Saturday, July 08, 2006
A good thing about living in a home away from home is that you sort of get out of your comfort zone and have to learn to adapt. Yes Darkspike, this is the life. Well, but guess it is really up to whether you want to live like this.
I am really enjoying myself cooking and to a certain extend, it is a way of killing time too. Since I came here, I can make Hainanese chicken rice, roast pork, char siew etc. Not to mention baking etc. That is why I am quite disappointed that they do not sell the bread maker that I want over here. The one that I want is able to not only make brad, but also dough and more importantly jam.
We have been very DIY since we came over. We now make our own yogurt and ice cream too. What they sell in the stores do make things easier too as there are sections that carry DIY pre-mixes. So for example if we are too lazy to get stuff for the ice cream maker, we can always get the pre-mix instead.
To a certain extend, it is back to basic afterall the people here are more likely to make their own food (like bread). It is amazing how fast bread makers are sold once they are on offer. It is as though so many people are waiting for the offer (which I suspect they do). Weirdly, they do not sell the bread maker I want here. Maybe it is because there is no need to bring it in since the rest are selling so well.
Toy sale is on now and when you step into the major departmental stores, you will be taken back by the amount of toys. Not only that, there are just so many people buying toys. It seems that people buy toys just at this time of the year. There is so much hype about the toy sales and you can actually reserve it till Christmas. The sale lasts for two weeks and I am really interested to see how empty the shelves will be by the end of the two weeks.
Another irritating thing is that I cannot seem to find Uno Stacko here. Seems like I am fated to buy Jenga instead. Think there is a 40% discount on Jenga now. O yes, I am so tempted to buy Lego. Most places are having 20% of all Lego and some of them just look so cool.
Saving the best for last. Here's wishing two very very very good friends a very HAPPY 21! Happy birthday Stephe and Baby Sarah! Welcome to the age I left four years ago. Welcome to adulthood.
he spoke at 1:56 pm
Friday, July 07, 2006
I think that I am not fated to buy a breadmaker. When there is one cheap one on ebay, I forget to bid and when there is a perfect one in the stores, it is not on sale in my area. And I was so looking forward to buying one and baking my own bread and dough.
he spoke at 5:40 pm
A little observation that I made during our trip to Sydney and Tassie - people living in smaller cities tend to be friendlier and more patient. One of the first things that struck me when I stepped into Sydney was that the service staff there were less polite than those in my little corner of the world.
The usual greeting was lacking and the people tend to treat you like you owe them. The drivers there tend to honk more as well. True the city is very lively (along with a huge Asian population) but the social graces that I have grown so fond of here was simply lacking. Even on the buses, commuters hardly thanked the driver when they exited. The only time I heard was in my last day when a bunch of Kiwi girls thanked the driver when they exited. Though they were a noisey bunch, but they still had the courtesy.
Tassie was quite different though, the people tend to be friendlier and warmer. The one thing though is that the place is very cold. Imagine standing on a mountain with winds so strong that even the car would rock. Also the mountain still had bits of snow, so imagine standing in strong wind in sub zero temperatures. The scenery there though was well worth the cold. O yes, in the morning, the car wind screen would have a sheet of ice on it and you really have to wait for it to defrost before you can even see anything.
A nice thing about Sydney though is the dim sum or yum char as they call it here. They serve pig's blood! Yea, it has been a long time since I ate it and really enjoyed it. Thing though is that the yum char in most decent places are comparable to high end restaurants in Singapore. Yum char for threw can easily set you back close to S$100. Cheaper yum char places will set you back about S$50.
Two major events that happened while we were there were Nicole Kidman's wedding and the Italy-Australia match. The former was super hyped up and I think we saw one of Nicole's family member's car. It was a similar car she was married in but in a different colour and we were in the same vicinity of her house and wedding.
I have never seen so much support for a sport with my very own eyes till that day. Hours before the match, you can see thousands of people all in Socceroo colours in the streets cheering and dancing on the streets (when the lights are red of course). Cars would honked whenever they see a group or shop in Socceroo colours. Yes, that means horns were heard just about every few metres you walk. Rowdy as they seem, they are actually quite a disciplined bunch who really are out to have good fun rather than to create trouble.
When the lights turn green, they would immediately retreat back to the curbs to continue cheering. Even though the groups were as hugh as maybe 200 crossing the road, when it turned red, they would stop and wait for the lights to turn before crossing.
The Asian population though is really hugh. At times, it seems easier to find an Asian and a local. In a market, the anouncer would tell shoppers that smoking is forbidden within the premises and no prizes for guessing which group it was for. A hint, it was in mandarin and only in mandarin. Have to say though it really is quite intimidating at times when there are big Asian populations around. I am not being biased against my own race (I am very proud to be Chinese) but when you see groups of guys that really look like ah bengs in Hong Kong movies, it can really be scary.
Not to mention that these people are constant smoking and seem to be looking for someone to intimidate. It does not help also that Asian student gangs are known to operate with some of them extorting not only money but cars from their victims. Not normal cars, but cars like BMWs. The advice that police give is really to report these incidents to them and to avoid places like KTVs (a lot of them operate from those within Chinatown). It really is sad that the Chinatowns in a number of Western countries are not exactly the safest of places.
The one here is also not that safe (the extoring incidents happen here) and is really quite apparent when you step out into the streets. The police presence can be felt with quite a number of police around and security cameras right just about every possible corner. There are signs posted eveywhere too stating that the place is heavily monitored. Also, the place just has a bad reputation with constant drug raids etc. Though it has probably the most happening nightlife here, locals would tell you that it is best to avoid the place at night.
he spoke at 9:29 am