I thought I would peel from my mild sunburnt, however I as surprised that it didnt. I dont know if credit should go to all my facial moisturiser that I had faithfully apply day and night since I had been back. I ran out of body lotion and I figure those face hydrating lotion "investments" better prove themselves now with my arms as testing bed! Verdict, they work! In fact better than body cream I think. Those intentive hydrating mask prob penetrate deeper.
There was a little small spot of itchiness and a thin layer of peeling. However, it only lasted for a day and it was gone. My arms are back to normal, except it's super dark...With all the plastering of lotion, the sunburnt part actually felt so much softer than the other tanned parts that I didnt apply the lotion to. My husband is soo envious at my "speedy recovery"..heh heh.
3 week of absence from pilates is terrible. I had a hard time this week getting back into pace and strength. The good thing about consistent pilates, I love how my upper abs feel. On good (slim) days where I didnt stuff myself silly, there is a faint ab line on the torso. The moment to die for. haaa haa. Still, dont think I will ever be as thin as I was before...damn... I miss those skinny days.
Had lunch with one of my Jap classmate. She was sharing about her mother-in-law horror stories. Scary. It is moments like this I will thank my lucky stars for having such sweet in laws who relatively dote on me. Maybe living apart with us in asia and them back in Australia also helped... Back to my friend, her Japanese in laws are dominating and interferingly scary. If she is my in law, I wont know if she will die from being frustrations with me first, or me dying from such ostentious control freak. Who on earth with common sense buys HK$10k worth of bedlinens??? A HK$80k armchair is also such a stretch.
Yeah the parents are rich...so I dont know if its the wealth that made them obnoxious, or are all Japanese mother in law that scary and hard to get along? I was sharing with my friend that I have known of mothers who were utter snob and meanie. They had this view that she is so rich that people has to listen to her. Biatch.
Alright 4am. time to rest my eyes. More packing to do tomorrow...time flies...
Friday, October 30, 2009
J-Drama: Tokyo Dogs Episode 02 Review and Summary
I love this new series. It's hilarious. Hiro and Shun have amazing chemistry and their dialogue is funny and quirky, esp so for Shun's character So. if you have not started on this series, find time to. It's pretty funny to see these 2 guys "bickering" in the middle of their cop work!
Watch raw video sources:
- Veoh video - ep 2
- Pandora video - ep2
Tokyo Dogs Ep2 Summary
The episode starts with recap from last episode where the kidnapper rather shot himself to death.
The new scene opens with So (Shun Oguri) and Maruo (M. Hiro) staking out and "bickering" at a roof top. Maruo was about to head off with the "compulsory search" at the opposite hotel room, but So complained Maruo is so disorganised without any proper planning. So questioned if they should just barged into the room, what should they do if the people in the hotel room possess firearms? So went on with his argument that the girls will be trapped as hostages and a possible shootout may occur with an (unseasoned) bad guy... Maruo couldnt take it anymore. He grumbled outloud that So should stop with his unceasing preaching as they are "killing" him. Maruo further explained that the "dating" scene differs from the "prostitution" scene in states. So retorted Maruo is so naive and the only reason they are here to investigate was due to sources linking the hotel with the secret organisation, so anything could happen.
Maruo then questioned what has So prepared, in which So whipped out a "can bomb" for the door entrance destroy any burglar alarm! Maruo was horrified at the mention of "bomb". "Are you an idiot?! This is Tokyo here!" and he tried to returned the can back to So. So explained the can is to assure the safety of the girls in the room and take control while everyone is caught by surprise. So started to head off but Maruo ended up dragging him to stop him, declaring he (M) cannot do it. So told Maruo that his indecisiveness and lack of action proves Maruo is not suited
to be a cop.
"Just like earlier when choosing a bento, you had to take sooooo long!" So stated flatly.
"Hey the sweet and sour pork may be good but the gyozai bento also looked good! It is perfectly normal for one to be undecided in such moment!" Maruo quickly retorted back.
"Yeah but you kept on endlessly whining 'It's awlful! It's awlful!' about the gyozai! Hadnt the store auntie recommended the sweet and sour pork right from the start?! The SIGNATURE DISH is the sweet and sour pork afterall!!!" So instantly fired back at Maruo.
"But my stomach exists for gyozai!!" Maruo pleaded in defence.
"There is no such thing as a stomach existing only for gyozai. If u had wished to eat the gyozai sooo much, you could have just ordered a SINGLE SEPARATE ITEM in the set!" So told Maruo off and walked off...
[read more]
Watch raw video sources:
- Veoh video - ep 2
- Pandora video - ep2
Tokyo Dogs Ep2 Summary
The episode starts with recap from last episode where the kidnapper rather shot himself to death.
The new scene opens with So (Shun Oguri) and Maruo (M. Hiro) staking out and "bickering" at a roof top. Maruo was about to head off with the "compulsory search" at the opposite hotel room, but So complained Maruo is so disorganised without any proper planning. So questioned if they should just barged into the room, what should they do if the people in the hotel room possess firearms? So went on with his argument that the girls will be trapped as hostages and a possible shootout may occur with an (unseasoned) bad guy... Maruo couldnt take it anymore. He grumbled outloud that So should stop with his unceasing preaching as they are "killing" him. Maruo further explained that the "dating" scene differs from the "prostitution" scene in states. So retorted Maruo is so naive and the only reason they are here to investigate was due to sources linking the hotel with the secret organisation, so anything could happen.
Maruo then questioned what has So prepared, in which So whipped out a "can bomb" for the door entrance destroy any burglar alarm! Maruo was horrified at the mention of "bomb". "Are you an idiot?! This is Tokyo here!" and he tried to returned the can back to So. So explained the can is to assure the safety of the girls in the room and take control while everyone is caught by surprise. So started to head off but Maruo ended up dragging him to stop him, declaring he (M) cannot do it. So told Maruo that his indecisiveness and lack of action proves Maruo is not suited
to be a cop.
"Just like earlier when choosing a bento, you had to take sooooo long!" So stated flatly.
"Hey the sweet and sour pork may be good but the gyozai bento also looked good! It is perfectly normal for one to be undecided in such moment!" Maruo quickly retorted back.
"Yeah but you kept on endlessly whining 'It's awlful! It's awlful!' about the gyozai! Hadnt the store auntie recommended the sweet and sour pork right from the start?! The SIGNATURE DISH is the sweet and sour pork afterall!!!" So instantly fired back at Maruo.
"But my stomach exists for gyozai!!" Maruo pleaded in defence.
"There is no such thing as a stomach existing only for gyozai. If u had wished to eat the gyozai sooo much, you could have just ordered a SINGLE SEPARATE ITEM in the set!" So told Maruo off and walked off...
[read more]
Monday, October 26, 2009
Man are just lazy procrastinating creature
The verdict is out.
Man are just lazy procrastinating creature in general, or at least my spouse is.
The storage boxes were delivered on sat. Despite the grand plans and great promises by my husband that he will start the packing (of his stuff) on Sunday before I awoke, the boxes remained untouched when I stumbled out of bed. While he diddled his time away doing nothing and snoozing, I had finished washing and hanging 3 loads of laundry, ironed 2 basketful of clothes and linens, fold away all the bed linens for 2 bedrooms, mop the floor, grocery shopping and cooking lunch and dinner. All these even when I woke up 3 hours after him.
He always tell others that I sleep too much, but he had never considered that I often got WAY MORE things DONE even if I had lesser waking hours than he has put together. What's the point of being awake but not lifting a finger to get things done? I dont get it.
On Sunday nite, again my husband proclaimed loudly he will start packing on Monday. I barely took him seriously. I will believe him when I see it.
He asked me what he should start with. I told him perhaps his clothes. He frowned and said he still needed the clothes. I had to break it down patiently that he can leave his workclothes but need to pack his 2 cupboardful of leisure clothes since we are moving next week, and i wont know what he wants to keep in store, and which he would want to bring with us to the new place. Seeing his pouting face, I offered him the easier option. He can put the books or the cds away into the storage boxes. That is pretty easy since I had everything packed nicely on the shelves by similar shapes and sizes. He was so confident that he will see it done.
When I woke up on Monday today, I am unsurprised that the storage boxes remained untouched. I have no idea what the hell he had been doing the 3 hours while I was still asleep. Absolutely nothing productive, again. While he watched his TV and made my sandwich for lunch, I was done packing ALL the 3 full boxes of cds, as well as 5 full boxes of books, including wiping down the empty shelves, including washing up all the plates and stuff he used to made lunch... I didnt know if I should get fedup when in the middle of packing all the stuff, he had to interrupt my packing because he decided he is feeling well enough to go to the gym. Is this considered over-reliance on me, or some perverse unspoken "compliment" to my efficiency?
Like I said before, marriage good as it is, is some warped fantasy way overhyped...
Man are just lazy procrastinating creature in general, or at least my spouse is.
The storage boxes were delivered on sat. Despite the grand plans and great promises by my husband that he will start the packing (of his stuff) on Sunday before I awoke, the boxes remained untouched when I stumbled out of bed. While he diddled his time away doing nothing and snoozing, I had finished washing and hanging 3 loads of laundry, ironed 2 basketful of clothes and linens, fold away all the bed linens for 2 bedrooms, mop the floor, grocery shopping and cooking lunch and dinner. All these even when I woke up 3 hours after him.
He always tell others that I sleep too much, but he had never considered that I often got WAY MORE things DONE even if I had lesser waking hours than he has put together. What's the point of being awake but not lifting a finger to get things done? I dont get it.
On Sunday nite, again my husband proclaimed loudly he will start packing on Monday. I barely took him seriously. I will believe him when I see it.
He asked me what he should start with. I told him perhaps his clothes. He frowned and said he still needed the clothes. I had to break it down patiently that he can leave his workclothes but need to pack his 2 cupboardful of leisure clothes since we are moving next week, and i wont know what he wants to keep in store, and which he would want to bring with us to the new place. Seeing his pouting face, I offered him the easier option. He can put the books or the cds away into the storage boxes. That is pretty easy since I had everything packed nicely on the shelves by similar shapes and sizes. He was so confident that he will see it done.
When I woke up on Monday today, I am unsurprised that the storage boxes remained untouched. I have no idea what the hell he had been doing the 3 hours while I was still asleep. Absolutely nothing productive, again. While he watched his TV and made my sandwich for lunch, I was done packing ALL the 3 full boxes of cds, as well as 5 full boxes of books, including wiping down the empty shelves, including washing up all the plates and stuff he used to made lunch... I didnt know if I should get fedup when in the middle of packing all the stuff, he had to interrupt my packing because he decided he is feeling well enough to go to the gym. Is this considered over-reliance on me, or some perverse unspoken "compliment" to my efficiency?
Like I said before, marriage good as it is, is some warped fantasy way overhyped...
The rush for luggages...
At the airport, people who loves to stick themsevles closely to the sides of the luggage conveyor belt annoys me. I never understood this "eagerness" to monopolise and minimise the gap between one self and the side of the moving belt. So what if you spot your bag like 10steps away. Will waiting for that extra 30secs kill you? So instead of leaving a good margin away from the belt, to ensure everyone can see from a distance on the approaching luaggaes, everyone loves to crowd so closely that they have to constantly bob their heads up and down, competing with the people before them to strain their neck, squint their eyes, just for the hope to "beat" the rest for their belonging. How stupid.
Everytime I leave a gap between myself and the conveyor belt, some jackass idiot will always squeeze him or herself before me. It doesnt matter if the gap isnt large enough to house that bumbling idiot, there will always be that annoymous person who just feel oblige to get into the rat race and yet, my bags will almost quite always, arrive BEFORE those idiots. So each time, I will have to unceremoniously shove them aside and doesnt give a shit if i knock their shin, shoulder or whatever body parts as i lift my heavy luggage out of the moving belt. To me, if they are too supid to make way, then the fault is not mine.
The next annoying bunch of human species are young children near conveyor belt. They are like some over excited dogs or monkeys who again relish in the joy of hovering dangerously near the moving belt. They yelp like crazy dogs on a frenzy rabbit chase when they see the luggages but yet are too pathetically small and weak to actually be useful enough to lift the bags. So what they do is something competely impractical, like holding on to the luggage handle and run alongside with it, while screaming for their parents.
Why do parents let them become such public nusiance is beyond me, not to mention dangerous. They can easily trip and fall, not to mention hinder other passengers from getting their bags for fear of hitting these underage children. I lack a better word to describe what I think of such careless parenting. Trust me, its not something positive I would use to describe.
The other day while waiting for my bag, again, this HK family had 3 monkeys in toll. Age 12 and below and all boys. They get so excited as if there was some prize to gain if spot their parents bag. As well, their parent belong to the category of "I must stick closely to the belt" population. As the mum busied away chatting on her mobile, her kids were annoying me visually with their prodding and poking at everybag. It shouldnt annoy me but somehow such uncontrolled behaviour just put me off. I told my husband then that I wish these boys will be taught a lesson like getting their hands hit by some bags, such that they will learn that airport conveyor belt is not a playground and will back off and let the adults do the work. Just as I finished saying that, one of the boys had his hand squashed between a bulky luggage and the metal piece. I saw the "ouch" look on his face, and his mum didnt even notice. I probably come off sounding mean, but at that moment i didnt feel sorry at all for him. Sorry, no sympathies for stupid beings. Instead I laughed heartily. Evil probably but he deserved it in my perspective. Some children need to learn the painful way before they will learn. It wasnt serious accident but I know it prob hurts having his skin pinched... I laughed even more when I saw him backing off the conveyor belt by good 3 steps but not explaining to his elder brother why. He didnt looks so eager now. Not so tough eh little boy .
When his parents bags arrived, they stuck their hands on the bag and ran along with it. Of course they didnt have the strength to actually lift the bag. So they annoyed everyone else.
Seriously, why would parents not tell their kids to wait one side? Why wouldnt airport advise parents not to have kids hovering near the belt? When accidents do happen, it would be precisely these stupid folks that would kick up a stinker when they should be watching their little monkeys in the first place. Are the children being stupid here or the adults indulgently stupid here? I honestly cant decide who I should cast a vote for.
Everytime I leave a gap between myself and the conveyor belt, some jackass idiot will always squeeze him or herself before me. It doesnt matter if the gap isnt large enough to house that bumbling idiot, there will always be that annoymous person who just feel oblige to get into the rat race and yet, my bags will almost quite always, arrive BEFORE those idiots. So each time, I will have to unceremoniously shove them aside and doesnt give a shit if i knock their shin, shoulder or whatever body parts as i lift my heavy luggage out of the moving belt. To me, if they are too supid to make way, then the fault is not mine.
The next annoying bunch of human species are young children near conveyor belt. They are like some over excited dogs or monkeys who again relish in the joy of hovering dangerously near the moving belt. They yelp like crazy dogs on a frenzy rabbit chase when they see the luggages but yet are too pathetically small and weak to actually be useful enough to lift the bags. So what they do is something competely impractical, like holding on to the luggage handle and run alongside with it, while screaming for their parents.
Why do parents let them become such public nusiance is beyond me, not to mention dangerous. They can easily trip and fall, not to mention hinder other passengers from getting their bags for fear of hitting these underage children. I lack a better word to describe what I think of such careless parenting. Trust me, its not something positive I would use to describe.
The other day while waiting for my bag, again, this HK family had 3 monkeys in toll. Age 12 and below and all boys. They get so excited as if there was some prize to gain if spot their parents bag. As well, their parent belong to the category of "I must stick closely to the belt" population. As the mum busied away chatting on her mobile, her kids were annoying me visually with their prodding and poking at everybag. It shouldnt annoy me but somehow such uncontrolled behaviour just put me off. I told my husband then that I wish these boys will be taught a lesson like getting their hands hit by some bags, such that they will learn that airport conveyor belt is not a playground and will back off and let the adults do the work. Just as I finished saying that, one of the boys had his hand squashed between a bulky luggage and the metal piece. I saw the "ouch" look on his face, and his mum didnt even notice. I probably come off sounding mean, but at that moment i didnt feel sorry at all for him. Sorry, no sympathies for stupid beings. Instead I laughed heartily. Evil probably but he deserved it in my perspective. Some children need to learn the painful way before they will learn. It wasnt serious accident but I know it prob hurts having his skin pinched... I laughed even more when I saw him backing off the conveyor belt by good 3 steps but not explaining to his elder brother why. He didnt looks so eager now. Not so tough eh little boy .
When his parents bags arrived, they stuck their hands on the bag and ran along with it. Of course they didnt have the strength to actually lift the bag. So they annoyed everyone else.
Seriously, why would parents not tell their kids to wait one side? Why wouldnt airport advise parents not to have kids hovering near the belt? When accidents do happen, it would be precisely these stupid folks that would kick up a stinker when they should be watching their little monkeys in the first place. Are the children being stupid here or the adults indulgently stupid here? I honestly cant decide who I should cast a vote for.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
The Wolfman Movie Trailer
I'm finally back. maldive is a real piece of paradise on earth. Love it!
Before I share more on the trip, I am so looking forward to the upcoming movie below "The Wolfman." The trailer makes the movie look so promising....
Before I share more on the trip, I am so looking forward to the upcoming movie below "The Wolfman." The trailer makes the movie look so promising....
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Service apartment, the hunt is over..finally!
Finally, the mad rush search of temporary roof over our head is over. After weeks of poking around all the service apartments - big and small in and about HK, we finally settled on the one bedroom we liked most. Now all we need to do is get the contract signed and filed.
Valled and viewed so many service apartments. It's outrageous, the amount that some of these places charge. And some....my god, reality is hell of a difference from the virtual room view. It's not marketing spin, it's blatant lie in your face.
I had looked at some of the place like Pacific Palisades. I have never ben more shocked in my life. It is utterly, completely different from what was advertised. It was a living ruin and not some prestige living as it claimed to be. What you see from the website is not what you will get. The only reason I had been interested at checking out the place was the fact I could relocate my furniture and subscription services over instead of full storage. When I arrived to view 4 different apartment, I was greeted by dilapidated conditions, a funny stench, cracked walls, with some gaping holes, and wooden window frame that looked as if it couldnt bear anotrher typhoon hit. It was a complete disaster!! The girl who showed us around probably had an idea we were gonna take up the offer. If I could rank on a scale of 1 -10, with hell being 1, this place possibly could be a winner for the prize of hell hole, not to mention the hideous and nonrealistic price range they were looking for...
I also had a look at V-serviced apartment at causeway bay2.
In terms of conditions and layout, furnishing, I have to give it props. The rooms were well decorated, kitchen was well thought out with proper fridge and cooking gears. The living room is a little tight combined with the study space. There was a seperate dressing area which also functions as an additional room with the single single sleeping couch. Generally, its a nice room. There was a puny little balcony but I doubt that will get much use since its facing a road and some old temple/ school. I dont quite like the location and I can imagine hearing the endless streaming of cars driving past from dawn to dusk. The air quality wont be exactly idle either. Nonetheless, its a nice setup except it doesnt come with gym and facilities for the rather steep price they are charging. Close to $48k for all these, I simply cannot see where the value of the money has gone to and plus its over my budget anyways. Then again, if u have the cash, and doesnt mind lacking the environment and love the proximity to causeway bay, this will do it for u.
One of the other which we do like as well was Pinnacle Apartment, out at TST. There definitely is no misrepresentation here. The rooms looked exactly as it did in the pixs. Some of the rooms have really great view of the harbor as well. The staff Pinky who showed us around was really efficient and friendly, not to forget pronto. I like dealing with efficient people. The 2 bedrooms with study was great but unfortunately unavailable. The rooms were in good size, ample storage, good bathroom, and the kitchen was also another functional unit. We also checked out the one bedroom with a study, where the study comes with a foldable single bed. It was good but the kitchen was much smaller, that adjoins with the dining space. However, the room efficiency is there, good size and a nice place to be in. For some reason though, my husband decided to pass this one up. prob due to the queen size bed. A pity.
Moving on to smaller establishments, I thought Treasure view Soho was a good gem. It really doesnt look much from the outside but they had refurbished the place last year. It is kinda located in between Soho and LKF but not where the noisy area is. More specifically, its where the escalator is. The rooms are all standard size of 719 but with different layout. I honestly cannot imagine how cram it must be for the 2 bedroom. I saw the one with one bedroom and given the price, location and furnishing, I would say its a relatively fair deal. I didnt like those with low floors because u get a rather dismayal view of the tight grey aging building opposite that feels like someone is up your nose, or u see the hideous mouldy dirty rooftop. Going up higher levels, you get an open space due to the short building, and so the room feels brighter. Again, the kitchen is well equip and as others, the living room comes with lcd tv and dvd etc. the bedroom also has a proper ample storage space for clothes, and also a chest of drawers for other stuff. The dining area is a little small but really, if its just 2 people, its sufficient. It's another place which is doable if I am really desperate.
There are some which I called but were completely full, or some had really bad leasing staff. The one from Marriott was incomprehensively lazy bordering on rude. I had asked if it was possible to get a viewing and she sounded so relunctant. She enquired about my move in date and when I told her its about 5weeks time, she gave me that "dont waste my time" attitude and said to call and check back again in mid oct. Basically 2 weeks before I am moving. How stupid is that? She said it was "pointless to see the rooms since everyroom is different and own by different landlords." With that, she kinda expected that explains everything as to why a viewing appointment is unnecessary and not to encroach further into her time. I strike this
Kush had an interesting unit which is loft style and unfurnished. However, the leasing girl never called me back for a viewing time so I figured screw it. Plus she had told me they are having problems with the tenant blah blah blah. Great, I dont need to listen to you spewing away the negativity of your job and tenant.
Oh well, I'm just glad the hunt has come to an end. Now I have to get cracking on firming the local movers and storage service. Any suggestions?
In the pipeline lies the next chapter on cancellation of my subscription for my PCCW Now TV, Nevigator, and landline. Does anyone know if I can actually suspend the service and not terminate it? I have about 8 months left and hate to think of the penalty fee...
It's funny how PCCW force you to take the 2 year contract. There wasnt any 1 year contract in Hk which i find really strange.
Valled and viewed so many service apartments. It's outrageous, the amount that some of these places charge. And some....my god, reality is hell of a difference from the virtual room view. It's not marketing spin, it's blatant lie in your face.
I had looked at some of the place like Pacific Palisades. I have never ben more shocked in my life. It is utterly, completely different from what was advertised. It was a living ruin and not some prestige living as it claimed to be. What you see from the website is not what you will get. The only reason I had been interested at checking out the place was the fact I could relocate my furniture and subscription services over instead of full storage. When I arrived to view 4 different apartment, I was greeted by dilapidated conditions, a funny stench, cracked walls, with some gaping holes, and wooden window frame that looked as if it couldnt bear anotrher typhoon hit. It was a complete disaster!! The girl who showed us around probably had an idea we were gonna take up the offer. If I could rank on a scale of 1 -10, with hell being 1, this place possibly could be a winner for the prize of hell hole, not to mention the hideous and nonrealistic price range they were looking for...
I also had a look at V-serviced apartment at causeway bay2.
In terms of conditions and layout, furnishing, I have to give it props. The rooms were well decorated, kitchen was well thought out with proper fridge and cooking gears. The living room is a little tight combined with the study space. There was a seperate dressing area which also functions as an additional room with the single single sleeping couch. Generally, its a nice room. There was a puny little balcony but I doubt that will get much use since its facing a road and some old temple/ school. I dont quite like the location and I can imagine hearing the endless streaming of cars driving past from dawn to dusk. The air quality wont be exactly idle either. Nonetheless, its a nice setup except it doesnt come with gym and facilities for the rather steep price they are charging. Close to $48k for all these, I simply cannot see where the value of the money has gone to and plus its over my budget anyways. Then again, if u have the cash, and doesnt mind lacking the environment and love the proximity to causeway bay, this will do it for u.
One of the other which we do like as well was Pinnacle Apartment, out at TST. There definitely is no misrepresentation here. The rooms looked exactly as it did in the pixs. Some of the rooms have really great view of the harbor as well. The staff Pinky who showed us around was really efficient and friendly, not to forget pronto. I like dealing with efficient people. The 2 bedrooms with study was great but unfortunately unavailable. The rooms were in good size, ample storage, good bathroom, and the kitchen was also another functional unit. We also checked out the one bedroom with a study, where the study comes with a foldable single bed. It was good but the kitchen was much smaller, that adjoins with the dining space. However, the room efficiency is there, good size and a nice place to be in. For some reason though, my husband decided to pass this one up. prob due to the queen size bed. A pity.
Moving on to smaller establishments, I thought Treasure view Soho was a good gem. It really doesnt look much from the outside but they had refurbished the place last year. It is kinda located in between Soho and LKF but not where the noisy area is. More specifically, its where the escalator is. The rooms are all standard size of 719 but with different layout. I honestly cannot imagine how cram it must be for the 2 bedroom. I saw the one with one bedroom and given the price, location and furnishing, I would say its a relatively fair deal. I didnt like those with low floors because u get a rather dismayal view of the tight grey aging building opposite that feels like someone is up your nose, or u see the hideous mouldy dirty rooftop. Going up higher levels, you get an open space due to the short building, and so the room feels brighter. Again, the kitchen is well equip and as others, the living room comes with lcd tv and dvd etc. the bedroom also has a proper ample storage space for clothes, and also a chest of drawers for other stuff. The dining area is a little small but really, if its just 2 people, its sufficient. It's another place which is doable if I am really desperate.
There are some which I called but were completely full, or some had really bad leasing staff. The one from Marriott was incomprehensively lazy bordering on rude. I had asked if it was possible to get a viewing and she sounded so relunctant. She enquired about my move in date and when I told her its about 5weeks time, she gave me that "dont waste my time" attitude and said to call and check back again in mid oct. Basically 2 weeks before I am moving. How stupid is that? She said it was "pointless to see the rooms since everyroom is different and own by different landlords." With that, she kinda expected that explains everything as to why a viewing appointment is unnecessary and not to encroach further into her time. I strike this
Kush had an interesting unit which is loft style and unfurnished. However, the leasing girl never called me back for a viewing time so I figured screw it. Plus she had told me they are having problems with the tenant blah blah blah. Great, I dont need to listen to you spewing away the negativity of your job and tenant.
Oh well, I'm just glad the hunt has come to an end. Now I have to get cracking on firming the local movers and storage service. Any suggestions?
In the pipeline lies the next chapter on cancellation of my subscription for my PCCW Now TV, Nevigator, and landline. Does anyone know if I can actually suspend the service and not terminate it? I have about 8 months left and hate to think of the penalty fee...
It's funny how PCCW force you to take the 2 year contract. There wasnt any 1 year contract in Hk which i find really strange.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Travel log Taipei: Disappointing lunch at Du Xiao Yue
My husband commented I looked positively happy in Taipei, all smiles and happily chatting with anyone from cab driver to people I buy food from. It was only natural I told him, since I get to stuff myself silly with my fav food and best of all, no language barrier. Not to mention the lack of loud mainlanders that will bound to ruin my day....
Even when we were at the Taipei 101 food court, I ended up being "translator" for this Dannish couple who had wanted to buy the "Buddha hand" fruit from the fruit store guy. I couldnt bear the 2 parties trying desperately to communicate to each other plus it didnt cost me anything to help. Well, at the end, I was even more surprised when the fruit stall guy kept thanking me and even gave me 10% discount for my drinks. Didnt see that coming but it was a nice gesture on his part.
Anycase, back to my travel log. On our last afternoon in Taipei, our hotel recommended this "popular" place 度小月。I should know better than to trust recommendations of a top end hotel that housed caucasians tourists...they wont recommend local delights but a more upmarket place that is more "comfortable" for their guests. I suppose overly local place may shock some of their cultured and refined guests.
Initially, I had wanted to also try the pork ribs place anna had suggested but it was kinda far so we had to abort plan since my partner didnt want to travel.
I had wanted to eat 鲁肉饭 while my husband prefered something soupy which was why we ended up in the recommended place since the hotel assured they had both. When we arrive at 度小月, there was a long Q outside. Damn. An alarm should have gone off when I saw the string of foreigners in line for their table. Oh well, too late to change plans.
We waited for about 15mins, before this male staff gruffly yelled for our number and showed us in. he wasnt rude but he sure wasnt exactly pleasant either. If there was anything called hospitality award , this dude sure wont be a winning recipient of it.
The list was simple and easy. I went for my rice while my husband went for 担仔面（danzaimian）. We also ordered the fried prawn rolls and another steam prawn patty. While the fried roll came and was yummy but oily.
The steamed meat patty was another matter all together. Firstly, it wasn event a patty as I had imagined. It was just like a huge lump of meat wrapped in a thick dumpling flour dough. In fact, the more accurate hokkien description would be “水kueh”. Frankly I thought the dish was rather plain, unappetising and bordering awlful. The 鲁肉饭 was also raher bland and bordering on too much salt without any sweetness. Apparently, the one I had in the night market with my mum back in April was SOOOOooooo much better. Who said all 鲁肉饭 are the same? Rubbish. This one had all the fatty bits in it that made it rather gross. My husband's soup noodle fared better but to me frankly, this place isnt worth the time, effort nor recommendation. What made it worse was that I had to wait for 30mins for my 2nd serving of prawn fritters, despite 3 reminders and lessening of guests. What the hell?!
I shall be frank. This place reeeks as a tourist establishment aimed to "con" tourists who doesnt know better as to where to go and find food, or lack of better ideas. I cannot believed I got suckered into this place by my hotel even after telling them I prefer local favourites and hangout. This is obviously NOT a place to go to if you want really authentic good cheap local food. What an utter disappointment.
Even when we were at the Taipei 101 food court, I ended up being "translator" for this Dannish couple who had wanted to buy the "Buddha hand" fruit from the fruit store guy. I couldnt bear the 2 parties trying desperately to communicate to each other plus it didnt cost me anything to help. Well, at the end, I was even more surprised when the fruit stall guy kept thanking me and even gave me 10% discount for my drinks. Didnt see that coming but it was a nice gesture on his part.
Anycase, back to my travel log. On our last afternoon in Taipei, our hotel recommended this "popular" place 度小月。I should know better than to trust recommendations of a top end hotel that housed caucasians tourists...they wont recommend local delights but a more upmarket place that is more "comfortable" for their guests. I suppose overly local place may shock some of their cultured and refined guests.
Initially, I had wanted to also try the pork ribs place anna had suggested but it was kinda far so we had to abort plan since my partner didnt want to travel.
I had wanted to eat 鲁肉饭 while my husband prefered something soupy which was why we ended up in the recommended place since the hotel assured they had both. When we arrive at 度小月, there was a long Q outside. Damn. An alarm should have gone off when I saw the string of foreigners in line for their table. Oh well, too late to change plans.
We waited for about 15mins, before this male staff gruffly yelled for our number and showed us in. he wasnt rude but he sure wasnt exactly pleasant either. If there was anything called hospitality award , this dude sure wont be a winning recipient of it.
The list was simple and easy. I went for my rice while my husband went for 担仔面（danzaimian）. We also ordered the fried prawn rolls and another steam prawn patty. While the fried roll came and was yummy but oily.
The steamed meat patty was another matter all together. Firstly, it wasn event a patty as I had imagined. It was just like a huge lump of meat wrapped in a thick dumpling flour dough. In fact, the more accurate hokkien description would be “水kueh”. Frankly I thought the dish was rather plain, unappetising and bordering awlful. The 鲁肉饭 was also raher bland and bordering on too much salt without any sweetness. Apparently, the one I had in the night market with my mum back in April was SOOOOooooo much better. Who said all 鲁肉饭 are the same? Rubbish. This one had all the fatty bits in it that made it rather gross. My husband's soup noodle fared better but to me frankly, this place isnt worth the time, effort nor recommendation. What made it worse was that I had to wait for 30mins for my 2nd serving of prawn fritters, despite 3 reminders and lessening of guests. What the hell?!
I shall be frank. This place reeeks as a tourist establishment aimed to "con" tourists who doesnt know better as to where to go and find food, or lack of better ideas. I cannot believed I got suckered into this place by my hotel even after telling them I prefer local favourites and hangout. This is obviously NOT a place to go to if you want really authentic good cheap local food. What an utter disappointment.
Taipei Travel Log: Dawan - 大腕燒肉專門店
Back to completing my Taipei Travel log...
After a long day at Danshui, we returned to venture to this meat place which I had reserved dinner based on a blog entry I had read prior my trip. the place is called 大腕燒肉專門店 (Da wan barbecue meat specialty place). the place is located at Dunhua nan lu, amongst many little trendy stores popular with the younger crowd.
I have absolutely no idea how to get there by train even though there is a metro stop nearby. Seeing that we are running late, I opted for a cab, not before asking the hotel to call the place that we will be 10mins late. In hindsight, that was a super wise decision because the place was nestled in an inner street, and it was really FULL. I assume my seats would have been given up if no called to say we will be late since I didnt have a local number for the store to call and confirm my attendance.
The floor area isnt very large. The central area in a u-shaped is taken up by the staff cooking and preparing the food order, while the patrons will sit on the counter area. There is one table tucked away in a corner reserved for larger crowds. The place is packed with locals, not tourists, and brightly lit, well designed, well ventilated and filled with the very friendly and polite serving staff. The place even comes with discretely concealed drawers with a keylock that allows you to place your bags/ coats etc. Talk about thoughful.
We were shown to our seat promptly and since all the menu was in Mandarin (what's new), I honestly didnt know where to start explaining the long list to my husband. The place is kinda dedicated in serviing beef. of course there are seafood, and other food but I would say this is a beef lover place.
While I was busy staring and wondering what to get, the young guy asked what we would like to drink. I told him honestly I had no idea and am kinda lost and some help to start with would be fantastic. Knowing we are from out of town, he very swiftly recommended some of the store's specialities and this beef platter of wagyu beef of 3 different cut. Then he recommended this cocktail which he assured was asbolutely divine and I wont be able to discern the alcohol within. he looked sincere and earnest enough that I trusted him with the plan. I was not disappointed.
Dinner at Dawan proved to be my best meal in Taipei for the trip. Apart from the excellent service we had, the ingredients were undoubtingly fresh and reasonably priced. I would never ever pay so little for such high quality waygu beef cut. the meat was fresh and succulent and the staff timed the cooking over the charcoal flame so perfectly that every piece was cook to perfection (pink), where the juice will oozed inside your mouth as you take each bite. There was no additional sauces needed for dip. The meat is soooo good and naturally sweet that you will want to savour the full flavour on its own. Any additional condiments or sauces are excessive or rather unnecessary at this place.
We started off with this salad with small cubes of tofu. Each mouth was crunchy and delightful. The tofu was fried to prefection where the skin is lightly crisp without being oily, and the inside really soft and warm. The sald mix was light and non greasy either. (the girl was making our salad in the pix) What followed next was the grilled beef tongue with chopped scallions.
While we were eating, I started chattin with the girl who was "assisting" us in cooking our meat. She is very very sweet and funny. I told her she looked like the taiwanese actress/ singer Yang Chen Ling and she laughed. I prob made her day. We chit chat so much and laughed so much that she joked that Kirby her colleague must have overdosed my drink with too much alcohol... her other colleagues joined in the conversations and they started to guess my origins.
Too bad, no one guessed correctly where I was from with some thinking I was taiwanese. haaaa. As any typical reaction after the answer was revealed, she asked me what happened to the "funny singapore" accent. It's kinda hard to explain nor overturn this "deeply etched" WORLDWIDE perception that ALL SINGAPOREAN speaks BADLY in both English and Mandarin, so i didnt bother to elaborate. Its kinda sad if you really think about it.... Anycase, before I knew it, they had somehow coined 爱笑小姐 as my nickname for the night.
After a long day at Danshui, we returned to venture to this meat place which I had reserved dinner based on a blog entry I had read prior my trip. the place is called 大腕燒肉專門店 (Da wan barbecue meat specialty place). the place is located at Dunhua nan lu, amongst many little trendy stores popular with the younger crowd.
I have absolutely no idea how to get there by train even though there is a metro stop nearby. Seeing that we are running late, I opted for a cab, not before asking the hotel to call the place that we will be 10mins late. In hindsight, that was a super wise decision because the place was nestled in an inner street, and it was really FULL. I assume my seats would have been given up if no called to say we will be late since I didnt have a local number for the store to call and confirm my attendance.
The floor area isnt very large. The central area in a u-shaped is taken up by the staff cooking and preparing the food order, while the patrons will sit on the counter area. There is one table tucked away in a corner reserved for larger crowds. The place is packed with locals, not tourists, and brightly lit, well designed, well ventilated and filled with the very friendly and polite serving staff. The place even comes with discretely concealed drawers with a keylock that allows you to place your bags/ coats etc. Talk about thoughful.
We were shown to our seat promptly and since all the menu was in Mandarin (what's new), I honestly didnt know where to start explaining the long list to my husband. The place is kinda dedicated in serviing beef. of course there are seafood, and other food but I would say this is a beef lover place.
While I was busy staring and wondering what to get, the young guy asked what we would like to drink. I told him honestly I had no idea and am kinda lost and some help to start with would be fantastic. Knowing we are from out of town, he very swiftly recommended some of the store's specialities and this beef platter of wagyu beef of 3 different cut. Then he recommended this cocktail which he assured was asbolutely divine and I wont be able to discern the alcohol within. he looked sincere and earnest enough that I trusted him with the plan. I was not disappointed.
Dinner at Dawan proved to be my best meal in Taipei for the trip. Apart from the excellent service we had, the ingredients were undoubtingly fresh and reasonably priced. I would never ever pay so little for such high quality waygu beef cut. the meat was fresh and succulent and the staff timed the cooking over the charcoal flame so perfectly that every piece was cook to perfection (pink), where the juice will oozed inside your mouth as you take each bite. There was no additional sauces needed for dip. The meat is soooo good and naturally sweet that you will want to savour the full flavour on its own. Any additional condiments or sauces are excessive or rather unnecessary at this place.
We started off with this salad with small cubes of tofu. Each mouth was crunchy and delightful. The tofu was fried to prefection where the skin is lightly crisp without being oily, and the inside really soft and warm. The sald mix was light and non greasy either. (the girl was making our salad in the pix) What followed next was the grilled beef tongue with chopped scallions.
While we were eating, I started chattin with the girl who was "assisting" us in cooking our meat. She is very very sweet and funny. I told her she looked like the taiwanese actress/ singer Yang Chen Ling and she laughed. I prob made her day. We chit chat so much and laughed so much that she joked that Kirby her colleague must have overdosed my drink with too much alcohol... her other colleagues joined in the conversations and they started to guess my origins.
Too bad, no one guessed correctly where I was from with some thinking I was taiwanese. haaaa. As any typical reaction after the answer was revealed, she asked me what happened to the "funny singapore" accent. It's kinda hard to explain nor overturn this "deeply etched" WORLDWIDE perception that ALL SINGAPOREAN speaks BADLY in both English and Mandarin, so i didnt bother to elaborate. Its kinda sad if you really think about it.... Anycase, before I knew it, they had somehow coined 爱笑小姐 as my nickname for the night.
One of the best dish was 牛小排，甜美，又嫩又多汁，真没话说。After cooking to perfection, the meat will be taken away to be slice to small pieces and adorned wih a drop of wasabi that perfectly enhanced the flavour. The wasabi isnt the usual nasty choking usual but rather it has a very light flavour closer to english mustard but mixed with a tinge of something else. Combined with the sweet meat, it was divine combination.
The seafood was also fresh, unadulterated goodness as well.
Our neighbors had some rice ball that has salmon stuffing which didnt really appeal to us that much. I had another of the cocktail but of pomelo concoction this time as recommended by the girl to be her fav. I was sold and she was right.
Both my husband and I had a great time there, in terms of food and ambience and everything. To us, everything was perfect. If u can speak Mandarin, that is definitely a place to go. The place was constantly filled with customers and not a single empty seat in sight from 7.30pm to 9.30pm while we were there. As we were leaving, the place was still going strong with people waiting outside, and hence reservations is a good idea for this place. Would I come back again? Definitely. For the same meal, it would prob cost us an arm AND a leg if it was consumed in Hk or Singapore but not here in taipei. At the end, apart from the good food, I think the humourous friendly staff set the place apart. Creating a setting like you are dining at a friend's place where you can unwind, chill out or banter with the staff is a perfect environment to leave a memorable time for any guests, and most certainly have them come back again. Before I left, the girl and I said our goodbyes, and that I will definitely be back again the next time I am in taipei. It's a promise :)
As I left the store and was asking one of the serving staff (taking his smoking break) where to take a cab, he told me to head to the main street, not before cracking another joke to take my pick on any of the "cattle herd" parked by the side... That night, I went back with a big smile and a full belly.
Address: 台北市敦化南路一段177巷22號1樓０２－２７１１０１７９
operating hours: PM18:00～AM02:00