Day two in London

Today is the day we go separate ways and do the things that we like. Hubby dear will be off to catch his live footie game while yours truly will be willing her time away at Oxford St and its nearby streets muahaha!!!

Courtesy of samsung kick-off.

Outside our hotel. Not the best but decent enough.

The irritating thing here is that shops are not opened as early as back home, especially on a Sunday where most of the shops are only open from 12 noon (till about 5-6pm). Imagine that. So much precious time was wasted.

So here we are walking around deserted shopping streets and snapping away.

A street sign. Street signs seemed to be more fascinating in foreign countries.

We were spoilt for choice on which play to watch.

Shopping..

.. and more shopping!

Foreground: hubby dear posing at the entrance of the Oxford Circus tube Station. Background: UCB... massive!

More shopping at Carnaby Street. Stumbled upon Benefit here.

Radley at Molton Street. Can you spot the little doggie?

After a full day out shopping and watching football, we met up with Joanne for dinner at a local English cafe. Above is the appetiser of wholemeal loaves with butter, salt and pepper.

I chose the beef steak.

Hubby dear picked the burger. It was nice catching up with Joanne and meeting her friend.

Later that night I was busy unpacking my buy. Bought some stuff from Primark (decided to spend some time there upon Evelyn's suggestion). The clothes there are quite affordable (in other words = cheap lar). More so when they are having a promotion. It was like pasar malam when I was there, almost like when mng is having its sales.

Today's menu

Darling simply loves today's menu :D

Kangkung sambal belacan. It was nice with enough spiciness but still lacking in something. Probably due to no dried prawns. Belum beli lar.
This is mom's recipe, oyster sauce chicken. My version has more veggies. Quite impressed with how it turned out but probably should have put in more ginger slices.

Bel's bday pressie

So what did mommy and daddy got their little angel for her first birthday? Well, parents being parents and being their usual practical self, they decided to get Annabel a walker! Firstly, she doesn't seem to really appreciate toys yet (she seems to be amused with practically anything from wrappers to empty containers etc so we can definitely save some money there for the time being at least). Plus she does NEED a walker although there isn't much space to walk around. It's more so that mommy can do her cooking and stuff when Annabel's in the mood and agrees to be put in the walker. Yes, she is the big boss around here.

What's for dinner?

2nd April 2009, Thursday...

Spinach soup. Not really hubby's favourite but it's HEALTHY!
Steamed fish with ginger and garlic. A bit salty. Probably shouldn't have rubbed salt on the fish.

The start of my culinary adventure

My second go at masala tea. The trick is one part milk and two parts water, and of course the spices!
Annabel's bday misua. She loved it.

Tou miao with spiced beancurd.
Baked fish?

Steam fish ala ikan bakar. Thanks to the sambal paste mom got me! Yumm..

First HK outing

28th March 2009, Saturday...

Waiting for the bus to take us to the MTR station. Then taking the train straight to IKEA hihi..
A quick stop for tea before heading back home.

Butter and sweetened milk on toast

Chilli pork and egg on toast

Milk tea (left) and jasmine tea (right). The former is a disappointment. One's expectation is high when one is in HK!!!

Day one in London

All excited waiting for the train to take us to Paddington St. My first trip to a mat-salleh country. Of course excited!
View from the train.. moments before the first drop..

Paddington St is only a walking distance away from our hotel.

Our first meal there. A McD's breakfast. No chilli sauce though.

After breakfast we took the tube and did some walking to Madame Tussauds. We arrived before it opened so we did like what most tourists would do - walked around and snapped around.

Sherlock Holmes and me

The much talked about big bus company. No we didn't go on it this time.

The red british phone booth.

The royal academy of music. Obviously.

And finally, Madame Tussauds!

The second drop took place inside MT (yes, of all places), just when we were posing with the Beckhams. Yes, a typical case of sudah jatuh ditimpa tangga. It really 'made' my day. The disposable cameras did not provide much consolation (most of the pictures taken indoor were not clear). And it didn't help that we used it mostly in MT!!!

The Queen and I. This one was taken with my trusted hp.

After MT, i knew i just had to get a new camera. So off we went to Jessops (a camera speciality shop, thanks to Raymond's recommendation) somewhere near Oxford St (i think). Maybe the accidental drops were blessings in disguise, as i would like to think that i had a good deal with my new cool-red coolpix. Now i could really start to enjoy my holiday!

Later, after more walkings and searchings, we managed to find our way to a sports cafe to catch that eventful football match. Yes, there are no mamaks with big screen to catch ur footie live. Luckily we didn't stay on for the second half of the game (no need for explanations) as we had a house warming gathering to attend. Yes, we just couldn't neglect our social duties..

Annabel's first haircut

Lil Bel had her first official haircut yesterday (her one mth full head shaving & hair trimming by amateur hands not counted). Brought her to where mommy usually had her hair done. She didn't flinch one bit. But of course i carried her throughout her less-than-5mins haircut. If i were to put her on the chair, then it'll be a different story altogether. This is actually the second time i brought her there. The first was just before christmas to have her fringe trimmed. And it was done for free! Therefore this is still considered the first official haircut! Annabel with her cute short fringe...

Crumbly cheesecake

My first real effort in trying out my culinary skills. I chose a cheesecake as this recipe does not require baking so it should be quite easy. Of course mom had to help... It turned out rather well minus the crumbly base. A good first try (syok sendiri!). I was too excited to have my first bite till i forgot to take a picture of the whole cake!

Me baking??!!

I am now in the mood to do some cooking especially baking and am looking at two particular recipes - a cheesecake and a fruitcake. The irritating bit is that the former requires double cream and the latter muscovado sugar (NL uses this quite a fair bit in her cakes)!! Both of which i have been scouring almost all the supermarkets in Mlk but to no avail (Giant and Cold Storage). I was thinking if CS does not have them, then slim chance the rest might have it. Sigh.. i think there's still hope in JJ.. i hope!

Tis the season to be jolly

My favourite time of the year is here again. Yay!! I love Dec for so many reasons. It's the end of the year and it's time to relax and enjoy the holidays (does it even matter that i only have a balance of one day annual leave?!). The air is full of festivities.. and temptations are abound at the shopping malls.. such fun period to shop hehe! And not to mention the mega sales or as it is now known the malaysia savings sale 2008. Christmas this year would be a merry affair, as hubby dear will be back, plus it's Annabel's first :D Yay, bring out the yuletide cheer!! And I am definitely eager to start a brand new year. What can i say, this year has not been exactly my year for countless reasons. Sudah jatuh, ditimpa tangga. But every cloud has a silver lining, and that would be with the birth of our firstborn, darling Annabel (who is now 8mths old)!

The reading bug

I've suddenly been bitten by the reading bug, which is a good thing. So my time now is mostly occupied with reading (and Annabel of course), instead of facebook and more facebook (i know, i need to get a life)!! So here is a short take on some of my recent reads.

Sex and the City
It is basically a collection of stories on sex and relationships (or rather mating habits) of the different type of women found in new york. The scenes which caught my attention would be the ones with Carrie and Mr Big. Probably because I was (and still am) into the hbo original first rather than the book. Otherwise I found the book boring and without substance. Maybe I am biased. I have been avoiding chic lits for as long as i can remember until now. And I don't think I will be picking up another one anytime soon. Thank you but I'll just stick to the series.

How To Be Good
This is my first Nick Hornby book, although I have in my ever-growing collection (collecting dust), two others (typical me). It is about a london gp and her columnist husband and her two kids. A typical family. One day she got bored with life and had a little affair. She then decided to divorce her hubby but later changed her mind. Then her hubby met DJ Goodnews and suddenly became a good person. I mean, a really good person. A witty read.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
Writes from the viewpoint of an autistic teenager, Christopher. The tale opens with the death of the neighbour's dog. In the process of solving the murder mystery, Christopher discovered much more. Honest and innocent.

The Memory Keeper's Daughter
Tells the tale of an orthopaedic surgeon that was forced to deliver his own twins - a healthy boy and a down-syndrome girl. He at once decided to send her away. To his wife, their daughter was stillborn. It really wasn't fair to his wife, not knowing that their daughter was alive and well. If the husband didn't weave that one white lie, things would have been much happier for them. If only he knew. Bittersweet. More bitter than sweet though.

Tragedi Oct (as darling puts it)

One out of four has it these days. It's not uncommon anymore. And yet why does it feel so much like being handed with a death sentence? It is scary to think of the battle that lies ahead, for so many reasons. Dear Lord, please guide me and give me strength to face the challenges that awaits me.

Carroty goodness

She finished her carrot puree today. Yay, after the third day of carrots, she finally cleaned her little bowl. Although it was only one tablespoon, it gave mommy great satisfaction in watching her eat till the last morsel. Of course la with all the hard work steaming and pureeing it! Tomorrow will be a brand new day.. and spinach puree is on the menu!

Mini me

Then...

And now...

Does Annabel look like mommy??..