Obligatory 2010 Post

It's that time of year again. And thank god, it couldn't have come any sooner!

I for one am looking forward to saying farewell for 2010, possibly the worst year of my life (and I've had a lot of bad years). Not that I think the Earth's position in relation to the sun has anything to do with luck this year, or next.

What did you learn this year?

I learned a lot, though I think I may be better off having never learned these lessons, my faith in the human race was slim as it was. So better not to have faith right?

Right. Lesson learned.

Luck doesn't make us happy. We make ourselves happy. And some people don't have that ability so are just not supposed to be happy.

Celebrating the new year is just another excuse to party. I'm down! The 1st of January isn't different from any other day, the sun still rises, waterfalls flow, birds poo on your car. We'll just be a little bit poorer and a little bit unhealthier than 24 hours earlier.

Here's to buying another calendar! May it be stained with less tears than the last one.

Melaka Breakfast Pitstop ft. Chicken Rice Balls & Cendol!

I've been to quite a few of Malaysia's 'popular' locations around the country, Langkawi, Penang, Kota Kinabalu, Melaka, but I've never been to Johor.

I don't really know what's even down there, but when I found out I could road trip down there for the day I was excited! Well, I was just following my friend there for business, so it was pretty un-exciting. I didn't even go to Johor Baru, just Pasir Gudang, where I sat in the car for half an hour. So yea, it was pretty boring, but I felt kind of excited knowing that I was so close, yet so far from Singapore (where I've also never been).

We did get to stop at Melaka for breakfast though! I last went to Melaka a year and a half ago, and it was hot and boring. This time we'd just stop for the good stuff though, Melaka's famous chicken rice balls and cendol!

It was a good thing we left KL early, when we arrived at Kedai Kopi Chung Wah for their famous chicken rice balls, we got a table straight away! I love, love, love normal KL chicken rice, and admittedly Melaka chicken rice balls don't have as much flavor, and I don't really like steamed chicken, but it's a must eat for visitors. I love chicken rice chili, but I didn't want my breath to smell like garlic all day so I didn't eat it, LOL.

20 minutes after we'd left Kedai Kopi Chung Wah we walked back past it, woa, check out the line! Good thing we got there when we did! They actually have to close the gate to keep people from crowding the restaurant.

Next we went to eat one of my favorite foods; Cendol! This place was also packed, Jonker88, a few minutes walk down Jonker St. The cendol here is awesome, the gula melaka really makes it! They also have a delicious durian cendol, but just like the chili, it was still early and I didn't want to be reminded of durian-breath all day.

 Click to view menu

I was only in Melaka for less than an hour, and that was enough. The next 10 hours sitting in the car were obviously uneventful and boring. However, on the way back we made a super discovery! 

Stopping for KFC dinner at 'the bridge' type restaurant near Melaka at Ayer Keroh, we found an Al-Ikhsan sports attire outlet. They had a huge range of all those branded sports stuff, heaps cheaper and with a bigger range of sizes than anything I've seen in KL! The surprise find made the long, boring roadtrip worth it!

Marciano's Grill Southwestern Food @ Jalan Ampang

Update

Note: This post is from 2010 and is now outdated. Some readers have recently reported bad dining experiences here, having been served low-quality, bad tasting food. Refer to the comments section below. It appears Marciano's haven't maintained their standards, please keep this in mind when choosing where to dine. Thanks to those readers who have shared their experiences, I encourage you all to do so!

Finally! Time for some good food reviews, YAY!

A few weeks ago I had dinner at Marciano's Grill that Thrills restaurant in Jalan Ampang (formerly known as Roadhouse Grill). Marciano's is an unsuspecting restaurant, located inside a bungalow along the traffic-jammy Jalan Ampang. The decor at first seems a bit dated and dusty, but now I get that the theme of the restaurant is those "American Southwestern steakhouse/grill" style.

My partner raved about Marciano's, I thought it couldnt possibly be that great? But he was SOOO looking forward to going back there. I was surprised to see the restaurant wasn't very full on the Friday night, and it put doubts in my mind, but I've long ago learned not to judge a restaurant by its decor.

What a refreshing surprise, the food was AMAZING. It's sad that I find it so hard to actually come across a "proper" restaurant in KL worthy of its claims and prices. It makes me want to eat exclusively at roadside, hawker and mamak places which I've found to be more consistently good (but my partner doesn't enjoy eating at 'crappy' places as much as I do).

Strangely, Marciano's is actually quite famous for its complementary bread rolls! Its a bread roll, how good could it possibly be? Wow, it was NICE. Soft... hot... little bit sweet, add some butter and you're in heaven. But don't fill up yet! The main meals are still to look foward too.

If I had to describe the food here in one two words, it would be FLAVOUR SENSATION!

We had a side of cheese fries, as i'd heard of them on American TV shows before. Yummmmm. Melted cheese on hot, potatoey chips.

For my main meal I ordered a safe bet, one of my all time favorites; Chicken Parmigiana. Now I've had some pretty good Parma's in my days, but this blew me away! I gotta say it's even better than my favorite Parma on Lygon St.
What made it so good? It was obvious a lot of effort had gone into perfecting this dish. There was the tomato-y sauce, the melted cheese, but I was surprised to find creamy 'white sauce' as well, which can be tricky to make and is neglected by many restaurants. There was just so much flavor in the dish, and all of them blended so well together, so it wasn't 'over done'.

My partner ordered the beef burger. I really like the burgers at Chilli's, so I expected it to be similar to that, but I couldn't believe it when he said it was better! I tried it myself, what made all the difference was that the meat patty was so tasty! Obviously it wasn't just plain old mince meat, but there were herbs and spices which really made the burger stand out against competitors.

 

I've been searching high and low for the receipt, which I purposely kept so I could tell you guys the prices. But its been a few weeks and I'm so angry at myself for losing it! The prices are similar to Chillis, but a bit cheaper. Many main dishes were between RM20-35, definitely prices I was happy to pay there.

Seriously, I was really surprised at how amazingly tasty the food there was. To top it all off, the customer service was impeccable. The floor staff seemed genuinely friendly and happy to help you, which is a lot more than I can say for most customer service in Malaysia (you know what I'm talking about). I don't know why it didn't seem very busy, maybe the location, or people just don't know about it.

Address:

279 Jalan Ampang

Kuala Lumpur

Carlos Mexican Canteena FOOD POISONING ALERT - Ruin My Weekend PART 2

Ruin My Weekend Part 2

Well obviously if you've read part 1, >HERE<, you'll know that I'd been proud of myself for standing up for my rights as a consumer and not accepting sub-standard food and service at U-Village, after having been poisoned by their cold food once before. On that day I made a rule for myself; don't accept cold food at restaurants. 
Well the next day, Sunday, I headed into Pavilion for lunch, excited to check out  Carlos Mexican Canteena in the outside restaurant/bar area. They serve Mexican style food, in a more 'classy' environment, frequented by tourists. Pavilion is said to have high standards for their restaurants at the mall, so most of them are more expensive but supposedly pretty good.

I'd intended to do a FoodBlogReview for this place, but it has turned out a little differently...

I walked inside and the waiter pointed to the side of the room we could sit on. I chose a table next to the window, as it was pretty dimly lit inside. I really HATE sitting in dark restaurants, it makes me feel like i'm in a dungeon, and I like to be able to see my food and friends. Dining in the dark really makes my mood feel uneasy and depressed. So when the waiter said I couldn't sit at that empty table, but had to sit 3 tables down instead, in the dark, my mood went flat. There was no one around anyway and the restaurant was only 20% full.

Whatever.

My main meal was beef quesadillas, which is lettuce, cheese and beef folded between tortilla flatbread and grilled. I purposely ordered the beef rather than chicken filling, as I know that chicken meat is more susceptible to contamination and spoilage. Yesterdays experience was still on my mind, even though I thought it wouldn't matter at a 'place like this' which is much more expensive and caters to a lot of international customers. 

I took a bite of the quesedillas, immediately what I had salvaged of my positive mood vanished. The meat inside was cold. The bread outside was hot, it was obvious to me they must have had a pile of old meat which has been sitting around, and just chucked that on the bread as they fried it.

The offending food

Flashbacks to the day before filled my mind. I decided not to say anything, I didn't want my friends to think I was fussy and unreasonable for sending back food two days in a row. I even thought I was being fussy and unreasonable, told myself to shut up and eat it.

It wasn't very enjoyable, the meat was tough as well as cold, but the flavor of the foods together were still nice. I finished it, paid the bill, and the rest was history.

Or so I thought...

6am the next morning I'm wondering why I've woken up and can't get back to sleep. Then slowly I start to feel sick. I recognize the familiar feeling.

Yep, the next few hours many visits to the bathroom confirmed that I had food poisoning. I couldnt believe it, after that huge episode on Saturday, I never expected to actually get sick from Sunday's food (I haven't had food poisoning for over a year now).

As I rolled around feeling crap I cursed Carlos Mexican Canteena in my mind, thinking of all the horrible thing's i'd like to do to them! But I can't do anything. Except warn you guys not to eat there!!!
I have no doubt they cater to a lot of tourists who they think will pay high prices for any kind of food 'coz they're stupid'. F* You. I'm not a tourist and I have a voice in this country.

Don't go to Carlos. They clearly don't care enough about their customers to serve a standard of food worthy of their prices (or humans). If I wanted to eat old, cold meat I would have picked it out of the rubbish bin myself.

So yes, I broke my own rule I'd made only one day earlier of "Don't accept cold food at restaurants", because I thought I was being unreasonable and fussy. I don't like writing bad restaurant reviews as I feel guilty, but as a Food Blogger it is my responsibility to be honest and give people information.

Don't eat at Carlos Mexican Canteena, you might get food poisoning!

Ruin My Weekend PART 1 - U-Village Restaurant Sungei Wang

After last weekend, I've come up with a new rule for myself: Never accept cold restaurant food.
I'm not an assertive person, I never stand up for myself and my rights because i'm shy and passive, but on Saturday I finally did. Then on Sunday I failed (but that's part 2)...

Saturday afternoon I went for lunch at U-Village in Sungei Wang. I used to love this place. I've been going there for years and I always order the same thing; deep fried garlic pork. I'd go so far as to say it was my number 1 or 2 favorite (proper) restaurant in Malaysia. I am not one to publicly slander anything without giving it lots of chances AND the benefit of the doubt. This was hard for me to experience AND write because I used to love this place so much.

That was untill 2 years ago they gave me food poisoning  when my usual meal was served cold, and I accepted it because i'm passive. I blogged about this a few months ago >HERE - Heartbreak Story: U-Village @ Sungei Wang<. After they poisoned me I didnt return for a year, until I heard they had changed chefs and things were good again. So I took a chance and went back, all was well, it was hot and delicious.

So Saturday afternoon, nursing my Xmas hangover and in dire need of food, I was excited to head back to U-Village having not been there since returning to Malaysia. Ordered my usual, and waited.
And waited.
My friends food came, they waited for me, until I told them they'd better eat theirs coz its getting cold. By the time they'd finished I was still waiting. I'm usually pretty patient but I was getting annoyed; other people had come into the restaurant after us, eaten and left already. So finally I inquired about my food, and it was brought out soon after. I consoled myself with the thought delusion at least I know it'll be hot and freshly cooked since it took ages.

I looked down at the steam pouring off the rice, and took one bite of the pork. It was cold. This is the part where if I was a cartoon my eyeballs would start turning red in anger. I tried some meat from the other side of the pile. Cold.  I lost it, I was SOOOO mad.

I'd been waiting for ages for my 'freshly cooked' cold food. This exact dish, last time I ate it cold, gave me FOOD POISONING. It was just UNACCEPTABLE.

No way was I going to pay for a dining experience where i had to wait forever only to be served COLD-TOXIC-FOOD. And they wouldn't let me cancel the order. AS IF.

I was so ready to jump out of my seat and start yelling so the whole restaurant could hear how they expected me to wait an hour to eat the same thing that last time gave me food poisoning. Luckily after a bit of arguing they agreed to cancel it, we paid for my friends food, which was long ago finished, and left.

I felt proud for actually standing up for myself; I've never before returned cold food that was supposed to be served hot, and every single time I've gotten food poisoning it was after these occasions. On each of those occasions I actually thought I don't really want to eat this, I hope I don't get sick.

I am extremely dissapointed that this happened, and super angry. I can't express how much I used to love and support this restaurant. I am mostly dissapointed that I can never return there, on principle. I really love char chan teng food, and Malaysia doesnt have much good ones (compared to Melbourne), so I'm really unhappy that this has happened. Hence why i'm venting it with you.

I don't expect you guys to never go back there based on what I've said, I know how amazing the food is when served correctly. But please take my warning, DONT accept the food if its not HOT when they bring it out to you. Hours of hugging the toilet taught me this.

The saddest part is, the story doesn't end there... But I'll have to share that with you later in Part 2.

A Magical Evening at Zouk

Yay, I'm done with my backdated Melbourne updates, now I can finally start on my Malaysia news (news might be an exaggeration...). I've been here two weeks already, but our internet has been seriously unreliable the whole time hence my disappearance.

So I guess I'll start with the more interesting stuff first, last weekend's fun and foolery during my re-debut at Phuture (or 'home' as Alex has more accurately dubbed it).

I expected it to be a night just like any other, but oh how I was surprised at what a good time I had. Alvin brought along some new friends who I had so much fun with, super glad they came and I got to meet them, and I met heaps of other cool people! However the highlight for me, and much to my delight, was meeting Zouk's resident magician; Zlwin!

Look what I'm holding!!!

Let's backtrack a second. A few years ago I had the pleasure of watching a magic show at one of CCC's parties. My attention was captivated as I saw the magician levitate a ball of paper in thin air, meters in front of me. I watched on, enthralled, as he bent and twisted a metal fork being held in the hands of an old Dato from the audience. Oh how I wished I could have kept that fork as a souvenir, to me it is a symbol of the mysterious and unexplained in our world, which I am genuinely fascinated by.

So on Saturday night upon returning to our table, I was introduced to Alvin's friend, and Zouk's own resident magician, Zlwin. Whatta you know, he sure knew how to get my attention! When I saw him take out a fork and begin twisting and bending it, whilst barely even touching it, I was fascinated and thrilled! Finally, after all these years, I get to see the magic again, up close and personal.

I kid you not, children, I inspected the fork myself and I don't know how he did it. The best part? This time my dream came true, and I got to keep the twisted fork as a souvenir (I stashed it behind the couches at the club so I wouldn't loose it and no one would steal it LOL)!

I came to learn that Zlwin, well known across Malaysia and Singapore for his skills as a Slight of Hand Artist and Mentalist, is one busy man indeed! That very evening he had just flown back from Singapore, having performed at the illustrious Marina Bay Sands Hotel as their resident magician! Find out more about this talented man for yourself, over at http://www.zlwinmagic.com/.

That was obviously the big highlight of my night, I'll leave you guys with some pic's of the fun. Special thanks to my great friends who once again made the night awesome; Alex, Alvin and Wes, and all the awesome new people I met.

The usual suspects getting up to mischief

Had heaps of fun with these pretty gals!

National Rhododendron Gardens @ Olinda, Mt Dandenong, Victoria

The National Rhododendron Gardens offer 40 hectares of botanic gardens, managed and protected by Parks Victoria. Throughout the year a variety of coloured flowers bloom, most renowned are the rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias, cherry blossoms and daffodils. First established in 1960 by the Australian Rhododendron Society, the park is a nice place for picnics, scenic walks, weddings and all the usual things you do in parks and gardens.

You'll also find a lot of old people there, even my mum felt young amongst that crowd. So I suppose you're wondering what the heck I was doing there. When my mum asked me if I wanted to walk around a huge garden in the cold for a few hours with her, my grandma and some other old people, instinctively a strong, loud "BORING" shot out of my mouth. Then my brain flashed, what a great place to play around with my camera and practice taking photos! A great photographer I once met advised me that he became so good with practice, practice and practice. So practice I shall! 

So enthusiastic and excited I was, that not one thought to charge the camera battery passed through my mind. S.M.A.R.T. Equipped with my 4% battery, and sans lens hood, I trolloped through the gardens, stingily taking photos at only the best spots as to preserve the battery. Despite my ill preparation, I was surprised at some of the great shots I got, although one doesn't have to do much when what's laid out in front of them is already a work of art.  

From the Parks Victoria website:

Facilities

• The garden has a gatehouse, gazebos, grassed picnic areas and toilet facilities for people with limited mobility.
• There is a gardens giftshop stocking a wide range of gifts including limited edition prints, gardening books and garden ornaments.
• Café Vireya will open 10am - 4pm from 1 September 2010. For café group bookings only phone (03) 9751 0443. For all other enquiries please contact Parks Victoria on 13 1963.
• A plant nursery operates selling a wide variety of plants including rhododendrons.
• There are picnic tables on the Cherry Tree Lawn.
• The Garden Explorer (people mover vehicle) will operate from 18 September to mid November 2010 offering a free 25 minute non-stop guided tour. Group bookings are recommended as this is a popular service. 

How to Get There
 
The National Rhododendron Gardens are open 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM daily. The Gardens in The Georgian Road, Olinda, are just an hour's drive from the heart of Melbourne (Melway ref: 66 K6). Visitors can travel by train to Croydon Station and the Route 688 bus from Croydon to Olinda or the train to Belgrave and the Route 694 bus to Olinda. (check www.metlinkmelbourne.com.au for details), and the Gardens are just a short stroll from the centre of this quaint hills town.


Occasionally the gardens may be closed due to dangerous weather conditions, high fire risk or for major works. If your window of opportunity to visit is limited please call 13 1963 on the day of your planned visit to confirm it is open.

For more information see the Parks Victoria website >HERE<. 

Without further ado, I shall let the pictures tell the rest of the story. Clicky to enlarge, they're pretty!

 

New Kitten Penny from Pets Haven Animal Shelter

Urgent Update: Pets Haven Animal Shelter need your help!!! On December 13th the Macedon Council (Victoria) raided Pets Haven Animal Shelter and are trying to shut them down on dodgy technicalities! You can help by signing their online petition >HERE<, all you need to do is add your name and suburb. These guys saved Penny's life, please help them out and hopefully the issue will be quickly resolved.

***

 I'd like to introduce you to our new girl Penny, adopted from Pets Haven Animal Shelter.

Penny came to us from a not-so-happy background. She'd been kept in a cage her whole life with other Russian Blue's which had been over bred and then neglected. Eventually the place was raided by the RSPCA and some of the more fortunate cats were taken in by animal shelters such as Pets Haven to hopefully be re-homed.

I grew up with our beautiful Russian Blue, Katie. She was amazing, the most unbelievably loving and good personality you could imagine in a cat. Sadly, she passed away last year at the ripe old age of 15. After sharing our lives with such an amazing cat, we decided to look out for another Russian Blue. My mum wanted to find a homeless one in need of a new family. After months of searching, by chance my mum came across the Pets Haven Animal Shelter website, which had listed for adoption a few young Russian Blue cats. We quickly inquired and were told about Penny, a shy girl who's health was being nurtured in a foster care.

Katie

My mum and sister when to see her in the foster home, she was there with another Russian Blue and they were very skinny and under nourished. When they brought Penny home she was super shy and scared of people. She'd never interacted with humans before, having spent her whole life caged up with other cats. She immediately loved Tydus, our other cat, but he is a snob so wasn't interested in being friends with her. I was in Malaysia at the time, so didn't get to meet her until October, but I heard she would run away from people and wouldn't let anyone pat her for a few months. By the time I came home and met her she was sociable, hyperactive and always playing like any other kitten.

Now she is almost fully grown, but certainly in the kitten stage. She absolutely loves playing with toys and running around... very noisily! None of our other cats were very interested in cat toys, but Penny LOVES them, and plays with them until they break. She really loves those wire twisty-ties that bind new electronics cables together, we've seen her stealing them from the kitchen to play with. She also loves chasing flies, and she actually manages to cath them, then eats them!!!

 

 

 She caught the fly and is eating it!!!

While she can be kind of annoying because she is just Non-stop full of energy, she's brought fresh happiness to our family. Were also glad we could help save the life of a cat in need, with thanks to Pets Haven for rescuing her and making it possible.

Pets Haven Animal Shelter is a Victorian based facility which rescues and re-homes orphaned cats, kittens, dogs and puppies who would otherwise have no future. From the Facebook Page;

"Pets Haven Pro Life Animal Shelter is a facility that re-homes orphan cats, kittens and dogs and puppies who would otherwise have no future.

We do not euthanise animals for economic reasons. The only time an animal will be euthanised is in the case of aggressive temperament (with no hope for rehabilitation) or the animal is extremely unwell and the prognosis is not favourable. Pets Haven will not euthanise an animal because “it’s time is up”. Permanent foster care is the only option for animals whose 28 day time limit has been reached. This is how we are able to remain pro-life.

We take in surrended animals, rescue animals on death row as well as unwell animals and provide the required veterinary treatment and after care. The animals that come to us mistreated, malnourished, abused or neglected often require extensive medical treatment and we always provide what they need to recover. All animals in our care are vet checked, desexed, vaccinated, microchipped, wormed and scanned for ringworm."

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pets-Haven-Animal-Shelter/93027212747 

We all know there are way too many poor homeless animals out there who deserve a loving home. If you, or anyone you know, could possibly provide a new loving family for one of these brave cats or dogs, please, please, please enquire the Pets Haven Animal Shelter. You can view some of the sweet cats and dogs they have available for adoption to a loving home on their website, http://www.petshaven.com.au. I know it's sad to look at, but you could save the life of one of these cuties!

You can also help out in other ways to, they need donations of pet food or money, foster homes or volunteers to help them out. For more information please check out http://www.petshaven.com.au/ and Like the Facebook Page. At the very least please spread the word, your actions could help save the lives of these deserving creatures.

The Magnificent Mind of Brian Cox and BBC Horizon

Hey guys, I just remembered! I’ve got something really exciting and interesting to share with you! 

I’m presuming that unfortunately most of my readers are completely uninterested in science at all, let alone the fascinating and mysterious world of quantum and astro physics. We’ll you are reading the blog of a science nerd, so it’s my responsibility to give you the opportunity help spread knowledge. 

I really enjoy watching documentaries, because they fuel two passions of mine at once; learning and being lazy. In particular I often search for documentaries on astronomy, quantum mechanics and the origin of the universe. For some reason this stuff has always been extremely fascinating to me, and I love adding information to the space-pokedex in my brain (yea, I really did just say that).

I’m no expert on any of these subjects, so I won’t attempt to convey the information I’ve learned in my years of… watching documentaries about them (I don’t want to contribute to the spread of misinformation, yea that's my excuse). However I can point you towards some really fantastic entertaining and educational videos I’ve enjoyed recently.

A few months ago I came across a series of documentaries hosted by particle physicist, Brian Cox. Wow, if there was ever a super hunk physicist, this is him. Erm… well maybe it’s just me who’s into brainiacs… just knowing that a person has in his brain sooooo much information about this amazing world we live in… I think I’m getting off track.

Brian Cox's initial BBC Horizon series was comprised of the episodes “The Six Billion Dollar Experiment” about the Large Hadron Collider, “What On Earth Is Wrong With Gravity” about gravity, “Do You Know What Time It Is?” about the nature of the fourth dimension, time, and “Can We Make A Star On Earth” about nuclear fusion. My blog video loading component isn't working at the moment, so you can find the links to each of the video's mentioned by clicking on their title.

These documentaries are great for people with even little background knowledge, Brian Cox’s manner of presenting the information is entertaining, interesting and clear so even beginners can grasp the ideas. Also a big thumbs up to BBC Horizon documentaries in general.

I especially liked, and would recommend you to first watch “What On Earth Is Wrong With Gravity” and “Do You Know What Time It Is?”.  After first watching the episode on gravity, I developed my mini-crush on Brian and went in search of more of his work. I am much delighted to discover he has also recently filmed another series, Wonders of the Solar System, and is working on a second, Universal.

I hope to post further on my intense interest in this field of science, I can’t even explain to you my excitement just thinking about the massive and mysterious wonders of the universe, and as we now theorize, beyond!

What's With All The AirAsia Hate?

Seriously, I think many of you know what I’m talking about one way or another. I'm an AirAsia fan, I've blogged about them before over >HERE<. However there seems to be a lot of AirAsia hating going on. Yea, I understand some of it, but in my experience a lot of it is also unfounded.

Firstly, I acknowledge that AirAsia domestic doesn't have a great track record; the flights are often delayed and many people have missed their flights because they weren't at the airport in time for the 45min/1hour check in cut off (not AirAsia's fault btw). I also understand that AirAsia take no responsibility when their delays make you late, and subsequently miss a connection or important event. It's your job to factor that in when you book your flights with the budget airline, since apparantly they are so well known for delays. I know this can be annoying, frustrating, and costly, but AirAsiaX (the service that operates between Australia and Malaysia) do not have such a bad record, yet people who have never even taken AirAsiaX bad mouth them.

A fair few, no, quite a lot of people seem pretty surprised when they hear I always choose to fly AirAsiaX when I come to malaysia, and that I actually like it. Their reaction is usually something like "really, you actually like it, I heard AirAsia suck", you can tell they're thinking "eww, why would you actually choose to fly AirAsia". They're even more appauled when I say that even if the price of MAS and AirAsia were the same I'd still choose AirAsia. Maybe it’s not that comfortable, but generally all flights are uncomfortable. I sure remember feeling bored and uncomfy flying MAS, it’s no spa experience for anyone. I'm not just talking out of my ass, I myself have flown AirAsia domestic and the service was worth what I paid for it. I've also flown AirAsiaX long haul a lovely total of seven times. Not once has my flight been delayed, and never was the standard of cleanliness and service on the flight less than MAS.

People seem surprised that I’m so enthusiastic when I talk about AirAsiaX, and that Id strongly recommend them to anyone flying between Australia and Malaysia. I've met a lot of people who have never flown AirAsiaX and say they never would based on AirAsia's bad reputation. I've also spoken to several other students who bitch  because their parents force them to fly AirAsiaX. Boohoo, you guys should be grateful your parents pay for your flights in the first place. If you can afford to fly MAS all the time, that’s great, go do that!

I am very fortunate that I have the opportunity to fly to Malaysia twice a year, and it's my own choice to do so. But not everyone's mummies and daddies pay for their flights; every time I come here I pay for it out of my own pocket. As a student who doesn’t work full time I'm really grateful that AirAsiaX makes it possible for me to come here at all. I used to fly MAS before AirAsiaX was launched, and have paid up to AUD1600 (~RM4800) for a return flight. Now the cost to me is nearly one third of that with AirAsiaX.

I often say that even if the price was the same with MAS and AirAsiaX (including baggage, entertainment and food), I’d still choose AirAsiaX. Here’s a list of reasons why, speaking from my own experience.

• The planes (A330) are newer, therefore I find the seats and toilets to be newer and cleaner.
• The cabin of the A330 is quieter during the flight.
• The cabin air of the A330 is less dry. It used to become quite painful in my nose to breath on the MAS flights after a few hours because it was so dry. I’d have to keep my head under the blanket to breath more comfortably, which looks stupid and is annoying to me.
• The food is heaps nicer, in fact some of it is seriously delicious (the Nasi Lemak), and there is a decent variety of choices.
• The new seats (which have replaced the original batch) do recline, and they are soft and comfy. MAS’s dirty fabric seats are kinda gross, I know that thousands and thousands of asses have sat and farted there before I did, why do you think they‘re so soft. Eww.
• Even though LCCT kinda sucks, I like that they fly there because I find I get through the airport a lot faster than KLIA and Melbourne Airport. I don’t go to the airport to shop anyway, so I don’t care that there is less stores.

I’ll give MAS a point though because their seats do seem less narrow which is a big factor to many people. Fortunately that doesn’t affect me.

I respect if you choose to fly MAS, they have also given me great service when I used to fly with them.

So guys, please stop with the AirAsia snobbery. I get the vibe that some people look down on me and think I’m retarded because I choose to fly with them and like it. I'm actually proud of that; I’ve had great experiences with my AirAsiaX flights so I’m enthusiastic to share the love with people I talk to. To those who have experienced delays and lost money because of AirAsia, I’m sorry to hear that and you guys do have the right to complain. But the rest of you who haven’t and still badmouth them anyway, grow up.

A Morning in Melbourne City

Warning: This post is pic-heavy. Sorry about the ugly tags on the photos, I formatted my comp before I came to Malaysia and don't have Photoshop to stamp and re-size my images nicely.

I gotta admit, Melbourne really is quite a beautiful city. I'm not just saying that because I'm from there, seriously! I suppose I used to take it for granted. As I lived in the CBD and saw it all day every day, the special glow wore off. Nowadays I rarely venture into the city, but when I do I now see it in all its glory.

Melbourne has a pretty unique and prominent Arts Culture. Wandering from Flinders St up to Bourke St you can see it everywhere; in the architecture, the personalities, the strong cafe presence. Unlike in Malaysia where alleys are places to smell some lovely sewers or get robbed, many of Melbourne's best cafes, restaurants and boutiques are tucked away in lane ways and alleys. You need to know about them to know about them (or you could just Google).

My advice to any visitor: don't be afraid to wander around off the beaten-track (in the CBD, not in the suburbs and definitely not in the forest!). You'll often randomly see a mass of business people lining up to grab a coffee from some hole in the wall shop. We Melbournians love a good coffee, and we'll venture low and high to find it (but often don't need to as fortunately there's so much around).

 
So without further ado, I present to you:

The Young Person's Guide to: 

A Morning in Melbourne

Bored of the usual tourist trail? Only got a few hours in Melbourne and don't wanna waste spend it looking at statues and political buildings with your mum? No worries, break away from the oldies and spend a few hours wandering around the city and enjoy it the way the locals do. 

Many Melbournians begin their day with a train ride into the city. Boring Charming old Camberwell station may be your first point of call, don't forget to validate your Metcard!

Feeling peckish? A typical Melbourne breakfast: Coffee. Aka a typical SneakyLily breakfast. Don't read too much into the newspaper headline, it was for illustrative purposes only. Try lining your stomach with a Big Breakfast, a foccacia, or a serve of hot potato wedges with sweet chilli sauce and sour cream (obviously these my favorite breakfast foods).

This morning's coffee is from a small cafe, The Quarter, on Degrave's Street. Degraves St is one of Melbourne's famous lane ways which is randomly packed with restaurants and cafes. If your a caffeine fan, just go wherever you see the most people having coffee. Degraves St runs from Flinders St to Flinders Lane, between Swanston St and Elizabeth St.

When your now full stomach has chased the morning-grumpies away, take a wander through the arcades running between Flinders-Collins-Bourke St. Don't rush your breakfast though, because shops don't open until 9am or later.

By the time you reach Bourke St you've probably realized that Melbourne has a thing for graffiti, both the vandalism and artistic type, sometimes combined. There are several proper art graffiti locations, approved by the council, and Union Lane is just one of them. Running between Little Collins and Bourke St, the dumpster housing alley way is completely splashed with colour and creativity. The little details often tell more than what initially meets the eye, as I noticed after reviewing my own photos later. I took heaps of pics for you guys, coz well... its just freakin' cool (click to enlarge).

Had enough art by now? Shopping time? Directly opposite Union Lane is the newly renovated Bourke St Myer (Australia's biggest department store chain), which I must admit looks freaking nice inside now, kinda like Pavilion but nicer and classier. Ok, so like the old David Jones haha. 

There's heaps of shops in this area, once your done with Myer keep walking towards the top of the city, to Melbourne Central for more shopping, chilling or... train catching. I know I'm hungry, it's now midday and I've got a train to catch soon. How about some lunch, I'm having chips and burgers at Lord Of The Fries.

I've told you before about LOTF, over >HERE<. Now there's one in Melbourne Central, in the main entrance laneway from Swanston St before La Trobe St (next to Boost Juice). Today i'm trying something new; chips with sweet chilli mayo, but if it's your first time I recommend you try my personal favorite; chips with gravy and cheese (Canadian sauce). All of the food at Lord Of The Fries is vegetarian, with most of it being modifiable to vegan. Seriously, the burgers are freaking awesome, I had no idea they were even vegetarian at first until I saw it on their website. 

Just in case you needed another graffiti hit

Canadian Gravy & Sweet Chilli Mayo - Don't say it looks like spew, just eat it dammit!

I've gotta go home now, and you're mum's probably wondering why you'd skip seeing the Queen Victoria Market to just bum around the city. Trust me, you made the right choice, you can buy cheap crap anywhere in the world, not just in the Vic Markets. I'm taking the train from Melbourne Central, which is a train station as well as a shopping center. Don't worry, if you already miss seeing the graffiti you'll surely see some more on the way home.

I Miss Sam

I wish I could celebrate my birthday with my best friend in Melbourne... even though my birthday is not even for a while, we've never gotten to be together on our birthdays ever, even though were bestest friends.

Every birthday I've ever had in Malaysia has sucked super balls, to the extent to being the worst birthdays I've ever had (with the exception of this year, which was equally horrible). In fact I hate my birthday, not because I'm growing up (which I like), but just because it's teamed with bad memories and feelings of guilt and worthlessness.

I know if I was with Sam I'd be happy no matter what, she lights up my life like no one else. Maybe next year on my bday we can plan a super msn-webcam day and have a virtual party. Maybe I should join Second Life and avatar-party with her!

I miss my best friend even though it's only been a week since I last saw her. 

Jayzjun Handmade Free Xmas Present GIVEAWAY

Note: This is not a paid or sponsored advertisement, I'm just sharing the love with you, my awesome friends!

Remember a few months ago I told you (>HERE<) about the SuperCute Handmade Doll store, Jayzjun Handmade. Now I know a lot of you, just like me, had a hard time taking your eyes away from the irrisistably cute dolls and teddys featured in the store. Yea, our rehab counselor's told us to just stay away, not much is stronger than cuteness addiction, but since it is Xmas season we can make an exception right? Just for the festive season Jayzjun Handmade has something extra special for us...

CHRISTMAS PRESENT GIVEAWAY TIME

~WOOOOOOOO~

Thats right, Jayzjun Handmade is giving away, FREE, a lovely Xmas present to five lucky, cute-stuff-addicts in Malaysia.  This is a really special opportunity, Jayzjun Handmade has been previously featured at the Pipit Wonderful Market @ the Annexe Gallery, Kuala Lumpur. 

By now you're all probably wondering, how can you get a piece of the action!?!?!?
It's simple!

1) "Like" the Jayzjun Handmade Giveaway Facebook Post >HERE<
2 ) Bloggers can "Follow" the Jayzjun Handmade blog, otherwise "Like" the Jayzjun Handmade Facebook Page
3) "Share" the Jayzjun Handmade Facebook or Blog pages with your friends
4) Send Jayzjun a special Xmas wish, the five most creative (eg. with pics) or sweet will be chosen

Remember, you can visit Jayzjun Handmade over at www.jayzjun.blogspot.com, and make sure you "Like" the JayzJun Handmade Facebook Page!  

I'll leave you guys with some piccies of the beautiful things on offer at Jayzjun Handmade.

P.S. Boys, these cute limited edition toys make great Xmas pressies for your special ladies >wink<