Green tea cuppies II

Something baked for the family when i went back early last month :)

Green tea cupcakes with green tea cream cheese frosting

It was quite a disaster.. heh.

The cake was not as nice as the first time because i somehow beat all the eggs together instead of doing the usual because i was pressing for time!

So the cake was very muffin like instead of light, fluffy and to-die-for.

Quite an embarrassment i must say.. but i still gave the bestie some!

I am shameless :P

AND sadly, the family dislike cream cheese frosting, just as i had expected! But i couldn't do buttercream frosting fearing that they will not be able to withstand the long journey.

Another cake i did was chocolate yogurt cake with lotsa walnut which i LOVE to death [a recipe which i thought of myself! :)]. Unfortunately, i didn't manage to take any pics of it.

ATV adventure

My holiday back home will never be complete without going for an adventure trip ever since my very first one not too long ago.

This time round i opted for the atv biking adventure over the others cos it looks so much fun annnnndd it was!

The trip lasted for only half a day. Too bad my second sister's schedule didn't coincide with mine for this holiday - she's only going back mid of next month - so what she did was to call us twice when we were in the jungle. Heh.

She was like bad bad me! For organizing one without her. Lol :P

Sorry sis!

Anyway, the atv looks pretty easy and not challenging at all.. at least, that was what i thought initially and bet you feel the same too but it is so not.

Before we embarked on our adventure, the guide had to trained us for 15 mins on how to operate the atv [very complicated but once you get the hang of it, it's pretty ok], which has a manual gear - that means, we had to adjust the gear accordingly just like a car or a motorbike - and also, we had ride on it for many many rounds in the training area for us to feel comfortable and confidence.

The trainer would watch each of us to see how we fare.

If he feels that we couldn't make it, he will not allow us to continue on with our trip... Safety always comes first.

Unfortunately, my mom didn't manage to pass the test. Yep, mom came along too! She's one sporting mom yeah? She loves outings like these in fact. And my youngest sister almost couldn't make it too! That baby.. ha!

So the mother was not allowed to ride on her own atv. She was told to follow the trainer as a pillion rider instead.. very much to her relief. Yes yes. She was relieved to know that :)

Because the whole thing sounds pretty scary to her.. and to most of us too especially the going up the hill part which the steepness is around 60 degree!

There were so many stuff to remember especially when we are on the slope. Eg :

. No putting our feet down when the atv is not balanced - one or two wheels are not on touching the ground due to the unevenness because it's a jungle track after all. According to the trainer, such reaction is a reflex. But we have to counter it. We have to keep our feet on the atv at all times

. must lean forward at all times else we'll really feel like we are gonna topple

. must accelerate gradually. Sudden acceleration = backward summersault and we definitely would not want that, would we?

. no avoiding holes on the track. So that's back to point 1.. which means the atv will have one or 2 wheels in the air

. no stopping in the middle of the slope. We have to keep on moving no matter how scary it is

Honestly, we were all pretty scared and the guide was worried for us too!

Even though the very nice guide wasn't oblige to come with us, he actually followed us till the slope and helped out through the riding up, holding on to our atv so that we really wouldn't do a backward summersault.

When we first saw the slope, we all wished we were in our mother's position, that is.. as the trainer's pillion rider. I felt giddy by just looking at it. We all went 'oh shittttttt...' ahahaha. I had tons and millions of butterflies in the stomach i tell you and i am so not joking about it.

All ready to go.. see the big rock? We went round and round around it for more than 30 times!

My heart beat darn fast.

I was scared. So were the sisters. Hehe... All of us were worried about 1 thing only. Which is - sudden acceleration = backward somersault. Heh.

Anyway, we turned out doing exceptionally well. We made it! Woo hoooo~

The trainer was really pleased. So was the guide.

In fact, the trainer was pretty taken by us that at the end of the journey, he actually told us that we were alot more skillful and 'terel' than he had first anticipated. He thought it was his doomed day that day when we 5 ladies went marching in to his shop that morning. Lol.



After the first slope, we rode a little while before the slope no.2 came.. a more dangerous one definitely.

The thing is, usually after you managed to go through the first obstacle successfully, the second one doesn't seem so scary anymore though the fear is still there. We were definitely more confident compare to our first attempt on the slope.



The ride through the jungle was a pretty scenic one. Not sure what type of jungle it was but we sure saw many bamboo trees or rather, we were surrounded by them. I almost could imagine myself in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". Heh.

For our final adventure, we were asked to leave our atvs and hiked for a good 10 minutes ONLY to the waterfall.


Hiking time!

The short hike wasn't tough but there were some difficulties eg; crossing a wobbly handmade bridge. However, it was good fun!

I wish the hike could be longer. I enjoy leisure walking in the jungle tremendously [sans leeches that is].

Finally..



The waterfall!

From here, we hiked up further, to almost the top of the waterfall at about 2 storey high.

But not before the sister spotted my bleeding leg.


Initially, the sisters thought i had hurt myself during the ride, scratched against something etc but i was VERY sure i didn't.

Then.

Almost simultaneously, our heads screamed LEECHES!!!

The sisters, especially the eldest sister and my mother instructed me to pull up my pants further to check if the leech was still there. It wasn't.

I tell you, i almost wanted to strip down to butt naked if not for the 2 men there. I cannot imagine how high up the leech could have gone!

Not to mention holes >.<
Then, the sisters and mother started to squeeze my whole upper thigh damn hard and did the rub down motion, hoping they could squeeze the leech to death and bring it down too.

Guess what?

It worked!

The sister got the leech but alive, stucked to her finger. Now.. it was her turn to scream. Hehe... The very amused trainer [after witnessing the whole incident] offered his expertise then. Just dip the finger to the water and the leech will let go. Easy peasy.

Yeah, so the sister saved my life! *phew*

Just before we leave the waterfall to resume our atv biking, the sisters spotted this.

Aarrrrggggggggggghhhhhhhhhh~

Why oh why?



Me again!!!

That #$%^&* leech!

This time, the trainer came forward to save me by offering his finger to the leech. By then, we were pretty cool by these leeches already which explained the photograph. The sister told me to hold still and snapped a couple of photos of it before the trainer stepped in and told us that if i don't want any scars on the leg, i better get it out fast.

He proceeded on to show us his 10cent scars on his legs.. due to scratching.

This, i can attest to it.

The first bite on the leg near the shin that i had on this trip?

Until today, the little punctured hole is still there and i scratch it like nobody's business but still with a little conscience thankfully. Extremely itchy. Sigh. I wonder when it will stop itching and go away forever... grrr.

Nevertheless, the trip was a good one. Everyone enjoys it and so did i.

If you need more information, go here.

ppssssstttt : the guide is quite a cutie! Reminds me of my Hyun Bin.. hahaha. Sshhhhhh.. don't tell the husband!

For first timer, it's advisable to do the Khamisah Waterfall Adventure first. No kidding. You will need the basics and familiarity before embarking on the tougher trails. I almost wanted to take up the harder trail initially and i'm glad i didn't :P

Malacca

I last went when i was 12 years old with my parents and sisters. The only thing i remembered was the red church, the A Famosa and the ruined church-looking building on the hill.

Since 1-2 years ago when the boys were a little older, i wanted to bring them there quite badly everytime when i travel pass it on the way to KL. But because i was alone with the boys, i don't quite dare and if we are with the husband, hb isn't keen *kabish*.

So it was a good thing that my younger sister who is currently working at Maersk managed to book her company's holiday house in A'Famosa Resort for 3 days 2 nights last weekend. I finally get to bring the kids to the place i have once been when i was a child!

Additionally, it was with my own family [parents , sisters and nephews]. Double joy! ;)

Some random pics picked out of the hundereds.. Heh.

In front of the red building, with windmill behind us

Do ignore my jacket. I had it on because it was too hot! I can feel my skin burning without it. Malacca is hot... super hot!

The sister who loves beep to bits...

Stairs, stairs, stairs and more stairs! *faint*

I love going out / holiday with my family. They really know how to help me to take care of my boys. When beep first saw them, he cried like nobody's business. But the sisters were pretty adamant on carrying him. So they spent quite some time playing and fooling with him to warm him up a bit.

Before i know it, they were already carrying him! This, is what i really like about my family. They love my children and they show it. They don't give up easily. My sisters will keep on trying and trying till they get him.

And best of all, they will help me to hold their hands when we are out, clean them up when they are dirty, basically, doing things that mothers should do without me asking them to. Going on a holiday with them is almost like going for a holiday myself sans kids!

Simply fantabulous! Grin. [yeah, lazy mommy here!]

Heh. The sister who can't keep her mouth to herself! :P

On our second day, my eldest sister and family joined us but by the time she got to Malacca, it was already supper time!

Then on our last day, we went to the Safari in the resort. Eldest sister got us all a discounted ticket at half the usual price through contacts and it was her treat! Yay.. :D

Heffalump and us :)

The place where we had our lunch in town was pretty cool! Check out the pic below.

I had chicken rice balls and the rest had the normal rice because they have already tried the balls before. Unfortunately, the rice balls are nothing to shout about.

Basically, they are shaped into balls that's all. Because of how they are made, the rice is pretty hard. Me no like. Give me the normal fluffy rice anytime!




There are also a spiral staircase and a place where u can rent the King's costume and take photographs for a fee in the restaurant. And oh, there was an antique trishaw in it too.

After our lunch at Jongker St, we walked over to a shop opposite which sells excellent chendol and ice kachang. Another adorable antique shop...


So cute hor.. ;)

The boys and my nephews and their play station *shakes head* Boys!!

And the sisters?

Guess what were they doing? ^.^

Kidnapped my beep!

They brought him to the room for a molesting session! Hehehehee.... It was only when beep started to protest then i got to know about it :)

Too bad the trip was just a 3d2n thingie.. aihs. We had so much fun!

I love love love love my sisters and family. They truly rock! My sisters are not only my sisters. They are my confidante, best friends and activity partners. Too bad my 2nd sis wasn't able to join us this time round. She is residing in Taipei. Too far to come! :(

Sometimes i wonder how life would be without my many many sisters.... i simply cannot imagine if i only had 1 brother. Scary!

Feasting

One thing that i really look forward to whenever i go back KL is the food.

First, it's my mom's cooking. Then it's the hawker's fare. Last but not least, the yummy sambal that my mom makes :)

When we went back 2 weeks ago, mom requested for some home made cakes from me. I managed to do financiers and lime cream cheese pound cake with mango bits before sending my machine for service. That explains my lapse of food post yeah? :P

Lime cream cheese pound cake with mango bits.

As much as i would love to rave for this cake, i couldn't. Don't get me wrong.. i love the taste but unfortunately, not the texture. It was rather dry. Almost couldn't swallow without having a gulp of water kinda dry. Heh. Pretty bad isn't it?

Nevermind... at least, it's not the taste. Grin. I could always add an extra cup of milk or something the next time round, which is what i will do exactly.. if.. i do bake it again :P

Lime cream cheese pound cake with mango bits

On the day we reached, the mother cooked up quite a bit. There were plenty of yummy dishes but my favourite is the stir fry 'wild jungle vegetables' with sambal.

It was mind blowing i tell ya!

Wild jungle vegetables with sambal is the one of the right

Why such funny name one wonders?

Actually, no one knows the name to this vegetable. It is unknown. According to my mom and my helper [yep, the helped had it before too in her kampong], it usually gets picked in the jungle on the ground. It grows wildly on its own.

At the helper's kampong, whenever they wanna eat it, all they need to do is to go to the jungle's floor and pick. Helper called it 'pakis' in Malay. And i am wondering if it's the same as the paku pakis plant that grows wildly in the jungle..

Cute yeah? And it's very affordable too! Only costs my mom RM2 for the whole bunch :)

Then, there is chee cheong fun, the Malaysian version. My absolutely must-eat whenever i go back, apart from my mother's lao shu fen. Luckily the mother knows me well. She will buy them automatically without having me to ask her to, knowing my love for them. Hehe.



The mother buys them raw. Then cooked it herself. More economical and definitely yummier!

Besides the jungle vegetable, i saw something else that is also 'quite cute' too. We've never seen anything like it before.

Check this out!



What do you think it is?

Is it asian's brinjal? Or is it ang moh's egg plant?

Nope. It's not!

It is chili padi!

Yep, it's chili padi in purple! So pretty isn't it?!

Taste wise, i dare not try. Heh. The chili lovers parents warned that it is extremely spicy but fragrant. Hence no trying for me. Not gung-ho enough ah! ^.^

Scrooge the Musical

The boys, hb and i will be watching this come end of November. Yay!!

I've always wanted to do/ go/ watch something Christmas-sie whenever X'mas is around the corner. I wanna feeeeel X'mas. And i want the boys feel it too :)

This musical is suitable for 5 years old and above and i heck care ah. Didi the 3 yrs old is going with us too! But sadly, not beepbeep though coz infants are not allowed. Moreover, beepbeep still doesn't know anything! Heh.

If you are interested, do visit here soon as tickets are selling fast!

Living in a tropical country all my life (the 2 yrs in Down Under not counted ok because X'mas there is in SUMMER!), i wish that before i'm all old and frail, i will have the chance to spend at least 1 X'mas in a snow blanketed cottage with chimney and wood burning inside, tucked away in a small village and with me preparing the X'mas dinner and baking away..

Ahh.. bliss.

Ahh.. day dreaming! Too many movies already! :P

Mom's the best!

If i can only pick one person out of so many to cook for me for the rest of my life, i would pick my mother :)

To me, she's the best cook there is. Whatever she cooks, it always turns out fantastic. What's more is that she doesn't stint on ingredients nor toppings like i do (most of the time actually especially when it's only us who are eating). Plus she makes sure her food all look presentable and nicely garnish (with parsley, spring onion etc) even though it's only for her own family.

Sometimes or rather most times, she even chooses her toppings and ingredients based on their colour so that her dishes will look pretty!

Power right? Lol. So much effort put in you know...

I did ask her this question once sometime back -> Ma, why do you always wanna 'dress up' your dishes when it's only us who are eating?

Her answer?

So that it will look more appealing and appetizing and most importantly, it makes her happy..

Guess i gotta learn a thing or two aye? Heh.

Last week when i was back, she cooked one of my favourites which is lao shu fen, my mommy's style :)

As usual, mothers and their vegetables. See how much vege she gave me? *faint* :P

Again, i asked her why were there so many kind of fishballs when they literally taste the same?!?!?

Normal fishball, then the fishball with brown skin and sliced fish cake!

Answer from the mother : I like loh.. *me smack forehead*

I could really sluuurrrrppp this up! So 'slippery'!

Oh god... posting this makes me drool and crave big time..

I want my mommy now!!

Lol.

White water rafting

Continuing from my incomplete entry the other day..

So yup, after our caving and lunch, we continued on to white water rafting. Initially, we were supposed to do the rafting before caving but due to the raining season, the activities got switched.

Our car was parked at the entrance of the Gua Tempurung. To get to Gopeng Nature Resort where our starting point for the rafting is, transportation is provided. We went on the way we were, as in no new change of clothings. Wet throughout. The vans were well prepared though. There were plastic sheets on the seats protecting the cushion. Guess that was the 'tradition'? (for continuing the trip without changing) :P

The weather was surprising fantastic that day. No sun and the water level was just nice. In fact, it drizzled a little but stopped after a while. There were 5 of us. Just nice for 1 raft plus 1 guide. Exactly the way we like it. Our guide picked us though. Think he likes us. Haha.. Got to know him before the start of our caving, chatting and joking happily with him. A very sporty person i must say.

We were made to carry our raft from the resort right to the river bank. It wasn't an easy task mind you. The raft looks light but i promise you, it wasn't!

Very heavy actually.

Waiting for our turn to go into the water. We were the last to go even though we arrived first

Safety talk was given before starting. Listening to the talk somehow made me sweat all over. Literally.

Very scary. My heart really went thump thump thump F.A.S.T!

Especially when we were told what to go IF the raft gets capsized. Or when we accidentally fall into the river at the rapid part of the river. Or the way we must remember to let go of the raft line and not hold on to it but apply body rafting to save ourselves.

Without realising it, i felt myself shaking a little.

I was scared.

Moreover, hb was not around to save me if anything were to happen. My husband my protector. My protector who coincidentally happens to be a certified life guard too. And he was not around.

How not to be scared right?

I silently prayed for our safety. Funny but i was excited at the same time too! :P

Right before our raft gets pushed into the river. Can't tell that i was scared right? :P

This is exactly how our rafting looks like during the rapid. That exciting

I fell twice.

Or rather 1 and the half times?

The first half fall was a shocking one. Didn't expect it to happen that fast. My guide who arranged me to sit next to him made me fall on purpose, at the rapid part.

The raft moved forward and down a little 'waterfall' diagonally backwards with me being the most high risk to fall in and i did, half of me did. My first half got plunged into the river but my hands were still holding tight to the raft line and my paddle.

So how did i fall? Or maybe i should say, how to not fall? The raft line i was holding was on my left and i was going left and down. So how to not fall in yeah? (if u get what i'm saying that is :P)

Somehow i couldn't get back up no matter how i tried. I was that deep in. And i couldn't go whole body into the river as well. I was practically stuck.

To save me, my guide lost his paddle which the raft in front of us managed to retrieve it for him. He was very quick to pull me out again. The very cold water certainly managed to jolt the shites out of me. Lol. Both my elder sisters (who sat in front of me) were frantically shouting my name and helped me get back to my position again. Think i got everyone panicked for a moment. Heh.

But i was fine. Didn't drink any water nor did i hurt myself either. I was really fine. I still managed to have that silly grin on my face whilst i got pulled out. The only thing that was not fine was the cold water. Brrrrrrrrrrr...

Guess i was the winner for our trip.. for being the first one to fall in to the river :P

All rafts stopped halfway during the rafting. Mainly for us to have some fun, splashing and taking pictures

After that, i fell in again. This time, a total fall. But i was not the only one though. Everyone on the left did. My sister's bf, my eldest sis and me. And again, it was done on purpose. Didn't i say my guide was a real sporting chap? Heh.

When we reached a slightly calmed part, i was asked by my guide if i was game to go to the chamber (guide calls it chamber, which means the very front of the raft) and do a 'Rose' (Kate Winslet in Titanic at the 'you jump, i jump' part) but a sitting Rose.

I sat at the chamber with my legs dangling out in the water and 1 hand up in the air. You cannot imagine how many countless times my sisters shouted for me to be careful man.. Grin. Later on when our raft got stucked, we were asked if we wanna continue on with body rafting and we were all game for it!

Basically, we took turns to jump into the river and float on our back, moving forward with the help of the current.

It was indeed the best trip i have ever had for a long long time. We really enjoyed ourselves to the very max. Fun and exciting. A must do for everyone, at least once in your lifetime :D

But please, do not be put off by this entry of mine. It is really quite an experience. As for safety concerns, let's just say if a 5 years old kid could go on it, how dangerous could it be aye? We have kids as young as 5 and elderly as old as 50 something.

To convince you further, we were the only raft that did the body rafting and we were the only ones who fell into the river out of 7 rafts in the trip. It all depends on you and your guide. If there are kids or elderlies, the guide will be more careful and avoid all the more rapid parts. No stunts will be pulled.

For ourselves, our guide and us kinda have a mutual understanding before starting. We were all very game for a more exciting ride and he was game enough to give it to us. One thing that we didn't do was to ask to do a capsized raft. We totally forgotten about it! Arghh..

My youngest sister who didn't fall into the river was pretty disappointed. Falling into the river was really the highlight for the rafting. If you didn't, it would only be half the fun. Serious!

So, what's next for me?

Rafting at KKB (Kuala Kubu Bahru at Selangor) and caving at Gua Kandu in Perak in December. A more challenging one for both. I can hardly wait!

And you know what else i realised?

I feel equally safe with my sisters as when i am with my husband. I never knew our love was up to that level. I can really tell how much they care for me especially when i had my first fall. The panic look on their faces, their reactions and them calling my name frantically like a mad man were priceless.

As for the husband, i don't need you anymore, darling! Hahahahahahaa... Just joking hor! :P

Girl power!

Do you know i have 4 sisters and 1 brother?

When all of us gather together, but usually minus my brother, there will be 5 of us, all girls. I love it!

2 weeks ago, all of them came down to S'pore for a short visit. Mainly to see my newborn. (but now can be considered as old baby liao :P)



Even my second sister from Taiwan also came down to visit. It so happened that she came back on that week itself for her gf's wedding you see..

Me ain't telling who's the oldest or the youngest here. Why don't you take a guess?? Grin. But do ignore my mom who couldn't resist joining us even though we did say it was for the sisters only and of course, ignore the baby boy and my nephew too! Heh.

I love family gatherings like this. Really!

I love being near to my sisters and love going out with them too. Seriously, nothing replaces this. We can joke, fight, banter, hit, kick, punch, tease without any restriction and at the end of they day, all will still be good. The bond between us.. simply cannot be explained. They say, blood will always be thicker than water. How very true.. :)

I love my sisters.. i love my family!

So dear readers, having 1 child is really not enough at all. You may think it's enough for you but it's really not so true for your child no matter what or how you think. Siblings' love is nothing like mother's love. It's an entirely different kinda love. So no matter how you make it up to love your only child, it's really not the same.

Best is to have 2 of each gender or 1 shot, all same gender! You can never imagine how fun it is! *wink* (er, poor brother of mine. He's the only male and always gets left out! Hahaha)

However, this is my take of course. To each his/her own yeah? :)

Al Dente

My mom came to visit almost 2 weeks ago. As usual, we had a blast!

Brought mom to several places this time. Botanical Garden for fish feeding, Bukit Timah Nature Reserve for hill climbing (but we never made it to the top! Lol), Ria for ayam penyet and last but not least, the mother and daughter -> me, celebrated Mother's Day at Al Dente, Esplanade before mom went back the next day.

I wanted to bring mom to Sage initially. Unfortunately, they were closed. So was PS Cafe. Mom wanted somewhere special with nice ambience and since the 2 above weren't open, hence, Al Dente is was.

Read that Al Dente at Esplanade has got fabulous view. Very ideal for couples. But mom was an exception :P

My beloved mommy with Singapore Sling and Margarita in lemon

Awesome view from where we were sitting

Another side of the rooftop restaurant

Mom with Singapore at night

Focaccia and root salad

Our main course. Braised lamb shank and garlic cream pasta with slipper lobster

We enjoyed ourselves quite a bit. Having a fantastic weather then helped a little.

Nice soft and soothing music in the background, excellent service, very good view and food wise, some were yummy and some were not :P

Oh, best of all, the dinner didn't burn a gigantic hole in my pocket *wink*

But overall, because of the other factors above, dining at Al Dente is quite something albeit the food was so-so only :)

p.s : a must try would be the garlic cream pasta with slipper lobster. Absolutely delicious!