As much as we would like to have more holiday plans and lavish eat outs, the reality hits. We are working for someone else, and we do have BILLS to pay. To make the most out from our meagre income, the secret is to INVEST.

We have only 24 hours a day so there is a limit to how much we can do. That’s when investing comes into place; it’s all about putting your money to work so it earns you an additional income.. Find out more by clicking “LIKE” on the Prudential R U Ready’s Facebook Fanpage and read my article about INVESTING.

You can also sign up for the entrepreneurs workshop that will be held on the Feb 18th in PJ Live Arts, Jaya One. Participants will be getting insights from young entrepreneurs how to start a business and getting to mingle with like minded young people, etc.

#2 To be a part of the glitz, and the glamour of the Nuffnang blogging community.

The 2009 awards night was an evening ceremony that kept many on the edge of their seats as they waited for the action to kick off.

The organizing committee has put in a lot of hearts and efforts for the big day. Even the door gift is so apt and well liked!

#3 To meet and make new friends

Gosh! I can’t believe that it has been more than 2 years since I got to know Tammy and her bestie Cai Xiu Xiu. We met, for the very first time at the 2009 awards night and has been keeping in touch since then. <3

#4 To get up close and personal with celebrity bloggers

We may read/stalk their blogs everyday, but have never meet or know them in person. Well only in NAPBAS we get to spot our favourite bloggers and even ask for a picture or two.

Kenny Sia and the gorgeous ladies from Bonito Chico.

Allan Wu, the charming and charismatic host of Amazing Race Asia; Ringo Tan from cheeserland.com; my favourite local food blogger, Meena and Joanne Peh, my favourite female artist from Media Corp.

We have also met two very reputable food bloggers from the island republic – Dr. Leslie from ieatishootipost and Brad of ladyironchef fame.

Not to forget some of the best bloggers around the Asia Pacific region who were being nominated for each respective categories.

#5 Get to know who’s behind Nuffnang

Ever wonder who assigns campaigns to your blog? Who gives out free movie tickets? Or who is the finance lady/gentleman who disburses your payouts? Get to know them this coming December, at the 2011 Nuffnang Asia Pacific Blog Awards.

It was a truly magical event that we were honored to be a part of. Win your exclusive invites here and hope to see you at the NAPBAS 2011!

Leaf Dessert
2 Elgin Street, SOHO, Central
中環蘇豪伊利近街2號
Opens daily from 12:30pm – 00:30am
Tel: +852-2544 3795
Openrice Page here

Sing Heung Yuen
2 Mee Lun St (near Gough St), Central,
Opens daily from 8am-5:30pm.
Tel: +852 2544 8368
Openrice Page here

Kin Shui Tei Japanese Restaurant stands out when they started to implement a double checking step for radiation on all their imported ingredients using a radiation detector. Do you know that they are the first restaurant in Malaysia that uses the radiation detector to do the daily food scanning? The little device costs a whopping RM7,000 and there are no ready stocks in Malaysia at the moment.

Kampachi – radiation reading: 64

Pickles – radiation reading: 78

Gas mantle – radiation reading: 4665!

Gas mantle, widely used in kerosene or liquified petroleum gas flame has a higher reading because the mantle emits radiation when lit to generate bright white light.

Some fact about radiations: Radiation is all around us, all the time. The energy spectrum has included microwaves, radiowaves, infrared radiation, UV radiation, X-ray, etc. At high attitudes airlines fly, passenger and crews are exposed to higher-than-normal radiation levels of between 3 and 9 microsieverts per hour too. (1 sievert = 1000 millisieverts (mSv), 1mSv = 1000 microsieverts).

Radiation exposure around the Fukushima nuclear power plant reach levels of 400mSv per hour. A single dosage of 1000mSv could cause radiation sickness but not death. A single dosage of 5000mSv could cause death to those who were exposed to it within a month and a 1000mSv reading could cause fatals within week. You get the drift.

more readings: http://www.world-nuclear.org/education/ral.htm

So the conclusion is not to worry too much all Japanese imports have undergone vigorous inspection by the Japanese and Malaysian Ministry of Health.

If the worry persists, it’s ok because Kin Shui Tei has chosen to stop using Japanese products all together and seek alternatives from other countries such as New Zealand, Australia, Norway and Alaska while others continue to use selected ingredients from the southern part of the country.

Let’s do some light reading after such a heavy discussion, shall we?

Thanks to the invitation from Kin Shu Tei, we got to sample chef Ikuo Tanabe’s master piece once again.  The little education session put us at ease; we enjoyed our food thoroughly without any worries.

Kin Shu Tei’s interior is simple and the colours of the whole restaurant is easy on the eye and rather classy.

Special Hokkaido chirashi sushi – RM98

I must say the food presentation was expertly done and the raw ingredients were so fresh that it is a lot like tasting the ocean. We really liked the rice imported from USA; somehow it just tastes better compared to Japanese rice. :p

Seasonal Anago Tempura – RM30

The crispy sea eel tempura was a great combination with the special dipping sauce – chef’s special sweet sour sauce with spring onions.

Smoked Ayu – RM55

The moist, flaky fish with a delicate smoke flavor was really good. Highly recommended!

Beef tofu Katsu don – RM38

On the surface, it’s a seemingly simple dish, but there is so much going on – a delicate layer of tofu wrapped with beef roll and coated in a crispy bread crumb batter. This tops my list as well.

Lamb rib steak – RM50. Lean and juicy, the lamb rib steak was grilled to perfection. The thick sauce looks appetizing and tasted great at the same time. Special mention must be made regarding the potato salad; so creamy and so delicious!

We had an early birthday celebration for KampungBoy courtesy of Debbie and the restaurant manager.

The make shift “cake” is so pretty! Kudos to the sous chef for such an innovative master piece.

It was my third time to Kin Shu Tei and we have never been disappointed. It is one of the long standing Japanese restaurants in town, partly attributable to Chef Ikuo Tanabe’s dedication and strict standard applied. He is such a perfectionist, and we have seen it with our own eyes.

Kin Shui Tei
C/o Tropicana Golf & Country Resort,
Jalan Kelab Tropicana,
47410 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 03-78042079 / 03-78804437 ext 315

Love,
Citygal

some of the pictures that we share with each other recently:

KampungBoy’s current location – Wuhan, China

to prove that he ain’t going for hanky panky massage parlour

hotel laundry with a nice touch

eager to show KampungBoy that I was having QuanJuDe Peking Duck in Beijing

photos I took at a wedding dinner that KampungBoy couldn’t attend

wanted to seek KampungBoy’s approval for my new manicure colour.

We can proudly say that we are really  enjoy these new lifestyle benefits offered by the smartphone.

A smartphone doesn’t only help you to manage your lifestyle, but it defines who you are. That’s why Celcom has come up with many smartphone packages that cater to various lifestyles and needs. Whether you are a workaholic, gadget freak, realist or tech whiz, Celcom has different smartphone platforms with the perfect smartphone package for you. Featuring Android, Windows Phone 7, BlackBerry, Symbian and soon, iPhone 4.

The best part of all, you can get this on Malaysia’s best network. Do you know that Celcom has the widest network coverage anywhere in Malaysia, indoors, outdoors and on-the-move? Celcom also offers the best network quality, be it messaging, voice calls, video calling, surfing, email, etc and gives you the richest web and video streaming experience with its stable connection.

Make your personal life easier and stay up to date with these great promotions offered by Celcom:

1) Android : For the gadget freak. For the gizmo geek in you who enjoys the open platform with the ability to control their smartphone to their liking.

- Samsung Galaxy SL (from 468)
- Samsung Galaxy Tab (from RM668)
- LG Optimus 2X (from RM978)
- LG Optimus One (from RM48)
- LG Optimus Me (from RM0)
- Sony Ericsson Xperia X8 (from RM0)

2) BlackBerry : For the workaholic. For you on-the-go whose mind is always about business and work, but not neglecting social life.

- BlackBerry Bold 9780 (from RM888)
- BlackBerry Torch 9800 (from RM1,188)
- BlackBerry Curve 9300 (from RM488)

3) Windows Phone 7 : For the tech whiz. For you who appreciates the Windows platform on the mobile with the best of everything.

- LG Optimus 7 (from RM1,068)
Symbian : For the realist. For you who puts simplicity and practicality first with the efficiency of getting something

done easily.
- Nokia E7 (from RM958)
- Nokia C7 (from 468)
- Nokia C3 (from RM18)
- Nokia C2-01 (from RM0)

4) iPhone 4 : COMING SOON

Celcom iPhone 4 packages will soon be revealed on the website. Stay tuned to be the first in the know and to own the iPhone 4 with Malaysia’s best smartphone network.

Visit www.celcom.com.my/smartphones for more information.

And in Malaysia, we are having a month-long celebration from 1^st March 2011 to 31^st March 2011. ”,featuring an array of exciting parties, fun activities and a host of other GUINNESS® promotions.

On the 17th of March 2011, there is a street celebration at Changkat Bukit Bintang. Remember to be there to join in the fun, together with the entertainers, dancers, buskers and beautiful GUINNESS® ambassadors.

Thanks to Hui Ping and GUINNESS®, we had an early Saint Patrick’s Day celebration at Fitou Brasserie, a lovely bar cum restaurant located at the Water Front. They are running this St. Patrick’s Festival Celebration Menu at Fitou Brasserie where the following three ala-carte GUINNESS® infused dishes (RM 34++) comes with a FREE pint of Guinness @RM48 nett.

1) Irish Beef Stew with Guinness served with Carrots & Potatoes

The distinctively flavored Irish beef stew recipe is a favorite on St. Patrick’s Day. This is one hearty one dish meal and the stout beer really adds a great flavor. Although it is very flavorful, the beef chunks were quite tough that requires a certain extent of jaw exercise.

2) Sauteed Guinness Beef Chunks with French Beans & Carrot Sticks

The dish may looked simple but it was bursting with awesome goodness. Juicy and tender, the beef chunks were well prepared. . Using Guinness as the braising liquid adds a good, subtle flavor to the gravy too.

3) Pork Wellington stuffed with Apricots, served with Potatoes & Guinness Cream Sauce

The pork wellington is my favourite dish of all! A spin off from the usual beef wellington, the chef has done a very good job with the pork wellington. The pastry keeps the pork incredibly moist and juicy still just slightly pink in the center and the apricot bits gives it a tangy sweet flavour. Drench it with a generous amount of Guinness Cream Sauce and you are in heaven!

Chocolate Fondant

There’s nothing better than savouring a smooth and rich chocolate cake punctuated with plenty chocolate sauce. What a perfect sweet ending.

Creme Brulee

Topped with a crunchy, caramelized layer, the Creme Brulee was custardy and creamy.

Putting on hat and get our mood ready for the Saint Patrick’s Day!

On top of Fitou, these are some other outlets that feature St. Patrick’s Festival food such as:

798 Wine Bar, Tropicana City Mall
SOULed OUT
Deutches Gasthaus
Malones Irish Restaurant and Bar
Terrace Arms & Grill House
Sid’s Pubs
Jarrod & Rawlins
Finnegan’s

So remember to mark your calender and find out where Merry Goes Round this March with GUINNESS®. Check out facebook.com/guinnessmalaysia for more information

Fitou
Lot GF2, The Waterfront @ Park City, 5 Persiaran Residen, Desa Park City, Kuala Lumpur
Wilayah Persekutuan, 52200
03-6280-8978

To fellow bloggers, sponsors and our dearest readers,

A world of thanks for your continued support. 5 years is not a short period, we could not have done it without you. Hereby, we are wishing everyone a happy New Year filled with all that is beautiful! Eat well and stay happy!

Regards,

KBCG

Being situated just next to each other, Green Field shares the same magnificent rice paddy field as Tegal Sari. The owner of Green Field is a well known Balinese artist. His artwork can be found at every nook and corner of the hotel.

Soon after arriving we were all served delicious welcome drinks. Check in was quick and there was this Taiwanese lady who works at the reception. She is a great help in giving tips and advises. The hotel also offers a free shuttle service into town and return everyday from about 8am to 10pm.

Our room “Bale Pingit” is overlooking the beautiful rice-field and Monkey Forest. It comes with terrace or balcony, double bed, hot-shower, bathtub, AC, ceiling fan, telephone, minibar and daybed.

Rp. 650 000 (USD +/- 72) per Room/Night
incl. American Breakfast
incl. 21 % Tax and Service-Charge

There is a coffee table and chairs at the verandah. I can just sit here all day watching the farmers at work, the cows plowing and the ducks waddling past the rice fields.

Our room was spacious and lovely but the king size bed was a bit on the hard side. The marble carvings around the bathtub gave me an eerie feeling too. Well, it was just me.

Green Field also takes pride in their eco friendly salt water infinitypool. It would be great to take a dip and relax! If only we have more time…

Just a little advise here: Try to allocate more time to just relax and unwind in Bali. It would be fun to just do nothing, hang around the hotel and visit some art galleries/museums.

Our complimentary breakfast set came with fruit platter/yogurt platter, fruit juice, a choice of main course and coffee/tea.

We had a nice mix of fresh fruits with yogurt and honey.

Overall the main courses were not as bad as I was expecting, but tastes wise much room for improvement You can opt to have your breakfast to be served at your room verandah or the pool side.

Overall, we had an enjoyable stay at Green Field. We like it for its friendly staff, great location, beautiful rice-field view and spacious rooms. However, our votes go to Tegal Sari in terms of value and room quality.

What about our “Eat, Play, Love” themed holiday?

EAT: Seafood @ Jimbaran Bay, Pork Ribs @ Naughty Nuri’s Warung & Grill, Babi Guling @ Ibu Oka, Bebek Bengil
Play: shopping, cam-whoring, sight-seeing, etc
Love: spending quality time with friends and our significant other.

Green Field Hotel and Restaurant
Dewa Made Santana
Jl. Pengosekan
Ubud – Gianyar 80571
Bali – Indonesia
Tel. (0361) 975 798
Fax. (0361) 977 200

http://www.greenfieldubud.com

Room prices start from RP250k to RP2.3 million
email : info@greenfieldubud.com

Few weeks back, Mrs Jeannie Lee from New Formosa Restaurant passed us a box of mooncake to sample before she headed home to Taiwan.  She brought in these Taiwanese mooncakes from Shou Xin Fang and sells it in her restaurant.

小樽之恋 Mixed Cheese Dessert RM 48.00

Our box of “mooncake” consists of 5 individually packed mochi with cream cheese filling, all dressed up in pretty packaging. I’ve always love Taiwanese packaging;  based on the various cookies and pastries that I brought home from Taiwan. These aesthetically appealing packaging always put a huge smile on my face.

It comes with different flavours – original, chocolate, brown sugar and cherry.

These mooncakes are so different from their traditional counterparts. The mochi skin is soft and delicate while the cream cheese filling is creamy with a sweet and slightly tangy taste.

For someone who can’t quite stomach the candy covered sweetness of a certain variation of the traditional mooncakes, these “mochi mooncakes” are good enough for me. This is the only mooncake that I can polish off a whole one by myself, after all.

*Shou Xin Fang’s mooncake is available for sale at New Formosa Restaurant, SS2. To reserve, please call 03-78751894/7478. Hop over to masak-masak to have a look at the other variations of Shou Xin Fang mooncake.

*I spotted a kiosk in Jaya Jusco One Utama that carry the same brand of mooncakes too. J Card holder is entitled for a 10% discount.

For our travel itinerary, please click here. Continuing from Hong Kong Day 3 -Tai Cheong Bakery & Chan Yi Zai, Central

A stroll around the corner brings us to the amazingly busy and chaotic Gage Street where the most famous Hong Kong cha chan teng Lan Fong Yuen is situated. The 50 year old shop is also the birth place of “pantyhose milk tea” 絲襪奶茶 that has become something so significant in Hong Kong’s food and drink culture that it is craved daily by the Hong Kongers.

endorsed by Chua Lam

Since it is a milk tea pilgrimage to LFY, we asked for both hot and iced version. The milk tea was velvety smooth and creamy. Their secret blend of tea leaves left a robust, lingering flavor as it glides down our throat. The hot version tasted much better than the iced milk tea as the ice has somewhat diluted and tainted the flavor.

Why the name “pantyhose” milk tea? The pantyhose is used to filter the tea leaves, I heard. No! We googled for the answer and it says: A sackcloth bag is used in the tea brewing process, making the tea smoother when it mixes with milk. Over time, the sackcloth bag was stained with an intense brown color. Together with the shape, it resembles pantyhose; hence the milk tea is nicknamed as such.

Our pork chop bun 豬扒包arrives in short order. The bun was buttered and lightly toasted, resulting in beautiful crisp at the rim and soft interior. The well marinated pork chop was very juicy and flavorful too. We were so full that we have to give the famous 撈丁 (dried nissin noodles) a miss. Well, there’s always a revisit 

Lan Fong Yuen
No. 2, Gage st (Central)
Tel: 2544 3895/ 2854 0731
Operating Hours: Monday to Saturday – 7am to 6pm

When I mean up close – I sat at the first row and Bobby Chinn was only 1 meter away from me! *Drooling*

What about personal? He wrote me a personal message on his cooking book “Wild Wild West”. See the hearts on my name? Awwwww…

As a part of his “World Café Asia 2″ Tour, Bobby Chinn was in Cold Storage, Ikano Power Centre to share his experiences and to conduct a cooking demo. Thanks to Jess from Cold Storage, I was invited to the event to catch a glimpse of Bobby Chinn.

Half Egyptian, half Chinese, raised in England, lives in San Francisco and New York and now based in Hanoi, Bobby Chinn is quite a character. He is always at his best- charming, urbane, and witty. He laughs at himself, gives funny anecdotes, and unabashedly pokes fun at everything. He’s good at imitating other celebrity chefs as well, which gives the audiences a good laugh.

Can’t get enough of Bobby Chinn? Here you go…

Thanks to Discovery Travel & Living and Cold Storage, I left feeling star-struck after the event. Most ladies felt the same too, with most of them throwing themselves shamelessly at him. I was about to do so, but refrained from doing so because KampungBoy will be here anytime soon to pick me up. *sigh*

Well, I can always tune in to Astro Channel 707 - World Cafe Asia 2 premieres on Astro Channel 707 on March 23 (every Monday at 10.30pm) and encores every Tuesday at 5.30pm; and Sunday at 2.30pm and 1.30pm.

What exactly is a flight simulator? From Wikipedia: A flight simulator is a system that tries to copy, or simulate, the experience of flying an aircraft. It is as realistic as possible. The different types of flight simulator range from video games up to full-size cockpit replicas mounted on hydraulic (or electromechanical) actuators, controlled by state of the art computer technology.

The fortunate bunch - Red Mummy, Sultan Muzaffar, Rojaks and other bloggers.

Saw the little white box behind? Yes, it is the official flight simulator on which all MAS pilots conduct their training on. It is so realistic that commercial pilots can complete 100% of their training in the simulator, without the need to fly real aircraft until their first commercial flight.

Before climbing aboard, our instructor gave us a pre-flight briefing. Now here we go -switch on the seat belt sign and prepare to take off.

This is the screen of a very sophiscated system that provides a variety of conditions and interactive mission. We can choose to fly anywhere in the world, anytime (choose from dusk, dawn, day or night).

The interior cockpit of flight simulator.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking…

Pretty Red Mummy: On behalf of the flight crew, let me welcome you aboard…

Thank you for flying with Malaysia Airlines, we’ll be cruising at 35000ft… (sounds familiar?)

Taking-Off.

A scenic view of London in the evening.

Nose up and preparing to land

Greasy smooth or bumpy landing? The approach plot will tell you all, as you can see, KampungBoy did a not so smooth landing (bottom graph, red line) but overall he was  a good pilot for a good 20 minutes! LOL

After the 20 minutes session, each of us received a certificate as a memento.

Though the flight simulator is nothing likea theme park or amusement arcade ride, it is terribly fun and thrilling! The good news is, MAS has decided to open it to the public, where off duty pilots and engineering teams will guide you through the session and there is a price to pay for it – RM 500 for 20 minutes. Any takers?

Have you ever wonder what does a pilot get for his/her in-flight meal? TK, a pilot (very cute!) whom we met at MAS’s office last week, sent us these pictures and wrote

“Since you have a blog on food, something to share of where i eat…while at work..no tables,tray on my lap…at 35,000 feet or 39,000 feet…he he he”

We were wandering around One Utama last week. One Utama is buzzing with activities as many people started to do their last minute shopping as the Chinese New Year is fast approaching.

To avoid the crowd, we wanted to sit down and grab a quick bite somewhere. My appetite goes thru the roof staring at the attractive banner ad of the new zinger tower and the classic KFC smell leaded us into it. The next thing we know is that we were already queuing behind the counter.

The Zinger Tower Set

I (kinda) forced KampungBoy to take the Zinger Tower Set (RM 15.90) which comprises of  1 zinger tower, 1 pepsi max (R), 1 mango pudding & 1 zinger time watch. I needed a non metallic, i.e. plastic watch for my weekly hike but was too kiam siap to spend on one.

The burger looked impressive; with layers of soft bun, fresh lettuce, zinger fillet, cheese, hash brown and a dressing of zesty chili lime sauce. I slowly but surely devoured my zinger tower, and talk about hitting the spot! Personally, I love the refreshing and citrusy chili lime sauce (despite some thinks that it tastes like dish washer) and the oh-so-crispy hash brown.

My fat stubby fingers and my new outdoor watch in vibrant yellow. Nice?

Talking about putting my own waste-line at great personal risk to answer the question “is the zinger tower a total rip off?” Well, go for the ala carte zinger tower (RM 6.60) or the X meal set (RM 10.50) with an additional chicken drumstick and drink which give more value for money if you are not interested on the zinger time watch (RM 9.90 with every chicken meal purchased). KampungBoy, can I have another three colors of the zinger time watch please? One for hiking, one for running and another one for tennis.