阿布扎比的清明节

这几天的阿布扎比，除了风沙之外，还有不常见的雷雨。至少在这个交换季节里，雨是罕有的。雨天，只要我没出门的日子，基本上我都喜欢雨天。
上个星期致电回家，才知道这是清明节期，不禁想起婆婆曾告诉我们清明节时总是下雨天。
突然想起杜牧的‘清明时节雨纷纷，路上行人欲断魂，借问酒家何处有,牧童遥指杏花村。’难道中东的雨神也要我感受和紧记着慎宗追远的积极意义？
染烧着L’OCCITANE的薰衣草香精油，躲在房间里上网听音乐，那可是我在这里最享受的雨天。



L’OCCITANE Pillow Mist

L’OCCITANE Essential Oil

L'OCCITANE Bath and Massage Oil

Curry Chicken PIE

I wanted to bake curry chicken Pie.
It has been in my mind for a few weeks… and I made it last night.

Preparing for curry chicken
1. Chicken Breast 600 g, sliced in cube
2. 3 potato, sliced in cube, boiled
3. 5 table spoon cooking oil
4. 2 table spoon sugar
5. 2 table spoon soy sauce

Ingredient A
- 4 big onions
- 1 small ginger
- 4 cloves garlic
- 5 table spoon curry chicken powder
- 1 table spoon dry chili powder

Step 1 : Blend ingredient A
Step 2 : Heat the cooking oil, fry ingredient A in medium heat
Step 3 : Add in the boiled potato and chicken, stir in medium heat until the met is done
Step 4 : Add the soy sauce, sugar in low heat
Ready !

i- Preparing for the pastry, I have bought the ready made pie pastry. What I need to do it to flatten it to a thinner sheet.

ii- Cover the baking cup with the pastry

iii- Fill the cup with the curry chicken

iv- Cover the top. Poke some holes for ventilation. Brush some egg yolk on the top before bake.

v- Bake for at least 40 minute in 180 deg C.

p/s: apply the egg yolk on the bottom of the pie, rebake for 10 minute so that the whole pie looks even.

Many piesssss, big and small

Closed up Pie

Sectional view of pie

Ray has brought the pies to his co-workers and they said it can cost about AED4 for selling price... keke.. can think think for a business..

Greeting from Bahrain..

It's not my 1st trip here in Bahrain, always on a business trip, and i am attending a oil and gas trade show this time. Its a short flight from Abu dhabi to Bahrain, its only a 1 hour flight.
Unlike Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, Bahrain is an 'open' country, or a HAPPENING city for the local and expat who stay in Saudi. All the restaurant and pub will be crowded during weekend eve.
I do not have much time hanging out this time but i manage to snap some pictures...

Another MEGA project, www.bahrainbay.com

What else can i shoot in the Middle East countries other than mosque...
yes, it Bahrain Grand Mosque...

One of the Bahrain's landmark -- Bahrain Financial Harbor

Love the cloud in the evening sky

Road sign board - There is a bridge to link up Bahrain and Saudi Arabia

There was a VVIP visiting the show on the 3rd day. Prince Andrew!!! hehe...oh, how good if the nephew Prince William is along... :P

Prince Andrew among the crowd

I was given a chance by somebody to snap a close up picture.
.. Its only 1 metre between Prince and I!!

Snap another close up...

Top 30 Innovations of the Last 30 Years

I have read an interesting topic and wanted to share with you guys.

"The Top 30 Innovations of the Last 30 Years."
From 1979 to 2009

(click NBR to read the details)

And the winners are...

.
.
.


# 1 Internet/Broadband/World Wide Web
# 2 PC/Laptop Computers
# 3 Mobile Phones
# 4 E-Mail
# 5 DNA Testing and Sequencing/Human Genome Mapping - Forensic Hero! CSI!
# 6 Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
# 7 Microprocessors
# 8 Fiber Optics
# 9 Office Software
# 10 Non-Invasive Laser/Robotic Surgery
# 11 Open Source Software and Services - WIKIPEDIA
# 12 Light Emitting Diode products (LEDs)
# 13 Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs)
# 14 GPS
# 15 Online Shopping/E-Commerce/Auctions
# 16 Media File Compression
# 17 Microfinance
# 18 Photovoltaic Solar Energy
# 19 Large Scale Wind Turbines
# 20 Social Networking via Internet - FACEBOOK!
# 21 Graphic User Interface (GUI)
# 22 Digital Photography/Videography
# 23 RFID (Radio frequency identication) and Applications - automated toll payment system
# 24 Genetically Modified Plants
# 25 Biofuels
# 26 Bar Codes and Scanners
# 27 ATMs
# 28 Stents - to keep those arteries open permanently
# 29 SRAM/Flash Memory
# 30 Anti-Retroviral Treatment for AIDS


I totally agree with Top #1, 2 and 3 which i can't live without it... what say you?

A day out to Dubai..

Ray and I planned to rent a car to Dubai since we have already got our local license. We wanted to flash back some sweet memories in Dubai when we met 5 years ago. End up, we made the trip in 5. Well, i always have fun hanging out with friends...

Saw a Lamborghini in the open area car park
(see, the window is unlock!!!)

but the car still there after 4 hours.
Imagine if its in JB, gone already lor.

On the boat from Bur Dubai to Deira
(Tips: tourist has a special lane to enter the boats..
...no need to queue in a 100 people's lane )

On the boat

A lot of boats along the channel

A lot a lot of boats

On the boat back to Bur Dubai

Babe pose @ Spice souq :P

Babe pose @ Mercato Mall, Jumeirah
(should not pose with perut buncit, i know i need to DIET!!)

Dubai favorite photographing spot. It was a windy night.

Rain 《Rainism Recollection 》

要介绍Rain 《Rainism Recollection 》

好听！

可以上网连线听www.haoting.com

Junk food, get away from me...

I have already cut down my carbo in my daily diet. Means, less rice or no rice for dinner. But the devil still buying junk food for me.

Ruffles - Devil's favorite

and Fish fish - my and my bro in law's favoraite

[there are basketball crackers in the newest package but i still look for the strawberry favo gold fish, still cant find in the supermarket here :( ]

How to lose weight like this?

Should i get the junk food away from me OR get the devil away from me :P

Weddingsmalaysia.com

As usual, I wake up, on my pc, check my personal email, facebook while downloading my work’s email.

I have seen the newsletter from Weddingsmalaysia.com this morning, click on it, and I see this…

IT’S ME.. hehe.. in the March weddingsmalaysia.com newsletter.

S.O.S. My Skype is down..

Everybody knows that it is very expensive to call in to UAE via tele-com, no matter where you call from. It’s rather expensive too for me to call home via the tele-com service in this country. I guess it is probably there is limitation service provider in this country. I only recognized there was only Etisalat (government tele-com Company) in this country years ago. And there is a newcomer service provider called DU. I thought Skype is a pretty good PC caller for me all the while… until last week. I was really mad and upset when I can’t call home KL and USA via skype. I have not talked to grandma for more than a week. I have tried to click on the HELP in skype page but it was blocked by UAE government, @!#$%^&, I am not sure why… I just super upset. I should get this done when I away from this country mid of March.

Well, need help from blogger…

Anybody knows how to unblock the web page so I can talk to the Skype customer service?

Anybody can recommend any PC caller that works well in this country?

Do let me know, please.. :(

婚前惊慌综合症

最近和好友们网聊都会关心问及我的婚礼的筹备进展，除了请柬和蛋糕还没搞定之外，我真的不知道还有什么还没准备。我想是有的，只是还有很多细节还没想到而已。而昨晚的那一场梦真的把我给唤醒了。
梦里的我在婚礼当天才蒙然发现一切都还没有准备；我找不到我的婚宴场所，没把客人给招待好；没有我最在意的摄影师；没有预约化妆发型师，就这么一个狼狈的新娘。我想我开始是患了‘婚前惊慌综合症’。。。
今天还是赶快把筹备的细节想一想再安排一次好了。

Woohoo... I’ve got my UAE driving license

It has been awhile since we take the theory test in the Emirates Driving Company. And we wait for the road test in the Traffic Police Department. The passing rate is only 50% either theory or practical. Phew… thanks god I have made it today. I have got my UAE driving license!

Ray and I attended a 4 days theory class months ago, it's not easy, we got to wake up at 5am and attended the class at 650am which is 35km away from where we stay.

Here are some pictures during the class

So, i am waiting for my car.

A mini? Which i dreamed of... hehe.

A porsche? A good idea? haha

Or a SLK? wahaha

Or maybe Ray will get this for me?

Another boring day

I don’t know why but I just feel so so so bored.

I know I have many things to do eg.
1. reading a book (brought some books back from KL),
2. catching a movie (have some DVDs that haven’t see),
3. handling my e-banking (after spending a lot during the vacation),
4. cleaning and rearrange my pc,
5. prepare for the invitation cards etc.

but just NOOOO MOOD to work it out.
I was looking at the old pictures in my external hard disc, missing the good old time, friends’ weddings, friend and family gatherings etc. And I was really slim once. I really should plan for my diet schedule; I told myself I should work more on the Osim uZap or go jogging again after a long break. Listening to the old songs that I used to love a lot… Nua-ing on my bed, enjoyed being so lazy before I ready for upcoming busy business trips next few weeks.

OK, now waiting for the Valentine’s dinner. Hope everybody have a good day.

p/s: Nua (means ‘just do nothing’ in Hokkien) LOL

情人节快乐

不要告诉我你对情人节没有任何幻想和期望，就算现在没有，至少在年少时情窦初开时总有吧！在没有情人的时候，总是想在情人节里有个人突然出现，和你约会。在有情人的情人节前夕则会不断地猜测他会给你什么惊喜，去那里庆祝等。曾经的我对情人节是多么的在意，然而，现在却没有那一种期待和盼望。换来的是和伴侣的讨论。

“喂，明天情人节要在家吃还是出外吃？其实我不介意和你的同事一起吃。”我说。

“我们两个吃就好了”他说。

“哦，去哪里吃，要定位叻”我说。

“去那广场就好了，我看一下明天我才定位。”他说。

“哦，去那酒店啦，想喝啤酒。礼物叻？”我说。

“哦，相机要在这里买吗？”他说。

“你有预算么？才看怎样啦。”我说。

“。。。” 忘了他说什么。。。

平凡到我也不敢相信浪漫派的我会对情人节那么出奇的冷淡，我老了，但至少在年少时都有疯狂过，那就足够了。

相机不懂几时会收到，还好已经收到了一枝红玫瑰．．．

Ｈａｐｐｙ　Ｖａｌｅｎｔｉｎｅ＇ｓ　Ｄａｙ！

Jet boy

Jet - my favorite nephew, a sweetheart.

想家

每一次出国都没有比这一次出得更痛苦与不舍。太不喜欢离开和离别这种感觉。在假期开始的时候就已经担心假期的结束。感觉就像小时候，学校假期结束要回去上课的心情。没法子，为了工作和为了他。怎么了，回来还没一天就想家了？ 我想或许我要重新考虑移民的计划。

坐在德士上离开家门口时的夕阳。

刹那间发现从来就不觉得怎么样的夕阳却是如此的美丽和难忘。

Photo Shooting

I was so excited and can’t wait to do the pre wedding photo shooting since I have confirmed my photographer, Zach Chin. I did try to keep myself in good shape since past few months… but I regret for never try my best to diet – still not satisfy when I see some EXTRA at my arm…

We have met Zach the day before the actual shooting day so that we have better understanding to each other. We have shot at several places (Cheong Fatt Sze mansion, E&O hotel, Chew village etc) with different dresses and styles. I can’t wait to post some photo from our camera.

It’s really nice to work with the crew and I enjoyed being a model during the shooting. One day shooting is just not enough for me!! I have pampered myself a bubble bath and special mask right after the shooting.

Special thanks to Zach Chin (photo journalist), Sunny (photographer), Casyn (make-up stylist), CY (white gown sponsor) and Ray’s beloved family for giving a hand during shooting.

30th Jan 09 -10pm

梦一场生与死

其实有两个问题一直困扰着我，一是梦（我把它归纳于心理学），二是生和死（我个人认为是佛学）；我本身很想研究这两个问题，但，有心无力。

我不晓得每个人平均一个月发几次梦，我本身却平均每天都有梦。有时记得什么梦，有时却很模糊。跟据维基百科，自由的百科全书之--- 梦， 我的梦多数是清醒梦，又称为清明梦，意思是在梦中可以保持清醒，並且知道自己正在做梦，很可怕吧！我时常梦见校园的生活，一起上课和玩耍的朋友们；而且时常有着为考试而出现的焦虑和忐忑心情，那当然是出现在高中和大学统考时的日子。很怪吧，连睡觉也有压力，哈哈，我不要美梦，也不想要什么一廉幽梦，只好想好好地睡，一觉到天亮。

自从三年前痛失过亲人后，我对生和死特别敏感。对于身边亲人好友宝宝的诞生有着莫大的喜悦，然而也很怕失去身边任何一个人；我也学会了对身边的人付出更多的关心和珍惜。我很想在以后面对‘死亡’时不要有太大的伤心。西藏一直是我向往的旅游胜地之一。最近看的书和戏剧总和西藏连上关系，是巧合吗？书和戏剧里的主角都在西藏里找到了解脱和出路，我想我应该尽快到那儿一趟，可能在那富有佛教色彩的高原地带，我也能够有另一番领悟。

唐卡

唐卡是藏語thang-ka的音譯，是一种画在布幔或纸上的画像.

The modern way to look simply stunning..

I do not shop for make up cosmetic very often but I am very particular when I want to buy something that apply on my face. So, I have been searching around for a few months for several brands, from Givenchy to Estee Lauder, Elizaberth Arden etc and the Bobbi Brown. Finally I have decide to buy the Bobbi Brown’s Copper Diamond Shimmer brick compact and the mascara. I love this series for the natural colours, this compact features five universally flattering shades – Candle light, Gold, Copper, Beige, and Sand; which can be worn individually or together to give skin a warm golden copper glow. And of cause I love it for the multi usage. It can be use as the eye make up and apply over the face with a brush to make the skin glow. It is good enough for me as I do not use a lot of make up.

Tips to buy a suitable set of make up,

• survey and search on www
• walk in to the brand counter to figure out the product
• get the brand make up stylist to show a demo on you before buying
• ask for some sample, see if suitable for your skin

Well, next, I shall get myself some brush set… hopefully can get from Sephora @ Dubai mall. Oh well, I know, girls pandai to spend… :P

Chicken Rendang

Ray begged me to cook when I am free. Hehe, proved that I am a good cook. LOL perasan me… Erm, tried to check out whats in the fridge. Chicken breast, fillet, and some veges. Okla, I should cook something more challenging since I am a bit free today --- rendang la. Alamak, the instant rendang paste is finished. Well, I got to find out the recipe from www (hehe cheating). Finally I found the recipe in Recipezaar, I have modified it because I do not have all the ingredient shown the recipe.
And my recipe works! Try it!


1. Chicken Breast 500 g, sliced
2. 3 table spoon dry desiccated coconut powder
3. 3 table spoon coconut powder in 200 ml water (or 200ml fresh coconut milk)
4. 3 table spoon cooking oil
5. 1 teaspoon tumeric powder
6. Smashed lemongrass stalks
7. 5 lime leaves, cut into small slice
8. 1 table spoon sugar
9. 1 teaspoon salt
10. 1 table spoon thick soy sauce
11. 2 table spoon soy sauce

Ingredient A
- 3 big onions, sliced
- 1 small ginger, sliced
- 2 big chilies, sliced
- 3 stalks lemongrass, sliced the head.
- 1 table spoon chili powder

Step 1 : Pan fry to dry the desiccated coconut powder until golden brown in low heat
Step 2 : Blend ingredient A with 150ml coconut cream
Step 3 : Heat the cooking oil, fry ingredient A in medium heat, add in tumeric powder and smashed lemongrass stalks
Step 4 : Add in the chicken and stir for 5 minutes
Step 5 : Add all the coconut milk, stir in low heat until the met is done
Step 6 : Add the thick soy sauce and soy sauce in low heat
Step 7 : Add the fried coconut, sugar, salt and lime leaves.
Ready !

I give myself 80% for this rendang.. haha. I will cook it again if there is any potluck party!

p/s : Ray gave me 95%!! what a nice compliment! and he ate 2 bowl of rice tonight. (he is on diet ler.. i should not cook this since our diet program going on.. LOL)

最近的歌

最近忙完了一个工作的大项目，比较空闲，除了工作，大部分时间还是在网上度过。上网找筹备婚礼的资料啦；安排了一连串回kay-elle时要做和见的人啦；上网看了蔡智恒的一些文章，亦舒的，虽然大部分的张小娴我都看了，还是很高兴有她的作品，还有需要很长时间来看张爱玲的小说。

为了让自己update一些，在上网看小说的同时，我也找了找一些的歌，万一回去kay-elle和朋友到银河系红箱子聚旧时还可以哼哼唱唱。电脑网络有点down, 没办法download, 只能stream online。我曾经学过钢琴，有一点音乐班底，但我的音乐造诣不是很深。我喜欢音乐，对音乐和歌还是有一些要求，但并不是很欣赏现在大部分的当红歌手，就算是也可能是一整个专辑里的一两首歌而已。

不要说太多，有空去听听方大同的《橙月》吧！这是一个好专辑。有个好友在听他的歌曲会有着复杂的心情，‘暗恋、初恋、热恋、三角恋、四角恋、失恋。。。无一漏网。' 请按 文才子把方大同都介绍得很详细。