

All i can say is that those penguins are a real charmer. They are not exotic or glamourous, rich and charismatic like the Emperors, and they're not exactly as small or tiny as you'd think (even though they are the World's Smallest "Little Penguins") - but they are one helluva exhibitionists! They waddle home out from the open ocean, to the rockies and mate (ooh yeah, mate) all night long (at least that's what cheeky Cubbies saw!!!). Who cares who's watching??!! They will mate their way back to their nests as you stroll along the boardwalk back to bus :) And in case you have no idea how these blubber pack mate, i've got a sample below ;)

Somebuddy's gettin' some lovin' tonight... heh!

Picture of mating blubber was taken from mgsbird

This is how the Phillip Island Little Penguins looked like... these shameless buggers :)

Picture borrowed from here

And just before you drive off - duck under your car, JUST IN CASE you find one for the record!

Guess i'll have to cover Day 4 & 5: Touring The City And Off To The Beach Town St. Kilda! next.

Sorry folks... it'll probably be at least, another 2 posts on Melbourne before i can move off to some other destinations. Don't get bored yet - because we aren't! And we still couldn't get enough of the charming city and Cubbies can't see why you should get bored with it! ;)

Cheers, mate!

Cubbies Said: My Bestest And Worstest Vacation Ever Was...

2009-09-30T19:52:00.007+08:00

Grrr... oowl!!!

I have yet to draft out even juicier details about our vunderful trip to Melbourne (including the false fire alarm at 3am) but in the meantime, i need to keep the blog going in good momentum! Haha!

So i thought i'd put up answers i gave to a humanoid who once asked Cubbies 3 of probably very common but FUN! questions. Everyone has an answer to this. Anyone and everyone who travels often has something to say! :)

Best Vacation Ever!
San Francisco, California

Been to so many places and loved them all but i suppose the best vacation i had was to San Francisco, California - because that was where i met my bestest friend in the world who shares not only my passion for life, love and travel but who is bearishly smackin' good-lookin', like me! - now what can be better than that? *dreamy sigh*

Putting that aside, its pretty easy for one to fall in love with San Francisco... Why? Because SF is a gorgeous "sea-town" where you get a perfect concoction of that bustling metropolitan kick, yet laced with an added touch of that snobbish Victorian feel and nostalgia... And if you take a drive out of the city centre, you get the hills and the greens! If you've been to SF and loved it, Cubbies can guarantee that you will love Melbourne - which according to my bearish taste, is the twin sister city :) Loved them both.

Worst Vacation Ever!
Malacca City, Malaysia

Strangely, i've never had a really really terrible vacation. OH! Except the most recent one where my family and i were on a weekend getaway to historic city of Malacca in Malaysia (which is just a 3 hour drive from where i live). We rented an MPV from a guy and his stupid vehicle broke down, the first night we were there, which left us stranded - missing school, work etc.

I don't know why we decided to help out and send the car for repair on his behalf (stupid stupid stupid!). But, the car could not be repaired immediately so we were forced to stay another night until the owner drive over with a new car for us to get home. No refunds, nothing from the guy. I am still fuming mad that we had to fork out a lot of money for a supposedly budget vacation. It's just plain stupid.

Where Would I Rather Be Right Now?
Anywhere, really...

Anywhere but home. I can find anything and everything i need, both to satisfy my wanderlust and my eternal quest for intrinsic satisfaction anywhere else on earth, but home. Home is stifling, too many demands, commitments, expectations... Life is more than that. Life is about living it, not slowly screwing it up!

So thats what i said to the humanoids... But i suppose the best answer to sum all this up is to say, you know what, JUST PUT YOUR FEET UP and ENJOY THE JOURNEY - the good, the bad, the ugly - IT IS AN EXPERIENCE THAT IS TO DIE FOR :)

Better than being home anyways... BAH!!!

WELCOME! Our 1000th Visitor!

2009-09-29T17:13:00.004+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Today marks THE DAY this blog welcomed its 1000th visitor!!! Yyyeah!

I know.. I know.. Its still a tiny little pathetic number, but when Meebops and I started this blog, we never thought it'd go beyond 50 readers, including friends and families.

But we made it! We made it to a thousand friends on cyberspace *waves*

WATCH OUT... WE ARE GOING TO TAKE OVER THE UNIVERSE NEXT!!!

Mwahahaha! :)

Anyways, this is for the each and every 1000 visitor to our humble blogabode:

So I'm BAAACK!!!

2009-09-25T14:27:00.012+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Festive period is OVER for me! And so Cubbies is back on the writing spree :) Soon, it will be the BACK TO SCHOOL season for us both.

Do not intend to be talking much right now (besides, I'm secretly writing my next Melbourne post at work) but i thought this will be a nice post, POST-F1 fever.

I know that the publicity for the F1 Race in SG was huge and I've had many business friends congratulating me (and my country) for the success of the second season of Formula-One Race. All is good and I'm glad everything went well - the concerts were great, the publicity was sensational (quoted: "Fabulous"), big names like Beyonce, No Doubt, will.i.am, Backstreet Boys (shivers shivers) puts SG on the world map, even though its just a small little red dot :)

Just days prior to the race however, things were not so wonderful in the city, especially traffic. Chock-full of people everywhere (this is on a daily basis in SG of course but worse prior to the race)... Not so wonderful for me as I was late to work every day (3 days before the race and 2 days after the race). Yes yes, i may appear whiny and complaining about something so temporary ... in any case, here are the photos to what I'm rambling about (quality not too great cos i snapped it from my mobile):

We're talking REALLY CONGESTED roads. We were on the highway for at least an hour before we can get to the exit leading to the city.

Ahh yes... even in such congested roads, you need to pay the ERP - Electronic Road Pricing - Singapore's tactic to "punish", "spank" and "fine" you for owning a car and refusing to join the public transport committee :) Yup. Oh by the way, its supposed to "curb" congestion. Ok? Get that right...

So thats $2.50 per entry. Into the city is another $3.00 or so.

Some pictures of the track in preparation - 1 day before Trial Friday.

See those green barricades covering "hot-spots" on the expressway? Its basically to deter errant cars / drivers from slowing down or stopping to watch the race (let me add, "for free" - which is what Singaporeans enjoy doing doing!). On race days, the traffic police are stationed along the highways.

I just thought that its a selfish way to deter others from catching a glimpse of it "live" and without paying. The F1 Village, they call it, is totally inaccessible to non-paying public. The entire Marina area was cordoned off. Good in a way...

So that's the day before the race. I only got to the office close to 40 minutes after my official report time, thanks to the traffic :)

Now, here are the human traffic too at the Raffles Place MRT Station, on the actual Trial Friday. This is not even IN the station yet - its at the underground area leading to the station.

I know that the Formula 1 brought a lot of publicity and tourists moolas into the country but really.. its getting way too crowded for me. Too crowded, even for a poor little cubby bear :(

PsssT! Be back with more posts! I will have a full weekend at home this week, so I'm going to spend my time "fixing" this messy blog. Bleargh!

Taking A Break...

2009-09-12T17:50:00.003+08:00

Cos its RAMADAN and soon it will be, SYAWAL and Eid is looming closer and closer!!!

Be back in a week or so...!!! Woohoo!!! :)

Picture taken from here...

Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne! - PART 2

2009-08-14T09:18:00.041+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

So we continue with the anecdotal account of our journey in Melbourne, Australia.

DAY 2 - Billy's Bush Tea (??!) And Why You Haven't Seen Victoria If You Haven't Been On The Great Ocean Road (GOC)!

Our journey outside of Melbourne City Centre began on Day 2. The day was spent entirely on the road. Tour starts from 7:30am right up till 10:00pm. We obviously couldn't wait to see the best first, so we journeyed to one of Australia's great spectacle - The Twelve Apostles.

To get to the great 12, you will take the coastal highway, also known as The Great Ocean Road. And if you are the squeamish, motion sick kind of person (like Cubbies), better hang on to those pills to adjust your sense of balance and equilibrium - the roads are extremely winding and quite bumpy too!

TTT initially planned to take a self-drive tour along the GOC but thankfully we thought otherwise because it is a loooooooooong journey that will not only take a toll on your body but forces you to concentrate more on the road and less on the sights itself.

Albeit the "long winding Cubby-unfriendly roads" and obvious "touristy" spot, you really haven't seen Melbourne if you haven't been on the Great Ocean Road.

I'm not even going to say much about the GOC because the pictures are pretty self explanatory.

First stop on our trip was the Bells Beach (BB), famous for its surfing activities. There were several tour buses that took their morning tea-break stop at the BB. WE were one of them, obviously. For me, it was a the long awaited pee-break! The weather, though absolutely gorgeous, was super duper chilly!

Surfer dudes and dudettes... I once knew a cool surfer chick business associate who travels from Sydney and surfs every single day at Bondi Beach. I must say, they are really something... She was due for a meeting one morning, donned a "power suit" and umm... flip-flops (you know, beach slippers) and this really huge black Billabong carry-all duffel that looked like she was going to have some surfboards up on display! I personally found it very amusing, but apparently, not the rest ;)

Cubbies is not a very good swimmer (well, she's only 2 you know..) and surfing in big open seas is like asking her to jump down from a high cliff! She is terrified about the pounding waves and all that Blue Planet DVDs she's been watching every night (with all the whales and the sharks swimming underneath) doesn't help either. Meebops however (the one with the gusto..), will want to give surfing a shot some day!

This is the overview of BB (on video!!!) on a semi cloudy day. It was freakin' cold and there were quite a few surfers who were crazy enough to surf that morning. The winds were blowing strongly but strangely though, the water was tamer than i expected.

That's our guide, Darryl, doing his spins on Billy the Tea and telling us amusing stories about Vegemite, Lamingtons, Matilda (which by the way, is not the name of a girl..), Victoria Bitter and his hilarious and outrageous stories of his wife and kids. Great guy by the way, so if you do get him as a guide on Grayline, you're really quite lucky because the rest of the guides that we've had were all BLEAH-boooring. The only thing with Darryl is you'd probably find it really tough to fall asleep.

Moving along... this was also where we had a taste of Melbourne's very own "tar-like" Kraft Vegemite (our VIRGIN experience) and Lamingtons and believe it or not, Billy's Bush Tea. Ok i made that last one up, it's actually Bush Billy Tea - the iconic black tea in Australia often brewed with an added touch of Eucalyptus leaves. Billy is actually the can that the outbackers / campers used to brew the tea in. Its really quite pleasant, with hints of soft menthol notes as you sip it. Goes better without sugar or milk!

Darryl doing his Sir Mix-A-Lot... Geddit? Bah!

Yada yada yada... sings "The wheels on the bus goes round and round..."

Oh wait... Here are MORE photos of the GOC, including Cape Patton. Cape Patton was a "photo stop" just before we head to lunch at Apollo Bay. Its really stunning for photos, with waves crashing into gigantic rocks and limestone.

Next up, lunch!

Lunch was at picturesque town of Apollo Bay. It is a stunning coastal town lined with cute little houses, tinted with backdrops of lush green fields and relaxing blue hues from the ocean ahead (Imagine!).

The breakfast Cubbies made (which was burnt bagels with eggs and cheese) finished by the time we got to Lorne, so we had to get lunch because Cubbies had an appetite after the vomiting episode. There are no halal food outlets here so we settled for seafood in cafes.

We got the Classic Fish & Chips... probably costs us about AU$12.99 or so.

And we also got the Fresh Handmade Vegetarian Pasta and Rice. Costs us about AU$6 for a small serving..

After lunch, the bus went pass the Otway National Park and we were sheltered by the scorching mid afternoon sun. The Australian rain-forest seemed like they were made up of nothing but fern gullies and Eucalyptus - actually those are the only two kinds of plantations there.

Along the way, we also spotted a wild Koala (not Koala Bears!) which is the famed and uniquely Australian marsupial. Poaching or killing of Koalas in the wild is a serious offense in Australia so watch out for those slow-coach crossing the road if you're driving. WARNING! Even though the Koalas are cute, cuddly and looked like they are begging for a big hug from you (like how sometimes Cubbies bat her lashes for a hug), they do not like to be stroked or touched!!! You will suffer and bleed when they paw you (not the good way) with their long and sharp claws - so do not try to touch them! They really like it that way :)

We didn't get close enough to focus on the wild koala but i'm sure its cute as the rest of them! Here's another photo of a SUPER cute baby Koala. It must be tough being a Koala though, having to live with white aging hair all their lives... *sigh* Hehehe! :P Fret not, we will post many more pictures of these charismatic marsupials in our postings!

Picture of Cutest Joey Koala borrowed from Erik K Veland

Just before the actual 12, we were stopped for picture taking at the Gibson Steps. These steps are small steps but goes all the way down to the sea front and my God, that was really a test of our strength, stamina and physical resilience (or the lack thereof...). It was here that i realise how pathetic my stamina is now. Bleargh!!! The scenery though, was absolutely jaw-dropping gorgeous-ness :)

Views from the Gibson Steps...

If you are as enthusiastic and persuasive as Meebops, yoan take the stairs all the way down... and you'll see that this is the closest you can get to the limestone Apostles. It was really tough walking along the shores tough, because the sand is really thick and makes it really difficult to walk on.

Next on the road is The Twelve Apostles - main highlight of the day. Honestly, after the entire episode of vomiting and waiting and waiting in anticipation for the great 12, the feeling was quite subdued by the time we get there. It was magical nonetheless, and to see the Great 12 in real time is nothing you have ver experienced before... but... you know the feeling.

Anyway, there are 2 options to take when you're here - either you walk through the tunnel to the viewing platforms at the Port Campbell National Park to view for yourself, the stunning and impressive nature-carved limestone cliffs standing so majestically and patiently, unfluttered by the violent waves crashing against it.

OR for an extra AU$75, you can also get yourself a comfy ride on nifty little copters for a chance of a lifetime!

that's right - an aerial view of the 12 Apostles! Breathtaking indeed but the price was a little too steep for Cubbies. I was quite reluctant (as i always will when it comes to forking out more money!) but Meebops (the more touristy of the 2) was so excited of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And so we did! It was our virgin copter ride, ummm... really nice... but kinda scary at the start :)

Here are the photos...

Nifty little machines they are...

Behold the views!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stunning ain't it??? :)

Along the same coastline is also the mysterious Loch Ard Gorge (LAG), which after visiting The Twelve Apostles, you will come to realise just how really charismatic these carved limestone looked like up-close. LAG is the real deal... Up close and personal - so close you can talk to it!

The Blowhole cave...

This is the Island Archway, before the arch collapsed in June 2009. TTT would like to consider themselves lucky enough to have witness the Archway in its full glory in May 2009 :)

This one's here called the Shipwreck Coast, and you can actually (again) take the stairs down for a greater appreciation of its sheer size and magnitude.

Some new friends i waved and smiled at....

Oh hellooo..! LAG was also where i met an acquaintance, Little Pet Kangoo. Someone obviously abandoned it. Though quite pleased that i met a friend, i am also sad that its there alone, waiting for someone to adopt it. I can't adopt it obviously... i have Meebops.

Our last stop for the day was at Port Campbell. We didn't get anything to eat while we're there cos we do want to have something back in the city. But it is a nice little port town overlooking a quaint pier.
Our drive back was a snooze ride all the way! What a day! :)

Oh! Not without what i snacked on all the way back to the city!!! Homemade fries in dog poo bag... :)

USELESS INFO ANYWAY: I don't know how many times i actually peed on that day. The reason being the fact that it was already late Autumn/early Winter and apart from the sweatshirt i was wearing (over the thousand strands of bear-fur on my body), i had only my socks and my cute little Crocs sandals on (that Meebops got me as a gift!) . Now Crocs has holes in it so i guess with the air-conditioning on the bus and the cold weather outside and the lack of necessary protection for my furs, i got cold! And if there was ever an award for "The Most Number of Times Someone Uses the Tiny Toilet in the Bus" - I would've won a lifetime achievement award for it!

Till our next post: Day 3 - Sleep In Day And My God, Aren't Those Tiny Penguins Bloody Exhibitionists?!!

Cheers, mate!

Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne!

2009-08-12T17:31:00.008+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Gosh we had so much fun in Melbourne, it was unbelievable! There were petting zoos, Kangaroos and Koalas and nice cool weather... Sigh! I am in love! :)

So since there's plenty to talk about, i wonder where do i begin? Do i go with Day 1 - what we did... Or do i go with what you really need to know when in Melbourne and compress everything i can into 1 post... ORrrr... gloat and gloat about how wonderful the weather was, and how warm the Aussies are... and and and!... how wonderful the weather was... :) *Did i mention how wonderful the weather was???*

Seriously folks, Melbourne is simply gorgeous. Its a charming city that emits a buzzing metropolitan air, almost akin to Sydney, yet it still held back an alluring charm you can only grow to love (or for me, absolutely head-over-heels for!)... Melbourne leaves you, or rather you leave Melbourne cuddled with a nice, quaint feeling.. and a desire to want more more more! Sure the streets are a little on the "scruffy" side, especially along the cobbled sidewalks, what with the graffiti up on the walls and just plain dampness to everything in the air (Yup! Blame it on the weather!). But hey, that is what we call a city with "character"! :)

Anyway, less talk and more show and tell... Let's start with a picture of the wings to the plane that brought us there, Air Asia X (which TTT already XXX over it many many many times!).

Incident No. 1 - At time of travel, State of Victoria has not yet been crowned the "H1N1 Pandemic Capital of the World" but they did take several precautions here and there. This is how they did it - Quarantine Officers boarded the plane after flight crew informed ground staff that 1 passenger on the flight was coughing profusely throughout the entire journey. Quarantine guys boarded the plane (dressed like scenes from the movie "Sequel to Biohazard") upon touching down. They made everyone else who is not affected stay on board the plane (therefore prolonging time of contact with suspected victim) until all Q&A with the affected completed. By that time, it was well pass 11pm. We took at least 45 mins waiting and wondering... Not good.

"Uhh... what happened arh?..."

"I dontch know. Not sure whether true or not, but someone said that woman got the pig flu lah!..."

"Alamak, bloody selfish you know she... Cough cough cough, never cover mouth one! I sat right in front of her you know!"

Actors from the movie "Biohazard II" :) Clever marketing gimmick? NOT!

Actually, we took more pictures of the Quarantine Officers (we were the only ones on board the plane taking photos like paparazzi, by the way) than this but were instructed to delete all of them before alighting. So we grudgingly did (with everyone else on board laughing with us) - ah yes, ALMOST! ;)

The super-intensive checks and cumbersome Melbourne immigration took us probably another hour or so - the questioning and checking and looking at us up and down and down and up and round and round (they probably couldn't believe how gorgeous Cubbies is despite the furs from a little cubby bear!) - all while trying to keep conversation and spot if we were hiding anything illegal - you know, the usual "immigration" stuff that took an unusually looong time to get through in Melb. HAH! They didn't know that i had a mock Koala outfit in my bag, with the intention of dressing up as one!

WORD OF CAUTION! Based on our keen observation, they single out travellers who are young (or too young, like Cubbies), who travels alone, and especially those travelling with backpacks. Meebops had this theory that we were asked to exit through a different channel because we indicated that we are "professionals" in our occupation list but we looked young (thank you...) and definitely not dressed as how professionals would. We only had t-shirts, shorts and sandals on, so it was contradictory and aroused suspicion... *shrug* Possibly. So BEWARE folks! Don try to be funny especially if you're a backpacker ;) That is, if you want smoother clearance (the Aussie immigration is probably the least friendliest ever...)

We were really too tired by the time we got to the hostel. We shared a cab from the airport with a couple of students from the US. Poor kids didn't even know where to stay but decided anyway, "Yes, we'd like to go to the Elizabeth Hostel please..." Our driver was a Pakistani who barely speaks English, drove them to another hostel on Elizabeth Street. Whatever... I just want to go to bed. The cab ride at 2ish in the morning costs us about AU$80. Expensive? Very.

Fast forward few hours later...

We woke up to the buzzing sounds of traffic from the highway opposite the hostel. My God the air was fresh! :) It was unbelievable.

Here is our first foray into Melbourne as a city, just slightly on the fringe of the CBD areas. We stayed at the Urban Central Hostel, conveniently located on Collins Street in Southbank - the quiet side of Melbourne, but an easy 5 minutes ride into town or 20 minutes stroll on foot - which was what we did every day. UC is a neat hostel that's clean, hassle free and one of those few that has a FULL-SIZE kitchen for you to prepare your own meals. Now we will talk about that later... heh! heh!

Moving along... So our initial plan was to travel outside the city centre on our own, travelling with public transport or even drive! When we calculated the monies though - travelling to and from the city, it adds up to even more than if we go on guided tours. So we weigh the options out and decided that since we are travelling on very limited time and with very very very little money, we might as well make our monies worth and go for the cheapest, most convenient option.

TIP 1! Do not pre-book your tours online - they are usually very expensive! Enquire from travel desks upon arrival and compare prices. Most of the tours offers very very similar experience and itineraries so pick the best bang for your buck! ;P

TIP 2! If you happen to stay at a backpacker / budget hostel and want to join a tour, make sure the first place you ask is the travel desk based at your hostel. They'd usually recommend the cheapest and best tours for your money (which was not a lot for our case). And if you are one of those lucky few (like us) who look young for their age, EVEN BETTER! All you pay are student concession rates! We get to join full service Gray Line tours at a student price. Think double-deck coaches on the GOC - it can't get any better than that!

DAY 1: Explore the City on foot! Make sure you have good walking shoes on!

We couldn't join any tours today because we woke up at noon on our first day in Melbourne - thanks to Biohazard II and Australian immigrations. So we had a quick brunch at McDonalds and walked into the City, towards Crown Casino complex, crossed the Yarra River, took pictures on Flinders Station and marched all the way to Federation Square. before heading back the same way we came. We also made a pitstop - because Cubbies wanted to visit her "aquatic comrades" at the Melbourne Aquarium - it was well worth it though (cos Cubbies was given "child price" for her visit... yayayayayyy!!). Some pictures here...

The Penguin Parade... Live from Melbourne Aquarium!

The river that runs through it... Yarra River running through Melbourne.

You can't miss the very icon for Melbournians - Flinders Street Station. The crowded, noisy, unpleasant-smelling old dame still stands tall and proud today. A visit to the CBD means passing by Flinders Street Station at least once in a day :)

Directly opposite the Flinders Station is the Federation Square - which is the heart and soul of the culture and entertainment scene in downtown Melbourne. Its buzzing, full of activities like demos and people sitting around and chatting on Sundays. Fascinating :)

There what did i tell ya? Demos... LOTS OF THEM. On Sundays, they get even more violent and chanted!!! Tsk...

And there you go, Crown Casino. Everything you need in ONE massive building - food, movies, entertainment, women, Cuban cigars, roulette and sin... All in one. Pretty fascinating!

Oh and they have night shows too. They call it... well actually i call it, "The Great Balls of Fire Show" - huge streams of fire balls burns from massive gas cylinders every night at 8pm Melb time. Can get a little intimidating really, especially when they blow right above your tiny head. FUN FACT: Did you know, that the RSPCA was petitioning to shut down the fire balls because it kills heaps of pigeons daily? Love them birds and animals, but ermm... I 'd like mine roasted please ;P

So that's pretty much what we did on Day One - woke up late because immigration took so much of our sleeping time, had brunch, enquired about tours (and pretty much booked everything we need to see in Melbourne/Victoria with a little extras here and there...), walked around, explored the city on foot and just basked in the sun and cool weather. Neat? Sure was!

OH! Here's the food section for you ;) Remember we had brunch at McDonalds? And it wasn't until late that we felt the hunger pang yet again. So we went around looking for food. Someone told us that at Level 1 of the Crown Casino building, there are food available "foodcourt" style. So we went to check it out and true enough, among the food vendors and Singapore-style food court, there were probably a million other Singaporeans. Bleargh!!!!!

So here's the food. For my Muslim friends, its very true, there are lots of halal food in Australia. You just need to find them, which thankfully, isn't very difficult.

We must be very hungry because i remember we bought 2 main complete meals and a serving of Mediterranean-hummus salad. All we took was a picture of, well, the salad ;P Go figure.

Till our next post: DAY 2 - Billy's Bush Tea (??!) And Why You Haven't Seen Victoria If You Haven't Been On The Great Ocean Road (GOC)!

Cheers, mate!

PHEW! What a weekend!

2009-07-28T10:23:00.027+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

So, The Travelling Teddies went on a solo roadtrip to Malacca (yes, again...)

Since receiving my full-fledge driving license, i have been driving around every weekend to some previously unexplored areas within Singapore with my beautiful black Kenari (which Meebops affectionately named, "Little Black Bird"). I suppose being one of the travelling teddy, my insatiable lust for exploring the unknown spurred me to venture further out of this tiny island. Hence, we decided on Malacca.

Now why Malacca you asked? Why not Johor Bahru (or JB they say..)? Its nearer, a lot of places we have not yet explored in JB. Makes perfect sense... but the reason is simple - we wanted to test our resilience to driving long hours, over long distances. We were thinking Kuala Lumpur, but may be stretching it a little too far. So we started small - and driving along the North-South highway for 3.5 hours (with 1 meal + toilet break) seemed more manageable for a "newbie".

We started the journey early last Saturday - we were at the Tuas checkpoint by 8.30am and on the highway by 9.15am. Everything went smoothly and the mood was light and cheerful :) Here's our ride:

The view of the massive badonkadonk.

We intent to take the first leg up to Malacca by taking turns to drive. Meebops and her "so many more years of driving experience than Cubbies" drove the first half, about 1.5 hours up to Machap rest area.

There we had breakfast and were swarmed by very very intrusive army of annoying houseflies buzzing around your undies while you're trying to get some relief from the pent-up bladder. Not a good thing and food weren't that great either (with half of the time, you're shooing flies away). NOTE: If driving from up-North from SG, give Machap a pass. Try Pagoh stop instead - heard it has been newly renovated. As long as its clean, fly-free and food is OK, then its good for a stop!

We continued our journey after about 45 minutes of refueling our tummies and this time, Cubbies drove. It was quite overwhelming at the start because we rented the Hyundai Trajet MPV - which is essentially a HUGE car. Gave us lots of problem too... but... we'll get to that later.

Here's the "cosmetic" interior.. Don't be fooled. It's about as surprising as getting an A for a paper you didn't study for.

Driving along the NSE is relatively simple because the roads are quite wide. My advice is to ALWAYS keep to the left lane, where all the good cars driving within the speed limit stick to. The speed demons drives on the right lane (which is also the "overtaking lane") and try to intimidate you if you are in their way by flashing high beams, tailgate you very very closely... so you are really better off on the left and move at a speed that you are comfortable with. Lorries will also overtake you if you are a slow coach, so do watch out for cross winds from the side, which if not careful, can steer you away off course.

We arrived in Malacca at about 12:30pm and to the city centre at about 1:30pm. This time, because the company was larger, we decided to stay at a less "glamourous" hotel as a cheaper alternative... hehehe... So, Hotel Seven became the choice hotel - which is located at Jalan Laksamana Cheng Ho, opposite Bukit Cina.

Nice clean rooms, nice new beds... Cannot yet feel the "boingness"...

Clean toilets - very important for Cubbies, cos she have had enough experience and memories of dirty, grimy toilets to last her a lifetime. Travel with her, and the first thing she'll ask, "Are the toilets clean?...." Hehe..

Now, location wise, this hotel is a little inconvenient for people who don't drive (about 20 minutes walk to city centre) but what it lacks in terms of location, it makes up for the fact that it is new, and therefore SQUEEAKY clean. The rooms are no-frills, no-nonsense with basic amenities. May i remind you that it is new but i am absolutely in love with the fact that it comes with a smaller pricetag but very very clean (so, i just hope they stay that way!) because a clean room makes me a happy cubby :)

Just right next to the hotel is the famous Sop Lembu Tangkak restaurant - which pleasantly is halal-certified. So that became the outlet where we drown our joys and sorrows. Honestly, it was. It was the beefy version of Central Perks. Oh and when you're there, do get the Honey Lemon drink - its UDDERLY good and refreshing.. HA!

Anyway, after about an hour or so of resting and prayers, we set out to explore Malacca. By this time, most of us are hungry and our main aim was to look for food! It was rather disappointing really cos one of us wanted so much to try the Asam Pedas recommended by her pal - which we later found out was called Asam Pedas Selera Kampung but it only operates until noon - by the time lunch hour is over, the food would've been sold out. So we settled for some very expensive but non too tasty food at the foodcourt - which is really just a waste of calories.

Another disappointment is the constant heavy traffic in Malacca city centre and especially on Saturday evenings where peeps from KL and SG visit the city with their four-wheelers. Driving is NOT fun in Malacca city. What will normally take you 10 minutes to walk, will take you 45 minutes by car.

BEAR NOTES: If you do drive, you are better off parking your car at either the major hotels like Equitorial or at Pahlawan Mall and then walk all over the city centre - starting from Dataran Pahlawan to Melaka Raya and Mahkota, along the river and finish off at Jonker Street for a nice bowl of Chendol.

Then we were off to Jonker by the time night falls. We didn't want to go to Aunty's chendol this time round so went further and queued at this very very insanely popular cafe, called the Museum Cafe, that has endless queues for both its Laksa and Chendol. What's the hype anyway? God knows, so we tried this time round, adamant and joined the never-ending queue.

Sad to say, i think way too many people has poor taste buds that they are unable to differentiate the real goodness of Gula Melaka. GM is supposed to be sweet, very sweet, potent, aromatic and just very lightly earthy. The GM at Museum Cafe is sweet, but way too thick and has a bitter aftertaste, almost burnt! The coconut cream is less consistent and less concentrated than the ones i've tried before this. So why? Why the very very long queue? *shakes head*

The best part of the ENTIRE journey came right after this.

We were out buying supper for the rest of us, when the MPV we rented from a certain someone broke down. Mind you, it didn't just break down - it broke down in the middle of night (at 11.30pm) at some place we don't even know where!

To cut the long night short, we only got back to the hotel at 3am after we met a group of very helpful Indian guys who jump-started the car. What a nightmare! Nobody was willing to help really, even though they see distress. There was this uncle, Malay man, who put up his hand and said, "Sori puan, kita tak boleh tolong lagi... Takde apa yang kita boleh buat. Sori puan.." (Kapla hotak kau berjambul pakcik...) Anyway, we had to camp out in the car and wait for the engine to fire up before turning it off and see if it starts again. All that took our entire night. Naturally, supper was to-go, in the car.

By the time we get to bed, all was good. We managed to get some breakfast the next morning. One of us again, craved for the local Asam Pedas. So we did, drove all the way to Bandar Hilir near Mahkota Parade, where Asam Pedas Selera Kampung is.

The famous asam pedas kepala ikan. Slightly tangy, spicy... the difference is the black pepper added to the gravy.

Giant King Prawns... A whopping RM20 PER prawn. Errrgh! Expensive.

Sambal Belachan. This one is a classic malay appetiser dish. Its chilli, shallots, fried shrimp paste - mix it up, ground it down and you get a concoction that's truly, an acquired taste. Normally eaten with rice and raw vegetables.

The sambal belachan should be eaten with these raw vegetables.

Nothing much to shout about honestly. Annoyingly expensive is what it is - some prawns, veggies, asam pedas costs us a whopping RM 124 for breakfast. What the...

All the hype with Asam Pedas in Malacca can only question the true meaning of taste buds. Like hearts, whose can you trust? Yours only of course! S0 just go with your gut and try try try until you hit the purrrfect spot. Meebops and i however have developed the "similar taste bud syndrome" after being together for more than 7 years. Hee! Hee! :) Yeah it happens...

Supposed to leave for home that afternoon so all ready packed and checked out there was car trouble again... treeet treeeeeeeeeet treeeeeeeettit tit tit... That was how it sounded like when we turned on the ignition. So we had to call in certain people that the owner of this car knows and get someone to jump-start the car, then drive it to the workshop to get whatever thingy repaired.

Apparently, the battery died flat (didn't he check his stupid car before renting it out???) and the IC-Unit, some electricity-aircon-alternator thingamagic (god knows what that is...) burnt. I had to fork out RM 400 to get the battery changed but we decided to keep the IC-Alternator thing intact and by the "expert" advice of the owner, to drive the car back home anyway.

So we did... But the mechanic didn't let us leave without a warning. He said, "You are taking a very big risk. I dunno whether you'll make it back to SG safely but you can try. The least you can do right now is wind down the windows, turn off the AC and no radio or headlights should be turned on... Just drive straight back."

He is definitely crazy! By the time we left the workshop, it was already 5.30pm. Expecting us to not turn on the headlights on the highway is like asking us to cross the mountains blindfolded! But we decided to take the risk, went for the gusto and drove home. Bear in mind, the IC unit damaged/burnt and electricity cannot pass through the car properly - hence, causing further damage to the system and at the same time, do not charge the battery. But we drove... happy to be able to finally get home.

Drove drove drove.... suddenly, BOOMBAM! Just few hundred metres before we reached the start of the highway at Ayer Keroh, it felt like as though the car hit something big and hard, like a big rock or something. I was literally off my seat and chills went down my spine upon hearing the ferocity of the loud bang.

We pulled over to the nearest civilisation (which was McDonald's Ayer Keroh) to check the car. Nothing... Then we tried again. This time, no more treeet treeeeeeeeeet treeeeeeeettit tit tit... There was complete silence. God knows what went wrong. It was only later that someone told us the was a possibility of the car exploding without our knowledge because the electricity is unsecured.

And we didn't even get any insurance for the trip. I don't know why we decided to help out and send the car for repair on his behalf (stupid stupid stupid!).

BLEARGH!!! We couldn't get it fixed and we couldn't get any other form of transport home that night. So we had to fork out MORE money to stay another night in Malacca. The owner of the car wasn't even sensitive enough to refund us of the night's stay or offer comfort for causing us emotional distress. It's pathetic. I am still fuming mad that we had to fork out a lot of money for a supposedly budget vacation. It's just plain stupid.

It is only after this unfortunate incident that i realise something about myself. I always thought that the Malays are more willing and helpful, ready to give helping hand to others. I've dealt with so many Malays in Malaysia before, both personally as well as professionally. They seemed nice.

But that night also made me realise, that some of the most helpful people in Malaysia are those of the other races - the Indians, the Chinese... friendly, down to earth.

Note from the boy who camwhored himself: Nak drive gi KL????? Hehehehe!

Oh and to top off the adventure, Malacca City was flooded before we left it... Go figure. Probably crying that we're leaving.. Bah!

The Daily SHOOT! - Churning of the Sea of Milk

2009-07-20T13:27:00.001+08:00

P6270490, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Pathway to one of the most famous bas-reliefs in Angkor Wat; this is the route to the display of the Churning of the Sea of Milk reliefs carved onto stone at the main complex of the Angkor Wat.

We were very lucky that this picture was snapped when no one was walking around the alley. Reason for this? We were there in the morning! We told Mr. Tuk-Tuk driver, we wanted him to fetch us at 7am. He was wide-eyed in disbelief - even though at that point, we can't tell whether it was a good thing or some bad sign! :)

Turns out, it was bad for him (cos he had to wake up early!) and a good thing for us! Ha! Ha!

Can We Live On...

2009-07-16T15:01:00.011+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Oh my my my... I haven't blogged for (24 June - 17 July = 7 days???) ... Nah... I haven't blogged since 24 June, which makes it about 22 days now! Arrrgh...

I've been really busy with stuff at work and some other stuff i can't say on this blog - sometimes i wish i can just disappear! Not die or anything, that will be bad - but just poof! disappear... He! He! Many times i envisioned a cute little cubby bear sitting atop a pristine white lump of cloud, alone, with legs and hands crossed, smiling down saying, haha... i don't want to do that anymore and no can tell me i should! Hmmph!...

Kinda like this one right here, only i am much much cuter than that.

So i'm thinking if i can disappear, where is the next best place that i can disappear to? Another country perhaps? Another state? Another city?... then i read somewhere that all those smart people called "Scientist" are researching the possibility of humans (Cubbies included...) living on "alternative planets" - which is really, 8 other planets besides Earth.

Now wouldn't that be fascinating?

I mean, really... can we live on....... SPACE? Space explorations and travel have always fascinated me and wouldn't it be just exciting for us to start a new life, on some planet we barely know, doing everything from scratch?

You see, there are nine planets in the Solar systems, with Earth being the only one with the perfect balance of everything - good amount of natural gases, liquid water (safe for human consumption), wind, air, food. The other eight are Pluto, Mars, Venus Mercury, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Saturn.

We can't possibly live on Mars because it is too cold and there's too much carbon dioxide. Sure we can use all those high-tech gadgets to sustain life but who's gonna stay indoors with a helmet on for oxygen all the time. Not sexy.... And on Mars, gravity pull is only a mere 38% as strong as earth, so we will need to wear special shoes to keep our weight and balance on the ground. But most importantly, the atmosphere offers very little protection against things falling from the sky. So that can't be good.

Pluto is really, just too small and we don't even know how the surface on Pluto looked like.

Venus, too hot, great ball of molten fire. We wouldn't wanna end up wearing thick hot-suits all our lives now would we. Mercury on the other hand, has no water, no air, no atmosphere... (that can't be good for the soul either). Why would anyone wanna live on a planet that has no atmosphere? That's just nuts!

Jupiter has too much gas - hydrogen, helium (yup, the laughing one!) and too many strong winds and hurricanes. We'd be flying all over - so that's not good either. Uranus is too cold, too windy and too much poisonous gas. Like Uranus and Jupiter, Saturn is also nothing but a big ball of gas... now who wants to live on gas?

Last but not least, Neptune. Neptune are cousins to Uranus, Jupiter and Saturn and all those other gas guys... 'nuff said.

So now, the question is, how come only Earth is suitable for humans and animals?

Could there be other living things on other planets that we cannot see?

As we speak, are there any forms of life checking out our planet and see whether its liveable for them? (maybe only to find that there's just too much crap and pollution for their kind to live in.. hehe)

Maybe. But one thing for sure, it is amusing yet calming to know how Earth has everything the other eight planets have but all in small moderation. Well, Earth is the only planet in the solar system where one can explore all that it can offer without the need to use a gas mask, a thick suit... heck, you can even explore Earth with nothing on! That's the beauty of Planet Earth - the planet we live in!

So who says there are no perfection in this world?

At least Earth is... Perfect for us :)

So take care of it because it belongs to you!

The Daily SHOOT! - Disneyland, Hong Kong

2009-06-24T15:41:00.001+08:00

Disneyland, Hong Kong, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Ok so Meebops have to take the credit for this one cos she was the one who snapped the camera... Ain't it cool??? Blue, black and gold :)

This was taken at Hong Kong Disneyland. The fireworks was (and probably still is) the final act of the day - like a premiere before closing time. At that time, the fireworks display started at about 8pm (HKG Time).

Sure they have fireworks display every night, but it can get very very crowded. And the schedule changes with the season. Usually it is between 8pm and 9pm, depending on how much daylight you're saving ;)

Hong Kong Disneyland is a small 100 acres theme park. My advice is to just set aside 1 day for a visit. I believe they have 2 days, 3 days pass but you need only 1 because of its small size.

To get there, you either take a train, a bus, a cab from the city or stay over for the night at the Hollywood Hotel (where we stayed!) and have everything shaped like good ol' Mickey's head - from bed posts to the pool, even your pasta!!!

Stunning for lovers of Mickey and Disney cartoons! :)

The Daily SHOOT! - Bayon Temple, Cambodia

2009-06-18T17:55:00.001+08:00

Hope, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

I call this "Hope Is Alive"! Amazing contrast in colours don't you think...

The Bayon is another one of those famous temples of Angkor in Cambodia. As you know, the Bayon temple's unique feature are the massive sculptures of stone faces on several towers (i have a t-shirt with only the Bayon temple on it!).

It is also one of those temples where EVERYONE wants a picture taken with the 3 faces (facing South, East and West). So if you are there, be sure to snap fast or face the wrath of evil eyes from other travellers!

The Daily SHOOT! - Budapest, Hungary

2009-06-17T09:13:00.001+08:00

Budapest, Hungary, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

A day at the museum in Budapest, Hungary.

God knows where this was anyway (Gasp! I forgot to take notes!) but it was waaaayyyy back in 2005 when we were there. I know its Hungary, and in Budapest - just not sure where this was. Maybe, they were in the castle...

Anyway, these soldiers were pretty intimidating. Almost life-like... just without soul and flesh. They had other medieval exhibits around as well. Very fascinating!

PS: Avoid Europe (and esp. Hungary) in June and July... Its bleedin' hot and in July especially, is their Formula-1 Racing season. If you are a fan, then by all means. But if you are not, hotel rooms will cost you an arm, a leg and both your front and back pockets too. We paid GBP 99 per night, at a former monastery, 15 minutes bus ride into city centre! Daylight robbery? Indeed!!!

Part II of Malacca - JONKER Walk!

2009-06-11T11:54:00.027+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

So this is really slow, late and almost unacceptable!

But! I'm going to post them up anyway ;) and for those who wish to visit Malacca (or Melaka) anytime soon, over the weekends or on convoy, DO CHECK OUT JONKER!

I must say that Jonker is a little overhyped for a stretch of "pasar malam" (night market) styled shopping district but what i love about it is the idea of being truly Malaccan. You know, colonial shop houses, red laterns, Baba-Nyonya still speaking in unique-baba-only-Malay-English, the smell of aromatic "chicken rice" and fried kuih lobak (Carrot Cake) and the grinding of the ice for a bowl of Chendol. Yes, it has its own set of charm.

Where is Jonker Walk? On Jonker Street of course! Hehehe...

The Nyonya Baba inspired shophouses. Quaint ain't it? It looked really gorgeous in the day and even better at night!

If you need souvenirs, why you'll be spoilt for choice here! We're talking fridge magnets and plenty of them. I'm starting to really think that i should be collecting some of these as means of an ego-booster in case a relative decides to swing by my place. Haha! ;)

Another view of Jonker Walk. Its really quite pleasant to take a stroll down the entire street and just "look-see look-see" (or window shop) all the odds and ends displayed so neatly on makeshift table stalls.

That night, we wanted to try out the famed Chicken Rice Balls from the halal outlet of Famosa Chicken Rice Balls. But we were told that their halal outlet is ONLY available at the Malacca Bus Terminal (now called Central).

Personally, TTT didn't think that the ChickyBs (short for Chicken Rice Balls, Cubbies-style!) are out-of-this-world extraordinary (like what most people claimed). But now that we have tried it, we know. Yes it was tasty and all (who doesn't like chicken rice!) but it was ordinary. This is the "non-halal" outlet we found on Jonker, along one of the many smaller lanes.

Oh no trip to Malacca will be COMPLETE if you do not try the Chendol. What is Chendol? Chendol is a traditional dessert that is oh-so-sweet concoction of creamy coconut milk, green starched noodles, red beans, palm sugar, all topped with shaven ice.

We got ours here from a shop along Jonker. You cannot miss it. Its near the start of the north entrance, owned by a couple of hubby grinds the ice and aunty-wife, who is very eloquent and friendly. "You try you try my Chendol. Gua cakap, lu tak boleh jumpa Chendol macam gua punya. Mine is the best!"... Indeed! It was nice and sweet!!

When we were in Malacca for the 2nd time, we went with just one intention: To find the famed Asam Pedas (we didn't manage to find it the first time). "Asam Pedas" is a chilli-based gravy that is cooked with all kinds of spices including lemongrass, chilli, tumeric, shrimp paste etc. The most important ingredient however, is the "asam keping" or dried tamarind pieces, to give it that extra ZING to the dish. Without the tamarind, its just bland. And i personally like them with LOADS and LOADS of polygonum leaves or daun kesum. Delicious with hot piping steamed white rice! Hee! :)

And so we asked around for the best Asam Pedas in Malacca. Shamelessly, we chit chatted with police officers (or better known as The Tourists Police!), passerbys and taxi drivers to ask for tips on where to find the best Asam Pedas . There were mixed reviews of different restaurants but only one name was synonymous with all those who were interviewed - Hajah Mona Asam Pedas.

Here's how you eat them with, Mona-style: White rice, salted eggs and simple, understated fried cabbages. Its really quite amazing that they do this - so you can concentrate on the Asam Pedas and not be too bogged down by the other dishes. Very clever.

The common asam pedas with ikan pari (Stingray). Cubbies ordered this.

Meebops and her ever loving relationship with anything fatty and greasy and tasty, She Like! She ordered the asam pedas tetel, or scraps and spares from beef or mutton.

A plate of satay. Who doesn't know satay? Everybody does! And we love 'em! Oh this is seriously good satay peeps. Tender, sweet, aromatic, with just the right chunk of fat snugged in between the well-marinated meat... Very very nice :) Not exactly from HM but a stall "attached" to it.

My advice is, skip the malls unless you really have to. You can see nothing there but same old mall-rat culture back home. The deal is to put on your good walking shoes and WALK!

OH! Before i go, i didn't tell you what we had for breakfast in Holiday Inn, did i?

2 nice ice cold glass of wine, they call "Sparkling Juice". It was a good thing my beary nostrils wasn't full of sinusy goodness that morning. *Sniff* *Sniff*

"Meebops! Smell this... *sniff* *sniff* Don't you think its...*sniff* *sniff* ... alcohol? *sniff* *sniff*"

"Cubbies! Don't drink it!!!"

We don't know about you but Malacca is now one of the list of places to go to over the weekends, when we run out of things to do here at home. And say, ain't this neat? Malacca was awarded one of the prestigious UNESCO WHC Award in 2008! Boy! I am impressed! :)

Some BEARISH TIPS to Malacca:

If it isn't too much trouble for you, travel down to JB and take a bus down to Malacca. Not only it’s cheaper (RM 20 one way compared to S$38 in Singapore), its also faster and far more effective. Besides, all those travel - makes the journey even more interesting!
You don't need too many days in Malacca. A 2 or 3 day trip should suffice - one day shopping, one day "gluttoning" and one day sightseeing!
You can do the RM 5 "hop on hop off" double deck bus that will take you around Malacca in 30 minutes! Keep your ticket stub! Its free transport for you for the entire day!
Try the Chendol at the stall opposite the Red Church / Red Square, (Jalan Laksamana) sold by an Indian-Muslim man (former Mangosteen Chendol). TTT like it plain but you can also do it with red beans, and is a wonderful thirst quencher on a hot day! I tried it when i was young and never ever forget its sweet taste tickling my tongue to this day!
Must try the fresh Roasted Chestnut at Jonker Street. Just the right dose of sweetness. Buy a kilogram (RM 10) and snack while "window shopping" odds and ends sold along Jonker Walk.

Why I Hate Air Asia...

2009-06-10T16:47:00.003+08:00

And mind you, i am an advocate for low prices. I think all airlines should be cheaper than it was before (indeed, my wish came true...) and i still think Air Asia is better than Tiger Airways in many ways (which should have been long defunct). But there are numerous reasons why i hate this red airline and why they are really, really pushing me into becoming an EX-AIR ASIA passenger.

Dear Tony,

I was on AK704 flight bound for Kuala Lumpur. You see, whenever i travel on Air Asia, the flight is almost always delayed. 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 30... whatever the schedule, wherever the destination, there will always be delays. And not that i am unfazed of that fact but i suppose i am a little more tolerant of such circumstance. Yes, sometimes its the weather conditions, sometimes its just air traffic. But i've been on so many carriers before, both budget and full-service. The award still goes to you. Oh... and to Garuda too. You guys are almost at par in terms of scheduling.

In this instance, AK704 was 45 minutes off scheduled. We only took off close to 3pm.

For some reason, i have forgotten to take my pen with me when i left the office for KL that day. Oh! I'd usually have it with me. You know, when on business, you never know when you'll need one. So i am quite helpless without a pen. I will usually have no problem asking for one from one of those Batik-clad ladies on one of those conventional airlines. They'll usually pass it to me for use (which i return to them promptly after use of course!) within 5 - 10 minutes. Very efficient.

On board AK704, I asked for a simple humble pen that i can use to fill up my immigration and health declaration forms. Sure, you can argue that i can fill it up at the terminal upon arriving. But the flight had been delayed and you know how notorious KL airports are when it comes to immigration. You can be queueing for quite a long time before you finally get your turn. So i'm just trying to cut the hassle really.

And so i asked young girl in red skirt if i could borrow a pen, any pen. Girl looked at me, top to toe, disinterested and said, "Let me check first...".

So we took off and all was jolly good. The take-off was smooth, everyone happy. But i still didn't get my pen. So i waited. I waited and waited and was listening to my songs playing in my iPod. Time did pass and though i was painfully aware that for a pen, this was taking way too long, i didn't want to make a big fuss out of it. Creating a ruckus is just not my style.

25 minutes... 30 minutes... And i turned behind to see if little miss red skirt lost her way to my place for that pen. But sadly no, Miss Hostess in red short mini skirt was talking and laughing to her other short-skirted colleagues. So i waited for her conversation to finish, a good 5 minutes later, as we were descending, she aimlessly walked down the aisle, just to make sure that everything was in order.

So i said excuse me, what happened to the pen? With an attitude (i stress this), she said, "Gave the pen to other passengers already, that's why...".

You see, now its no longer the pen that mattered. It was her attitude. Absolutely priceless. I was gnawing my cheeks out because i was so angry.

You gave the pen to others. Sure. Its not your responsibility to lend me a pen. Sure. I'm flying on Air Asia and paid less than what others will pay for for the same route on other airlines. Sure. But what could she have done? Simply walk up to me and say sorry, we have no more pens available for your use. And i would've understand. I am not that petty honestly. Yes sometimes i can get carried away with pettiness but i am usually quite civil.

Yes i am angry. Yes i am fuming mad. But you know what Tony, i tell myself, its not worth it. Because Air Asia is Cheap. Cheap airlines buys Cheap 2nd hand fleets. Cheap airlines pay girls Cheap salaries. And hence, we get Cheap attitudes and services. So they can't help it. Its a pity really... But you know what they say, you pay peanuts, you get monkeys :)

Oh then i heard the announcement made on the intercom. I can't help but snort when the stewardess had the audacity to say, "Air Asia was voted World's Best Low-Cost Airline in 2009 by 15 mil people around the world. Thank you for making our dream possible."

By 15 million who? Stakeholders? World's Best is at best, a joke.

You know Tony, there is a reason why some commuters prefer conventional full service airlines over budget "no-frills" ones. Honestly, we get what we paid for. We don't have to pay for everything. Everything is all included. Baggage allowance, service... Not so much on the food or drinks or cheap wines. Its the service. On Air Asia? Sure you get what you paid for. Then again, you pay for everything. Well, not unless you don't need to eat, drink or carry a luggage. Then its the perfect airline for you :)

A fellow traveller to Melbourne once asked TTT which airline we took to fly to Melbourne. And so we said we took Air Asia X - when they were giving away supposedly "free tickets" but ended up charging us for more S$750 each. The traveller was shocked, naturally (we did too...) and said that she only paid S$421 for a full service flight on Emirates. Our jaw almost dropped to the floor. And she added, "No point la flying on Air Asia... they make you pay for everything. And in the end, when you calculate, it's the same like flying on conventional airlines. Might as well fly on big planes complete with meals, 30kg baggage allowance and larger seats..."

So Tony, here's a suggestion:

Rather than hiring hostesses (who are probably MAS rejects anyway) to sell commodities to passengers, you might as well have a vending machine that dispenses drinks (both chilled and hot), snacks and hot meals onboard. That way, you'll be truly budget and don't need to pay for so many of your useless crews (who does very little anyway) - if they're not pushing for a snack on the wheel-cart, they're counting change or chit chatting. But that's a given... after all, they're Air Asia's hostesses :)

Oh, and while you're at it, you might as well charge for each toilet use. Or make commuters pre-order access to the toilet online. And for those who didn't, you'll get a chance to charge them double onboard! Good idea? I think it might just work ;)

Dear Dato' Tony Fernandez,

I asked for a pen. Do i have to pay for this too?

Sincerely,
An Ex-Air Asia passenger

SIDEBAR: Try googling "love, hate Air Asia" and you'll get a good mix of reactions. But the common ground is, you either love it or you simply hate it. I've never been a strong lover or hater for anything... i'd work perfectly as a Diplomat. But you know, they really have pushed me to the other end of the spectrum. And even though i can foresee that i can't break-away from travelling on Air Asia for business (because of the economic crunch, they took away my Krisflyer flying privilege...), i am definitely converted - from "lover of cheap airfares" to "hate that cheap red airline who compromised service and time".

Some will say, well Cubbies, too bad for you...

I'll say! Yep, just too bad really...

PS: Just to test Air Asia's staff concern of safety on board the planes, i purposely didn't put on my seat belt as we were landing and placed my big huge Crumpler bag on the seat next to me. The hostesses pass by me 3 times when getting ready to land. Nothing. I was still safe thankfully but hey, remember Cheap Everything? Even safety it seems! ;)

So do fly with a consistent airline - Cheap flights, Cheap service, Cheap everything!

The Day I Finally...

2009-06-05T16:06:00.006+08:00

PASSED MY DRIVING TEST!!!

I made it. WOOHOO!!! I passed my driving test. 2nd attempt and i got 16 points for it.

Now i can't wait to get on the road and kill someone... NOT! ;)

Look to right, left and check blindspot turning right, look left, right and check blindspot turning left, signal early and stay in your lane UNLESS overtaking :) Good tips? Sure, it came from me! Ha! Ha!

It shall be my mantra from today on... *nod*nod* Cubbies must drive safely. Cubbies will drive safely. Value your life, value the life of others :)

*Oh... the safety video they made me watch after the test was freaky... brrr!*

Back To Kuching Mentel

2009-06-04T09:27:00.004+08:00

With KM's help, i was able to pay about almost everything in Melb in CASH! Oh yes, put away those plastic devils 'cos Mommy's got the mooooola! Hehehehe...

And then we're back and of course, with not a single cent in my pocket, i reckon we better start saving again for our future use. And so we came back to this little island called home TRF.

But KM was almost full when we left so few days after we got back, i realised i had to empty her tummy again! Woohooo! :) Am i happy or am i happy...

So i counted and counted and counted... this month's earnings to a total of S$147.50!

That's like the biggest amount ever! Unbelievable.

So rolled back S$7.50 into KM and now my efforts to raise funds is on its way again - with S$140 tucked neatly under my pillow.... ahhhh *dreamy dreamy*

We're Baaack!!!

2009-06-04T09:12:00.004+08:00

and with good reason too! :)

Grrrowl!!!

Ok we've been sooo bad by not updating our blog from time to time. Truth is, we're just having too much f-u-n exploring the world with our paws! Oh yes, we're back from Melbourne, Australia and missing it with all our hearts... But fret not, we ABSOLUTELY love the city and i just can't wait to share it with you... the hits, misses, the deals, the shopping, the false fire alarm in the middle of the night... ahhh.. we're giving away too much ;)

WATCH THIS SPACE!!!

The Daily SHOOT! - Red Urban Taxis

2009-04-09T11:09:00.001+08:00

Red Urban Taxis, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Don't know how come there were so many swooshing past at one time, but yes, indeed.
Taken at Central District, Hong Kong.

The Day We Took The Bus & Headed Straight For Malacca!

2009-03-31T16:02:00.014+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

So this trip was impromptu - we didn't know what to do over the weekends, Meebops and I. So she suggested that we take a bus down from Johor Bahru and headed straight for Malacca, which is roughly a 3 hour journey on a nice, air-conditioned and comfortable coach.

So that's what we did. We spent just a night there, exploring Malacca Town. It was an interesting journey considering that i haven't been there in more than 17, maybe 20 years. I don't remember anything about Malacca except the Red Church and the thirst-quenching Chendol from the makeshift Mangosteen stall.

The first time we were there was very overwheming for me. We took lots of pictures, walked from one end of Jonker Street to the other, mingled around the Amsterdam/Venice-inspired river walkway and even took a hop-on-hop-off bus to explore Malacca Town i've not seen in 20 years! It was amazing of course! Especially when we were there while love was still blowing strong in the air! *winks* Yup, we were there on Valentine's Day!

We stayed at a slightly posh hotel, which is the Holiday Inn Malacca. At approx. S$140, it was a good steal considering we were upgraded to straits-view deluxe for free. The room also came with free breakfast. Being the lazy teddies that we are, we decided to order-in our breakfast. This is the view from our room:

Isn't this simply amazing? Endless horizons.. It was very calming.

This is the pool view... Oh! The pool by the way, is infinity-edge (the kind i love to swim in!) so that's pretty neat!
I just had to put this up. I don't think the mosque is operational yet... But if it is, i will want to visit. I think its really therapeutic to do one's prayers, especially if it faces an endless sea :)

After a short rest, we were out exploring Malacca. We took the hotel's free shuttle down because we were quite lazy to walk. But if you have the energy and time, you can cross over the bridge and make your way down town on foot. Probably will take 15 to 20 minutes. They drop us off at the Red Square because we wanted to explore Jonker Street. We had a little bit of time; so we decided to get on the hop-on-hop-off bus and let them do the "walking". Very nice! Here's the ride:

And here are the views... Well, not all, some of it...

Oh! the bus will take you around town and come back to the Red Square where it started. Anyway, once was enough.

When it was starting to get dark, we strolled along the river and off to Jonker. Wanna see what Malacca town riverfront now looks like?

From this:

To this!!!

Isn't this just simply wonderful? I think its beautiful! And even though Malacca Town is very touristy, it still retains some of its old charm.

I'll do the Jonker Walk post next. This one's getting a little too lengthy! ;)

Earth Hour - Sign Up Today!

2009-03-26T10:38:00.012+08:00

Be a part of the movement and conserve in the name of Beautiful Mother Earth.

She's the only one we've got.

8:30PM local time, wherever you live on Planet Earth.
Saturday, 28 March 2009.

The Travelling Teddies are a BIG FAN of the Earth
&
We support the Earth Hour!

The Daily SHOOT! - The Hong Kong Rush Hour

2009-03-25T16:35:00.001+08:00

The Hong Kong Rush Hour, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

What can i say? The rush hour here in Hong Kong is like all rush hours the world over. People find places to eat, queue for tables, slurp here, slurp there, perspire perspire and go for a short walk, then back into the office.

Causeway Bay at lunch is a MUST. Stop, in the middle of the street if you have to and people watch. Like Cubbies said, "You haven't seen chaos if you haven't seen Causeway Bay!"

The Daily SHOOT! - Sasak Village Chief

2009-03-24T17:25:00.001+08:00

Sasak Village Chief, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

90% of Lombok Island's population are made up of people from the Sasak indegenius tribes and is related to Balinese in race but religion-wise, comprise of a mixture between Hindu and Islam.

The tribe mixes basic islamic beliefs together with Hindu beliefs and created the evolutionary Wetu Telu religion. It is believed that Bali was the force of influence of this "mutant-nised" 3rd religion.

Whatever their practices are, visiting the villages "as part of your local tour itinerary" is, to me, a too-commercialized affair that should be avoided, if at all possible. They make you pay mandatory donations when you leave and most of the dwellers are probably those you can already find at Mataram's central market every morning.

Nonetheless, seeing first-hand how their huts looked like and their actual living conditions are least to say, enlightening.

A Traveller, Not A Tourist...? What's The Difference?!

2009-03-23T18:15:00.002+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Yes yes, its an old adage. "Be a traveller, not a tourist..." so said traveller come celebrity chef and foodie Anthony Bourdain. But really, the traveller-tourist dichotomy has long been one of the most talked about, most discussed and argued "controversy" of the travel world.

Honestly, is there really a difference?

Not much, according to me. I mean, regardless of the kind of vagabond you think you are, or whatever label you place upon yourself (i.e. backpacker, budget traveller, shoestringers, luxury, pleasure, business etc etc.), you are still universally called a TOURIST (except if you are travelling into the United States - they just completely remove all labels and call you, Aliens... err.. thanks *snort*).

Meebops said: "To me, a tourist is someone who is snap happy and will go all out, at all expense, in order to visit popular, must-see areas within a city. It can be up the Eiffel Tower, or into the Pyramids or even a picture of them standing at the Taj Mahal. They care less about how it came to be, or what was sacrificed in the process and worse, they care less about the surroundings around them - poor people, beggars, locals... They don't bother to create conversations or make friends along the way..."

"A traveller is someone who is there with an open mind and someone who wants to do what the locals do... immerse in their culture, make new friends, volunteer if they have to and just have a good time mingling with like-minded strangers... that's me, that's us..."

Well said Meebops, as always... The Wiser One of the Two :P

Vagabondish wrote this piece of article i came across a few days ago while researching on my trip to Melbourne. Pretty insightful tips that, amusingly, many are aware of.

What we really want to do is get to know a country, rather than just visiting it.

But often, due to home-bound commitments (like work, and limited annual leave entitlement, finance etc), we get so bugged down by the limitations of time and budget that we find ourselves covering all the tourist hot-spots and hardly had time to sit down for a cup of coffee at a local sidewalk, people watch, talk to locals and do what they do... Simply becoming an audience to a culture is different from participating. I suppose the latter, brings greater appreciation...

But does that make us any different a traveller to a tourist (or vice versa)?

The idea is simple really, you travel to another country, immerse yourself in another culture, talk to locals and snap pictures of their properties and their people - what makes you any lesser a tourist than someone who probably paid more, make an effort to talk to locals too (esp. when in McDonalds or when asking for the price to the cute little handbag) and snap all the pictures they can in 10 minutes before boarding the tourist bus (according to the itinerary..)?

Its the same to me...

The only stark difference i can see is budget. One sleeps at cheap hostels, eats at cheap places and uses a public transport to move around. The other sleeps in hotels, takes a tour to move around and dine at restaurants.

Whatever you do - "tourist" or "travellers" - keep an open mind when travelling and appreciate the grandeur of what others, outside your world, has to offer. If you have to take the bus to blend in with the locals, do so. If you paid more than you can afford just so you can live it off at the Hilton's Waldorf Astoria in NYC, then by all means. Just be respectful to the cultures and societal beliefs and ideologies that is different from yours. The more you travel, the wider your perspective of life and the world around you is and the more you appreciate what it's like to be alive and be human ;)

Most importantly when you travel, Take Your Time... What you can't do during this trip gives you all the more reason to come back to the city again in the near future ;)

The Daily SHOOT! - Hong Kong Trams

2009-03-23T16:20:00.001+08:00

Hong Kong Trams, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

One of my MUST-DO while in Hong Kong - is to take a step back in time and hop on a HK$ 2 ride aboard the Hong Kong Tram.

TIP: Be sure to sit next to the window for the best views of the bustling city. Besides, the trams are non-airconditioned, so good for basic ventilation too.

Trams passes through colourful Wan Chai district, bustling Causeway Bay and North Point (as well as other spots too). Enter the trams from the back and pay two bucks upon alighting at the front.

Definitely must hop on one of these when you are in Hong Kong :)

Have Coffee, Will Travel...

2009-03-23T11:54:00.007+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

I smelled black coffee on the bus on the way to work this morning. Found a kindred spirit with a stranger, holding that steaming hot cup of black coffee, sipping it ever so slowly - savouring every burst of thick, full flavour tickling the tongue............... The aroma lingers in my mind, all the way to work.

I have to admit, i am addicted to Coffee since way back when. Plain old, black "piping-hot" coffee - a sip will send me straight to Coffee-Heaven; where Angels in black get together with Dancing Espresso machines, for a musical rendition of "The Coffee Song" (by Jars of Clay by the way), while i swim, butt-naked in coffee lake... Ahhh... What coffee paradise :)

So out of pure boredom again, i did a "Coffee Personality Test" to identify the Coffee in me. Interesting results:

I am a White Chocolate Mocha:

You are a White Chocolate Mocha through and through. You are a combination of adventuresome and sweet, hardworking and social. The confident espresso and cocoa stirred with milk and topped with tantalizing whipped cream make for an interesting person. Fun-loving and not too serious, your stable taste but special topping shows that you are flexible to the needs of others. Your balance of strong and fun make you responsible but risk taking. The side of you that is slightly thrill-seeking and active is displayed openly. Others may have to dig a little deeper to get to your rich and deep interior. Your all-around sweet taste of white chocolate is surprising and calming. You generally are service oriented and like to be around people; but you need to relax by being away from it all. The bottom line is that you are fun loving, not afraid of challenge, like being active and outdoorsy. Your uncomplicated twist on the ordinary is exciting but calming. Your enthusiastic and friendly mocha nature warms anyone in your company and uplifts any occasion.

Hmmm... Strangely though, i have never tried White Chocolate Mocha before - and don't think i ever will. I hate White Chocolate and i'll only have mocha when someone else is having it and it "looks good"... Hehehe... Oh well.

Anyways... back to my back stroke swimming in a pool of black coffee (not piping hot though, that'll hurt...)

Ooo, good coffee
Strong coffee
I need to have some
Ooo, good coffee
Strong coffee

- Jars of Clay, The Coffee Song

The Daily SHOOT! - Hong Kong Island

2009-03-19T11:01:00.001+08:00

Hong Kong Island, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

As seen from Kowloon Island, Avenue of the Stars. They also have nightly 10 minute "Victoria Harbour Light Show" (or Symphony of Lights) from this side of Hong Kong, along the Tsim Sha Tsui Waterfront.

A spectacular display of pyrotechnics and laser beams, 8pm nightly. A must-see in Hong Kong that brings the statement, "good things in life are free..." to another level.

Short Post On My Obsession & My First Trip To KL In 2009!

2009-03-18T11:52:00.005+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Huh! I realise this will probably my very first post on my many many KL trips. And i don't intent to make it complicated. I am proud to say that i survived the ordeal of having went through immigration and not get caught for using my mom's much less than desirable, unattractive luggage. Here is a photo of how it looked like:

And just to show off my new shoes, here is the photo of the luggage and me and my new Crocs Explorer Meebops got for me for just S$30 during an Expo sale. Schweet! ;)

Just to show off some pictures i took after my maiden flight on Silkair from Singapore to KL, here is my ride on the KLIA Express, which is my favourite mode of transportation to KL City Centre. Cheap (at only RM35 one-way), comfortable (most of the time you get the entire 'cubicle" for yourself), fast (they take you to Sentral train station in precisely 28mins) and best of all, i get to listen to my i-Pod and keep my peace. Of course, there are times when i ge lazy and just want to be driven from the airport to my hotel for RM 70; that's when a taxi comes in. Anyway here are the pictures:

The KLIA train. Picture is a litle blurry because i'm in one of its siblings, on my way to the city! hehehe...

This is a little of what the interior looks like. Clean, executive-feel (just lacks Wi-Fi services) and roomy. Per 'cubicle' sits 4 but you can only get away with 3 at most, unless you're a Hobbit (or a midget for that matter.. hehe!).

And of course, best of all is the view :)

The company put me up at the JW Marriott (like they always do anyway...) and i was quite pleasantly surprised that even though the room stayed the same (the bed is simply gorgeous), they "refurnished" the TV to a flat screen one (like about time!!!). A sampling of how their cosy rooms looked like:

This is the gorgeous bed at the Marriott:

And here's the working / relax area, with a nice couch for 2:

I didn't go out much at all when i was there. It rained all day (thunderstorms, lighting... the works) and there wasn't anything i was looking for in particular anyway. Here's what the weather looked like every day. It gets worse by evening. I have no complaints for the weather though, i love the rain (except when i'm expected to fly!) and cold weather makes me a happy, bouncy Cubby :)

So the first day, i had Subway - no pictures of Subway cos that's quite common, everyone knows Subway. Second night though, i got a little greedy and craved for something noodly and fried and hot, and at the same time i crave for rice, fatty chickeny duckie roasted skin type.

Torn? So i got both! from across the Marriott at Food Republic (Pavillion Shopping Mall). Its the foodcourt type of food - instant, usually laden with MSG but affordable and can be quite yummy at times. I think, i spent about RM 8 for the Thye Hong Hokkien Mee (near the escalator down and usually with long queue) and Roasted Duck Rice was about RM 9 or so. They satisfy my cravings but not as yummy as i'd thought they'd be. Anyways, this is the Hokkien Mee, which is basically stir-fried fat yellow noodles mixed with a pinch of rice noodles (laksa), with prawns and squid and and fish cake added in. This one tasted so-so (even though it received raving reviews from netizens in Malaysia). I've tasted better elsewhere but hey, food is subjective to the different taste-buds. You know your tongue better!

I kid you not. I finished the Hokkien Mee even though it was so-so cos i hate wasting food... OK OK, i'm just a glutton. Missing the prawns cos i think i'm allergic to it *scratch scratch*..

And that's that. Now after that's finished, i went on to have my roasted duck rice. This costed about RM 9 for a portion of the crispy roasted duck (not crispy :( ..) and white rice, topped with special "asam" sauce and soy sauce and whatever there was in there. I'd give this a pretty good rating because i love duck (since Din Tai Fung) and i was still only half satisfied with my cravings. ** Meebops don't quite fancy this though; said she didn't like the sauce... Anyway, here goes:

And the rice, which i must honestly say, looks gleamingly delicious and gorgeous in this photo:

And of course, i finished this too!

I bit and sucked and ate everything - right down to the very last morsel... Told you i eat a lot. Me likes! ;)

Latest Update! Haven't been to KL in yonks. I'm starting to miss everything :(

What A Bummer... I Failed My Driving Test!

2009-03-16T12:42:00.005+08:00

Picture borrowed from motivatedphotos

I failed it. I failed it and oh boy did i cry... Hard. Everyone seemed to think that i have good driving skills, and a safe driver too but i failed it. Even my instructor thought that i could nail this test with my thumb (since i've been driving every single day for the past 1 month prior to the test day!) but i failed and disappoint mostly :(

Got 38 points for the tests. Nope, in driving, the lesser points you get, the better your chances of passing... and you need at most 18 points to make a scrape-through. So how did i successfully earned 38 points? Here's how I did it in probably, 3 minutes.

It all started fine that morning. I took half the day off, woke up early, did my prayers and had a nice hot breakfast, while watching TV. I looked calm, but the test and the anxiety and fear are all constantly at the back of my mind. I'm talking CONSTANTLY thinking of my driving test. It was so bad that my immunity levels dipped so low and i fell ill and developed severe gastritis - couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, was vomitting. I thought i had contracted some form of virus prior to the test.

And so we met at the Centre, my driving instructor and i, at 10am that morning. My test was set at 11am. Got into the car, drove around the vicinity to get a feel of road hazards and conditions just so i can be "mentally prepared". He said, "Tak payah drive banyak banyak, makin banyak makin tak bagus..." (Loosely translated: "Don't need for too much practice on the road this morning. The more you drive, the worse it will be..."). And as we were driving to test out the roads, he was telling me about a freak accident that happened just outside the driving centre that morning. Thank you for that "not helping at all" information, i said to myself.

We finally went into the Centre at 10 mins before the briefing, at 10.50am. (MY ADVICE is to: NEVER EVER do that... Always arrive at least 15 - 20 minutes before). That was when i told my instructor i wanted to pee sooo badly. I don't know what it was... whether i really needed to pee or it was just anxiety getting a hold of me.

Anyway, he was briefing me about what to do, where to go and the documents i needed to give to the traffic police in charge. I wasn't concentrating AT ALL because my bladder was full! I was literally jumping in my little bear suit, clasping my two legs together so i don't pee in my pants. When he finally finished briefing, i walked as fast i could to the holding room. And like as though it wasn't torture enough, the holding room was all covered in black tinted glass ... all but a piece of paper on the window that says, "Driving Test Holding Room" - if you don't look at it properly, you won't know where the holding room was. And i didn't... because my bladder has taken the best of my ability to think straight!

So i asked and asked around... After a good 5 minutes, i finally found the room (which was right before my eyes by the way) and hand over my documents for processing. I then excused myself, and went straight to the toilet. At the door of the toilet, a man asked, "Harlow... $0.20 to go toilet..." I looked at him with extremely pitiful eyes and said, "I don't have any money, its all in the car, i'm taking my test in 2 minutes and i really, really need to pee."

As far as i can remember, i have never begged for someone to let me pee. So this was a first and it had to happen on my big day.

When i finally get to release myself, to my horror, it was also a day when my "bestest friend" decides to appear. Because of all the stress, i've actually missed my period for over a week. I was stressed out too, waiting and hoping for my period to come before my test day. It didn't... And on the very morning, 2 minutes before my test, it appeared. I was so mad at myself!!! But what can i do huh? So i quickly did my thing and went back to the holding room, cursing under my breath all the way...

One by one, our names were called out by this white and blue uniformed men who looked like they kill humans as a pastime. My name was called out at about 11:15am by this thin, short, Chinese but malay-speaking man (who still looked like he kills for fun..) He looked friendly, i thought to myself. Until the first thing he did was to ask me my IC number to verify. "Sxxxxxxxx...," I said. Maybe out of anxiety, i may have said it out too fast because he asked me again, "Tell me your IC number again..." .. So i said it again. And for the third time, he asked, "One more time? What's your IC number?..." I was already skipping many many heartbeats. If that initial questioning was a tactic to make me nervous - it sure was effective. I was a whole lot nervous now than i was ever before!

And so we walked to the car at the parking lot. It was obvious that he was escorting me out and others who were outside looked on. They're probably saying, "Good luck to you... Not!".

When we got into the car, listening to the advice that my instructor and friends gave, i pretended to shift the rear-view mirror a little, the side mirrors, my seat, put on my seatbelt... While i was doing all that "pre-flight" stuff, the tester stopped me and said, "Enough enough... Just move. Let's go."

If one can die out of anxiety, i swear i could've...

And so we drove off, into the circuit area. I saw my instructor who nodded at me from the Centre and i nodded back, almost saying, I'll do my best. I said to myself, I must pass. I have to. Everyone wants me to pass. Even the tester wants me to pass. So why shouldn't i? I'm ready to drive. After all, learning to drive is expensive. I have spent close to my monthly pay just to learn to drive. I spent 2 hours, every single day just to go through the same route over and over again. Failing a test means that i have to fork out, for at least another month of lessons; another month of sacrificing my time, my hard-earned money; another month of moving through narrow courses and crank courses (which i hate so much!); another month of parallel parking, reverse parking, braking, getting the biting point right... I love to drive but learning it is just, a pain in the neck - both literally and financially speaking.

So our first Course was the directional change (or 3-point turn) course, which i swear to God, i have done so many times during my practical lessons that it was difficult to flunk this one. I kept reciting to myself (weeks and days before the test) when i should turn and what i should do after turning. But when we went into the course, i lost all sense of reason and direction.

My limbs were jiggly and my feet completely turned to jell-o. I put in my reverse gear, and turned the steering way too early that my right rear wheel almost striked a kerb. That's when he said, "You are going to strike a kerb you know. I'm warning you..." But i couldn't believe what i'm doing! I have completely lost my head! I forgot everything that was taught... EVERYTHING.

I adjusted the car and made a reverse again. That was when i really hit the kerb. Thank goodness i was reversing slow enough so i didn't mount it, just touched it. Again i moved forward and reposition the car. And then i made another reverse attempt. AGAIN! MY REAR WHEEL HIT THE KERB! By then i was so freaked i couldn't think straight no more. I wanted to stop the car, apologise to the tester and run out crying to my instructor. It was that bad... Instead i took a long deep breath and exhaled out loud and said to my tester, "I'm really very nervous Sir. I'm sorry..."

And then he said, "Start your engine and try again. Start your engine... and reverse." Honestly, he sounded kind. He sounded like as though he was giving me a chance. Hmm.. maybe i'm gonna pass after all. Then i ignited my engine. It went screeching... I then revved it up again and ignited. The screech was so loud, it was deafening. This can't be... I know how to ignite a car, i thought to myself.

He said, "Enough enough enough..."

You know what? My engine didn't die. That was when i realise... The MTF tricked me. What an a-hole! Arrrgh!

But i had to maintain my dignity (or what's left of it) and pride and complete the test i committed myself to. So for the probably, 5th time trying, i finally get to reverse my car properly into the area and turned left to exit. That probably took me 3 minutes or so, but it was the longest 3 minutes in my life.

I didn't see him writing anything - he was discreet. So there was still optimism. Maybe this guy's gonna give me a chance because i'm nervous. Haha!

The rest of the Course was marked for minor mistakes. We went up and down the slope (which i got 2 points for "incorrect breaking technique" - hit the clutch first then the brake), into the crank course (which i did 2 reverse manoeuvre and also got 2 points for), reverse parking (perfect), S-Course (perfect) and parallel parking (which i got 4 points for failure to confirm to safety... blindspot, my instructor said).

He then asked me to drive out on the road. I think i may have gotten one of the easiest test route that morning - been there upteenth time, i should know, i told myself. I still didn't know i was gonna fail when he cut short the test route and asked me to turn left (instead of going straight) to go back to the office. My general driving was quite good except at the traffic light, when my car stalled once, when i released the clutch too fast (because of some IDIOT who honked me the minute the light went green). So i was marked 2 points for "delay in moving off" - other than that, everything went perfectly smooth.

During the debrief, the tester told me with this, i dunno, kind but almost "i'm-mocking-you" look painted across his face, "Your circuit is very bad. Very bad... So i cannot let you pass lah. Your driving is also, not so good. Your braking quite rough (even though that never happened!) and when you went down the slope, you pressed clutch first and that's very dangerous you know. So you must practice your circuit some more..."

And so, that's how i got 38 points. One may say, wow that's a lot of points. I say, its not that difficult really... One strike, 10 points. I got 2 strikes, that's 20 points. Plus all 18 other minor mistakes - 38 points. Simple.

My face turned red. Literally red. I was holding my tears and when i said, "OK..." I turned to my right and saw that the girl next to me, was smiling in a kind of, "Awww... I'm sorry you failed loser." (she passed by the way) look - only then i realised, i freaking flunked. What do i tell my instructor? How do i break the news to Meebops? What about my parents?

My instructor was supportive even though he was clearly shocked that i failed. Meebops was kind, as she always is, and gave me a shoulder to cry on and the spirit to try again. My mom, was disappointed too but was also a kind gentle soul i could always lean on.

That night, Meebops, myself and a few of our friends went on trip to KL to catch a concert during the weekends. It wasn't the best trip for me but the test definitely made me grow into a more determined, and wiser, safer driver than i ever thought possible.

I will pass the next one, i promised myself. Less anxious i hope. Bleargh...

In the meantime, I WAIT. Bah!

Total Earnings This Month = More Than I Ever Thought Possible!

2009-03-13T18:06:00.004+08:00

I emptied my Kuching Mentel today.

Ok before i declare the total savings for this month - i have a confession to make.

I haven't been saving as much as i should've...

My projected sum before i leave for Melbourne is approx. AU$1000+. But because i've been paying for a lot of extra-curricular stuff (like driving etc.), the moolahs' a little dry and a little slow.

But that didn't stop or immobilised my spirit to save for my trip though! Every $2 note in my hands, i go, "Aunty... can change $2 note to 2 sets of $1 coin? Ummm.. If you don't have, 50 cents also can!..." I was determined and finally, today - Friday, 13th March 2009, my total earnings for January / February......

Is a whopping... $142.50 cold hard coins! Bwahahahahaha!!!

So its less than last month's by S$1.50. And yes, i took 2 months to get to this... But it sheer is worth every effort, blood, sweat, tears etc. etc.

So rolling $2.50 in KM's tummy...

With this month's takings, i now have a total of 130 + 130 + 96 + 140 + 140 = S$636

That's roughly, AUD 630. Doing good... :)

Great, in fact. Just great :) *grins grins*

We'll Be Right Back!

2009-02-09T22:23:00.001+08:00

Well well well... In this uncertain period of economic turmoil, what with talented professionals being laid off - big names like Director, VPs, Head of Division - and with you wondering whether your job is equally at stake.. The Travelling Teddies have had the pleasure of being blessed with beeziness - with work likewise personal life (busy is good...).

Cubbies is currently undergoing her intensive practical driving lessons before her actual test on 27th February! So she is a BUNDLE OF NERVES right now... Cubbies thought of NOTHING but her driving and spoke of NOTHING but her driving. She has cancelled and postponed all her travels for the month of February to concentrate on her crash course.

Errr... "Crash", it seems, is not a good word to use right now.

As for Meebops... Well, meebops is always busy. She is taking up classes now to further nurture her penchant and flair for languages. Good for her! :) She will be back soon... Just not sure when exactly. Hehe...

This blog will be silent for the time being so Cubbies can concentrate on practising everything she knows about how to make her Cubby Buggy move in a straight line!

(picture taken from here)

So... GOOD LUCK TO CUBBIES! And more updates from The Travelling Teddies coming up very soon!

Ciao!

The Daily SHOOT! - Kid in Lombok

2009-01-28T16:12:00.001+08:00

Kid in Lombok, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

This was taken in Lombok Island, a haven separated from its more popular brother, Bali.

I believe the kid in the photo is one of the Sasaks, who are the local inhabitants in Lombok. We were on a tour then, to visit various hotspots within the island (not many though) including to the Sasak Tribal Village.

Majority of the population in Lombok are Muslims, but as you travel within the island, you know that Hinduism is widespread and is still practiced on the majority Muslim island. Compare this to Big Brother Bali - where majority are Hindus.

And Hinduism made its presence felt and known - when even in a clearly defined Islamic set of rules, the Sasak indigenous people created they own "religion" and beliefs, called the Wetu Telu - which is a unique religion that blends both Islam and Animism and is only found in Northern Lobok, from a village of Bayan.

They consider themselves Muslims but incorporate rituals borrowed from Hinduism, Taoism and Animism where worldly offerings (like clothes, toothbrush, food etc.) are sacrificed for the dead to use in the after-life.

Very interesting indeed...!

My December Savings On KM!

2009-01-28T10:12:00.006+08:00

Is a whopping... $144 cold hard coins! Mwahahaha! More than i did the last 3 months... Impressive :)

As usual, i am rolling the $4 over back into my Mentel's tummy and putting aside the rest for my Melbourne trip. I am sooooo... haaaaaapy! With this month's takings, i now have a total of 130 + 130 + 96 + 140 = $496!

That's roughly, AUD 498. Whoa...

Imagine all the new clothes and the new hats and fur-coats (i do synthetics only..) i can be getting in Australia... :D *blink*blink*blink*

The Daily SHOOT! - Rice Paddy Field

2009-01-23T16:23:00.001+08:00

Rice Paddy Field, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Snapped a picture on our long, strenuous climb up to the Sindang Gile Waterfall, which was near Mount Rinjani.

The climb is not for the too old or the too young, because the pathways are tiny, probably only slightly larger than you 2 feet put together. Climbing it on a wet day (which we did) will be dirty and slippery - which not good considering the height between where we're climbing down to the ditch below spell dead-by-then.

But Lombok, just like its famous neighbour, Bali, is where you can find plenty of picturesque landscape of paddy fields that will constantly rapt you in awe.

There's so much that these islands have to offer. We never grew tired of it - always something there for everyone...

The Audacity of McDonald's In Food Haven Thailand...

2009-01-20T12:56:00.006+08:00

Grrowl!!!

So my time in Bangkok is soon coming to an end (tomorrow) and last night was probably one of the best night i had in days.

After work, i rested on the lovely couch for about 10 minutes before changing into my "teletubby" swimsuit for a good, 45 minutes swim in the hotel pool. I was mislead into thinking that it is one of those wonderful wonderful "infinity edge" pool, but it was just a regular rectangular one that is super quiet. This is of course, a strictly business hotel (Sukhothai Hotel) and only business users patronise it - but even business dudes and dudettes need to unwind, like yours truly!

So off to swim i went... and after working out the arms and the legs and the paws, jumping in the water to entertain myself (yes, i literally did...), it felt good... but i also got hungry. And during the entire swim, my mind was going back and forth on what i should have for dinner. I am definitely not going into the city and one of those bustling shopping arcades like i did the day i arrived, and the next closest civilisation is 20 mins walk from the hotel (Suan Lum Night Bazaar).

I was wet, hungry and slowly turning grouchy... Walk? Its the last thing i wanna do...

So i got creative and decided to order in. I am sick, SUPER DUPER SICK with hotel food, so i asked Concierge if i can call in McDonald's to the hotel to deliver food to me. Being a 5-star class hotel, they said in their sing-song thai accent, "Sure Madame... You call this number (which was 1711 by the way) and you pay charge for the telephone at the hotel and you pay for your food directly to McDonalds.."

Perfect. Just what i needed.

So i dialed 1711 and the greeting was in thai - i thought to myself, "Darn, i don't speak thai... How do i.." and the voice on the other end was saying, "For English, press 1..."

The operator took my order, which was: 1 SUPER-SIZED Double Fillet O' Fish Meal (comes with this SUPER HUGE fries), 4 piece spicy chicken drumlets and 6 piece chicken nuggets. I was hungry and surely, i got greedy.

Then the voice on the other line said, "May i ask how many party is eating?..." So i said just one.

There was complete silence, and then she said, "Moment please..."

I thought she was gonna sell me life insurance in case i collapse and die of heart attack but all she said was: "Your order will arrive at seven, four, five PM. Thank you for calling McDonalds and have a nice day."

It was surprisingly fast and accurate. The meal came knocking at my door at 7:45PM and the entire thing cost me 266 Baht - it was dirt cheap. Back at home, the meal would've cost S$18++ and not even the SUPER SIZE meal. And yet, you see people here a lot slimmer and leaner than those back home.

My meal was satisfying and i was a happy happy camper by the end of my dinner.

I must say though, no fries taste as delicious as the ones i tried in Hong Kong. The ones i had last night was a little on the soggy side, lots of salt though but had that bitter aftertaste, much like what you'll get back home (i think its the oil they fry in). The one in Hong Kong however, man that's like Fries Heaven. It crispy, yellow, just the right consistency and dose of salt, a little oily but its just... Ooooooh.. TO DIE FOR.

As for my maiden experience with McDonald's in Bangkok, pretty exciting. The super large coke is still in my mini-bar though.

Silk Air... Smooth As Silk? Not!

2009-01-12T15:59:00.009+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

I hate complaining. Oh yes i do... I hate complaining about stuff and just being a grouch over every single thing, like some people can. But a good feedback, is always... you know, good.

My maiden flight into KL on Silk Air, while it was a smooth, almost turbulence-free journey, was as claustrophobic as i expected. Why do i even have expectations? It is a budget carrier flying to "exotic destinations within Asia..." Fine. Fine. Fine.

Since the opening of the skies agreement to enable more competition to one of Asia most restricted air sectors (Singapore-KL route), a lot of budget carriers have been sprouting up air travels that cost as much as a coach ticket into the city - we have Air Asia, Jetstar, Tiger... all benefiting in a way or another, from Asia's most lucrative air destination.

As a result, low fares from these budget carriers have eaten away a large segment of an expensive pie that before this, only Singapore Airlines and Malaysian Airlines get to enjoy. These price wars means Good News to travellers but not so good news to SIA and MAS.

But the giants are not sleeping. SIA and MAS had to react. I mean, the price war is one thing, the recent hike in fuel prices is another big issue. Smaller planes consumes less fuel and therefore, more savings.

So since November 2008, Singapore Airlines (which is the parent of Ms. Exotic Silk Air) has since launched code-sharing flights with Silk Air and MAS. The latter went even further, giving in to the pressure, and have long started this "fly for free" frenzy - which i personally think is one of the dumbest idea MAS ever came up with. I mean come on! You are a full-fledged airline with a reputation. So what if you are priced higher than your competitors? You have an edge that low-cost carriers don't offer, like.. like.. mileage for example! Sheesh...

Speaking of which, i am glad SIA did not follow suit. Its ridiculous.

Ok back to Silk Air, its not that i have an issue with Silk Air. Its just that... its really, really small, and cramped and people with long legs or fat bottom will not have much choice but to sit completely still the next 45 minutes of their flight.

Oh i tell you my experience... When the plane touched down, like in all planes that touched down, ALL pasengers scrambled to get their luggages from the overhead compartment. Your humble savant here was actually pushed aside by this mad-probably-Chinese-Japanese-business man just so he can get to to his luggage out in the front (which he could have easily taken on the way out). Before i could even gather my surprise, i bumped again into another man behind me, and then pushed again by a lady reaching out for her Louis Vitton. Like what in God's name is this world coming to??!!

I looked around me, and i realise, that it wasn't just the people behaving abnoxiously, it was the sheer small size-ness of the plane. It was like... It was like flying on Air Asia, in turquoise blue! BAH!!!!!

While SIA isn't any better in its service, in fact, it sucks even more than Silk Air. But i'd give a one star above Silk Air for the size of the fleet. I always give SIA a star above all other airlines for size. I get to sit comfortably and when i stand, i don't get pushed around like an unwanted teddy bear. I hate people pushing me around!! Bleargh...

The price war is ugly and will get uglier as Tony Fernandez (CEO of Air Asia) buys more fleet and letting people sit on it for free, while inspiring more and more low cost carriers to follow suit. So said the man himself, "Now Everyone Can Fly...".

In fact, SIA is now charging only S$293 each, under 2-to-go promotions and so on - there's no better time to fly to KL than now. These heavily discounted prices are way wayyyyyy below the old S$400 per head for a seat on the plane.

Just... Not Silk Air. I would so love for SIA to remove Silk Air from the code-sharing thing and do what every good parent would do... Let them fly to other exotic, dreamy destinations.

The Daily SHOOT! - The Royal Castle

2009-01-12T14:15:00.001+08:00

The Royal Castle, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

There is something about Poland that you cannot put your finger on. Its drab, grey and dull yet filled with something alive from within the spirit of its people.

After Berlin, we headed off on an overnight train to Warsaw, Poland. Totally a different world from its glitzy, wealthy neighbour, Warsaw saw gigantic grey bulidings; ones that were not meant to attract the attention of passer-bys, or what i call "the after-effect of Communism".

Daytime almost seemed like Warsaw was a deep, dangerous city to be walking in daylight (let alone night time!).

The city centre (where the main train station is) was buzzing with noise in the rush hour, pollution from public buses... like any metropolitan city.

10 minutes tram ride into another part of the city, the streets seemed deserted - with loose scrap of the daily paper, swooshing around and nothing but the sound of the strong wind blowing across your face.

Walking down to the Old City, is like entering a completely different world. Its cultured, charming... and almost quaint with couples, young and old, rich and middle-class looking out for a place to grab a light bite and a couple of pints later into the night.

The Royal Castle, standing proud at the entrance of Warsaw's famed Old City was the official residence of the Polish monarchs and houses offices of the Kings, Queens as well as the Royal Court.

The castle is set on a plateau overlooking the River Vistula. It was closed when we were there but i heard that the grandeur interior is not to be missed. It is a dramatic historical monument about the rich in Poland. Not to be missed when in Warsaw.

The walk to the Old City is an attraction in itself that you shouldn't miss. It takes 20 minutes to walk in but WALK, its worth it.

Luggage Issues

2009-01-10T22:59:00.003+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

I bleedin' hate packing. I hate packing, i hate unpacking... I hate it i hate it i hate it! But how do you travel without first wrecking your brains out on what you need to bring for your trip.

And this is business travel. Business travel for me (especially to a country i've been upteenth time) is suppose to be the usual. Be there for3 days, bring 3 pairs of business shirts, 1, maybe 2 pants and 1 pair of shoes, my jacket if i'm bothered (otherwise i just leave them behind). I get so lazy sometimes that i don't even bother to take dinner clothes with me - i dine with what i wore to work. I try to pack as light as possible.

And tonight is one such night when i need to pack all the stuff i need for my trip to KL tomorrow. The best part is, i am "luggage-less". The Green Benetton luggage "someone" got me during Christmas tore midway home from my trip, and now its with the importer for a "makeover".

So i have, unwillingly, decided to borrow my parents luggage to fit my clothes and work stuff. It is a small, humble looking luggage, that on any given day, i wouldn't give a second look at. Imagine me dragging around this cheap blue canvas luggage called D-Pak Canadian Knapsack. Errr... No.

For the love of God...

Must get me parents some decent pair of luggages for their next trip.

Pillow Talk...?

2009-01-09T09:43:00.016+08:00

Grrrowl!!!!

And so we have come to the end of the week - the day every working person looks forward to. I was on my "school bus" this morning, feeling just a little groggy because of a viral fever i had the night before and i seriously wondered why everyone else on the bus was in Jeans and Khakis and T-Shirts today... Oh hey, its that day... its casual Friday. So hooray hooray! Its Frrriday!

Anyway, this week has been awfully busy week for me because of several "bear" conventions that i had to attend to, handover of old projects and "welcoming" new ones - I guess the strenuous days this week has finally taken a toll on my beary body. Bleargh... (Didn't even finish my breakfast sandwich this morning! Bah!!).

My groggyness and night fever aside, i will once again have the pleasure of being outstationed in the next couple of weeks, shuffling between Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. There are a lot of things that i need to do before my departure and one of them, is "choosing the pillow".

Ahh yes... The pleasure of being put up at a World-Class Hotel. I like it (and am not complaining...) but i just marvelled at the audacity of having you choose the type of pillow you will need during your stay. I always thought the hotels purchased them in bulk, and no choosing - what we give, you take. In fact, we are so used to that concept that having to choose one makes me uncomfortable.

And so i thought i'd give it a shot, so i went this morning looking for the perfect companion, googling the perfect pillow...

There are of course, all kinds... But distinctively, there are only 3 types of sleepers - The Back, The Front and The Side. Cubbies happened to be a side sleeper (and a naughty one too, since i "travel" even in my sleep!). According to a website, "a firm pillow is good for thos who sleeps on their side" and of course went on recommending their whole range of speciality pillows.

"Duck Down" pillows are one of those that was recommended - which i really liked, because feathered pillows are fluffy and ultra-comfortable in an air-conditioned room. It sinks and cradle your head in for the super comfy sleep. Me likes a good night's rest! :)

So that is what i chose, ahh... and it comes with a "sleep inducing" herbal sachets - chamomile or lavender - both of which are perfect for relaxation. While i usually do not have a problem with sleeping, i do have a hard time relaxing (how to when your mind travels at 300km per second!), so chamomile would do this just nicely ;)

Well, i can't wait for my trip then. This is living in the true nature of the Goldilocks...

Except this time, Goldilocks is meee! A Cubbie Bear ;)

The Daily SHOOT! - Checkpoint Charlie

2009-01-05T17:34:00.001+08:00

Checkpoint Charlie, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Check! Point your gun at Charlie! He's the American soldier at the American sector of the border (guardhouse)! Ha! Ha! I swear this is bloody tacky... That photo of the "anonymous" American and on the opposite side, an "anonymous" Ruskie.

Actually, the name Charlie derived from the coded letter C the military uses. Checkpoint Charlie, the most popular of all border checkpoints connecting East and West Germany. This was the name given by Western Allies (US is one of them) during the Cold War, and located at the junction of Friedrichstrasse.

A hugely popular landmark and tourist attraction, CC also has various sidewalk cafes that you can rest your feet over a cup of coffee including the famed Cafe Adler, which is right at the checkpoint (so you can look straight into East Berlin while enjoying your poison!).

The attraction also houses a museum for tourists and visitors to learn more about the history of the checkpoints during the cold war, including fantastic souvenirs like t-shirts and postcards for keepsake.

Meebops and I took 2 photos of us from a street booth here (i think it costs us 6 euros per photo). Basically you drop in the coins, select the background (you can choose at least 7 backgrounds / montage squeezed into one photo), stand at the X-sign and SMILE! We sent one to my aunt living in Frankfurt and one, were for the memories! ;)

You can't miss this... I know its a little touristy, but you haven't been to Berlin if you haven't been to The Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie!

The Best Laid Travel Plans For 2009?

2009-01-02T17:30:00.006+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

A lot of uncertainties right now, and about the only plans we made for 2009 is Melbourne, Australia - which is a really big deal to me because i still need to save a whole lot for the trip. That's when KM comes into the picture! Hah!

But as far as i'm concerned, my 2009 travel plans for both work and leisure are (subject to changes of course):

Kuala Lumpur (many many manyyyyyy times within the year...)
Bangkok, Thailand
Shanghai, China
Jakarta, Indonesia
Melbourne, Australia (with Meebops)
Abu Dhabi, UAE
New Delhi, India

One of the things The Travelling Teddies said and promised each other on 1st January 2009 was the hope that the New Year will bring us better opportunities in life, a blessed flow of income or "rezeki" (in whatever form it may be), always move towards strengthening our faith in God and to be a better person than we were before.

But in the meantime, we both look forward to spending more journeys and adventures together, exploring Mighty God's given beauty in this planet we call Mother Earth!

Ameen! And cheers to that! :)

New Year, New Resolutions... Or Old Habits Die Hard?

2009-01-02T11:46:00.007+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Just fresh from a 5 hour long bus ride from Kuala Lumpur back into little old boring SG!

We bade Bye-Bye to 2008 and Hey Hey 2009 from the grounds of KLCC Park, with a spectacular display of fireworks! The spirit was high and full of optimism, despite the uncertainties we are made to face in the near future. But like i told all my associates, friends and colleagues - May the coming year be better than we anticipated! You never know... :) Life is a mysterious thing.

Anyway, we took a late-night bus from SG to KL and snoozed all the way there in 5 hours, checked in at the Impiana KLCC and slept all the way till noon! Boy, was i tired! I couldn't sleep my little bear self on the bus so i took it all out at the hotel! :) We skipped the showering part and slept in our jeans and t-shirt!

We then went out to lunch at our favourite Tarbush Restaurant along Bukit Bintang and did a little shopping at Pavillion, Lot 10 and BB Plaza. Much well behaved this time, even Meebops didn't shop as much as i would expected her to. He! He!

After a full day of walking around town, we decided to overcome our tired little paws through swimming, back at the hotel. We were glad we decided to swim, because the pool was awesome! We are talking Infinity Edge Pool, like those you see in Bali (except this one overlooks Petronas Towers!) - I truly enjoyed myself swimming and doing a little exercising to get my energy levels up for the night!

We had a little hiccup along the way though...

Little Miss Clever Meebops left her camera on her desk at home and so, for the first time ever, we were camera-less on such an eventful day! I must say that i don't particularly enjoy fireworks (Meebops goes ga-ga over fireworks though!) - won't kill me if i don't watch it, but for someone who enjoys it, the audacity of leaving a precious tool to capture the mood is bewildering! (Yes, i'm talking about you...) Needless to say, the celebrations in KL were the best ever with the spectacular fireworks display and gate-crashing into a semi-private New Year's party at the hotel cafe.

Cubbies is not much of a dancer... but We Sang, We Danced, We Laughed and Be Merry. It was magical :) We even sang the birthday girl (whoever she was...) a birthday song and cheered for her!

And just before we called it a night, Meebops and i were chatting over our hopes and dreams for 2009. And among my new year's resolution is to get fitter through exercising. And since we both liked swimming - why not join a class in Aquarobics? We get to swim, and we get to exercise!

That's one of our long list of resolutions for 2009 - which we came up with every single year; and vowed to keep to for the next 365 Days. Or... will old habits die harder?

Chips, candies, chocolates, ice-creams, savouries, snacks, buffets and late night supper.................. Yumm.

The Daily SHOOT! - The Berlin Wall

2008-12-30T12:47:00.001+08:00

What is Left of the Berlin Wall, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

After i shot this picture (taken near Checkpoint Charlie), i realised that there are other places around Berlin where the wall still stands proud, masked by pretty and tasteful graffitis. This is a little dodgy... but it is still what remains of the Berlin Wall.

Who doesn't know why the Berlin Wall was constructed? Its politics of course!

For more than 25 years, the famous wall separates West Germany (Soviet Sector) from East Germany, with the latter being further separated in British Sector, American Sector and the French Sector. It was reported that more than 200 people were killed while trying to cross the Wall into West Berlin.

The Wall finally came down in 1989 and since its fall, Germans have been chipping off parts of the wall for all kinds of reasons including as souvenirs. Some even sold bits and pieces of concrete, citing it as "remnants of the Berlin Wall" ... God knows its authenticity really (probably just a chip of his bedroom wall...).

When you visit Germany, do not miss Berlin. Its constantly on the move, constantly developing... TTT were there in 2005. Who knows what Berlin will look like 5... maybe 10 years down the road.

That is what we love about charming Berlin :)

Angkor Wat & The Temples of Angkor - PART ONE!

2008-12-29T17:21:00.003+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Back on track...

Angkor Wat has always been one of our top list of "must see" "must go" destination. And when we finally took the courage to do one of those "just book and go go go" attitude, we find ourselves packing for Cambodia!

We were supposed to only be there for 3 days, which were enough (by our standards) to settle for Siem Reap, Angkor Wat and the Temples of Angkor. But TTT won't settle for 3 days! Instead we stretched it to one week exploring both SR and Cambodia's bustling capital, Phnom Penh.

The Travelling Teddies are not temple buffs but Angkor is a whole different spectrum. And as much as we didn't want to miss it, we didn't want to be too ambitious by spending too much time just exploring the complex. Heard there were more than 50 temples all around. We settled for 5, maybe 6 - and that was enough for us because after the 2nd, everything starts to resemble similarities!

And so we bought a One-Day pass which incidentally includes a free sunset! Well, not that i think we have to pay to watch sunset (duh...) but it was a treat all on its own. Not only do you have to climb uphill to watch it, you will have to fight for a spot from the possibly hundreds that shared the same motive and sentiment.

BEAR NOTES: This "sunset treat" is not mentioned in travel guides, but purchase after 17:00hrs, the day before your intended temple tour, and you'll definitely get your money's worth.

Angkor Entrance Fees:

1-Day Pass - US$ 20 per pax (includes free sunset if purchase day before intended travel, after 17:00 hrs)
2-Day Pass - US$ 40 per pax
4-7 Day Pass - US$ 60 per pax (consecutive days only)

Only cash (USD ONLY) is accepted, no plastics :)

This is the map of the complex (click to enlarge). From the city centre, it takes at least a good 40 minutes by tuk-tuk to get to Angkor.

ANGKOR WAT

Our first stop is the majestic UNESCO World Heritage Site, Angkor Wat which is the nation's pride and joy - and with good reason why. Tourism is predominantly the country's most lucrative source of income and a good motivation for its people to bank on improving themselves (like taking up English lessons so they can participate in the industry), which to me is a progressive start to development :)

Quite a fair bit of the temple were under "re-construction" when we were there. This "disturbing condition" of the temple is largely due to natural erosion and deterioration of the stone as well as massive tourism. As you may know, ancient temples are put together using natural adhesives like egg whites and animal by-products so they tend to be very fragile too.

And because of this restoration work, we were not able to see the entire display of the much famed Churning of the Sea of Milk gallery.

But! We did manage to snap the bas-reliefs on the other side of the gallery!

And a whole lot of other Apsara reliefs...

which is fast becoming part of the ruin..

There are quite a bit of walking to do in the main Angkor Wat complex itself, but nothing can actually compare to the massive beauty and marvel from the first sight. It is a massive structure covering 500 acres of wonder, and as you get closer, it only gets bigger!

How You Can Bearishly Enjoy Angkor Wat & The Temples of Angkor:

START YOUR DAY EARLY, but not at the expense of a good night's rest! When we told our driver to meet us at the hotel at 7.30am, he was wide-eyed in disbelief. NOT because it's too early, but usually people will want to be there as early as they can to avoid the crowd and the blazing sun! (it can get bi**hingly hot!)... But TTT needs sleep. Good sleep will almost promise a good day and a good journey! :)
GOOD WALKING SHOES are a necessity. You will walk a lot on ruins that are uneven. So a good walking shoe will ensure you get the support you need. It will help to bring a face TOWEL and SHADES as the walking will sweat you out and the shades are to protect you from the sun, as you stand high up on the temple towers!
If you have only one day, exploring 3 most important temples are a MUST! The three are: ANGKOR WAT, TA PHROM (where Tomb Raider was shot) and ANGKOR THOM (Bayon).

And last word for my fellow Muslim travellers... even though there are some Muslim restaurants readily available in Siem Reap, there are NO MUSLIM food vendors, restaurants or stalls available in the complex (or even near it). And since Cambodia is big on meat and pork, our advice is to bring along snacks with you on the trip. Get a good breakfast before you go, pack some snacks like Granola bars (like we did!) and enjoy the entire day exploring the ruins.

The best part about this is that between 12pm and 2pm - the crowd goes out to lunch! So you can practically get the entire temple to yourself! :P

We ended our trip at close to 17:00hrs that day and went straight for a good dinner at D'Wau Restaurant, which we will speak more of on Part Two of our Angkor journey!

The Daily SHOOT! - Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe

2008-12-29T14:45:00.001+08:00

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Memorial to Jewish victims of the Holocaust are grey concrete slabs, probably about 2 to 4 metres long with varying heights. Called the "stalae", the slabs are designed in such a way to emote unfamiliarity, unease, confusing atmosphere, representing an ordered system that has lost touch with human reason.

The memorial's inaugural opening was sometime in May 2005 (which was around the same time that TTT was there).

Located near the buried remains of Hitler's underground bunker and the Brandenburg Gate, the memorial has sparked its fair share of criticisms and controversy - from the memorial remembering only the murdered Jews to the lack of representation of German guilt.

This is definitely worth a visit.

A recommended tour is the 4-hour long Berlin-Walks tour, that will take you to these places and offer interesting insights (from mostly non-Germans living in Germany!), and cost approx. 10 euros each.

Its like a maze in there! A few people in our tour group got disoriented at the memorial and lost their way. So by the time we got out of the site, we were missing at least 3 people - but the guide couldn't wait, so we got with the program! :)

Admission for this is free of charge. A good thumbs up and worth a good walk, even though you may not feel directly sympathetic towards its real cause.

The Dilemma of A Travelling Journal

2008-12-22T12:03:00.002+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Just thought of getting myself a small journal. Something small enough (but not too small for my fat paws...) for me to write my thoughts on during my travels - leisure or for work. It will be my travel companion, when Meebops (my travelling buddy) is not with me.

It does help to gather your thoughts during your journeys; the experiences, your thoughts, feelings, encounters... that you'd probably forget when you return home.

I met someone who gave me the "undeserved" credit of having passed on the traveling "fever" to her. An associate i met last week for an assignment here in SG, she came from Boston and had never thought that she would get bitten by the "travel bug" until she met me (so she said...). And i am honoured, of course :) Never knew my influence on the "religion of travel" is that strong to begin with and yet to have someone thank me for it, really made my efforts worth (not that i was seriously preaching anyways...).

As a small gesture of appreciation (as well as in the spirit of giving this Christmas), i got her a 2009 Calendar Journal - which featured a nice, thick and heavy set of brown recycled paper, hard-bounded by a shiny, globe and compass motif. Its actually quite pretty and serves the function of both a calendar-diary as well as a travel journal. She absolutely loved it of course! :)

Got me some pictures of the journals i intent to get... preferably one that comes with a slot for me to keep a pen or pencil in.

Okay, here's Travel Journal #1...
Meet Travel Journal # 2...
And finally, my Travel Journal #3!... Aren't they all pretty?

Yes... Yes... So they're all leather-bound journals and look very similar to each other. But aren't they adorable? Very rugged and rustic all the same. Mmmm... Me likey!

Gonna get me some of those but in the meantime, i will be posting my long-due entry on The Temples of Angkor, my day at the Singapore Zoo, as well as my "fantastico" journey to KL with Meebops to celebrate my coming of age... 2 Years Old! Hah! We had a blast!

And we are off to KL again next week, for a day of celebration for the coming 2009!

As they say, if you start off the year on the right foot, everything will follow suit! :)

The Daily SHOOT! - Berliner Dom

2008-12-19T17:42:00.001+08:00

Berliner Dom, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

One of the many beautiful cathedrals found in Germany, the Berliner Dom is a sight not to be missed.

Facing a small park (open space) where Berliners can sit to read a book, the cathedral was almost destroyed during WWII and remained a ruin until 1973.

Like many churches and synagogues all over Europe, the Dom also houses graves of over 80 members of the Hohenzollern family (noble family and royal dynasty of electors, kings and emperors of Prussia, Germany and Romania).

TIP! Do not miss the roof promenade after climbing up the endless steps leading to the coupole.

Booyah! All Cubbies Need To Eat And Got To!

2008-12-05T10:43:00.023+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

My weekend in Jakarta went extremely well. I mean, the business was good, the company was amicable and i had the most wonderful time catching up on my eating.

Yup. Catching up on eating all my favourite foods in Jakarta. Well, i do have a favourite on my first visit, which was the lip-smacking wonderfully huge bowl of Bakso, eaten street-style, at Plaza Senayan - (and i promise to revisit when i'm there the next time..)

Anyway, having promised myself to travel around Jakarta independently this time, i went everywhere with my trusted Blue Bird and had an excellent time doing so. Yes, i am proud of my little achievement! Hah!

First up, welcome to my lair at the Hotel Mulia Senayan. This is the aerial view from the room. See the little made-up hut with green roof (on the bottom left)? That's the security area before cars are even allowed into Mulia's lobby. Security were especially heightened ever since the repeated bombings that caused carnage all over Indonesia in 2002 / 2003.

Now, make no mistake about Mulia. It is a wonderfully rich (and i mean that, literally...) establishment with exquisite, large furnishings meant for royalties.

I am no royalty of course (except being the King Cubbies...) but the company put me up here so i relish on the idea of staying in a large room, sleeping on a HUGE comfy superduperking bed, looking at my cute paws on large mirrors and in addition to that, they have a big huge tree on the side of the room (to add the flora and fauna factor). It almost felt like i was a born royal highest-ness! ;)

OK, i'm gonna start showing off now - so don't who can't stand it, please look away! Haha!!

This is the SuperKing SuperSized SuperCOMFORTABLE bed i was talking about. You just have to try it to know what i'm talking about... It sinks. It just sinks in with you when you lie on it. Unbelievable.

Ahh.. and from the bed, you can watch all you favourite TV programs on cable, on the SUPERBIG plasma TV. As for me, the newscaster on CNN will look much much bigger and of course, all my favourite TV shows on Disney will be almost 3D to my little eyes! (OK i'm exaggerating...)

To the other side of the room, there is a study and a full-sized couch for you to R&R after a hard day at work. Sweet.. I just love it.

What did i tell ya about the mirror... Huh huh huh???

OK, we're getting a little private here... This is the shower. Haven't tried the standing jacuzzi before but from what i heard, its pretty relaxing. I don't like it when water pokes me everywhere because it hurts! I don't even like the sitting jacuzzi (because it bubbles up funny places if you know what i mean...) So yeah... And the last, is the safe deposit box, which was conveniently hung on the wall in the wardrobe. I took a picture of this because it is so convenient to have a safebox at your standing eye level. Most other hotels does it on the floor, which after frequent bending, will hurt my poor back. But this, this is eye-level baby... And me LIKEY.

Ok ENOUGH is ENOUGH ranting about the hotel. Now, let me show you what Cubbies ate in Jakarta, as she bragged about in her earlier entry.

As promised, i paid Ayam Goreng Nyonya Suharti a visit when i was there. For all you calorie-watching freaks, this may probably be the most sinful fried chicken you'll ever have... but Oooohhh.. the taste is simply divine.

Had this with rice, sayur asem, which is a simple tamarind soup, very tasty and moreish - and a cup of home-made iced lemon tea.

The Ayam Goreng... the meat is so tender and juicy... and the bones... Ohhh the bones.. you can bite through them, nibble on them and suck out all the protein from them!!!

Having said that, i found this, "camouflaged" in between its hind legs and buried deep in its mount of crusts - its tiny Chicken Head!!! BAH!!! I don't remember them being there the last time i ate this but WHY! Why do they always have to remind us that a poor innocent little chicky sacrificed a life for our pleasure and enjoyment! Bleargh!

Since the restaurant is about 15 minutes drive from Senayan, i had opted to take my Blue Bird down to the restaurant, fighting against the roaring thunder, the rain and lighting as well as the notorious Jakarta "mah-cet" - or traffic jam just to get my chicken. What's consoling was that my Blue Bird driver was willing to wait in the cab (with the meter on of course) without making the slightest complain, while i make my order in the restaurant and then happily ferried me back to my hotel. Try doing that in Singapore, people... It isn't Singapore cabbies if you don't get the angry face, the attitude, the F-Word or the Middle-Finger up yours - but like everything in Singapore, we do it with absolute subtlety...

Ayam Goreng Suharti (Jakarta Branch)
Jln Kapt. Tendean 13
Jakarta Selatan
Opens Daily - 11:00am - 10:00pm (+62-21-5206-955)

And to create the mood for Din Tai Fung...

I felt compelled to show pictures of the foods i ordered at DTF before i actually give my take of the food, ambience and overall satisfaction of the restaurant. And so here goes...

That's what i ordered... a bowl of noodles and of course, my beautiful Xiao Long Bao. There's also the duck.
Ok, here's my take...

The food at Din Tai Fung (Jakarta) was, at best, forgettable. I had a bowl of interesting looking noodles, called the Cha Jiang Noodle - which is a handmade spinach noodle topped with brown, almost tangy sauce consisting of tiny little cubes of braised tofu, meat, salted soy beans (tauco) and Japanese green pod beans. I won't say that this was disappointing... but i must stress on the fact that it was bland and ordinary.

Next i ordered the Crispy Roast Duck (instead of my initial choice of Drunken Chicken). These are basically foods that you cannot get halal back home (or at least, didn't taste as authentic). Now the Crispy Roast Duck, i have to admit that i actually enjoyed it even though i'm not a big fan of duck meat.

The meat was quite tough and chewy, but there was no foul smell or odour (meant that it was cooked well, despite the texture) which was welcomed of course. The treat was in the skin - roasted to golden perfection, crispy with every bite.

And of course, the very reason why i came to this restaurant in the first place - is the Xiao Long Bao - which is Steamed Chicken Dumpling.

While the baos tasted ordinary, the gentle excitement of having soup with every single bite i took, won me over. Yes it was mediocre, partly to blame was my acnticipation and high expectations of the poor little bun. Be careful - the soup is hot and your tongue and lips may burn!
I ordered 6 pieces - 3 of it i had it neat, while the other 3, i had it with ginger strips and soy sauce. No difference between the two but i suppose, if i really had to choose just one way to eat it, i'd say take it with the soy sauce and ginger strips. It accentuates the flavour and overall, it tasted far yummier.

To me, Din Tai Fung is like every other Chinese cuisine out there - mostly over-hyped. Maybe i'm not a champion of the art, but i do love them most (as compared to Malay, Indian or Western cooking) and to my untrained palate, i am my own guru.

The next time i'm in Jakarta, take me to an Indonesian restaurant where i can lap up sambal terasi with piping hot white rice and sup buntut (oxtail soup) - simple pleasures. Banquet chain of food courts can pull this Chinese trick off anytime but its definitely worth at least, one try.

Din Tai Fung
Plaza Senayan Arcadia
Ground Floor X 101-103
Jln. New Delhi #9
Senayan, Jakarta Selatan

Still Got The Blues...

2008-12-01T10:36:00.007+08:00

Grrrowl???

What a Monday.

Monday is probably the suckiest day of the week, where i literally had to lift my paws off the bed, drag them with minus-zero gear into the shower and sit on the bowl like forever before i get the different parts and mechanisms in my body functioning properly again.

What a drag! Baaah!

I was just telling Meebops how i wish we were some place else - didn't matter if we were travelling or working - just wish we're somewhere else, exploring different things; seeing new and different people; working on new projects... There is always a longing in our hearts. A longing to be far away... far far away from home. Now wouldn't that be a treat :)

In the meantime, this is how Cubbies is feeling today (picture is from here).

Just bleargh. Just bleargh bleargh bleargh bleargh bleargh :(

And Again She SCORES!!!!!

2008-11-25T17:55:00.004+08:00

I emptied Kuching Mentel yet again today... This will be earnings for October!

A grand total of $132.50. Rounding off that and rolling my $2.50 back into KM, so that's, yet again, $130 for October!!! Making it a GRAND GRAND total of $130 + $130 + $96 = $356 cold hard cash in just 3 months!

That's neat... Uh huh... Really neat :)

*hop hop hippity happy happy meeeeeee!*

The Daily SHOOT! - Church Of Our Lady Tyn

2008-11-23T20:56:00.001+08:00

The Fairytale-inspired Cones on the Roof of a Church, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

One of the most prominent and dominant icon in Prague, Czech Republic. Built in Gothic style, the Tyn Towers (remind me so much of the Disney castle trademark) are non identical - with one being a bit more "solid" and is said to represent the stronger side of the family, which is the Man (OK, a little sexist...)

The interior is absolutely stunning.

You can't miss this. It towers over the Old Town of Prague and can be seen from the Astronomical Clock of Town Hall (where the nice sidewalk cafes are).

Pawwing Little India In One's Own Land!

2008-11-07T12:41:00.017+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

We were pawwing the streets of Little India during the Diwali weekend early this month and like every festive month, we would be joining the huge crowds, rubbing shoulder to shoulder with just one simple intent - TO SHOP!

Ok, so we don't shop every festive, but we sure do bask in the mood - we feel Indian during Deepavali, Chinese during Lunar New Year, maybe multi-ethnic during Christmas and so on...

Festive seasons in Singapore are often celebrated with the hanging of huge decorations and street lightings, so you cannot help but feel a part of the community. I guess that's one of the reason why Singaporeans are often respectful of each other despite our ethnicity, which is really, a very commendable thing.

Along the streets of Race Course Road, also known as Little India or Tekka by the locals (named after a wet market in the area), we see grand street light-ups to welcome in the festive. According to a Hindu friend of mine, Diwali basically means "row of lights" or the festival of lights. It signifies the welcomed return of Lord Sri Rama 14-years "retreat" into the forest to become king.

So to celebrate his return, Hindus express their happiness by lighting up lamps, (as an offering to God for health, wealth, knowledge etc.), decorate their houses, indulge in festive sweets and go visiting to the homes of friends and families to renew their kinship.

And like most other celebrations in Singapore, we have night bazaar (or night market) in the particular area densely populated by the race in celebration. This year (and every other year i should think), the night bazaar is held at Birch Road, just opposite of the widely famous, popular and packed, Mustaffa Centre.

Remember this corner? That's right, you're looking at the heavily congested, every driver's nightmare on Syed Alwi Road where Mustaffa Centre is. For those who haven't been here before, Mustaffa Centre is a budget department store that sells EVERYTHING. Everything you need from Plasma TV to retro 1980's Casio watches and all the spices you can dream of including clothes and sundries too - It is a ONE-STOP shop and because it is, goods often overflows making it probably one of the worse shopping arcade to bring child strollers and shopping carts. Leave those behind, you only need cash or your credit card! :)

Information on Mustaffa Centre can even be found on Wikipedia - thats how HUGELY popular this place is. Visitors probably knows Mustaffa Centre better than the Singapore Merlion! Haha!

At the corner of the bazaar is the "kerepek" stall, which basically sells the dried goodies and chips the Indians call, "Murukku" (in Tamil) - which is a savoury snack made by grounding spices (like cumin), lentils, rice and butter then fried in coconut oil. Very addictive and tasty... But those looking to cut them calories should stay away from it completely. One is never enough!!!

I like the idea of them hanging the savoury snacks... Definitely attracts attention!

Apart from the food, the bazaar also offers beautiful, colourful, sequine-heavy punjabi suits and kurtas (for men). The Indians (Hindus) are encouraged to put on clean and new clothes especially during visiting. Like we needed to be told to do that!!!

Because we were there during the last weekend and just 2 days away from Diwali, goods sold at the bazaar (whose prices were initially quite steep) were probably slashed into half at least to tempt patrons into purchasing. The idea is to let go of the products this year, because next year, no one wants to buy "last year's" fashion!

Pretty little sandals to go with the pretty outfit anyone? You betcha! I took this picture only because it looks like the white sandal my brother got for himself during his wedding! Hahaha! And so, its only sold for S$15... Hmmm...

Jumbo-size altars are also for sale, displaying Lord Ganesha - which is the popular Elephant God of removing obstacles in one's mortal life. Its so popular that even my "ang moh" (caucasian) boss puts a mini-deity in his room to remove "obstacles" (like us) away from him! :)

"Henna Tattoo" are a craze here in SG. And for Hari Raya as well as Diwali, people are actually willing to queue to get their hands and feet "tatooed" with henna ink by the Henna Tattooist. Depending on the intricacies of the design, it can probably range between S$5 to S$150! Or even more, i dunno... I've never done them before and i don't think i will. Cubbies don 't want her cute fat paws in colours other than furry brown!!! Bah!

With just a tube of henna, the tattooist skillfully "squeeze" her way through those, by now, i think, tired little hands, keeping in mind the design of choice.

See what i mean by multi-ethnic? That even though this is a celebration meant for Hindus, everyone is welcomed to join in! Shisha (or hookah... gasp!) pipes are also found at the bazaar. Although the Indians have something to do with the origins of the pipe (it actually originated from India), it is hugely popular in the Arab world that people often mistook it for an "Arab thing".

Know why i said Mr. Mustaffa Centre is one of the most insanely popular spot for shopping in Singapore?

First to Mustaffa... then to Airport! ;)

The Daily SHOOT! - Church of St. Nicholas

2008-10-31T12:11:00.001+08:00

Church St. Nicholas, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

In Malostranske Namesti - Prague, Austria.

Inspired by the Baroque and Rococo architecture and designs, the St. Nicholas Church is a prominent beauty found just across the Charles Bridge in Lesser Town Square of Prague, Austria.

Interestingly, the building of this church was halted several times by impending wars and money problems, and was only formally completed by a junior architect (who by the way, is not related to the original architects of the structure) in 1755.

Guess the problem wasn't just in the light-bulb was it? *grins*

Halal Din Tai Fung???

2008-10-30T15:16:00.019+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

I was reading up on several food blogs earlier today. Those food bloggers are brilliant! They can really whet my appetite with good, yummy pictures of food food food, even though food taste is just so-so. And apart from travelling, Meebops and I are big foodies (if you can't already tell from our fat paws!). We have really similar taste-buds and is always willing to try anything once.

But, i am also an unabashed creature of habit especially when it comes to food. Say if i like a certain kind of food, i can eat it every single day! For every meal too! (like Subway in the US, where i had foot-long Veggie Delight, half for breakfast and half for lunch, almost every single day). Best part is, i can eat them today and crave for them the next day - Heh!

The thing is, these are my ultra-comfort food - like the taste, easy to get it and its satisfying. We all have our own fair share of routiness in the day-to-day life. We go to work at exactly the same time, in exactly the same way, walking the same distance in the same direction, trying to complete the same old mundane suff at work... and i listen to exactly the same music on my iPod (over and over again until i get sick of it!). I just think that the dependability of it all is easing sometimes. To the extent where my monicker is "Cubbies the Predictable" (Right Meebops???)

And so, i have to travel to Jakarta on a work trip next week and before anything else, i am already researching on good food to eat in JKT, preferably near my hotel in Senayan City. Strangely enough, i cannot seem to find a lot of resources on halal restaurants and eateries in Jakarta itself but there is one that IMMEDIATELY caught my bearish attention...

Fascinating, absolutely fascinating!
Din Tai Fung... is actually halal in Jakarta. DTF is not even halal in Kuala Lumpur, where i personally regard as Southeast Asia's halal food haven. DTF is a Taiwan-based restaurant, specialising in meat / vegetarian dumplings as well as assorted hand-made/hand-pulled noodles and a variety of soups. Its basically, a Chinese Restaurant. They have a couple of outlets here in Singapore and each time i pass by the restaurant, i will literally "stick" my paws on their glass panelled kitchen windows to see what the chefs/cooks are cooking/preparing. The other restaurant that suffered similar fate (each time Cubbies passes by) is Lao Beijing.

DTF was also ranked as one of the World's Top Ten Restaurant in 1993 by the New York Times. Researching though, i found mixed reviews on the food (but food is also subjective...) but i thought i should satisfy my curiousity at least once. And at good chance too since the outlet in JKT is halal (Yayy!).

Here are some photos which i took from DTF's website (promise to put my own when i try the real deal! Hah!) First photo - Pork Dumplings or the infamous, Xiao Long Bao! (i think they'll use chicken meat as substitute in JKT)

Here's another yum yum yummy! photos i took from Wikipedia itself... My goodness, baos never look so darn stunning! GASP! *slurp slurp slurp*

Picture of the noodle that i would like to try... Noodle Soup with Shrimps (self-explanatory really...)

And last but not least, a chinese meal would never be complete without SOUP! This is their Shrimp and Pork Wanton Soup. Yummylicious!

And i have decided to give DTF in Jakarta a shot next weekend, at the outlet at Plaza Arcadia, Senayan, which is right behind Plaza Senayan Mall - the one i used to walk to from my hotel and was swarmed by an army of street beggers, peddlers and kiddos.

This time round, i won't be calling up my good old schoolmate who lives in Jakarta and say that i'm in town. Since my first trip in 2007 till my last in July, I've been treated like Her Royalty (not that i did not enjoy it of course... King Cubbies... Ooohhh..), ferried around in her SUV, to wherever i want to go and whenever. She gave me a tour of the city, treat me at dinner, gave me a lift to and from the airport... basically anything i need, i can get (except money, her life, her beau, mother, father, sister, house and car etc...) And it didn't make me feel like i can be independent in Jakarta, which really i need to be.

I don't know Jakarta apart from Senayan City and the 4 walls in my hotel room. And not that i have time to explore the city anywho... but yes, i would like to try out on my own this time. The furthest i went (on my own) during my last trip was to Mangga-Dua, about 40 minutes by cab from Senayan.

And apart from DTF, i will also be paying homage to Ayam Goreng Nyonya Suharti - where i fell in love with a juvenile chicken, fried to a golden crisp. We first met in Yogyakarta... And till today, i never forget and especially, never ever forget this first love i experienced. Mmmmmmmmmmm!!! Gurih lo!!!! Hehehe!

Will pick up my bravado this time... Cubbies wants to explore Jakarta on her own two paws! :)

Indonesia Raya, Merdeka! Merdeka!
Tanahku, Negeriku yang Kucinta!
Indonesia Raya, Merdeka! Merdeka!
Hiduplah Indonesia Raya!

The Daily SHOOT! - Overlooking Cesky Krumlov

2008-10-29T12:34:00.001+08:00

Overlooking Cesky Krumlov, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

Ahh... The Charming City of Cesky Krumlov - another UNESCO World Heritage Site, is notable for its well-preserved Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque architecture.

Just off Prague, Czech Republic, this quaint picture-postcard city of "Cesky" simply means Czech, or Bohemian, maintained its historic culture and character by stopping any major changes and demolition of the buildings / town since the 19th Century.

The picture was taken almost 4 years ago when TTT were in trotting Eastern Europe on big spirits and small budgets, but as far as we can remember, the city of Krumlov is a small but lively, cosmopolitan town surrounded by unspoiled countryside.

With a population of just over 15,000, CK is not overbearingly bustling like Prague or Vienna, but it does have its fair share of activities as you walk along narrow cobblestoned streets.

Dominated by a Castle stretching over the meandering Vltava River, this cosmetic town sports romantic nooks between Patrician houses where you can find attractive exhibits of world-renown artists and musicians... and depending on the time of year, festivals, concerts, and theatre performances are the major highlight in this city.

It was here that we also had one of the best pasta lunch we ever tried in Europe. The cosy inns, coffee shops, and ancient taverns are a treat that you cannot miss when visiting this charming city!

A Fishy Tale On A Diwali Weekend!

2008-10-27T20:29:00.028+08:00

Grrrowl!!!

Whoa... What a weekend it had been for The Travelling Teddies. We spent the looooooong Diwali weekend, home-away-from-home style and it was probably the awesomest ever. It's been quite a while (since the start of Ramadhan) that we get to leave the comforts of our individual lair and into the wild world of pleasure and pamper.

We bitched about all sorts of things and slept at 2am and slept in till 9am the next morning... stroll our way down to breakfast in flip-flops and bermudas (where Cubbies got her 3 rolls of butter croissants - yayyy! - and baked beans eaten with Rocket leaves - just the way she liked it!)... went up to the room again and continued hibernating till checkout.

What a life! If only every weekend is a long Diwali weekend, i'd be a happy happy bouncy bear!

Anyway, after we checked out, we made our way to lunch before heading home. Meebops suggested Popeyes Chicken. The outlet that we usually go to when we have the cravings for hot juicy chicken thighs (and breasts for Cubbies) is the one at Changi Airport Terminal 1.

And since we were in the city that day, we decided to give the outlet at the Singapo re Flyer a shot. Meebops' been there before so it was a second time for her but as for me, it was my virgin experience on SF grounds. Man, it was breathtaking! TSF was a huge complex with a quaint little sanctuary at the foot of the flyer, which i'd really like to walk around in when the weather is better, because as soon as we reached SF, it started pouring!

So we took a break and went for lunch first since we were by then, famished. We ordered the usual fare of 2 chicken set each (upsized, with large mash and slaw) and a side order of that moreish red bean and rice.

This is the Cajun Mash - upsized! The gravy, which is laden with gizzards and fats, herbs and chicken shreds were absolutely to die for. Unlike KFC (whose potatoes tasted earthy and probably blended till almost powder-like), Popeyes mashed potatoes are lumpier and close to perfect! Very tasty and makes you want more more more! I licked it all off to the bottom of the plastic cup... Heh!

This is their infamous insanely famous, yummy and almost exquisitely scrumptious Popeyes Coleslaw - with just the right hint of tanginess and sweet sourish flavours. I just love the almost-chunky pieces of cucumber pickles that you can see before they disappear in your mouth... absolute heavenly...

OK... so the photo didn't do as much justice as i had hope for. Looked a little mushed up but if you have never been to Popeyes, you probably haven't tasted darn good fast food coleslaw. You have to try it. Definitely a star award from The Travelling Teddies!

We also ordered a regular side-dish to go with our chickies. This is also their famous Red Bean and Rice side which is very very tasty even on its own... Simply finger lickin' good. Meebops is not a big fan of red beans and neither am i but we simply can't resist this lil' number. A mixture of light sweetness and greasy goodness. Even though Cubbies is on a no-rice diet but heck, for this one, i'd take a day off - and i did! Haha!

Ahh... well well... spicy fried chicken never tasted so good! Cubbies didn't even wash her hands before eating (bad, bad Cubbies!) and before i took the picture, i couldn't resist a bite off the chicken drumstick! I am personally not a big fan of their buttermilk biscuits (crispy on the outside and soft on the inside) but i had it all to myself this time! Yum yum yummy!!!

Move aside KFC, McDonalds' and Church's Chicken (didn't try Church's in the US though...), Popeyes' here to take over the fried chicky world (in my heart at least!) with fat juicy breasts and killer thighs. Yummza! We pawwed Popeyes' countless of times that we can paw no more - cos we're too busy devouring the chickies...

Errmm.. moving on... Right after lunch, we went for a little walk at the mall. There weren't much shops around but we were fascinated by the Fish Spa treatment offered by Kenko. Though i am usually quite sceptical with the true benefits the fishes offer, i have to say, i was intrigued... After at least 10 minutes of asking each other, "How? You want to try? I'm good with anything... You want? You want, i can play along... How?", we finally decided to give the fishies some feet to nibble on. It was raining anyway...

Big Fish, Small Fish... and Medium ones. As a start, i wanted to give the tiny fishies a treat but the masseuse directed us elsewhere. I didn't like the fact that we were "optionless" but to the medium fish tank she showed us and there we went... It was intimidating just by looking at it!

Smile fishies! Smile!

See.. the one sitting on the opposite side of the large tank is Cubbies... Yup the one with white, pale, fat legs and curled up paws. See Meebops? Both her feet are already in the water, fully submerged!

It costs us S$38 (per pax) for a 30 minute "fish massage" and a 10 minute shoulder massage (which to me is super lame anyway). My gut feeling says that all this hooblah is painfully for pure entertainment sake but according to the website, the fishes actually nibbles off dead skin cells on your feet and helps improve blood circulation, lighten minor scars (which i don't have on my bear paws anyway...), ease eczema (poor fishies...) and releases stress and tension (the stress of dipping your precious feet to a swarm of hungry nibblies?... yeah right!).

Meebops was a lot braver than i gave her credit for!!! Bravo Meebops! She started her spa treatment first by dipping in both her feet, without much hesitation! A little squirmish at the start when the hungry fishes started nibbling but she was a-OK after 10 secs of giggly gaggles...This is Meebops and her paws in water.

"The fishies seemed confused... They're swimming the WRONG direction. The feet's THAT way!"

Cubbies couldn't bear to let the fishies nibble on her cute little fat paws!! So i dipped my paws in and out and continued to do so for at least 10 minutes (time is money...) before i fully submerged them for the fishes to devour. Aw man... I kept going, "I'm scared... eww.. aarh... takut la.. yakkk! Oooo... arrggh... eeek.. gasp!.." What an embarassment!

And after much coaxing from Meebops and from within my brave little self (and reminding myself how expensive this treatment is...), i finally dared to dip my fat paws into the water. Not sure if this is sanitized though... but its hard not to think negatively about how polluted the water may be when probably thousands of people already dipped their dirty smelly feet, before they changed the water to a fresh one! BAH!

My Feet In With The Fishies from thetravellingteddies on Vimeo.

My verdict is that the Fish Spa was a refreshing new experience for me to bond with the fishies.

Its not that i do not like it, but i am not comfortable with the idea of exploiting ignorant cute little fish friends and getting them to nibble on my "dead skin cells" - which is really, simply treating the fishes with disrespect (and as second class citizens) but it was an experience that i may probably try again (with larger fishes next time, Meebops?). I will stop after i feed the larger ones out of sheer respect.

The shoulder massage was very disappointing for me, personally, cos Meebops said hers was pretty good.

What a pawwing day it was.. despite the embarassing moments!

The Daily SHOOT! - The Great Synagogue

2008-10-16T11:44:00.001+08:00

The Great Synagogue, originally uploaded by tgtwb.

The Synagogue of Pest is one of the most beautiful and Europe's largest and world's second-largest synagogue.

Its absolutely stunning exterior, which i mistook it for a mosque (especially the domes) at first look, has striking Byzantine and Moorish elements.

I also found out that during the Nazi regime, up to 20,000 Jews from the ghettos seek refuge in the synagogue were killed and buried in the courtyard.

You can also find The National Jewish Museum inside the synagogue complex.

Definitely worth a few hours exploring when in Budapest.