Thumbs Up For A Great Drive

With the beautiful weather at Albert Park, and a spectacular car, Kimi just flew in the Ferrari to claim the chequered flag effortlessly. The interviewer after the race even commented that it was a walk in the park for Kimi this afternoon. Thumbs up for a great drive. Let’s hope the rest of the race this season will be as amazing as this one.

Here are some pictures of the Iceman with great skills, amazing looks and is young and ambitious.

~ Crossing the chequered flag, with fans and engineers cheering his victory ~

~ Not only does he look good, he can drive! ~

~ Kimi at the podium with 1st runner up, Alonso from Vodafone Mclaren Merc, Jean Todt – CEO of Ferrari and 2nd runner up, Lewis Hamilton from Vodafone Mclaren Merc ~

Photo credit goes to: Torsten Blackwood AFP, Robert Cianflone, Bryn Lennon of Getty Images (Obtained from Yahoo! Sports) & The Official F1 Website.

If Everyone Cared

Have been listening to quite a bit of radio lately, and I find this song nice.

If Everyone Cared by Nickelback

From underneath the trees, we watch the sky
Confusing stars for satellites
I never dreamed that you’d be mine
But here we are, we’re here tonight

Singing Amen, I, I’m alive
Singing Amen, I, I’m alive

[Chorus:]
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we’d see the day when nobody died

And I’m singing

Amen I, Amen I, I’m alive
Amen I, Amen I, Amen I, I’m alive

And in the air the fireflies
Our only light in paradise
We’ll show the world they were wrong
And teach them all to sing along

[ Lyrics found on http://www.metrolyrics.com ]

Singing Amen, I, I’m alive
Singing Amen, I, I’m alive
(I’m alive)

[Chorus x2]

And as we lie beneath the stars
We realize how small we are
If they could love like you and me
Imagine what the world could be

If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we’d see the day when nobody died

[Chorus]

We’d see the day, we’d see the day
When nobody died
We’d see the day, we’d see the day
When nobody died
We’d see the day when nobody died

I was just curious how they looked like, so I googled them and got a picture of them, and here goes. The lead singer does have a very nice manly voice!

And also with the F1 2007 season starting tomorrow at the Australian Grand Prix, and Kimi in Red now and having secured his pole position today, I am excited! I really hope Ferrari will be super reliable this year, and I bet Kimi can deliver the rest. All the best to the super cool and cute Iceman. Here’s pics for drools….

Amazingly gorgeous, with the skills to match! What can I say, except GO KIMI!!!!!!!

All About My Name

I have a weird and uncommon name. Not only is it weird and uncommon, the spelling and pronounciation does not “jive”! It has always been something that I constantly have to correct people, be it while introducing myself for the first time or checking my name printed on cheques and certificates. Defintely not something I like doing very much.

But since I got back to Kuching, I realise this name is really not very useable. List of names I get that have evolved from my original “Fedelia” includes:

1) Felicia (very common, even in KL)
2) Felidia
3) Felucia
4) Fedora
5) Fredrelia

I mean .. Fredrelia?!?!? What the *&^%???

Lesson for the day, please name your kids simple, pronounceable names to make their life easier!

These days, to have my life made simpler, I go by the title “Ms. Ang”. It sounds very Cina, yes, I know, but at least I do not need to take a minute to explain that my name is Fedelia and not some weird evolved version!

My Baby’s Back!

Snowie-Boo is back, and he’s cute, and I’ve come to realise that I’ve forgotten how naughty and funny he can be.  I mean, look at this pic, doesn’t he look like he’s smiling?

I’ve also come to a conclusion that he loves to fight. Any day is a good day to give my neighbour’s 2 roaming Goldies 2 minutes of incessant barking & growling.

And since I spent my first every Chinese New Year with him this year (he used to be in KL and me in Kuching), I realised he LOVES fireworks. He gets upset when he hears them and cannot get a chance to view the sky lighting up. Demanding, yeah, that’s him. And when the firework ends, he’ll trot around looking in the sky for more. He’s a seriously funny dog!

He’s super happy now, roaming free in the garden 50% of the time. He’s kept caged the other half of the time, as we want to give the postman a break and not have a super loud barking dog “greeting” him at the gate each day, and not have him scampering in the garden trying to chase the 2 Goldies roaming outside. He’s showed no interest in the inside of the house, which is good, since mom don’t allow him in anyway.

I don’t think he’s only my pet now, as my family thinks he’s super funny and loves him. Thank God, coz for a while, I was so worried he would dig up half the garden and make everyone super pissed. I love my dog!!!

Rain, Rain & More Rain

Kuching has been pouring for 2 days now. Grey clouds pour down endless shower upon this little town. As little and larger kiddos returned to school yesterday, the town’s traffic was chaotic, with much traffic jam. Major sigh. I still believe kids can be schooled at home, or at least depart to and from school on a large bus to ease the traffic, instead on being chauffered by over protective parents that are so fearful of their precious or preciouses facing the realities of this harsh world.

My precious is still being locked up in quarantine. Slightly more than 45 days and he will be out! Yippee!!!! I have not seen him for almost a week now, that’s how busy I have been, and with the pouring rain, letting him out means causing him to gallop in the rain, and I don’t want him to run a fever and chill, so no visiting on rainy days. I just hope the rain would stop tmrw for just one hour at 4.30pm, so I can go see him!

Christmas and New Year zoomed by like the rest of 2007, with little time to blog, and not many interesting pictures to take. BORING, yeah!

Here’s a picture of what I cooked for Christmas dinner. Yummy?? Substituted the turkey with chicken, as I find turkey meat very coarse and dry after grilling it. The chopped salad and stir-fry cum baked potatoes were all taken off Jamie Oliver’s recipe that I saw on one of Astro’s episodes. Yummy and super easy to make.

Although I have a full bottle of Chivas, Johnny Walker’s Swing, Cointreu, half a bottle of Vodka & 3 bottles of wine, Christmas was a freaking sober celebration. So unlike me!!! Reason being we had to go to church early next morning (mom n nanny insisting loudly in the background, always) all I had was only 2 glasses of Screwdriver.

I ended the last day of 2006 and started 2007 making taufufa for 2 charity sales. Without much feel, 2007 is here. I forgot to make any New Year’s resolution, so just thought of something and here goes …

1) Wake up at 7am daily, regardless of rain or shine
2) Exercise 3 times a week for at least an hour
3) Loose 5kg

hmmm .. anything else?? Nah, I think this is sufficient. We’ll see in a year’s time if I managed to get ANY of these resolutions done!

Birthday Celebrations

This is an overdue posts and as I promised I would post it when I have time after returning to Kuching, here are the pictures from the 3 in 1 birthday celebration for Toh, Eng Teng and June. The food at this place was really good, but looked so normal I did not snap it. Located at Jalan Tun Razak, just off Bulatan Kampung Pandan, their beggar’s chicken and “special” fried tenggiri fish really ensured we had an enjoyable meal.

*The 3 Birthday fellas*

*A group photo for the album*

Pictionary Challenge @ Ole Cafe

Hanged out yesterday at good old Ole Cafe last night for a night of fun and Pictionary Challenge. Part of the SMART gang, other halves, Angeline (my primary school friend on her visit to KL) and Raymond (Shin Yeen’s high school classmate) travelled into the jammed KL city for this night of great fun, lots of laughs, jeering, booing, cheering and of course, drawing!!!

Here are some pics of the smashing time we had ….

*Round 1 – Team Orange*

*Round 1 – Team Blue*

*Winner of Round 1 – Team Blue, disheartened Drew and ET (fr Team Orange) & Shin Yeen that just arrived*

*Round 3 – ALL DRAW (to secure a chance of moving forward!!!) See how everyone is huddled and so intent on figuring out the answers. Indeed a very kiasu and competitive bunch, as usual! But that makes it all the more fun*

*SMILE everyone!!!*

Great fun it was, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I will definitely miss this bunch of crazy, kiasu people!

Ipoh-Penang Makan Roadtrip

During the long Deeparaya hols, could not resist the travelling itch, and since I will be back in Kuching for good soon, we went on a Ipoh Penang Makan Roadtrip. The usual suspects in this outing is non other than Andrew a.k.a Driver, June n John. As this was not my first trip to Ipoh, nor Penang, almost all pics are of the food only!

We started off from KL for Ipoh at 7am, and managed to reach Ipoh at 10.30am despite the heavy traffic on the highway. First stop for makan was Foh Sun Dim Sum in Ipoh town. As it was a Sunday, the place was pakced, and we had to wait a good half hour beside a family while they enjoyed their dim sum, before it was our turn!!!! Why I insisted on coming here was because of its famous egg tarts.

*Part of our Dim Sum spread*

*Very yummy indeed, fillings were almost custard like*

After Foh Sun, we walked to the Yim Kuk Kai (salted backed chicken) shop and bought a whole chicken. They only have takeaways, so John & I got one to try later. Then we trotted off for Tau Foo Fa and Soya Bean drink. Did not take any photos, as it is like something very common in KL, and the taste is not so different from the Soya Bean truck outside my house!

Last stop in Ipoh was white coffee. I absolutely LOVE the white coffee here. It has this very rich aroma and taste, very very similar to Vietnamese coffee in many sense. Andrew the non-coffee drinker but egg lover had another round of breakfast.

*”Andrew, pinjam ur food ambil gambar, ok??”*

After that, we bid Ipoh town farewell. Did not try the Lou Wong Ipoh Sar Ho Fun, as I have had that twice. If you miss Sar Ho Fun, do drop by Parkway Restaurant near my house during lunch time. I find their Sar Ho Fun with the Prawns Wantan a real close match to Lou Wong, serious!

As we were desperate to live up to the name of the Ipoh Penang Makan Roadtrip, we stop by Bukit Tambun for seafood at 2pm. Ordered steamed Sek Pan, Asparagus, Black Pepper Crab and Chuk Khan. Since Andrew is non crab eater, and John is not a crab lover, me and June really sat there for almost an hour eating those crabs!!!! No pics are the dishes came one at a time, and later hands were too dirty! Sadly, I somehow feel that the taste if the food is not as great as the first time I visited this place.

We reached Penang town at 4 and started to search for our accomodation. Managed to get a room for 4 at RM65, with air-con and hot shower. Amazing isn’t it? Hehe!

Met Toh for dinner, while we marvel over his enhanced body shape. (He really look great now) More food for the day including prawn mee, char kuey tiaw, lin chi kang and satay. Writing this, I feel we really ate A LOT that day!

The next morning, we woke up and headed to Kek Lok Si for the famous Assam Laksa by the Ayer Itam market. As it was Nine Emperor God festival, the traffic was moving at a snarl as we neared Ayer Itam. Anyway, we managed to get what we came for.

* “”Slurp”" .. Assam Laksa!!! Only RM2.30 a bowl*

After that was a visit to Kek Lok Si, and then we headed home for KL. Made it in time for steamboat dinner at Kepong, and before I hit my bed that night, I think I really have put on weight!!!!

(Oh yes, I ate the Yim Kuk Kai the next day, and it was too salty to be true. I believe it was never meant to be kept for so long, so don’t make the same mistake yeah!)

Exploring Angkor

Made a trip to Siem Reap from 6th to 10th October, but did not manage to upload any photos or get the time to blog till now. Reason being I fell desperately ill with stomach flu after I came back and my super dumb digestive system went into riot mode, and refused to digest anything for days.

OK, back to the trip. It was a great, with many amazing sights to visit, a wonderful bumpy, dangerous, dusty and sometimes wet (when it rains) tuk tuk experience, it was a trip like never before. As we travelled on our own, we had the pleasure to spend as much time as we wanted in the temples, sometimes snacking and other times just sitting there to soak in the amazingly large and ancient structures.

Best of all, it was an amazingly cheap trip, where I spent only about RM700++, all in all, including air tickets, tuk tuk fares, temple passes etc. Siem Reap is a USD town. I say this because everything is traded in USD, including fresh coconuts, can drinks, silk scarves, meals and guesthouses charges etc. However, please keep in mind that they do not accept credit cards, unless you are staying at those posh hotels, so make sure you have sufficient USD with you.

Sadly, I ignored this part, and really kept my spending way below what would have been a great splurge at the New Market where beautiful bags with beads and embroidery sold for only USD4!!!!! Food is ridiculously over-priced especially near the temple areas, and in most luxurious upper end establishments in some parts of town. A small meal with rice and 1 stir fried dish would easily cost USD3.50, drinks excluded.

I have posted my photos with commentaries in Friendster, or you can click the link on the sidebar to view it. I don’t think I can ramble on trying to describe my trip, as it will be really challenging. Seeing is believing for Siem Reap and Angkor Temples, I believe. As i have to sort from 600 over pics, will only update in batches so it is only Day 1 for now.

I took over 600 photos during my short 4.5 days stay. For those with particular interest in photography, you must visit the temples, as it is a great challenge to get a good shot there. Sunny outside, with tall trees casting shadows and blocking out the sunlight from some areas, and the temples are dark on the insides, not to mention Siem Reap is one super cloudy place. You have to really play with you flash to get good photos of intricate carvings at dark areas, or sometimes try to minimise exposure to get great shots of the outisdes. For those with digital cameras, bring that extra battery pack fully charged, as numerous flashes will ensure you a low batt sign in no time. My battery was running out everyday by 2-3pm, making me super irritated. Thank God for that tiny view finder on my camera which enabled me to conserve energy by switching off the screen!!!!

New Kids On The Block

These Rottweilers are from Thailand. 4 of them came together, 3 females and 1 male. I think they are brought in for breeding purposes as their owner don’t seem to pop by, and they have no names to them, unlike others.

Seeing that they are still puppies and not fierce full growns, I have made them like me as much as I like them! Bribed them on their first day of arrival with my Snowie’s treats!

*Identical?!?!”

Don’t they look identical?? The one with the short tail is the male, whereas the left is Girl 1. I name them by where they are located. I call the male dog Boy, and he is the loudest of them all, barking when my brother and I play the running game with Snowie.

*Girlie a.k.a. Girl 2*

I especially like this one, as I think she has the prettiest face, and is extremely friendly. Although still a puppy, she comes up to my chin when standing on her hind legs. When she runs, her ear flaps like Dumbo’s, sometimes turning it inside out, irritating her!

*Girl 3*

Girl 3 has a weak right hind leg, and is unable to clamour to greet me, unlike all others. She walks with a slight drag, but can still manage a slow jog when I offer biscuits. Equally friendly like the rest.
2 more absolute cuties with names that match their funny behaviour.

* Introducing Brutus …..

* … and Latte!!!*

Brutus is a 7 month old Beagle and can only be differenciated by its larger size. Latte is only 3 months old but equally playful. As they flew in from KL together, and with their compact size, they have the priviledge of companionship, unlike other dogs.

Aren’t they all cute?? I just love dogs!