Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010!

How time flies by - another year has flown by.

Somehow, as the years pass by, holiday seasons make me want to spend some quiet time at home. It has already been an eventful year - depleting my yearning to go out of the year with a bang. No, it has nothing to do with aging. I still feel young, evidenced by my unintentional declaration on my first blood donation form as being still in the twenties a few weeks ago. It took my girlfriend five seconds to point out my mistake. And me another ten seconds wondering what I filled wrongly. The only dead-give-away of me aging is that almost everyone else around me is either already engaged, married or with cooing kids. Throw me in the streets without the dead giveaways (haha, no offence) and voila, I am in my mid 20s again (plus the creaky knees and bad memory). It's rare for people to re-live their twenties, I am glad to get a second chance.

Reflections of 2009:- As I always like to put it, Year 2009 was my turning point, a year of change. It was the year that I started truly discovering what I wanted in myself or the life that I want. It has so far been an memorable journey full of laughter, fun, passion, smiles, and yet some tears and heartaches. I must say, I am grateful for what 2009 has brought to me, my independence, an unexpected love, a closer relationship with my parents, the Beijing experience, time spent with my buddy, new friendships, lots and lots of laughter, my yearning for more new adventures and the realization of my next step among others. But not everything was good -  like the death of certain relationships. But it reminds me of what matters in life and what is real. But still overall, it has been a good year for me personally.

I wonder what 2010 will bring. I hope still more laughter in life, continued good health for myself and the people that I love, strengthened and happy relationships, continuous improvements in all aspects of life, clarity, courage and of course, prosperity and luck in my endeavors.

Well, here's to wishing everyone happiness in 2010. May everything be a blessing in life. =)

Will You Be My Bread Friend?

Yes, I know...as the time passes by, my blog titles start sounding totally weird.

Am excited - as I usually am.

I have started taking up certain small hobbies recently, doing some of the things that I've never been able to do, afraid to try, but secretly wanting to learn. For instance, I am starting to learn how to play the acoustic guitar. I am musically challenged/ deaf by the way. You will rarely see me sing in a KTV. And when I do, it means that I probably had to douse myself with alcohol because I did not really want to remember if beer glasses cracked due to my uneven pitch. And when I was eight, I took piano lessons - painstakingly trying to understand what the heck notes were. Needless to say, I was not very inspired. And when my first exams came, I dropped out from classes and never resumed. Need I say more?

But surprisingly, am really starting to enjoy strumming my lil red guitar (of course, it helps to be in the privacy of my own home!). I had some complaints in the beginning - my fingers hurt, my hands were too small, my strumming was crap, there was no rhythm, blah blah...and I realized I actually had this fear of making music, and worst still, be heard making it. It took some encouragement and help from someone, some time, more practice, and two favourite songs - Home by Daughtry and one that will go unnamed for good reasons. =P But now, I can now sit here for hours with my slowly harden fingertips (yes, now nudges with these power fingers will be very painful indeed!) and attempt to get the sounds right. It is hard, but not as Impossible as I had imagined it to be.

And, I have just thought out a new hobby for myself. Am going to learn how to BAKE!!!! (Yes, am trying to catch up with the years of "domestication" that I seem to lack, but no, not really..haha..) 

So, once again, I ask,  "Will you be my Bread Friend?"

As my official Bread Friend, I pledge and promise to send some edible, hopefully nice, definitely healthy, hot loaves of homemade bread or cake to you, once I get the overpowering urge to bake in large quantities. It would be a waste to leave it to just ME, Myself and I. In return, I hope you'll enjoy them and leave me some comments on taste, texture and smell for my future improvement. Its a win win situation unless of course, it turns out to be one hard rock bread/ cake, to which on the bright side, you could always use as a weapon for future purse snatchers or robbers.

So, any takers? 

Note:- Only available in Klang Valley. haha. 

"What is your deepest fear?"

Indeed - its a great question. Do you ever ask yourself that?

As quoted from Coach Carter played by Samuel L. Jackson.

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people don't feel insecure around you.We are all meant to shine as children do. Its not just in some of us; its in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsiously give other people the permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

Profound, ain't it?

My deepest fears? Mmmmm, its an easy answer which encompasses everything - "Not living and loving life hard enough."

The Dust Starts to Settle!

It has just been 65 days since I came back from Beijing and 11 days since my guy said his goodbyes to all things familiar (including me *sobBBB*) to him in his 30 day stay with me.

It has been a busy good two months for me, but yes, the dust has finally started to settle down.

As I blog, am sitting here in my study room, eating one of the tropical delights of my country - honey nangka (aka jackfruit) bought in Tesco for RM6 (pretty expensive huh!). It's one of the tastiest fruit that I've ever sunk my teeth into. I swear I can finish the whole pack (9-10 pieces inside) and probably a second pack in one night alone. Am trying to recall what other fruits that I'm so crazily in love with (Sorry, babes....hehe), and the only answer that I come up with is, watermelon and the pink jambu. But am not so crazy about them, but honey nangka, whoo weee.... I made such frequent stops to my previous local fruit shop to enquire on their availability, that they asked me to leave my phone number. Go try some yourself. You'll love it but remember, HONEY nangka and not the normal ones.

Am done with most of my unpacking, YAY!!!!! Except still for the kitchen - am still cooking on temporary hobs. Don't ask, it's a long long story. It's a pretty small condo - probably about 600sq ft with a open space area for the kitchen, one bathroom, and two rooms which one has already been turned into a study room/ partial store. Those who have been to my previous house would understand the amount of junk that I have - and yes, I officially hate moving, and dread the day that I would have to move away from this little place of mine. Honestly, I got this place because it had great facilities - Gym, Squash Courts, Swimming pool!!!

P/s: My future visitors would either have to bunk right next to me in my bed (Disclaimer: Provided its not already filled up by my darling!) or the sofa. And my sofa is BIG! (Yes, my sofa - not my bed! Better that, than my bed...haha....) Hmm, I still wonder if I should have a housewarming, or maybe a BBQ party at the swimming pool. (Sorry guys, the gals will not be decked out in bikinis much to your disappointment!). Hmmmmm...

ANYWAYS, today, Nemo officially has two new partners in crime - a Coral Banded Shrimp and a Sailfin Tang. (Yes, I have a two feet saltwater aquarium at home! My own little piece of the ocean.) I had always wanted to put an end to Nemo's lonely bachelor life. He didn't seem too appreciative about it today. Ever got attacked by Nemo before? Well, I did - NUMEROUS times this evening. And it actually did hurt. Yes, I am such a baby but talk about literally "Biting the hand that feeds you". I would have thought that such a small little thing like that would have fear for hands 10 times bigger than him, mind you, both of my hands were in the tank, but NOoOOOo, he went for them anyways. Small kids bully me, and apparently, small fishes as well.

As we speak, Nemo is suspiciously eyeing the shrimp, bobbing up and down from a safe distance. I hope the Sailfin survives her seven days quarantine. She was playing dead in the first five minutes in her makeshift home - a red pail. Sea creatures are such fascinating creatures - I could sit for hours watching them.

My days recently have been very focused on establishing a comfy zone. Am trying to get some sense of routine into my life these couple of days in preparation for a bigger "purpose". And yes, am also trying to fill up the empty space left behind by a certain someone. It was nice having someone in the house to bump into, to say good morning and good night to, to share a tea session or ice cream session with, to listen to various random unexpected noises and expressions all day and night, to have a smile returned, to watch him sleep peacefully next to me.....Yeah, I definitely got used to the good life.

It is more difficult than I thought it would be to get used to this quietness in the house - I leave the music in the daytime blaring loudly and proceed with my day, and yet, it still doesn't feel the same. Something is missing, someone is missed.

But life still goes on - we both have things to accomplish at our side of the world. Until then, patience is the key word.

All good things come to those who wait. And thus, I shall wait.

What???!! Again???!!! ^%!#$!# Argghh!!!!

I am only kidding. haha. Of course, I shall wait - Anything for you, Babes.

(Hopefully, not for too long. Come back, come back where ever you are! =P)

The Best 30 Days Yet in 2009!

Its the 30th Day today.

It's hard to describe what I feel. My brain is a bit dull with just 3 hours of sleep. And am trying to avoid any hard menial thinking but there's this sneaky feeling that soon I will get hit by a bus of feelings when I get back home - alone by myself.

Yes, I know - there I was screaming out new found joy of my freedom and independence, that it seems almost ridiculous that I will long for someone. But hell, I really do. Yes, the Impossible DOES happen, It DID happen, and It IS Happening. I had expected to be the Rule, and not the Exception. Some parts of me of course hoped to be the Exception, but I knew from experience that Expecting the Exception was not a wise thing. (Yes, how confusing!) And it was rather confusing to my defense, but somehow it's working out to be alright. For once, it's nice to be the Exception and not the Rule.

I've met someone. Sorry guys!

Sexiest creature alive - I must say. Am smiling as I type this. I can safely say that he's more of a man than I've ever met and probably ever will meet. How we met and how we found each other is an interesting story, and is definitely not one that is easily explainable. (And so with this disclaimer, I probably won't need to explain to friends and family????...haha...) Nothing is conventional about us - that's the fun and challenging part. We have our vast differences (words that I know he will love to hear me pronounce! Grrrr...) of course, but yet, so much similarity that it can be scary sometimes. And although there's no foreseen sure future waiting for us, but one thing I am certain of - He looks at me the same way I look at him.

And that alone, is enough said. I miss you, Babes...

Which Category are You In?

I always believe that Actions speak louder than Words...And in many cases, Inaction also speaks very loudly.

Some people in this world are very complex indeed - All that they feel and think is kept inside quietly and their expressions or words carefully thought out for cunning display, although not truly reflecting how they feel inside. And some people are the total opposite, they say what they feel and think - some very brashly with zero thinking, some very diplomatically with some thoughtfulness.

Which category are you in?

I would like to think that I am in Category 3 - direct, honest, but diplomatic with some thoughtfulness. The things that I say and do, shows exactly its purpose and forthrightfulness, but sometimes structured in a way not to hurt other people's feelings. But I am human too, sometimes I can be very brash with zero thinking, to which I usually immediately apolagize to. And if I don't apologize , it means that I had a message to send, and YES, I DID intend to hurt your feelings. Sometimes, it could probably mean that you need a WAKE UP CALL.

And it doesn't matter if what I did was twisted into something bad. I never cared for what other people think as long as my message went through. They can shoot and hang me for all I care. But I mean what I say and I say what I mean.

Some people are not worth the effort. "Do not make someone a priority when they make you an option in life." - something that a friend taught me. It makes perfect sense.

My life goes on - and goes on very well, with a clear conscience, which is more than what I can say for some people.

The Truth Always Hurts

Some people say "Blood Runs Thicker Than Water"....

Sometimes they are wrong - dead wrong. That's the reason why families have their own family feud. Because they let it happen. Especially when a wrong is not righted. Especially when the people who did wrong feels no remorse, no guilt at the hurt that they inflicted on those who supported them without any expectations in their whole life. Deep down, they know it is wrong. But they hide such Truths from themselves, afraid to face the fact that they have changed for the worse.

Maybe and only maybe when tradegy strikes, only they will realised how wrong they were before. But by then, it probably will be all too late.

How important it is never to assume that family will always be there, will always forgive even if you do something wrong, that they can sacrifice for you just because you deem yourself important to them.

Parents always readily suffer in silence, because their love for their children knows no boundaries. And some selfish children take this to their advantage, refuse to acknowledge the hurt that they cause - thinking that they have done right.

Forgetting the people who matters most - the people who supported us no matter what, picked us up when we fell, who sat up all night beside our hospital bed worried that we are uncomfortable or in pain, people who taught us about how to be a better and stronger person in life.

Sadly, some parents will still suffer in silence even until their passing. By then, no amounts of sorries would be good enough. Parents are not here forever.

Such people are big disappointments in life - to the people who love them and also mainly to themselves. Somehow they evolve to be someone who keeps making mistakes, who keeps hurting others. They become selfish, self centered, ignorant that pretense creates more hurt.

Harsh? The Truth unfortunately is usually Harsh and Very Ugly.

And the Truth cannot be changed. Today, I seeked the Truth. I had hoped that I was wrong. And that redemption was still possible. It isn't. That now is the Ugly Truth.

Self Reflections

I have this strong belief that we, as "decent" human beings should self measure ourselves every once in a while.

Reflect on ourselves, to see where we have come from, what we have achieved and become.

It's not about how much we make out of our careers, or how far we have climbed in the corporate ladder, or what car we have, or what house we have or how much we have in the bank account. Some will argue otherwise. I still believe that "SUCCESS" is the ability to do what one loves, and at the same time, touching other people's life the right and good way, protecting what is important in their lives - people that they love, and remembering and respecting their roots.

It saddens me when some people blinded by their own selfish needs in life, loses the bigger picture of what is important in life. And it saddens and angers me more to see other people who love them get hurt and taken for granted in the process.

We often don't realise how important it is in life to be "decent, honest, and self-sacrificing". And often, our selfishness tends to blind us in making the wrong decisions in life. When that veil of deception disappears, one can only hope that regrets are not too late. Some hurts cannot be absolved even with time. For one who lets it come to that stage, only god will at the end judge them. Harsh and grim as it sounds, I believe in Karma. Don't do to others what you won't want done to you.

Look in the mirror and ask yourself, is this the person that I want to become?

One of the Many Things Bothering Me - H1N1 in Malaysia

One would think that I would feel at peace coming home to my beloved homeland.

So far, apart from great home cooking, and good company, its been less than desirable. 38 deaths in Malaysia itself due to H1N1. Did you know that under Wikipedia, we are the 11th country with the highest confirmed death rate?

And in the Star, there's an article entitled "Govt to launch large-scale H1N1 awareness campaign". Is that all the Government is doing? Other than ordering anti-viral medicine? Local clinics and public hospitals are reportedly unable to handle so many suspected cases, hence turning patients back home for home quarantine. Effective? Again I doubt it. It feels so much that Malaysia has been caught unprepared. And worst still, seemingly unable to control the situation.

Probably, too much politicking has been happening lately. Everyone has been so focused on the political nature of winning citizens hearts, that certain critical things seemed to have been not been given the focus. H1N1 wasn't given the appropriate attention in a timely manner that should have been:- It's a a deadly threat to not only Malaysians but the whole world. H1N1 awareness campaign??? Is that all we can do? What happened to controlling the borders? Checking people with temperatures, quarantining them at a proper healthcare facility? Awareness campaign?!!!!!! Just scream 38 deaths and 11th highest confirmed death rate in the world on every local newspaper headline, that should be enough for an awareness campaign. So much lip service, but seemingly so little action.

God help us. I fear for our future as a Country and as Malaysians in many ways. So much that I just posted my comment to The Star Online. I certainly hope so that someone in the authorities will sit up and do something "Real" and something "More" about it.

Please read on, H1N1 affects us as a world community.

My Comments:- "H1N1: Social Responsibility is Over-rated!"

Reading the newspapers these days has gotten me worried. A person can have H1N1 without even knowing it. How does one differentiate a normal flu from H1N1. Looks like a normal flu, talks like a normal flu.

It deeply concerns me that it looked as if H1N1 is only headlined when someone dies. It takes a life or many lifes in this case to be taken, in order to have somewhat of an attention given to it. Prevention is better than cure. I believe the government will need to take a more active role in dealing with this H1N1 instead of just passing it on as a social responsibility to the community. Unfortunately, it looks as if our government has acted too slowly in this case, and H1N1 spreading like wildfire. Home quarantined? One must surely wonder if this is really effective. What real actions is taken to prevent less people from bringing this desease in?

I was just at the airport a few days ago taking the MH378 flight back to Malaysia from Beijing. Out of curiosity, I especially noted the measures being taken on this H1N1 issues.

I had only noted TWO obvious measure. ONLY TWO. And they mostly only screamed out "social responsibility" to me.

The FIRST measure:- A declaration form prepared at the check in counter which detailed your particulars, seat number, and declaration of whether you've been to any H1N1 listed areas by the WHO. (Unfortunately, if one has not been reading the news or checking up on WHO's website, they would not know where those listed areas would be. The declaration form had no such listing, and assumed that passengers would know.) This declaration form had to be given to an officer waiting at one walkway of the area before catching the aerotrain. I assume was either from KLIA or from the government health department. Numerous people were not even aware that the form was mandatory. Effective? Obviously not.

The SECOND measure:- Distributing of pamplets entitled "Patient Home Care Advice" and "Health Alert Card" which in part advised the seeking of medical care when "you have difficulty breathing, or you're coughing out blood" among others. Now this really bothers me...I would have probably be very seriously ill before seeking medical attention. Effective? Again, screaming "CURE is the only way that we have. Forget prevention!"

If the pamplet was suppose to spread awareness, it would probably already be too late. From my observation, I was probably was the only few passengers who was using a facemask during my flight and when I was at both Beijing airport & KLIA and the number of passengers wearing masks at the airport were probably less than 1%. Again, I ask, "Is social responsibility the effective way? Or we not over-relying on this?"

ONE FINAL thing that really bothered me was that when I arrived in KLIA, there was no temperature check done at all. We left the plane easily AS USUAL.

Maybe we need to learn from our neighbouring countries, the sort of methods taken to detect possibly infected passengers. My parents were over in Beijing just a month ago on Airasia, and upon arrival, the Chinese officers actually check the temperature of each and every passenger on the plane itself, and not ONCE but TWICE. I waited for more than an hour for their disembarkation wondering what had happened. And it so happened that one passenger was detected with a fever, and the Chinese officers actually refused disembarkation to at least 5 or six rows of people around him. An ambulance came later to send these people to a special place for quarantine. Effective? Definately more so than just distributing pamplets & distribution forms.

I am really hoping that more emphasis will be equally put on PREVENTION rather than only just cure. Yes, we also need to emphasize on the CURE especially now, but not at the expense of PREVENTION. Here we are busy raising awareness on home quarantine and waiting for the anti-viral drugs to arrive, and on the other hand, very possibly more infected and unaware people are coming into the country. I very strongly disagree with the statement made by our Health Minister that "social distancing programmes and measures sufficed for now." Its simply NOT effective enough. Scarier still, it seems as if our private & public health sector is unable to deal with all these possible cases of H1N1.

38 deaths. How many more will have to die in order for someone to look seriously at PREVENTION and CURE in a more effective manner?

Leaving on a JetPlane....or rather MAS airlines! =P

Yes, its my last nine hours in Beijing, and the clock is ticking.

How do I feel? Well oh, right now, my panicking feeling is masking all my sadness. The fear of excess baggage is great.... so great..... Oh wells, me and my ridiculous love for a new sport... (It comprises the most of my luggage - 15kgs. One single item alone. ha ha ha. hey, its the accountant part in me...most things produced in China are way much cheaper than anywhere else....it should be well worth it!)

Am leaving at least half of what I initially brought here, which is not much... but indicates that I will be back in the near near future. Unfortunately, not anytime early this year...so it means that I'll be home bound for at least another half year, which is not so bad... (am reasoning with myself...haha) ...of course, already there are many things that I look forward to back home....family & friends, gatherings, SHWM, familiar but totally unhealthy cheap good local food in Malaysia, uncensored web usage (which I understand may change soon..but oh no, not another China in Malaysia...)

Ok, panicky feeling has gone down now.

Its been 5 marvelous months here. I was sitting in this very chair last night in the dark, lighted by just my table lamp as I watched the seconds on the clock go by, with the peaceful but familiar sound of nothingness in the apartment... I felt very sad. It was finally ending... and although I know that I will be back, but still.... It must be human nature to not want to leave somethings good in life.

This has been my home for the last 5 months, a big big Thank You to my girlfriend for making it so. I more so feel reluctant to leave because of her. She has been more than my friend in my whole stay here. She has been part of my family. My experience here in China has been made available due to her. Am thankful, grateful that she's given me an opportunity to step out of my comfort box. Someday, hopefully... I will return the favour.

In the past week and more, I've been preparing to go back, saying my goodbyes to the ones still left in Beijing and to new friends made here. I have to say, I have multiple homes in my heart, but all these, I realised...are made homes because of the connections that we have made in life and the memories that we make. Of course, there are multiple things that I will miss about China (not so much the spitting and scary public toilets!), A21 ban, walking to school in the morning with my head in the clouds feeling at peace and happy everyday, cramping for exams in coffee shops, explicitly expressive moments in class, interesting drunk experiences at certain moments (haha, yes indeed it was interesting...), holidays in Southern Beijing with my parents, changing but tantalising fruit seasons, great coffee moments with great conversations, great scallop moments in the Wu, exhausting gym sessions with my gf followed by fresh homecooked food.... I could just go on and on...

Even so that I know that I will miss all those things above but I know that my "Adventures in Life" still has not ended but on the contrary, it just started. There's so much to life when you make up your mind to make it so. Am excited too about going home. Such conflicting feelings. ha ha. I guess thats what happens when the world slowly becomes your home.



For today, "Goodbye Beijing, Hello Malaysia..."

Arggh...for god sake!!!!!

OMG!!!!! This is the first time in more than a month that I am able to even access my blog. The Chinese Government is really really GOOD. The proxy that I usually used to get to my blog was closed down soon after my last entry. Darn it. There must be a better way than this. For those of you who has been wondering, where the hell have I gone. This IS mainly the problem...(Please note that IS is in Caps...this isn't the end of my problems!)

Here I am itching, itching to write, and I can't get on. Its been frusfrating, my friends. And NO, I am not dead yet! haha, am still here in Beijing, just too damn hard to get on. I will have to create my own blog soon where I don't need to go through blogspot or others, just in case the rest also gets blocked. I feel its a matter of time before I lose all msn capabilities. :P Facebook has unofficially been closed down by the government too right after the riots in Xinjiang. And I heard twitter as well. And again, NO, I am not dead in Facebook YET, just Missing In Action (MIA). Annoys me heaps. Makes me wonder if I should even come back when all communications might be severed here. Food for thought...

Anyways, NEWSFLASH! I am going back to Malaysia on the 9th August to spend some time with family and the new additional bundle of joy! Yay! And maybe I will be able to post about my trip to the southern part of China, together with some great pictures and traveling recommendations. Unfortunately, my Tibet trip had to be postponed due to budget issues. It became two times more expensive..ouch!!! On the positive side, I have approximately another two weeks here in Beijing to appreciate and enjoy. Hopefully, I will be back soon...

Xue Xiao Jie Shu le! aka School is Officially Over!

Its hard to believe that 3 months flew by so fast.

In my time of absence on blogspot, I've already studied (or more known as crammed), sat for my exams, graduated and said most of my farewells to dear "tong xue"s (classmates). Its so sad with this castrated form of blogspot, I can't even put up pictures of my dear friends.

We had a potluck on Wednesday night with different dishes; Korean (veggie with great spicy tasting meat, and kim chi of course and others which I cannot name for the life of me...haha), Jap (the triangle sushi, hehe what crappy abreviations, my explanations does the food no justice...it really tasted good), Vietnamese (rice ball caked in sesame seeds with a hint of coconut in it), Swedish (thin crusted pepperoni pizza and oh, apple pie which was i would just plainly explain with one word "orgasmic". Another dish that i found to be better than sex. hahaha..) and of course, your's truly Malaysian Prawn noodles which probably was a tad too spicy... haha.. and oh, great fruity desserts. The night ended with me not being able to resist some great grilled scallops in Wudaokou at the night market. Another "orgasmic" dish... haha i seem to be getting that a lot these days. Maybe my numbered days here are making me taste a thousand and one flavors.

Sitting here now in a cafe guan while i type this out. Its sad that schools over. I had felt so at home with everyone and with my current lifestyle. Wouldn't it be nice to continue to be young forever? Friends meet and friends part. Everyone with a different journey or path in life. Am guessing that no matter what, some of us would think back to A21 ban with smiles. My class was a real hoot! We had some delightful jokers in it. Even our teachers were greatly amused by us and occasionally joining in our private sessions outside. It seems unreal that A21 is never going to see another day in school again. The rain must be corresponding with what we feel in our hearts. It seems that this coming week is going to be a rainy week.

What's next for me? The adventure continues at least until I touch down in Malaysia. Am determined to come back again. This experience has been great to say the least. And I know I still need a lot more of Mandarin before its actually even good enough. Of course, there has been great improvements (although, YES YES...wo de fayin bu tai hao! aka My pronounciation is crap!) but its still a long depressing way to go. Meanwhile, I will be practising what I have learnt especially on my holidays.

Zai jian, "A21" ban. Zhu fu wo de peng you yong yuen kuai le, yong yuen ji li, yong yuen jian kang. Love you guys and gals.

My Brain Is FRIED!

Yes, officially my brain is so FRIED!

After having crammed about 600 over words into my oh so tiny little brain (Wait! That doesn't sound too right...mmmm...), it feels as if it just is about to fizzle out and die. Ever wake up after an hours nap with just one lazy eye, and not being able to focus on anything? Well, yeah, must be brain signals getting mixed up with all the Hanzi. haha.

And why am I cramming again? Its all attributable to the semester ending (aih, its just too damn fast! Noooo! Just as I was really enjoying myself...) and exams consisting of "kou yi", "ting li" and "yu fa" coming up next week. Some stare at me blankly when I say that I am studying, "Why so serious about it?". Lets just say that I need to prove to the UN-Chinese in me that I can do it. Its obvious that China is such a powerhouse. Today, I found out from JP Morgan's website that Beijing has roughly a GDP of 6% which is currently the highest in the world. Especially when the rest of the world is in chaos; being US, Europe, and parts of Asia in recession. Mandarin is a must, if I want to progress in many things.

And since this year is a year that I promised to challenge myself, the struggle must go on. I am starting to like the life here, albeit the intimidating public toilets and the polluted city. Must be something about four season countries that get me all lovey dovey. Ok, not so much lovey dovey...haha..classmates would beg to differ. Everything is pretty convenient here, and modern too, again albeit the occasional public spitting that one would encounter.

This chapter of my life will end on my flight back to Malaysia in August. I ask myself, "Will I be coming back?". My conclusion:- Its highly possible. I might just extend my adventures on a whim. Afterall, there's still so much to learn and experience...it seems never ending. Yes, further brain damage that will be rendered too.

Its been tiring these days with a couple of things on my mind and one of my gf's from KL came down to visit us. Finally, my stress level has finally lifted in the past few days. Too much to do, too little time. 24 hours is not enough in my day. Maybe an additional 6 hours would be nice. =) Dream on, dream on! Anyways, just thought I did say "Hello, readers, am still alive out here in Beijing. Have so much to update, but damn the government on blocking blogspot. Its such a hassle. Its the reason why you don't see any pictures posted up."

Well, times up! Its time to start frying my brain further. My gf's "Mmmm-Huhs" are prompting me to press the publish button. haha. I still have so much to say about the past few weeks. Ah wells...until later!

Freedom of Expression

My apolagies for not blogging for the past few days.

I thought that Blogspot was experiencing some downtime as I just couldn't reach the website. But, I finally realised that the Chinese government probably blocked it like what they did to Youtube. Yes, ladies and gentleman, apart from YouTube, they have also blocked all porn sites. Which is a good thing for the kids at home. *wink* But its starting to get really annoying, because I have to access the site by a proxy which does not allow me the full convenience of formatting, or attaching pictures, or reviewing my blog. I wonder when it will go back to normal. Or would it ever... Yes, the Chinese Government did a superb job with the public transportation especially in Beijing which probably thanks to the Olympics also made it easier for foreigners. BUT, this is getting ridiculous!!! Come on, its just blogging about opinions. Readers have minds too, let them think for themselves.

And what have I been doing for the past few days? Mainly resting from my Xian trip with 7 other coursemates. Those of us who took the train back arrived at 10:00am on Monday morning. Needless to say, we couldn't attend our classes on time. The more economic way of travelling was to sleep overnight in a 3 level hard bunker beds shared by many other people. There are of course pros and cons to it.

The pros were:-
(1) It was such a fun train ride with my mates squished on to the highest top two bunks playing big two, much to the horror of the people sleeping below. They must have been wondering if the each bunk could hold the three of us;
(2) Economical = RMB260 or 270 for hard bunkers;
(3) Its part of the China experience to rough it out like the locals.

The cons were:-
(1) Shared toilets which frankly was totally disgusting!!! Thank god for perfumed tissue!!!;
(2) The bunks probably could not fit bigger sized or taller people. I was just able to twist and turn sides. One of our mates had a good 1.5 ft of his legs sticking out at the end. Luckily he was sleeping on the second level;
(3) The fear of H1N1 virus running around. Not that it bothered me in the beginning. However, at the end of the trip at the Xian trainstation, the amount of people there were horrendously scary. I started to think that this couldn't be good for us.

Generally, it was a good train ride. I won't mind doing it again, especially being a "poor" student. It wasn't a problem sleeping on the train except for the dream that I had about dieing in my sleep if I did not wake up. Yes, morbid dreams at 6am. I wonder what that meant...

Overall, the Xian trip was a great one except for the fact that I kept on losing things everyday.

For example:-
Day 1: Lost my pen. (Ok, no biggie..I can still handle that!)
Day 2: Dropped RMB250 together with some Muslim Temple Brochures from my backpocket! (What!! I am on a budget trip. Ok, now I am starting to get annoyed. But I have to thank some mates of mine who actually went back with me to the place where I dropped it just to chance finding it again.)
Day 3: Lost my students card after Ping Ma Yue (Terracotta Soldiers). (Arrgh, now I am really annoyed. Because this meant that I would have to fork out more money without a student's price. And there usually is a 50% discount for students).
Day 4: Lost my lenscleaner on Hua Shan. (Gees...what else could go wrong! And as I just thought that I got through the day without losing anything...I had purposely bought the lenscleaner for my trip in China.)
Day 5: ONLY DAY THAT I DIDN'T LOSE SOMETHING!

Wo zhen de mei you jili! But at least it was a fun trip, the best being Hua Shan!!! Will blog about it in my next post. For now, GOODNIGHT, WORLD...or is it, GOOD MORNING!

P/S: This is the 2nd time that I am writing this postup due to this proxy inconvenience resulting in an unsaved draft. Arrggghh.

Oh Woe is Me... =P

Wow.. I just finished showering and my nightly dose of supper, fruits of the season. Guess what?It's the end of the strawberry seasons BUT it's lychee season now! Whoooo hoooo.... The cheapest I managed to get it was at RMB8.8 yi jin (yi jin = 0.5kg) and this is at my regular grocery mart downstairs. I just realised that the bicycle vendor managed to rip me off previously at RMB15 yi jin. She must have been going, "There goes another *Sucker*!"

This is the first time that I get to eat fresh lychees, and I realised one thing, we would usually think that red signifies ripe and sweet lychees but the GREEN ones are super sweet! Finished yi jin at one go this afternoon, mmmm.. maybe thats why I have piled back on 1 kg. :P Anyways, I don't think I will get to enjoy this in Malaysia, so......keep it coming!!!! hehe.

And yes, Oh Woe is Me... I just realised that my dissatisfaction with certain proportions of mine has quad-multiplied (if there's such a word). No matter how hard I try to twist, turn, grind my already small ass (aka flat ass..argghhh!!!!! I am being kind to myself.. *sob*) at pole dancing...it would never look as good as the other girls. *sigh* I think I am just about to google "perky ass, how to get it.....".

I know some of you are rolling on the ground laughing by now. And probably some out of curiosity will checkout my behind in school after this post. *sigh* Its not fun though. Hmmm, if only I could get 30% of JLo's infamously USD1 million insured ass. Hmmm.....then again....there's always plastic surgery. Or should I just be satisfied with what the Lord had given me? (*Oh Lord, please be merciful and let my pole dancing pay off with a perkier ass and slender waist. Thank you, Thank you!!! I shall be forever grateful*... So much for being satisfied... haha) OK, OK... the Lord is fair. *sigh* But it doesn't mean that I can't moan and groan about it. Oh woeeeeeee....

Anyways, my un-perky ass and myself will be off to Xian tomorrow to see the Terracotta Warriors. The 7 of us will be taking the night train all the way to Xian and arrive around 7am. And one by plane to meet us in Xian. (Wo men shi *tong xue* you 6 ge shi yi yang ban. Lao shi, dui bu qi, wo men mei lai liang tian!) Thank god for the early morning sun in China. We'll probably be actively searching for good local breakfast, hopefully some nice jiao zhi, bao zhi or dim sum.

Cheers to Great Adventures! Ciao...till Monday, I'll be back! With of course, some delightful updates and pictures of our Xian adventures! Da jia, zai jian! Be safe, be happy.... =)

Ji Hanzi Breakthrough!

Guess what!!! Some really sweet smelling pizza did walk pass me today. haha

I was sitting at the usual spot outside this small lil coffee shop on campus named Rambles having my only sinful ice chocolate and talking with some mates when this waiter walked past looking for the person who ordered it. I must have exclaimed too loudly, because he did a backstep and gave me an inquiring look. haha. Darn, a nice pizza about the size of an 8inch costs around RMB36 from La Vita Cafe....MmMm... my body is seriously hankering for some sinful actions.

Aside from the serious hankering, I think I may have found the answer to my seemingly inability to remember Hanzi. Today, I made full use of my time on the subway with my que cards which must have looked terribly retarded. Especially when the person carrying it has a Chinese face (yes, with somewhat blondish hair), wears summer shorts in spring, and somewhat whispers to herself. Why didn't I think of doing this earlier? (I meant the cuecards on the train instead of waiting for time to pass!) Surprisingly, the 35 minutes allowed me a somewhat better performance today at tingxue. =P Of course, I ran back to the heiban a second time to correct some words. haha. But at least.....

Now if I can only be self-disciplined enough to keep at it. =)

Sudden Cravings....

Darnit, I have this craving for some pizza right now this moment.

*sigh* Must be due to my anti-carb eating habits. The thought of pizza with thin crusted edges, sausage, slices of pineapple and cheese....arrrgghhh, is driving me nuts! I NEED! haha. Darnit, maybe just drop into La Bamba tomorrow for a nice pizza lunch? *soB* I know I shouldn't and I know that I would not allow myself that luxury tomorrow.

Say "NO", say "NOOOOO"! Mmmm...sweet smell of cheesy pizza. *sobBbbb* My internal conflict varies from small insignificant matters like pizza to the bigger stuff. haha.

0h wells, at this point, only sleep can satisfy my need. Dream of pizza maybe. :)

P/S: Just to note down its already the starting of the 6th week in uni and we are officially halfway through (oh, no!!!!). I still can't remember nuts.

Wine at China Bar!

China Bar, on the 65th floor of Park Hyatt Hotel at Jianguomen district is really really classy. It was a double date for me and my friends, with some soul smoothing and fooling around thrown in!

Take the subway to Guomao Line 1/Line 13 and take the C exit. Once you're out, look around you, its the tallest building with the top most 5 floors illuminated in red. You'll need to take the lift to the 63rd floor and either change a lift or walk up another two floors to arrive at China Bar.

Of course its really classy, our bottle of Italian Cabernet Sauvignon of Year 2006 costed us RMB560. haha. But it was of the smoothest reds that I have tasted before. With a great glass of wine, great soft environment, and a live band playing, its really nice to occassionally pamper ourselves (especially after that killer long walk at the Summer Palace). The guys were smartly dressed, I must say. =P And of course, ladies tastefully dressed. haha. And we probably were one of the "youngest" and most "expressive" group in China Bar judging from some of the glances that we received from the people seated around us. The view from the top is pretty much impressive, with the street nights illuminated below. Advice: Arrive earlier ie. 9pm which makes it easier to sit near to the windows to appreciate the view.

This would be my favourite haunt just to chill if I were still working and earning good money. Aih, the pains of a student life. :P

颐和园;Yihe yuan aka Summer Palace

What a HOT HOT HOT day! And what a packed packed day!

Yeah I should have expected it with Labor Day falling on last Friday. But I've been to Yiheyuan before in Mar'08, and it was only 1/3 of the crowd we encountered yesterday. The three of us were almost shuffling with a hand apart at certain sections of the gardens. I think I appreciate the fact that our plans to Xian fell through for this holidays. I can't imagine fighting for a spot to look at the Terracotta Warriors.

Still, although we spent almost half the day there, we still could not finish the whole walk around the lake. THANK GOD! I would have killed "SOMEONE" if really, he made us walk to the Seventeen Arch Bridge. haha. That was even further than the darn Tower of Buddhist Incense on top of the Longivity Hill. But we had great views from the Tower of Buddhist Incense, qouted to be the highest viewpoint in the Summer Palace.

YiHeYuan translated is known as Gardens of Nurtured Harmony, one of the famous landmarks in Beijing which was a summer resort for Empress Dowager Cixi, who seemingly took money supposed to be for the navy improvement to reconstruct the Summer Palace. She must have been one hell of a smart lady. She must have known that the dynasty would not last forever and instead dug into the coffers for herself.

Its well worth a visit, but please not on a public holiday! Am still nursing my blistered feet as of today.. :P



P/S: I am in love with the dim sum at one of the restaurants near the WuDaoKou subway station. RMB9 for one "loong". Yummy!

Double Bonus!

Some things comes in pairs, especially when its good news. Just had to spit it out. =)

A Person that I hold dear in my heart, is finally in contact after a long leave of absence. Its been a long time since I heard the familiar voice asking me how I was doing. Its great to know that everything is good and getting better. I so enjoyed our chat together and do really miss you! Be well, babes! You're strong. Don't overworry about the future.

My Best Girlfriend, whom I have known since the awkward nerdy primary school days, has just given birth to a Baby Girl on 1st May 2009! My dear, I know that your heart must be bursting with pride and joy now. Big Big congrats to Mr. & Mrs. Ho, on the arrival of Iris Ho!!!! I just cannot wait to come back and hold her in my arms. hehe. Another kid that I would just spoil rotten given the chance. =)

Am so tired now, sleepy, but happy.... :)

Precious Moments In Life...

As much as I hate to admit it, I had fun on my birthday, two days ago. In truth, it's probably one of the most memorable birthday by far. =)

As a rule, I try not to make a big hoo hah out of my birthdays. Celebrations are usually small with a nice homecooked dinner with family, a romantic dinner with my loved one (it usually ends up not so romantic in the end, haha), or a fun restaurant outing with my girlfriends in Malaysia. If possible, I would just tiptoe around the day trying not to get so much attention. Why? Maybe its because of my age? mmmm..or more so maybe because I don't deal so well with so much attention concentrated in one day. Feel *Pai Siah* (hokian for embarassed) especially on birthdays. And YES, I was cowering in my small little corner in class when our dear Diao Lao Shi went, "jin tian seng rik kuai lek" and looked towards my direction. Then the whole class sang me a birthday song. Ah, so much for letting it go quietly...

My dear dear classmates suddenly turned a pre-planned class dinner and KTV session into my birthday celebration. (Psst, we actually have a few darn good singers in class!) And the few of us who were still up to further the night dropped by Propaganda. Its a coincidental Wednesday drink-all-you-like night with my favourite mai tais. And so, the night ended on a great note resulting in a pretty much drunk birthday girl who unsurprisingly could not make it to class the very next day. =P

To my friends who were with me during that night, it was a hilariously fun night! I love you guys. Thank you for the great company, for the surprise "bai hua" birthday cake and finally, for withstanding my horrendous singing. haha. KTV no more for me.

And to my family and friends loving me from afar, I miss you guys! Thanks for the many well wishes on facebook and msn. *muaks*muaks* =)

4th Weekend Endeavours!

Time flies by, literally!

I believe tomorrow is the start of my 5th week in Uni. Damn, already more than 1/3 done. Happy that my mandarin has progressed enough in order for me to carry on a conversation and to make a few sparing jokes. Two sad things about time flying by:- (1) I can't catch up with character memorisation and the damn shengtiao as usual; and (2) We would have to part ways to different parts of the world when the semester ends. I only have this to say, "Lets truly enjoy the time that we have NOW! We party on, yeah?!!!" =)

Today was another good Sunday. Great sleep till the late morning after a tiring "Chang Cheng" (or known as the Great Wall). We went to Xidan which is on line 1 subway and entered into one of the multiple generic higher classed shopping complexes on the street. Am happy to say that I have discovered that my healthy eating has paid off. Am starting to feel comfortable back in a size "S" after some shopping in UniQlo, but definitely much more work is necessary. Another 2 or 3 damn kgs to go, but this time to be shed on certain areas. *erm* More pole dancing? haha.

As for Saturday, we were so blessed with such perfect weather, clear sunny skies with a slight wind! It was a field trip for the intensive course students at BLCU to The Great Wall of China (Mutianyi side) which started at 9am after the 'jalan-jalan' aka 'Sports Day' at Uni. (Psst, I didn't take part, felt silly to have to stand in the middle of the field and take a walk. Feels like too much hard labour, haha! But am sure that "some" did enjoy it. But damn, I so want the white or red BLCU shirt!)

It took us 2 hours on the Uni bus to get there, with some pretty good countryside scenery with plenty of Hutongs. I love the grey out look of the Hutongs, its so classic and traditional. There are plenty of handicraft stalls before the start of the climb. First word of advice, buy on the way down, and bargain all the way. One shirt was initially quoted at RMB40 to 60 and went down to RMB10. The stalls higher up tend to be cheaper.

Second word of advice, if you hate climbing steps, there's a cable car around RMB36 for one to take up and then only climb down the Great Wall. We were "smart" enough to make the climb up, and with mutual encouragement and a literally occasional hand boasting, we managed to go all the way up to the cable car station. I do realise that my stamina has gone to ground zero despite Mutianyi being an easy climb with well maintained steps and relative steepness than compared to Badaling. I wonder if I can make it in Tibet. Maybe I'll end up crawling on the ground.

Two things that I so regret not doing at Great Wall:-
(1) A jump shot picture with my classmates. (Arrgh, we should have reached for the world!); and
(2) The Tobogan ride at Tower 9. (Yes, tobogan ride indeed. I was told that it was loads of fun...btw, Tower 9, you'll need to walk downwards instead of upwards once u arrive at the intersection of the wall after the steep climb up.)

Great views from the top but my favourite was in the middle of the walk before reaching the Observation platform. Concern of my weak knees made me take the cable car ride down. I had prior experience which was not so pleasant where I was wincing at every step down Badaling. The steep uneven steps totally killed off my knees for almost a year. It was an exhausting but enjoyable trip.


And THANKS to my classmates, I have also discovered the joys of Bao Zi and Jiao Ji (all dumplings) sold in the unassuming local small shops at Wu Dao Kou, with just 4 tables inside.



Looks darn delicious, right? It was! Tantalising to the tastebuds. And actually ridiculously good for 4 kuai for one basket. If only I can remember how to get there again. =)

Food for Thought!

Should we let life take control of us? Or do we take control of life?

Just about to pop to bed. But its just one of those moments where you start to feel philosophical about life, and just have to let it out, least you start to even dream about it. haha. I hate an unadventurous dream. Truth is, I've always had the most interesting dreams, some which obviously, I can't remember, but wake up with a pleasant feeling. Same as to which I feel about life, I would hate waking up in the morning without anything but a pleasant feeling. =)

Were there ever times when you would have an internal struggle between your heart and mind? One screaming, don't be ridiculous, stop denying yourself, let me out, let me feel, let me live!! And the other screaming out even louder, listen to reason, there's no point in doing things that have no meaning or future!!!

Will the heart concede, lie back and let the mind take control? Or will the mind heed to what its heart is softly telling it to. Somehow, in the middle of the battle, the dust settles, and clarity always regains consciousness. I can't tell for sure how many battles that the mind has won, but it truly is powerful. Sometimes it persuades us with reason that our actions are right, and so, sometimes they are. But the other times, when they are not, and we have ourselves persuaded that it is, things do also go terribly wrong. And all that is left, is the strength within ourselves to clean up after, be it a broken heart, body and battered soul.

Who will win? Its anybody's guess. Mine included. :P For the moment now, I choose neither. I wonder if inaction means that the heart concedes? haha. God only knows.

All I know is that I want to live fully now...embrace life in all that it is....happiness, pain, sorrow, joy, laughter... Afterall, what is life if we are not living. :)

Wooo...I am getting philosophical, and good at it too. :) Anyways, my battered mind wants a good rest before the next battlefield in the classroom. *yes, some will hate me for saying that. The b**** isn't even working her ass off anymore, what a life!* Yeah, I know, still loving it. :P Anyways, goodnight world, thank you for showing me one of the many beautiful days in store. =)

Night out at La Bamba & Blu Bar!

It was a Good Friday with fun and wacky classmates... :) Again, am having a good weekend recovering from it. And I might just be getting too old for this. I actually overslept and missed my subway stop this morning to reach home and had to detour.

I look forward to Monday for "ting xue" to see the sweared upon antics undertaken by two of our classmates. haha. Remember, if Monday there is the absence of "ting xue", there's always Tuesday! Jia Yao, Gambate!

We were at La Bamba for dinner, a nice restaurant and bar with a pool table on top of Propaganda Club. I should have taken a picture of the enormous pizza (RMB60) ordered by our Japanese mate. Tasty although it was just vegetarian, tomato and cheese. It reminds me so much of the delicious thin crusted Hawaiian pizza in Phi Phi Island of all places. Sorry, I keep thinking of food these days. Must be due to the lack of sugar in my brain. And to those who have know me since uni, I have already cut out the over consumption of coca cola and switched over to jasmine tea. How boring!!! But how refreshing. Yes, my occasional sinning still surfaces once in a while. Am far from perfect, I know. And I do have a long list of petty but delightful sins.

Anyways, again, it was another fun dinner. I wished I could speak a little bit of everything, korean and japanese included so that we could all get to know each other better. The funny thing is, this is the way we get to practise our Mandarin. Its our only common ground. :) After dinner, we met up with a few more friends at San Li Tun famous for its bar street. Its a must go area for those party loving people. Only its a tad much more expensive than clubs at Wu Dao Kou area, mid range I think.


On excellent recommendation, we ended up at Blu Bar or Bar Blu. I must say, 6 flights of stairs? That's just too much! haha. Blu Bar, one of the many clubs in the building occupies the top two floors. But I definately loved having open air drinks on the rooftop. It really sets the environment for the night. This time, 1 mai tai, 1 Kamikaze shot free on the house and 1 Tiger beer. 1 more Tiger beer would probably have given a bigger buzz, but it was just nice. What can I say? I like being conscious at the dancefloor and not kneeling over in the loo. :P

Most patrons at Blu Bar are foreigners. Some might probably even be students from our uni. haha. Only thing that I didn't like was that the ladies' was downstairs which would only spell disaster for one who had a bit too much to drink. We had hell of a time on the dancefloor downstairs. Its the first time that I see some of my classmates hang loose and laugh hilariously. And of course, the first time that I see some of them dance. hahah. Oh, "mi mi", one can breakdance!!! Totally puts my moves to shame. hahaha. I have to admit, it was impressive! Btw, its a full compliment this time.. :P

We definately need an encore in the next round with the rest who couldn't manage to turn up. Its too fun not to have one. Maybe next weekend when we've recovered? =)

Kampai to A Class!

My Whining Day!

Yes, its just one of those damn days which thank god is almost over. But I still haven't done my homework. :(

Its the first day where I missed school and spent most of my hours curled up in bed. Should be fun right? Day off with loads of time on my hands? *tutttttttt* Damn wrong. Not when you're in pain.

I hate being weak and pathetic. Yesterday, my body was already signalling to me all the way through school and after that there was something wrong. Attributed it to a lack of sleep and a sore throat which I knew would usually later on give way to fever first then coughing later. So, I listened and went to bed early. And woke up at midnight with one of those most damning stomachaches, the type that hurts so much that it even appears in your dreams. Most girls would know what I mean.

I usually won't blog about this. Its taboo to even usually mention it anywhere. When our lives stop because of this, we women would usually lie through our teeth and just make another excuse about being sick instead of saying it as it was. But what the hell, today, I'll damn hell write about anything that I please seeing as to its my blog and then lie about it later the next day. :P Sorry, its really a whining day. I know, its pathetic but I don't do this often. I'll try to make it as short and as painless (to the guys) as possible.

It's not fun being a female contrary to what most men think. No female anticipates those monthly pains with happiness. And the only way we can escape it is by being pregnant. Huh, great choices god gave to us, either choose pain or choose an enlarging belly which then again will equate to pain when the time is up! Hmmm, the part where they say that women can withstand pain better than men, what a load of bullshit, we withstand pain better because we have NO CHOICE to. Its ridiculous as to how much pain we need to withstand.

Sharing with my friend as to the many days that I wished that I was the opposite sex, she asked, "So how are you going to be able to take childbirth?" My response,"I think death is a better option for me." Yeah, so therefore, again once confirming my responses on pro-creating for the world. Why the heck do I need to do it? Yes, I do love children BUT there are others out there already doing it for me. :P Let me enjoy what's left of a pleasurable life.

So guys, if you have a sister, a wife or a girlfriend who's having that first day of the month, be the wiser one and do those small little but significant things for her. Eg. Run around getting her hot water and a panadol, preparing a hot water bottle for her, or making her some hot soup, or giving her a long hug and settling dinner for her. You'll definitely be in her good books for a long time later. (Aih, this is one of the reasons why I miss my ex! He is a good man.)

On a totally separate note. Yeah, I know how wierd that sounds after my whining write up. :P

The weather is changing here. Its supposed to be a much shorter spring here, eg. a month which is too short. The white big flowers that I used to see in Uni has faded and dropped to the ground. But there are different nice looking ones that crop up. This is the best pic that I can take without my dslr. White flowers that can turn into pink ones.

I know now roughly how the weather here works. The great things about staying with my gf is that you can actually hear the wind at night if there is any. If there is wind and some shaking of the window, it means that the next day will be a clear and cold day which is more than welcomed but not today when I can't get out. Arrgh. But anyways, it was snowing cotton just a few days ago. Fascinating. Snowing cotton. As I sit in class, I can actually see white specs of cotton flying past our windows and also flying in once we opened them. It gets into everything. Breath and you're literally breathing it in, talk and yes, you start eating it. =) Can vaguely remember this happening in Kazakhstan but not so much. Anyways, I wonder if it will snow cotton again tomorrow. =)

Propaganda!!! And just for laughs..

It was one of those weekday party nights!

(*Note: To concerned readers and friends, no, it doesn't happen so often...really! Especially not on a weekday! Nah, thats just sin! Ok, I sin sometimes, but not all the time!)

Fun nite at Ps or Propaganda as known. A nice small little bar consisting of two floors, one with a dance floor n one with those nice soft fluffy seats to disolve into. Not that we could get those seats, as they were mostly fully reserved. Ah wells...anyways, its always the company that we keep that makes it one of those great nites...Cheers again!

Testing my alcohol limit again. This time just 2 tequila shots, 1 gin tonic, 3 sex on the beach (really good! I mean the drink!) and 2 mai tais did the trick. Tipsy and happy but drunk to the extent of spilling my guts out. I hate those nights when it happens. Btw, many hot bodies on the dancefloor last night, both guys n girls! Yes, my guy friends in Msia, stop asking me to take pictures of random hot chicks n posting them on my blog. :P For me to appreciate, for you to salivate just over the sound of it. LOL.

Anyways, no hangover in the morning but the hunger pangs!!!! My wishlist was MacD's breakfast meal but all I got was a slice of apple pie and coffee from the small canteen downstairs. Tasted good anyways. And yes, I did make it to class (although 15 min late with a dui bu qi) countary of what I thought I would do. YAY! And signs that my mandarin is improving - I could make small talk with the taxi driver!!!!

I had a great 4 hr nap this evening and now a totally screwed up schedule which I will need to re-adjust to over the weekend. (But no regrets! I did have fun...oh shoosh some of you with those well meaningful smiles!....As I said before live and let live..) And yes, I need to fu si this weekend too! Feel that I am lagging a fair bit behind especially cannot hear the pin yin sheng properly. The only way now is to memorise it all. Memory, please do not fail me now. =) But maybe this weekend, make a trip to the The World-of-Cameras-in-Beijing (cant remember what its exactly called!). I am hankering for those extension tubes. Damn it, I knew I should have bought a macro lense. Feel that those spring flowers are going to waste.

Am in the middle of homework now as I speak. Shit, another 11 x 5 times of Han Zi to write. *groan* Pls don't pick me for dictation tomorrow!

Oh, just another hilarious thing for the Ladies that came up in "those" conversations with my gf (yes, we are comedians for that fact!).

Our conversation again:-

Me: Ahhh...do you know what my idea of a perfect man is? He should be 34 yrs old....

Interupted by my friend, "Why 34 yrs old?"

My response: "Er....so that I always will look younger? haha" (sorry, am just not used to dating younger guys though I have before..)

And I continue, "....matured enough to handle and respect a girl, knows better than to neglect a girl, wants you as you really are...yes short stubby legs and all...has a SEXY mind and body to which you don't mind waking up next to...., and last but not least, which has been on my checklist for years.....loves holding you tight in his arms every night...without you having to ask for it.

My gf exclaims, "Hey I know a guy like that which fits just perfectly into that."

Me with eyes wide open, "Really?????!!!!! Who is he????"

Her final response: "Yes, his name is......SUPERMAN!"

(Its funnier than it sounds...haha)

As you can imagine...I just rolled over and died. Laughter is a great way of lengthening lifes. ;p

Conclusion:- The perfect man just doesn't exist! Sorry girls... haha...and Darn it!!! Or so to speak, even if Superman did exist he probably would have thrown his arms up and given up with our endless requirements. =)

Many Happy Returns of the Day, Yvonne! :)

Just thought that I did send out my love to my dear girlfriend in Malaysia...

"Happy XX Birthday, Girl! =) Owe you one great celebration when I get back! Promise you'll have fun. Tell me what ya want? Stripper guys in your party? haha, just joking. Anyways, at least I personally guarantee the "better-than-sex-cake" and my lovely company (ahem! :P) in our dinner appointment when I get back!"

Hope that you enjoyed your day, dear! *muaks*muaks*

With much much love, Mei!

"Every cloud has its silver lining. The day that you think that life as you know has ended, it has just only really begun. All the trials and tribulations that you have standing before you will only make you stronger at the end. Just have the courage to face them and a strong determination to overcome them and yourself. Stand tall, my dear. Believe in yourself, have patience and you shall triumph."

4 Mar 2009: Happening House Party!!!!

What a night!!!

Yes, this was only one of the tables that day littered with beer bottles! Kudos to the two bachelors who hosted the party at their apartment. Although there was a lack of music but hell, it was fun all the way mingling with everyone. I dare say, I have never seen so many people in an apartment before. We had to literally line up for the loo. Oh, nice loo btw. hehe. Spotlights in the shower...OooOoO.

(The pictures posted won't literary do justice to the number of people that were there. They were taken much earlier. I reckon at one point, we probably had more than 35 people there. )

That night I learnt 4 new interesting facts:-

1) There is such a thing as diet beer for TsingTao. Damn, bought the damn wrong beer and it tasted so flat. I could have gotten my stomach bloated and still feel no buzz. Hence, removing the reason of the existence of beer. Thank god for the kind gentleman who exchanged one "REAL BEER" for my "FAKE BEER"! (The same gentleman as previously advertised! HAHAHA....don't kill me pls!) Btw, the alcohol content was 1% lower with my fake beer.

2) I needed more than 3.5 bottles to give me a buzz. But by time I reached 3.5 bottles, I was too bloated to take anymore. *SOB* Maybe it was due to the fact of the FAKE BEER! *sheesh* And yes, I do know that alcohol kills brain cells but....ar....again, I repeat, am not binging so what the heck! *innocent smile*

3) MacDonald's BIG MAC & FRIES tastes like a piece of heaven at 4:00 am in the morn! I know for a fact that this is seconded by quite a few people. Yes, thank god for delivery service as well!

4) Guys and girls from more advance classes than mine (namely B & C) couldn't read the tattoo on my back! YAY!!!!! I feel so much better now about me being in an A (Normal!!!! I keep on emphasizing that...though it makes a fat lot of difference.. :P) and being Malaysian Chinese. Hey, I had been laughed at many a times, especially by some Singaporean Guys....YES!!!! You know who you are... so THERE! hehe

All in all, it was so fun and interesting till the very end. Some of us tried sleeping at various areas in the living room, but thanks to a certain someone snoring like a train wreak, probably most of us didn't get much sleep. I know I didn't. :)

Anyways, enjoy the slideshow~! This is the best way that I can put more pictures on for now, until I become more IT literate! Jiu Ming!!!

Revelation!!

I had such a hilarious revelation tonight, thanks to my Gf.

As usually we always have our girl talk about many things, one of them being relationships (Duh!) and tonight's conversation went something like this:-

Gf with a thoughtful look :- "Most of the older and more matured guys are usually already married. Those left are usually those with the problems. You have to wonder what is wrong with them."

Me with a even more thoughtful look :- "Er..but I am sure its the same with us single girls. What is our problem then?"

Her reply, "I think we are too independent and opinionated. Henceforth, not submissive enough. That IS OUR problem."

With a horrified look, I stammered, "WHAT????!!!!!!! SAY AGAIN???!!!!! That can't be a problem."

Gf laughing :- "Yes, it is. That is a problem!"

Me with a frown and a chuckle :- "Damn! Our problem is being too independent and opinionated???!!! That can't be right. Come on, there must be a guy out there who appreciates that! If not, Aaargh, then all I have to say is "TO HELL WITH IT". I just hardly couldn't be bothered."

Gf with a louder laugh :- "You see, that also is a problem!!! Not admitting that we can be too independent and opinionated. And not caring!"

Me rolling with laughter on the carpet and cold hard floor :- "BUT....but I am HAPPY being independent and opinionated."

Gf still laughing :- "THAT REALLY IS A PROBLEM!!!! You shouldn't be so happy."

Me still rolling on the ground :- "Er...so now there's a problem with me being happy???!!!"

So, folks, guys and girls, er...in this case, LADIES*!!!!

"WE HAVE A PROBLEM IF WE ARE HAPPY ABOUT BEING INDEPENDENT AND OPINIONATED"

(Huh? What? Am still having difficulty grasping this concept. It so doesn't make sense to me. Haha)

*Note: Only applicable to Single Happy Ladies who are in love and totally comfortable with themselves.

Blah Blah Bar

We had drinks today at the Bar on campus. Yeah, it was called Blah Blah Bar, really catchy yeah? (or was it Bla Bla?) Its a really old dingy looking place with wooden tables and chairs that looked as if it were gonna fall apart. Beer is darn cheap here. RMB5. Whoo hooo! Er...no I am not going on a drinking binge. *innocent smile* Just going to enjoy what god gives me! (Qouted from the infamous incident of the two Perakian politicians who received certain *gifts* given to them and later lompat katak to UMNO..oh yeah, its just Malaysia's dirty politics, if you're not familiar with it...)

By the way, a correction is deemed necessary on my previous post. (hehe, as corrected by the mentioned!) A Hongki guy from US is incorrect (I repeat incorrect!), er..he's from Canada...born n bred there (ok, maybe parents are from HK..hehe..I feel that I am going to get corrected again.. haha). Great guy and canton speaking too....anyone interested? haha

4th Day of Classes at BLCU!!!

These days it feels like I am going back to my student days. Wait, I AM a student! Yay, but a poor one! And classes are getting tougher and tougher every day. Or I could be getting lazier and lazier everyday. :P

Everyday is recently like clockwork. Wake up at 6:15 am and perform the Mad Dash for classes. Feels almost the same as the Mad Dash for work, only that it usually starts at 8:00 am. Arrghh, I almost...almost miss the Mad Dash for work. :P Run down to the underground Subway Station and catch the train to the interchange for Line 13. God help me. I still don't remember the name of the stop. haha. The advantage of being up so early is that I beat the rush hour which starts at around 7:30 am. If I get stuck in that, I would have to elbow out my way. (You only see evidence of the famed 1 Billion people in China at rush hour on the subway. Scary!)

Take a 8 minute brisk walk to transit to the above ground Subway and stop one stop further at Wu Dao Koh station, which is another 10 minute brisk walk to my uni. It takes me one full hour to get to uni. And school starts at 8:00 am. Groan! Oh, and did I mention...I hate the FOUR FLOORS staircase which leaves me huffing and puffing to get to my class. Great news is that I will probably lose more weight by the end of my 3 months class. Yay to that!

We have 3 teachers that teach us different segments;- Reading & writing, Speaking, and Listening. And its a grueling 4 hours straight, with a 5 min break in between for every hour. And yes, we are at the bo, po, mo, fo... hehe although today it was more che, zhe and she. Miss Diao, our reading and writing teacher has a hard time everyday teaching us the phonetics of the language as you can see above. For the life of me, I can't seem to differenciate too well these three sounds. Ah wells...I guess I should get better after more practice. (Praying ever so hard!) And yes, we do have homework everyday. I have to take at least an hour for homework and memorisation of the approximate 25 new words every day. Again, god help me...luckily there's no escaping for now. Somehow, I seem to be getting better every single day.

Class ends at 12:00 pm, so after that we usually have lunch on campus. Have been going to the International Students Cafeteria with another Malaysian friend for the past few days. But today, I had great fun with some other classmates at the Muslim restaurant on campus which was full of students. Surprisingly, it has pretty good food there. We had sweet & sour chicken, naan bread, beef with onions, and some type of naan covered with lamb (I think! Darn, should have taken a picture of the menu!). The meat skewers there are definately highly recommended! I was told that the lamb is even better, but pricey at about RMB16 for each stick. We had the beef one which costed only RMB3 for a stick. In total, each of us paid about RMB18 for about 4 types of dishes. Am definately going to try their other dishes next time.

There are a total of 19 of us in Class 402. And we are so multinational. These classmates of mine in the picture are all of different nationalities. Let's see, we have a Hongki guy from US, a Vietnamese gal from Sdyney, an Estonian gal (Did I get that spelled right?), a Swedish gal and a Korean guy from the US. (Note:- No names shall be mentioned for the moment in case of any future embarassing moments...haha..but I am sure that the mentioned guys and gals can recognise each other here. =P ) I should actually try to pick up other languages. But Mandarin already is so tough, I did probably just collapes from all the mental work. Good luck to all of us! And Cheers to getting to know each other better!

Enjoy picturesque SPRING! (which is also still Brrrrrr...COLD!!! Where is my extra sweater???!!!! Or my human blanket??? Arrgghh..the cons of being single in a 4 season country..ah wells...)

Flowers are springing up everywhere. Seriously a beautiful sight. I feel like I am back in Kazakhstan, only its more beautiful. Took some of these shots on campus and at my gf's apartment grounds. Isn't it really nice? Am tempted to go pluck some flowers, but controlling myself. I don't want the guards to suddenly start running after me. And today, it felt as if spring time is starting to get slightly warmer, which is sorely welcomed. I saw the gardeners at home planting bulbs. I can only hope that they are tulips! The weather has been pretty much good these days. Clear blue skies, if this persists, I dare say, the hazy reputation of Beijing might slowly fade away. Am almost about to start singing "Spring is in the air!" (or technically correct is Summer is on the way! :P )

Cheers to Baby Ts & Sexy Shorts!!!! I can finally start acting young again! Wait, I actually REALLY do feel young. Seriously!