it's already 2020???

anyways thanks for still visiting... I'm busy with life as it is but i still appreciate the visits...take care guys and girls, and hope your 2020 is going well so far. Cheers and i wish you all happy...like Gordon here *image off internet

Just Phuket it...honeymoon trip

Life's a beach

#38

Grateful for another birthday...

Bkk-Korea August trip food adventures...

 My food & beverage adventures during my Bangkok-Korea trip in August...enjoy!!!

Itaewon Korea 10-12 Aug work trip...

my first time in South Korea for work trip...this is the view from my 6th floor hotel room...thats Yongsan-gu district you see with the popular Itaewon shopping+bar area below...enjoy my pictorial post of Itaewon!!!

Food adventures...

my food safari during my recent Singapore work trip...sorry ah non-Halal post.

Makan-makan...

生日

Thank you to my missus...<3<3<3

Xmas in Miri...

hp pics randoms...

Been really busy with work etc lately...here are some snapshots from my Nokia E63 cellphone camera...

Had to host a German guests coming in to have a meeting with the boss last week...i don't mind cos i get to eat GOOD & stay out of the office to take him sight seeing...had an awesome late lunch that day together with the boss...syok...and for dinner we had Thai food *yumm.

our starter for late lunch @Villa Mauri in Muara...vege pizza & beef carpaccio...

...my boss & our German guest had the famous lamb shank but i decided to have the rib eye steak instead...

medium rare please...oh and the mashed potatoes WERE TO DIE FOR -_-.*

...the huge desert ice cream...2 scoops...couldn't finish...so sad...

also had a 2 nights in a row leadership course..it was alright cos the lecturer/trainer was damn funny and he really clicked on a lot of light-bulbs in my head...thank you Steven...oh ya dinner was served too so freebie food is always a plus...hey I'm human ok?

yes its that time of the year again...but in Brunei you'll only see Xmas decor in hotels...

brought the German guy to visit the mosque in town and walked about Kg Air (water village)...was cool...

snapshots of the recent outdoor dining lately with family & loved one in BsB,KB and Miri...all the work & heavy schedule lately just makes one want to eat,eat and eat some more...what else then?

Miri Raya weekend daytrip 11.9.2010'

Miri town from Parksons upper parking...taken with my cellphone cam*

day-trip from a couple of weekends ago during the Raya (Eid Fitri) weekend holidays...it was either go to the Istana(palace) for Open House or Miri...from my place its less then an hour during normal traffic but we don't go that often even-though you get great currency exchange Bnd$1=Rm$2.2+...don't be fooled...you always end up spending more then you need to BUT the food is always cheap but great.

*cellphone cam

8 out of 10 times i always come here for lunch...roasted duck/char siew rice open air restaurant located near the 2020 cafe in Pelita commercial centre...near where the main pubs/clubbing areas. Damn damn cheap but great stuff...not as great eaten after-wards if you take-away...gotta eat on the spot right after they chop it up.

we always order a plate of this...stir fried 'meeding'(?) or 'pakis' with baby shrimps...its a fern type of vegetables which grows wild on the highway heading into Miri town...you can often see people just picking the stuff off the road sides on a daily basis...great stuff...not available in Brunei or the mainland West Malaysia...odd.

had this kolo-mee at one of the many residential food-stalls opposite E-mart on the way home...not great but ok.

still no Singha Thai beer...so got this to try out...Miller draft beer...and yes you can bring in a limited amount of alcohol/beer into Brunei only for non-Muslims...just fill out a yellow declaration form at the customs on the way back...

*cellphone cam

Parksons...always crowded and always traffic jammed but the upper building parking makes it easier nowadays...

*cellphone cam

old-town or 'lau par sat'...mum always likes coming here to buy cheap supplies such as incense etc for the house prayer-altar.

*cellphone cam

We always make effort to pray here...the old temple in town...gives me a sense of well being.

*cellphone cam

Monkey prince *my 5 year old nephew certainly likes these day-trips. No-no toys haul...broke -_-."

Grazie Mauri

first starter: Squid Salad 4.5/5 yummers score (me BIG salads FAN)

second starter: Beef Carpaccio 4/5 yummers score

first main course: Mixed Seafood Spaghetti 4.8/5 yummers score

second main course: Chicken & Pineapple Pizza 3.9/5 yummers score-bit bland :(

Desert: Strawberry Ice Cream with assorted sliced fruits 3.5/5 *meh...

obviously refurbished as i remember Sushi Tei had a really claustrophobic & stale feel...atmosphere score 4/5 didn't like that the loo was upstairs & climbing up those stairs with a heavy full stomach was daunting...

the new Grazie Mauri @the former Sushi Tei in Gadong (opposite Pizza Hutt Gadong)...$20 'all you can eat' Ramadhan menu...pretty good value for money as i said...as long as you finish all the food on your plate you can order whatever is on the menu-we even had a serving of Fresh Fish Fillet served with lemon butter sauce but that was a bit salty so 3/5 yummers score for the fish.

the promotion goes on until Raya me thinks...anyways if you wanna try out the many Sungkai (breaking of fast) promotions going on at the moment...give this a try simply for the great money for value.

I'm not a food blogger nor do i want to claim to be one but i LOVE yummy food so for a more 'professional' local look at Grazie Mauri click here.

And a shout out to Amy...thanks for the photoshop actions :p

ps:all shots using flash off night mode on my Nokia E63...cos i don't carry my Cybershot everywhere ok?

農曆新年

...decoration at work...

probably the MOST important part of CNY is the reunion dinner on the eve,no matter what you did or where you were if your a true blue blooded Chinese you dropped whatever you were doing to come home for this dinner as a sign of piety,respect and love for your family and especially for your parents. whether its a lavish spread or just a simple one its sitting down together as a family to eat together,if we lose that then our way of life is missing something important.
Note to self-packed on a least a few kg in first week alone.

thanks mom for another great Reunion Dinner,dad would have enjoyed it as usual.

...midnight in Seria...its magical as any area with Chinese people will light up fireworks & firecrackers as the clock approaches 12am...in Brunei we are now allowed to 'play' firecrackers/fireworks with own safety and responsibility in mind,on this night you can literally see people burning their $$$ up in flames as some of these big fireworks cost a lot.

...one of the best things about CNY day#1 is waking up to the sound of lion dance drums & firecrackers...the house next door always book lion dance to come bless the house. I'm grateful to the government of His Majesty for recently allowing again lion dance in public & to go from house to house for these activities. Believe it or not many years ago such things were banned(?) and CNY atmosphere in Brunei was very quiet & dull but in actual fact i believe the local Malays really like these lion dance as well cos its unique,colorful and something exciting.

my old Nike is busted up with the heel pads gone liao so i needed new sneakers for my regular hikes after work so I've been wanting a pair of classic look Adidas for a long time now and there were some pretty good offers at Hua Ho Yayasan,i've really grown into these and i now realize why these style of sneakers are so popular-I'm now a converted Adidas sneakers fan LoL. Anyways also CNY tradition is to wear something new during the celebration.

Baby girl Ke$ha doesn't like em though and showed it :(

...these were taken at the Seri area at one of the kopitiam restaurants where i usually have my work lunches,i like the red lion.

Chap Goh Mei (Hokkien means 15th night) will be on Sunday 28th Feb...last night of CNY 2010...another CNY come & gone just like that...sigh how time flies.