Act 1-Drinks that you hardly appreciate....

Bedak kid ventures out again last weekend, saw him holding a camera clicking away, you ask me where? I tell you somewhere around town. With bedak all over his face thick and white, he clumsily holding up his camera and point at a sugar-cane seller. I pass by and pop up a question on him. "What are you doing here?" he said, "Oh I am shooting this uncle and aunty here. They are selling sugar-cane drinks!" and "I love sugar-cane, grandma says it is a cooling drink when you are feeling thirsty like coconut! So early now, the coconut stall not open yet, so I drop by here lor. Their sugar-cane are different, more juicy and the taste is slightly different with a sweet pandan smell." I agree with him, the taste has a sweet sense of pandan flavour.

*note:(Screwpine leaves = pandan)

Bedak kid was drinking his sugarcane while describing all this to me... kinda nostalgic that my grandma too, once told me when they were young, they like to cut the sugar cane into sticks and bite them, so their juices will spread out in the mouth; meanwhile the chewing also helps strengthen the teeth. Well, I indeed bought a stick from this seller and cut them into pieces and chew it. What a wonderful way of enjoying a sugarcane! The seller was telling me that I must have strong teeth to bite all those!

In our tropical country, we are so use to sugar-cane and coconut; but in colder countries, they might not even heard of sugar-cane. It doesn't exist in their world. How often for you to find a sugar-cane drink in the US or even Europe? Answer is none, or hard to find.

Only tropical countries have sugar-cane. So, guess what we are lucky that there are still people selling drinks like that, like me and bedak kid we both enjoy sugar-cane drink.

Antique & Art

Something about antique, I know some people who actually collects antique, they can actually pay high price for it. For me, I do collect but for one reason only, sentimental values. I do not have lotsa money to spend so I appreciate antiques as in you can't buy it anymore, unless pay more than the actual price! There are few pieces that I had in my home. They are being pass down within the family tree. This "Ti Teng" or Sky Lantern is pass down from the generation of my great grandparents. We had polish it and re-paint it and fix it with new glass panel and lights before we attach it to my house. For your information, the person who fix the glass panel is kinda old.... and there are only a handful of these people around to fix it and paint the chinese character word on it. In the chinese culture, this lantern is suppose to fix it to the ceiling in front of the main door of your house, and it has to lit-up with a red-bulb.

In the interior, I have fix this lantern on my dining area. You can see that there is a "Hock" chinese character on it and there are a lot of signatures on it too.... how come?

I have actually paste all the signatures of the people who attended my wedding dinner. All of them sign it on a piece of paper and I glue them up on the lantern. This is a meaningful lantern for both me and my husband. Thanks to all our guest, now we have gota lantern that reminds us who had attended our wedding dinner.

Durain Fever!

The durian season has started. Well, I must say that our island's Durian has been famous for a long time, people from all over the country will tend to stop by here to enjoy the King of Fruits! Thanks to Tim of AsianExplorers, we get to know this "Bao Sheng Durian Farm" in Teluk Bahang.

This is Mr. Chang, who has briefly describe all the types of Durians for us. He has explain some details on growing the durian trees till the picking of durians. How to recognise the types of durian, through its aroma, colour, flavour, shape and texture. One tip here is, Mr. Chang said, "the best time to enjoy durians are in the evening around 6pm." So, what are you waiting for?








Take a look at this Durian tree....... it's very tall and guess how old it is?

60years man! Older than me.

I had this buffet durian feast which included, Ang Heh, Khun Poh, Hor Lor, Iya Kang, 604 etc... Here shows Mr. Chang opening a durian! Yummy stuff. Alright, I tell what I love most, it's the Hor Lor & Iya Kang. For me Hor lor is sweet, sticky, chewy and its colour is yellowish and the seed is kinda small. (Jiu Ci)

As for the Iya Kang, it kinda whitish in colour but it almost melt in your mouth, no chewing is needed! There's no fibre in it, if you store in it the refrigerator, it almost taste like ice-cream. By the way did I mention creamy too?

Mix-interpretation...

This is the current President of Cuba, Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz. He was famous for leading a revolution overthrowing Fulgencio Batista in 1959, following by organizing and train for the guerrilla invasion of Cuba that took place in December 1956, the Bay of Pigs invasion, etc.

I highlighted him because I think a lot of people are wearing T-shirts of Ernesto Guevara de la Serna who had joined Fidel Castro's revolutionary 26th of July Movement .

Commonly known as Che Guevara or El Che, quite a handsome fella, also a medic, a socialist as well as a Marxist-revolutionary political figure. If you think you have seen his picture somewhere, that will be prints for some Punk/Rock t-shirts. This picture above was entitled Guerrillero heroico (Heroic Warrior). It is a famous 20th century heroic icon.
So, it's not just about punk or rock at all, he is in fact has become an icon/symbol of rebellious youth. Come to think about it, he actually came from a well-to-do family background. He was the smartest officer in Fidel's army. He was agrressive and hated cowards, intolerance to manifestations of weakness and has a strong determination of achieving goals. During all his achievements, struggles and pain; never said a bad word of the people who betrayed him. He was even being respected by his friends and foes. Much of a respected person that you'll hardly find in times like ours, that is why he is an icon of rebellious youth these days!

Juicy Ribs...

Was thinking of having pork ribs the other day, and I came to watch this channel on the TV about this recipe, and I modify it because I do not take spicy food........ especially chillies! So I grilled these ribs without the spicy taste and add in a little more honey to get this juicy bite ribs! My hubby was not sure of the ribs as he dislike eating it, but in the end to my surprise he finish it all! Not a bad idea for a side dish! If you like this dish, you can view the recipe in the "http://www.grouprecipes.com/6220/juicy-pork-ribs.html"link.

The story of Bedak kid..........

Bedak Kid is a cute little boy from Georgetown, Penang. He hangs around town searching for creative works and ideas of his old town. He always puts on 'Bedak' all over his face - this was a habit that he adopts from his old grandmother. Grandma says, "put on bedak everyday and night will help to smooth your skin." So, he sticks on to this idea and doesn't care that everyone calls him, 'Cat face'.

He cycles to school everyday with his old BMX bike, and to town every weekend to gather information of his old neighbourhood. He is brainy and speaks well in his mother tongue - Hokkien, and does speak simple BM, English and Mandarin. He is an obedient child, but sometimes cheeky too.

He has a "Tempurung" hair cut..... cut by his mother, who does not know any other way to cut his hair, other than using the technique of turning a bowl upside down on his head and cut the rest of the hair all the way. Queer isn't it?

He likes to wear a green t-shirt with a pair of KikiLala yellow shorts and runs around with Bata slippers while clinging on to his small mini camera, trying to shoot every single thing that he came across. Old grandma use to tell him stories that will inspire him to create a journal of his own. He will then show his journal to all his friends, Mutu, Ali, Ah Kia and Camry, his pet dog.

I wonder does he ever feel tired of what he is doing?


*Bedak* or Bedak sejuk - is a kind of substance that is formulated from rice, water and dried jasmine flowers. Traditionally said to help clear dirt and prevents pimples. Widely used in the Traditional Nyonya culture.

Sudden Crave!

Alright, I had this sudden urge of cooking.... so I prepared this light meal for lunch since I was preparing to cook Sukiyaki Beef for the night! This lite meal consists of Baguette, cheddar and carbonet. The salad and ham was an extra. So called healthy food!








This is what we had for dinner, the Japanese Sukiyaki Beef steamboat! Picture here shows what we had and of course you can prepare what you like. Actually this is the first time I prepare this as I usually ate it in restaurants! Not bad for a first timer!

About this Blog of mine...

I came across this idea about creating this blog nearly few weeks ago, some people had asked me why? Also, I have use a nickname as well, and they ask me why too? A lot of 'Y's !! Alright, I think I will explain it here.
For me, writing a diary in the my younger days was a habit for me, but since then I was busy with my life and I stop doing it for a while. Now and then, time changes and I have come to think of life passes on every single minute and before I knew things happen and changes. I feel that my life is going on so fast that I had no time to look back and think. I want to record some of the events and ideas that came across me, so that I can share to others who had the same experiences and knowledge. Also, I think that maybe my future generations will get to see how I felt before about life and everything else.
Pictures and images can be recorded here for people to see the way I see things and feel them. I hope this blog will benefit all. I have my choice to links and topics, if you like you can drop in a comment. I do hope that this blog inspires all too.
About my nickname and blog address, it was inspire from Dante Alighieri. An Italian poet and writer. I love his 'Divine's comedy'. If you had read about his perception on Inferno, Purgotory and Paradise, you'll know what I mean. Matilda (in Dante's spelling "Matelda," representing "Lady Philosophy," is the object of Dante's affection after Beatrice. The picture here shows Dante's meeting with Matelda.
Now you know where this blog is inspire from!

Is it safe to even Walk?

This morning, I woke up and thought to myself that maybe I walk to the wet market today and buy some breakfast. So, I wake up, brush myself clean and prepare to set out on my trip. I put on my sunnies, slip on a sling bag and bring along an umbrella, as it was a Hot sunny day. I intended to put on my sunblock but didn't do so as I do not like the sticky feeling on my skin, yuks!
The distance was not too far just a few blocks away, I start my journey by walking along the sidewalk, holding my umbrella and cling on to my bag. Why I highlight this issue is, I suddenly realise it wasn't so safe for me to walk alone on the streets as I have heard a lot of news that there are lots of snatch thiefs around the neighbourhood! So I became cautious everytime and cling tight to my bag whenever a motorbike pass through my way. SAD huh! I actually wanted to enjoy this short trip as I feel I might see things differently on my way to the market and also it benefits me (as in healthy), but then again, I'll think twice if I want to venture out on this small trip again.
Another sad feature about my trip is, everytime a car drove by, the driver will pause and stare at me like I am weird or some sort....*sigh*.... so you can say that I am sensitive but it's true!
So tell me if my short trip is safe? It makes me wonder how safe the neighbourhood is! I guess in future, we might have a definate place for short walks......... maybe!

They call it snake dance?

So some of them call it snake dance.... yeah right! Well, in Egypt, it's called "Dance of the Earth";Belly dance is a name that we created because it uses the muscle of the belly a lot and it shows the belly part. In US, there is this Tribal dance which include styles of different belly dance around the world and gypsy dance. The moves are a fusion of belly dance and tribal dance. There is much more to belly dance, as in you have to be an expert to know the difference. Here the picture shows the use of hand-cymbals; whereby you click on it to give a (cling) sound, according to the music and moves. There are many different props that a dancer can use while dancing, like a veil, cymbals, sword, cane, candles, torch.. as in fire on it; etc. Amazing right?

There are many types of belly dance and they are different kinds of belly dance depends on the country. The famous ones that are widely shown on MTV are Egyptian Belly Dance. Nowadays you tend to see everyone doing the same moves not knowing where it is from... pathetic!

Carving away...

I got to visit this factory on wood carving... some of the skillful master artist carving away, patiently and carefully on all these master pieces. As you can see here, is one of the master artist carving a piece of teak wood for a buyer from Italy. They can actually carve anything, they do take orders as long as you pay! Send any pictures to them and they carve it for you exactly in three-dimensional form!


Look at this piece of art! Marvelous right?






I love this piece........ look at the elephants... there is this mama elephant and baby elephant in the tropical jungle.






Here's the papa elephant.... making way through the jungle.... seems like they are moving house!

Bang-In Palace

This is one of the royal summer palace's garden in the Bang-In palace inThailand. Plants are cut and trim to form into various animals. As you know one of the Thai people favourite anilmal is Elephant! See what I mean....







This shot here shows a unique bridge wherby both sides have roman statues on it. This bridge is obviously inspire by the roman art....

Look at this palace, it's one of the summer palace that the emperor of Thailand stay during summer. Fantastic right? It's one of the building in Bang-In Palace. Ermm....... it's like a whole big estate full of different types of buildings from different countries..... this was the brainchild of the current emperor's great grand father!! Fantastic right?
This is a sort of a temple which has the statue of the Emperor's son, according to history, he was one of the favourite son. You actually need to take a boatride to go near it!
This is one of the bulidings as well. Looks like a boat right? In the olden times, this is where the emperor and the royal family docks.... they travel by "klong" which is the thailand traditional long tail boat... and arrive and dock here to their summer palace!
This looks like a huge light house right? You can actually climb up there and view the whole palace! In the background, there is this Chinese temple look-a-like! Well, it's not a temple, but a chinese architecture palace!! Inside is where they store all the antique gifts that the China Emperor sent to the Thai Emperor.... you'll wonder how many antiques are there.... well we did not get to see it though!

If you ever visit Bangkok.... don't forget to visit this palace! Wonderful place......

Try this!

Wanna know what's this? They are Chocolates! These melt-in-the-mouth chocolates just drives me wild! They tastes so good......... These are originally from Japan, but I purchase it from Singapore........long way rite? I'm a chocolate lover, so I guess I just follow my tongue! So far it hasn't failed me yet, hah! Wanna try this?

They are from Royce! Check this website, www.e-royce.com to find out more, ok!

Illusions

My mind is always full of ideas, thoughts and illusions. I wonder whether everyone has this same belief. I tend to wake up every morning and all the illusions and thoughts flash through my mind like telling me what to do today. It happens so often that I normally venture to explore them and even do some research on it. The amazing part is, normally I would create some new designs or even explore some new ideas with it.

I often think of it as tiny little fairies are whispering to me; guiding and inspiring me. Well, it almost sounded mythical, right? Oscar Wilde was quoted saying that, "Illusion is the first of all pleasures." Guess what he says is true. Believe it or not, we all have an imaginative mind, just that sometimes we are not listening to it.

Golden Peak

Another fantastic view.... It's also one of the UNESCO listed places in China, Chengdu. It's called the 'Golden Peak' (Jin Ding). This is just one of the view up at the peak of the mountain.


This is one of the temple built up here at the top of the Golden Peak! Fabulous!

As you can see here, the Sun is directly above me, while the mountain peak is where I am standing, then the clouds are beneath us! Wonderful feeling right? This is what I call top of the mountain!

* Alrite, if you love these pictures and want to know more, let me know! I can send it to you! heheh...

Fantastic scenery!

Look at the mountain.... great scenery isn't it? Beautiful lake... fell so fake like a picture out of a computer or something like that. Well you are so wrong, if you get to go China, do not miss out on this UNESCO listed site. It is the "Nine Village Valley" (Jiu Zhai Gou) in the Sze Chuan Province. This is just one of the pictures that I've taken! More to come......

All these happens in the Autumn, so you can see that the lake is turquoise blue and there are these leaves turning red and yellow and brown. The lake is so clear until you could see what's underneath and you would feel like jumping into the pool! I tried and touch the stream of water, and it fells icy cold!
Well look at this natural waterfall, if you are a nature lover, you would not want to miss all these wonderful scenery. I feel like staying there and not coming back...... hah I wish. Well there are people who actually stay there in those valleys and there's even a small temple in it! Fantastic huh!

*For your information, I took all these pictures myself and it's not cropping from other webpage OK!! If you want the real pictures... ask me!

Little Adventure on a Boat Ride

Yumm.. Yumm...
Percieve this small boat trip..... I had while visiting Bangkok as an adventure! There's nothing more interesting than eating a bowl of piping hot noodles on board! Jugling between balancing and eating is fun! Love the pork noodles.. it's delicious no doubt about that! You should try it too....




Now I have taken a shot at the lady preparing the noodles in a "Sampan", look at the way she cooks, sure tells you a thing of two that she's good at it!




This photo here is another woman preparing stuff on a boat.... well I have no idea what she is preparing though, some sort like a salad..... well she's definately cutting something.







This seller is selling fruits on board! She is peddling the boat while calling out for customers........ there's this mangosteen , rambutan and Dunrian........... hmmm... looks good!

Clogs people.... these are so cool!

These are some wonderfully decorated chinese clogs!! Aren't they beautiful? I am going to elaborate this, they are actually designed and created by participants of a competition organised by the Little Penang street market committees. The participants use their creative minds to decorate all these clogs and they are then auctioned off to donate for the charity. There's this christmas theme clogs with santa on it, there's the traditional wooded clog with bells on it, there's this colourful (Chai Sen Ye) as well and the furry wild clog.... etc. and lots more. Anyways it was a wonderful event and everyone enjoyed themselves!