Mandara Spa At Renaissance Hotel Kuala Lumpur

We tried the spa sampler - Balinese massage plus facial

Third day in Malaysia: My sisters, C and X, and C's uni friend, went to the Mandara spa at the Renaissance Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. C and her friend have already tried out spa massages before, and told me and X that the massage is so good that 50 minutes of it is not enough.

I was a bit hesitant at first, wasn't too sure about the massage as I was sure I would feel ticklish. I thought I would just get a facial instead. Turned out a facial costs more than a spa sampler - a Balinese massage and a facial. In the end, X and I both went for the spa sampler.

C and her friend decided on the Nirvana massage - a Balinese massage, sauna, foot scrub, and tea ceremony.

While waiting for the ladies to prepare for the massages, we were served cold ginger tea, which was very refreshing. I could have drank more of the tea!

We then went to the spa rooms. X and I were in one room, C and her in another. Our room was dimly lit, with the smell of lemongrass essential oil wafting in the air.

The massage was really good, and left me feeling relaxed and sleepy. By the time the lady finished with the massage and gave me a facial, I was close to lala-land.

Then I heard the lady telling me that the spa sampler has finished... I pictured myself rolling on the floor and banging my fists, saying, "NO!!! I WANT MORE!!!"

Not something I would go for every day, not unless I've got heaps of money to spend, but as a luxury, an escape to paradise, let me be the first to say, "AYE!"

Mandara Spa At Renaissance Hotel Kuala Lumpur

I'm back at home....

I just arrived this morning in Kuala Lumpur.

It's good to be home...

The weather is really terrible, humid, with heavy overcast threatening rain.

I'm definitely going to rot at home, both literally and figuratively. :P

I'm back at home....

This Life

I quote an acquaintance of mine:

"and it is this balance that brings meaning to life...
for would we know the meaning of happiness if there is no sadness...
the joy of success and winning if there is no defeat ...
and appreciate light if there is no darkness ??
but one thing that i have learnt is that however long the night ...
dawn will eventually break ... "

Many a things have happened in my life recently...
Some not so significant,
Some more significant,
When I piece them together,
I think to myself,
What is my purpose of being?

I'm not thinking of ground-breaking discoveries,
Not about how the world works,
Not what the Buddha has discovered many aeons ago,
I'm far from Nibbana...
I just want to realise what I want out of life...
Out of living...

I haven't been praying much,
The turbulence of life sweeps me from day to day,
I hardly keep track of time or day,
I don't seem to recollect a recent time I've sat quietly,
To be still...

Even in sleep,
I am restless,
I wake up with thoughts in my head,
The feeling of fulfillment,
Is lost on me...

I've started to pray again,
For the people around me,
For my loved ones,
For the dearly departed
And I guess I'll pray,
For me...

To discover some sense,
To sense what's right from what's not,
To enjoy the here and now,
To be happy and healthy,
To be still...

This Life

Testing the Limits

KT and I went to his friend's wedding dinner at Zilver's. There were alcohol at the table, a bottle Shiraz and Remy Martin VSOP. I didn't talk much, so I decided to test my alcohol limit. I don't drink on a regular basis, not even socially, and since KT was with me, and neither of us were driving home that night, I felt "safe" to test the waters.

Throughout the night, I had one wine glass (perhaps a little bit more) of Shiraz and one glass of VSOP.

Verdict?

I don't think I tolerate red wines - I had a slight headache after downing the glass, and I didn't like the oak aftertaste of the Shiraz.

The VSOP? I loved it. For 40%v/v alcohol content, it was surprisingly easy to down, except to the fiery trail it burns down the throat. At the end of the night, one of KT's friends dropped us home, and I remember talking a lot considering I didn't know them that well. To my recollection, I didn't talk nonsense, but KT said I did.

Alcohol does loosen inhibition - that's a proven fact.

I didn't throw up, though. And I didn't drink enough to have a hangover. Guess I do tolerate alcohol well enough. ;)

Testing the Limits

Hot Pot on a Cold Windy Night

Great success!!! We even had side dishes!!!

Monday evening: cold and very very windy. As usual, we had a predictable pattern of unpredictable weather. PY suggested hotpot, and what a good idea that turned out to be. The soup base was kim chi flavoured chicken stock, and we had some home-made sour and spicy pickled cucumber and stewed potatoes. This was the first time we ever had a proper hot pot!

We had some soup leftover, and it'll be the same thing tonight, except that the weather today is, if you haven't guessed it, hot!

Hot Pot on a Cold Windy Night

Flower Festival Trip to Canberra 21/09/2008

We didn't get much of a spring this year. The weather has been on either extreme - too hot on one day, too cold the next. Thank goodness for air conditioning.

What about today's weather? Cold and dreary, rainy. We had a late night yesterday celebrating a friend's birthday, and daylight savings started today, too. I woke up at about 9am, neither here nor there.

Spring is a pretty season, and I'm glad that we made the trip to Canberra to see the Flower Festival, held mid-September each year. The flowers were amazing, planted in patches, each patch with a movie theme (e.g. Babe, Happy Feet).

For a rainy day, these pictures brighten up the screen, and my mood. :P

Flower Festival Trip to Canberra 21/09/2008

Mid-Autumn Festival Sunday 14th September 2008

The moon was full and round that night, swathed in a chiffon of clouds.

KT, PY and I were at a friend's apartment (a block across from ours) celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival. We had Korean / Japanese / Chinese fusion hot pot (for the occasion, KT bought the hot pot "kit" - the hot pot pot :P and portable gas stove).

Afterwards, we were treated to Mei Sum's "bing pi" (snowy skinned) moon cakes of different flavours - blueberry, mango, and even mocha. I love bing pi moon cakes. :P

Back at our place, we have some mini lotus seed paste moon cakes - I made them!!! My parents bought over a moon cake mould knowing that I wanted to make some, with a recipe of Betty Yew's. First attempt proved successful, although the moon cake pattern wasn't well-defined. I could have added a little bit more flour to make the dough easier to mould and used a finer pastry brush to brush the egg wash.

KT and PY said that it tastes yummy ^_^

Mid-Autumn Festival Sunday 14th September 2008

Wall.E - One of the Most Meaningful Animated Movies in a Long While

Wall.E is another production of the geniuses at Pixar. I love the story-telling with the characters with minimal dialogue. It's not a "fluff" animation either; I had to think a bit to understand the storyline.

In a way, Wall.E reminds me of Hayao Miyazaki's animes - it relies more on visual impact and interpretation, and the environmental message is unmistakable.

The main character, Wall.E, is so lovable. I just couldn't stop crying throughout the film, even the funny parts were heart-wrenching.

I love the part where Wall.E gathers "junk" and carefully puts them away in his "home" as if they were treasures - Wall.E was going about his usual business of compacting junk and collecting trinkets when he came across a ring box, he opened it to reveal a ring, proceeded to throw away the ring, was instead fascinated by the box and put the box in his storage box for keeping.

I like it that Wall.E is portrayed to be a complex character, human-like, and yet, with a "mind" and "heart" of a child - simple and pure.

It's a story about love, the ability to feel, and the appreciation for the Earth on which we live.

Wall.E - One of the Most Meaningful Animated Movies in a Long While

Merdeka Feast

KT suggested Malaysian fare for dinner, so we went to Paddy's market to get all the necessary ingredients to cook chicken rendang, nasi lemak, sambal prawns, stir fried kangkung, and rojak. We even got canned petai to cook the sambal prawns! Yummy yummy, I can't wait. Whilst KT is slaving away washing up in the kitchen, I'm taking the opportunity to write up and laze around. :P

OK, KT is giving me the go-ahead to cook. :P

Merdeka Feast

Merdeka!

Today is Malaysia's Independence Day.

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!

Semoga Malaysia kekal aman dan damai, dan merdeka dalam semua aspek!

Merdeka!