I'm pretty lazy to blog about everything that happened so I'll just summarise with the following few points and let the pictures do most of the talking.

Interesting facts I learn from Korea Trip
1.apparently, koreans do not take chili sauce.I tried looking for it at Lotteria and Burger King but to no avail.They have ketchup though.Fast food is more expensive than Malaysia and is also pricier than local food.BK burger set costs 7000 won(abt RM21) and tasted pretty bland.I loved Lotteria's bulgogi burger(marinated BBQ beef) though, especially the onions but the fries were soggy.Also cost about 8000 won.

2.They eat seaweed only in soup and with rice.A korean friend was very amazed when we opened the dried seaweed and popped them into our mouths just like that.

3.they must have rice with every meal-which is why I put on so much weight after a mere 1 week of staying there.Amazingly, most of them aren't overweight, which could possibly be due to the abundance of exercise facilities available at each neighbourhood as well as many nice parks where you can have a walk after dinner without having to fear of being mugged and killed.

4.most of them have breakfast at home, unlike us , where we have a dizzying array of mouth watering dishes to choose from- noodles, dim sum,nasi lemak, cakes etc.Almost everyday for breakfast, i had toast with peanut butter and strawberry jam& Danone yoghurt, washed down with a cup of OJ.The yoghurt was thick and smooth,and tasted very good!

5.another interesting promotional strategy is what you can see at busy streets where shops selling skin care products are aplenty, you name it..Nature Republic-Bi, The Face Shop-Bae Yong Jun, Skin Food, Missa Home-lee bing hyun,Tony Moly-Kim hyun joong,Etude house-lee min ho,yves rocher etc. young girls are employed to hand out free samples to passerbys.Sounds too good to be true?There must be a catch.You've got to at least step into their shop, even though you don't buy anything in the end.I learned it the hard way, with the girl from the Face Shop.After some time, the shops all look the same to me: masks that promises to do almost every wonder to ur face, cleansers, toners, lip tints, gloss, eye shadow etc. Luckily I don't have much interest nor knowledge in makeup, if not I would most definitely have spent a bomb there.I think the reason Koreans generally have pretty good complexions is because normal facial care items are pretty affordable as competition is very stiff and they are produced locally.

6.Land is very expensive there, so most people stay in apartments/condoes.When moving into/out of a house, large items are placed flat on a platform and are lifted up and down with a pulley system.
7.One of our favourite places to go to was the supermarket, where we had a great time at 'the mini buffet', sampling the food.They have 'tesco@ 'home plus' there as well, which is open 24 hours.
8.South Koreans really to drink, as every household and every place will have the soju glasses.
9.There are different set of languages to be used with elders and with ur peers or those younger than you.
10.South Korea and Japan are pretty similar in the sense that a foreigner will instantly feel out of place as it's pretty difficult to get around if you don't read or speak Korean.Try approaching someone to ask for directions at the subway in English and there are pretty high chances they'll run away from you.Most of them don't speak English but at Myong-Dong, there were a few salesgirls that were fluent in conversational Mandarin and tried their level best to push their products to us.
11.Generally, cost of living in Korea is pretty high,about the same as Japan.500won(RM1.5) will get u a bar of Crown sweets; a single person order of BBQ chicken is about 9000 won(rm27).A pack of Kimchi(5x200g) costs about7500 won.The clothes are exceptionally expensive, as local brands that I have never even heard about will retail for at least 50,000 won(equivailent to RM150).Yet, shopping malls are pretty packed and luxury brand items are flying off the shelves.
The spending power is there, I guess.Even clothes with manufacturing defects are selling for at least RM50!
12.Travelling by train is pretty affordable,and most places are accessible by train.For example as it costs about 3000 won to travel from Ansan and Seoul, which is about 45 minutes drive away.
13.Drinks: Chilsung cider does not contain any cider, but rather it is a clear carbonated drink;in other words, the korean equivalent of Sprite.Korean beer is surprisingly light and tastes similar to our Shandy, delicious! =) Coffee bean's swedish berry tea is bland and is freaking expensive!It cost 5000 won(RM15) a normal vanilla ice blended will cost 7000 won.
14.Jewellery: you'll never be able to take your eyes off the shiny trinkets as there is just so much bling everywhere- shops, roadside stalls, shopping complexes! We went to this art complex at Myong Dong where they specialise in selling hand made stuff-jewellery,paintings, clothings, pottery,wallets etc.Intricate jewellery with the most beautiful designs will definitely catch your eye, but mind you, they're not cheap.An average pair of earrings would cost 5000 won(RM15) and a silver necklace is about 18000 won(RM54).If not because of the lack of Korean Won in my wallet,I would most definitely bought everything on display.
15.National pride: the koreans are definitely very proud and protective of their culture.Palaces, monuments are painstakingly restored to their ancient glory and maintained as national treasures.It's no wonder that they have so many UNESCO heritage sites.On the roads, you'll see mostly korean made cars.I heard that the most expensive local car is the Ssangyong Chairman which costs about RM300k.Imagine a locally produced car selling for that price here!


For those who love visiting palaces and historical places, you'll definitely love South Korea!The Korea Tourism Organisation has done an exemplary job in providing information on places that may be of interest to tourists, so you can do some research before embarking on your very own 'Sparkling Korea' trip!

Best season to visit would be fall, where you can admire the magnificent fall foliage.It was my 1st autumn experience and it was indeed autumn in my heart=)

pictures from my trip can be viewed at my facebook albums
hana dool set

秋天的童话

Everytime I listen to this song, I'm reminded why Westlife remains my favourite boyband,even after 10 years.The lead singers-shane and marks' voices blend so harmoniously with kian and nicky.I still shamelessly think that Mark is the best looking Irish bloke i've ever seen, even if he's gay and he can sing the high notes so well too!



Not the best version I've seen, but it'll do.Enjoy =)

2009 has not ended yet, but there has been many high profile celebrity deaths already.

To the layman, the entertainment world appears to be so distant, so unreal; what with them raking in millions by the hour and leading unbelievably lavish lifestyles.They seem to be in a world of their own.However, they do, are not spared from life's cruel events; they do, get sick and die.

Among the deaths that are included in this post, I think MJ and stephen's passing shocked me the most.I mean, they were big parts of my childhood,I remember listening to them on the radio and watching their music videos in the afternoon after I came back from class.
Among the boyzone members, i liked stephen the most,for he always had a clean look and a radiant smile.He also had a sweet and pure voice, as evident in 'No matter what'
Stephen pictured below with his partner, Andrew



MJ- it's such a pity he died in such circumstances, misunderstood and exploited by many.I believe deep inside, he was just a kid who never grew up

Farah Fawcett, one of the original Charlie's angels,who was THE pin up girl in the 80's ,is pictured here in her famous red swimsuit

Patrick Swayze, best known for 'Dirty Dancing' and 'Ghost'
'Ghost' scene with demi moore(18sx)




RIP all!

The following article also speaks volumes of how superficial people can be.Here's a question for you to ponder: what actually lies beneath all the fancy packaging?

As published in The star, 6/10/09

Buried under the layers

By TAN CHENG LI

Malaysians are still enamoured with pretty presentations – and that spells trouble for the environment.

THE tiny present wrapped inside a box which is put into a bigger box, and a yet bigger box and so on, may be a good joke for a birthday or Christmas.

In reality, unfortunately, many goods are actually packed like that.

Supermarket shelves brim over with such examples of over-packaging.

Take, for instance, that popular brand of chocolates with the tongue-twister of a name. Each piece is wrapped in foil, sits on a paper cup, which sits on a plastic tray which sits inside a plastic box which is wrapped in shrink wrap. That’s five layers of packaging!

And nothing says “excessive packaging” more than the boxes of mooncakes sold recently for the mid-autumn festival.

Loads of waste: A heap of packaging waste, and all for only 12 pieces of pastries. Each piece is encased in a plastic cup, inside a plastic wrapper. Some have an additional paper label.

In the old days, mooncakes came in only two layers of wrapping, a greaseproof paper and a red paper label. These days, the pastries are packed lavishly in layer after layer of packaging.

Sure, the prettily designed box can easily find a new life as storage container but certainly not the plastic trays and wrappings.

Greasy and small-sized, these are unlikely to be tossed into the recycling bin – although they should be. And don’t you wonder how much of the price goes towards the fancy wrapping?

Then there are those six-tub packs of yoghurt and jelly, all held together in a plastic tray and then shrink-wrapped. Electronic gadgets are notoriously over-packaged. A small electronic part can arrive wrapped in more plastic than the device itself.

Empty packaging: The net weight of these prawn chips is only 70g, but they come in a plastic wrapper inside a big canister. It would be difficult to recycle the canister as it is made of different materials – paper canister, plastic rim and cover, metal bottom and plastic-laminated paper label.

What a waste. No wonder our landfills are bursting at the seams.

Of course, there is no denying that packaging serves a purpose and cannot be done away with totally.

It protects goods, reduces spoilage, provides information on products and enables their handling, storage and transportation. Under-packaging, on the other hand, can be harmful and wasteful, as when goods are damaged and when food goes bad.

In recent years, mindful manufacturers have minimised their use of packaging – after all, it cuts costs.

Margarine and yoghurt plastic tubs, for instance, now have thinner walls, just like in aluminium cans.

Manufacturers have also made products in higher concentration (such as detergent), offer refill packs and display product information on the container instead of on an extra label or box.

Over-packaging: The huge paper box, when opened, contains a mere 10 cookies inside a plastic bag.

Making packaging smaller and lighter have other ramifications: shipping trucks and containers can carry more, thus saving transportation costs, and greenhouse gas emissions.

But many manufacturers still sheathe their goods in layer after layer of fancy, unnecessary coverings just to lend them a sophisticated presentation and to add perceived value.

Hidden costs

Almost a third of what we toss out are actually containers and wrappings. In Japan, which is known for its elaborate packaging culture, such waste reaches 60%.

Over-packaging not only wastes materials but raises shipping costs and eventually, adds to our already overburdened landfills.

Simply manufacturing those foils, wrappers and containers uses up energy and creates pollutants, as will recycling them.

And consumers are paying for all that over-the-top packaging.

In the United States, the Institute of Packaging Professionals says packaging on average constitutes 7% of the price of a product.

A 2001 survey by the Consumer Association of Penang, however, showed the figure to be between 22% and 55% for some common consumer items such as soft drinks, toothpaste, bottled water, Tetrapak drinks, chilli sauce and yoghurt.

It found spices sold in bottles could be up to 19 times more expensive than those sold in loose form.

This practice of fancy wrappings also cultivates an unhealthy and wasteful consuming mentality – like when we buy a perfume just because the bottle is so pretty!

Aside from over-packaging, the proportion of packing material that can be recycled is also a concern.

Those tiny bits and pieces, in general, are difficult to recycle – the plastic holder tray for yoghurt tubs, thin plastic wrappers (such as the one wrapping drinking straws), aluminium-lined plastic, shrink wraps and foil coverings.

Packaging consisting of a mix of materials (for instance, the chips canister that is made of paper, a tin bottom, plastic rim and cover, and plastic-laminated paper label) is a recycling nightmare.

What will it take to get manufacturers to rethink the packaging of their goods?

Laws that ban excessive packaging and make manufacturers responsible for disposing of the stuff, it would seem.

Such “producer pays” laws will compel them to design packaging for the environment, not the dump. Some 30 countries already have such rules and these have helped shrink packaging waste heaps.

Malaysia, however, still lacks such legislations. In the 1990s, there were talks of the Department of Environment coming out with rules on recycled content for packaging, but nothing came out of it.

Outcry over packaging

Meanwhile, public wrath over wasteful wrappings has provoked an anti-over-packaging movement in cyberspace. Photo-sharing website Flickr has plenty of postings of such items.

The website overpackaging.com shames the perpetrators of excessive packaging. It carries photographs of grossly over-packaged goods, sent in by the public, then writes to the retailers and manufacturers to explain themselves.

Green-minded American giant retailer Wal-Mart has heeded such cut-back calls.

It aims to curtail packaging waste by 5% by 2013. It will choose suppliers who rank highly in their packaging scorecards.

These scorecards are rated on greenhouse gas emissions per tonne of packaging, the raw material used, packaging size, recycled and recyclable content, energy use, transportation impact and innovation.

The Sustainable Packaging Coalition, meanwhile, has released a software program called Comparative Packaging Assessment (or Compass) that helps designers and companies weigh the environmental impact of their packaging.

These green steps, however, are few and far in between. Overall, superfluous wrappings remain commonplace.

It has to do with the psychology of marketing – products with flashy-looking wrapping attract more buyers. But with mounds of trash piling up in our midst, marketing gurus should rethink this strategy of pushing products.

And consumers, on their part, should look beyond pretty packages.

A question of sex

A question of sex

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what is in a promise?

It is only worth as much effort as one puts in to keep it; as well as how much faith others have that the person can keep his/her promise.

So please, do not simply make promises.


picture taken from this deviantart site

who are you?

Pic taken from the star , as published in Section 2 on 24th July

The musical concert, One Bow Wow, One Heart,showcasing the talents of the Operafest children's choir as well as Operafest’s founder and artistic director Kam Sun-Yoke.The concert features songs from the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical "South Pacific " .It aims to raise funds for abused animals at Madam Kang’s Animal Sanctuary in Taiping, Perak and Furry Friends Farm in Kundang, Selangor.

Went with Emily for last Friday's performance, right before I went back to KT on sat.It was pretty good, at least I didn't feel sleepy =p There was also this little girl who caught my eye, as I originally thought she was a 'he' but boy ,she sure can hit the high notes!There was also this guy who had such a comical expression on his face perpetually that I couldn't help laughing.The highlight of the performance would be 'Ben', originally sang by MJ during his Jackson 5 days..Oh, and meeting Sabrina too.Such a pleasant surprise.

There would be another few sessions at the PJ Live Arts Centre, Jaya One, Section 13 in Petaling Jaya on 1st and 2nd August. Entry is by a minimum donation of RM30. For details, call 03-6081 5781 or 017-636 8830

NB:Mdm Kam is an animal lover who cares for 11 stray dogs at her home in Kuala Kubu Baru, Selangor.Do take note that you will be admonished by her during the concert if you do not clap loudly enough or show enough enthusiasm =p

So, do go if you have some free time this weekend, you can have fun and help the animals at the same time! =)

The value of a dog's life is no less than that of a human.