I don't want to listen to the rhythm of the falling rain!

We're flying off on Thursday, but it seems Taipei is still experiencing showers and cloudy days.. :-(

Today's weather in Taipei is ....

Very cloudy28°C
Wind:
E 6 m/s
Pressure:
31 mbar
Visibility:
12 km
Humidity:
70%
UV sensibility:
2 Low
Dew Point:
22°C
Feels like Temp:
28°C
Dawn:
5.48 AM
Sunset:
5.32 PM
Day's Length:
11.43 hours

sing part 1

You're gonna be so jealous when i tell you this.... I'm going on a trip again! Destination - TAIWAN! Ok, so its not Norway or Bhutan or Rio...but i'm going with my mom and sis, enough reason for celebration...having gained more wisdom (since i just turned uh humm 31 last week), i realised its not the places that count (yeah right) but its the company you keep. (now go awwwwww) hahah....

We were supposed to go to Beijing but our tour got canceled due to insufficient number of travellers, and since its too late to apply for a visa to China, we're heading to Taiwan instead. Leaving on the 13th, bought our air tics yesterday and bought our ground arrangement today.... With my mom in tow and us having the experience of a failed independent travel to Eastern Europe some years ago, its better to have the comfort and convenience of a guided tour. I know some ppl hate it, being herded up and down the bus like a brace of ducks (i googled collective nouns of ducks)..i'm too lazy to be doing independent travel nowadays..unless its with the right ppl (ie- my buddy who has the patience of a saint!) as i can be such a pain the arse while traveling...its true, the korean girl who witnessed my Jekyl and Hyde transformation the moment the train left Waterloo station can vouch for it! But as i said, with age and wisdom on my side, i'll conquer the Jekyl (or isit Hyde?) in me!

In the meantime, more pics from Singapore!

Marina Bay Sands, looks really special.. They're one of the 2 licensed casinos in Singapore, the other being the Genting group, which is from yours truly Malaysia. Went in both, very different ambience.
Pic taken during our river cruise.

Day visit to the inside of Marina Bay Sands, very upclass, here's the perennial tai tai favourite - Elll Veee...

And their window display.. despite my many references to elll veee, i dont own even one of their items and i'm not particularly crazy for one..its more like, ohh ell vee, how nice, and move on..i dont drool over their bags nor do i lust after louis.. having said that, don't think that i wouldnt want your old ellll veee bags should you decide that you've had enough fun with yours and would like to throw one my way...pls do!!



my reflection in one of the many glossy shiny slimming mirrors there ...




Okay, the next pic's supposed to come after this..but i'm lazy to swap...so here's the bottom part with water....

And the top part before water....

And here is my colleague with her husband who sang a very sweet song to her in the bus...awww....

Okay, abrupt end... hungry and need food..

31!

Okay, am back from Singapore.. had a gd time, although i was late for 1 1/2 hours on departure morning and everyone had to wait for me.....sorrryyy!!!

So, just a few pics from the trip...

Waiting for our train to the Universal Studios station...

Hello Alex of Madagascar!



And errrr...woody woodpecker in drag??

okay...more pics in the next post!

USS

I'm heading to Singapore for my birthday celebration next weekend!!

Ya, by default, actually hahaha. Coz it is actually my firm's trip and it so happen that we're heading there on my birthday. Well, time to change my blog's title. Anyway, I'm always wondering if it is 30 year old or 30 years old?? Grammatically challenged on this one.

Anyway anyway, we're gonna be staying in Hotel 81 in Geylang!! For the uninitiated (spelling check pls!), that is the red light district in Singapore and where the cheapest accomodation can be found. The type where you ask for their room rates they will tell you the hourly rates. We werent supposed to have any trip at all this year, so we're just thankful for anything.

The previous times my friends and i stayed in a hotel there, we heard a woman screaming and shrieking for a good (?) 10 mins or so. It was fake and very deliberate, if u ask me. Not that i'm any expert on that. hahaha..

And on another occasion, the hotel's alarm went off in the middle of the nite and an African man ran down the stairs in only his boxer and a briefcase. Turned out to be a faulty alarm and by the 3rd time or so, we just couldnt be bothered and continued sleeping. Ohh, i dont know what's in the briefcase, we wondered bout tat too. And i cant recall the color of his boxer too, in case u wanna ask. Anyway, very colorful area...wondering if some of my prim and proper colleagues can take all the excitement...

So, next weekend, off to Universal Studios Singapore.....yipppppeeee!

PD my home

Got a scare when i browsed the online news portal this morning. Headline screamed "Fire at Esso refinery in Port Dickson"!

I'm a Port Dickson born and bred girl, spent my 17 years there (14 now and counting in KL, yelch!). It's a seaside town (awarded city status in 2009, but town sounds cozier and duh, there's a "town" in hometown. Really, i pity city folks without a proper hometown to call a hometown!) facing the Straits of Malacca..

Yes, we got the sea and beaches, but we also have a heavy concentration of oil refineries and a power station. From young, we've heard of the concerns that if there ever shall be any accident in one of the refineries/power station, the whole of PD will be a goner. poof..

So, you can understand my concern when i see the headline..

PORT DICKSON: A section of the Esso refinery here was damaged in a fire early Thursday morning.
It is learnt that the blaze started just past midnight and was put out by fire fighters about five hours later. No casualties have been reported.
Firefighters from here, Malacca, Sepang and Seremban were rushed to the refinery, which was recently in the news after it was acquired by the Philippines' San Miguel Corp. The team from the nearby Shell refinery also helped put out the fire.
The cause of the fire is being investigated.
The refinery has been operating here since 1963 and handles some 90,000 barrels of oil per day.

And back in May, we made news again..

The Shell Refining Company Bhd said that the leak from about 35 barrels of residue fuel oil from its Port Dickson refinery into nearby monsoon drains over the weekend has been contained.
It said in a statement today that the fuel oil was found in monsoon drains along the stretch of Kampung Paya and Kampung Air Meleleh, adjacent to the refinery last Saturday.
“A round-the-clock clean-up operation commenced immediately and was completed late on Monday. The situation is now under control with all the fuel oil contained and recovered, and no impact expected on the surrounding areas.
Containment efforts ensured that the fuel was prevented from flowing into the Straits of Malacca,” the company said.
Shell Refining said upon discovering the leak, the refinery’s emergency response team together with Pimmag (Petroleum Industry Malaysia Mutual Aid Group) immediately commenced the clean-up involving 50 people.
Five booms were also installed to trap the sludge and excavators were deployed to clear the waterways.
Shell Refining said initial investigations by the refinery indicated that the source of the leak was from a line connected to the residue fuel oil storage tank.
The Department of Environment, the Department of Occupational Safety and Health and all other relevant authorities had also been informed.
Together with the authorities, the company said it was conducting a full investigation and would implement what it had learnt from the incident to prevent a recurrence.
- Bernama

Please, big oil corporations, you can share our land, do enjoy the beaches on ur free time too, while we thank you for the job opportunities and cheaper fuel price (1 sen!) BUT do take care of homes ya? Thxxx....

Hollywood shelf

okay, busybody Hollywood updates, all pics courtesy of yahoo, in case u think i'm so free to trawl through all Hollywood sites...

First up, Johnny boy here...i dono, he looks a bit different than normal, perhaps i've gotten too used to seeing him in Captain Sparrow's look.. Still, who can forget him in 21 Jump St right? Right???? Yes, i'm an 80s baby!

Second up- Bradley Coop looking a bit too orange here for my liking- but he speaks French!! There, proven that women will find just about any excuses to defend hot men... French hello! Oh Bradley, Oui to anything you want!!

Next! Hot man being taken off the shelf alert! Well, not that he was ever on MY shelf...

Ryan Gosling has been photographed hanging out in Disneyland with Eva mendes!! I've got nothing against Eva, except that she cant act (there: proven that women will always find faults with hot women) but Ryan in The Notebook- nuff said.

Another pic of this gorgeous couple---



Happy weekend everyone!

Kompiah

Kompiah is a traditional Foochow food/snack. Its made from flour and with stuffings inside, like meat, vege, etc.

My friend Annie who married a Foochow and migrated(!) to Sarawak East Malaysia bought me some from Sibu previously. Nice.

Then recently we had a sojourn to my brother in law's hometown of Sungai Pelek which is predominantly FooChow also and we bought some kompiah for teatime. But this type is totally different from the ones from EM. This is more like 'chan bao'- bread with stuffings. But still nice nevertheless (let's chant now "The more i eat, the fatter i become. The fatter i become, the more i eat").

I started eating in the car! This one had vegetable fillings- mucha nicear!

I don't know why this pic turned out looking grossy with a wormy lookalike in the middle, but that is actually a shred of radish!

Well, tat's all, ta! Sorry boring post!