hiatus

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

I haven't been posting lately simply because I didn't feel like writing. Well, I've also been busy but that's just an excuse. So in the past two months or so, I have traveled to Rome, Prague and Amsterdam at different times. Also made a long day trip to Koblenz that consists of a short hike, castle visit and boat ride. In between traveling, I worked on my thesis and about two weeks ago, I presented my work proposal. I'm currently starting to do the development work; learning .NET 3.x Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). After playing around with it for a while now, I have a better understanding of the major concepts. I'm starting to think of a GUI design that is most user friendly but what can be done is also limited to my newly acquired WPF knowledge. Anyway, I don't have travel plans for this month yet and I plan to get as much done as possible before I go away again. :D

Yael Naim - New Soul


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Tuna pasta salad

Sunday, May 11, 2008


Today is the first time I made something new since I moved to Aachen. Well, I haven't been cooking much either. I'm trying to get used to the super small kitchen and very limited utencils that I have. I have also been traveling for a bit so it was difficult to keep fresh ingredients in the fridge. I managed to make this salad with penne, canned tuna and canned mix veg (carrot, corn and peas). I was surprised to find a tomato in my fridge so I made use of it. :D It's a nice cool salad for the rising temperatures. And I'm off to Amsterdam tomorrow!

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Italian Allure

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

After just a month in Germany and especially having had about 2 weeks of lunch at the school cafeteria, Italy feels like heaven. I went back for a workshop over the weekend and I truly enjoyed my stay. Spring has already arrived with warmer weather, blooming flowers and plenty of sunshine. The event was held in a building on the mountain side looking over the entire town. So the view is just excellent. I was lucky enough to get a room with the same view! The food and drink provided were delicious. I get to have cappucino for breakfast and machiato during coffee breaks. I miss machiato because it's not common outside Italy. I also craved for gelato and was about to go on a gelato eating spree. At first I bought 2 scoops and finished it while waiting for the rest to get theirs. Then we hung out in the piazza for a while and since no one had any idea where to go, I suggested to go to another gelateria. I went in to buy mango gelato and was surprised that most of the others also bought more gelato. When we were walking to another piazza passing a couple of gelaterias, I was tempted to buy more. However, I wanted to save some space for dinner and also didn't want to take the risk of getting sick since I was to be flying off the next day. Besides the weather, food, and beautiful scenery, I also experienced superb Italian hospitality. People are friendly with smiles on their faces and Italian guys can be really charming. With a combination of all these, one could easily fall in love!


View of Trento from the building


Having gelato


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Trip to Maastricht

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Founded by the Romans, Maastricht is considered to be the oldest city in The Netherlands. It is home to many historial sights such as the Roman bridge, the city wall, churches and other buildings. It also has beautiful scenery; the Meuse river that runs through the city, the park along the city wall and vast grasslands. The city center is mostly a pedestrian only shopping area. For a small city, there are big multi-level department stores here. The city is charming with a nice blend of the old buildings and the new glass buildings. A 12th century church is even converted to a bookstore with cafe. It's amazing!

We also went to visit the pentagon shaped fortress and a small section of the caves with a total of more than 20,000 passages, which are the result of centuries of excavation of marlstone. Oh..the Coffeshop here is not a place to have coffee. Instead, it's a place where people can buy and smoke small doses of soft drugs. There isn't much free time to walk around because we took the guided tours by the tourist office. It was already 6pm by the time we finished. Surprisingly, all the shops are already closed. Even the waffle shop. :( Since it is only about an hour from Aachen, I hope to return to check out the stores and take more photos.


Along Meuse river


Park outside the city wall


Bookstore inside church. Photo by Roos Aldershoff.

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Snowfall

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

I just love the sight of snowfall. I can just keep staring out the window. It has been snowing every day for the past week. :D There weren't much accumulation though coz it didn't snow continuously. It's more like heavy snow for 20 minutes followed by light snow and then the sky cleared. After a while, it starts to snow again and then clear again. I think it's due to the strong wind we have here. Still, it's nice that I get to see beautiful snowfall everyday and it feels magical walking under it. This has been the best winter experience I had in Europe. There's no ugly side to this kind of snowfall as there are no dirty snow piled up by the street, no water puddles everywhere and no icy walkway.

Clean street.


At the entrace of my residence.



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Developer documentation

Sunday, March 23, 2008

I've spent the past week reading some papers on related research projects and playing arond with the application while consulting the user guide. The user guide is the one that comes with the original installation of the app. It is not very useful because the app has been extended with some sort of project management functionality which I am supposed to work at. Although my advisor is patient enough to show me the features that were implemented, there isn't any documentation. So when I'm playing around with it, I have to figure out what is working and if not working, whether it is a bug or a feature that is not implemented. The development environment on this app is through a very bad UI which one can create objects and make references, etc. I don't really know how to do this yet since there isn't any manual for developer.

I know that non-existence of proper documentation is quite common. However, in order to develop something, I'm sure there would be a list of what is desired to be developed. And since this is a group work, I don't think people just keep everything in their heads. Oh, there is a wish list and a bug list but not the current list . Maybe I can try coming up with a current list by looking at those two lists. Hmm... not sure if these list are written in German though coz there are only limited project related papers and documentation written in English.

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Being Malaysian

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

"Where are you from?" I have been asked this question almost everytime when I meet new people in Europe. This almost never happened in the States. After they know where I'm from, they're usually interested to know more about the country and its people. And this is a problem for me. When they asked what language I speak at home, I said "English". Then they would want to know what is the national/official language and I said "Malay" and they assumed I also speak it. But due to my hesitation, they weren't so sure about it. Friends who have seen two non-Malay Malaysians in conversation were puzzled as to why it was carried out in English and not Malay. So they asked "When do you use Malay then?" In terms of entertainment, I know we have some local shows and music scenes but I can't name them because I only know the imported ones. And traditional dance? I don't remember! I did it in primary school and haven't seen one in ages. Oh it's funny when it comes to names. Why do I have an American/English name? What's a typical Malaysian name? I don't know how to answer. At least in terms of food, I've managed to give satisfactory description from the eating experience (very interesting) I gained while working in Malaysia for 3+ years. I thought I became more Malaysian but now I'm not so sure. Anyhow, at least not so American anymore.

This has been in the back of my head for a while. I wonder why when someone meet another person from his/her country, somehow they can get along. It's like they have something that binds them together. Same culture probably. However, I find that it's not as easy among Malaysians. Or maybe it's just me being not so Malaysian. Actually, how do you define being a Malaysian? Just by being a citizen or PR? What makes a Malaysian different from others?

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Thesis on process management

Sunday, March 16, 2008

I met with my advisor yesterday to discuss about the thesis. He did most of the talking, explaining about the project and showing some of the applications. The focus of my thesis would be on process management. Since I already have some related experience, I could easily understand the big picture and the goals of the project. The difficult part is to understand how the existing systems work because part of my work is to port a research prototype to a production system. He printed a few papers for me to read and hopefully I'll get a better idea about the existing apps. I'll also be getting access to the lab's computers so I can play around with the apps. He told me that it'll take 2-3 months preparation work to come up with a specification for the project which I'll have to present to the professors and other group members. After that, the development work will probably take about 6 months and of course, I'll need to write the paper in the end. This will mean that I can finish by the end of the year if I don't take any vacations. Most unlikely since I already have some travel plans in mind. I guess I just need to work more when I'm not travelling.

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Good shopping

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Just feels so nice to shop here. Groceries are a lot cheaper than Trento especially the fruits and vegetables. I finally managed to buy seedless grapes here and chinese pears! There are also a lot more variety of candies, chocolates, chips as well as drinks. In the few supermakets that I've been, I've only seen soft drinks sold in bottle form. I'm looking for them in can form so that I can limit the amount I drink. Surprisingly, pasta and pasta sauce is very limited. Even fewer variety than what I can get in KL. No wonder there are so many food joints selling pasta. People here don't cook them at home I guess. Retail stores here are a much bigger too and with more well known brands like Mango, Zara, H&M, etc. After being in Trento, I don't find that clothes here are that expensive anymore. There are plenty of home decor stores and a variety of dollar stores that I scoured for cheap kitchen utencils and stuff for the bathroom. I found quite a few handicraft stores too selling beads, ribbons, paper, etc. Kinda reminds me of the times I made presents for family and friends. Oh, I did manage to go to IKEA in Heerlen, Netherlands. It's an hour away by bus from town. I bought a few things including a reading lamp. Some of the stuff are really cheap and I shouldn't have bought the kitchen utensils earlier in the other shops in town. Oh well, now I know where to go for cheap stuff.

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New room

Saturday, March 08, 2008

The student residence I live in is in the suburb of Haaren, 5km from Aachen town. It's the only place available with a single room with attached kicthen and bathroom. My room is quite spacious and the furniture seems new. It's on the second floor so not much of a view from the window. I expected a blanket and pillow to be provided like in Bonn or Trento but these aren't provided here. I'm so glad I found a really cheap blanket at the discount store around the corner. I had to use it for a night without cover since my shipped luggage only arrived the next day. When the house master told me that I'm getting a new bed since the previous bed was broken, I really thought it's going to be a new bed. However, it turned out to be just another bed taken from another room. The bed is too soft. I wonder if there's any way to make it harder. Add a mattress pad? The room is also dimly lit; not suitable for doing anything productive like reading or cooking. There are plenty of power points so I guess they are for additional lamps. Gonna find out how to get to IKEA to buy some lamps and other stuff. The small fridge does not have a freezer compartment like the one in Bonn so I won't be able to enjoy the convenience of frozen food.

Besides being far, it's also expensive. I was thinking of looking for something cheaper and closer to town but now I got quite comfortable with my room. Even though I have not unpack most of my stuff, I just don't feel like moving again. The main street is just around the corner so everything is near by; supermarket, pharmacy, bank, bakery, diners, and cafes. Just one bus stop away, about 5+ minutes walk, there are bigger supermarkets and a McD that opens 24 hours a day! Hehe. So, I quite like it here. Once the internet is activated in a week's time, I should be home often.

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Weather change

Thursday, March 06, 2008

It was pretty warm in Trento when I boarded the train. Spring seemed to have been skipped and staright to summer. When I sleep, at first I didn't need to use the blanket provided. As the train was going through Switzerland, I could feel the temperature was dropping. After the train passed the German border for a while, I started to feel cold and got up to cover myself with the blanket. When I woke up in the morning and head outside my compartment, I was greeted with a white scene. Snow everywhere! And it was still snowing heavily. It only lasted for a short while towns had lesser and lesser snow as the train head towards Cologne. I saw Bonn also had some snow and it was already melting. When I switched train to Aachen, I was looking forward to see some snow and I was glad that there were still snow when I arrived. :D I like the sunny and cold weather here although the wind makes it a lot colder and it's quite breezy here.

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Turin - Chocolate Festival

Sunday, March 02, 2008

Spent my last weekend in Italy in Turin, host of the 2006 Winter Olympics. The current attraction is the Chocolate Festival that is held every year. When someone mention chocolates, I would think of Swiss or Belgian so I was surprised to find out that chocolate candy was invented in Turin and the Swiss came to Turin to learn the trade. The most famous chocolate sweet is called "gianduiotto", made of a coca-hazelnut paste and dates back to the 19th century. It taste like Nutella and of course, Nutella is also from a nearby town. The festival is held in one of tbe many big squares. Local retailers set up booths selling a variety of chocolates, cakes and drinks. Most of the retailers are just selling the normal forms of chocolates while I was expecting to see some special stuff. Anyway, besides the festival, Turin is pleasant town with wide streets, big piazzas, and great food. Try the calzone and pizza. It also seems like the cafe culture is popular here too. The Egyptian museum here is home to what is regarded as one of the largest collections of Egyptian antiquities outside of Egypt. It is really worth to visit especially when you don't know when you can go to Cairo. Hehe.

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A year in Italy

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Living in Italy has been a truly remarkable experience; the culture, the people, and the lansdcape. Italians are very close to their family. Out of town students go home almost every weekend even when they have to take 3+ hours train ride. During the week, they would also call home almost every day. There also aren't many big stores like hypermarkets and department stores here because Italians encourage entrepreneurship. So there are lots of little stores everywhere. A lot of buildings in the town area consists of shops on the ground floor and apartments above. In Naples, I've seen shops selling fresh fish on the ground floor and there are people living above! I wonder how the residents can stand the stench. The banks are also different here. One cannot just walk into a bank. At the door entrance, an employee will have to buzz the bullet proof glass door open for you to walk in. Some banks even have double doors where once you entered the first door and it is closed, then you can press the bell to get the second door opened. The type of transactions the bank perform is quite surprising too. My friend actually bought his ticket for a football match from the bank. I'm glad I managed to travel around a bit here and see the country. Each region is quite distinct from another. When I move to Germany next week, I'm really going to miss the gelato, the pizza, and the mountain view.

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Cooking tortellini

Saturday, February 23, 2008



Sometimes people add extra ingredients to instant noodles make it more like a proper meal. An egg, a few strips of vegetables, some meat, etc. Well, the same can be done with the ready made stuffed pastas that I mentioned earlier. I've added broccoli and strips of fried spam to the mushroom stuffed pasta. I'm just using what I have in my kitchen at the time. If it were to be a true Italian pasta, then sweet peas and speck would be used instead. I'm sure the Italians will scorn at me for using such ingredients. Maybe that's one of the reason how fusion food comes about; lack of ingredients. Haha.

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Italian instant noodle

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Stuffed pasta: Tortellini and Ravioli. These ready-made stuffed pastas available from the yogurt, cheese, etc section in the supermarket is the closest counterpart to asian instant noodles. In a way, they are quite similar to dumplings or wantons. The stuffing include mushroom, spinach, cheese and prosciutto (uncooked dried cured ham). They take about 2-3 minutes to cook in boiling salted water. After the pasta is cook, drain the water and just coat well with olive oil and top with grated cheese. It taste a lot better when coated with the mixture of melted butter, olive oil and cheese but that means having an extra pan to wash. Hehe. Buon Appetito!

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Blank mind

Friday, February 15, 2008

I've finally finished my project for the last exam. When I showed my work to the prof, he was satisfied with it and said that's all. I'm going to get my grade for it tomorrow morning. So, all that's left now is my thesis. This is the toughest part. I don't know what I want to do. I realised that I have lost interest in this field. I'm no longer curious about how things work, how things can be made better, or what is missing. I don't even have motivation unless wanting to graduate soon is counted as one. Since it's pretty much impossible for me to propose anything, I'm just looking for something easy, interesting and can be finished by the end of the year. I hope I'll find one soon after I start putting some effort to look for it.

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Skiing in the Dolomites

Sunday, February 10, 2008

I've only skied 1-2 times before and after I got home from skiing last night, I realised that the last time I went skiing was in the winter of 99/00. And it's 2008 now! How did time go by so quickly? Anyway, the view up there is just magnificent. We took a cable car up to the 'base' where there are restaurant, playground, a small slope for true beginners, plenty of space for sunbathing (bring your own chair) and ski lifts to the ski tracks. I started with the small slope and I felt that I was going very fast and ended up quite far away from the automatic ramp and takes people back up the slope. Then it was a challenge for me to ski/trudge back there since the ground is pretty much flat.

When I finally got back up the slope, I met my friend who somehow managed to convince me to try the blue track (beginner). At first it seems doable and I was fine. As I was skiing down and at one point, a section of the path was not visible because the slope is steep. I got scared and fell. Took some time to get up and continue skiing down as there is no other option. This time, I felt that I was going too fast and wouldn't be able to stop and then hit the trees at the end. I got scared and fell again and slided the rest of the way down. Hahaha! Took the chair lift back up and I just stuck to skiing in the little baby slope, learning how to turn.

By the end of the day, I got better at moving in flat surfaces and uphill. I got a gist of turning but still wasn't able to do consecutive turning. AlsoI think got better at controlling my speed when skiing down. We had a great time and hopefully I get to go back again before I move to Germany. Both my upper arms are so sore this morning!





From Skiing in the Dolomites

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Recently

Thursday, February 07, 2008

Haven't been feeling too well lately. Although I can still go about with my daily life, I feel like I needed more energy to perform them. I think I'm going to fall sick soon since it's been almost a year since I was ill. Feeling half sick is worse than being sick itself coz I can't take medication or sleep for long. Not having internet at home also means that I have to come to school to check my emails and get my dose of entertainment. I tried to download some videos to watch at home but wasn't able to because someone else had already downloaded a huge file from those megaupload, rapidshare, etc sites. (same IP since everyone have to use proxy). Sigh! I finally went to the library to borrow a book to read instead. Anyway, I showed my project to the professor and he suggested a few enchancements which are quite simple to implement. I should be able to finish them tonight and showed it to him again tomorrow. Next, I have to start planning how to move back to Germany end of the month.

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Venice Carnivale




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Naples & Pompeii

Sunday, February 03, 2008

I quite enjoyed this vacation even though it's a little tiring. The best part is the view of the ocean. Been about 5 months since I last laid eyes on a sea and I really miss sitting by the sea. The weather was also excellent being in the 60s and super sunny. I've been told that the southern part of Italy is very different but I never expected it to be such a huge difference. Naples is a big and very densely populated city. The city streets are dirty, with litter everywhere and plenty of dog shit on the sidewalk. It's also the first time I've seen stray dogs and cats on the streets. Above the streets, laundry are hung out from many windows and balconies. Pretty much every inch of the walls are filled with graffiti, even on the ground! People cross the streets whenever they want and young adults zip through the tiny streets in their vespa scooters without wearing helmet. Cars are double/triple parked on the the side, even at bus stops. While we were there, we were told that they found an old WWII bomb while digging for the subway line and everyone in the area had to be evacuated. We spent the day wandering around other parts of the city and since it was a Sunday, almost everything is closed including pizzerias.

Naples along the coast

The Pompei exavation site is very interesting. I had expected to see just bits of ruins here and there but surprisingly, the entire layout of the city is intact. We spent about 3 hours covering three quarters of the city. The audio guide we rented gave very good commentaries on the buildings. Most of the time, blocks of walls (numbered) lined the streets. These are usually shops or houses. One of the most facinating spot is the brothel. The drawings of various sexual positions are still visible on the walls and some graffiti can be seen in the walls of the rooms.


Street of Pompeii

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Relief

Saturday, January 26, 2008

I've finally finished all the exams that required studying of the course materials. :D Only one exam left and I just need to complete the project for it. Somehow halfway though this semester I have lost the motivation to do well in exams. I guess I went back to working mode where I just need to know enough to understand the topic and where to find the details when I need to use it. But in order to well in exams, one need to know the stuff really well. I don't quite like the grades that I'm getting but I know I deserve them coz I didn't take the exams seriously. Ah well..it's over and I'm so glad I don't have to take anymore classes and exams. After I complete this project, it's just gonna be the thesis left. I can't wait to finish grad school. It starts to feel like it's taking too long. Anyway, I'm off to Naples!

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Lunch+Dinner at 4

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

I've been having trouble sleeping early since the beginning of this year. I could only fall asleep past 3am. Even on the days which I had to wake up super early, I still wasn't able to sleep early at night. Maybe it's because I took 1-2 hours nap in between. Anyway, waking up at around 11 would normally mean skipping breakfast and just have lunch at noon. Yesterday, I had a light breakfast and wasn't hungry until almost 4pm. So I decided to make one meal, slightly bigger portion, for both lunch and dinner. I did the same today and it works out pretty well since I snack when I study for exams. Having to cook twice a day, I'm running out of ideas of what to cook anymore. Also, I didn't want to stock up food since I'll be going on vacation this weekend for 5 days. Still, I'd like to return to my normal bedtime.

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Projects & Exams

Friday, January 18, 2008

I've finally submitted my project for the exam next week. I know I could have done a better job if I'd started working on it earlier. I didn't really have other stuff to work on since Christmas but yet I didn't start on this project. For at least two weeks, from Christmas till after New Years, I have been watching a lot of asian dramas; maybe close to 10 shows and each with episodes ranging from 10-20. I thought I had time because I was only planning to do a simple project. But didn't expect that it was difficult to fit so much information into limited number of pages and also spent a lot of time trying to type formulas with weird characters.

Towards the end of this semester, I just don't feel like studying anymore. I couldn't really be bothered and just managed to make myself do the minimum to pass the exams. While I got pretty good grades at the beginning of the semester, I barely passed the last exam. It's not so bad for the classes that takes the average of the exams. For the next few exams, I'm just hoping to pass them. Eventhough I'd like to get higher marks, I just couldn't make myself to take them more seriously. I'd rather watch more dramas, go out, travel, and sleep.

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Ingrid Michaelson - The way I am

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Stumbled upon this song and quite like the tune.


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Cooking beef sukiyaki

Saturday, January 12, 2008

When I went groceries shopping a few days ago, I came across thin sliced beef. I don’t remember seeing them before in any of the supermarkets in Trento. I could probably get it by asking the butcher but I don’t what it’s called in Italian. Anyway, I was immediately reminded of Kobe beef and how much I miss Japanese food. So, I bought the beef and that night, I was excited thinking what I should do with it and decided on sukiyaki. Haven't been cooking anything nice this week and am finally in the mood to make this for lunch today. So glad it turned out well especially the sauce, although the beef is not so nice. (maybe I'm expecting too much, it ain't no Kobe beef to start with)

Sukiyaki sauce
2 tbs soy sauce
1 1/2 tbs chicken stock (to replace sake)
3 ts sugar
2 tbs water (according to taste)

Beef sukiyaki with chinese cabbage, mushrooms and egg

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Cooking mushroom and spam bucatini

Wednesday, January 09, 2008


Was trying to make a creamy sauce with this but I ended up using too little cream because I was afraid of the result having a strong cream taste. I guess people would normally use bacon instead of spam but I only had spam at the time so I made thin strips and fried it till crispy. Later, I found this combination on a restaurant's menu in google. Bucatini pasta with mushrooms, bacon, prosciutto, peas and tossed in olive oil, butter and garlic. Sounds delicious. I think I'll give it a try next time.

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It snows!

Sunday, January 06, 2008

The next day after coming home from Munich, I woke up and saw snow everywhere. It's such a pleasant surprise to start the new year off. It snowed a bit in Munich and on the train ride home, the winter scenary was very beautiful. Mountains and plains all covered in snow. But as the train head closer to Italy, the snow got lesser and eventually no snow in Trento. So I didn't expect it to snow here yet. But it did snow for the past 3 days and we've got 3-4 inches. Went out to have some fun in the park. Although the snow is kinda hard, like a mix between snow and ice, we managed to make snow angels and build a weird looking snowman. Snowballs could be made very easily but it's as hard as ice so we couldn't have snowball fights. Hopefully the next snow would be better.

Snowman with a funky hairdo!

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New Year's eve fireworks in Munich

Thursday, January 03, 2008


The celebration there is very different from what I have experienced. As we walked along the shopping street heading towards the square at 11pm, there were already tons of people on the street loaded with all sorts of fireworks. Some shot up high the sky, some are on the ground and some are body level. It kinda remains me of CNY. We had to look out for the fireworks because sometimes people throw them at you or kicked it to you or it was misfired. It became more intense as we reached the square. The square was surrounded by people and people in the frontline were the ones who usually lit the fireworks. Standing in between the crowd was not safe either. Sometimes there were small fireworks who explode on the ground. So when we felt something hit our leg, we quickly kicked it away. There were also fireworks that backfired. One firework actually shot past my ear! It was a little painful but luckily my hair did not caught fire.

We were surrounded by fireworks everywhere. When I looked up, I can see all sorts of fireworks all around me. I'd never been so close to a firework display before. Although they were totally random, somehow they seem to blend well together. At first I thought the fireworks were the small simple ones but some of the ones I saw were actually similar to the ones in major fireworks display. When midnight arrived, there was no countdown; just plenty of fireworks being shot up in the sky and people wishing Happy New Year or Buon Anno or Gutes Neues Jahr! The fireworks only toned down after 2am.

As the crowed slowly dispersed, I saw tons of broken glasses, bottles and used fireworks on the ground. Although quite a number of the crowd had alcohol in their hands, there were no fights or arguments. I was surprised I didn't see any police or ambulance on standby either. This is one of the best New Year's celebration I've had. :D

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Procrastination

Thursday, December 27, 2007

I haven't look at any course projects related materials since I finished Math Logic exam last Friday evening. Been telling myself that it's Christmas and I should take a break and enjoy. I spent most of the time watching the taiwanese drama series. I've finally caught up to the latest episode today so will have to wait another week for the next episode. I think my mandarin listening skills have improved a little. Hehe. I've also got Prison Break season 1 and 2 on my external hdd and hopefully I'll be able to hold off watching them at least until after new years since I'd really like to get some work done before then.

Walked around the neighborhood yesterday to see the 'presipi' (Nativity Scene). It's usually a setting with mountains that has a path leading to the stable. The stable has Jesus, Joseph, Mary, the ox, donkey , shepherds and sheeps. Some of these displays are placed indoor visible through the window and some are placed outdoor sometimes behind the fence. These display are made out of various materials like wood, paper, yarn, playdoh, computer parts, etc.



For dinner, was invited to a small Turkish party. Was introduced to sujuk which is similar to spam except that it's halal and also spiced. And of course, the turkish tea boiled from the traditional pot is just delicious. :) Makes me feel like visiting Turkey again.

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Christmas break

Monday, December 24, 2007

Even though it's Christmas tomorrow, it doesn't really feel like it. I guess having exams the week before Christmas most probably spoilt the mood. Also, didn't do any Christmas shopping this year. The shops here carry very limited range selling mostly winter sweaters and jackets which I already have enough. The home decor stuffs are very nice but I can't buy them since I have limited luggage space. There is a small Christmas market in Trento but the ones in Germany are tons better especially for the variety of food that you can get. Not much plans for the holidays this year since final exams starts in January. So, gotta start working on the projects soon. Anyway, wishing everyone a blessed Christmas and a marvellous New Year!


Backgound by dimant

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Gummy bear dance

Thursday, December 20, 2007



oh i am a gummy bear
yes i am a gummy bear
oh i am a yummy tummy funny lucky gummy bear
i am a jelly bear
cause i am a gummy bear
oh i am a moving groving jelly singing gummy bear
oh yeah
ba budu bubu yum yum
ba badu badu yum yum
ba badu budu yum yum
three times you can bite me
gummy gummy gummy gummy gummy bear

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Cooking creamy tuna pasta II

Monday, December 17, 2007

After using the cream previously for the first time, I checked the ingredients on the box and found out that it’s just plain cream. I thought it was already seasoned with herbs coz the label says ready to serve. So this time, I took a different approach. Tthe cream taste is masked pretty well by the other ingredients while I can still taste the zesty peppery taste of the tuna. :)

Ingredients for sauce (a slight variation from alfredo sauce)
25 ml cream (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 ts ground black pepper
water if needed

1. Put penne rigate to boil.
2. Heat half can of tuna in a pan with just a little oil from the can. The tuna I used is already soaked in olive oil, garlic, basil and chili peppers.
3. When the tuna is hot, take them out, leaving the oil behind and set aside in a plate.
4. About 3 minutes before the pasta is due to be ready, pour the cream into the same pan with remaining oil and stir.
5. Add grated parmesan cheese and ground black pepper. Mix them well.
6. When the pasta is ready, drain and pour into the pan and mix with the sauce.
7. Add in the tuna and mix again. (I do this last coz I prefer tuna in chunks)
8. Scoop into plate and serve.

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美味关系 - Sweet Relationship

Saturday, December 15, 2007



Stumbled upon this taiwanese drama while searching for something to watch since all the english series are on a break. Started watching a few episodes with english subs and then found out that the english subs are not available yet for the rest of the episodes. Decided to try watching an episode without subs and it wasn't as bad as I thought. I could follow the story pretty well. But when they started describing the food and other things in detail, I could only get a gist of it. And sometimes when they say some short expression, I can only guess from the body language. Perhaps I could improve my mandarin by watching more drama. Haha!

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Cooking creamy tuna pasta

Tuesday, December 11, 2007



Wasn't sure which pasta goes better with the cream so I took a shot at using small penne. The amount of cream it carried was ok except that the taste of the cream overpowered the taste of the slightly spicy tuna. I guess I shouldn't have used the cream by itself. Gotta mix it with something that will blend with the tuna. Hmm..gonna google for some inspiraton. Maybe something like the dressing for tuna salad.

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Italian Christmas

Sunday, December 09, 2007

The Christmas scene here is very different from I what used to see. The decorations are a lot simpler. Just some decorative lights on the street and on the christmas trees. Nothing fancy. As Christmas is considered a religous celebration, it is usually not associated with presents. Santa Claus is not that famous here either. The more famous character is called La Befana. La Befana is an old crone who on the eve of Jan 6th, fills the socks of children in Italy with candy if they are good or a lump of coal if they are bad. She is usually portrayed as an old lady riding a broomstick through the air wearing a black shawl and is covered in soot because she enters the children's houses through the chimney. She is often smiling and carries a bag or hamper filled with candy, gifts, or both.



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Cooking French-style fried rice

Friday, December 07, 2007


When I was working in KL, this is one of the dish that I usually order when I dine at Wong Kok Char Chan Teng. I have no idea why it is called French-style though. They use ketchup instead of black sauce. I made my own version without onions and it's pretty good for 1st attempt. Now I just need to remember the portion of light soy sauce to ketchup that I used.

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Not sleeping well

Wednesday, December 05, 2007

Haven't been sleeping well for almost a week now. Difficult to fall asleep at night even when it's already past midnight. And woke up before 7 the next morning. When I woke up, I knew I was dreaming of something weird. A good night's sleep for me is when I don't remember anything during my sleep. I did try to sleep longer during the weekend but I didn't get extra sleep, just ended up being lazy in bed.

I normally would have difficulties getting out of bed on Monday mornings but this Monday, I got up before my alarm rang and I went to school. When I opened the door to the lecture room, I saw another lecture was going on and I remembered that my class is after this one. Only then I realised that my lecture starts at 10:30 not 9! This afternoon, my friend was asking me if I'll be attending the lecture in the evening. I said yes and when I checked the time, I thought I was already late for that lecture since I need some time to get to school from home. Then I thought, I normally have some time after lunch before that lecture. So I confirmed with my friend and it turned out that the lecture is an hour later. Phew!

Hopefully I can get some good sleep tonight.

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Jay Chou - 彩虹 (Rainbow)

Sunday, December 02, 2007



Checking out Jay's latest album, On the Run. I quite like it. Started to listen to his older songs again too. :) Found this site with neat pinyin lyrics. Hehe.

哪里有彩虹告诉我　
Tell me where there are rainbows
能不能把我的愿望还给我
Can you give me back my wish?
为什么天这么安静
Why is the sky so tranquil?
所有的云都跑到我这里
All the clouds have come to where I am


有没有口罩一个给我
Have you got a mouth mask you can give me?
释怀说了太多就成真不了
I let go and said too much, then those things can’t be realized
也许时间是一种解药
Perhaps time is a kind of cure
也是我现在正服下的毒药
It is also the poison I am taking right now

看不见你的笑我怎么睡得着
If I can’t see your smile, how can I get to sleep
你的声音这么近我却抱不到
Your voice is so near yet I can’t hold you
没有地球　太阳还是会绕
The sun will still spin without the earth
没有理由　我也能自己走
I can still walk by myself without a reason


你要离开　我知道很简单
You need to leave I know it’s very simple
你说依赖　是我们的阻碍
You said that reliance was our obstacle
就算放开　但能不能别没收我的爱
Even if you let go, but can you not confiscate my love?
当作我最后才明白
Just pretend that I only understood at the end

(Rap)
看不见你的笑　要我怎么睡的着
If I can’t see your smile How can I get to sleep
你的声音这么近我却抱不到
Your voice is so near yet I can’t hold you
没有地球太阳还是会绕会绕
The sun will still spin without the earth
没有理由我也能自己走掉
I can still walk by myself without a reason
释怀说了太多就成真不了
I let go and say too much, then those things can’t be realized
也许时间是一种解药解药　也是我现在正服下的毒药
Perhaps time is a kind of cure it is also the poison I am taking right now

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Cooking porridge



Made porridge with Surimi (crab sticks) and carrot bits today. I usually cook porridge when I have chicken bones. Been cooking a few variety of porridge and running out of ideas. Oh I miss porridge with century egg!

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frutti.gummi

Friday, November 30, 2007

During a conversation, I said "My blog is at fruttigummi.blogspot.com". Later when my friend went online to look at my blog, he found other blogs with similar names. He typed fruitygummy.blogspot.com which I supposed is the proper English spelling. He told me he found another blog. So I checked it out and it seems to me that the blogger could be a Malaysian teenage girl. What do you think?

I've always thought gummi bear is spelt with an 'i' and not 'y'. I just found out that gummi is german spelling. Hehe. I did not purposely make up the different spelling. I just changed fruity to frutti to match gummi.

The inspiration for the name is from gummi bears. I like to eat them a lot and I found out that they were invented in Bonn, Germany, where I started this journey. Also, when I was leaving Malaysia, my colleague gave me a packet of gummi bears to munch on the flight. And when I arrived in Germany, I received a few packets of gummi Ampelmännchen as a welcome gift from my German friend. They both don't even know I'm a big fan of gummi bears. What a coincidence eh!

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Wedding season

Sunday, November 25, 2007

When I received yet another wedding invitation yesterday, it struck me that the wedding season has begun. This time, it'll probably last through the next year since 2008 is supposedly a good year for marriage. Since I'm away from home, I could only send well wishes to the couples. There are some friends who I have not seen for many years and it would be really nice to be able to meet them again. Hopefully not all of them will get married in the next year or so. Then, I'll be able to attend their wedding. Hehehe. As for myself, I think made some progress in answering the question of "When are you getting married?" I have unconsciously changed my answer from "I don't know" to "Not anytime soon". I was rather surprised myself when I heard what I said. I guess that's quite a big step for me.

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Futurama movie is here!

Thursday, November 22, 2007


Even though I have written about it some time back, I have totally forgotten about it. Was browing some movie sites and found out that the movie is out! I'm so exicted. I found this link to the movie online but my internet connection tonight is too slow for streaming video. :( Hopefully the link will still be up tomorrow.

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Cold apartment

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

How cold is 17C? At first, it doesn't seem very cold since that's the temperature I set to my AC in Malaysia. I guess in Malaysia, it doesn't feel as cold since it's warm outside. But having cold weather outside and 17C inside, it feels cold after a while. I think the temperature in my apartment has been hovering around 17C for about a week now. Everyone I know in the building has been complaining about the cold. The heater doesn't work well. There's a notice indicating the hours that the heat will come on but the heat doesn't come on according to the hours. Sometimes, the heat that comes out is so mild that you can't even warm your hands. It's really uncomfortable to study when the desk and chair is cold. Or even to read in bed. The hands will feel cold after a while. The worst time is in the morning when I have to get out of my warm bed.

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Ice skating & hot chocolate

Sunday, November 18, 2007

The ice stadium is almost an hour away from Trento by bus. It's located up in the mountains and we get beautiful view of the area from the bus. The stadium has 2 rinks. One indoor and another outdoor. The outdoor rink has the same design as a track and field with track being the ice instead of ground. It's used for speed skating. First time I've seen such a rink. It costs 4€ for admission and another 2.50€ for skate rental. The place is only open from 14:00 to 16:30 so I think it's rather pricey. The temperature was sunny around 0 degrees so it was nice for outdoor skating. We tried the outdoor rink for an hour before going inside. At first, I could only move very very slowly. Luckily I can still balance on the ice and can move a little. There is only one other guy who can skate in our group. As usual, all the girls who cant skate were holding on to the barriers while the guys were moving and falling all over. Hehe. After a few rounds, I got the feel of movement back and I could move more easily.

The best feeling was when we stepped into the indoor rink. The ice was so good! Somehow, I started being able to move freely, naturally. About 30 minutes later, I could go backwards. Although I could only do about 70% of what I could do before, it felt really good to be able to skate again after such a long time. There weren't much people in the rink so we could do whatever we want. We skated until the guy comes out with the zamboni. There was no announcement or anthing. People just move out of the rink when they saw the zamboni coming out. Well, it was a much enjoyable day.

On the way home, the bus took another route back to town and we saw another indoor ice rink and it was still open. Gonna find out if there's public transport to this rink. Hehe. When we got back to town, a few of us went to a cafe to grab something warm to drink. I ordered hot chocolate with whipped cream and it wasn't exactly a drink. The hot chocolate is jello-like and very chocolaty. Have to eat it with spoon. It does taste nice when mixed with the cream and small biscuit like those on ice cream. First time I had hot chocolate in a cafe in Italy so wasn't sure if this is the standard way of making it. The ones from vending machines are drinkable though

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I'm bored

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Now that the exam is over, I don't feel like studying or working on projects. So, what do I do? Since I've been watching lots of movies online, now there's not much to choose from. I also go around petting people's fluff friends on facebook. I don't feel like starting to read a book since I won't be able to finish it by the next week when the next exam comes. Still, it's too early to be studying for that exam now. I still daydream a lot but I just realised that I rarely do it at night. Is that why it's called daydream? We're getting a lot lesser daylight now. It's already dark at 5pm.

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Unhealthy diet

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Haven't been cooking much lately since I have another exam next week. I need to munch on something while studying or I'll fall asleep. Since I eat while I study, I've decided to replace dinner with the stuff that I munch during the night. Getting energy source from lots of fat and sugar. I guess I'm also thinking that it's not so bad since I already have one proper meal in mensa during lunch. Plus, a full meal from mensa is very filling so having fruits or yogurt is usually enough for dinner.

(Un)Healthy food ranking from good to worse?
Roasted nuts (overdose = too much fat or issit carbs?)
Raisins (overdose = too much sugar?)
Gummi bears
Potato chips

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Florence-Pisa

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Took a short vacation to Tuscany during the long weekend. Had a great time visiting the sights and enjoying the food especially gelato. The gelato was invented in Florence and we had gelato from one of the best gelateria in Italy. It was soOOOoo heavenly. After having the best gelato in our lives, we accidently found the best pizza in town. We went back to try it the next night and it was great. The crust is really soft and the toppings are juicy. They only make 3 types of pizza so we tried them all; Margherita, Napoletana, Marinara. Although we arrived only 15 minutes after the pizzeria opened, we had to wait for almost an hour to be seated. The place only has 4 tables and it was all occupied and there were 3 more 4-persons group already waiting outside. The Uffizi musuem has some nice collection but I don't think it's worth the 2 hours queue. If we had bought the tickets online in advanced, we probably wouldn't have to wait so long.

Additional travel note to add is to buy the return ticket in advanced.

I've uploaded some photos onto picasaweb instead coz my free flickr account already has more than 200 photos. Anyone wanna sponsor me a flickr pro account? Hehe. I'll buy a better camera and take nice photos :p

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Fall colors

Friday, November 02, 2007

Seeing that it's such a nice weather today, I went out for a walk around the neighborhood and took some pics.

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Mid-term exams

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

I'm just not ready to take any exams only after 6 weeks of classes. It still feels like the start of the semester and I'm just getting used to attending classes again after a long summer break. We had an exam last week and supposedly this week and people around got pretty tense. Although we're also planning for a trip, I don't see any excitement around. The good news came on Sunday that this week's exam is postponed and people suddenly became livelier. I see people smiling again and joy in their hearts. Hehe. And looking forward to the long weekend starting Thu.

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New pan

Friday, October 26, 2007

Since I came back after the summer, the apartment only has one frying pan left. My flatmates took theirs back when they left. Stuck with a really lousy, sticky pan, I was contemplating whether to buy myself a new one. Then I got news that everyone in the building might be moved to the new apartments on the south side. So I thought there's no point buying one when I'll get getting a new one in the new apartment. Earlier this week, my new flatmate broke the pan while she was washing it. The handle came off and there's a tiny hole in the pan where the handle used to be attached to. The hole makes it impossible to re-attach the handle. Anyway, I finally submitted a fault report after my exam yesterday and this morning, 2 guys showed up with a brand new pan! I can't believe the efficiency of the system. This is Italy after all. I'm going to ask my flatmate if she submitted a report earlier. The new, bigger 28" non-stick pan is great. I can make fried rice again without having all the rice sticking to the pan and I don't need to use as much oil. Way to healthier eating. Hehe.

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Reginelle ai Porcini

Sunday, October 21, 2007

I made an 'instant' version of pasta with mushrooms after I burnt the soup. When my friend moved away last summer, I was given a box of long crinkled pasta labelled "Reginelle - Pasta di semola di grano duro". The packing was different from the normal pasta boxes so I wasn't sure if it actually taste like normal pasta. This ribbon-like pasta goes well with creamy sauce so I decided to try it with the mushroom soup I just bought. Italian mushroom soup is tons better than Campbells! Adding it to my list of goodies to bring home. Hehe. Anyway, make the soup real thick and creamy such that when you add the cooked pasta in, it has similar texture like a carbonara. Super easy and yummy!

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Burnt soup

Friday, October 19, 2007

I did have the thought that the soup could get dried up but I reassured myself that I put enough water and it's only going to be about an hour on very low fire. So I went to take a nap looking forward to have a nice bowl of soup for dinner. When I got up and went to check on the pot, it's all dried up and burnt at the bottom. The potatoes though looks like they were roasted. Hehe. Surprisingly, there was no burnt smell permeating the air. Had to throw everything away and make something else for dinner. Luckily, that something else turned out really well. :D

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Trip to Venice

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Went for a day trip to Venice last weekend with a bunch of new friends. We walked around a lot and saw the famous landmarks. I think Venice is a city where you really need to take time to walk around, browse the little shops and sit down for coffee and enjoy the view. Although the company was good, we just don't share the same travel style. I'm for shopping for local gifts and trying out the specialty dishes while the rest of them are mostly into taking lots of photos. So, I did not buy anything during this trip. I did kind of look out for cute Italy t-shirts while we were zipping though the streets but nothing caught my eye. As for masks and Murano glass, I'll need plenty of time to check them out. Definately a must on my next trip.


Basillica di San Marco (St Mark's Basilica)


View from the famous Ponte Rialto (Rialto Bridge)


Carnival masks in a shop

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Buying groceries

Friday, October 12, 2007

Most grocery stores here are small and don't carry international stuff. The few bigger ones do carry some. After shopping at a few bigger stores, I know which store to go to buy a certain product. For example, ketchup. The one from the local brand is sweet so I don't like it. I found a few stores selling the McD version which is ok. To get the Heinz version in a squeeze bottle, there is only one store that sells that. This is also the only store that sells salad dressing! Italian salad dressing is olive oil and vinegar so you can't find other types in most stores. I found a small gourmet grocery store in town where you can buy a small can of campbell soup for over 2€. I never went back again. There is also the German store Lidl where I buy 1.5L 100% fruit juices, yogurt drinks, gummi bears, american chocolate chip cookies, chicken nuggets, mars or snickers bars. And I'm so glad to have found Heinz baked beans in the Thai shop.

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I cooked pork

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

This is my first attempt at cooking a pork dish coz I generally don't like pork. I bought some ribs for cooking soup last week and there are quite a few pieces left. So I searched around for ribs recipes and decided to make spicy honey mustard sauce to go with the pork. I boiled the ribs in water for about an hour to soften it. Then I make the sauce and marinade the meat overnight. I don't have a grill in the kitchen so I pan-fried it. After about 5 minutes, I realised that the meat is not as soft I wanted them to be. So I debone the ribs and simmer the meat with the sauce for another 5 minutes. The meat turned out really tasty :D




Recipe for Spicy Honey Mustard Sauce
Ingredients
  • For quarter pounds of ribs:
  • 3/4 tbs oil
  • 1/8 small onion finely minced
  • 3 tbs honey
  • 2 tbs Dijon mustard
  • 1 tbs cider vinegar
  • 1 1/2 ts red pepper flakes
  • a pinch of salt
  • pepper to taste
Directions
1. Heat the oil in a pan.
2. Cook the onions well or until caramelised.
3. Add all the rest of the ingredients and stir gently for 5 minutes.
4. Let the sauce cool slightly before using it to marinade the meat.


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Russell Peters

Saturday, October 06, 2007

I just found out about this guy recently. He makes jokes about Indians and other races. It's hilarious!
Russell Peters: Outsourced

Aggiungi al mio pofilo | altri Video

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Without dryer

Thursday, October 04, 2007

It's nice that the apartment comes with a washing machine and washing is free. There's no dryer though so we have to dry the clothes on the rack. It wasn't a problem before. During the winter when it was cold, the apartment is heated from midnight to early morning so the clothes get dry inside the apartment. When it was summer, the clothes get dry in the balcony even though there isnt much direct sunlight on the balcony. Now that the weather is cooler, my clothes just couldn't get dry after leaving them on the balcony for 2 days. It's still a little damp but no smell. Since there is no heat in the apartment yet, it couldn't be dried inside either. Sigh!

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Seedless grapes

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

I just couldn't find seedless grapes here. It's almost like there is no such thing. So since I moved from Germany, I didn't eat any grapes at all until last week. I could no longer resist the delicious looking grapes every time I go to the supermarket. I bought a bunch and they were sweet and juicy. But it was a mess coz I had to dig the seeds out for each one. I have eaten half and I figured it's just too much of effort. I doubt I'll buy anymore grapes here after I finished the remaining ones. I wonder why they don't have seedless grapes...

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New Season

Friday, September 28, 2007

The new season of those tv series I'm follwing have finally arrived. The premiere of Heroes was not as exciting as I had anticpated. House M.D was just ok. Desperate Housewives will air this weekend. Hopefully it'll be interesting. Thursdays are still my anime day. Thought of watching new series but kinda lazy to filter out those that I might like. Any recommendations?

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Back to school

Monday, September 24, 2007

First week of classes has been tough. Still having 8:30am classes everyday. I get headaches after attending classes on theoretical subjects. Need retraining to think like a scientist. Still quite lazy to study; prefer to watch videos whole day. Quite a bit of assignments and assessments throughout the semester so can't afford to start studying later in the semester when the final exams come. I find that most of the new students this semester are really enthusiastic about the courses and damn hardworking too! Makes me feel like I am extremely lazy, which I probably is. Oh, I miss the first year. It was pretty relaxed at the beginning of the semester so can slowly adopt to the change in workload. Well, I gotta start picking up more books to read before I drown in the courses. Hopefully I'll get more productive starting this week. No time to lose.

It's gonna be a tough semester to get through. Sigh!

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Cooking again

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Just cooked up something simple...

Lunch - Stir fried chicken and vegetables with white rice

Dinner - Fusili with tuna in spicy olive oil


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Missing house keys

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

I'm certain the keys are in the basket on the table. I left the rest of my cards on the table and I see them on the table everytime I unload my stuff onto the basket. Even the small sim card is there. Since stuff, especially receipts, kept piling into the basket, I did not see the keys and I thought it was being just covered over. So when the time came to pack and leave, I was surprised the keys were no longer in the basket. I searched the table and the basket again and again but the keys could not be found. I asked mom if she saw my keys and she told me that I left it in the basket. I said "It's not there anymore". She was suprised too and we started searching for the keys together. I searched my entire closet, drawers, cabinets, basically almost the entire room many many times but still no keys. Instead of throwing a tantrum like I'm prone to do when I cannot find my stuff, this time I actually searched calmly in a organised way. After half a day of searching, I ran out of idea where my keys could be. Without keys means I can't go home. Both my housemates have left the apartment when I was away. I started thinking of what options I have. The journey home from Verona airport is quite smooth. I didn't have to wait for the bus or the train. I went straight home and pressed the bell hoping that my new housemate is home. Lucky me, she's at home.

The next morning, I went to the housing department to request for a new set of keys. I was told to go to the police to make a report. I was quite nervous coz I didn't think I could fill up forms and stuff in Italian. I asked the lady to write for me what I should tell the police. Armed with that paper, I went to the police department. They have a section called Ufficio Denunce. Denunce sounds like "di non che", literally translated to "of not there". Hehe..a section is just for reporting missing stuff. It was just one room with the officer sitting behind a relatively empty desk with a computer. When it was my turn, I told the officer that I lost my keys and passed the piece of paper to him. He started typing lots of stuff into the computer. He asked for a few things and finally the report was being printed from the printer. We signed the report and I went back to the housing depaprtment to get my keys. Phew! It wasn't as bad as I imagined it to be. No form filling on my side, just the officer typing in all the details as I just sat there. When I returned home with my new set of keys, I realised that I actually lost 4 keys, not 2. I forgot about the mailbox key and the key to enter the apartment building. Anyway, I was given the building key and apartment key so it is sufficient. So yeah, although I came back in time for the first day of class, I actually missed it coz I had to deal with my missing keys.

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Meeting friends

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

It's nice to be able to meet up with friends again. There are a few whom I haven't seen for 10 years! So so much has happened in our lives. After meeting several groups, I noticed that the popular topics with the girls are marriage and babies while with the guys is mostly about career and money. I had a good time meeting everyone and I got to know valuable info during our conversations. I got an insight into the >5 years 'project' plan towards marriage. Truly an eye opener for me. Hehe. I now understand why the guys are worried about money because they are expected to be the main contributor in a marriage. I also realised a few big benefits from entering into a long term committed relationship. Given that your partner is as least as capable as yourself, having each other makes it much easier for both to achieve personal and professional goals.

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I'm worth a lot

Thursday, September 06, 2007

In a brief conversation, a man asked a woman he was pursuing the
question......
"What kind of man are you looking for?"

She sat quietly for a moment before looking him in the eye and asking.
"Do you really want to know?"
Reluctantly, he said, "Yes."

She began to expound... As a woman in this day and age, I am in a position to ask a man what he can do for me that I can't do for myself. I pay my own bills.
I take care of my household without the help of any man. I am in the
position to ask, "What can you bring to the table?"

The man looked at her. Clearly he thought that she was referring to money.

She quickly corrected his thought and stated, "I am not referring to money. I need something more. I need a man who is striving for perfection in every aspect of life."

He sat back in his chair, folded his arms, and asked her to explain.

She said, "I am looking for someone who is striving for perfection mentally
because I need conversation and mental stimulation. I don't need a
simple-minded man.
I am looking for someone who is striving for perfection spiritually because I don't need to be unequally yoked... believers mixed with unbelievers is a recipe for disaster.
I need a man who is striving for perfection financially because I don't need a financial burden.
I am looking for someone who is sensitive enough to understand what I go through as a woman, but strong enough to keep me grounded.
I am looking for someone who I can respect. In order to be submissive, I must respect him. I cannot be submissive to a man who isn't taking care of his business. I have no problem being submissive...he just has to be worthy. God made woman to be a helpmate for man. I can't help a man if he can't help himself."
When she finished her spill, she looked at him.

He sat there with a puzzled look on his face.
He said, "You're asking a lot."

She replied, "I'm worth a lot."



Send this to every woman who's worth a lot and every man who needs to know that.

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Where does my future lie?

Tuesday, September 04, 2007

When I left last year, there is no doubt in my mind that I will return to continue what I was doing. Now, after half of the journey, I'm not so sure anymore. Most people whom I spoke to during my journey seemed to have found their calling during the second part of this journey. I have always known what I want and have a plan to get it. This time, all the thoughts and analysis yield no answer. I guess not knowing what I want really scares me. I don't know how to prepare for what might spring up upon me. Will I be able handle them? Some might tell me not to think too much and just let the course unfold. What if the course is not leading to where I want to be? Yah..I know I have no idea where I want to be now but that's why I'm thinking hard about it! And I'm afraid I don't get a second chance to set things right.

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Circle of friends

Sunday, September 02, 2007

After being back for 2 weeks, I realised that I dont have a "default" gang of friends in KL. Something like Friends, a group that you meet at least once a week to hang out. I always just meet up either one or two friends at a time. I guess I never realised this before when I was too busy with work. I wonder if most of my friends are also too busy with work? Or perhaps it's too much of a hassle to go out and meet up because of the traffic conjestion and parking problem? Or could it be that face to face meeting is no longer ncessary when we're already chatting with each other online? Sadly, the only group that I associate with often is my co-workers. Has this become our culture because we spent much more time at work? Are Malaysians becoming more individualistic? Maybe it's just me. Maybe I should put on a friendly face and go out and meet more people.

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Comfy home

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Staying at home is just so nice. I get to sleep in a much bigger and comfortable bed. I also have a bunch of furry friends for company. I can listen to music with a decent pair of Altec Lansing speakers and watch movies on a bigger screen. I have the freedom to go anywhere anytime with my car. No need to check schedule for bus or train. Shopping can be done conveniently in one place like in one of those big malls. Ooh.. and food, there's plenty to choose from. Shops, restaurants, cafes, etc are open till late. Plus 24h McD! I'll definately miss all these when I return to Trento.

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What to eat in Malaysia?

Sunday, August 26, 2007

I'm a person who makes lists; groceries list, packing list, travel list, etc. So when a friend asked if I have a list of food that I wanna eat when I return to Malaysia, I was surprised I didn't make one. Instead, I have a list of errands to get done. Most people I know would have cravings for certain food and would go all out to satisfy their cravings. I have tried many local food during the 3+ years working in Malaysia and I know what I'd like to eat again but I don't crave them. Makes me realised that I didn't become more Malaysian as I thought I have. During the past week, Japanese cuisine and family style chinese cuisine dominated my plate. The only hawker food I had was fishball noodles near my house. Perhaps I should make some effort to 'cari makan'. Hehe. So what am I missing?

1. Nasi Lemak
2. Char keoy teow
3. Wantan mee
4. Kari mee
5. Laksa
6. Tomyum noodle
7. Maggi/Indomee goreng
8. Satay
9.
10.

I know I shouldn't try to list the local food. It's too difficult! And too embarassing to mention how long I took to come up with the 8 items.

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Back in KL

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Took one and a half day, including lost of 6 hours in time transition, for the total journey to come home. No jet lag but feels like the weather is draining my energy. By the evening, I would feel tired after being out since morning. Sis just left for London this morning so I'll finally have time to do my own stuff. Since she was leaving, everyone was more concerned about getting her needs fullfilled. The one major lifestyle change I noticed is people here function at a faster pace, particularly at the dining table. When eating at home or lunch with colleagues, I feel pressured to eat faster and then I realised that I didn't enjoy the meal. I guess I unconsciously picked up a new habit from the Italians. I need 3 hours lunch time. Hehe.

So far the place looks the same except for the SMART tunnel and a few new bridges and new road traffic direction in the Bukit Bintang area. Still congested as usual during peak hours. Trying to be extra careful when driving and in small roads with no cars, it takes me a while to determine which is the right way of drive (Europe being the opposite)

Well, really hope to meet everyone I know especially those who are getting married. I'm sorry for not being able to attend the weddings.

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Travel notes

Friday, August 17, 2007

Back from vacation. Some things to note...

Check if travel dates fall on a holiday so that I can get home with public transport. There is no bus after 9pm on holidays. August 15th is a religious holiday for most countries in Europe.

Allocate at least one extra day when there are friends living in the area to spend some time with them according to their busy schedule.

Knowledge of another foreign language is useful when people do not speak English. Our German lessons came in handy for directions. And luckily Menar can speak some Turkish when we got Rambi to be taken to the hospital in an ambulance. We were surprised the paramedics don't speak English.

Beach clubs have private beaches and rent umbrella and deck chairs. Very nice and comfortable outdoor setting. They sell some simple food and drinks. Not exactly the place to go if you're looking for a shady spot as the umbrellas don't provide that much cover. My friend with fair skin still got slightly burned after 4 hours staying inside the umbrella.

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Super relaxing week

Saturday, August 04, 2007

It's been a very long time since I feel so liberating. With no responsibilities and no financial worries, it's like being a kid again. Well, even better than kids coz I get to do whatever I want whenever I want. Hehe. Early in the week, I went shopping. Oh the joy of shopping! I bought some tops, a skirt, and 2 dresses coz I couldn't decide which to pick. They were 50% off so I got two for the price of one. I bought a pair of sandals too. It feels so good to finally be able to wear skirts and sandals again. I wanna paint my nails too but I think I'll just go for a manicure and pedicure when I go back to KL. I've also managed to watch quite a few movies, both new and old. I find Leon (1994) an interesting movie. And Harold & Kumar go to White Castle is just hilarious (2004). Also watched tv series Everybody Loves Raymond and Joey. It's just a coincidence that I picked both with Italian background. Watching them again, I enjoyed it even more, knowing now how Italians are.

Well, I guess I'm pretty much all set for Istanbul and Greece for the next 10 days.

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Hogwarts Sorting Hat Quiz

Friday, August 03, 2007

After seven long years, the story of Harry Potter has finally come to end. It has been a wonderful journey thus far and I'll be looking forward to the last two movies. I feel like reading all the books again but it'll take too much time. I'll probably just watch the movies again even though they aren't that great. Came across some sorting hat quizes and took them. As expected, I'm a Rawenclaw. Hehe.


Hogwarts Sorting Hat: Based on Myers-Briggs Personality Typing



You are a RAVENCLAW!As a Ravenclaw and as an NTJ, you are intellectual, independent, and value excellence in yourself and others. You are naturally curious, and can usually see many sides to the same argument or issue. You are driven to acquire knowledge and set very high standards for yourself and others. You excel at and enjoy strategizing, planning, and focusing on the big picture. You enjoy being challenged, and can accept constructive criticism without taking it personally. You are excellent at organizing yourself and others.
Take this quiz!






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Simpsonize Me

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Wonder what you'll look like as a 2D Simpsons character? This website lets you upload your own photo and voila you're in 2D! Hehe. Do you see any resemblance?

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