Earth Hour - 29 March 2008 8pm

Did you turn off your lights last night? Earth Hour 2008 was on 29 March for 1 hour from 8pm to 9pm. It is still happening for those living in North America :)

I was out last night, so by default, everything was turned off at home :p

This year 24 cities will participate in Earth Hour 2008 and Google is one company which is involved too. I thought that was quite a powerful message from Google.ca to use a black background to indicate their support for Earth Hour 2008 :)

Bare Naked

I finally finished the last bit of the fraiche soap I received the other day. I tried out bare naked first which has an amazingly gorgeous refreshing scent.

The cucumber-melon fragrance is slightly sweet and is not cloying at all. The soap is huge that I could barely hold it. But maybe because it is organic, it is quite soft so it kinda falls apart or gets too "soggy"? Or maybe I need a special soap dish holder to retain its firmness.

I like that it is not drying at all and it is easy to soap yourself all over :)

Kriter Sparkling Wine

I saw this at Jason's Marketplace the other day when I was getting white wine to cook the seafood pasta. I was intrigued by the fruitiness of the wine. Lychee and white tea? That sounds yummy!
I have not had a fruity wine in so long. The last time I had it was when I was in Cairns. They produce mango wine over there and it was so nice. There were 3 types - dry, sweet and medium. Ice wine not counted since I did go wine tasting at the vineyards at the Okanagan Valley in Canada last year :p

It was really nice when chilled. Refreshing with a hint of dryness. It was not totally sweet. I think I better stick to my German wines which are always sweet but not super sweet like ice wine. The way like I like it :)

No Life

I feel like I have no social life ever since I started working. Maybe it didn't help that I am still down with the flu. 1 week and counting. So I have not been sleeping well at night. Broken sleep with the coughing and stuffed nose and dry throat. Not good at all.

Office hours are also different, meaning I get home late :( I just feel like I have no more free time to do other stuff. Maybe it will be better once I am well again and I have the energy to do other stuff.

We shall see.

Wings Nite @ Rhino's Pub & Grill

I have never been to Rhino Pub before even though it has been around for a pretty long time. And they do show the PPV Canucks games! Wednesday night is Wings Nite - 20c each. Good deal, eh? You just need to order a drink (any drink, non-alcohoholic too) to be able to order the 20c wings. I didn't know the wings were deep-fried and you dip it in the sauce of your choice.
We also ordered nachos as wings could only fill you up this much. Nachos were good. I loved how it came with guacamole, salsa and sour cream on the side.
The "Food Fighters" - moniker given by the guy with the most corny/cheesy phrases (and I didn't even know that until now! And we have known each other for over 10 years now, but a check with other mutual friends showed that they knew about it :p)

Someone told us about the $1 burger which was only available on wings night, so we just had to try it too. Blurry pic, but it was really puny.
See how small the burgers were. Just a patty between sliced buns
$1 burger naked - sachets of ketchup, relish and mustard were given to jazz up the taste
These got people curious and talking. You mix it with water to get the most out of it. Anti-oxidents with blueberry flavor.
It was sweet, but with artificial sweeteners which I didn't really like. My friends are health junkies. They may eat a lot but they exercise daily or at least 5-6x a week. Gym, sports and health nuts.

Location:

Rhino's Pub & Grill

541 Clarke Road, Coquitlam

Tel: 1-604-937-3488

Pho Hong in Canada

I am back-blogging now. Things got so busy that I forgot what I have posted and not posted at all. Anyway, we went to Pho Hong along Kingsway in Burnaby for dinner. My last dinner with the friends I have been hanging out at least once every week when I was in Vancouver. I had my usual order of a bowl of pho (beef balls and rare beef slices with thin kway teow in beef soup) plus a side of spring roll. This just hit the spot. I love pho and its easy availability in Vancouver. Pho Hong is not too bad, but I still prefer Pho 99 at North Road. We went there cos I was at Metrotown earlier and Pho Hong was nearby.
The pho eaters :p There is usually not much ambience in the regular Vietnamese or Chinese restaurants, especially for budget food. But this is one of the nicer ones around. I miss the iced Vietnamese coffee too.

Why is it so hard to find good Vietnamese food or rather pho as I am used to in Singapore? Orange Lantern is still the closest to what I like over here.

Seeing the Doc

I went to see the doctor today and spent around 1 hour 45 mins at the clinic. And no, this is not even the Polyclinic. I was 9th in line and yet it took so long :( I realized that there were lots of domestic workers having their medical check up done. So I guess it is better to see the doc on regular days if possible?

Just found out the clinic will be closed every Tues, Thurs and Fri nights now. It is getting so hard to see the doctor.

Besides waiting that long at the clinic, the cost has also gone up? I paid $91 for my pills. 6 different types. I know the migraine pills were the most expensive at $9/pill and I had 6 of that. But otherwise, it is $37, which is kinda the usual? Unfortunately I cannot claim the medical bill, no benefits at the moment :(

So what did I get? Apparently I am still having a slight fever, and there I thought I was kinda ok and only left with the tail end of the flu. So I need the following:
- 2 types of painkillers for the migraine (Naramig is the expensive pill but it really works; I am allergic to most painkillers so not many choices for me)
- lozenges (I prefer Throatsil but this doc only prescribed MAC)
- Korzen: serratiopeptidase (this works marvels for the first feeling of sore throat - it really kills the bacteria or something)
- Panamol (regular panadol stuff for body aches, pains, fever)
- Fendedrin (for runny/stuffed nose; I prefer the yellow pills though)

Haha, it seemed like I already know what to prescribe for myself :p I know which pills really work for me and which are just alright. And yes, for a period of my life, I used to see the doctor almost every month for the common cold/flu. So I get to recognize some pills after a while.

Stress = easy to get sick

So for this Good Friday long weekend, I have to stay home to rest more and sleep more. Bummer :(

IHOP @ Lougheed Mall, Canada

There are still so many pictures I want to blog about from last year in Canada. Anyway, on my kinda last day in Vancouver, I had brunch with P and A and baby. How fitting? I had lunch with P there when I was back in Vancouver from Toronto and he heard all about my stories, and now back to IHOP where we talked about my options.

I rarely get to eat at IHOP so twice in 3 months was quite a treat. I mean, in the years I spent in Canada/USA, I think I can count on 1 hand how many times I went into IHOP or Denny's.
I love how the sauces are available on the table for you to pour over your pancakes. I didn't know or realize it was free flow of coffee, so that was pretty nice.
With flash to show the colors: Boysenberry, Strawberry, Blueberry and Maple sauces. Yummy! And probably bad for health too :p
I usually had the omelet but this time I wanted to try something different. Less breakfasty. So I had the country fried chicken which was breaded and fried and smothered with gravy. It came with a side of hash browns and 3 eggs done any style (I chose omelet) and of course the pancakes. I didn't really like the chicken. Lol. Next time I will stick with omelet and pancakes even though I could never finish the entire thing. It was so huge!

Egg Salad Sandwich

Something simple to soothe the throat. I decided to make an egg salad sandwich as the multi-grain bread is gonna expire soon.

It was tempting to pile on more things to fatten up the sandwich but I decided to just go with egg salad. So no cheese or ham in them :p

Ingredients
2 eggs, hard boiled
1 tsp mayonnaise
2 slices brown bread, toasted
1/2 stalk celery, chopped
onion, chopped
pepper, to taste

Method
1. Boil the eggs for 2 mins. Cool and shell.
2. Mix the eggs with onions, celery and mayonnaise.
3. Add fresh ground pepper to taste.
4. Spread on toasted bread.

I don't usually use salt in my cooking as I prefer pepper to enhance the taste of food rather than salt. Since I didn't pile on the egg salad into the sandwich, there was leftover which I placed next to the sandwich. Less carbs :p One of the yolks was a tiny bit runny, hence the watery texture.

I don't really like those really hard boiled eggs where the yolks tend to be very dry. So my eggs were not too hard but just right for me. I usually bring the water in saucepan to a boil then do I drop in the eggs to cook. I would turn off the fire and let the eggs cooked in the still boiling water for about 2-5 mins.

So Ill

I have never been so sick in my life. Well, maybe there had been occasions but not a frequent occurence.

So I woke up on Wednesday with a sore throat. Uh-0h. Since then I have been drowning myself with water and taking honey and drinking honeyed water. It didn't seem to work. By the end of Wednesday, I was feeling achy and chills and headache.

Got home, gargled with salt water and went straight to bed after a quick shower. That was so early. I slept from 9pm till 720am and felt better. At least the achy body and shivering were gone but the throat was still a bit sore.

Continued with the salt water gargle and more water drinking. The headache came back in the evening. It was so bad that I felt nausea. Bad migraine. And last night was horrible. I went to bed around 9pm again and woke at 2ish am. I could not sleep due to the migraine and nausea. I took the anti-nausea pill from previous doctor visits but I didn't have the super strong pills for migraine. Regular panadol which I took, didn't work either.

Threw up and gave up on trying to laying in bed. So I actually got up to sort out the business cards so that I can find my doctor's card. In the end, I went back to bed again at around 5am and slept fitfully till 9am.

I found out the clinic will be closed today since it is Good Friday. Darn it! I guess I will have to go tomorrow to get the migraine pills for standby against future attacks. I just hope the headache will not come back tonight again. It seemed to only get worse in the evening. The throat is still a bit red, not totally well yet.

I just hate being ill. This totally caught me by surprise since I was alright the days before.

Bottega Veneta New Pyramid and Sloane

I saw someone carrying a BV bag the other day at Isetan Scotts supermarket and was enthralled by it :p It was of a greyish or metallic hue, unlike others I have seen before either online or in shop. I thought it was a pretty good size, slightly bigger than the Veneta and had a more squarish base and it came with a zipper top too.

So there began my search for the bag. I narrowed it down to a Pyramid bag.

So then I went down to DFS and asked to see the Pyramid bag. To my disappointment, it was with a flap top magnetic closure. So I thought my research must be wrong then, and thought what I saw was the Sloane. I didn't care for the flap top magnetic closure as it was too cumbersome to get stuff out and I do prefer the zipped top though not in Veneta.

Until I was surfing again and discovered the SA from DFS has actually shown me the wrong bag. The Sloane comes with the flap top with magnetic closure while the New Pyramid comes with a zipped top. So yes, I am back to lemming for the 2 BV bags - Campana and New Pyramid.

BV New Pyramid Bag

Color: Green
• Signature basketwoven leather with brasstone hardware
• Seamless design
• Zip top closure
• 15'' shoulder strap with 5'' drop; fits snug on shoulder
• Suede lining with zip and cell phone pockets
• Measures 13'' at widest x 9'' tall at center x 5'' deep; 2 lbs.
• All measurements are approximate
• Leather; Italy; style #2129279

I do like this color. I believe it is Regent though I may be wrong. I think I would like a New Pyramid bag in this color though you can't go wrong with Ebano too. Then again, I have decided Ebano shall be the color for the Campana :p

BV Sloane Bag

Color: Olive
• Soft basketwoven leather
• Seamless design
• Fold top with magnetic closure
• 8'' shoulder strap with 7'' drop
• Khaki suede lining with zip pocket
• 14¼'' at widest x 8¾'' tall at center x 5½'' deep
• 3 lbs.
• Leather; Italy; style #2122404

Pictures and Product Information from Bluefly.com

Oreo Chocolate Pie (Strawberry)

I always love going to the supermarket at Isetan Scotts for all things Japanese. There are food fairs highlighting different parts of Japan, so you get to try the different specialties. My favorite is the strawberry fair when there will be tons of products, especially snack food, from Japan with strawberry flavor. I saw this Oreo Chocolate Pie thing with strawberry filling and was intrigued. There was another box with coffee filling but that didn't really appeal to me.
Soft crumbly chocolate cookie sandwiching a marshmallow-like strawberry filling and coated with chocolate. I must admit I didn't really like the marshmallow filling. Too gooey spongy for my liking. But the chocolate cookies were very nice.

Cedele Dessert Sampler

Cedele at Wheelock Place has a dessert sampler which I thought is a very smart addition to its menu. Sometimes you just want to try a bit of everything and do not really want to finish the entire slice of cake or tart.

I met Tanny for lunch the other day and we decided to share the dessert sampler plate. You get to select 4 small (quite a decent size actually) sweets for just $13.80 (I think). So that was my lunch, some cakes and a pot of mint tea :p

We decided on a strawberry tart, chocolate cookie tiramisu, raspberry kirsch and what we thought was a chocolate banana cake. It turned out to be chocolate orange cheesecake.

The strawberry tart was gorgeous. Plump, juicy, huge strawberries on custard and chocolate crust shell. I really liked that.

The raspberry kirsch was a bit heavy for me. It tasted like fruitcake, at least the texture was similar.

The chocolate cookie tiramisu had a very strong alcohol taste. There were crumbs of cookies in the middle of the creamy light texture. Pretty nice too.
We got this as we really wanted a chocolatey cake and the cheesecake didn't cut it. The manager was nice enough to give us the Belgian chocolate marquise due to the mistake made by the staff. The staff recommended the chocolate banana cake which was actually a cheesecake. The chocolate marquise was oh so good. Perfect for the chocolate fix. Not too sweet and not too bitter either. Really just nice. It was filled with raisins, nuts and cherries soaked in rum.
The chocolate orange cheesecake. I took one bite and thought it tasted like cheesecake :p I was not sure then. It was actually not bad, but we just were not in the mood for cheesecake which could be a bit heavy after a while.

I love desserts :)

Bacon Butties

I was craving for something sinful and decided to make bacon butties. I have not made this in a few years now? Think the last time I had it was probably in 2005 or 2006. I so rarely cook when I am working, as I just don't have the time.

So taking the chance that I am home today, I decided to make it for my dinner? It was actually a late lunch or early dinner at around 5pm.

No pictures as I was famished and ready to dig in once cooked :p

A very simple sandwich to assemble.

Ingredients:
4 bacon rashers (I like streaky bacon for the sizzle and fat content)
1 egg
1 slice cheddar cheese (any type is fine)
2 slices of bread, toasted
butter
dijon mustard
cherry tomatoes

Method:
1. Fry the bacon in non-stick pan (I use those grill type of pan, so the fat from the bacon can drip beneath the meat).
2. Toast the bread while bacon is cooking.
3. Place the bacon on paper towels to soak up the oil/fat when done to desired state of crispiness.
4. Crack open egg over the bacon fat and fry it over-easy or anyway you like it.
5. Spread dijon mustard on 1 slice of bread and place cheese on it. Spread the other slice with butter.
6. Place the bacon on the bread, top with the fried egg, douse it sauce (chili, ketchup or HP) and cover with the other slice of bread. The heat from the bacon will actually melt the cheese a little.
7. Serve with cherry tomatoes on the side.

Note: If using regular tomatoes, you can slice and grill the tomatoes and place within the sandwich too.

Shoes Again!

I am still kinda searching for shoes to wear for work. The one I bought from C&K the other day, it gave me blisters after one outing. Lucky the blisters didn't burst and they went down on their own after a few days. The second time I wore it, it was not too bad. I have yet to wear the black peep-toes from U.R.S. and Co. It still feels very hard, so I will probably wait for a while.

Then we saw this red pair of peep-toes at FEP. I saw it and thought it was quite usual and didn't really want to try, plus I was somehow drawn to all the navy shoes. Celest tried it on first and it looked really good on her. Then Agnes, Davis and I also tried. It was really comfy, the material was soft and not cutting at all. The height was not too high. So we asked for our sizes. Turned out Agnes, Davis and I were like 1/2 size different from each other. But since most places do not have 1/2 size, Davis and I were kinda wearing the same size :p

Lucky the shop had 2 pairs of the same size for us. So yes, all 4 of us bought the same red pair of peep-toes shoes. I feel like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz with her ruby red shoes. Now we just need to coordinate to wear our red shoes out one day!

I finally found a pair of sensible (read=boring) pumps at Isetan. My size was not available in black, so I bought the grey. It was really comfortable with real leather from Easy Spirit (known for sensible comfortable shoes). The height was perfect and the heels were not too thin or wobbly and too chunky. I bought these at 50% off, so it was not too bad. I didn't wait for the IPS since reservations were not allowed and there was only 1 pair left.

This is the first time I saw 1/2 size for shoes. My actual size is 6.5 wide and this is exactly it. So yeah, that is why I have been buying shoes at size 7 or 37 since 6 would be too tight. And I rather have shoes a bit looser, also another reason why I always wear sandals or open-toed. The bigger size doesn't matter much unlike actual shoes which wrap the entire feet. You will need a perfect fit for that.

Givenchy Fragrance - Jardin D'Interdit Dancing with Butterflies

While I didn't buy the fragrance from Donna Karen at the EL Sale, I did buy one from DFS. I shared the duo set with Celest, so it was cheaper ;) In addition, with any fragrance purchased, you get a complimentary gift set - pouch, miniature of Very Irresistable and some samples.

Apparently Givenchy Jardin D'Interdit Dancing with Butterflies, released in Summer/Fall 2007, is limited edition and exclusive to DFS and Japan. So I can't find much information on it. I realized DFS has lots of exclusive stuff, particularly for fragrances. So far my 2 Givenchy perfumes were always bought from DFS and not really available in the stores.

I love the blue bottle with the raspberry spray top. The other version, Givenchy Jardin D'Interdit is also very pretty with a pink frosted bottle with a lime green spray top. The colors were similar to Absolutely Givenchy but in reverse. Oh, I just realized the actual bottle did not have the fragrance notes on it. The display set had that. Darn. Anyway, the Jardin D'Interdit Dancing with Butterflies is a fruity floral fragrance - my kind of perfume :)

EL Private Sale Again!

The EL Private Sale came early this year, catching many by surprise. Again, I was lucky to be given tickets through angels and so I was able to enter the "hallowed" hall. There were less brands participating now unlike previous years. No Stila (gone since 2007 when EL sold it) and no Bobbi Brown (not much overstock so not involved in the sale) means there were only MAC for makeup. Estee Lauder and Clinique not counted as their makeup never really attracted me, plus I am allergic to Clinique products :p That meant my target was more on Origins products and possibly MAC though I am kinda weaning off cosmetics now.

My very modest loot which amazed everyone as it seemed like everyone still remembered my very first buy way back in 2005 when I came out with bagfuls of stuff. I only bought 6 items and I still busted my budget of $100. I only wanted the MAC glitter eyeliner in Peacocky as mine was dried up and lucky it was available at the sale. I also bought the eyeshadow in Juxt (refill) which I had been waiting for.

The other 4 items were from Origins: Ginger tealights and big candle. Ginger body wash set with shower gel, lotion and scrub and a body wash sampler including ginger, balinese and shedonism. Shedonism is new to me as I have stopped buying from Origins for some time now.

This was definitely the least I bought. I didn't really buy much from MAC also because those I wanted I had already bought at retail prices when they were launched. This year was also the shortest time we spent in the hall and that meant less time to browse more and pick up more stuff. I initially wanted the DKNY fragrances but decided to release, same for other glitter eyeliners. I didn't see the MAC Barbie pouch, so I miss out on that. Then again, I don't really need it and I am trying to de-clutter and use up all my existing products :p

There were actually better products from the other brands which I thought of helping my friends/relatives to buy. Unfortunately I lost their numbers when my phone was gone, so I couldn't contact them at all. There were actually Red Delicious and Delicious fragrances from DKNY which my friend wanted previously. And finally there were cityblock sunblock from Clinique which were what they wanted too. There were also Idealist from Estee Lauder which I didn't think were available in the last few years.

My loot from my very first EL Sale in 2005. I went crazy and bought those stuff. I am finally finishing up the Origins stuff. I didn't bear to use them earlier cos they were discontinued products. Some were given away as gifts already. The 3 brush sets from Stila and MAC. I am currently using one of the sets, the other is still in its original packaging. See my other loots in 2006 and 2007. I have definitely toned down so much now ;)

Penang Hawkers Food @ York Hotel

The Penang Hawker Food is back in Singapore at the York Hotel. I have always seen the banner hanging outside Goodwood Park Hotel throughout the years but I have never been that keen to want to try. It is like, I would like to try, but it is such a hassle. However, I am not sure why but I have been craving for Penang food recently and have been waiting for the next Penang Hawker Food fair or buffet.

Googling for information on Penang food revealed that the buffet at York Hotel usually coincides with the school holidays. Other choices would be the buffet at Copthorne King's Hotel or the restaurant (Penang Place) all the way inside International Business Park which are too far and inconvenient for me.

I was delighted when I read from the papers that the Penang Hawkers Food buffet is back at York Hotel from 7 to 23 March 2008. So we went there for lunch today. I was a bit disappointed by the spread as there were only 10 items and beverages were not included (tea, coffee and others available at promotional rate of $3.50++) in the price ($23.80++). I had expected more since the press release said there would be more after naming some dishes. Also, I was probably expecting the type of spread at Penang Place or the Copthorne King.

Char Kway Teow - not too bad, a bit salty. The prawns were tiny and the cockles not so fresh.
Penang Laksa - I like this. Tangy with a pretty strong prawn paste taste.
Penang Prawn Noodle - I think I like the lard more than anything. Soup was alright, the lard made it tasty. The prawns were hard and small.
Lor Bak - I don't see any meat at all, so I am not sure why it is called Lor Bak. It seemed to be like ngoh hiang type of food.

Kang Kong Squid - I am never a big fan of this dish though I like the crushed peanuts and kang kong
Oyster omelette - Not too bad but the chili is so wrong. I only like the egg with coriander and green onions. The oysters were not fresh and were hard, seemed to be frozen or from the can.
Rojak - it is fruit rojak, not too bad, quite refreshing.
Kway Teow Soup - It looked boring but it was actually tasty. I liked it. Reminded me of the kway teow soup I had in Taiping near Penang.Peanut Pancake - my favorite dish. It was very thin and crispy and there was butter together with the crushed peanuts and sugar filling

We shared the pancakes and had second helpings too.

Chendol - Light coconut taste, not too jelak
Ice Ball - so rare to see this now. Pretty, isn't it?
Ice Kacang - Lovely rose syrup over the ice. I have not had this in so many years now. Never a big fan so I didn't finish it.

Overall, the food was ok. Some nice dishes and some could definitely be better. I would say I like the peanut pancake, penang laksa and kway teow soup the most. The oyster omelette and char kway teow would be next, followed by prawn mee. The rest were not that memorable. I don't think I will be going there again for subsequent Penang food. Will try Penang Place next as it looked so much better.

Botanic Gardens & Halia Restaurant

I was bored and went to Botanic Garden, and that was also when I lost my phone :( The shots before my phone was lost. Sigh. Memories. I really dislike losing things.
The clock at the visitor center. This time I managed to take the times of both Vancouver and London. Special places in my heart at moment ;)

An oasis in the city garden. A man-made waterfall amidst the greenery.

Close up of the waterfall. Pretty, isn't it?
You can actually walk through behind the waterfall in a cave-life place. That day, there was a model doing photoshoot.
Another view from the "cave"
It started to drizzle. See the spots, there was actually a tortoise in the water, but my camera couldn't capture it clearly.
I love this fan like leaf. Not sure what it is but it sure can shelter lots of insects and animals from the rain or sun.

I went to Halia Restaurant to escape from the drizzle/rain. In the end, it didn't really rain when I was inside Halia. But it started pouring once I left Halia and that was when I lost my phone. Sigh. Now I am only left with "if onlys".

I ordered an iced halia infused tea or something like that. It was an acquired taste, a bit spicy for tea.
I also ordered a banana crepe with chocolate cream sauce (in the ramekin) and nuts.
This was good. Not too heavy and not too sweet. Perfect for dessert or as a snack.
I decided to sit outside on the patio this time. It was pretty nice, away from the bustle of city-life. Unfortunately I was seated next to a group with children. They were pretty loud, thus destroying the tranquility of the place.
View of the trees from my table. I still like Halia for quiet meals or when I want to be one with nature :p