Food Review: Loh Mai Pau

Have any of you tried eating loh mai fan (savoury glutinous rice) wrapped with bun? This is the first time I've seen such a dish and I'm in love!

Why?
First - unlike the normal loh mai fan, this one is not so oily. I assumed that the oil might have been absorbed by the bun. But no, the bun it's not oily like the normal meat bun (bak pau). It feels soft and moist like it's just wrapped under the loh mai fan.

Typical Loh Mai Fun

 Second, there's an extra ingredients: salted duck egg yolk which reminds me of our rice dumplings (zong zi). Yummmy!!

Bak chang / zong zi

Where is it sold? Well, my bf's dad actually packed it for us and we had it while it's still steaming hot. It's from Hong Kee. Ironically, I've dined in Hong Kee, Damansara before and I have not seen this dish (or can't seem to google it). The dim sum in Hong Kee was so-so (I still haven't review it for months... Will do it soon) but this dish is yummilicious! :)

Try it! I give it a thumbs up for a non-oily loh mai pau! (I forgot to ask what is the real name of the dish)

Movie Review: Ip Man 2 (spoiler alert)

I managed to watch the preview last night. Thanks again to Mix.fm! :)

Ip Man2 is the sequel to Ip Man (pronounced as "yip" "mun" and not "I.P. man") No, it's not internet protocol man. Lol. Anyway, this will be more of a brief teaser than the overall review. ;)

Ip Man is based on a grandmaster of the martial art Wing Chun, Yip Man, and the first person to teach Wing Chun openly. He is famous as being the master to Bruce Lee.

Continuing from the first movie, Ip Man (played by Donnie Yen) was brought out of China into Hong Kong after he was shot by the Japanese. In Hong Kong, the movie shows how he had to start again, being poor and avoiding the landlord lady when they don't have enough rent to pay. I wonder where they get the money. Does his pregnant wife work?

Anyway, he tries to open a martial arts centre on a roof top. In the movie, he is seen waiting till 9 days before anyone comes up to enquire. Before that, a lady happily dries her laundry in the vast space he has not used yet. The potential student comes and challenges him. He proudly announced to Ip Man that if he beats him, he will become his student. Later on, you should guess the outcome and he brings more friends with him to fight and eventually become students.

The early half of the movie also focuses on the proud, naivity of his one particular student who brought problem to his master, Ip Man and the centre. He fought to prove that Wing Chun martial arts is better than others and got bullied by the bigger centre who was in charge of the area. Lesson to learn for this student was shown in a friendly chat with Ip Man in his house. Ip man says something like this: You are only learning the techniques of Chinese Martial Arts. But that is not what Chinese Martial Arts is about - you should learn the Chinese spirit. (Sorry if I translated or rephrase it wrongly - but off-hand, I remember it as this)

 Ip Man goes to save his student

A little comedy was introduced in the part where Ip Man is asked to fight other existing martial arts master on the round chinese dining table.  They showed the older other martial arts masters' reluctance to fight him and get injured after one of them loses to Ip Man. I wonder if the different style of martial arts portrayed here are based on real kinds? Anyway, the highlight of this scene is when Sammo Hung "jumps" up to fight with Ip Man. The character of Hung emits a loud strong presence.

The table fight

Sidetrack, I find Sammo Hung's career matures as he grows older. Remember his earlier movies where he acts young and silly while being bullied? Now he can be a "strong master" with a dominant presence on screen. Kudos to you for maturing in your acting career!

The introduction of Sammo Hung as the master martial arts in Hong Kong is shown as a big "tai kor" who has to bow down to the greedy British "kwai loh" policeman to ensure protection and continued work for his students and followers. At first, he is portrayed as a man who reluctantly bows down to the western occupation in Hong Kong (specifically one individual). But the main event of the show is the boxing match between the east and the west which becomes the climax of the movie.

Hung fought to the very end with the British boxer, Twister in honour of the Chinese martial arts. Twister is shown as this buffed-up, muscular boxer who is way larger than the chinese men with very high stamina and seemed like an unbeatable giant. Twister and his other British counterparts are shown to look down upon the Chinese.

Ip Man preparing for the showdown. 
(What a nice scene and picture of this!! Look at the lighting and shadow casted)

The final showdown is between Ip Man and Twister when Twister threw out the challenge rather rudely and proudly proclaimed by the time he is through, there will no longer be any Chinese martial arts. Watch the movie to see how it ends. I find that the end of this scene seems timely to be the end of the movie.

 The final showdown

The part of Bruce Lee was hardly a minute at the end of the movie which showed a 10-year old boy visiting Ip Man and proudly proclaiming he will be the next master because he is "Li Xiao Long".  Obviously, he brushed his nose with his thumb - the Bruce Lee trademark! Teaser for the next up-coming movie!

Fighting scenes will enraptured you throughout the movie and little intimate or light comedy will make you smile. Go for it if you're a big fan of martial arts. Or perhaps like me, who grew up watching movies like Wong Fei Hong (Jet Li).  :)

P.S. Other reviews to check out in case I don't give you the right perspective.

Natural Phenomenon: Crown Shyness in FRIM

 View upwards to the crown of the trees... the foliage.

When I first saw this picture, I was in awe. It looked so beautiful. Then my colleague told me that the tree would not grow and overlap each other. It will stop-short and you can see the openings like cracks on the ground. This only happens with the same kind of species i.e. lodgepole pine trees. It is called "Crown shyness".

What is crown shyness?
Crown shyness is the empty space between crowns in fully stocked stands that is not related to tree-fall gaps. The tree crowns have a tendency to "shy away" from each other, leaving gaps of a few inches to a few feet. These gaps are an important feature of some canopy's structure - particularly in monospecific and even-height stands. They act as a source of sunflecks for understory species, as a barrier to animal movement, and as a vent for heat and gas exchange between canopy and atmosphere. (description googled from here)

In fact, we can see the same phenomenon right here in Malaysia in our very own FRIM (Forest Research Institute of Malaysia) in Kepong, Selangor.

Image from FRIM website

Exerpt from their website:
Of particular interest is the "puzzle-like" pattern of the individual tree crowns separated by gaps and outlined against the sky. This phenomenon is called "Crown Shyness". The reason for its name is because the leaf tips of the Dryobalanops aromatica appear to be shy towards their own kind, hence forming the gap. This tree is also known as kapur tree and has a nice-smelling exudate known as camphor, one of the main component of making ointment. The ointment is used for stomach massages after child delivery.

Why was my colleague interested in this? Well, she was researching patterns for the facade of the building she is designing. If the client can afford/ willing to spend the money on this pattern, I can't wait to see it!

In the meantime, perhaps I shall take the time to go to FRIM again to catch a glimpse of this with my very own eyes! (And hope I can finally experience the canopy walk which I missed the last time) Why must you try it? It's 30m above sea level and imagine the greenery you will see. It's the natural version of walking along the skybridge in KLCC Petronas Twin Towers!

Forest Research Institute Malaysia
Kepong,
52109 Selangor Darul Ehsan,
Tel : +603 6279 7000

Operating Hours and Fees

The operating hours of the park is from 8:00am to 6:00pm daily.
However, take note that the canopy walkway operating hours is from 9:30am to 2:30pm.
(If not you will be like me who went after 2.30pm hoping to experience the canopy walk!! Sob.. after that long ride, what a pity)

If you are driving, the entrance fee to the park is RM5/car else the fee charged is RM1/person.

Kelly Clarkson's Concert in KL - fans!

Lol... can you spot me in this? Hot Magazine went around taking pictures of "fans"! Will blog about my experience the next time!

My first Concert: Kelly Clarkson

I have to admit. I was very reluctant to go to this concert: Kelly Clarkson - All I Ever Wanted Tour. It's not that I don't like her. Afterall, she is the first winner for the first season of American Idol. I'm okay with her songs.

Why then?

First, I'm kind of lazy... ahhaahah Hence, I've never even been to any before.

Second, Puduraya Bus terminal is currently under going renovations and is temporarily relocated to Bukit Jalil - where the venue of the concert is.

Third, stinginess. Lol

Hence, after my friend who loves live-concert, asked me again for the umpteenth time, I said, "Oh well, why not? I shall try it for once!" How she persuaded me?

First - She said she'll drive so I don't have to worry about traffic.

Second - Look at the reason above.

Third - I looked for tickets sold in lowyat.net at a discount! ;)

Now, the skies are dark and the thunder is threatening to rain. It's in National Stadium (outdoor) in Bukit Jalil! I wonder how it'll turn out tonight.

Pray that I'll have a memorable experience and see if my friend can convert me to a live-concert fan or the lazy type who prefers to sit comfortly in front of the telly.. ;)

Clarins Skincare Collection 2009

Very belated post but this is my Clarins Skincare Collection from 2009 which I have to use up! Lol (as it also consists samples which according to sales girls - are not meant to be kept because the packaging is not as good as the original-sized ones!)

1st: This is a belated Christmas gift from Miu! Thanks!! :) I like that she even added in a nice Clarins red transparent box, hearts bracelet and Christmas decoration! Muaks!

2nd: The combination few sets:
i. Another sample set from another friend for Christmas (Thanks BE!)  Muaks!
ii. 2 trial sets I bought during the Clarins workshop (1 combination skin set and 1 more which I cannot recall now)
iii. 1 Christmas Pore Minimising set I bought for myself because I was looking for a moisturiser

Does this makes me a Clarins user? Well, honestly, I'm still combining certain products which seems to work well on my skin. So I'll still try them all. :)

So far, I like the suppleness of my skin after using the HydraQuence Cream-Mask to rehydrate my skin!

There's also Huile Lotus oil which I use as part of my night regime.

As an afterthought, with another decade coming, anyone can recommend me a good night cream (anti-aging and rejuvenating one)? Have to face the fact of aging and prepare for it!

Farewell to Friendships

I just realised that everyone around me is growing up except me. I expect to hang out with friends once a while and do girly things with the gals. I expect we would still be quite similar to our school days.

However, that's only skin deep.

My friends have embarked on the "next stage" of life which our society deems as the "right thing" to do. They have become wifes to their husbands and about to start their nest. Some still enjoy their couplehood without the constraint of kids. Others, I suspect, might start building their nest soon.

The last few years, my friends who have been studying overseas have dropped back to Malaysia for a visit and a sudden need to meet-up to announce their marriage. Since they have always been overseas, I didn't quite feel the difference of their status to our friendship.

However, when those nearby started being indifferent to their single friends and even started avoiding them altogether, I finally realised, yes, single friends and married friends do not mix. I sense a sudden loss with the once-cherished-friendship as I know, my friends' priority now is to their husband and their families.

Sigh, growing up is painful but I never realised I need a whole new set of friends akin to a whole new wardrobe. I wonder when I embarked in that phase of life, I would treat the same to my other single friends. It's not that I resent their happiness but I guess

I bid farewell to girly hangouts and welcome, albeit reluctantly, the need to be mature and learn to accept one own's companionship. Even though there are so many people out there, one can't help to cling to the usual comfort of the same faces of yesteryear.

So now I tell myself, open a box and put those old friendships inside. Then bring out the box and bury it somewhere. Let the past stay in the past and learn to embrace the future! :) Welcome new friends out there, whoever you are!

My Version of Grooming Tips

Most people think about hair and dressing when they hear the word “grooming”. Well, that means you forget about the other basic aspects. Here are my grooming tips based on the 5 basic senses:

1. Sight

Mane - You would groom you hair by having the right hair style and keeping it well groomed. Or purposely messed up in your own sense of style. You could even dye it to a different colour according to your different mood of the hour.

Attire - You would wear smartly, shabbily or elegantly (according to your style)

Face – You would expertly makeup your skin to the all natural look or to party look. You would expertly use your concealer to cover all your blemishes.

Eyes – You would use coloured contact lenses to conceal your original iris’s colour or perhaps wear a nice wire-rimmed glasses to look like the smart nerdy guy.

Piercing – You would stylishly pierce your nose, tongue, belly-button and other places unseen without any stripping.

2. Sound

Speech - You will speak with the Manglish slang or the British slang or in a loud nasal tone ala Nanny Fine’s voice.

3. Touch

Skin - You would lather on thick cream and moisturizer to pamper your soft silky skin. You would scrub off the dead skin cells weekly in hopes your new skin regenerate quickly. You would even fill the bath tub with milk and honey like how Cleopatra used to do to pamper her skin.

4. Taste

Lips – You keep your lips moisture and supple with kissable lip gloss to attract the other. You chew a gum in anticipation of a session of tongue fencing

5. Smell
Fragrance – You cover your body odour with vigorous showering or a thick scent of perfume.

But why trouble yourself when nowadays, you can just spray on some body deodorant to keep yourself fresh, sweet-smelling and attractive all day! ;)

Try Adidas Action 3 range for your ease and comfort! 

Project Alpha Season 2 Episode 1


Project Alpha Season 2 Episode 2


Project Alpha Season 2 Episode 3


Project Alpha Season 2 is presented by Adidas Action 3 and supported by P1 and MAS.

Movie Review: The International (Spoiler alert)

Why am I reviewing this movie, The International?

Well, it's because it's also shot in Guggenheim Museum, New York! In fact, there was a gun-fight scene during this movie. This got me curious whether they had to recreate the entire set of the museum? The way they shot all over the spiral ramp at the rotunda... and also the clerestory!!

Here is an excerpt to what actually happened:

A gunfight between Louis Salinger (Clive Owen) and assassins in the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City is made even more thrilling by the art museum’s concentric architecture. In an interview with The New York Times, director Tom Twyker explains that he wanted the movie’s central scene (and most demanding sequence) to be in the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed museum, which he calls “the most iconic and interesting piece of architecture that the twentieth century has produced. After filming for three days in the actual Guggenheim, the actors went to a soundstage where the crew had spent 16 weeks building a replica of the museum to ensure that no artwork would be harmed in the making of the film.

The crazed shoot-'em-up takes place at the Guggenheim Museum during business hours. The Guggenheim set was recreated on a huge sound stage in Berlin and a disclaimer at the end of the film states: "The fictional exhibition depicted in the main galleries of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum was not curated by nor an actual exhibition of the museum.

Actually, I only caught this film half way through and was only intrigued with the shoot-out in the museum. Googling about it makes the creation of the scene interesting. But the movie ended in a so-so note... so I can't really review about it. 
 

Poisonous Friends

Was reading an old article on this, thought worth mentioning here since many guillible people are victims to such "friends".

What are poisonous friends?
IMHO, first of, you think they are "friends".
You trust them.
You give them a benefit of a doubt.
You share secrets with them.
You think they'll cover your back.

How wrong you are... hence the term "poisonous".
Instead, you get hurt.
You get laughed at.
You find yourself in the latest gossip (which you never heard before) or could only be 10% correct and 90% fabricated. (what is a gossip without some pepper and sauce, right?)

Basically, a friend is supposed to support you and occasionally tell you the hard painful truth about yourself. But never ever should she/he always pull you down and make you feel bad.. or even make you into a roadkill!!

The articles further classifies 8 deadly types of Poisonous Friends:

1. The Smilling Stabber
From the description, imagine the person smiling at you, agreeing with you. Then when you turn, her smile becomes a frown and she bitches about you. Nuff said.

2. The Gossip
The friend shares her gossips with you but she digs out gossip from you too, albeit reluctantly or willingly. Beware, you might be known as the gossiper instead!!

3. The Control Freak
This friend likes to control your life: she answers for you, she arranges thing for you and there is no sense of boundary. I had a roommate like that, and boy, when I finally realised it, it was a wee bit too late, and you know how vicious girls get when you break their rules..

4. The Taker
She's the friend who insists you drop everything for her but when it comes to your turn, she's never there. You'll feel like a victim of a vampire with your blood all suck out dry....

5. The "Poor Me" Friend
This friend is whinning and makes you feel guilty for having your own life. Even when you take time for her, she might make it sounds worse as if you're not sincere.

6. The "Poor You" Friend
I think this kind of friend invites you out at the last minute or perhaps invite you out of pity.

7. The "Twin"
She expects you to feel the same and drags you into her world. When she quarrels with someone, she expects you to be on her side. Like the phrase, you're supposed to be her "twin". Personally, I feel like it's also a kind of control freak.

8. "The "As a Favour" Friend
This kind of "friend" is not that obvious because they normally worm their way up into your lives and before you know it, suddenly you feel guily if they ask you a big favour which in normal circumstances you will say "no", such as: "I'm having some financial difficulties. Can you help me out with a loan?" etc.

In short, whenever the friendship seems to be exhausting you till you look like this:

Be realistic, cut ties with the so-called-friend and move on. It's your life and you will always meet more potential-friends out there. Just be careful...

New Necklace

I pat myself on the back by telling myself I've been good for not buying more items to add to my costume jewellery collection for many months now. Look at some of the current items I have at the moment.

Hmm.. I should arrange it nicely one of these days.. It's a nuisance untangling them. Lol

However, thanks to Sherry for her freebie (which require you write a few entries) to win... this is a new kitty ribbon necklace!

She posted the item to me me few weeks back by registered mail but it never arrived. I decided to e-mail her recently to inform her that the mail must be missing. She's so nice to resend another necklace in pos ekspres to make sure I'm the proud new owner of this! Thank you so much! :)

I'm going to wear this on a wedding I have to attend on Labour day! It matches the purple dress I intend to wear! ;)

Do drop by her blogshop if you're in need of any little jewellery. Can't comment about buying from her but I give her thumbs up for resending me the necklace the second time when it never arrived the first time.

If not, check out my previous post on my obsession with charms bracelets and recommended good blogshop to visit! :)

PetFinder.my - Fancy owning a pet?

PetFinder.my Adoption Event Begins.. April 17th & 18th!

PetFinder.my is turning 2 years' old on April 18th, 2010!

In conjunction with their 2nd Anniversary, PetFinder.my and Petster Magazine will be jointly organizing a series of pet adoption events at various shopping malls, beginning April 17th. Various NGOs will be participating, such as SPCA, PAWS, Save A Stray, Kolam, Rescue 2 Rehome and Malaysian Dogs Deserve Better.

Below are their event details for this week:

Venue: Tropicana City Mall, Selangor
Date: April 17 & 18
Time: 11am - 7pm

Features:

• Standardized adoption fees & rules for all NGOs - Instantly bring home a cute Doggy for RM149, or a lovely Kitty for RM99 - adoption was never so simple!
• Every adopter would receive a FREE Starter Pack with goodies to get you started in taking care of your new furry friend
• Adopters also get an attractive, FREE Recyclable Bag
• A special Play Area where you can play and bond with these lovely pets

Feel free to pay them a visit and bring along your friends as well, the more the merrier!

For more information on the event, please check out their website.

Time: 11am - 7pm

Event Dates:
April: 17, 18, 24, 25
May: 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23, 29, 30
June: 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27
July: 3, 4, 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25
* All dates above are Sat & Sun, except June 25th which is a Friday

Movie Review: When in Rome (spoiler alert)

It's good to get a movie premier again. Thanks Mix.fm! :)

When in Rome

Anyhow, as predicted from the title itself, it is a typical romantic comedy. It tells the story of a workaholic woman, Beth (Kristen Bell) who doesn't believe in love anymore - no thanks to her romantic dad who always fall in love with a new woman all the time. Her younger sister got married to an Italian within 2 weeks and Beth had to fly down to Rome for the wedding. Her sister reminds me of one of those Nickelodeon kids - small sized kid who just grew up.

In Rome, a jaded Beth vehemently picks up coins from love wishes thrown in a "magical fountain" conveniently located in front of the church for her sister's wedding. Lightning and thunder appears ... as in the witch's spell at works and suddenly the owner of the 5 coins magically get smitten by her and pursues her all the way in New York the next day. (except one guy which we are lead to believe is Nick acted by Josh Duhamel).

Then magically, the 4 men starts stalking her and even knows where she lives. (you should not use logic while watching this) But it's the pursuit that's hilarious and sometimes creepy for Beth.

These men (including Danny DeVito) create comical and good supporting role especially when all 5 of them squeezed into a tiny car (reminiscent of a clown's car) to rush Beth to her grand event in the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. The movie was silent during the car and lift ride with the audience laughing during this period.

 Rushing to the event

 External view of the lovely Guggenheim Museum

Another part which you should not think, is when Beth drops the chip (supposedly belonging to Nick) and it rolls down the circular ramp of Guggenheim Museum all the way down.  (My friend commented she would have taken the lift). lol  Nice scene of the Guggenheim Museum by Frank Lloyd Wright - not to be mistaken with the other museum in Bilbao by Frank Gehry.

 Spiral ramp

Quotes to remember:
"If you want to be a bear, be a grizzly!" (Beth's dad advice in becoming mean/ a grouch)

"Show your love with sausages." (Danny Devito's character expresses love to Beth with sausages)

Worth watching?
Well, you have Josh Duhamel aka Fergie's husband aka Danny of Las Vegas to ogle at. In fact, it's kind of weird seeing him act so klutzly by running into pole, car and fall into holes (typical basic comical act to gain laughter from the crowd)

Oh yes, there's a cameo appearance of Shaq in the movie too.

In short, it's a light comedy with elements of romance. Expect predictable stunts and lines. But I'm always a fan for comedies. So go ahead and grab a friend for a laugh. Enjoy! :)