A brand new beginning ...

Greetings from Manila !

2006-11-28T06:32:00.000-08:00

Have been quite many many months since I last put in an entry ...

Since the world came crashing down last time ... I have recovered and put that behind ...

Everything is now past and life has been more or less back to normal ...

I have started my stint in Manila ...

You may wonder why there are no pictures to show ... well ... there is really nothing much to put up ... haven been to many places in Manila (sorry my Manila friends, din mean to be rude). I only go to the Malls which I din take any pictures ...

I will make it a point to update this blog - though I know it is only myself reading this ...

Cheers!

Back in Singapore !

2006-07-31T02:11:00.000-07:00

Yes ! I am back in Singapore ...

This is already the third day I am back ... the first 2 days just dash by like that ...

Did not get the meet up WL on Saturday ... not sure whether it is a bad thing or not ... but somehow ... felt we need sometime to prepare ourselves ...

Only met on Sunday ... both of us are probably not too sure ... the outcome is fuzzy ... not willing to let go ... cant face the possibility of another 9 months of uncertainty and loneliness ... I am not sure about WL, maybe he is right, maybe my love is stronger ... I can get by just knowing that there is someone there for me ... though when we meet, there will be some stranger-ness ... but I am fine ... I tell myself ... this is part and parcel of how things go ... as long as I am true to my own feelings ... the rest are just technicallities ...

Guess we will still meet again ... I fear the details ... the level of details we need to get to to make things work ... and sometimes the details are ugly ... the definition of casual dating, pre-commitment times, these are all fuzzy logic to me ... and I know details will drive WL away ... WL is not a detail person ... I am willing to work it out though .. always believe that my intellgence never failed me ...

But deep down inside ... I know the ultimate question carries the entire story ... is your heart still there ? Or is it slowly fading into the void ...

Actually as I write ... I am not even sure WL reads this ... maybe this blog is real private ... only a recording of my own feelings ...

Last Day in US !

2006-07-27T18:44:00.000-07:00

The day has come - finally ... after months and months, weeks and weeks of countdown ... TODAY I am going back ...

Feelings are mixed ... with the recent happenings ... the excitement of going back has been clouded with the apprehension of facing WL.

On the other hand, now that I look back at the past 9 months, work wise ... I think I have just added another outstanding item to my resume ... to have "international" experience ... to be upgraded to an eviable position in Manila ... watched Devil Wears Prada last week and the phrase keeps coming back to me :"There are a million people out there dying to have your job !" So ... I guess I have to feel thankful and proud of my achievements ...

Is it true that success in career is at the expense of your personal life ? Are all the "though I am the CEO, I still have a happy personal life" stories real ? In modern times, successful career means flying around, means sacrificing time with loved ones ... are we "selling" our time to our companies in exchange for the so-called career ?

Recovery in progress ...

2006-07-21T09:23:00.000-07:00

Right after the world came crashing down ... I say nabeh CB and pick myself up ...

I reckon that at this point in time, I can only offer what I can offer ...

Then good news came along, I am required to work damn late at least once or twice a week (up to say 10 PM - to "catch" people in telecon across the world) (that is good news to me) - the reward - I get Friday after lunch off ... which works well with me ... since I may plan to be back in SG for the weekends ...

WL is still thinking about how our relationship will work out (or ultimately, how it will not work out??!!). Think the only word to calm myself down is PATIENCE. Aries are particularly impatient people, a trait which I have tried very hard and for many years to suppress, with only very little success ...

This recent question has been ... can a person give all of themselves after they are brutually hurt in previous relationships ? And what happen if they cannot ? Does it mean they will always be incomplete ?

Like I say ... when I fall down ... no matter how bad (sometimes can be real bad - like your boss telling you he dont feel like confirming your position after the 6-months probation because he just doesnt like your style ?!!), I always try to say nabeh CB and pick myself up again ... the hurt may remain (in fact for the above, it casted a scar that is still deeply etched in my mind even now) ... despite me now earning like 2-3 times more than I did since the boss said that 6 years ago, and probably laughing at how I struggle then to stand up again ...

Same for love ... I also once loved so deeply that I thought of leaving everything behind and start a completely new life altogether in a foreign land .. but things just didnt work out ... I was hurt, sad, depressed ... Am I incomplete after that ? Maybe ... you tend to not want to put in 100% (or I really cannot?!), but I think that doesnt matter ... I learn how to cherish what I have now ... how to seggregate between what matters and what does not ... I will probably still put in 100% ...but maybe 100% of what I can afford to give ... and I think that should be enough to make the relationship work ..

After all these are said ... all I can do now is probably to wait ... maybe God is again teaching me the lesson of PATIENCE.

When the world come crashing down ...

2006-07-13T22:30:00.000-07:00

Sometimes life's events come in the form of a domino ... crashing one after another ...

Just when you think you are reaching the mountain top to claim your trophy ... the trophy no longer exists ... you wonder ... do you still continue climbing ?

Times with WL comprises of 1 month of knowing, 1 month courtship, 2 months of being together and followed by horrandous 9 months of me in US ... and ahead of me is yet another 9 months of somewhere else ...

I look back ... indeed I am selfish ... I have no right to ask others to wait ... especially in the name of Love.
What I can only offer is my love, my persistence and my life ...

I thought the worse is over ... I thought times are getting better for us ... And I only think of what I thought ... I failed to think what WL thought ...

WL always say "if a person is yours, the person will be yours". I have to agree. I only wish to add that I will put in whatever effort needed to make it happen. Sounds contradicting ... yeah ... maybe ...

Too tired tonight ... thoughts are fragmented ...

World Cup ... 2006 !

2006-07-09T13:36:00.000-07:00

One of the very few matches I bother to watch ...

France vs Italy ...

As I am typing this now ... the 2 teams are preparing to do penalty kicks ...

Only twice in the World Cup did they use penalty kicks to decide the World Cup Finals' winner !

I am honoured ... but what I saw in the past 120 mins did change my view of the sport ...

It reminds me that maybe Stephen Chow's Shaolin soccer is the way to go ...

The Captain of France, Zidane ... actually use his head to butt his opponent's chest ! Can you believe it ?
How can a player use head to hit opponent's chest when the referee is not watching ?

This gives me an idea ... if we can get enough Shaolin Iron Head expert into the team to cause perm damage to your biggest oppponent ... and do that early in the game ... then ... you win liao lor !! Haha !

South Park has an episode on this ... the South Park Team is on its way to play in the World's Basketball championship ... and in the last National Game ... the other team deliberately lose to the South Park team because they know how "vicious" the defending Champion (China Team) is at injuring (in South Park, it is killing... and of course Kenny died) them ...

Earlier I am more for the Italy team because :

1) The France team looks arrogant ...
2) There are more blacks (I assume these are imported players) in the France team, gives me a feeling that most of the players are not French by birth ... maybe recent imports .. not too sure .. but just an impression I get ...

Now I am more for the Italy team on moralistic grounds ...

Now ... Italy is leading in the penalty kicks ...

AND ITALY WON !!!!!! Yeah ... !!! The World is cheering !!!

For those aspiring to be in the 2010 World Cup ... Welcome to Shaolin Temple !!

How many times in your life that you want something so badly that you dont care what you doing is right or wrong ?

Independence Day - 2006!

2006-07-05T19:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday is America's 230th birthday ... WOW ! Sounds old compared to our 40-something years ... haha ...

We celebrated it the Singaporean way ... by shopping ... you see ... I am leaving US end of this month and the time has come for me to buy whatever I need to ship back and wave goodbye ..

The natural choice is of course the Premium Outlets @ Gilroy ... this is the whole village of discount stores ... think since I am here ... I come here averagely once a month ... haha ! I jokingly told me US colleague this morning that our contribution to the US economy is going to be measured in millions ! ...

Things I bought ... first we have to settle the capacity planning issue ... only with sufficient luggage space ... then we can buy more ... right ? ... So I bought not one :

Not two :

But THREE piece luggage set ...

The deal was just superb ... just $179 for all three pieces (USD) ... In case u cant see the brand ... its Samsonlite !

N "tricked" us into Kenneth Cole shop by asking us to meet there ... at the end ... K and me each bought a pair of shoes ... abt 50% off ... but still quite ex though ... USD 79 !

Looks like the "going home" chapter has begun ... quietly the clock is ticking and the countdown is now at 22 days!
And I start to busily prepare for my homecoming ... back to see family, friends, and loved ones ...

At the end of the rat race, do you know who you are going back home to ?

Desperate Housewives Weekend ... A Desperate Weekend ...

2006-07-02T13:02:00.000-07:00

Note : [ This is the first NOT backdated post, I decide that since I wont be able to catch up ... might as well screw it and post something current. As such, my blog will probably be transformed from a "Where have I been ... what have I seen" blog to one that I brag, think aloud, whine, complain, tell all kinda blog]

I supposed I will dedicate this weekend to 4 housewives ... the Desperate ones ...

I happen to buy this set together with South Park in Target (where the cheap DVDs are - something like Giant in Singapore) ... thought I would probably watched it in Manila when I am bored ... but guess what ? the boredom managed to hit me even before I go back to Singapore (my break before going off to Manila) ...

The stereotyping of people in the show is ... good ... haha! I think most people would have watched the show ... so I shant elaborate ...

What is most desperate is probably me, myself ... as the day to going back draws nearer ... I seemed to be even more impatient ... or is it that I am not getting enough attention from close ones ? Not sure ... but I did managed to get on the nerves of Good Fren ... or maybe GF DID actually din give me enough attention ... but well ... at the point of time when I am writing this ... I am ok ... GF is correct ... trust is really important in this arrangement ... but well, GF also says trust needs to be built ? Hmmm ...

Loneliness is a quiet monster ... slowly nibbling on my sanity ... but ... no worries ... someone as intelligent as me wont be easily defeated ... later I go chiong some mall ... and get some Retail Therapy ...

To the FOUR women who accompanied me this weekend ...

In your sub-conscious mind, are you desperately seeking something you dont even know you are ?

A company picnic ... American way of life ...

2006-06-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

This Friday is an off day for all of us here ...

Background : We are working on a 9 days 80 hours schedule where we work 80 hours in 9 days and the tenth day is an off day ... and that will be alternate Friday ... good deal right ?

This off day ... the Project Team organised a picnic for all ... the venue is somewhere in some valley ... the view is awesome ...

Had a very interesting discusson with my "shi fu" (teacher) in US who guides me on my work ... she is a nearing 60 lady who works for the "fun" of it ... for the fun of learning new things everyday ... in fact, in these few months, she has become my "mentor" in the way I see things ... I also learn many new things from her ... we sat down and talked about many things .. mainly US stuff .. how cultures are different in different states ... and I gave them some insights of the Singaporean way of things ...

I am not sure whether the turn out is good or not ... there were some rumours that people felt unhappy that there is a picnic right at the peak of things ... the project is like a bit delayed and Friday off days for the past 2 times had already been cancelled to get more time for the project ...

And oh yes! I won something in the lucky draw ! Cant believe it ... I never won anything in such lucky draws before ... But ... as the portable CD player, radio I won is probably too bulky for me to ship back ... I gave it to C and husband ... they probably have 2 more years here to use that and they get bigger shipment back ... Forgot to take a picture of my RARE win before giving to them ... will put up the picture later ...

Do you know what you are working for ?

The fun begins ... Universal Studio

2005-12-15T12:15:00.000-08:00

We went to Universal Studio first before Disney ...

We stayed at a hotel near Disney and travelled an hour to reach Universal Studio ... but all worth the while ...

I always think WB characters are more "serious" ... you know those like Incredible Hulk, Spiderman ... even the un-humanised ones like Bugs Bunny does not belong to the same category as Mickey ... just a thought ...

Anyway ... we saw many characters

And watched the Waterworld show ... not sure you guys remember the movie ...

I am impressed with the water, fire, plane crashing into the set .. and I think they really replicated the movie set ... or maybe ... they just moved the set over after the show ... then can depreciate the cost of the set over like 10 years ... haha ! Accounting talk ...

This an overview of the studios they have ... current TV serials are still being filmed ... we took a ride and went round to see the sets of Desperate Housewives, etc ... kewl !

Just a look back since I am writing this AFTER the results of the Integrated Resort in Singapore has been awarded to Sands ... just wondering whether the IR or the Sentosa entertainment piece can match what I see here ... hopefully ... then life in Singapore will be slightly more interesting ...

Welcome to Los Angeles !

2005-12-14T21:52:00.000-08:00

This the highlight of the trip ... LA + Hollywood + Universal Studio + DISNEYLAND !!

We set off very early on 14 Dec .... the drive time is like more than 5 hours ... and guess who is the garang driver ?

It's ME !

Along the way ... we hit into a foggy area ... this is the first time I see so much fog ... and it completely cuts off visibility ! The last time I saw fog was in my Primary School field ... haha! we will then happily run into the "fog" and pretend to be Super Heroes flying ... well ... this time round ... Face It ! It is damned cold to be in a real fog ...

Driving in the fog is really quite dangerous ... so we went slow for the stretch with the fog ...

After about 5 hours plus plus of driving ... we reach LA !

Disney Pre-Trip ...

2005-12-14T12:38:00.000-08:00

After the Rodeo Drive walk ... we didnt buy anything ... else we will have no money for the rest of the LA trip ... haha! we checked in into the 3-star hotel call Ramada .. sounds Malay hor ... in US, most of their hotels can accomodate 4 persons ... just need to pay a fee ... in our case ... we pre-booked the hotel much earlier and they close-one-eye and we din need to pay additional fee.

We went to hotel, drop our things ... and chiong Downtown Disney ...

Downtown Disney is the part of Disney that sells merchandise, have restuarants ... etc ... and no need for entrance tickets ... hehe!

My camera is not very good at night ...so only took one more decent photo ...

We had dinner @ Downtown Disney ... Pizza ... and of course doesnt come cheap ... tell u more about Disney prices in the next few posts ... hehe ...

Do the Hollywood Walk of Fame ...

2005-12-14T12:13:00.000-08:00

Our first stop in LA is Hollywood !

The famous Walk of Fame. All the stars on the floor ... so many names we know so well ...

This one is Elvis !!

We visited The Kodak Theatre ... this is where all the Academy Awards are hosted ... in fact ... a few months after we visit, the 2006 Academy Awards where Lee Ang won the Best Director Award is hosted here !!!

Walked around for a while ... nothing very the interesting after a while ... then we saw these people below ... dressed up like some stars ... gallavanting the streets ... you think they are just doing it for fun and entertainment ? NO! They are actually posers who want to take pictures with you and ask for a tip ... we kanna one Carribean pirate guy and end up having to tip him ... haha!

And WEI! WEI! I told you to look at the people ... not the dogs, who are actually doing scandalous acts ... *sigh ... maybe this is just Hollywood ... even the animals are gallavanting the streets and creating scandals ...

We stayed along Hollywood Blvd for a while and decided that it is time to move on ... we managed to drive pass Rodeo Drive and decide to join the stars for shopping ... Rodeo Drive ... where the Rich and Famous are seen ... Didnt take pictures (without faces) though ... all the top brand names are here ...just name it ... the Prada store is 3 stories ... designed in a way to make u you want to spend ... haha!

Golden Gate Park - Serenity in Nature ...

2005-12-12T21:01:00.000-08:00

After hectic driving all over the place in the last 1-2 days, we decide to visit the Golden Gate Park.

G also decided that its time to kick back and relax with us instead of chiong-ing ... haha !

Golden Gate Park is very very big ... has many mini parks in the whole park ... and there is a museum too ...

We first too a peddle boat ride which B & G probably wished we didnt ... haha! ... we peddle peddle peddle around the whole lake ... I suspect that it maybe Singaporeans are really too urban liao ... so when we have a lot of nature ... just cant get used to it ... seems like so sianz ...

After the many minutes of huffing and puffing at the peddles, we decided to the Japanese Garden there ... not exactly the same as the Singapore one ... but quite the Japanese la ...

This picture is coutesy of G.

This picture reminds me of Zhang Yi Mou movies ... haha!

Spotted squrriels ! The environment is so ... so ... natural ... haha !

At the end of the Golden Gate Park ... there is this huge Windmill ...

Golden Gate Park (one end of it) is also next to the beach ... the weather is very cold ... B & G went down to the beach while I stay along the pavement before the bridge ... they seemed to enjoy themselves ... but so cold wor ... haha!

In a later episode ... you will realise that B actually cannot tong the coldness one ... haha !

Monterey Bay ... Wonders of Nature ...

2005-12-11T22:42:00.000-08:00

We dedicate today to Nature ... our destination ... Monterey Bay ...

You cannot be more amazed by the chiongliness of G ... he continue to chiong with his friends and din join us today too !

Well ... another day without G ... maybe Nature is just too much for G ... haha !

This is the second trip I did to Monterey Bay ... the first one was quite rushed and this time round, I decide we should take our time ...

Our first stop is the same stretch of restaurant ...

Welcome to Monterey Bay Aquarium ... cited to be one of the World's largest ...

Some of the pictures at Monterey Bay Aquarium ... I like the jelly fish ... looks soft, mild, gentle ... but high poisonous and vicious ... haha ...

The entrance fee to the Aquarium is not cheap though ... we suay suay went on the day where they open up the Aquarium to all Monterey Bay residents for free ... so ... just like Singaporeans going to Istana during Holidays ... everyone chiong here ...

We were about the leave when we spotted the Pengiuns !!! B's favourite animal is the Pengiun ... and of course ... we lose no time in getting to them ...

We end up buying many pengiun stuff ... haha !

Monterey Bay itself has a trail call the 17-mile scenic drive ... this will take you through the best sceneries Monterey bay can offer .... I would strongly recommend anyone going there to take up this drive ... and give yourself lotsa of time ... say 3 hours at least ...

The seagulls make B happy for quite a while ... until I remind him that seagulls do not have a designated toilet ... and YES! they can shit while flying ... so dont laugh too widely when there are seagulls flying around you ... haha!

An arty picture taken by B ...

The 17 Mile Drive has quite a nuber of stops for people to view the coastline ... one of them is this lone tree ... looks like some Chinese martial arts show where the mee jee is hidden below the tree ... haha ..

Sausilito ... Just like the movie ...

2005-12-10T18:02:00.000-08:00

The Golden Gate Bridge connects San Francisco to a small town call Sausilito ...
Think there is this movie which is filmed here ...

We attempt to find Sausilito ... expecting a small town ... but when we find it ... we are disappointed ... it is smaller than the small town we think it should be ... *sigh ...

Disappointed ... we decide to just take some pictures ... for the sake of it ... and move on...

Then on the way back to the Golden Gate Bridge ... we pass by this small town which is quite vibrant ... then we realised ... wah piang ... WRONG Sausilito just now ... but heng la ... not all lost ... we quickly park the car ... and do the REAL Sausilito ... haha ! Where is Maggie Cheung har ?

Had Fish and Chips there and Ice Cream ... then make our way back home ...

G was still not back yet ... that guy har ... sibei chiong ...

Golden Gate Bridge ... Pride of San Francisco

2005-12-10T17:33:00.000-08:00

10 Dec ... while G is busy with his own things ... B and me go Golden Gate Bridge ...

If you know G better, you wont be surprised at the number of lobangs he can find ... the number of friends he has ... just beyond my imagination ... so its just me and B ...

The Golden Gate Bridge is ... enchanting ...

Dont know how to describe it ... just amazing ...

We walk halfway across the bridge and the view is plain heavenly ... can see a big part of SF from here ...

Me and the Golden Gate Bridge ... hey for the first time I am going to post my face pix ... pls dont comment on me ...
[Haha! Decide otherwise ... will post my face when I am ready ... ]

Some pictures on the view at the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge ...

A close up of the bridge ...

Artistic picture taken by B ...

Musuem of Modern Art .... MOMA

2005-12-08T13:16:00.001-08:00

Once I on leave again on the 8 Dec ... we again chiong SF ... now u see why I can drive in and out of SF like a local within a few weeks of arriving here ... haha!

We had brunch at the arty faarty cafe (aka expensive) and proceed with more arts ... I am not really an art person ... nearly fail my arts in school last time (when it is compulsory) ... thats when I realise ... numbers are still my best friend ... you see ... the number in your bank account is still most important right ? Accountant still the best ! haha ...

Of course the MOMA makes B & G happy ... esp B ... who is more into "higher level of existence" ...

As for me ... I try to get free tickets into the MOMA ... remember I = accountant ... every cent counts ...
My company has a sponsorship with the MOMA and I was told I can just flash my employee card and can bring I more person in for free ! Of course I am excited ... When they told me ... "maybe the sponsorship is terminated" ... I gave them a shocked look and say "how can that be?!" ... they run around ... cant confirm ... and gave me the benefit of doubt ... haha !

This is ME ... demanding my free tickets !

Errmm ... if you are expecting pictures of the things in the MOMA ... then TOO BAD ! Cannot take pictures inside ... if can take ... who else want to go right ?

After the MOMA itself ...we went to the shop selling MOMA stuff ... the hanging mobile looks kewl ... but when we realised it is like more than SGD 100 ... we decide ... might as well get B to make it ... haha !

How many times can u chiong SF ... Many !

2005-12-05T12:50:00.000-08:00

And the next day ...we continue with our chiong-ing of SF ...

Today we chiong the Chinatown of SF ... which is said to be the biggest Chinatown in US ... not sure zhun or not ... but this is it - Chinatown !

Oh ... before that ...we park the car at this very interesting car park where the parking lot ... each one of them ... has a "fortune cookie" style message ... my car is parked in this lot ...

Well ... back to Chinatown ... as the name implies... it is full of Chinese ... haha! ... it feel rather strange ... like going into another world ... the only place I see so many Chinese is in San Jose ... next time I blog about that ...

And near Chinatown ... there is this Church ... old and nice ... G is more church church type ... so we also went in to take a look ... Hope God will forgive all the sins G has committed ... haha!

We continue our exploration of SF ... and pass by the "Most Crooked Road" in US ... and the steepest, I think ... cars must zig-zag their way through ... I din attempt the feat as I dont want to subject my friends to more danger ... haha !

Next, we quickly quickly rush to the musuem at the Golden Gate Park ... as I mentioned earlier ... sky gets dark at 5.30 PM ... and the days are really short ...

At the front of this De Young Musuem, you will see this crack (something like earthquake kinda) ... the crack runs all the way into the musuem without being interrupted ... wah ... this is art leh ! Or is it not ?

Some of the nice and interesting art work outside the musuem ... too bad the timing was really short ... rush rush ...

We had dinner at SF, I think ... cant remember liao ... haha ... and there ends the SF chiong days ...

The following days ... 5-7 Dec ... I have to work ... so B & G went ahead and revisited Haight-Ashbury area, Coit Tower, etc etc ...

Tourists in SF ...

2005-12-04T12:20:00.000-08:00

With a good night's rest ... coz everything here close so early ... there is really nothing much you can do except to sleep ... and maybe watch Sex and the City for the Nth time ... we are all ready the next day to explore SF ...

Since I am 1 month into SF ... I am the tour guide ... we had breakfast at Wendy's ... remember the one that din make it in Singapore ... hmmm ... they din collapse here ... Cant put any pictures of our breakfast yet coz I dont know how to mosiac out my face and B face and G face ... haha ...

I drive into SF ... We need to go thru the Bay Bridge and pay USD 3 for using the bridge to get into SF ... In here ... they haven satrt the ERP thing in full yet ... they only have a few lanes where there is a ERP type of "di di" money gone machines ... Guess how they collect the USD 3 for each car ? MANUALLY ! There are people standing in the booth just to collect the money ...

When the local garhmen here try to convert more lanes to ERP style ... the people protest ! Say unfair to pay upfront to load the ERP cards ... We Singaporeans are very obedient ... and of course smart and logical ...

The Bay Bridge from SF side ...

Then we went to the Fisherman's Wharf ... actually it is Pier 39 ... some simple shopping area by the sea ... had lunch at the restaurant there ...

Walk around the Pier 39 ... and ... guess what we see ...

Next we went to the area call Haight-Ashbury ... B & G are obsessed with this area because they have some many things they can buy in this area ... vintage clothes, records, Addidas "showroom" ... but this area is deemed as the not-as-safe area in SF ... And of course ... the Shopping Begins !

G in Haight-Ashbury ... the same Gambling God picture ... haha !

Their favourite Addidas shop ... I learnt that this shop sells the not-so-common models ... thats why they so excited ... haha!

This area has a lot of mura paintings on the wall ... aka .. artistic vandalism ... dont know what to say though ... but if I stay there ... PLS DONT PAINT ON MY WALL ! haha !

My car in Haight-Ashbury ... have to constantly look out .. in case someone decide to attempt to drive it away ...

Welcome to San Francisco !

2005-12-02T12:13:00.000-08:00

In the true-blooded Singaporean style ... once B & G reaches my place ... the cheong-ing starts ...

We took the BART (see my earlier post - I dont know how to link yet) ... and go str8 down to SF ... the problem with SF in winter months is that the day end damn early ... by say 5.30 PM ... the place is as dark as 8.30 PM in Singapore ... but that din stop us ... we chiong ... we did a night tour around Union Square ... and came back ... not much nice pictures as it was drizzling ... and cold ... but we took this picture while having tea at Virgin Records ...

December ... an exciting month ...

2005-12-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

B & G's visit to San Francisco was not planned way ahead ... in fact, getting here was a slight problem as most of the airlines are quite fully booked by the time they start booking their tickets ...

The result of this is they have to do extended stopovers in another country ... On one hand, I felt bad that they have to spend so much time travelling here ... and even more time travelling back to Singapore ... On the other hand, I cant wait for them to arrive ...

Due to the changes in flight last minute ... I am unable to take leave for some of the days they are here and they have to explore SF on their own ...

B in stopover country ... if you think I am not telling u all which country they stop over ... then u are wrong ... AND no, no ... B is NOT the the big guy facing the camera ... he is the other guy back facing the camera ... like the Gambling God kinda picture ... only back view ... haha !

But think the stop over was not so bad after all as they get to do a mini tour and enjoy the food there ...

And then the plane flew them into SF ...

Golden Gate Park ...21 Nov 05

2005-11-21T18:49:00.000-08:00

Went to the Golden Gate Park in San Francisco ...

More of a recce trip before B & G come and visit me on 1 Dec ...

Excited ... has been here for 1 month already and really looking forward to have people visit me ... especially good friends ...

Some pictures of Golden Gate Park ...

Spend the next few days planning and anticipating B & G visit ...

First Movie in US - Harry Potter

2005-11-19T18:37:00.000-08:00

Went to meet my Filipino friends in Pleassanton area to watch Harry Potter ...

We ate at the very American place ...

Movies in this part of the country is expensive - USD 9.50 ...and more interestingly ... it is free seating !
Of course, Singaporeans will win la~~ ... when I heard that is is free seating ... my Singaporean instinct tells me to start queuing to get in before the others even start to consider queuing ... but then ... we still didnt managed to be the first few to get in ... [how can we not be the first ... ashamed ... haha]

The show is good ... Harry is getting more adult (I dont mean the porn kinda adult!) ...

Pasta Mania ... I can cook ! - 15 Nov 05

2005-11-15T18:20:00.000-08:00

When the going gets tough ... you just have to cook for yourself ...

I manage to dish out quite a few nice things (accordingly to my very low stds for myself - haha !)

The pasta ... have to boil it with salt for 10-15 mins (thanks to K for this advice) ...

The easier things to cook ... just read the instructions on the packaging ... and switch on the oven ... haha !

The toughest thing ... dont see this 2 pieces of blacky blacky dont know what ... this is actually CHICKEN ... but the process of cooking this created such a mess that till date (I writing this now in Apr 06), I have not attempted to do it again .. haha!

Finished makan already ... this is the final mess I created ... my mum will ban me from the kitchen forever if this happened at home ... for San Francisco ... just have to say Wah Piang ! and start washing ...

The Stinking Rose ... 14 Nov 05

2005-11-14T18:04:00.000-08:00

After a day of super cheong-ing yesterday ... today is much more relaxed ...

We, S, A, K, C and me went to this restaurant in San Francisco ...

The feature of this restaurant is that everything is cooked with GARLIC ...

This is the place ...

The Menu ...

The food is yummy ... though I am not a very big fan of garlic ... but they have 40-cloves garlic chicken !

The dishes were just as good ... we did the lunch Singapore style as well ... share ... haha!

Touring ... Singapore Tour Group Style ... 13 Nov 05

2005-11-13T17:39:00.000-08:00

Today is my first attempt to go on a tourist-type of tour with someof my colleagues ...
Despite the fact that there is only 1 other Singaporean in the group ... the whole trip is very very Singapore tour group style ..

Meaning ... very cheongster style ...

In summary, we visited Gilroy for shopping (discount stores), Monterey Bay, and Carmel ... all in a day !

This entry is significantly shortened as I subsequently went back to Monterey Bay with Good Fren ...

Gilroy : So many shops, Nike, Addidas, Banana Republic, CK, Guess, etc X 100 ... and we actually finished it in like 2 hours !

We did a quick lunch stop at this restuarant at Monterey Bay ...

Some scenery at Monterey Bay ... very nice ... but also very cold ... *shiver ...

The cheong-ing continue and this is Carmel by the Sea ...

The cheong-ing really tire us out ... and we did not manage to leave the last destination before it gets dark ... in the winter months ... the sky gets dark at like 5.30 PM ... can u believe it ? Or maybe I sua ku ... haha !

We got a bit lost ... run here and there a bit ... but finally managed to reach home !

One important thing I learnt today is :

See the buttons on the left hand side of the steering wheel ... those are for Cruise Control ! U just need to press one of the button and the car will continue to move at the same speed without the need to step on the accelerator ... wah !!!

Buying Groceries ... 10 Nov

2005-11-10T17:13:00.000-08:00

Getting started in another country is not easy for a single guy like me ... ...
Today I was shown to the world of Gigantic Grocery Shopping ... you see, in the US, there is a Bigger-Than-Giant type of store where everything you buy is meant to be used for the next 6-12 months !

Pasta sauce are sold in pack of 3 bottles, toilet paper sold in 48 rolls !!!

This is the result of my purchases :

And of course the night ended late ... I end up having to whip up a pathetic meal ... never had I need the mircowave more than now !

Meals in SF ... you just have to create 'em ... Nov 05

2005-11-07T10:37:00.000-08:00

Coming from a non-cooking background (ie I never need to cook in SG), it is indeed very tough for a single man to survive in US. After learning from my very kind colleague K, who showed me where to get all the chinese stuff and the ang mo stuff ... I managed to embark on a string of coooking ...

Had to call home once to ask Mum how much water to add to rice ... but by the first 2 weeks of coming over ... I managed to dish out nicely microwaved, oven-baked food ... haha !

There are just so many things that comes in microwave-able form ... from Fish and Chips to Siu Mai ...

These are some of my creations ...
The initial creations are simple ... just some instant noodles with luncheon meat ... but cooking the luncheon meat without the wok (have to bake it in oven) is also not easy wor ...

Then thanks to my colleague A.D. who brought me to CostCo to get those Fish & Chips (only the Fish) ... makes my meal much better ... from then I start to love the Fish ... of course the Siu Mai u see here is microwaved ...

As my culinary skills improved ... I embarked on more complex things like the pasta ! And it is not just plain pasta ok? It has ham in it ...

The black thing u see on the left ... thats grilled chicken - NOT microwaved ... cooked from raw chicken ... but of course .. the mess I create at the kitchen discouraged me from embarking on the "raw chicken" dish ... thanks to my colleague K who gave me the receipe on how to handle the chicken and how to do pasta ...

Ok .. ok ... too much ang mo stuff liao ... I begin to dish out Wanton Noodles ...

As you may have noticed ... I am quite paranoid about not having enough food on the table ... so every meal I embark on cooking ... seems to be a bit too much for ONE person ...

[The first few meals I cook for myself in Nov 05]

First Trip to San Francisco ... 6th Nov

2005-11-06T20:57:00.000-08:00

My first trip to San Francisco ...
Took the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) something like our MRT ...

A map of the SF MRT. Look at the photo of their ticketing system ... very the same as ours wor ...
But the BART os no cheap ... cost about USD 4 plus to travel from my place to SF ...
So 2-way trip will cost about USD 9 plus ... SGD 15-16 ....

This is one of the symbolic building in SF (below), the pointed one ... but dont know what is the name ... my colleagues say this building appear in many movies ...

The first place we went is Chinatown ... walked walked walked ... wah piang ... the place is very very hilly ... good exercise ...
Then we spotted something familiar ... it looks like a Food Court ! There is Food Court in SF ??!! Then realise that they even have mix rice !!!

So ... this is my first meal in SF .. Chup Chai Rice ...

My first few day in US ...

2005-11-03T09:39:00.000-08:00

I left Singapore on 31 Oct 2005 ... 5 plus PM ... aboard SQ Biz Class ...

Arrived in California, SFO ... also on 31 Oct ... also about 5 plus PM ...
So nice ... like earned time ... haha ..

A thought came to my mind when the plane is landing ... if we continue flying ... does it mean we will always be at 31 Oct ... 5 plus PM ?? haha ...

Arrived at SFO ... company limo sent me to my apt and "dumped" me there ... the agent came and ran thru the apt at gave me a list of the amenities nearby ... and told me most things can be found on the internet ... my car is parked in the garage ...

But guess what ?? I CANT DRIVE HERE !!! US is left hand drive ... and there is NO INTERNET connection at that time ..
I was left stranded at "home" ... scared ...

Pictures of my "home" and car ...

My first try at writing a blog ...

2005-11-02T08:24:00.000-08:00

Hello to whoever is reading this ... [I changed the date of this post ... originally I created the blog on 2 Jan]

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!

Thanks for visiting ... this is my first try ... more will be coming ...

I have recently been posted to work in US, California, San Francisco area on 31 Oct 2005 ...

Thus thought I might as blog this experience to share with all my friends and family ...

Will be back in Asia in July 2006 ...