Wonder Girls in da house

Wonder Girls in da House,

K-Pop has gained quite a foothold in today's global music culture and this has not escaped the attention of the small ladies of the house.

Together with her cousins and friend, our dragon girl and the girls not only murmur or rather sing along in this foreign language, but they also mimic the catchy dance moves of this Korean girl's band in question, "Wonder Girls", performing their hit song "Nobody"

Sure enough, it doesn't look like much, but just the fact that they are trying to perform like their 'idols', reminds me (and I bet the lot of you too) when I was a teenager back then.  

This post is for memory's sake....and heck, who knows that maybe one of them lot might really become a dancer or singer herself in the future.




Everyone has to start from somewhere, don't they? :)

Hands-free driving Malaysian Style

Hands-free Malaysian Style,

Normally we wouldn't take a cab back home from the airport, but since Laetitia and me were overloaded with luggage and goodies from our HK/China trip, I decided it was worth the extra money to take a cab to reach back home asap.....

Well, a normal city taxi couldn't fit us and our excess baggage, so we opted for a bigger sized sedan, albeit bit pricier...but heck...money has to roll.

Once on the move heading back to our 'casa', we noticed something peculiar about this driver.

Yes, there have been and there still are many pro's and con's regarding using a mobile whilst driving a vehicle.....fact is, using a mobile is distracting, whether one uses a hands-free set or not, I leave that open for debate....

Our taxi driver didn't use or didn't have a hands-free set per se....

But then again, he was not technically holding his mobile whilst steering the vehicle with us in it....., look at below picture and video...

Our taxi driver's handphone conveniently fitted right between his steering column and steering wheel :p

And yes, not once during the 1-hour drive back home, did his mobile slip out of place and on top of that he really did manage to receive a call and talk to the other person on the line (ofcourse everybody in the cab is privy to such conversations), .....

We for once, couldn't care less, as long as we reach our casa safely, ....back home sweet home :)

Chinese Tea Leaves of all sorts

Chinese Tea leaves of all sorts,

Drinking a cup of coffee to start a brand new day is a common sight in the Western world, but consuming tea in Asia is almost a sacred affair.   Asians drink it all day long, along with their meals, for pleasure, relaxation and also for health purposes.  Much has been written about the origins of tea, its purportedly health benefits and even the way how tea must be served in order to obtain the best flavour (what in a name...).

But the main point here is that we do love to drink tea.  Insofar that we always make a point of stopping by the countless tea shops dotted in every village and city in China, shopping for the most fragrant tea that is currently available. (and needles to say, keeping it within our budget)

Honestly, I get  myself lost in such shops, 'cos invariably the choices of tea leaves are enormous (sources state there are more than 1000 varieties, but I don't bother to count as there are rows and rows of bottled tea leaves on the shelves).  Part of the service is that we are always offered a sample of our chosen 'tea' before we break our bank to purchase the leaves in question.  And invariably the 'zen' or rather 'snail' like process of correctly serving tea is incomprehensible to me, but heck, it's part of the tea drinking culture and who am I to contradict local customs :)

Back home, brewing a pot of steaming hot tea, savouring it, sipping it....it all makes it worthwhile...the lady of the house loves it, the little gal loves it and I love it.....

Whenever we drink tea, do we think about the 5000 year old tea-drinking tradition? Heck no, but now that I write this right now, it sure does feel good to be part of it.

Dear, can you make me  another pot of tea, please :)

Where is the pilot?

Where is the pilot?

What's the thing with people being in a hurry to board the plane, it's a frequent sight at all airports over the world. Once the 'gate' is opened for boarding, a hoard of people are queuing to hop onto the plane as fast as possible....

First, seats are already allocated (hence the boarding pass), no need to scrum

And secondly, plane won't take off until all the passengers have been accounted for, ..... a plane simply won't take off unless the traveler in question really doesn't show up and hence the luggage handlers have removed the pieces of baggage of that particular traveler (for obvious security reasons).

So while everybody are meekly queuing up, the airport personnel handling the boarding at the gate go around calling up for any stragglers to make their way asap to the plane......

Well, in our case......I told our daughter to stay put and read her book at her own leisure while everyone was boarding, and I,....was puffing away in the transparent smoking cabin which was conveniently located next to the gate.....

Was I in a hurry to board the plane and go back home?

Definitely not.........

Not that I was still in holiday mood and reluctant to go home.....but because the pilot and a steward of our plane were also puffing contently on their cigs :p

You should have seen the face of the airport/gate handler when she was touring around with a placard, notifying travelers to hurry up.........She looked at me, and I cheekily pointed to the pilot and steward......point taken :)

What's the hurry ? :p

Steamboat snacks

Steamboat snacks,

Combine today's hectic lifestyles with the knack for food of the Malaysian population, then steamboat snacks are a sure thing on the list of most favourite snacks, ....miles ahead of Ronald McD, Uncle KFC,....

Inventive hawkers sell their food truly the mobile way.  Parking their converted vans where crowds converge (street markets, festivals, concerts, sports games...you name it, they are there).

So what is steamboat food then?  Basically, it's boiling pots of chicken broth in which the customer can boil their choice of snacks, all kinds of meat, pre-cooked or raw.......all DIY style...just grab the delicacies which are pierced on satay sticks, jettison it in the broth et voila....

Dip it into some sauce, ....chili, soya, you name it, they have it.

Apart from the boiling broth, this dude has even installed an oven to grill meat if the customers fancy something else than boiled food :p

And paying? No probs, the satay sticks are colour coded, each different colour denouncing a different price....

The good hawker vendor just does his quick math and for a small fee you're settled for dinner....

Unless you eat like a hungry wolf ofcourse :p