May 31, 2007

My New Blog Space!

Had intended to use Frdster's Blog to leave records of my beautiful memories...but there seems to be a certain limit to the number of pix i can post..so, here's my new blog space that i shall be sharing with my frds..n before i continue to post new entries, below are records of my previous ones..enjoy! ;)




after 4 yrs of travelling tog, i tink this is the 1st time my hub n i went on a guided tour..to the Wicklow Mountains here in Ireland!

we did tink of renting a car to drive there but after comparing it with the cost of a one day tour (only about 24-28 euros per pax), we felt that its more economical to go for the tour, plus its definitely not easy navigating around the mountain areas! n yes yes yes, its oso a fact that we are also getting abit lazy to do any planning..heh ;P

We got up early in the morning last, last weekend n rushed to meet another of the rare few sporeans here, TW, to go for the trip tog..i rem we used to go for such trips to the countryside together with another fun-loving "sporean uncle", KH..hee..but too bad he gave up and returned to spore in feb this year..thou we only managed to know and meet up with each other for about 2 months, we had loads of fun traveling together and of course, speaking singlish!









it was raining early in the morning, as usual (weather here is rain, rain n more rain!)..n we had sm small hicupp as the agent did not realise that they have overbooked the tour..so we had to wait for another tour bus to pick us up..










the tour started with a short coastal drive past Dun Laoghaire harbour n stops at the James Joyce Tower, followed by a quick drive past Dalkey and Killiney where some of the rich and famous such hollywood stars and U2/manager live or hide from the paparazzis...



The tour continued up the high mountains into Sally Gap and Military Road where we visited popular film locations for Braveheart etc..if u are a nature lover, then i tink ireland is for u, cos they have plenty of breattaking natural landscapes! we also managed to catch a glimpse of the place where the great grandchildren of Guiness stayed - see the white house, next to where Braveheart was filmed..the tour guide then gave us a little surprise by taking out a bottle of Jameson Irish Whisky and giving us a tiny cup each to enjoy..on top of the mountain - cheers to....eveything! ;P








After that, we popped by the famous Avoca Handweavers in Avoca Village for some craft shopping (din buy any but their cloth are reallie super soft n comfy)and more importantly, for their homemade scones and jam/cream..yum yum...in fact, the cafe there have a very good selection of tarts and cakes which u cant find in the dublin city!









We moved on quickly to Glendalough, where we visited the "Valley of Two Lakes" and the spactacular 6th century monastic settlement..

We took a slow 20mins stroll through the valley to the magnificient upper lake and stopped at the monastic settlement to see its famous Irish Round Tower (one of the 5 left in ireland), its many High Celtic Crosses and the beautiful stone buildings..The guide shared with us some history of the area and highlighted the how the St Kevin's Cross is diff fm the normal one..he oso played an interesting game and i was the first to be invited up to the cross..he told me to hug the cross from the side and then told me i will have 2 children! haa...everyone laughed cos it was something very unexpected..anyway, many ladies were amazed and went up to try..i wonder how true it is as the guide din explain how he derived that...hmm...




We went on to explore the remains of the cathedral before heading to a traditional irish pub back in Avoca Village for lunch.. My hub and TW had beef slices while i had the famous Guiness Irish Lamb Stew..the food was not too bad n was definitely very filling with all the potatoes and veg etc..


After the heavy meal, its time to go home! The journey back home was quite fast and its definitely an enjoyable one day outing! ;)

June 06, 2007
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Let's "MAKE" LoVe! =B - May 31, 2007


nope nope...i m not making any babies soon...hah...just wanted to share a very practical and meaningful article my hub just sent me...n my tots:


marriage is a lifelong committment and many a times, maybe bcos everyone has seen or heard enough to make them question themselves: " is he/she the one?" or "am i gg to marry the rite person?" or "did i marry the rite person?" or even "should i get married?"..it is indeed scary to know that u cant just "break off" after marriage or that your partner might take u for granted after marriage..the fact is that no one knows what will happen in the future..u just have to do ur very best to make sure the promise u hav made to someone, will be fulfilled..


My hub n myself have went thru plenty of ups & downs, especially during that period of 1.5 yrs long distance r/s..i still rem 2 yrs ago wen i made the rational decision to encourage him to pursue his dreams n thus putting our r/s to a great test, i hav prepared myself mentally tat the r/s mite not wk out in the end, as everyone knows it - it is very rare for any couple to survive a long distance r/s..however, till date, i hav never regretted my decision despite what we have been thru..maybe as the chinese saying goes - god will not fail those who put their heart n soul into something good...the test has surprisingly strengthened our r/s tremendously n made us realised how much we meant to each other (not being mushy but its true that sometimes, things DO happen for a reason)..my hub was telling me that in fact, he is very glad that we have been through all this, otherwise, i wont be so firm in giving up my career n family to join him here (which he has been asking me to la) n he wun be so certain that i m the one he wans to spend his life with..As for those who tried to harm others for selfish reasons, we can only pity them...for they are kept in the dark of the 'real' truth and god will never let them be happie for too long...at the end of the day, its who that is being truly happie matters! heh..;P


I always believe that life is about being happie, no matter what u do (as long as u dun harm/hurt others in the process)..n frds who know me, know that i always seek to live life to the fullest n to no regrets - i prob reach the stage of self actualisation at a very young age..haa..n i guess the main reason is bcos i feel very strongly abt the fact that life is just too short n unpredictable..we must really treasure what we have this very moment, esp our love ones..the article my hub just sent serves as a very good n practical reminder to us(not only for those who are married la) - i tink the least we can do is to constantly remind ourselves to put in a little effort to "make" love..n of cos, it take TWO hands to make love works! ;0 )





DID I MARRY THE RIGHT PERSON?
(Dr. John C. Maxwell)


During one of our seminars, a woman asked a common question. She said, "How do I know if I married the right person?" I noticed that there was a large man sitting next to her so I said, "It depends. Is that your husband?" In all seriousness, she answered "How do you know?" Let me answer this question because the chances are good that it's weighing on your mind.


Here's the answer: EVERY relationship has a cycle. In the beginning, you fell in love with your spouse. You anticipated their call, wanted their touch, and liked their idiosyncrasies. Falling in love with your spouse wasn't hard. In fact, it was a completely natural and spontaneous experience. You didn't have to DO anything. That's why it's called "falling" in love... Because it's happening TO YOU. People in love sometimes say, "I was swept of my feet." Think about the imagery of that expression. It implies that you were just standing there; doing nothing, and then something came along and happened TO YOU. Falling in love is easy. It's a passive and spontaneous experience. But after a few years of marriage, the euphoria of love fades. It's the natural cycle of EVERY relationship. Slowly but surely, phone calls become a bother (if they come at all), touch is not always welcome (when it happens), and your spouse's idiosyncrasies, instead of being cute, drive you nuts. The symptoms of this stage vary with every relationship, but if you think about your marriage, you will notice a dramatic difference between the initial stage when you were in love and a much duller or even angry subsequent stage. At this point, you and/or your spouse might start asking, "Did I marry the right person?"


THE KEY TO SUCCEEDING IN MARRIAGE IS NOT FINDING THE RIGHT PERSON; IT'S LEARNING TO LOVE THE PERSON YOU FOUND. SUSTAINING love is not a passive or spontaneous experience. It'll NEVER just happen to you. You can't "find" LASTING love. You have to "make" it day in and day out. That's why we have the expression "the labor of love." Because it takes time, effort, and energy. And most importantly, it takes WISDOM. You have to know WHAT TO DO to make your marriage work. Make no mistake about it. Love is NOT a mystery. There are specific things you can do (with or without your spouse) to succeed with your marriage. Just as there are physical laws of the universe (such as gravity), there are also laws for relationships. Just as the right diet and exercise program makes you physically stronger, certain habits in your relationship WILL make your marriage stronger. It's a direct cause and effect. If you know and apply the laws, the results are predictable... you can "make" love. Love in marriage is indeed a "decision"... Not just a feeling. "Though you cannot go back and make a brand new start, my friend. Anyone can start from now and make a brand new end."


best regards
Richard TANG


May 31, 2007

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M.I.D Hainanese Chicky Rice Dinner - May 29, 2007


We had a "Made In Dublin Hainanese Chicky Rice" dinner last, last weekend. We made use of whatever we can find here to whip out sthg very similar (thou needs more pratising, to be honest..heh..) to what we eat in sg. We invited our German (Peter) & Spanish frds (Javi & Magda) who were very lucky to be able to sample one of s'pore's most popular dish in Dublin. ;P



We did a little modification to the chicken - half was cooked the authentic way while the other half was fried..u wun get a prize for guessing the reason. My hub's rationale is that he is "afraid that the german n spanish frds wun get used to the taste" but the true reason is that my hub simply love fried chicken!





The evening was nice with the wine, food n company. We then had some cake (made by Magda) for desserts while we showed them our wedding video. We had a real good laugh as Peter, who attended our wedding in sg, had quite a few candid shots captured in the clip - fm being one of my hub's "brothers" in the morning, to fixing a flat tyre on the road n being the emcee for our ROM ceremony in the evening.


It's fun having such M.I.D. homecooked meals or gathering once in a while as it certainly adds some spice n fun to our life here. I rem we had our reunion dinner/ 团圆饭 early this year at Javi & Magda's house (as we couldnt fly back in time for our's in sg). It was an authentic Spanish meal. We had hot chilli mussels with french loaf as appetizer, Flamenquin (ham wrapped in pork) & Spanish ommelette as the main course, n lastly, my carrot cake as dessert.



Not forgetting our own chinese-styled reunion meal, we prepared something special too for lunch @ home that day. It was my 1st attempt on cooking the Teochew Braised Duck/ 卤鸭! I would say it's a success as it did taste n certainly "looked" like those u find in sg...dun u tink so? =B



May 29, 2007

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D "OTHERS" B.B.Q. - May 21, 2007


wen u r living in a place that you r not born in, you are always catogrised as the "others"..n yeap, we just had the "others" BBQ last, last wkend at one of my hub's colleagues's garden!


This "others" BBQ gathering was surprisingly started by my hub, who tot it might be a good idea to organise one among the "others" or "non-irish"..the response for the 1st yr was good and so, he started the second one this yr! The turn-up rate was much better this year as his company employs more pple fm asia as well as europe - malays, malaysian chinese, filipinos, germans, polish, new zealander etc..i would say its more like a "international" B.B.Q. buffet! The invitation was open to family n frds and the BIG idea is to make/bring food from your country..ok, we tried to make spore curry with 'ziam tao' roti/french loaf n it tasted great!


the spread this year is good i must say..n my fav is the authentic chicky satay & ketupat with peanut sauce n teh tarik made by his malay coll's frds..oo...the taste of it was so familiar..it just makes me feel like i m back home! We also have pasta salad, home baked muffins, oven roast egg plants n Peter's mum's passed-down recipe of delicious frozen berries with whipped cream & meringues (hot fav with the gals who love sweets)..



its was a pretty simple gathering, but what i liked is meeting pple fm all over the world, trying to connect n understand more abt each other's country and culture..it reallie opens your mind n enrches ur life..of cos, other than the intellectual part, the food was reallie great..just too bad my hub was having a bad cold n cudnt enjoy his fav bbq food..too bad..haa... ;P

May 21, 2007

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L.O.N.D.O.N - May 15, 2007


Havent been updating the blog for some time..was kinda busy with a couple of stuff..
We went over london during our long weekend break in early May after the last break in april (for easter)..london, london, london...the first thing that comes to your mind will prob be the song "london bridge is falling down"..this makes my second trip there and maybe bcos now i am staying around the region, checking out those popular touristy spots like london bridge (which is a very normal looking modernly-built bridge) etc no longer excites me that much ..nonetheless, we took the chance to travel around for 3 days during the weekend + bank holiday (what they call their public holiday)..




There was alot of walking involved this time round..n everyday, we kept going back to the chinatown in leicester square, for a very simple reason - TO EAT CHINESE FOOD!! We really miss those edible chinese food, which is rare to find in Dublin..we had so many meals of HK-quality roast duck rice n noodles n the typical sweet & sour pork with fried rice or noodles that u can find everywhere in london..after 5 days of food tasting, we decided that the chinese restaurant in Oxford Street was the best..check out their roast duck rice that we da bao to eat in our hotel room..yummy!


We walked alot during this trip..or maybe age is catching up..ha..it was really cold when we were there, despite the fact that it is summer..nonetheless, we travelled using day passes for the tube as well as hoping on & off buses for one of the rainy days (we just hop onto any bus that comes n whereever they bring us to! ;B)..i must say we saw many interesting sights - spiderman(S) with big bellies outside a cinema for its movie launch, the old london bus that was phased out last year i think (was sooooo excited that i managed to ride in one of the rare few ard), one of the many cute little vans going round the parks selling soft-serve ice cream & hotty hot dogs, plus some very entertaining street busking in Covent Garden!



Well, i did check out a few places which i din go during my first trip there:

1) Tower Bridge - its a 10 mins walk fm our hotel so we decided to pop by n chk out the area..the bridge is nice, it's looked exactly like those pictures you see in many of those jigsaw puzzles..i particularly like the tower bridge piazza (pretty similar to our boat quay area but of cos much more cleaner n authentic) ...wat u see in the pix is the back lane of the pubs n shops along the river (its soo diff fm the dark n dirty alleys behind the pubs in boat quay yah)..n i love the interesting sculptures too (was trying to pick up those chunky metal chain.heh..)..there is also this HMS Belfast Ship Museum (sthg on the history of navy) on the other side of the river (din chk that out)..




2) Museums - something u cant miss when u are in london, or in europe..we popped by 3 of them:

  • Cartoon Museum > we had a quick browse inside the shop but didnt attend the small exhibit as we din find it very worthwhile to pay..the cartton stuff like posters n books were very interesting thou..maybe next time, when i am there again..




  • The British Museum > It's FREE, so why not check it out..the interior of the building is very grand but now there are quite a fair bit of exhibits on asian culture etc, which is kinda boring to us cos we have seen enough of them back home..but its defintely something exotic to them..the only interesting thing we saw was the part on Egypt and the MUMMIES...u see the real mummies n learn how they are mummified...we then laze outside the museum for some sun n chips..haa..



  • Natural History & Science Museum > okie, this looked like the exact setting for the movie "Night in the Museum"..u can see giant skeletons of dinosaurs (which i tink is the main highlight) n other scientific stuff..its a public holiday when we went so there were many kids scattered all over the place..it was so stuffy n crowded..definitely not the rite environment for a museum visit..so left shortly after seeing the dinos..



3) Hyde park - this is a popular park where pple from all walks of life share their opinions and views openly with everyone..managed to catch a few of them in action when we were there..the most interesting one is where there are 3 persons standing side by side talking on subjects that are inter-related to one another..there is this black guy talking abt how good is christianity and put down the muslim guy beside him who tried to get pple to understand his religion, while the ang mo lady in red was trying to tell pple abt the negative part of having war esp among races or religion..they all sounded very serious and had quite a handful of listeners..


There were also many other sights that i went but didnt snap pix to share..cos they were either not fantastic eg. the flea market i went in Liverpool Street (was very much like our pasar malam or those u see in hk or thailand), world famous portobello market (which was closed when i was there on a wkday), regent & oxford street & soho were just full of high class shopping n in paddington, you can only see souvenior shops selling the paddington bear..the ONLY one i regretted not taking pix of is the interior of Harrods..only managed to snap the exterior...its reallie like a palace inside with all the exquisite display of branded stuff n oso the showcase of the latest prada handphone..there were so many tourist snapping pictures as thou they were in the Louvre with the Mona Lisa painting...n i definitely din want to be part of that crowd...BUT maybe next time wen i m there again, i might take sm to share with u..heh...i bet ur first reaction will be "WOW"......




It was a tiring but fruitful trip..n YES, the next long wkend is early June..they have another bank holiday like almost every month..so, keep a look out for my next destination! ;)


May 15, 2007

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Easter hunt! - April 13, 2007


Its fridae again!


Another week has passed so quickly..i duno y, but i find that time here flies much faster than when i was in sg...definitely not cos i have more things to do now..as i m still at home, resting and working on my job search (only started over the easter long weekend last week)..


easter, like xmas is one of those big thing they celebrate here..my hub has a total of 5 resting days just for that easter weekend..so u noe how much the pple here know how to enjoy life yah..we din make any plans to go away cos we were rather tired fm our flight back here fm sg (yes, still tired - the 16-18 hrs of flight journey is no joke for sure) plus he is still sick..


nonetheless, we did wat most pple here wud do for the long weekend - groceries n household shopping for our new home, gg to the ctryside, movie, get-together meal..

we went to Howth (port) for a short sat afternoon trip. this is my 2nd time there n i kinda like the place (subst for east coast in sg? ha)..the view of yachts being parked by the port, swaying as the wind blows, birds flying across the clear blue sky, calm blue sea, pple lazing on the grass (yes, the grass here is carpet-like, clean without ants!) reading, chatting, munching, playing..we bght a pack of fish & chips each and sat by the sea, enjoying the sun, sea, breeze n of cos, food..yeah, it's summertime! i love summer..the weather's not so cold, the sun's out n even the day time are longer..oh, i must mention the 'pooh bear's delight' ice-cream i had before we hop on to the bus back home..it was simply honey-licious, wtih honeycomb crumbs hidden amongst the creamy vanilla..yummy! =9


the fun easter hunt took place wen our german frd, peter, invited us to his house for sm homecooked german food & french crepes! we got some wine & easter egg otw to his house much further down the road..its a lazy sunday...but since this is the first time we are gg to his house for a get-together meal (usually we have those sessions at our prev apartment), we were rather excited abt it..when we were there, he first shared with us the tradition of how easter was being celebrated back in his ctry - cute litle easter eggs were hidden ard the hse for children to find them the first thing they step in the house..so, he hid sm in his garden n got us to find it..it was reallie a simple game, but i was very happie and excited to play it..i guess sometimes, its true that the best things in life are either free or simple..the main course for dinner - oven roasted pork with rosemary potatoes n green beans was delicious...n the french crepes with caramalised apple slices n fresh cream that followed was definitely my fav! we chilled out till late night, discussing our program for the nex day..



we woke up early on mon morning and rushed down to d citycentre to catch the movie - 300 with peter. we had to rush cos tickets before 11am are half-priced..the movie was ok, kinda typical heroic story..not much plot i wud say..n yes, plenty of fighting n nice bods..heh..we went to a restaurant for a light brunch after that n strolled back to a cafe near our house for coffee n more food...i was rather surprised with the cool interior of the cafe desite walking past it regularly...it looked totally diff fm wat i see outside - its spacious and deep with very high ceiling, something like those pubs in a warehouse kinda setting u find in sg..the atmosphere's very relaxed, nice music, comfy sofa seats n pple were just chilling out, chatting, sipping beer/coffee, munching sandwiches..n i had my cuppa hot choc (as usual)..we lazed there til evening..


the next day was ano nuahing day at hm..its oso my hub bdae..i baked him a banana walnut cake with cute gummy face on it.. :)






okie, tmr is sat again...hmm, prob housework day..haa..


April 13, 2007


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Our new home... - April 02, 2007


we finally managed to find a place back in Rathmines! sm where that is safe and has plenty of amenities (3 major supermarkets + a chinese one, plenty of retail shops & a library) ..

It is a one-room studio flat in those georgian houses, which is just nice for the 2 of us. We did tink of house sharing initially where we cud live in a bigger n nicer place, but the tot of staying with another difficult/weird housemate just freak us out!


These few days of cleaning, scrubbing, bleaching, buying new household stuff and moving 8 luggages + 15 boxes (various sizes) into our new home really tire us out. My hub fell sick as expected n he is now resting @ home..I guess the great diff in weather fm spore plays an impt part too. it is sooooo coooold here..thou spring shud be ard the corner..


well, its the start of another new week. I think i have rested enuff - since las nov till now..i have quit my part-time job n now its TIME TO FIND A JOB! ;0 )


April 02, 2007


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a new life begins... - March 29, 2007


i was walking along the streets back home when i tot maybe i shud start writing a blog too, which i will never be able to do so in spore - just too tied up with work & other "stuff" (dun ask me wat) thats takes up my time...


well, since i m rather free now...or i shud say its just too relax here...or maybe the pace here is just right - u earn enough and yet u are able to spend quality time with loved ones & frds..i guess life in spore is prob too stressful, with everyone being caught in the 'hamster wheel' - wat u earn are being used to pay all sort of debts..n u end up looking forward to only two things in life i.e. bonus & holidays...its sad, isn't it?


BUT but but, life is not that easy here too yah...i have to face new challenges such as finding a job that i like, adapting to the year-round freezing cold weather, eating roti/fried/western food at least once a day, no family (except for my hubby) & good old pals beside me...its 'a new life' for me! n i wud love to record it down somewhere..n here it shall be!


March 29, 2007

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