My favorite Petite Princesses!

I've been having so much fun lately hanging out with my very young cousins Lila and Isabelle. Lila's 7 and Isabelle 5 (yes, I'm more than 2 decades older but well, my very very cool aunt gave birth to Lila when she was 50 years old. Yes, you saw it. 50). They're the funniest and cutest people I know! And they're oh so pretty!!

Here they are!! Lila on the left and Isabelle on the right. 

Many said they look like twins

Isabelle looking grumpy as she gets her hair braided by my mom

She hates it when people take picture of her and ask her to smile

Lila's turn...she's a lot camera friendly 

Well yes, they're the coolest girls and I have soooo much fun hanging out with them and playing too. And they say the funniest things that make me laugh. Totally makes me wanna have little girls one day too! 

And during our New Year's Eve family dinner, they both made me presents!! Look! It's nicely wrapped with my favorite gnome wrapping paper

I think it's the Ikea garden gnome. Like me, Lila loves gnomes!

 Ohhh the little bag with two purple amethyst and miffy bunny is from Lila

The two petals and a sea shell is from Isabelle

Upon close inspection, the little miniature hand bag is hand sewn by Lila (she's only 7!)

And she made the beaded strap too!!!! Awwwww.....

I totally love my gift! Such treasures!!! I'm so very touched and it's now my very prized possessions and I'm gonna keep it until Lila's much older and then give it back to her one day! And I'm gonna put it at my work desk when I get back to SG and I'm gonna start writing snail mails with them! It'll be super fun! Now I have excuse to buy some nice stationary and cute letter pads!!! Very excited! I've got new pen pals!

Happy New Year....oh okay, whatever...

OMG, 2010 has passed by so damn quickly and it's New Year's Eve tonight! I just came back from a very very nice family dinner at my aunt's place and it was super duper nice cos I got to meet a lot of cousins I haven't seen in years! One of them I haven't seen for the last decade and we grew up together and I remember getting frustrated trying to feed him when I was younger (my aunt aka his mom forced me to help cos she's fed up with him) cos he would take more than 3 hours to finish a meal cos he was so disgusting he would just keep the food in his mouth and not swallow while sitting in front of the TV.

Anyway, after dinner, all my "cuz" went off to party and have some count down thingy with their friends while I headed home and they all asked what I'm doing tonight. Well, NOTHING!!! Yes, nothing! No countdown no nothing! And I'd rather be reading a book and sleeping in my warm comfy bed than going out with 9 million other people in crowded places. But the main thing is that, I've never thought much of the whole New Year thing cos honestly, it's not a big deal to me. Yes, the turn of the calendar heralds a new year and it's supposed to also heralds new beginnings blah blah while you make new year resolutions. But then I don't see how it's different than any other given day except for that change in the year. 1st of Jan is still gonna be the same no? It's not like I would wake up totally different, say, with a new job, a brand new wardrobe, new tits or something along that line cos well, it's really just another day to me.

I think I do see how some people attach meanings to it cos my friend "Yeoda" (yes, he is a star wars fan and he thinks he's yoda...his son is named Luke btw) said to me via BBM that a better year is waiting and better things are gonna happen. And I said well, no, better things ARE happening now if you allow it and make it happen cos you don't need to wait till the end of the year to allow or decide to make changes for good things to come right? And you don't have to make any resolution only towards the end of the year too cos it's probably an ongoing process anyway. So yeah, I never think it's a big deal other than the fact that it's a public holiday and I won't have to work and now, THAT is the big deal!

Nonetheless, Happy New Year everyone!

Bangkok Bender....Family Edition

As some of you might already know from my twitter updates, I've been on a Bangkok trip with my family. No, not just my rents (rents=parents) and sister but almost half the clan!!!! With 8 other from the Miss B clan and we're a freaky traveling group of 12! And the scariest part is that, I, as in yours truly aka Miss B, is the only one who knows the way around Bangkok and with the ability to ask "Where's the toilet?" and "How much?" in Thai...oh I can count 1 to 10 in Thai too....and I can tell you that it's freaking stressful cos everyone's expecting me to know every nooks and toilet locations in any given shopping malls...oh yeah, they expect me to know every restaurants and shops in any given malls too....garrrr.....

But anyway, other than the freaking stressful bit, I actually had a pretty swell time sightseeing...well, there are only 2 spots which is Wat Arun and Ayuthaya (2 hours away from Bangkok city). Wat Arun cos apparently, according to my mom's book of family tree, the dude who's got the Temple built for is some ancient ancestor of my mom's side of the family...He's supposedly some kind of small time king ages ago...here's his mug shot (according to some of my clan, he actually bears a bit of a resemblance to a young cousin in my mom's side of the family....nah, I think they're just making it up)

Erm....well, I think my mom bears a very slight resemblance cos this portrait has a pissed-off look and my mom always looks pissed off....And the rest of the place is pretty nice too....very steep steps and stuff. But it's nicer than I would imagine...

The Miss B big clan....yes, all of them...I think there're some lurking behind me too

Not bad looking...

It's actually very steep...

 Oohh Me & Pappy...me with my new pink DianaF+ Lomo Camera

But ultimately, the Ancient City Ayuthaya is my favorite! It's the old capital of Thailand before the Burmese army invaded the city, driving the old Siam empire to adopt Bangkok as the new capital. The Burmese army ruined many shrines, chopping off the heads of all the Buddha statues....and one very famous head somehow found its way under a Bodhi tree and has been there since, with tree vines and roots growing around it and now it's a very famous spot in Ayuthaya. And when you want to take pictures with that, you've got to lower yourself and squat next to it cos you can't be higher than the Buddha's head. It's a very very scenic place and I LOVE IT!!!! I've always wanted to go but never got to until this trip. And it was nice, sunny and breezy that day...very very lovely...

As you can see, the Buddha's head been chopped off....

The famed Buddha's head....

M

More headless statues.... 

Ohhh that's the leaning tower of Ayuthaya....

 So that's Ayuthaya for you. The rest of the Bangkok is really the usual shopping and eating. Well, we've been to some very nice restaurants and a couple of them are top restaurants in BKK....went to the very famous Blue Elephant which is super posh. It's a very chichi colonial building that serves Thai cuisine but in a very western setting...it's almost like a french restaurant style...here's my very cute young cousins Isabelle and Lila and then my rents (wearing matching t shirt no less)

Can't be bothered taking more pictures and food porn cos I was too busy eating.....But Blue Elephant is very overrated and overpriced! It's not really worth its salt to be honest. The ambiance is excellent and fancy but the food is really so so...I'm not impressed. If you want a high-end place that sells really good Thai cuisine, there's this one called Baan Kanitha that's freaking good...apparently it's the No.1 restaurant in Bangkok like 7 years ago...

Anyways, here's Miss B's tips on traveling with big clan....

• If you're the only person who knows the way, NEVER, yes, NEVER say so. Failing which, the entire world will rely on you for directions and if you take a wrong turn, you get blamed on by everyone. That's speaking of personal experience
• If you've made the mistake of appointing yourself as the tour guide, then make sure you plan 5 steps ahead, knowing very very clearly where you intend to go or dine next AND coming up with a few options for the elders to choose and decide. Failing which, you'll get blamed for not being organised even when you're not really a tour guide by profession
• First thing to check out in the mall is to find out where the information center is because at some point, some of the peeps in your family would want to go find the restroom and if you don't know, they'll say you're a shit guide and that becomes YOUR problem
• If you're not the elders (people with authority in the family), don't even bother suggesting restaurants or you're gonna get blamed if the food sucks and you're gonna get some very angry faces if the food comes late (personal experience too....but a very important member had her food delivered only an hour later...)
• When the blind leads the blind, the ones with vision suffer. Yes, give very very strict instruction when you're guiding those who don't know the way (like when you're on the phone with them). Tell them if they don't follow, they won't find the way and if they are lost, it's not your fault. Yes, emphasize the last bit "NOT MY FAULT"
• If you're traveling with a bunch of not very adventurous elders, do consider packaged tour. It's a hell lot less stressful

Well, as you can see from my tips, my trip did have a bit of kinks along the way...but it's still good  nonetheless....and I did a bit of shopping....ta daaaaa....

Not exactly a lot but I did buy quite a bit of Soap&Glory face products cos they're not really available at Sephora in Singapore....but I'm nonetheless very broke cos it's the shopping in Hong Kong that's killed me....will tell you more...

You Like?

A couple of weeks ago, some very depressed and heart broken suicidal guy on Facebook stated in his FB status that he'd like to take his own life in about 45 minutes, completed with a teary photo of himself. Then guess what? 204 "friends" actually "Like" his status and indeed, 45 minutes later, he threw himself out of the window and his lifeless body sprawled over a car.  Click here to read the full news.

Disturbing cos why would you actually "Like" someone's suicide note???? What kind of person actually "Like" someone's facebook suicide note? Instead of talking him out of taking his own life or offering him whatever words of comfort, they "Like" his suicide note. How cruel!

It's not the first time that I wonder how would anyone "Like" someone's bad news status cos some time ago, I actually said that I got bitten by sand flies all over my legs and have scars and itchy bites all over and guess what? There are actually people who "Like" my status. Erm...why do people actually "Like" someone's misfortune? I don't get it. And when the suicide of this depressed boy happened, I really think people in general are cruel. Yes, nobody would pay to see your happiness but to actually relish on someone's misfortune is really quite low. Seriously, have a heart....the human race is already an enough of a disgrace, so yeah, have a heart...

Get Fresh!

I love Fresh products! So when I got to Hong Kong, I quickly made a beeline to Lane Crawford to pick up some and I got myself the Sugar Lip Treatment in pink and the Supernova Radiance Pen and now I'm actually itching to get more....

The Sugar Lip Treatment is super awesome cos not only does it nourish the lips with goodies like blackcurrant oil (provides lots of lips loving fatty acids), and a cocktail of vitamins like A, C and E, it also gives a hint of color for that sexy just-bitten look. Oh it's got spf 15 as well and it's my favorite Fresh product and it's got the Allure's award 2010! And it's got a nice scent that smells a bit like yakult...yummm......

The Supernova Radiance Pen is just as good too! It's great to brighten up the undereye shadows and banish dark rings. The skin loving ingredients also make it good for skin cos it's enriched with meadowfoam seed oil to moisturize, cucumber, chamomile and lotus extra to soothe and mulberry extract to brighten skin tone....so it's actually like a skin care! It totally trumps Touche Eclat!

Now I'm dying to get the award-winning Black Tea Instant Perfecting Mask!! My lust list...I only hope they're cheaper cos it's actually quite expensive!!

Hong Kong Walker Volume II

Okay, day 2 of official shopping. Today it's H&M in Central and back to Causeway Bay for more shit...and OMG I gotta get my credit card confiscated cos I bought so much!!! Met up with Josh today in Central and we went to give our credit card some workout at H&M before I brought him to eat the best noodle in Hong Kong (Anthony Bourdain approved).

 Fashion showcase @ World Trade Center...Lady Gaga would be proud...

Then we hopped over to Causeway Bay again cos he gotta get some watch. I was supposed to just go to Lane Crawford to buy a lip balm from Fresh but I walked out with a full set of LOMO camera equipment....gosh...I shouldn't have walked into the Lomo camera section cos I'm quite a couple of hundreds poorer....but well, Sing Dollar is on the high now right (today's rate is 1SGD to 5.895 HKD)?

Today's Loot List....

 Loot for the day...my suitcase is gonna be overweight. Like VERY overweight.

This is only shopping trip #3....and I'm going BKK on Thurs for 5 days. I'm screwed

From H&M:

• Stripy tunic dress
• Black tunic dress
• Mint green swallow cardi
• Nude pink dress with black elastic band (sneakily snatched from someone's reserved stash)
• Lacy sheer silk top
• 2 pearl with ribbon bracelet (fengshui master said pile on the pearls remember?)
• Leopard "preeenz" ribbon clip

Lane Crawford:

• Pink Lip treatment/balm from Fresh (LOVE their products and it's not available in Singapore)
• Under eye concealer also from Fresh (Better than Touche Eclat)

City Super: (ohhh this is the main bulk of the purchase)

• Lomography Diana F+ Camera in Mr Pink...ohhh hot pink!!! (inspired by Mr Bunny...I'm gonna start taking photos again)
• Lomography 35mm film back
• Lomography Splitzer
• Black and white polka dot camera strap to match the hot pink camera
• Camera bag with black motif (come on, you need a cute camera bag right???)
• 2 packs of long lomo film

Will do a separate post on my new toy!!!

OMG, why are there so much shit to buy in Hong Kong? This is really bad news cos my credit card bill is gonna be scary.... I will not go out tomorrow! Tomorrow will be a chill at home day catching up on my books and stuff! SOoooo many things! So little money!

Badger fever!

Recently I'm crazy over the organic balms from Badger. I actually got my first tin a year ago when my aunt Shelley got me the Badger Night Night Balm and it smells divine. I use it before I go to bed and I rub some below my nose for the nice scent and sometimes I use it to massage my neck and temple. It's great. Then two weeks ago, I was having stuffy nose and I went to get the Badger Breathe Easy Balm...and it's divine....it really does help with the sinus and it's less stingy than Axe Oil which is good cos Axe Oil is great but is a bit too strong at times. But Badger Balm rocks! Then I got sooo addicted that 2 days ago, I bought 2 new balms....the Headache Soother and the Liptint & Lip Shimmer....omg...now I'm such a major fan....I can't help getting more and there're tons more...these balms are great cos they use extra virgin olive oil, castor oil and bee wax as the base with different aromatic essential oils and they're all certified organic. You can basically apply the balm anywhere and it doesn't have to be just the temple and nose. I use it to moisturize dry patches on my shin and elbow throughout the day and it's great. Now I always carry them in my bag! The loveliest thing about these balms is the little tin!! I love how cute the painting of the badgers are! They're super cute...and check this one out! That's the apothecary badger!

Hong Kong Walker Volume I

It was retail therapy for the last two days and I'm already freaking broke and it's only day 2 of shopping! NOT good at all...Today's shopping tour started at the Stanley Beach Market. Always a favorite place because of the ambiance. It's a beach side market with little stalls that sells mainly touristy stuff BUT there's this really great shop that sells Egyptian cotton sheets and I "invested" a set of soft pink Egyptian cotton duvet cover and sheets and it's 1480 thread-count!! Eat your heart out Frette Sheets (Okay, I still love my Frette Sheets nonetheless...these are just as good and a bit cheaper too!)

Then off to Causeway Bay I went. And Causeway Bay on a Sunday is madness. It's insane cos it's so crowded everywhere it looked as if it's a riot. But well, it's a very colorful place, especially outside of Time Square cos they have some awesome artsy exhibition going on....Very pretty but it's so damn crowded that it makes taking pictures almost impossible cos there's always someone walking into your pictures and it's freaking frustrating.....Love the colors and all

And after half a day, I'm broke....and here's my loot....

Loot List:

• Egyptian Cotton Sheets (not shown in pictures)
• Lush Lip tint in Fairy Snow (can be used as blusher)
• L'Oreal moisture rich lipstick (Okay, I'm not a L'Oreal fan but this isn't available in SG yet and it's got a very nice sheer color and it's a bit like a lip balm and it's actually GOOD, not to mention the nice packaging)
• Oshima Tsubaki hair brush...it's supposed to contain Camilia oil essence in the bristles....well, I forgot my hair brush so I need one right?
• Pink Bobble water bottle. Make your own filter water with this! It's a water bottle that comes with a very good FDA approved filter! I got it from City Super at Time Square. Check it out here It's not available in Singapore and I think they should just bring it in cos it's awesome and very pretty! I even bought an extra filter. Each filter can filter about 300 bottles. I love the idea! I hate the taste of tap water, so this is gonna be god sent....ooh I love their website too...I LOVE Bobble!!!
• Jill Scott bracelets....okay, here's gonna be the start of my rave about Jill Scott. They make leather bags and accessories and it's a UK label and I went to the outlet at World Trade Center
• A Jill Scott card wallet...I love the vintage look with the clasps opening and it's great for me to keep all my plastics and some cash...I never love the full wallet so this works pretty well....
• A Jill Scott bag (yes, Jill Scott again)....it's a super cute dark purple lamb skin bag that you can either carry it on the arms/shoulder or as a long sling across. It's super soft and light and it's in the shape of a little bun and it reminds me of a "xiao long bao"...so it's now known as the Xiao Long Bao bag. 
• Treat for Mr Bond! Of course I won't leave out my lovely kitty!! I miss him loads and he's in the good hands of Daniel! 

This is just part of the stuff I got...it's really not good cos tomorrow, I'll be meeting Josh and we're gonna give our credit card a workout at H&M!! It'll be Operation H&M Carnage! OMG I can't wait. It'll be super fun! And I'm gonna bring Josh to have the best noodle in Hongie Kong....More update to come! Watch this space...