singapore (2): eat

singapore is famous for 1. the merlion and 2. its various cuisines. it was a pity that i didn't get a chance to see the merlion due to time constraint, but i did try to eat all the different foods each day!

ya kun's famous kaya toast and coffee. kaya is a coconut egg jam which is quite sweet itself. and between EACH half-sliced toast is a piece of (1" x 2"x 0.25") BUTTER, and there're 4 halves!! the toast is totally awesome, but i really had to eat around the butter by the fourth slice...


red house seafood restaurant is one of the well known places for seafood, especially crab. we forgot it was father's day on the day we went and it was packed!


house special black pepper crab (you must order those deep fried buns 炸饅頭 in order to pick up the sauce from the plate)


it's always good to enjoy food with a pretty view


open air food stalls/night markets are locals' favorite hang out places


(left) indian fish head curry with roti
(right) prawns fried in pork sung and cereal -- must order!!!


i had to order a bowl of fish ball noodles 魚蛋粉 because i couldn't get that in japan - and i wasn't disappointed~


authentic hainan chicken rice 海南雞飯 at sin swee kee 新瑞記. only S$7/person!! (US$5.20/JPY550/HK$40)


it was really too bad that i couldn't stay behind to do some sight-seeing in singapore. i heard from the locals (the girls who worked at the convention) that sentosa beach is a really nice resort spot, and the night safari is quite fun. well, maybe next time!

happy birthday C!

i want to wish my friend C a wonderful birthday!

hope life in SD is good!
i can't wait to see you ne~
(i'll call you when i'm back in the states)

お誕生日おめでとう！

singapore (1): work

during my one week stay in Singapore, i had to attend full-day training for the first 2 days and work at the booth from 10am-6pm on june 17-20. it was a packed schedule, but also a very good experience, because i learned the latest japanese mobile phone technology and trends from NTT DoCoMo, and also met some interesting people from the industry. it really amazes me on how advanced japanese telecommunications has evolved. with the latest cell phone models, which they call the "osaifu-keitai" (mobile wallet), one can use it as a house key, train pass, credit card, coin/change, even boarding pass for airplanes (currently only available on japanese domestic flights). and of course, not to mention the basic usage such as phone calls, emails, internet, games, and tv programs. maybe one day i'll get one of these osaifu-keitai myself.

some pictures from the expo center...

DoCoMo booth


junko, the lovely staff and trainer from DoCoMo


maria, my mentor and partner from the translators team (also my good eating/shopping buddy!)


george, another translator, who is good at multi-tasking as well


chermaine, the talented MC of the show. she had to repeatedly present 3 different workshops throughout the convention - memorizing word-for-word! (and hiroshi, the all-time entertainer, whom the translators worked closely with)


last but not least, 8 cute and young local Singaporean girls, whom very diligently remembered their materials and presented the latest phones and technology to the clients. (they're so fun to hang out with during our breaks!)


besides work, i also got to try a few authentic Singaporean dishes. check back again next time to see what i had!

ryan's ride 2008

5th Annual Ryan Phua Memorial Kids' Ride

Sunday, June 29, 2008
Downtown Burlingame, CA


Join hundreds of children, 12 and under,
riding like champions
and raise money for cancer programs in
the bay area community
for the Lance Armstrong Foundation.


to Register, Donate, or for more Information,
go to:
www.ryansride.org

amateur tour guide

two weeks ago, my best buddy from hk flew over to visit me. it was her first time in kansai so i played amateur tour guide and took her to a few famous spots. i was worried that it was going to rain the time she's here, but the weather held up and we had 4 wonderful days together!

day 1:

who can miss the famous glico running man billboard?


probably the best food find of the trip: 希望軒ラーメン (hope-ken ramen)


tasty 豚骨ラーメン (tonkotsu ramen) + freshly pressed garlic = *HEAVEN*



day 2:

elementary school kids on an outing at JR kyoto station


kyoto's "most shiny" temple 金閣寺 (kinkakuji) is listed as one of the world heritage sites.
the outside walls of the 2nd and 3rd levels are gilded with real gold foil.


one of the paths at the serene temple


possibly the world's smallest waterfall?


paper, cloth, or silk fans make great souvenirs


清水寺 (kiyomizudera), another world heritage site, was built against a steep cliff


the preserved streets of kyoto bring you back in time to old japan


we encountered a few pretty 舞妓 (or 舞子 maiko) on the way. maikos are apprentices and have not become geisha yet.


for dinner, we had a 7 course authentic japanese meal


presentation and freshness beats everything



day 3:
shopping day... no pictures! :P


day 4:

大阪城 osaka castle


梅田スカイビル 空中庭園 umeda sky building's floating garden


"floating" escalators that lead you from the 39th floor to the roof top observatory


360° view of osaka



Y: i'm so glad that you came and we got to spend time together! it definitely brought back a lot of good memories when we travelled to hawaii and bangkok. hope we can do it again!!
love ya! ~muah~

in singapore

arrived in singapore...


hot...


humid...


and interesting singlish :)

arubaito

アルバイト (arubaito)
definition: part-time job, side job; originated from the german word "arbeit"
short form/commonly used: バイト (baito)

this saturday, i'll be heading to singapore for my one-week arubaito at the CommunicAsia 2008 convention. the job is to support the NTT Docomo staff at their booth and to do some translation work.

i've actually worked for them at a similar convention 8 years ago in hk, right after graduating from university. it was a really wonderful and fun experience working with the crew at that time. in the past few years, i've been invited back to participate in other conventions, but since i had a permanent job, i had to reject the offer. this time around, i'm able to grasp the opportunity and work with the crew again. i'm looking forward to visiting singapore for the first time too!

and before heading to singapore, i'm really excited that my best friend from hk will be visiting me today. i'll be picking her up from the airport in a few hours and i can't wait to spend time with her!

history of coffee

UCC is a famous coffee brand in japan. before starbucks attacked japan, UCC was probably the only popular brand. across from the new IKEA in kobe is the headquarters, and right next door is the UCC coffee museum.

the headquarter building in the back and the museum in front... it looks more like a church?


the history of coffee and how coffee is processed are quite interesting, but honestly, there's too much text to read so i sort of gave up after the very first station... hehe~

i can learn just fine from images and displays


collection of different roasters


one of the early coffee makers - this one was from 19th century france


they also displayed hundreds of different coffee cups and saucers. this one is especially eye-catching because it's designed and made for those with a mustache.


i've always wondered what UCC stands for. now i know: Uejima Coffee Company 上島コーヒー - name of its founder.

a chronological display of the history of UCC and its products. this section is from the 1970's.


before leaving the museum, i stopped by the cafe and ordered a cup of their most expensive coffee on the menu just to try. "blue mountain no.1" (¥720) - it's really up to par!


for souvenir, i picked this limited edition coffee flavored collon (it says it's only sold in kansai)


UCC Coffee Museum
〒650-0046　神戸市中央区港島中町6丁目6-2

things i find interesting in jpn (2)

when you buy books at the bookstore, the store keepers wrap the book covers for you. why? japanese people often read on the train/bus, but in order to keep those "nosy neighbors" from peeking at what they're reading, the book covers are... covered.


* * * * *

what's so special about this garlic? the tag says "controlled stinkiness - you get almost no bad breath the day after consuming this garlic". it's true! you don't even get bad breath right after eating it! however, the price of this garlic is about twice the price of regular ones. i think it's worth it though. :)


* * * * *

i never paid attention to the label around plastic bottles when i was in the u.s. after i came to japan, i had to follow their recycling program* and found that in order to recycle plastic bottles, each household has to remove the label, take off the cap (you can't recycle the cap!), rinse, dry and flatten each bottle before throwing them into the recycling bin. that's why they have perforated lines to allow people to easily remove the labels from the bottles. i fully support recycling, but it's quite some work to do for each drink i consume! next time you drink from a plastic bottle in the u.s. or in hk (not the japanese drinks), tell me if they have perforated lines on the labels or not.

(*note: you only have to do it when you recycle at home; when you're out on the streets, you can just throw empty plastic bottles as is at designated recycling bins)

i'm craving for...

i have been craving for these things lately, all are chinese food, that i haven't been able to find here yet:

• 好味點心 (GOOD dim sum - japanese style dim sum is... em... not that great)
• 脆仆仆燒肉 (roast pork with the crispy skin)
• 炒芥蘭 (chinese broccoli)
• 焗豬扒飯 (hk style baked pork chop over rice)
• 維他檸檬茶 (vita lemon tea)

too bad these can't be sent to me as a care package... except the last item!

just sweets

cake and tea set




mango fro-yo






japanese sweets 和菓子 (wagashi)