How to Accomplish the Impossible

A great article I read this morning: How to Accomplish the Impossible| Genius sometimes just means not realizing something is impossible.

Family Visiting Me

My whole family except my sister visited me the past weekend. But too bad, it rained for the wholly two days, and constrained our effort of painting the town red.

I didn't know there is elephant parade until my youngest sister told me she read that on plane. It is not only at VivoCity but also Merlion Park. 

one of the many elephants at VivoCity

We spent quite a few hours in Sentosa.

From visiting Universal Studio,

Lake of dreams

Christmas aura is covering the town

to Marine Musuem,

Restaurant outside marine museum

Good jump!

to riding tram viewing all the white-sand beaches.

After that, we went home for a small rest, and made our way to Marina Bay Sand to enjoy the Wonder Full Light Performance.

 

We did not manage to spend our Sunday fruitfully but was hiding away from rain in Chinese Garden for hours while chatting from skies to earth..

I never knew that there is such a nice garden in Singapore featuring two styles of garden, namely Japanese and Chinese. We only managed to visit Japanese Garden before it rained cats and dogs.

entrance of Chinese Garden

Some nice scene for couple to take wedding pictures.

I think my family has to visit me again to really have good round of sight-seeing. :)

My New Assistant

 How does his resume look? Convincing? *grin*

Vostro 3550 direct base
T520352MY-Dell? Vostro? 3550
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Mille Crepe

It is so lucky for me that within 1.5 months of joining the new company, I had two times of outing. One was company's team-building at Sentosa and another one is department team-building at Malacca. I get to blend with my colleagues better within such a short time frame. 

Most importantly, during the Malacca trip, I got to try something very special and I wouldn't forget for the rest of my life. It is Mille Crepe aka thousand layer cake at Pahlawan Square. You may laugh at me that it is so common yet I never try. Yes, I never ate this before! I couldn't forget layer by layer of the cake melting literally in my mouth and seeping into my taste-bud. 

Original flavour

Final One Week Before Singapore

My colleagues had a so-called farewell trip with me one weekend before my move to Singapore.. 

We kicked off our journey early in the wee hours. Practically trip nowadays is nothing more than food sampling trip! 

We filled up our stomach in the morning in dim sum in Ipoh.

Yoke Fock Moon beside the famous Foo San.
Heard that this is better than Foo San

The never-missed order!

I feel that the Lau Sa Pao in Jin Xuan (in Uptown) is nicer

And to my surprise, our food sampling didn't end here. We continued enjoying Ipoh White Coffee,

It serves very aromatic coffee.
But the shop right in front of it serves even nicer and thicker coffee.

The must-try in Ipoh!

and famous Tao Foo Fa at Funny Mountain, 

 

Soft and smooth

 until Rachel complained if our trip is to Cameron Highlands or Ipoh! 

We then only made our way to the top. Along the way, of course, it was not without laughter. And everyone of us reached the tip top in one piece, nobody puked or fainted with pale face.

After we checked in our apartment to settle ourselves and the food we brought from KL for steamboat, we headed to Boh Tea Farm. I never know the way to the farm is so narrow and winding. It is practically just sufficient for one car on the single-path. And we have to be extraordinarily cautious to avoid and give way to the car against our direction. We took a lot of pictures there,

The BOH Tea sign always marks one's foot on Cameron Highlands

and enjoyed our hi-tea with breathtaking tea bushes surrounding us. 

Each of us yearned for that moment to last as it was really relaxing.

We really need to slow down at times in life
to wind ourselves down. It is so rejuvenating!

We then visited a cactus farm to buy some cactus back to office, mainly for two reasons. One is to live up our monotonous office. And another is to let the cactus suck up a bit of the radiation from the computers around! 

Soon it was dusk. We went back to the apartment to rest, to shower, to watch TV, to play cards and to prepare for dinner! Never know that guys nowadays are good in cooking as well! They can wash vege, cut vege, boil soup, wash dishes properly and well! 

At night, guys were having drink while we gals were having our pillow-talk until the guys invaded our territory to invite us for drink.

The seemingly a must thing for chatting for adults in this age.

After that, we pranked on one of the colleague to make him dance and we laughed out loud! Soon it was midnight, some went to sleep, some continued to play cards. The next day, we had Alicia to cook us breakfast! Everyone was so lazy to give her a hand. *felt bad* 

We then drove down the mountain to try food at the famous hawker stalls in Ipoh. 

Red bean

But the food for me is not very impressive. Yet, always the memory outweighs everything. We had some good laughter there.

When we thought that we were so full and all we wanted is to drive all the way back KL, Beng Hui gave us a call asking us to exit at Sungkai to eat pork leg! At that time, everyone was so reluctant to take up the spoon and fork, until he cut the meat to each of us!

 Famous pork leg at Sungkai

We then reached KL at around nine, and after some Facebook browsing, everyone went to bed early to get ready for work the next day. 

Few days after, we had our one last dinner before I really focused tidying up and throwing away my things. It was really a precious meal we ever had.

It is really a fond memory that etches on my heart. This bunch of whacky friends are my one-year-old-met colleagues. But we are blended as one! If I were to say the thing I miss the most in KL, I would say it is this priceless friendship we build.

2nd Last Week Before Singapore

I went back home 2 weeks before Singapore! The home always embrace me with warmth and love.

My mom is younger and prettier than me.
I'm always asked if we are siblings :(

This is the time mom cooked the least when I go home. I don't want her to be too busy and tired. We started the morning of Saturday with dim sum.

some snapshots of the dim sum we ate and like

For brunch, we ate asam laksa, the one which is the most famous in my hometown now. After that Alvin and I went to his house for lunch of curry chicken (his mom's mastered dish)!

I then came back home, having some tête-à-tête with mom and dad. Dad is always a cool and nothing-is-wrong type, but mom is more to the fragile and full of worries of us type.. Couple should always complement each other I guess XD. Dinner time, my sis was out for serving at St Anne as a scout, dad was out with dinner with his friends, my bro, mom and I then went to eat the ever best Pork Noodle nearby my house.

Drooling?
with my perverted polite bro
mom banned me from uploading her picture here

I then rushed to meet up with my old friends since primary school! The chat was more to work and relationship. *grin* Felt funny as time creeps by, the topic is evolving too.

Pictures were taken by XY's dad..
All our parents are retirees/retiring..
does that signify we're grown-ups now? *sob sob*

On Sunday, I spent the day lazying at home with my family, chatting, watching TVB series and getting my hair permed and dyed. My mom always critized me of my rugged look. So to keep her from nagging, I finally tidied up myself a bit. :)

Then came the dinner time, I insisted to treat my family for dinner, but at the end, still dad paid. :(

Camera-shy dad was still unwilling to take pictures with us.

my perverted bro insisted portrait pic should be big,
so this looks like a passport pic

Then came Monday, after lunch, and bidding farewell with mom and dad, I headed back KL for work. It was the time like the first time I went PJ to further my studies. It was so hard yet have to say good-bye. Though I have been away from home for studies and work for quite some time, but doubling the distance now is like doubling the feeling of letting go.

Guess that my mom should be more relieved now as I move from the more dangerous KL to the safer Singapore :)

3rd Last Week before Singapore

For the 3rd week, I met up with my foundation besties. Again, we talked non-stop whenever we bumped together. From the very last time, we talked about homework; then during university time we talked about graduation; then during the final semester we talked about finding job; then now we talked about things at work. They are the friends who evolve and grow together with me.

Clockwise from the left: Onn Sein, Foong Kheng, Kelvin, me, and Alvin

I really wish them the best in their first job. And not to forget the dinner they treated me. It was really nice and special to me, the Korean-styled seafood rice.

The food recommended if you ever dine in Kim Gary Restaurant.

But beware, you need at least an hour to finish it,
it is sizzling hot!

On Sunday, Alvin, Beng Hui, Alicia and I visited Yee Voon at Serdang. She baked us some cheese tarts. They are the best cheese tarts I ever eat. The cheese was enriched and the tart was just beyond words. After that, we headed to try the well-known dishes in Serdang - Spicy Soup and Flower Wine Chicken.

Spicy Soup,
practically it is not spicy but more to hot of pepper

The must-tries in Serdang!

We then spent our day at The Mines with a movie of Harry Potter and dinner of pan mee.

Beng Hui also recommended us a very exciting new gadget - Samsung Galaxy II, which he and Alvin bought it 2 weeks after that.

Thanks Yee Voon for the effort she dedicated especially to us for the tarts :)