tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59493222012-01-04T14:08:16.640+08:00Food, life, and fun in my "kampung,"(village), KL (Kuala Lumpur). Did I mention "food?"Allan Yap & Nigel A. Skelchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175145056894340597noreply@blogger.comBlogger2591100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5949322.post-13594776268705028372011-07-15T17:32:00.003+08:002011-07-15T17:52:52.126+08:00

My blog has been on hiatus for awhile but Siu Lin, the author, wrote this just this week and I felt that it really needs to be read as widely as possible. So I asked her permission to do so.I've known Siu Lin and Wee Tee for years now and both of them graduated as lawyers, although only Siu Lin is practicing now. Wee Tee works with a luxury cosmetics brand and is very successful at her career

Allan Yap & Nigel A. Skelchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175145056894340597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5949322.post-49062497756193508242010-02-06T11:13:00.003+08:002010-02-06T11:36:55.306+08:00

Hi allI just noticed that the time has flown in between my last blog and this one. And it's not fair to those who do check in for me to keep them hanging. I'm going to take a hiatus for now as time just doesn't permit and something has to give. I plan to be spending more time on Twitter now so do follow me on @nigelskelchyThanks very much for being so supportive in the past.Best regardsNigel

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"What are you doing for lunch on Saturday?" chirps her madge! (Yes I know, "Her Madge" is used to describe some OTHER celebrity, but while I LURVE THAT "madgesty" in all her incarnations, this one is someone I actually know and she is the Queen of DSLRs) "Nothing...I think" waiting with bated breath to be invited to some scintillating soiree. Her "Madgesty" did not disappoint. "Would you like to

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Octoberfestavali, a most appropriate Malaysian celebration, combines Octoberfest (where Germans' drink) and Deepavali, which of course, the Hindus in our community have just celebrated; a triumph of good over evil. And with apologies to our Hindu brethren, we felt that alcohol is always a good cleanser especially when you consume copious amounts of the good spirits...of single malt. To that end,

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We indulged in the whole spectrum.From Pizza in a chain restaurant all the way to Royal Thai.From Grasshopper street food to Ruen Mallika. And Pad Thai in a "Thai Gourmet" place (very ordinary) in Emporium Mall to Jim Thompson's Restaurant on the river.And of course, the obligatory Sticky Rice with Mango, which, when all was said and done, was disappointing. The best I'd ever had was from a

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Thanks for all who participated in the recently concluded Nuffnang Awards. Results will be announced on Friday 23 October 2009. I'm sort of assuming the results will be listed on Nuffnang's award website.Fingers crossed for Lyrical Lemongrass and her blog A Whiff Of Lemongrass!All the best Ms L!

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We're in the home stretch. Alilfatmonkey, who's neither little, nor fat, created the badge you see on the left. Nuffnang is closing the voting on 11 October. So as of today, we have less than 2 days left to vote for the BEST FOOD BLOG for the Region.I thoroughly believe that Lyrical Lemongrass deserves the nod.Yes, she's a friend. But if you read her blog you will know that she's passionate about

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It was fantastic to meet someone so passionate about food. Jeanette Han, one of the owners of The Elegant Inn asked Kris of weddingsmalaysia.com to invite some wedding planners to review their new private rooms. Ann Lee, ever efficient AND insisting that we do a better job than her charming people, dragged us along. I think that's her ruse for company really. ;-) We get to Elegant Inn and it's

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We arrive on Mabul after losing a bag at the hands of Malaysian Airlines. Notwithstanding the fact that they have systems to retrieve it, it shouldn't have happened.Our checkout dive on the housereef was uneventful. Or eventful, depending on how you look at it. A 5 foot garoupa swimming 3 feet away from you and catching you in it's backwash is eventful, isn't it?Jun, Allan and I were listed as

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One fine Monday evening, we stepped out with Mo Lin with the wind in our, well, eyebrows, and roared down to The Marc Residence in Jalan Pinang.We attended the "I♡KL" event held in Delicious at the Marc. And it was the biggest agglomeration of people in white that I've seen in a long time.The event was organised by Randomalphabets.com for no other reason than to have Malaysians from every walk of

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"What la you! I've been here for 30 minutes waiting for you on my own already! I'm heartbroken!" So sings the oft repeated refrain from A2, otherwise known as toyboy(not mine, he's taken). I've warned him about crying wolf too often but to no avail. And he does it so charmingly, so I play along.Fatboybakes had arranged a food review with Bangsar Seafood Centre on request from their Public

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Sage is a restaurant conceptualised and started by the Chef of the old Cilantro. Put that together with bunch of food bloggers bent on treating a dear one to a surprise birthday luncheon and you have a recipe for carnage. Either that or an orgy! What with the moans and groans from around the table, you would think that sex had been replaced by food.Wait...That's the case with this bunch actually!

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From terracotta horses hand-carried all the way from Xian, China, to the yummy ginger cod mee hoon soup and the luscious durian pudding, The Ming Room has returned with a Roarrr!In any case, since we were free one Sunday, Ms Chan Mo Lin, one of the owners of The Oriental group of Restaurants invited Allan and myself out to lunch to catch up. Along the way, we dragooned "Amelia" to come along. Mo

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"Suck on it!" exhorts Cumi archly!I almost fell off my chair.But of course, the quiet, wry, smirk that was on his face meant that I should extract all the goodness out of the 9" long Spider Crab Claw that was in my eager but saucy hands!And what a mouthful it was. Rich, buttery, and that amazing, sweet, savoury, coconut milk sauce redolent with all the herbs and spices which make Royal Thai

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It's been 6 days now that we've been away.It's been an amazing and fun-filled stay. We have another day here in this beautiful place before we say "so long" knowing that we will return.Today, however, I feel compelled to write about what is happening at home in reflection to what is happening here.A man has been killed. The fair part of my mind is saying wait till all the evidence is in before

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I'm finally getting used to the moped/scooter. It's a Yamaha Nuovo and makes this amazing sound like a chicken farting. It's quick, it's wobbly, it has this feather light throttle that makes it jerk ahead, and it makes rubbernecking vewwy, vewwy, difficult.For instance, there are MANY of these around. Eye Candy that is...I obviously only got to take pictures of these few OFF the two wheeled

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It's been a week of trepidation.Omigod, I had so much work to finish before we left for our trip to Bali.And so much guilt to work through because we're leaving during our busiest season of the year.However, it had come to a point that we needed to bite the bullet and go for a break before we were swamped for the rest of the year with nary a break in sight.There we were rushing things out till

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Do you feel that people in Malaysia tend to fear competition?I used to work with this gentleman in the US and he taught me a very useful idea of seeing competition. He used to say that "competition should focus you. You shouldn't be afraid of it. It's a fact of life. It's only what you choose to do that sets you apart."We live in an open society (well sort of). And competition of any sort in

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"So, is there anything that I can get you from here?" (Pic on the left is as delivered from Si, with the calculations of how much it cost written in pencil on the bag)As the words appeared accross the screen on gmail chat, I knew there was only one thing I wanted. Well, two actually, but we won't go there. This is an, umm, PG rated blog you know."Pork Pies. YUM! With a nice wodge of cheddar and

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Hmmm, I wonder if I should be so glad. I walked into bootcamp today and Masta V gave me this packet with the familiar (to me at any rate) cursive and the High Glycemic Index food of Krispy Kremes.I haven't eaten it yet but if it's as I remember, they should be soft and yielding, great flavour and SWEEEEEEEEET!Since I'm not supposed to have carbs at night, I'll have a bit of this with my muesli

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When I first started eating 6 meals I had already been exercising for 2 1/2 months. I wasn't really watching what I ate but for most, it would have been a decent diet. Breakfast of muesli, lunch of a meat, a little veg and some rice and then tea was a piece of fruit and dinner again meat, and a little rice. Those were my 'everyday' foods.Then I sort of decided to 'up' it to the next level. I had

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It's impossible. Or I thought it would be.The natural pull of Kuala Lumpur is for one to practice Living To Eat. I mean, with food and colour and textures and tastes of such intensity everywhere, it's sort of difficult just to be sensible about eating. Every meal is an opportunity for an adventure. Every meal is an opportunity for a gathering for a giggle to lift you from the mundane.I love

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There are a plethora of food choices in Kuala Lumpur. The one that we were invited to to do a sponsored food review is not an obvious one that springs to mind. Angus Charcoal Grill Steakhouse, as you can see in the photos above, was very quietly understated. Almost too much so when you compare it to all the other eateries around which are practically screaming at you to "COME IN AND GIVE US A TRY

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Instead of the usual post per restaurant, I thought something different...So here's my experiment; one post about my favourite eats through the last couple of weeks. Including the ones that I cooked myself. This is most definitely NOT a halal post.Hatyai StreetHonest to goodness trotters. Braised or deep fried. Sweet, succulent, juicy and decently priced. Won't break the bank. You can get away

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Hot Cross bunsOne a penny,Two a penny, Hot Cross buns I caught a glimpse of hot cross buns that Dad bought, laid out on the table. He's very sweet. He goes to church on Sunday mornings and picks up all sort of 'SOMETIMES' food to eat. :-) Then I had to run into the office to pass some stuff to customers. At that point, I felt this urge surge through me. "Let's make Hot Cross Buns" the Voice in my

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Food is central to our lives."GOOD" foodBut everyday we make choices to eat certain foods. We're fortunate to be in that position really.Questions fill our day; "where shall we go tonight to eat?" "what shall we eat?" "ooo lets be healthy tonight and eat a salad?" "No lah, can't eat that tonight lah, trying to lose weight." "Aiyo, my cholesterol too high I'm eating soup/salad for the next 3

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Madam Kwan's isn't a new restaurant.It's not been refurbished neither has it been taken over by new management. Daniel still works there and the decor, while contemporary, is still very current and aging really well.I'm reminded of Coliseum every time I come in here. But it's Coliseum if it had been refurbished.The food is honest. The prices still good and it's dishes we grew up with. Exotic

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There were some who expressed an interest in making the soup so I thought I'd list the full recipe here.I pinched it from a cooks journal.When skimming the fat off the stock, we prefer to leave a little bit on the surface to enhance the soup’s flavor. The soup can be prepared through the end of step 2 and refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Store the chicken breasts in a

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It's been a long time since I blogged. My apologies to all. Perhaps I should have put up a note saying why but as those who read my blog regularly, you would know that it's been a rough 2008.Inspiration was in short supply.As life moves on however, it's obvious that I've always loved doing this and it's been something I've missed. As my food blogger friends remind me(you know who you are,

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I've been tagged by fatboybakes. OK, I have a duty and responsibility to keep this going. So here it is ;-) Since I don't have my manbag with me, my wallet it is... I will answer the questions then post the rules for those whom I will tag...However, I'm glad it happened because now I also know I'm missing Allan's photo which I used to have. It must have fallen out. Mental note; get

Allan Yap & Nigel A. Skelchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175145056894340597noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5949322.post-47756206573648519282008-09-12T00:26:00.003+08:002008-09-12T00:30:46.981+08:00

Was debating whether or not to post this. But since I delivered it to an unexpectedly large crowd at the church today, it's pretty much public anyway. So here it is...'Mum was an uncommon woman. I hear this sentiment from many. It’s still hard to believe she’s gone. Even though we’ve had months to prepare for it. I also know I didn’t want to come up and do the usual thing of, well, messages of

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"Nigel, come here now!" The urgency with which Aunty Pek summoned me pulled me into the room. I had been preparing to come home and make dinner. Just a few hours earlier we had been preparing to say goodbye to Mum. I never realised it would be so soon. I had thought that it would be a few days, maybe next week. Instead we were thrown into a maelstrom of fast moving events with the death of my Mum

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Keith pokes at his Ipod Touch as we sit in the alfresco section of Le Papier Du Tigre on Pub Street wondering where to go for dinner.An armless man passes us on the street and comes up to our table and holds out his hand, begging. 2 children come by offering trinkets for the ubiquitous “one dol-lah.” It clawed at me to put on a dead pan face and shut them out.“There’s this one called ‘Viroth’s.’

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From Angkor Thom, to the Bayon, then to Baphuon, and Phimeanaka, on to Ta Keo, Ta Prohm, the Terrace of the Leper King & Angkor Wat, Day 2 was just amazing. The Food, again, will be a separate posting. But I just had to include Happy Herb Pizza which included special "oregano." ;-)

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“Two doh-lah, I geeve you peece and qui-ette” she said, with the cheekiest of grins. You knew she meant it, this little extortioner with the charming, toothy grin.Rewind to 12 hours earlier we had set foot in the LCCT, our Low Cost Carrier Terminal. I trail behind Allan and Keith, trusting them to lead me through the throngs of bodies to the right counter. After check in my feet automatically

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(Warning; some people may not be used to seeing a suckling pig being deboned. If so, don't scroll all the way down. I believe that we should know where our food comes from and it's not the neat, sanitised square pieces we see in the supermarkets, hence my decision to include that photo)There's nothing like the feel of a sincere hug. ALMOST nothing beats the intimacy and wholehearted physical

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"You brought a bottle of wine? YAY!"We all know what's important to me. FBB had graciously brought a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc to go with our dinner at a new place called Oriental Spoon in Sooka Sentral.Where's that you might ask. We did too. After a few false turns it turned out that Sooka Sentral is right behind Suasana Sentral, next to the Hilton Kuala Lumpur. And Oriental Spoon is in that

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Also posted on Notes From VenusBrussels Sprouts used to be this green porridge I got in boarding school in the UK. Not anymore.It's a hip, happening place minus the pretention in a well groomed part of Singapore. Oh yeah, they're ALL well groomed. It IS Singapore after all. Where even the wet markets are well groomed.Brussels Sprouts is situated at a place called The Pier @ Robertson alongside

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I get an sms a couple of weeks ago from Precious Pea asking if we'd be free for dinner as Rasa Malaysia (RM)was passing through and wanted to meet us and a few other friends.Since it was Allan's Birthday, I thought I should consult him first. However, he readily agreed.Fast forward a couple of weeks, and we were sitting in King Crab Restaurant for the 3rd... 4th... 5th time? I've almost lost

Allan Yap & Nigel A. Skelchyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175145056894340597noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5949322.post-32308616150053532132008-04-18T21:15:00.012+08:002008-04-22T18:01:37.475+08:00

"hi all, i am too lazy to use the events function, (actually dunno how), and also since i myself never check it, ....anyway, thursday night, 17th april, free or not? its been awhile, and it would be nice to ketchup with everyone. simple dinner at my place, hopefully followed by board games."And so, FBB set the ball rolling for another of his famous get-togethers.After rushing back home for a

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"Aiyo. Is this the place ah. Very dark lah."And then, we hear, "Allan, Nigel, come in." John waves excitedly. As he usually does. John put the evening together and got a few close friends of his to come by a friend's place to meet Vermi who runs a loose Christian network dedicated to healing.We walk in to a house which has obviously borrowed Balinese elements with pebble wash driveways and

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Also posted on Notesfromvenus.comPeals of thunder rolled in the heavens. The humidity was stifling. The heavens seemed to be closing in on us mere mortals on earth. Lightning flashed! Then the first few drops fell flat like water baloon bombs hitting concrete walls."Aiyo. Habis lah, the concert tonight." Little did we know that at the very same moment, in her comfortable luxurious suite, Celine

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Also found in notesfromvenus.com"I have dreams you see. And I hear noises, screeching, thudding, b-banging noises. And words, words drop into my head, too many words. Help! I need somebody. Help! Not just anybody...I am the Walrus. This is Major Tom to Ground Control. Do you hear the drums Fernando? I am - the Dancing Queen! I mean what the Hell is a Tambourine Man? What's the story morning glory

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Also found in www.notesfromvenus.comThis is a posting about a non-halal restaurant. If you would be discomfited by images of pigs, please refrain from reading on. "El Cerdo or Lemon Garden Cafe, bee?" An emphatic "El Cerdo" decided the matter. We drove up, parked in one of the lanes just off Changkat Bukit Bintang and walked acrross the street into El Cerdo (El as in "L" and Cerdo as in "Sir-doh

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This entry is also to be found in Notes From Venus."Turn left. Then Turn Right. Slow down. Are they behind us?” My navigator turns round to have a look for the other 2 cars tailing us to get to this Coffee Shop in Segambut. Satisfied that they were still in sight, he turns back to me and calmly continues issuing directions. “Turn left. Turn right.” We passed through what looked like a small

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"What? I can't think anymore." His face practically crumples and at that point I knew we needed to take a break. So we booked a couple of nights into a hotel and decided to just rest and enjoy the spa.The only catch was that we couldn't leave KL because of my Mum and other things that were going on. So we decided to make the best of it. In any case, Allan needed rest more than anything else.On

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"It's our night. What would you like to do?" An ongoing question when it comes to our "date" night. Most times because of scheduling, the easiest thing to do is to go catch a movie. In this case "The Spiderwick Chronicles." Highly recommended by the way.We managed to pick up some primo tickets and then went on to the next issue at hand. What to have for dinner?Ever practical, Allan said "Movie's

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Gerry and Henrik suggested brunch at The Wolseley, a single star Michelin restaurant. Since we had already planned to go to Ubon by Nobu on another night, we weren't too enthused seeing as food in London is extremely expensive. Especially, Michelin starred restaurants. We were having visions of a bill of about £50 PER PERSON. G and H assured us that that was true usually but The Wolseley was

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Allan in Sze's front hall with her old fashioned cage liftAfter one glorious, fun-filled week in Hungary, with perfect hospitality from Sze, we sadly make our way back to London for our last week of hijinks.As a last fling, we went to the Central Market Hall on the last day, as well as this gorgeous little pastry shop we filed past on our way back to Sze's place. She took us there specifically to

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Who has been to a wet market in Malaysia?Slimy, stinky, fishy, with bits of ground in offal and produce on the floor. Meat with flies swarming, oppressive, humid muggy places housed in square, squat buildings of utilitarian value.Contrast this with the Great Market Hall or Central Market Hall of Budapest, Hungary otherwise known as Nagy Vásárcsarnok.Beautiful, well planned, and sectioned into

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I don't like Mid Valley.There. I said it.Don't get me wrong. I do visit the place periodically. It houses many of the shops that I would patronise. And when I need something like tonight I find it's not a bad place to go to to get what I need.But I don't like it.It's a waste of time.It's large. So you can't just 'pop in' to pick up some groceries. You have to allocate a good hour and a half if

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After visiting Mum in hospital tonight, Allan and I decided to go to Restoran Soong Kee Beef Ball Mee. It's as good an experience as it always has been. It's also called Carbon Monoxide Beef Balls because in the early days it was a little stall and the tables ran out on the sidewalk where the buses parked.Spot Allan sitting there waiting for me to finish my photography.The beef balls which made

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This is an awareness test. I have a 1MB connection at home and I would advise anyone taking the test to allow it to load fully on silent before playing it again and taking the test. Annoying I know but such is life here in our supposed broadband connected country.http://www.dothetest.co.uk/If you see snippets of it BEFORE you take the test it won't be valid.I think this ad has applications here

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Some of you may already know that for the past few weeks, Mum has been in hospital undergoing surgery to remove her stomach due to an aggresive malignant tumour. To cut a long story short, her stomach was removed but there may be further treatment. It has not spread to the lymph nodes. Her prognosis at this time is very good.I was actually contemplating writing updates as to her progress but it

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Right in the middle of Puchong. Wow! The authorities are REALLY getting lenient! ;-) *snigger*

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As you know, I've been commenting on politics and ranting here now and again. Well, to focus matters a bit more and hopefully to contribute something positive to the blogosphere as well as honing my own ideas and what I believe should be done, I thought it would be better to start up a new blog.So here it is.Dotmyhome.blogspot.com

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Our 12th general elections loom.I wrote about my experience as a child of the 60s last year, in August. In that same entry, I urged people to vote.Starting a substantive conversation about our own country is like peeling back the festering scab of a pus filled wound. You either get invective, annoyance, or outright anger and frustration. Or you get an opportunity to switch on a memo recorder to

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Pic courtesy of ohlalaparis.comFrom enlightened Metrosexuals to David Beckham. From Europe to both coasts of North America. From London and New York, to our little big city, Kuala Lumpur, manscaping appears to be a growing trend. The gals have taken it all off with the Brazilian. The Boys, I suspect, to maintain a semblance of masculinity, are making sure that short back and sides don't just

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Gong Hei Fatt Choy. The Cantonese version.Sun Neen Fai Lok. Long Mah Ching Sun. Siong Kor Yeong Tuck Kor Yeong. Man See Yuen Yee. Sang Yee Hing Loong.

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Shrove Tuesday. Pancake Day. So I made pancakes. Also known as Fat Tuesday. Also known as Mardi Gras.

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Nuff said. Click here to find out more.The Coffee HouseOne of the Royal BoxesThe Main LobbyAllan pretending to take a nap in the chair - Look at how large the chair is.The Main Dining Room of the coffee house

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"Mennyi?""Tízezer forintok."For 10,000 Florins we gain entry. I take the ticket.Turn right. Walk through the turnstiles. The gent at the stiles gives you the once over and hands you a large bib/small apron. The feeling of uncertainty, adventure builds. You walk through Soviet style, spartan but functional tiled rooms lined with rows on rows of lockers past partially clad men.It's a men only

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Budapest had some of the most amazing architecture I've ever seen. The connection to the Austro-Hungarian Empire is obvious; look at the similarities between Vienna and Budapest. The facades of even the most mundane buildings were works of art. The craftsmanship was impeccable. The decor of the interior of some of the more famous buildings hark back to Orthodox Church's influence on

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Instead of a chronological diary of events that occured on our Big Adventure, I thought it might be more interesting to relate stories or events that happened during that time. So there will be a series of stories and tales from our trip which won't be in any order. Just as long as a photo from my flickr collection piques my memory, I'll stick it in here as an entry.As some of you may know, we

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Mum and Dad came to pick me up at KL Sentral. We drove out to see this ongoing demonstraton. Wow! Al Jazeera reported this as a protest by Bersih, 71 NGOs, demanding a change in electoral rules so that we can have free and fair elections. Pictures of the FRU spraying foam on protestors have been played over and over on Al Jazeera. Curiously, BBC has not said a peep on it's website. I haven't

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We rented a small car for our trip to Vienna and we were given a Skoda Fabia 1.2 HTP, which stands for High Torque Performance. For a 1.2 l car it's a gutsy little thing with bags of room. Build quality is far ahead of what we're used to and this is a car that competes with a comparable Kia. We are so shafted when it comes to cars in Malaysia.Here's a link to the review of the car on

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Our shoes squidged as we traipsed our way in the cold, wet, drizzle from our basic hostel accomodations to Deichmann, a shoe shop on Mariahilferstrasse. We were looking for some el cheapo shoes to replace my summer "holey" sneakers. For ventilation, my sneakers had "sieves" built into the sides, though I doubt Wilson would have called them that.Surprisingly, Allan and I managed to pick up some

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The mid morning autumn light fluoresced and glowed through the stained glass windows in the nave. The Saints and Angels looked down at you with that odd, flat, Byzantine lack of perspective which make them no less saintly or angelic. A shaft of sunlight kisses the altar in a way that seems to say that the Lord’s arrival is imminent. In a fit of whimsy I almost fancy it’s his escalator and He is

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Relief! It’s been 3 continuous days of activity and although we were able to access the internet briefly for about 45 minutes over the weekend, it’s still been a hit and miss affair. Hence the last entry in point form. Sort of.My cousin’s wedding has passed uneventfully. Or is that event-fully. From the time we arrived in Cambridge on Friday 19 Oct 2007, we had;1. Shopped for flowers (the

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The Bullet form version. Will edit later. Again, all photos are in flickr.The clock chimed. The sky was yet dark and the blossoming bloom of dawn light had not as yet kissed the sky. It was 5.40am.The day we were to drive to Cambridgeshire.Jams.The sky slowly lit up, like someone had their hand on the dimmer and was slowly turning it up.Doubts about taking the scenic route. Allan sleeping. Jams.

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Will edit the photos later. But for now, pics are all uploaded to flickr“I’m your assigned stalker for the day!” exclaims the smiling, friendly, gorgeous red head, freckly face, lady. We had first bumped into her at Shipp’s Tearooms, just outside Borough Market where Allan had his first taste of clotted cream and scones, with farm made raspberry jam. This second contact of the day with her was

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“We’re currently flying over the Bay of Bengal en route to Muscat…” drones the Pilot as I jostle Allan for space in the cramped seats of the Gulf Air Airbus 340-300. Next time, Business Class!It’s been a manic few days, tying up loose ends AND preparing to wing off on our first long holiday in 6 years. The sky is blue below the roar of the jet engines and the plane’s wing is suspended between

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We were walking around Bangsar Baru trying to decide what to eat, when I get a missed call from a good friend, who's one of Kuala Lumpur's well known restauranteurs. All curious as to why he should call out of the blue, I call him back and Rudy picks up "eh, you walk right past me and don't even say hello." Think Italian lilt and twinkle in the eye. He tells us where he is and after going to

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A couple of Sundays ago, Allan was off in Bali and I was at a loose end for Sunday breakfast, so I took myself off to Neroteca.Situated just off Cangkat Raja Chulan, very near Little Havana, it isn't exactly in the most visible spot in town. However, you can't deny it's central location. It's smack dab in the Golden Crescent/Triangle.Neroteca is one of those places which has a very comfortable

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You Are CyclopsDedicated and responsible, you will always remain loyal to your cause.You are a commanding leader - after all, you can kill someone just by looking at them.Power: force beams from your eyesWhich of the X-Men Are You?

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Went to this place on the recommendation of wmw. I was actually looking forward to trying his Bone Marrow soup actually. But that's only available on special order.Uncle Cheng was very efficient and pleasant. And in about 10 mins he had our beef noodles on the table. The portion was sufficient without being overly generous and it was served with a small bowl of beef broth. Having said that, the

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Marina was kind enough to invite us to an inter-faith prayer session at Blog House this last Sunday. Marina and Tara have become fast friends ever since we met them during Just Heavenly's infancy. And on Friday 7 September, she smses us to ask if we'd like to come. Obviously, Allan and I felt we should. So at 7pm on Sunday 9 September, we turned up to be greeted by Ivy Josiah, Ria Thomas, Marina

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My Bad!I made the assumption that the Butter Crab at King Crab was made out of margarine. I have since been informed by Precious Pea that the CFO emailed her to tell her this is not the case. My apologies to King Crab Restaurant.I must admit, I did make the assumption based on my previous knowledge of Chinese restaurant chefs. Many of them do use margarine. I'm glad that King Crab Restaurant

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50 years on and race and religion divides us more than ever.I'm of an age when I remember a time when all my friends from my primary school used to sit at the back of the church and sing hymns together. And all of them are still good muslims, hindus, and buddhists. We were so comfortable with each other then. And many of those friends still get together today every so often and giggle about those

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In a rather non-descript setting of one of the hottest food areas in town, namely, Tengkat Tong Shin, Max opened his restaurant, eponymously named, Max's Kitchen & Wines.The Floggers were, as Allan remarked later, "very punctual." Allan and I were very pleased that we were able to get there just 15 minutes tardy, when in actual fact, everyone had arrived, were seated and had ordered. These people

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Celebration time come on! Remember that Kool & The Gang song? If you do, then you are of a "certain age." But it's still so appropo for certain occasions. ;-)Keith, Allan's best buddy from High School had just come back from Amsterdam where he's made his home and we were out for a night on the town. Nerovivo was suggested.We've been to Nerovivo a couple of times before and it never disappointed.

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I was unsure of what to expect. In a way it was an "official" Food Bloggers gathering. "Flogger" seems to trivial a word for the event. In effect, we were at a "food review." Given that I do this for fun and am strictly speaking, a "life" blogger, I was not sure of the applicability of the "association."Kudos do go to Tim of 3meals.com for organising this event, however, as it was still a way of

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On Monday, May Wan of wmw sms-es me and says "Jackson's Birthday at kokopeli on Wed. 7.30pm."Cool! Never been to Kokopeli.A day later, another sms, this time from Jason of Ipoh Mali Talak Sombong with the same message.On the day of the dinner another sms, "Venue change to William." Great never been there either.A few hours later, "Raining. Venue change back to Kokopeli."30 mins later, "Don't

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Sigh. I want to go back.See the rest of the pictures at my Flickr site http://www.flickr.com/photos/nigelskelchyHave fun!

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I KNOW Shirley Maclaine would approve.Approve? Approve what, I hear?Sit back, relax and if it's not a dark and stormy night, skip this post and come back when it is.Light a candle. Scrunch down under your covers. And hope you don't feel a chill breath on your shoulder.*smile archly*In recent years, contrary to my religion's paradoxical stand on the matter, I've come to see that there is a natural

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Bisou. Bijou. Bianco. Kiss. Jewel. White. Alliterations galore. All 3 restaurants belong to the same group. Bisou being the newest. Situtated at the site of the old Vanilla Box on Asian Heritage Row.After dropping off a wedding cake at the Crowne Plaza at 930am, we decided to head out for breakfast. It was a slow day and it was a wonderful time to enjoy some quality togetherness.Bisou is the

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Decisions that I make regarding anything I post on this blog or what people choose to post in terms of comments etc are usually guided by one very simple rule.Do unto others...I choose to post under my name because I believe that if people don't agree with me, then they know who to come and tell off. ;-)Kampungkayell is, for lack of a better phrase, a window into my life. For better or for worse,

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Where this book controversy thing is concerned, its a storm in a teacup.I personally feel MPH and the ones who boycotted Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows just because some hypermarkets sold it at a lower price over-reacted. To keep things in perspective, hypermarkets and the like will NEVER replace normal bookstores.In more developed countries like in Australia, the US, and UK, there are

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Over 500km later we s pull into our embarkation point."That was sudden" remarks Kathleen who was riding with us in our car.She was right. We had been zipping through a quaint little village when the jetty just pops into view round the corner.We stop. We unload our luggage. And after a quick snack, the boat arrived and we were on our way, thumping our way accross a green gray sea set against a

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More than a month ago, I was tagged. Wmw decided to "tap me on the shoulder," figuratively speaking of course, and "encourage" me to write about my favourite food. Wmw, I'm sorry it's taken this long, but I guess, better late than never.Now, if you know me, you know I live to eat. There's something about good food that makes my blood course more easily through my veins and my thoughts to move

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In KL, the best places to get the meat you need is a wet market. I firmly believe in this.Whenever I need pork for my roast pork, I go to the Bangsar Wet Market and find my friend the "chuee yoke loh." Heaven knows what his name is. I've asked him a couple of times. But he says "kiu ngor "chuee yoke kor" tuk ke le."In any case, the pork I get from him for my char siu, roast pork, or what have you

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http://www.happiestgaycouple.com/Check it out for a laugh! Think Lego meets Avenue Q.

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Went to sooyin's site and read about The Golden Compass movie website. I've read the books and absolutely loved them. And can't wait for the movie.In any case, on the website you can also find out what your "daemon" is. Go to the following link and you'll find out what a "daemon" is. This is Allan's daemon.And this is mine.

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The minute we walked in I knew we were in for a treat. The ambience is cool, contemporary, but all about the food. Not about entertainment. Actually the restaurants that rely on a "concept" annoy me at times. They're fine for a bit of fun but the glitz sometimes is a mask for food which is ordinary at best.But not with SassorossoCarol, the owner/manager with a bottle of BrunelloThe entrance to

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Time flies when you're working or having fun. This post has been in my drafts for almost a month now. In any case, it was still a fun night and worthy of a post. So here it is.The RSVP Klue dinner was held in Ninja Jones. The food was decent (I'm not going into a huge dissection of how it went) but it was barely enough. It was fun hanging out with Lianne, Boo, Lyrical Lemongrass, Splashie Boy,

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It's been 3 weeks of weddings, training, events, and negotiations. Needless to say, by the end of the day, I'm usually just too glad to fall face first onto my pillow and take the bus to dreamland.It's been a lot of fun, but it also meant that updating my blog was something I had to put on the back burner. Having said that, there are a couple of blogs in drafts which I need to finalise and put up

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Sipping my apple lime crush at Vivo, Pizza and Panini, a grinning, toothy, unkaleong and a slinky, hot Sze sidles up and gives me one of her lovely hugs. You know the ones I mean. A loving, affectionate hug that envelops you with the other person's aura. Not a "lean-forward-chin-on-shoulder-pat-pat-on-back-break-off-asap" type hug.And that was the start to a hilarious evening.From relationships

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RELAY FOR LIFE KUALA LUMPUR 2 (6pm) -3 (10am) JUNE 2007 MSN Training Stadium, Bukit Jalil Tel: 03-2698 7300 Fax: 03-2698 4300 Email:contact@cancer.org.my In recent times, it has been my privilege and pleasure to meet more and more people from all walks of life. But thanks to serendipitous encounters, (otherwise

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Had a "date" with Cel and on an impulse, having retrieved from the depths of my memory, this Korean restaurant that wmw went to on one of her many food adventures, decided to grab my big baby, my Nikon D70 and try that on food.Bonjuk is situated opposite the Lotte Supermarket in Desa Sri Hartamas and up till then I was absolutely clueless as to how large the Korean community is in KL. As we

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It's always an honour to be nominated at Kakiseni's Boh Cameronian Arts Awards. This will be the third time in as many concerts that we have been nominated. For a group that does this for fun to come up against seasoned professionals like Sean Ghazi before, Dama Orchestra, Joe Hasham and Faridah Merican of Actors Studio fame, is to my mind an achievement that we can be proud of.The theme this

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