Monthly Archives

August 2014

in Diplomatic Incidents, Personal Musings

When Nations Mourn and How the Media Either Helps or Gets in the Way

First written on July 31, 2014 but I decided to just actually finish it today. Also publishing this weeks after the incident to avoid being insensitive:

I’ve been putting off writing about things that caught my eye on the news the past couple of weeks so as to avoid tackling anything depressive.

But after weeks of not seeing anything other than Israel’s Operation Protective Edge in Gaza, seeing images of people being hurt on both sides, after the several plane crashes within the same week, and catching a report on the TV showing a parade of hearses in the Netherlands carrying the bodies of those that died at the MH17 crash, I found myself scribbling my thoughts on random pieces of paper – the back pages of my planner, grocery lists, and even some receipts.

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in Expat Life, KL Shopping, KL Tips

The Entertainer: Two for the price of one – always

I love a good bargain. I mean, really. Who doesn’t? Personally, I get a kick out of buying something on a discount. I feel that the purchase (even if it’s pretty hasty/impulsive) is justified.

A couple of days ago, a new friend of mine introduced The Entertainer – Malaysia to me. And needless to say, I am thrilled by it and totally excited to start using it.

The Entertainer is basically a coupon book (good for one whole year) that lets you enjoy food, spa services, staying in hotels, fun activities, and a lot of other things in a certain area – buy 1, take 1. So let’s say my husband and I would want to try out a new steak restaurant, we’ll be ordering two steaks but will only be paying for one – it’s like dining out for the two of us is always on 50% off. Pretty cool, huh?

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in Expat Life, KL Where to Go

KL Adventures: Colourful Brickfields (Little India)

Right in the centre of Kuala Lumpur is its own Little India. The husband and I were able to walk around its main street during one of our weekend afternoons which we usually spend either sightseeing within the city or furniture shopping.

Brickfields is a neighbourhood near KL Sentral station. It’s easily accessible and is a place known for good bargains (from food, grocery items, to accessories) and a good mix of modern meets traditional architecture.

Just wanted to do a quick post on this neighbourhood (which we visited after our trip to the Planetarium) and share some photos taken along the area’s main street, Jalan Tun Sambanthan:

The KL Sentral side of Brickfields is filled with modern architecture.

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in Beauty & Fashion, Expat Life, Fashion, KL What to Do, OOTD

Happenings + OOTD: Vision KL 18th Anniversary

Photo wall! Strike an (awkward) pose! 😉

Last night, the husband and I attended the Vision KL Anniversary Party at Signature by the Hill (The Roof). It made me totally excited cos it meant that I can wear something that’s not too formal for a change. The husband was tasked to attend the party in place of the our Ambassador who had a prior commitment. So, yay! Lucky, lucky!

Vision KL is a popular magazine-slash-city guide here in Kuala Lumpur. They have over a million readers and has been around for 18 years.

I loved Signature by the Hill’s interior. It’s pretty chill with striking elements. Like this:

An LED-lighted tree. It changes colour every couple of seconds.

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in Diplomatic Incidents, Personal Musings

Music: Robyn + Royksopp at the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Screencap from the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Screencap from the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

I love me some awesome electropop. I like it even better when its performed live.

A friend who knows I’m a die-hard Robyn fan sent me a link to this video and I was practically screaming in delight while watching it. Just thought I’d share it with you today. It’s practically eargasmic!

Watch it here: http://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/video/royksopp-robyn-do-it-again/2806273

Hope you’re all having a great day so far! 🙂

Love,

Carol

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in Asia, Expat Life, KL Food, Kuala Lumpur, Travel

Foodie Adventures: Chinese food haven at Jalan Alor

Malaysia is basically Asian food heaven. With the country being a melting pot of Malay, Chinese, and Indian culture, it’s quite hard to imagine Malaysia not having good food.

We all know the history between Singapore and Malaysia and I’m pretty sure a bit of the rivalry between these two countries also extends to their food which is very very similar. However, one observation that can really differentiate one’s cuisine from the other is this: Malaysian food is definitely spicier than Singaporean. If you’re used to Singaporean laksa which is already spicy, you better brace yourself for Malaysian laksa because it will definitely leave your mouth burning. I have a friend who will testify to this as well.

A couple of weeks back, the husband and I decided to walk all the way to Jalan Alor – a street known for its authentic Chinese street-restaurants – for dinner. The food was so good, we found ourselves back in Jalan Alor only two days after that, friends in tow.

Ok, first things first: Where in KL is Jalan Alor?

Jalan Alor is located in the Bukit Bintang area. You can take the Monorail and just hop off at the Bukit Bintang station. From there, it’s only a short walk. As for my husband and I, we would always pass through Pavilion Mall (our building is located a couple of minutes walk from the mall’s back entrance while it’s front opens up to Bukit Bintang). For a map to Jalan Alor, click here.

From the mall’s main entrance, you will see this:

Just go straight down the main road which is behind that fountain. But wait, there’s Sephora! It’s best if my husband and I would make a quick stop over, yes?

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in Asia, Expat Life, KL Where to Go, Kuala Lumpur, Travel

KL Adventures: Islamic architecture in Putrajaya

Putrajaya on a holiday.

The husband and I are suckers for beautiful architecture – be it modern or more on the classical side. I’ve fallen in love with several European and Asian cities because of their skylines and the feeling I get when I walk around the city, surrounded by stunning buildings. They just add so much character (some even add to the city’s history) to a certain place.

So it’s no wonder that I enjoyed our short afternoon trip to Putrajaya, Malaysia’s seat of government, a couple of weeks back. We went with 3 of Alvin’s colleagues who were nice enough to drive us around.

It’s quite easy to get to Putrajaya from Kuala Lumpur – you can take the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Transit (don’t take the express train as it won’t stop at Putrajaya station and will go straight to the airport!) or you can take a Rapid KL bus marked ‘E1’. It will pick up passengers in the Pasar Seni and KL Sentral train stations. However, once you actually get to Putrajaya, it’s quite hard to navigate without your own car. So some tourists opt to hire a taxi within the city and agree on a fixed price with the driver who will also act as your tour guide.

Fast facts:

  • Though Putrajaya is now the seat of government, Kuala Lumpur remains to be Malaysia’s national capital and the seat of the King.
  • Malaysia only shifted their seat of government in the late 90s to avoid congestion in the capital.
  • Almost all of the ministries are now in Putrajaya except for the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, and the Ministry of Works which are still in KL.
  • A 650-hectare, man-mad lake is found in the middle of the city. The Malaysian government has said before that the main reason (aside from the obvious aesthetics and recreation opportunities it can bring) the lake was made was to act as a “natural cooling system” for the city. And man, do they need it. Putrajaya is way more hot and humid than KL. I couldn’t stand not having a roof over my head for 2 minutes. I cannot possibly imagine how hot it would be without that lake.

Okay, enough yapping. Let me show you the breathtaking view from the elevated Putrajaya International Convention Centre:

I feel like I was looking at a real-life post card. Though I had to cut the sight seeing from here. PICC is on top of a hill and MUCH closer to the sun. I had to get back into the car right away.

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in Personal Musings

#RIPRobinWilliams

Image from Touchstone Pictures

Image from Touchstone Pictures

“We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. Medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits, and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman: ‘O me, o life of the questions of these recurring, of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities filled with the foolish. What good amid these, o me, o life?’ Answer: that you are here. That life exists, and identity. That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse. That the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?” – Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society

They say comedians lead the saddest lives. That’s a bit of information that I find hard to accept but I can easily imagine.

Hollywood lost a superb actor today. Someone who inspired a lot of us. I saw Dead Poets Society in 1996. I was in Kindergarten and I already loved reading, writing, and composing stories and poems as best as a 6 year old could. I would tell my mother stories I made up with the use of my imagination. Sometimes I would act them out as spelling the ‘hard words’ was still kind of a chore for a tiny kid. But right then and there, after seeing that movie, I knew I wanted to read and write for the rest of my life. Because nothing is more noble and more fulfilling than sharing ideas, feelings, and beauty through words.

He was Patch Adams. He was the Genie. He was Mrs Doubtfire. He was Mork, Teddy, and Airman Second Class Adrian Cronauer. But to me, Williams (who didn’t come up with that quote up there himself but gave so much life to it) will always be John Keating who had so much praise for language – for words and how we use them. Someone who recognised the power of words and asked the question a lot of us try to answer in our everyday lives: What will your verse be?

in Beauty & Fashion, Skincare

Beauty: Ziaja Phytoaktiv Cleansing Milk Review

Totally loving Ziaja’s Phytoaktiv Cleansing Milk!

I’m crazy about beauty, skin care products, and makeup. I don’t know if that’s already obvious but just in case people haven’t figured that out yet, I just wanna put it out there. 😉

I have this habit of changing my cleanser, moisturiser, and toner every couple of months. I was told by a dermatologist once that it is important to keep your skin on your toes and keep it from eventually becoming immune to products. She told me that using the exact same product over and over again reduces its effectivity on your skin. I’ve been following that advice for years and I am happy to report that my naturally dry skin is still very much clear and has never had a massive breakout – ever. (Just in case you are wondering, I apply the same principle to my hair. I change our shampoo and conditioner every couple of months as well.)

For my birthday last June, my friend Michaela got me Ziaja skincare products – the Phytoaktiv Cleansing Milk and their Argan Oil Moisturiser (I’ve been going through an Argan Oil addiction phase). I haven’t gotten around to using the moisturiser as I have yet to finish my current product. So for now, I’ll be reviewing the cleanser.

Ziaja is a Polish brand known for producing “pharmaceuticals and high-quality cosmetics based on natural ingredients for face, body and hair care”.

This 200ml bottle can last you for over 2 months (I still haven’t finished my bottle after opening it on June 25)

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in Beauty & Fashion, Diplomatic Incidents, Events

On Diplomatic Events + Egyptian National Day #OOTD

It is only now that I realised how long I have been attending diplomatic events – National Days in particular. For someone who’s not a diplomat per se, I’ve had my fair (ok, maybe more than fair) share of diplomatic parties back when I was working as a journalist.

When I married my husband, it was like sealing the deal: I’ll be attending these things for the next couple of decades or so. Not that I’m complaining. I find such events fun and very informative – a chance to learn about other cultures – and to make new friends.

To be honest about it, Diplomatic Events (be it National Days or cultural showcases) are very important. Whether you show up or not can be deemed a statement (so always RSVP!), friendships are made, bilateral relationships are strengthened, meetings are set over food, introductions that can lead to new and important projects between governments and private organisations are made, ideas are born, and some important talks and exchanges of views between diplomats are done on the sidelines. It’s not just a party as how some people would describe it. It’s so much more.

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