Cherry Jubilee

I'm back !

*drum rolls *

Let's start with some quick update.

Fall. It's pretty and I love the weather. This is my first experience with four seasons, and I'm liking it so far. I didn't get any when I was in New Zealand. I'm still looking forward for spring, but not summer. I mean the weather. These pretty leaves are gone by now; as it's already winter.

Halloween ! It's a big thing here. Too bad the street party was dispersed when I got there. :(

Ohio ! Police on horses in Columbus. Haven't seen any in Michigan, so I'm wondering if this is an Ohio thing. It's kinda weird to be in Ohio when there's a big game between OSU and UM around the corner. Especially if you're wearing a Michigan tee. Don't understand ? Look at the next photo.
Football is another big thing here. Notice the amount of F words in the banner ?Do note that, football is not the same as soccer.
Winter is pretty decent here, contrary to what I heard. The snow is not even thick enough for me to have a decent snowball fight !

Well, it's the time of the year again. A time where you stop and look back at life. The experiences, the people and the achievements that has been part of it. As the clock ticks to the end of 2009, I been thinking about a lot of things. Personal goals, academic minors and etc. I shall not talk about my personal goals here, as you can tell from its classification, it's personal.

I've yet decided on my academic minor. I initially had a minor or two , in mind when I got here; but towards the end of the term, I changed my mind.So, I'm talking of four different options, but I only can choose one. I'm actually trying to fit two other minors into my academic plan, with note of my intended graduation date. But, apparently I don't have enough time for both. It's kind of a bummer when you have to drop a minor because you can fit in one or two classes.And I don't think I want to go over 18 credit hours per semester. As of now, it's a trade off.

Some nice evil kid on the streets.

I watched Avatar in IMAX -3D in the cinema, the other day. It 's a good movie with intense graphics.If you want a review, my friend, Gerard has written one. Check it out, here .

School is starting next week. I got all the classes I wanted and my schedule looks pretty nice, so I'm contended.The thing about being in a big school, is that there's all sorts of activities and interests that is facilitated. Heard of a penis monologue ?

In case you haven't notice, I have a habit of snapping random photos ! So bear with it. :p

As for the title of this post, I thought of a new way to look at life. Isn't it interesting how you can think about live using ice-cream flavors? I just had cherry jubilee ;and I found that I loved it. What about you ? What is your flavor ?

The Journey

It’

s been a while since I promised to update. And I truly apologize for the sudden absence. It’s just that I’ve been too occupied with life , academics and settling in.

Here's some pictures on my long journey around a month ago. Kuching-Kuala Lumpur-Seoul-Chicago-Detroit.That totals to more than 40 hours of plane and airports.And I didn't exactly have a very smooth flight.But I'm not going to rant about it. Anyway, here some pictures and some brief descriptions.

                                      At Starbucks in Kuching International Airport.

                                  Malaysian flag in Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

                I have an instance liking for these seats when I saw them.In Incheon International Airport.I managed to explore parts of the airport and even took a shower in the Transfer Lounge. In Incheon International Airport,you’ll know who to look for, when the lavatory is not cleaned. Korea Traditional Cultural Experience Center ! Various kind of souvenirs are sold here, but the prices range starts from the thousands. In South Korean won of course.

You even have the chance to hand-make a beoseon (버선) sourvenir ! It’s a sourvenir, not the real thing.For those who don’t know, this is a beoseon, which is essentially Korean traditional socks.                 A mini concert in the airport. :) Wonderful music that they play.Bi Bim Bab ! This is a display outside a restaurant at the airport.Didn’t try it then, but  I had this for dinner yesterday- in Ann Arbor of course. I added some 고추장 . And it was good !

                            Some custom officials with a very cute dog.          And did i mention that the airport staffs were very friendly ? :)Korean Air, which flew me to Chicago. Imagine, boarding a flight at 12 noon on Aug 27 , but you arrive prior to 12 noon Aug 27, across the Pacific Ocean. You get what I mean. A travel across time zones.

In-flight entertainment system! A wonderful invention indeed even though it takes up a lot of time which could be spend sleeping.

The only photo I manage to snap at O’Hare International Airport.:(

Of twin towers and aquarium

Sometime ago, when I was still in Kuala Lumpur, Jen Yong and friends came over for a trip. So , I met up with them at Suria KLCC and showed them around the area.

A national landmark, which stands at a height of 452 meters above the ground, the Petronas Twin Tower is a spectacular sight to behold. The double-decked skybridge is supported by a “three hinge arch” . The skybridge serve to link the towers at Level 41 and Level 42. However, the guys were more eager to visit another attraction in the area, so after a brief tour at the front of the towers and around the mall, we headed off to the next site of interest.

Aquaria KLCC, boasts of the best underwater education experience in the city. With a newly opened, Aquaria Education Centre and Aquaria Fish Therapy Centre, visitors can get the best of the ocean. The Aquaria Fish Therapy Centre allows visitors to enjoy fish spa- soaking your feet in the water while the Garra rufa nibbles at it. After touring the Aquaria Education Center, which has a small exhibit of marine creatures, we proceed to the feast our eyes on more in the 60,000 sq. ft. aquarium.

There was a DNA Touch Pool , near the entrance. There , we get to touch a number of live marine creatures. Look, I’m holding a starfish !! Note that my fingers are submerged in the water. We’re not supposed to lift these creatures out of the water.

                                     

I’m touching a shark! Woots!!

                   Bamboo sharks are harmless creatures. And they lay eggs.

However, not all marine creatures are as innocuous as the bamboo sharks. Try swimming with one of these fishes below, you’ll know what I mean. But I guess it’s too late by then.

      Especially these vicious fishes that are originally from the Amazon River.

                              Or even this fish with deadly venom.

Watching so many fishes swim around like that in a huge crystal clear aquarium is indeed a sight to behold. It makes you feel like joining the fishes in the water.

And some of the fish are really big. I was amazed to see such a huge fish. I think it was taking a rest there. Do note that, the fishes you see from outside the aquarium, looks much smaller than their actual size.                                         Jen Yong and Khai Ming.

While we ventured around, I noticed that the aquaria has a number of cute looking exhibits. Introducing :

                                                  The Hawksbill Turtle                                               

Longhorned Cow Fish                                        And not to forget, this little creature.
There were other exhibits of amphibians, reptiles and insects at the place, but I suppose we were more interested in looking at fishes.

                                                    Shark alert !

Dark Secrets Revealed.

Nah, this is just a dating tip an advertisement.

I watched the latest sequel of the Harry Potter series today. Met up with Gerard at Star Cineplex, before we headed for lunch at Life Cafe. We had some nice spicy noodles and pearl milk tea, but I must say that the portion has significantly reduced.

The new State Legislative Building( view from Level 9 of Medan Pelita)

As we were early for our movie, we went around the local shops around the area, which specialise in selling local handicrafts which among others include blow pipes, statues, keris, bow and kain pua. There were also stalls at the walkway, either selling Sarawak kek lapis or aphrodisiac which includes the locally famous Sarawak gambir. However as I was walking pass one of these stalls, I noticed that a small little bottle with brownish transparent concoction. Apparently, it's leech oil. According to one of the seller , the leech oil is good for massage. " Boleh jadi besar dan panjang." ( Open for interpretations)

The one on the left looks much better.

Harry Potter and the Half- Blood Prince is the sixth adaptation of the popular Harry Potter series.In this sequel, Harry Potter and the gang went back to Hogwards for their sixth year. A new potions professor by the name of Horrace Slughorn, who knows a vital secret about the dark lord is introduced to the school. Dumbledore assigns Harry to the task of getting this secret from Horrace who usually hold dinner parties with a select few elite students. Harry falls in love with Ron's sister, Ginny Weasley.

When, Harry and Dumbledore discovers the dark lord's dark secret- that Lord Voldemort has been using horcruxes in his attempt to stay immortal, they set off to a place far away to retrieve another of the horcrux. In the end, when the deatheaters entered Hogwards grounds , Dumbledore was killed by Snape. Overall, I find this to be a nice movie, although I would say that it could be better.

The Long Lost Feeling

It's been sometime since I had this feeling. Yes, this is how travelling around should be. If you remembered my previous rant about travelling around, you would know what I mean.


Ironically , one of the best way to get out of KL Sentral is on one of these rails that leads to the airport. I took the KLIA transit to Putrajaya, where I had a restroom break; prior to continuing my journey on the train to KLIA. KLIA Express offers a faster and more costly alternative to get to the airport; but, as I was on a budget and had some time to spare, I decided to take a less costly ride. Contrary to the popular belief, I'm not loaded with cash to throw around.

This is what I mean. Spacious and comfortable environment. And quiet.

Depending on where you sit, there's even an informative screen in front of you, updating you on the local and world weather and the breaking news around the world.

I was rather lost when I reached KLIA, but a kind staff on duty lead me to the check in counter.And another nice staff there, asked if I would prefer the aisle seat or the window seat. Little did I know, that later on I would have all 3 seats to myself. And to add to that, I was given a seat right behind the business / first class section, which means it's in the front( read less walking).

Here's a photo of the boarding gate where I get to wait before boarding.It's been some time, since I last travelled with Malaysia Airlines. But the previous time, either I didn't notice the excellent service rendered, or I had my mind on something else. But, something really striked me the other day. I actually enjoyed the trip. Well, most of it. With the exception of having another passenger sneezing, 3 seats away from you.

The food served was good. I had fried rice with chicken satay, a very fruity desert , thirst quenching juices and a yogurt drink. I spared the Ferrero Rocher from the evil grip of my stomach. And the rest of the ride, needless to say, was good. Someone tell me why I didn't take the opportunity offered by Youthsays.com to meet Dato' Sri Idris Jala, the CEO of MAS, who took the helm of the then failing GLC ( government-linked company) with massive losses of several hundred million dollars. Under his lead, the airline is in a current state where profits are being recorded

Here 's a peek of the much said health declaration form that I was asked to fill.

When I arrived at Kuching International Airport, a man wearing a face mask, silently redirected us to another area; where more health officials were standing by, with a heat sensing camera. No photos were taken then as, I was paranoid didn't want to subject myself to extra exposure to any virus , if there was any in the area. Even the custom officers had face masks added to their usual official attire. And yes, I'm back in Kuching again, for the time being.

The V Day.

No, it's not Valentines. It's V for visa. I had my visa interview last week. Woke up very early in the morning , and met up with Julia and her brother at KL Sentral, as Jonathan also had his interview on that day. I initially suggest to spoil Julia's diet plan have McD as breakfast, but Julia, sort of refused; so we had breakfast at Old Town White Coffee at Jalan Ampang instead.

After breakfast, we were forced to accompany Julia to Suria KLCC, before we set of to the Embassy. I met Chin Yee and Yoke Chin at the Embassy.The interview was quick, but we were told that we had to wait , as there were some administrative processing to be done.

After that, we headed back to Suria KLCC, where Julia had her retail therapy. She got herself, a top from the TopShop ,after a camwhoring session in the changing room. Then we had lunch at Nando's Chicken .

Nom nom nom.

I decided not to take risk with my food, and settled for lemon and herb, while Julia and Jonathan decided on having more spice in their chicken.

Jonathan.

Julia with the almost same expression. After lunch, I went for a desert before, we head to the cinema to watch 17 Again. We came across a fitness store , and decided to do a fitness test at a store in the mall.

So, how fit am I ?

I guess I need to come out with a workout plan .