Last Post In Malaysia

Sigh.. I can't believe this. My three months of summer holidays is over and I'm leaving for US next Tuesday. Being back in Malaysia has really been wonderful. I have grown to appreciate things that I have taken for granted 20 years of my life. Of course the most important thing is the food but everything else that makes Malaysia my home is something that I know I will never get in other countries.

But I think being in US for almost a year has also made me have feelings for that country too. I don't really know if I can call it my home but I know there's a tiny part in me that kinda misses California too. I have been kinda dreading to go back to US for the past month also. Every time I think about me returning back there, leaving my home Malaysia, it breaks my heart. Every meal I take I'll have to think, "is this the last time I'll be eating this?" "Will I still have any opportunity to come back to this place again?" But after being here for three months, I'm kinda ready to go back to US now.

The hardest thing is leaving Cody though. Sigh.. long distance relationship sucks!!! How do one bear not seeing, touching, smelling or feeling someone that you love for such a long period of time?

Sigh.. own dream versus love.

Why can't one have all?

Bye bye Malaysia

Sex and the City-The awesome Movie!

*spoilers ahead. Venture at ur own risk. Don't say I didn't warn you..*


Oh my god... I can't believe I have finally watched the movie!!! Wooohoo.. after searching online for the perfect clear torrent file, I finally succeeded in downloading it. I knew I didn't want to watch it in Malaysia because I didn't want the censored version.




We all know how much Malaysia censor its movie! Even kissing is a no-no and we're talking about sex and the city here! Did u think it will be clean and pure?

And boy was I glad I didn't watch it in the cinemas. Wahahaha.. I came back to Malaysia before it starting showing in California so I didn't have the chance to watch it there. Even so though, I don't think I will feel comfortable seeing nude scenes with my girlfriends in the movie theaters. If you are a big fan of SATC like me, you will know that the stuff that they discuss in their series are always sex oriented so if they're gonna make a movie, I'm sure they will not sacrifice the one thing that made their show popular, which are sex scenes.

I watched it alone in the middle of the night when everyone was sleeping. It was much more fun doing there. Hehe.. laughing by myself with their jokes. Don't call me a perverted though. =P They actually showed a small peep of a hot Latino package!!!

Wahahaha...

Though I love the show tones, if you're not a fan of the show, I don't think you'll like it. Its basically an "ending" to the series. It starts with a little summary of the past 6 seasons. 5 years has passed and each of the character has grown from where we left them. I didn't really felt like I was watching a movie though, it was just like watching a super long version of their normal 30 minute series. Though it was really nice to see them again after the season finale. You can't help loving these 4 characters and treating them like good friends!

Yup.. somebody is getting married!!!



For the umpteenth time!

The front part was pretty boring. Even for a fan like me. I was wondering when was the climax gonna come. Was there no story line for this show? I think they spent a little too long building up the story. But after the climax, it was interesting. Lots of laugh and tears. Not to mention some hot steamy sex scenes. =)

For all the SATC fans out there.. Have you ever seen Carrie Bradshaw naked? Because come to think of it, all 3 of the characters besides Carrie has been naked before. What about Carrie because I cannot remember seeing her bare it all before. Is it because she's a higher celebrity than the others?

The story line is pretty good though besides the slow build-up. I like how they discussed some reality issues in the movie like "what exactly is marriage?" Do you think just because you're married you don't have to look after your appearances anymore? Do you forgive someone who cheated on you for ONE time and is totally devastated for his/hers action? Is there such thing as "meaningless sex?"

It did make me ponder for a while though. Not to mention the overemphasis on "finding love." They make it sound soo scary. That finding love is the ultimate objective of a woman's life. If you're not married by the age of 40, you're doomed for eternal loneliness.

I guess that's why they have Samantha as a character though. Prove that its okay for a woman to have different sexual experience every other day and be successful at the same time. Basically like a man.

I can't really decide who's my favorite character. I love Charlotte because she's kinda like me. A hopeless romantic. But at the same time, I don't think love conquers all. I still believe in the woman having her own dreams and life too. Though I guess its not wrong if your ultimate dream in life is to marry a wonderful man and have beautiful children.




I guess Charlotte is the perfect model for that.

I love the scene where she hugged Carrie and protected her fiercely from stupid useless Mr.Big. Galfriends are your life!!! And the part where she cursed Mr.Big and pop her balloon. Hehe..

I don't really agree with Miranda too. She's a bit too strong minded for my liking. Always career career and career! What about having fun and loving life? And the way she treats Steve? Poor Steve! =.=

She can be surprisingly hot if she wants to though..

I don't really know what character Carrie plays. She's always hopping from one relationship to the other but always pining for the infamous Mr.Big.




I still can't forgive her for dumping the perfect Aidan. Yup.. I still prefer Aidan any day!

Sigh.. remember him?
They were ALMOST married!

Stupid Carrie.

Her choice of clothes are always fun to watch though!

And her craze for shoes? >.<

I can never understand that. Only woman themselves look at other woman's shoes. Men just can't be bothered looking down at women's shoes. Though I think I don't really have any right to say anything seeing that I just bought 14 tops in 3 days!

Samantha is one interesting character. One that I love to read and watch but don't think I can ever be.

Don't you just lurve her hat?


She goes for plastic surgery, has sex with random guys every other day and wears killer dresses all the time! One thing though, I would love to be able to get into VIP clubs and restaurants with a flick of my hand. Ah.. the sex education we get from Samantha..

And her "falls" once in a while! =P

I'm definitely going to miss this series though. I have to admit I have learned sooo much from this show. From "the rabbit" to gay sex.. Sex and the City is the best guide to sex! I recommend it to any innocent young girls wanting to know more about the forbidden word "sex!"




Boy am I gonna miss them..

New York here I come!!!

Ok.. I don't know whether its right for me to say this but isn't it every girl's dream to one day live in New York? The Big Apple, the land of Sex and the City, the city that never sleeps.. Sigh.. i wanna go there someday too..

I think its not that hard for me to achieve actually. My internship officer actually arranges summer internships for us in New York if we want to. The problem is finding a place to stay of course. We all know how expensive it is to find a place to stay in downtown Manhattan, having movers New York help you with all your needs and stuff. Of course a student like me wouldn't need one, just a simple small one room apartment will do. All I want is to walk on the streets of New York, being a real New Yorker.

What do you say? Do you think I have what it takes?

Adult acne

People always say that acne only occur to young people with ranging hormones, like teenagers and once you past the age of 19, you feel relieve that you'll never have to have those volcanic little round stuff growing on your face.

Nobody ever told you acne doesn't end there, that there's such thing as adult acne and it can be as bad as those you find on a 15 year old face. Stress, hormones imbalance all cause adult acne and it can be a terrible experience for a pretty young wife or a jet setter, anyone for that matter. Although I guess its not that bad because most of the time, adults already have enough money to go for acne treatment. It can still be a traumatic experience though, one that I myself hope I will never need to experience.

I can't stop shopping!

I...... need... to.... go.... shopping......

AH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Princess... Shin... can't... go... shopping... a..n..y..m..o..r..e...

Help me guys!!! I really can't do any shopping anymore! I don't have any pictures to show you guys but..

Just the week before I came to Vietnam. Me and Cody went around to Sg.Wang, Sunway Pyramid, and The Curve. And you know how many tops I bought? In just that 3 days, I bought 14 tops!!!! And 3 pairs of shoes!!!!!!!

That's only that 3 days.

What about when I first came back? When I was in Vietnam in June?

I don't even want to count anymore. Its just tooo scary to think. And I only have 2 suitcases! How am I gonna fit everything inside? =.=

I told myself that I have had enough of shopping. I wont shop anymore till I go back to US. Coz I really don't think I can fit everything inside my luggages. Even with I have a max of 23 kg per bag for 2 bags to US compared to one check in bag of 23kg for other countries. BUT..

I discovered this website!!! I din know Cats whiskers has a website too!!!! And I absolutely love Cats whiskers. Besides the random boutiques in Bangsar, Cats whiskers is one of my favorite boutique to shop! And who can say no to sales?

I like the pink top top left

They have 20% on all new items!!!! Can you believe that? I know I know if you're not a shopoholic like me you wont have any feeling hearing that. But.. sigh.. I'm a hopeless shopoholic! And Malaysia is now having their Mega sale. Do you know how great is that?

Sigh.. I love Malaysia. I love Kuala Lumpur. I love Bangsar. I love Sunway Pyramid. And I LOVE Sg.Wang., Pavillion, Curve, One Utama.. Sigh..

Did I miss anything?

Thank goodness I'm not talking about crazy big brands like Dolce and Gabana, Gucci, Coach, Jimmy Choo YET!!! Or else I'll be disown by my family already..

Do you think there's such thing as a rehab for shopoholics like me? I think I'm a little too overboard when it comes to sopping. I can't help it.. >.< Boohooo... I think I need to admit myself to one of those places!

Anyone any suggestions on what I should do? =(

Webhosting

I don't know if you guys remember but there was a time where I wanted to get my own domain. I actually did eventually get one. Cherries-and-blossoms.com. But I think the novelty of it went off and I didn't want to start a blog right from the beginning again so I gave it up.

The hassle was too much for me. Slowly telling the everyone that I have changed my address, building my readership from scratch.. I was just too lazy to do that.

However, I remember it took me quite some time to make the decision. Because having your own domain was not free, I had to make sure that I chose the most suitable webhost to do the job. Websites with hosting ratings are definitely a good source of information. I didn't really understand the whole difference between having a domain and finding a server to host it. I basically paid for USD 15 for my own .com website and used it in blogspot. But as I mentioned just now, I gave up after a while.

Kinda sad though. Thinking of my USD15 down the drain. But ah well, it had to be renewed after a year anyway so..

There are many pros though if you have your own domain. The main thing being you can earn more money with your blog because most advertising companies prefer .com blogs rather than with the irritating wordpress or blogspot on your blog address.

So its your decision to make though, whether it is to have your own domain or not. However if you're just starting and thinking of being serious with blogging, then you should go straight to having your own domain.

Vietnam Beef Noodles

Being in Ho Chi Minh for almost a month has made me fallen in love with their "national" food. I'm sure everyone knows what Vietnam is popular for. Besides its spring roll and French bread, Vietnam is also most popular for its beef noodles, which is known as "pho", pronounced "fur" with a down accent.

This is in Phumingham

This store is in the city itself.. Different right?


Cooking for you too see!




Different kind of beef and veggies!

With my mum being so fussy with Vietnamese food, the only place that I'm allowed to venture is the famous chain store, "Pho 24". Ho Chi Minh is full of this kinda chain stores which are differentiated with numbers! I'm not sure how many different stores they have but both Pho 24 and Pho 2000 are the popular ones. Ones that suit my "high class" mum. She's super paranoid with the food here. Even after living here for almost a year, my mum still makes sure we don't eat any street food for fear of food poisoning. I hate it though, how else are you gonna truly taste the culture of that country if you don't eat their street food?

It clean right?

Its like eating the "Chicken Rice Store" in Midvalley and not touching the real authentic chicken rice in those hawker stalls!

But ah well.. no point arguing with her. I shall venture out myself next time if I have the opportunity.

For the time being though, Pho 24 is sufficient enough to have a taste on what Vietnamese beef noodles taste like. At least its from Vietnam itself and not those from California. >.< Terrible!



I really like their noodles though. Its half way between Kuew Tiao and Mee Hoon. To put it simple, its a little bit thinner than our normal Kuew Tiao, also known as Ho Fun. I tell you, we Asians are fantastic in making noodles. We have soo many kinds of different noodles that I myself get confuse trying to explain to a fellow foreigner what our noodles are!

One thing about Pho 24 is that its clean. And their menu has English translation. It seems that its even opening branches in Singapore too. I wonder when they're coming to Malaysia.

They have all kinds of beef. Beef fillet, beef flanks.. I don't really know the difference myself. All I know is beef fillet is solid meat and beef flanks has a bit of fat in it. Me like! =)

Beef flanks!

They will serve with a plate of raw vegetables which includes various weird leaves and bean sprout. I only like their bean sprout. My mum always try and ask them to cook it for a while to make it softer, if she succeeds in communicating with them.

Its kinda funny communicating with them. Their "England" is as good as my Vietnamese, which is not existing at all. So you can imagine how we communicate. All I can say is.. one needs A LOT of patience to succeed!

One thing I love about Vietnam is their abundance of chili! Oh my god.. their chili is absolutely fabulous!!! Super spicy! For my noodles, I love putting a lot of pepper and a 3 or 4 chilis inside. Just soaking it inside is enough to make me fly up the ceiling.. I don't even have to eat it.. And I can tell you for sure that I can eat spicy food!

Oooh.. I'm gonna miss this the most when I go back to California.

Malaysia's stationary is still the BEST!

I'm going to go back to Malaysia next Monday and there's going to be a lot of last minute shopping for me to do. Besides the usual "Maggi mee"(lots!), and "chilli" (if I succeed in smuggling it in), not to mention those some Chinese medicines, I know I still need to get some stationaries.

I know I know its US we're talking about and not some deserted country in the Antarctic but I still prefer the stationary in Malaysia. I remember asking Cody to send me 2 Faber Castell highlighters for me during my winter holidays because I don't like using other highlighters. I don't like the office supplies in US because everything comes in a bulk. You want a ball point? Sure. Get 12 of them! Want A highlighter? Sure..! Either get all 12 different colors or 12 of the same colors! They don't have stationary shops like Popular which lets you try each and every pen of theirs until you're satisfied. Over there in US, you shop in either Wal-mart or Target and everything is seal tight!

I'm super fussy when it comes to stationary. If I don't have a pen or a mechanical pencil that I like, well.. I rather not write. Maybe that's why my mechanical pencil has been with me since I was 12! Because that's the only one that I like.

Now.. All I have to do is figure out what other stuff I need which I cant get in US. Any help guys?

Internet is part of our life now..

Ever imagine life without internet? For city people like us.. I don't think so. I can't even remember the last time I went to a dictionary to find an unknown word or remain clueless about something because I didn't know where to get the answer.

Cody actually told me that I treat Google as the source of all life's questions!

Well.. its true! Google can answer all life's question! Well.. Almost.

The internet is so ingrained into our lives that I really can't imagine a week going by without logging myself into the World Wide Web. Can you?

Unfortunately though, I only know how to use the internet. Not connect it nor fix it. Give me a laptop with a build in modem and I'm done. Tell me stuff like HDMI splitter, wireless ports, firewalls, cables and stuff and I'll be drifting off to Mars for a nice out of space drink.

I can't imagine the day when my laptop crashes *touch ten-thousand woods* because of my naughtiness in downloading illegal stuff. That will be the day I'm doomed!!!

Let's hope it'll never ever ever ever happen!

Feeling the blues..

Princess Shin is emo and confused now..

What is love? Why must two people to be together? What does it mean to be in a relationship? Is love eternal? Or is it just a passing phrase? Is there such thing as soul mate, one person in the whole world that fits you? Or can you fall in and out of love easily?

4 and a half years.

What does that mean to you?

Kuala Lumpur the shopping paradise

My mum is starting to have second thoughts about wanting me to come back next year for the summer holiday! The amount of money that I have spent shopping is dangerously scary! I'm shopping like crazy in both Vietnam and Malaysia! Can you imagine that?

I'm going crazy over the "lala" (Japanese/Korean styles) style nowadays. And though I tell myself the shopping that I'm doing now will last me for the whole year, I know that I'll still shop when I go back to US. Who can say no to Victoria Secret sale? Or Forever 21 sale? Or even Old Navy? I'm not even walking into the Forever 21 in Malaysia because I know the prices are absolutely higher in Malaysia. I'm concentrating on shops in Sg.Wang and Sunway Pyramid!

Undoubtedly though, US has also many places to shop! The best day to shop, according to the Americans is Black Friday, which is the day after Thanksgiving! People camp outside stores just to be there when the store opens at 5am in the morning. And the stuff can be crazily cheap! Especially for the gadgets savvy people where these gadgets can be super cheap! There's like BestBuy deals, Circuit City specials, or Office Max ads to choose from! Its crazy! The prices are sooo low compared to everyday prices!

My goodness.. Kuala Lumpur is undoubtedly a shopping paradise!!! And the best part is that is cheap!!!! I have spent more than USD 500 for the past 3 months just on clothes!!! And I have no idea how to fit everything inside my bag, even though its already considered huge. >.< Cyber monday ads is a great site to be the first few to know the best places to get fantastic offers on that crazy day after thanksgiving!

I need to see a shrink! =(

Jumping into the Wagon

My brother has recently taken the interest of blogging. He has been asking me so many questions lately on how best to attract readers, how to make his blog popular and all that and do you know what is his main reason for starting this?

Nope.. not to release his bubbling emotions or to explore the joy of blogging but.. yup you guessed it right, to earn money!

I guess he heard me talking about earning money too many times that he wanted to try doing it himself too! He's after all a 15 year old that thinks that money is the answer to everything. Not that money comes hard for him. He's writing a blog about anime stuff. The thing he knows best about. He has watched over 100 animes and thinks thats the most appropriate thing for him to blog about. I don't mind though, just as long as he continues with it. I would really liked to see my little brother's masterpiece once in a while. =)

Blogging is such a big thing nowadays. When I joined those ads companies and they ask me what category my blog is in, I always don't know what to put. Is mine entertainment? Traveling? Food? No..! Its a little of everything! But what category does that put me in?

Sometimes I feel that having a more focused blog is better than my kinda blog which is about everything and anything. If u have a blog like Ravi's which is about linux, opensource and everything concerning the squarish thing you're staring at now, chances are you will have a higher opportunity to get more ads. ubuntu rocks by the way! And if you're a MP blogging about the latest political scandal.. well.. you'll be even more popular then..!



Blogs like me..

What do you think is the best topic to blog about?

Different Minimum Wages

My family and I went to the BBQ Garden yesterday for dinner. It was kinda nice place actually. Open air surrounding with Bossa Nova music. They were many expatriates there and their menu was both in English and Vietnamese. I must say their presentation was very good because the pictures in their menu was really mouth watering.

They had beef skews, lamb skews, spicy chicken skews, beef wrap with cheese (my absolute favorite though I didn't order it coz no one in my family eats cheese!). It was surprisingly nice.

It doesn't look that appetizing coz its not cooked yet! What dya think?

The service there was pretty good too. Though I think they were kinda short handed because everyone seemed so busy! There was this sweet girl that was serving us. She spoke pretty fair English but kept forgetting what we asked for. I asked for pepper for 4 times before she finally gave me a small plate of salt with pepper. =.=

Yay! BBQ!

Anyway, after we finished, my mum spoke to her for a while. She later learned that the waitress was a student and she works about 4 to 8 hours depending on the days. And you know what her wages are? 30,000 dongs for 4 hours!!! That's like RM1.50 an hour!!! Which is pretty much USD 0.50 an hour!!!

Can you imagine that? Compared to the min wage of California of USD 7! Urgh!!! Its kinda sad thinking about it. Even my mum's tip was higher than that! Though come to think of it, Malaysia isn't that much better either because we don't even have a min wage! McDonalds actually pay RM3.50 an hour! That's like about USD 1.10.

I wonder though, is it hard to get a job in any of this places? I mean obviously we're not talking about permanent career jobs but more like part-time jobs. Is it stricter in US? Is it easier to get a job in Vietnam or Malaysia? Do the companies do employment screening for places like restaurants or clothing store?

Though I guess we can't really compare because the lifestyle of these places are all different in a sense. You can't really find mamak stall food in US that cost about USD 1 right? Though just working for 3 days can buy you an iPod in US compared to almost a month in Malaysia.

But the property in US is sooo expensive! Though on the other hand, vehicles are cheap.

I guess everywhere has its pros and cons. Its where we choose to call home. Right?

I'm so glad I'm not a teenager anymore!

Sometimes though I feel old, I'm still kinda glad I'm not a teenager anymore! As the saying goes, "the ship has long sailed!". I haven't seen my little brother in almost a year since I'm studying in the States and everything and seeing him kinda makes me want to laugh. He's face is now filled with pimples, acne, and everything that does not include smooth skin! He's fifteen now and is at a time where all his hormones are all ranging, not to mention being embarrassed by everything that involves his family!

I remember when I was his age, and he was a mischievous little boy, he was always the one laughing at me at my pimpled face. I always felt really unfair because not only was he almost reaching his teenage years, his face was as smooth as a new born baby's face! At that time, it seemed that he will never face the problem of having volcanoes on his face.

Wahahaha.. look who's laughing now! =P

Ooops darling..

Cyanide & Happiness @ Explosm.net

Who doesn't want their own dream home?

I spent around a week with Cody while my family was in Vietnam. My goodness, what better way to let a child learn the value of money then letting her live alone? We spent more than $500 dollars in that short 6 days together! Just eating itself was like $200! Can u imagine that? And all these are in Malaysian ringgit. So that is really a lot!!! And we're not rich people!

It makes me think that if we were to live together, how are we gonna manage our finances with our current spending habits? Oh god.. it is so scary thinking about it. And here I was thinking that $400 is enough to spent for a month!

Yeah right.

And this is only concerning food and clothes. What about buying a house? A car? Creating your dream home? Don't we all want to create our own Home Plans? Who wants the same house as everyone else? Don't we all want to be special and create our own Contemporary house plans, or even French Country House Plans?

How do we achieve all this?

There goes my dream of flying off to Africa and helping the kids there.. =.=

Reality is bad..



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The Olympics

Its interesting how much preparation was said to be given towards the 2008 Beijing Olympics and how much anticipation everyone was having towards the 8th of August 2008. It so happen I flew to Vietnam on that day itself so I had access to cable TV to watch the opening ceremony. I read so much about the Olympics that even though I wasn't interested to anything involving sports, I was actually excited to watch it.

With all the controversies surrounding the Beijing Olympics, one wonders how magnificent the opening ceremony would be. China is known for its human rights violation and a lot of people are questioning if it was the right choice to choose China as the next host for the Olympic games. With all these scrutiny, what would China do to prove that they are indeed qualified to host the Olympic games?

What with the recent Tibetan and Darfur issue, China is not exactly in the international community's good books right now. So one wonders what China will do in their opening ceremony, which will be watched by over 1 billion people around the world, to win over the hearts of the people all over the world.

I was kinda disappointed though after watching the opening ceremony. Maybe because there were so much anticipation that people had incredibly high expectations for it, but I wasn't at all awed with the performance. It is undeniable that the costumes were extravagant, colourful, not to mention spectacular. And the scroll was absolutely beautiful, making one wonder how exactly did they do that.

But aside from all that, once you finish watching it, you forget about the whole thing in an instance. And if you notice, the audience were not exactly very responsive either. Most of them had a bored look on their faces busy fanning themselves with their golden fans.

Imagine the amount of money spent on the Olympics! A few million dollars just for that one day!

Though I must give the Chinese thumbs-up for the messages that they try to convey in almost all of their performances. Messages like peace, harmony and non-discrimination of all people were constantly being conveyed throughout the performance. Its kinda ironic though, one moment they are singing the song of peace, and the next they are aiding the Darfur genocide.

How ironical.

That was my personal opinion about the Opening ceremony. What did u think?