Merry X'mas!

Facebook is cool! It can keep you occupied for the whole day! :P

i'm having holidays again! 19-25Dec

didn't touch my pharmacology notes on anaesthesia :(

~Enchanted~
watched this movie with coursemates at Mid Valley 2 weeks ago. Quite a nice movie, minus the a-bit-boring ending :P
i loved the dresses of Princess ??? gosh i forgot her name!!!
was very thrilled to see my sweetheart Patrick Gallen Dempsey @ Robert in Enchanted @ McDreamy @ Dr. Derek Shepherd in Grey's Anatomy!

~National Treasure 2~
another must watch movie!
couldn't remember whether i watched the 1st sequel...
Nicholas Cage was hot 'though he's in his 40's!
loved the story plot & the cool gadgets!


going for a buffet at Katerina Hotel with my family tonight.
actually i've lotsa things to post here, but i don't have the mood right now...

Back to uni...

today is the first day of my 2nd semester... however, it makes not much difference as our course doesn't follow the semester system.
got my Pharmacology result this morning, A! Quite surprised as it was the 1st subject tested during my exam week, i was quite nervous & tensed on that day. The coordinator, Prof. Dr. Debra Sim told us that according to analysis, our batch is the best in these 5 years :)
We were informed that the Ministry of Higer Education has decided that all undergraduates must take a new course - Basic Entrepreneur Skills in order to graduate. At the beginning of this academic year, we were also told that we've to take Soft Skills. So now we've to take so many subjects, and with our packed schedule (this year: 8am-5.30pm, Mon-Fri!!!), i think we'll be extremely exhausted in the end :(
Watched '881' Papaya Sisters for the 2nd time with Xin Jie last night. It's a comedy but quite touching in the end. It's in Mandarin, Hokkien & English. I love the Hokkien songs! :P

Holidays - 2nd week

*Malacca Trip*

28 Nov, Wednesday

went to Malacca with Xin Ning & Pin Ping. Had Baba Nyonya lunch at Jonker Street: Baba laksa, curry noodle, Baba cendol, durian cendol, mango cendol! Droolin' now :P

went to Nadeje Bakery near Dataran Pahlawan & Mahkota Parade to taste the 20-layered cake Hooi Shan & friends recommended. Wow~ it's really nice! It didn't really taste like a cake, but a lil' bit like egg tarts! It's quite crispy! Droolin', droolin'~ Too bad we didn't get to take a picture of that cake. To be honest, Pin Ping did take a shot but 'thanks' to her camera phone, the file was corrupted and couldn't be viewed >.<

went shopping at Mahkota Parade, bought a strawberry yoghurt mask at Sasa.

bought snacks at San Shu Gong at Dataran Pahlawan opposite Mahkota Parade.

it's raining very heavily on the way back, quite dangerous. Luckily Xin Ning's a very experienced driver, so we reached home safe & sound :)

#Mentally Disabled Kids' Centre#

spent the whole week at the centre volunteering to look after the special kids here. They've disabilities like Down Syndrome, autism, learning disorder, hearing disorder, cerebral palsy, attention deficit syndrome, hyperactivity, visual impairment, speech disorder, etc.

this centre caters for special children aged 6 - 12 years old. There are 2 other centres in Batu Pahat - Day Training Centre (13 - 17 years old) & Job Training Centre (18 years old and above).

these centres are founded by affluent samaritans in BP and managed by properly trained teachers & caregivers.

Those special childrens were treated like normal kids. They were more or less equally talented (however, some autistic children were very talented!) but slow in learning. They learnt how to be discipline & about team-work. All of us had to be very patient & caring as they're not normal children.

On the 1st day i went, they learnt about X'mas. Dedicated teachers even took the effort to dress as Santa Clause & prepared activities for them to play. Normal teaching & learning method was not seen in the centre. The special children learnt through different ways which were more interactive than normal classroom style with a whiteboard.

On the 2nd day i went, there were only 2 special kids who urinated in their pants, and those 2 kids did that when i was playing with them >.<>

Dentists & dental nurses from government hospitals went to provide dental check-ups and talks to the special kids at the centre. Some of them were really difficult to handle as they wailed & shouted & pushed the dentist away. Wow~ I could tell how challenging it'll gonna be when i start to Paedodontology in my clinical years :P

We had annual year-end parties on Thursday & Friday. One of the special kids there, a girl was very talented in dancing and we invited her to perform. She acted like any other normal kids! Teachers & volunteers there danced & performed in a sketch to entertain the special kids & their parents. A primary 5 boy & his friend who occasionally volunteered at the centre performed lion dance & Chinese Yoyo too! I was the videolady :P

Kiwanis International, an NGO (non-government organisation) was also present on the party to bring X'mas gifts to the special children.

Most of those kids benefited a lot from the centre as they got the chance to learn like normal children. I was told that some kids, especially autistic ones who had been very poor in socialising were slowly improving & could respond to orders & questions. Actually they should be treated equally like normal children, and help should be provided to aid them in blending into the society and living like one of us. Kudos! to the teachers & caregivers at the centre.

One Week in Singapore

just came back from Singapore, spent the past whole week at my aunt's (my mum's younger sis) place in Hougang.

~18Nov Sun~

It's been 3 years since i last came to Singapore in 2004 due to me studying in KMPh, Kuantan & university. My family visits aunt every year.

reached aunt's place by noon, had lunch at a Yunnan Chinese restaurant in Nanyang Technology University's Alumni Club. All 9 of us went in dad's Innova. The campus is really beautiful! One of the dishes was one big coffee pork rib for each and everyone! Cool~

went godparent's place in Jurong. Goddad drove my sis Daphne & I back to Hougang in his new Nissan Cefiro.

Dad went home in the evening as he's going to KL for his SPM English paper markers meeting on next Tuesday.

Had dinner at a nearby hawker centre, ate seafood & pigtail! :)

Went for karaoke session after dinner, i ordered a mocktail - Blue Lagoon, nice :) Had fun!

~19Nov Mon~

Uncle drove 9 of us to Pasir Ris Costa Sands Resort in his company van. We 5 kids went to Wild Wild Wet water themepark. We were lucky as it was drizzling, so it's not hot & we wouldn't get dark :P Went on a very thrilling ride with Daphne, wow~

Had barbeque for dinner. Aunt's maid has very good cooking skills as she studied Hotel Management before. I love the chicken-wings the most :) There're many youngsters there, simply because it's also school holidays in Singapore now & Secondary4 students, like my cousin Dorothy, have just completed their GCE O-Level exams.

We played cards after dinner, found out that the maid was also very good at it! Luckily we didn't gamble :P

~20Nov Tue~

After breakfast, we had a walk to the seaside. On the way, we passed by Escape outdoor themepark, which i'd been here with Daphne & Dorothy in 2004. There's such a long queue at the entrance, we didn't plan to go there as it'd be time-wasting just on waiting. As it's near noon - hot, we didn't walk on the beach.

Went to Orchard Road by bus & MRT after lunch. i bought a necklace :)

Had dinner at a Japanese restaurant, both Daphne & I love Japanese food :)

As it's near X'mas, the nightview on Orchard Road was very beautiful!

Asean Summit was held near OR, the road was blocked for a while for various country leaders to drive through.

Watched the last few episodes of Hong Kong drama "Tong Sam Fong Bou". Wow~ HK dramas are my favourites, but ever since i left home to further my studies, i've not had much time to spend on watching TV :'(

~21Nov Wed~

Had lunch at a Singapore actor - Terrence Chow's HK HaHa Hotpot dimsum steamboat restaurant, nice! Too bad, the actor wasn't at the shop when we went :(

Had Taiwanese stuffed rice for tea:)

Bought a very nice & ladylike dress at This Fashion.

X'mas sale is on in the whole country!

Went to the newest shopping mall in Singapore in Clarke Quay.

Since it's drizzling, we only took a few pictures at the riverside.

~22Nov Thurs~

Watched a few episodes of HK drama Sui Yut Fong Wan, it's very interesting as my idol Jessica Hester Hsuan was one of the leading actresses :)

Went to Buddha Tooth Relic Temple at Chinatown, it's very grand! Learnt more about Siddharta Gautama as there's a museum about Buddha in the temple, about His life story.

~23Nov Fri~

watched a few episodes of Korean drama "Love Story at Harvard", very touching. The leading actress was a real beauty!

Had dinner at another Japanese restaurant at Singapore Revenue House. It's a very beautiful place with lotsa bamboos :P I loved the sashimi & salmon fish head soup!

Went on a free X'mas Light-up HIPPOtour for tourists on Orchard Road. It's a double-decker bus with open-air rooftop. Most of the tourists who boarded the same bus with us were Europeans. It's a spectacular view of the whole Orchard Road from the bus top. All the shopping malls had wonderful decorations acocding to the theme this year, "X'mas Fantasy", with Prince Noel & Princess Ballerina as the main characters.

~24Nov Sat~

came home by taxi. 'though it's tiring, we are very grateful to my aunt & her family for giving us a memorable & happy week :) i won't forget the nice food prepared by the maid :P i really hope that i've gained more weight & hoping to gain more during my stay at home for this 3-week holidays :)

VIEW PHOTOS ON MY FRIENDSTER PROFILE!

Selamat Hari Raya!

To all my Muslim friends, Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri :)

Enjoying my Raya holidays at home now till next Tuesday.

Went to Puduraya bus terminal with Thim Fatt, left my residential college at 4.25pm, walked to the bus stop at University Hospital, reached there at 4.35pm, boarded public bus No.12 at 4.40pm, arrived at Kota Raya at 5pm, walked to the KFC outlet opposite Puduraya, reached there at 5.10pm. Stayed there till 7.15pm as my bus leaves at 7.30pm!

You must be wondering why i left college so early at 4.25pm :) Well, i wanted to avoid traffic jam :)

Came home on the same bus as Yi Yong & his sister. Arrived at 11pm.

Coursemates & juniors coming on next Monday :)

Monsoon season, it rains almost every evening on the west coast of this country. I wash clothes at hostel every evening after classes, sometimes i get really frustrated over the weather :(

It's very cooling in my room this year, as compared to last year's. However, the bad thing is that i've to bear with the noise coming from the guy's block facing my window. They'll scream & yell over anything, and that makes me crazy especially after midnight when i'm sleeping!

Life is really hectic during the Muslim fasting month as working hours is fr 8am-1.30pm & 2-4.30pm, with only a 30mins lunch break from 1.30-2pm! I'd to walk back to my hostel from my faculty for lunch everyday. It's an at least 8mins walk. That means i've to walk really fast to get back to the hostel, eat, and walk straight back to my faculty, it's really tiring. And the cafeteria at the faculty is closed at lunch time. I don't understand why some people are so selfish to only think of themselves that they don't have to have lunch, others will also have to follow suit. It's been like this for many years, and if nobody stands up to voice out, this will continue forever. We've our human rights!

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival

it's MAF again... this year is my 3rd year of not celebrating MAF at home :'( took part in a lantern riddle competition at PJ SS17 with Huai Lin and Hooi Shan, and we won 2 toasters! wow!!!
went to Tunku Chancellor Hall last night for Tanglung Festival. The play was not as good as last year's, but we all had fun there.
Life is still busy nowadays...
Just had my Rubella vaccination 2 hours ago at my residential college.

...with the cage door lying unlocked, should i?
spread my wings and let me fly...

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

just finished reading the book, nice & interesting! :)

alright, for those who haven't read the book yet, don't read any further, i don't want this entry to be a spoiler to you :)

well, i can conclude that the moral of the story is (wow.. sounds like Moses Lim in Under One Roof huh? :P) love, courage and trust :)

J.K. Rowling is very good at writing the book with suspense in almost every chapter to make sure that her readers stick to the story and read until the end of it, where all the mysteries and secrets are unveiled.

I was quite sad and felt embarrassed for myself when i learnt that Severus Snape was actually not a Death Eater at all, at least not to his wish as he was forced to, well, in a mission :) It's very touching that he'd loved Lily Evans (Potter) for all his life, he must be very heart-broken when Lily chose James Potter in the end. I can't deny that Albus Dumbledore had actually used him, despite for the well being of everyone. Well done, Snape! For your bravery and loyalty :)

As for Albus Dumbledore, we should be glad that he realised his mistakes early and chose to fight his long-lost friend, Gellert Grindelward, again, for the sake of mankind :) He'd understood everyone around him well, as those he could read their mind. That's why his plan was carried out smoothly and almost flawless.

However, i think that Rowling has put the part of Ronald Weasley leaving Harry Potter and Hermione Granger and reuniting with them too 'amazing' and a bit 'fake'. Well, that's what i think :)

The part i don't really like about this book is, the 3 main characters have been shouting at each other as they're having bad temper due to the Horcruxes they carried and the stress of hunting down the rest of them. It makes the readers mad too!

And the epilogue is a bit redundant and sounds like a make-up. I personally feel that the story can end better without it. By the way, some readers do find it interesting and eager to know more about their lifes without Tom Riddle, after reading that chapter :)

All in all, this is a good and worth-reading book.

I NEED HELP!

for those who knows how to use codes like HTML / CSS, etc. please have a look at my template codes... i'm not sure why my sidebar is always at the bottom :'(
i'm not sure whether i've accidentally deleted any codes or not.. tried to put !---sidebar--- but it doesn't work! i think my template uses div id="sidebar" (please note that i didn't include the brackets as it'll be read as a code) and i think it's equivalent to !---sidebar---. sigh~ can anyone please help? :'(

Tokyo Drift...

just watched The Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift on DVD at home... Cool! But i'll never drive like them in the movie... It's too dangerous! Might be drifting to another world before i realised it :P

quite a nice movie, about friendship and justice... one should be resposible for his own doing :)

added juniors into my Friendster friend list...

argh... i've no mood to study for my coming Pharmacology test... feel like blogging... but i've no idea on what to blog on...

have been having weird dreams these days... (not wet dreams lah, please! =.=) not nightmares, they are just weird...

went RedBox Karaoke last month. Realised that my voice isn't that nice anymore compared to when i was in primary school.. hey, i was the choir leader in primary 3, ok!

went Starhill Gallery last month, just looking around lah... things there are too expensive for me :P the toilet is so cool! anyone who hasn't been there yet please go and have a look! :)

my mission for this holiday: eat, eat, and eat more! :)

At home...

went shopping with mum on National Day, some departmental stores even had up to 70% discount! bought many clothes as many of my formal clothes are too loose; lost some more weight:'(

tasted Thai food at a newly opened restaurant near my house with my family. Quite nice.

Argh... suddenly felt so bored of blogging... actually, the main purpose of me blogging is to let my friends be updated on what and how i'm doing... i think i've mentioned about this in a previous entry... but i'm quite disappointed that only a handful are willing to spend their time reading my blog :( what to do? it's partly my fault too...as i seldom update it due to my packed schedule and laziness to bring my laptop down to the dining hall and study room to get wireless connection.

Heard that there's a proposal on getting full wireless coverage in 6th college. Hope that we'll get to enjoy it as soon as possible :)

diarrhoea... just came out from the loo... 3rd time today... not sure what's wrong...

chatting to seniors and juniors and friends in Windows Live Messenger...

one thing that i'm puzzled about WLM users is, most people tend to set their status as 'away' despite being right in front of the computer! it's so disappointing to see almost all of your online contacts are 'away' :'(

Hols till 9th of Sept.

Finally, i'm home after 2 months of life at UM :)

July

Busy orientating juniors and orientating myself to the new environment (new hostel room) and new academic year, with more responsibilities and challenges!

My little buddies are Bee Chin and Charlene (has changed course to Law due to some personal reasons).

Went buddy outing with the rest of the buddies in my buddy line to One Utama. Had a sumptious dinner at Bar.B.Q Plaza :)

August

Shifted room twice to give way to renovation work. Now my room floor is tiled and we've a new door :) It looks nicer, cleaner, brighter, and more like a 'room' now! But it'll be perfect if it has wireless connection in the room :) Well, proposals have been made and brought up to the accomodation college administrators, hope it'll be passed as soon as possible.

Coursemates went Taiwan to attend the annual Asia-Pacific Dental Student Association (APDSA) Scientific Reserch Conference (SRC) 2007. Thanks for the souvenirs ya!

By the way, Malaysia wil be hosting APDSA SRC 2009, with UM being the main host. I'm the Local Organising Committee (LOC) External Secretary. Might need to attend a meeting with leaders from other universities in other countries in Thailand next year together with the International President 2009 - Meng Yit (my roommate), Liaison Officer - Jia Min, and LOC President - Chung Nam.

My coursemates & I have to attend APDSA SRC 2008 in Surabaya, Indonesia next year to promote Malaysia.

All these mean i need money, money and lotsa money!!!

Luckily we are partially sponsored, but only 'partially'. Meaning we still have to fork out some money...

Last Saturday, i went Petaling Jaya SS24 to have DimSum breakfast with coursemates.

Last Sunday, i went Eastin Hotel to have Japanese buffet dinner with my uncle and his family.

Last Monday, i went Sunway Yuen Restaurant to have steamboat buffet with all my 2nd year coursemates.

This week, i'm at home to enjoy all my favourite foods!

Wow, hopefully i can successfully gain more weight as i'm really skinny and ugly now :'(

Going back to UM on 8th of September as our dental fac convo is on the 9th. Bought presents and did banner for my graduate buddy :)

Have to prepare for my Pharmacology test on the 11th of Sept, 'though it's only a 20 MCQ test.

Have to finish reading my Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows! I've only read the first chapter :P Have been too busy lah...

Sony Ericsson K618i

bought a new phone yesterday - Sony Ericsson K618i

Hospitalised (edited)

i was hospitalised last weekend due to gastroenteritis (infection of digestive system). Oso found out the cause of my gastric problem by endoscopy - duodenal inflammation. Discharged from Batu Pahat Putra Specialist Hospital on Monday. Just finished my course of medication today. Recovering :)

Tun Tan Cheng Lock Foundation Scholar

i attended Tun Tan Cheng Lock Foundation scholarship interview yesterday. Met some of my friends there. I'm now a TTCL foundation scholar until i graduate, if i can manage to pass my exams every year :) the foundation is giving us RM5000 per annum, which is just enough to cover our fees. i've to cancel my PTPTN half loan, which is RM3500 per annum, not enough to cover all my fees. i'm really grateful to the foundation :)

Would You Be There by Redwan Ali

If I were blue, would you be there for me

And whisper in my ears that's okay?

Would you stand by me, let me hold you tight

And say you love me one more time?

If I feel good, would you slow dance with me

And touch my lips with tender loving care?

Would you die for me? Would you run with me,

And never look back?

Would you be there to love, to be with me?

Would you swear that your love is always true?

Would you say that you'll always be the one,

To take my breath away?

Would you be there to love, to be with me?

Would you swear that your love is always true?

Would you say that you'll always be the one,

To take my breath away?

Would you be there?

If I'm away, would you still think of me,

And wished that you could hold me now?

Would you die for me? Would you run with me,

All the way?

Would you be there to love, to be with me?

Would you swear that your love is always true?

Would you say that you'll always be the one,

To take my breath away?

Would you be there to save my soul tonight?

Would you swear that your love is always true?

Would you say that you'll always be there,

to kiss my pain away?

Would you be there to love, to be with me?

Would you swear that your love is always true?

Would you say that you'll always be the one,

To take my breath away?

Would you be there to save my soul tonight?

Would you swear that your love is always true?

Would you say that you'll always be there,

To kiss my pain away?

Would you be there, for me?

Road Accident

Met with a road accident at 10am on the way sending my sister, Daphne and her friend, Pei Chin to BP district St John quarters. I wasn't sure where the place was. The girls gave directions. When we were almost there, I gave the signal to turn right. Suddenly a motorcycle coming from behind knocked the right side of my car at the front part where the front wheel was. According to the Malay motorcyclist, he didn't see my signal and was trying to overtake me, but that road was double-lined! (But of course not double-lined at the place where i wanted to turn lah!) He was riding at 60 - 70 km/hr, which was comsidered quite fast on a busy town road. He flew and rolled on the road but was not seriously injured. If you've seen him, you would think that he fell down while walking, 'cause he had only scratched the back of his right hand, and the wound was only 50cents big and it's just a normal scratch, it's not even 5mm deep. At least there's no blood dripping lah.. But his motorbike was really distorted at the front.
I was shocked, drove the car to the roadside. Supposedly i shouldn't have driven the car away as it's the standard procedure to leave the vehicle as it was when the accident happened for the police report to be done. But i'd totally forgotten about that, and i was in the middle of a busy road, i was worried that i might get hit by another coming vehicle if i stopped in the middle of the road.
All 3 of us waited in the car. i asked Daphne to call my dad immediately. At that time, there was no car at home. Mum drove dad's car to work, so i drove her Kancil. Dad borrowed a neighbour's car. When we were waiting for dad to come, some Malay guys from a mamak stall nearby came to help that Malay biker. They came over to my car. All 3 of us sat in the car, locked. The 2 young girls were calm and steady. They even comforted me and told me not to get out of the car and told me many times that it's alright. So i only opened the window a little to communicate with the Malay men. One man was very fierce to me as he saw that there were only 3 girls in the car. He asked me to give them my IC number 'cause he said i might go and report to the police. That meant the biker didn't want to make a police report! i told him that i'd write it down on a piece of paper, then i closed the window. My hands were shaking, so i took out my driving license and asked Pei Chin to write down my IC number on a piece of paper. We didn't give it to them as they were talking behind my car.
Daphne called her St John officer to come to the scene as the quarters was just nearby. The Chinese man told me not to worry.
Dad came and i got out of the car and told everyone there what happened. The Malay men were so fierce and they defended the young biker although none of them really saw what happened! They were eating at a mamak stall which was located on the left side of my car when the accident happened, so it's impossible for them to tell who's wrong and who's right as the motorcycle hit the right side of my car!

Dad went to check my car. And it's very obvious that it's the biker's fault from how the car was damaged! We couldn't settle the matter with them, so we went to the police station. Daphne left with her friends as they were having a meeting.
At the police station, dad tried to talk to the biker. Another "busybody" Malay man followed him there.
That biker was from Selangor, on holidays here at his aunt's house. He was on his way to work (part-time). And he's studying something related to management in UiTM, KL, will be in his final year when uni reopens in July.
We even went to see one of the police sergeant there. He told us that it's better to settle the matter without making a police report. Before we left, he said that according to the traffic law, the one who was cornering (i was the one) holds more responsibities.
if a police report was made, we'll have to wait for years for the money that was going to be claimed from the insurance company to arrive, very troublesome! Dad considered that, and the biker being not a local here, so he decided to pay for the repair of the motorbike and not make a report. Actually if we'd made a report and the case was investigated by the police, i'm sure that it's not my fault and we don't have to pay a single cent! Till now, i'm not sure why dad made that decision.
So we went back to the scene and my 2nd uncle came. He had also called his police inspector friend to help. But we told him that we had decided not to make a report. We pushed the bike to a nearby shop within 100m to repair. I'm not sure about how much we have to pay. It'll be ready this evening. Dad even sent that guy to work after that.
The right front wheel of the Kancil was not straight, and the plate covering the wheel was smashed into pieces. The metal of the car body on top of the wheel was concave.

Daphne told me later when she got home that her St John officer had also called his police friend to help. Sigh~ i've caused so much trouble...
Luckily i've changed my expired driving license from "under probation P" to "competent C" last month.. if not, i'm sure in big trouble now!
Showered with lime leaves, i hope that will get rid of all my bad luck :)
Oh yes... I wasn't hurt at all... Just shocked...

i'm fine :)

Life isn't always easy - Mary A. Rothman

updated my Friendster profile with a new skin. Found a skin that i liked yesterday, only to find out later that one of my friends is using it, so i changed it with another...

Life Isn't Always Easy

Life can be unfair at times

When you must maintain faith

And never let go

It's especially during the difficult times

That you must live your life to it's fullest potential

Life is not always easy

But if you keep going and persevere

To the very best of your ability

You'll gain strength to manage

The new challenges ahead

ALWAYS BELIEVE

That there are bright and wonderful days ahead for you

And you'll find them

At GH...

Drove my paternal granma to General Hospital of BP for her regular 3-monthly check-up on her hypertension... An old lady sat beside us at the waiting room and started to boast to us on her wealth and health consciousness! As she's from Ipoh (staying in BP now as her daughter lives here), she couldn't understand or speak in Hokkien... But my granma could only understand and speak Hokkien, and understand some Mandarin... That lady spoke in Mandarin to us... Eventually, Granma got bored and chose to watch TV! So i ended up talking to the lady! :-/ I was so unwilling to talk to her, thanks to her attitude! I wished i were deaf for that moment... Hope we won't see her again in future :P

heard the GP explaining to a Malay patient with numb fingers about Carpal Tunnel Syndrome... that patient was an old lady... i bet she couldn't understand everything :P hmm... i've to master the correct way of explaining medical stuffs to my patients in layman's terms... don't want to end up like this GP :P

One round around Peninsula Malaysia - Part 3

Kedah
Reached my maternal granma's house in the evening. It's situated just beside the railway, so we could hear trains passing by as scheduled. The weather in Kedah was very hot! My granma's very good in cooking! A typical Cantonese :) So we'd delicious meals throughout our stay there...
Mum met up with some of her ex-schoolmates... They looked older than my mum! :P My mum has a very young heart :)
My uncle (mum's youngest brother) brought us out to taste the famous Penang laksa! It was delicious :)
We tried all kinds of foods here in the north, which were slightly different from the food we'd in the south. Some even claimed that the food here was more delicious! :)
There's a morning market near my granma's house. We walked there every morning to buy food, clothes, shoes, bags, and other stuffs... It's a mini bazaar :) Things there were relatively cheaper than those in shopping malls, but their standards were equally good! I bought 2 blouses, a pair of jeans and a skirt :)
On the night before we left, Uncle brought us to a seafood restaurant by the riverside... Wow... I ate a lot! :P
After dinner, mum attended a gathering at her friend's house... According to her after that, some of her friends had various health complications... I'm thankful that both my parents are healthy :)
Granma followed us back to Johor as she's going to my aunt's house in Singapore in July, after my uni reopens... She's promised to cook good food for me to help me gain more weight :)
At 9am on Sunday, we set off from Kedah, and reached BP at 5pm... It was a tiring journey, but we were all used to it :)

One round around Peninsula Malaysia - Part 2

~Kota Bharu, Kelantan~

Wednesday, 30th of May

Traffic was heavy on the way from Terengganu to Kelantan, and there was no highway, only trunk roads! We had to stop for a few times for animals like cows and goats to cross the road :) little boys and girls were riding motorbikes at a very young age... typical kampung kids!

The buildings in the towns looked different from those in the West Coast, they're more of Islamic style. As we're near the coastline, the weather was very hot and sunny!

Arrived at Kota Bharu by noon. Had lunch at KB Mall, supposed to be the largest shopping mall in Kota Bharu, if not the only one :)

Food here was slightly different from what we've in the West Coast and Down South. Curry and laksa are sweet instead of spicy! There're nasi kerabu, nasi dagang, and other types of special nasi here.

After lunch, we visitted the famous Sitting Buddha Temple and Reclining Buddha Temple. The Reclining Buddha Temple is the second largest of its kind in the world!

After praying, we headed to Mrs Tan's relative's house. They're rich businessmen in Kota Bharu. We took pictures with their Volkswagen sport car :)

The son of the old lady of that house married a Japanese lady, they've 2 children, both schooling in Malaysia. Yusei is a Form 1 boy who loves to draw. He can draw any model of any car, especially Formula One racing cars, as long as you can name it :)

Karin is a Standard 4 girl who's very shy, soft-spoken and gentle... typical Japanese girl :) She reads Harry Potter... in Japanese!

The children speaks Japanese to each other and their parents. We managed to learn a few words from them :)

Before dinner, we went to Mrs Tan's another relative's house. They're richer and own a house of 1 acre, with a spacious garden planted with fruit trees! They even hired professors from universities to monitor their illed plants! Wow... And we took pictures with their Morris Minor car! A true car fan will be so thrilled to see this car :)

We had dinner at a famous Thai Restaurant. We had tomyam, Thai salad, kerabu, fish steamed with unripe mangoes, pig leg, Thai style veggy... all the food was spicy and sour, but delicious! I ate a lot :P Took an antacid pill before going to bed to prevent getting gastric pain, 'cause i'm prone to getting it :)

Thursday, 31st of May

Had a sumptuous breakfast, thanks to the old lady, Mrs Yeo. She brought one of her 3 maids to town to buy food for us early in the morning. She bought many local foods like nasi kerabu (this was nicer than the one we had yesterday), nasi lemak(the sambal was slightly different from the one we normally had, it's sweet and delicious!), pulut pisang (it's very sweet!), and lakse (it's a bit like mee soto).

before leaving, Mrs Yeo told us stories of her own family. if we didn't stop her, she could have continued forever :P She wished me all the best in my studies when we were about to leave. We'll never forget her warm hospitality to us. The whole family was so friendly to us. In fact, we spent less than a day's time there!

Mr Lim's family and my family left Kelantan for Kedah. We took the Grik way. It was like going up Cameron Highlands as we had to travel over the Titiwangsa Highlands. We saw a boar crossing the road on the way :) i've seen a boar before in New Zealand in year 1998. Malaysian boars looked different, their fur colour was lighter.

We saw signboards warning us to beware of elephants and deers! Mrs Yeo's brother told us that one should never travel on this road at night as elephants will come out of the forest and sit on the road when they see cars coming. They will not move! And the cars should never sound their horns as the elephants will walk towards the cars and might smash them! You can only turn off your headlights and wait for the animals to move away from the road, and that might take you hours! The only solution is to wait for big trucks and tankers to come by as elephants are scared of the loud sound from the horns of the big vehicles :)

We stopped by the riverside of Perak River to take a look at the Floating Jetty of Grik. The scenery there was beautiful!

We had lunch at Grik town before continuing our journey to Kedah.

One round around Peninsula Malaysia - Part 1

~Lang Tengah Island~

Sunday, 27th of May

Set off from my hometown, Batu Pahat, Johor with dad's colleagues, Mr See, Mr Tan and his wife, and mum's collegue, Mdm Leh , her husband, Mr Lim, and the children, Yvonne and Leonard.

Ate breakfast in a small town - Cha'ah.

Had lunch at a hawker centre in Kuantan, Pahang. Things there made all my sweet memories when i was studying in Pahang Matriculation College. As the Chinese saying goes, "time passes like a shooting arrow". It's true :)

The way from Johor to the East Coast, and up the East Coast is not a highway, we couldn't speed fast...

On the way to Terengganu, we passed by many Malay villages... people there lead a peaceful but poor life... should i admire them or feel grateful for my current life?

reached Merang Suria Resort in Kuala Terengganu in the evening... we're too tired to go to the beach, and we knew the fact that beaches on the islands will be more beautiful :)

Monday, 28th of May

went to Merang Jetty by the resort van. There were around 20 other people travelling together with us in the ferry. It took us more than an hour to reach Lang Tengah Island!

The sand on the beach was so white and soft and tiny! The seawater was crystal clear and we could see fishes swimming happily in underwater! wow... It's paradise!

My sis - Daphne and I shared a room with 2 double beds, but we slept together on only one.

We went to the Marine Park on Redang Island, which was 45 minutes from Lang Tengah Island by ferry. We went snorkelling near the beach. It was quite disappointing as the corals there weren't as beautiful as what my family and i saw on Tioman Island (we went there in 2003). We managed to visit the turtle-hatching centre before leaving. The turtles were so cute :)

Food on Lang Tengah Island was good! It was of Chinese style, cooked by Malay cooks, so it was halal.

We played mahjong (my favourite game) after dinner, and had a karaoke session too! Daphne really has a good voice :) i was so proud of her when other girls invited her to sing together with them!

It rained heavily at night and the wind was very strong. For unknown reasons, the roof of the karaoke room was leaking water! However, we enjoyed ourselves :)

Tuesday, 29th of May

Watched Miss Universe on Astro in the morning... everyone was so surprised that Miss Japan won the title!

we girls didn't follow the men and other ladies for jungle trekking as we're afraid of getting mosquitoe bites :P

played mahjong after lunch before going around the island by ferry. We went snorkelling at another site, which had more beautiful corals (however, we still think that Tioman Island's is better) and more fishes! We lured the fishes to come near us with bread!

Daphne and 6 other people took the banana boat ride. i didn't go as i've experienced it before in 2004 when i went to Awana Kijal, Kuala Terengganu with my family and my 2nd uncle's family...

had barbecued food for dinner. 1st time eating lamb chop with fingers as there're no knives provided :)

night life on the island is quite boring... karaoke, mahjong, drinking, chit-chatting...

and yes... it rained again...

Wednesday, 30th of May

we left the island after breakfast... it was a great trip to Lang Tengah Island :) and my dad has even planned to go there for a second time in 2 year's time... so, does anyone want to join? i'm sure you do :)

Results...

Just came back from vacation. Received my 1st-year professional exam result slip from the university. Didn't get distinction for 2 of the course subjects which i attended the viva voce, quite disappointed. 'Cause i thought i could at least get a distinction for Oral Biology. However, i passed all core and university subjects with a few A's, at least :) Compared to those unlucky ones, my results are good.

I really envy some of my friends who got better results... I'm really happy for you people :) Congrats! I'll work harder in the coming academic year to get better results, i'm not a easily contented person :) On top of that, i'll make sure that all the knowledge i've gained are put into good use and practised!

Days are blue recently, but i must have a positive mind and attitude towards life... Always remember that there are bright and wonderful days ahead... and you'll find them!

Thanks, mates :)

i sincerely thank my research teammates - Leni, Hooi Shan, Chung Nam and Diew Leong for your support, care, understanding and help during the past 2 weeks :) thank you for standing by my side when i was feeling very down... sorry for startling you... i trust you guys for keeping this to yourselves for the time being... i've learnt what makes a true friend... i've never regretted leaving home again to join the research team :) i really enjoyed the time we spent together in the clinic... i'll never forget Sister Ann Nee's kindness! haha... Thanks again!

Trip to Malacca

Went to Malacca last Saturday with my research teammates, Hooi Shan, Chung Nam, Diew Leong, Leni & her friends - Kar Kei, Larry & Samuel, and Darel. Managed to met up with Lai Tzen and Leni's friends who are staying in Malacca.

Ate Chicken Rice Balls at Jonker Street... The rice was good! But the chicken tasted...hmm...ok :P

Went around the shops nearby after lunch... Visitted Qing Yun Temple...

Met my ex-secondary schoolmate, Yong Cheng when we ate nyonya cendol, laksa and rojak at a shop before going to Tan Kim Hock to try the famous durian cendol... bought a bottle of cincalok there...

went to a shop opposite Puay Chai Primary School to try the special satay served together with pineapple gravy...

climbed up the hill behind the museum, my third time up there:)

went to Portugese Settlement and got mobbed by the hawkers there... it was drizzling when we arrived there... the hawkers scared me :P everyone was offering good food, some even have student packages... one of them eventually tried to give us free drinks! we didn't eat in the end :P

ate satay celup at a very famous shop... queued for more than half an hour to get a seat... one of the customers - an indian lady got her foot rolled over by a motorcycle when she was queueing up by the roadside with her family... i was taking my food when it happened... heard from the waitress that this wasn't the first time the incident happened to their customers... that indian lady cried as it must be very painful... her foot didn't bleed... but i guess there must be some minor fractures inside her foot... although i didn't see it happened with my eyes, i was equally shocked... hope she's fine by now...

the satay celup was quite delicious :)

went to Jonker Walk after dinner, my second time there :) watched a master poked a coconut with his bare finger... he knew many languages... the main purpose of his performances was to sell his ointment :)

tried some other good foods at Jonker Walk...

we didn't stay overnight in Malacca... reached KL late at midnight...

enjoyed myself very much :)

Going back to UM

i'm going back to uni for research work on Monday. Decided last night. Prof. Ngiao, a lecturer in our dental faculty, is going to retire soon. Before she leaves, she'd like to make one last contribution to our faculty, as well as the univeristy. This research is about the Microleakage of Gloves. We'll investigate on the effects on the microstructure of gloves after being washed by using detergent. This is important as most of the lecturers, especially for clinical year students, wash their hands (with gloves on) using detergent after inspecting a cubicle, and before moving on to the next cubicle, as each inspection takes only a few minutes.

I'm returning home by the 25th of May as i'll be leaving home on the 27th to Redang Island, and then to Kedah to visit my maternal grandma and relatives there, together with my family members.

Part-time Job, anyone?

i'm very bored at home... does anyone know any place who offers part-time job? hmm... i think it's kinda hard for me to get a job as i won't be around in Batu Pahat during school holidays. i'll be going to Lang Tengah Island near Redang Island in Terengganu, with my family. After that, we'll be heading to Kedah to visit my maternal grandmother and some relatives there. it's impossible for me to work part-time and take a 2-week leave! :)

i'm very glad to have passed my first-year BDS professional exam... i'm going to be a senior soon! yeah~ it's been less than a year since i started my BDS programme at UM!

went yum cha with my secondary schoolmates yesterday... we spent the whole afternoon chatting... one of my friends is selling RHB bank credit cards while waiting to enter uni in July, and earning quite a lot! many of my friends who are STPM leavers are working now till July... i wish all of them good luck in securing a place in public uni!

there's no wireless connection these few days at home, so i've been using dial-up connection. it's a bit slow but much more stable than wireless connection.

Hols till July

i've recently completed my 1st yr undergraduate studies :) hooray!! time passed so fast.. a year ago, i was still a matric leaver doing nothing at home, waiting to enter uni... now i'm waiting for my final exam results... well, i'm still stuck here at UM 'cause i've to wait to check whether i'm on the viva voce list before i can go home.. viva voce, meaning an oral test to prove your knowledge, i suppose? it's a list of 2 categories: distinction category for those who've obtained an A (>70%) for a particular subject, and those who passed can get an A+ for that subject, if not, you still get your A; borderline category for those who've obtained a D (45-49%), if passed, you'll get a C and continue your studies in 2nd yr (or the following academic year), if failed, you'll be subjected to sit for a supplementary exam after attending 2 more months of lectures. If you pass the supplementary exam, you can continue in the following academic year. if not, you'll have to repeat the whole academic year...

i'm going for my viva voce session for Biochemistry this afternoon. it's not easy to get a distinction. i'll treat it as a chance to gain more experience as it's not that easy to get into the list... well, wish me good luck :)

i'm going home this Sunday

Happy Birthday, Mummy :)

I've been very busy lately... Sem 2.2 started with a lot of assignments and activities... CNY was over just like that :-/

I'm feeling quite frustrated today... firstly, i couldn't send messages using my Maxis number... then, there's this error in connection - i couldn't call anyone including the service centre! that was so frustrating! During the tutorial, I'd to squint my eyes to read the stupid notes with tiny words and diagrams given by a stupid, arrogant, plump, lecherous old man (to those who know this guy i'm mentioning, yeah! that's how i hate him).

later on, we attended the lecture which we hate the most - the useless, bullshit, brainwashing subject, given by an old woman. We always do our own stuffs at the back of the lecture hall... now she's telling us that we've to get her notes online! but we couldn't find it anywhere in the World Wide Web! we need the notes as we've no books to read, and this subject is a must-pass subject in order to be able to get our scrolls after 4.5 years!

now my phone is back to normal... it's Maxis problem, 'cause it's upgrading its services recently... i once thought it's my phone's problem, and i could have an excuse to get a new phone :P well, i'm just glad that everything's fine now :)

i'm going to the National Leprosy Centre on Sunday...

Sem 2.1 results are out... hmm... though i still didn't manage to get any distinction, but there's improvement in the grades :)

i'm sorry for bieng rude... just to release my anger, didn't mean to offend anybody :)

Happy CNY!

it's Chinese New Year! but i still bring home assignments to do... last week's exam was okay... hope that it'll be better than the last exam :) final exams will be starting in late April... must work harder!

didn't go anywhere except visitting relatives, friends and teachers... hmm... didn't feel as excited as when i was still a young girl... i'm 19 now... haha... some adults considered me as a grown-up, so no more red packet or "angpow" for me :'(

was so touched to meet some old friends whom i've lost touch with... hmm... many friends have gone elsewhere; overseas, other states, to study... miss them so much :'(

will be going back to uni on Sunday morning, by bus.

next Saturday night will be our Dance N Dinner Nite of Dental Faculty, going to be held at Tai Tong Restaurant in Damansara.

Mystical Steppes

i went to KL Convention Centre to watch "Mystical Steppes - Along the Silk Road" with my sweetie on last Sunday night. it was a cultural show, mainly of dances from the Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar Theatre Dance Troupe from China. the 2 hour extravaganza of songs and dances, performed nightly in Urumqi and twice nightly during summer, has given nearly a million tourists a glimpse of the colourful Xinjiang folk culture.

the show has been a runaway success, showcasing the diverse cultures of the Uyghur, Kazakh, Mongolian, Tajik, Uzbek and Tartar peoples living in the vast region bordering Asia Minor.

to maintain the highest of standards, the performers are handpicked for their talent, height, size and exquisite beauty.

the women exude mystical charm and grace as they twirl and swirl in their dazzling and shimmering ethnic costumes to the vibrant tempo of tribal music.

the men contrast with their power-packed leg work and together they bring out the essence of an exuberant lifestyle.

the show itself is a feast for the senses, with high energy scenes of the traditional grape harvesting festival and fascinating wedding celebrations, performed to the background music of hand drums, tambourines, high-pitched sonas and other melodious indigenous string instruments.

i dare say that those who've missed this show should not miss it again if the troupe ever come to Malaysia again...

*part of text adapted from the booklet i received at KLCC

My 19th Birthday!!!

~12.00am~ the day started when i was busy replying to SMSes from friends and family in my room, standing... i didn't notice that my cheeky roomate - Huai Lin quietly opened the door... then, a group of my coursemates barged into my room and yelled, "Happy birthday!!!", which gave me such a big fright that i actually jumped and fell on the floor! *Ouch! oh, my butt :'( one of my close friends in UM - Leni a.k.a. Meng Yit bought me a very cute blouse, which i wore to class and out for celebration with my sweetie later in the day... Huai Lin bought me a cute bracelet too :) thanks, girls! and my buddies gave me a very cute Fila cap too :) thanks a lot, buddies!
suddenly, my sweetie called when i was chatting to my friends (he called earlier to wish me Happy Birthday as he was in a meeting)
"hey, dear... can you please come over to the window now?" he was supposed to be in a meeting?!
before i saw anything outside the window, i heard my friends screaming beside me, "wow, look at that! fireworks!"
indeed, he was hiding behind one of the trees at the carpark near my hostel block... and i saw fireworks shooting from behind the tree... it's not the type of big big fireworks which we always see during major celebrations and countdown parties... it's just a medium-sized one, but it's good enough to touched me :)

~3.30pm~
we went to IMAX Theatre at Times Square to watch a 3D movie - Open Season. although we're 15 minutes late, we still enjoyed the movie very much :)
dinner was at a Japanese Ramen restaurant... and we went window shopping after that... bought nothing in the end :(
after we left Times Square, my sweetie told me that that's all for the celebration and we're then heading back to uni... i was quite sad as i wasn't satisfied yet!
now, one good thing of giving me a surprise in downtown KL is that i'm not familiar with the roads there... so eventually we stopped behind KL Tower at the roadside... before he got out of the car to get something from the bonnet behind, he told me to search for my birthday present in the car, if i found it, it's mine; if not, then i'd have no present at all!
huh huh... it's for sure that i found nothing as the present was in the bonnet, together with my birthday cake! he came back into the car with the cake, present and a cardboard with 19 lighted candles on top, arranged in a heart-shape... and he sang a song which touched me so much... to tears, along with the playing CD... my birthday present from my sweetie - a cute brown + golden handbag from MNG...
and we headed to Luna Bar on the 34th floor of Pan Pacific building, overviewing the KLCC Twin Towers...
a very romantic and beautiful place, open-air, and we sat beside a swimming pool... chatted to each other... ate the cake... took photographs... how sweet! :)
thank you very much, sweetie... for giving me such a memorable birthday :) and thanks a lot to all the birthday wishes from all of you guys :)

Projects...

Happy New Year 2007!!!
have been really busy recently... i've 3 projects in January... finished off 2, one more to go on this Saturday...

Avicenna Festival 2006/2007: Singing Competition
this is one of the project under the festival of my residential college. i was one of the committee members, in-charge of prizes... my roommate - Huai Lin and my 4th year senior - Kiat Lin took part in the competition. Huai Lin got the consolation prize, and Kiat Lin emerged as the champion and got the most popular contestant prize. Congrats! :)

Avicenna Awards 2006
this award nite was held at Mariott Hotel, IOI Resort, Putrajaya. i was one of the committee members under my sweetie's group, in-charge of protocol. that was the 1st time in my lifetime that i wore contact lenses :) had asked for a pair of trial pair from an optical shop... everyone dressed up very nicely on that night.. girls look different (prettier, of course!)... guys look more handsome... and we were really busy in carrying out our duties and taking photographs! :) check them out in my friendster page!

the last project is the Health Awareness Campaign, which is going to be held on this Saturday at Sungai Tengi, Ulu Klang, Selangor...

Exams coming soon! it's only a month away! oh no...
i'll be going home for Chinese New Year...