Part one: the silhouette of Bali

Last week J and I went to Bali for a week and we were pretty blown away by the food and things to do around our hotel. Usually when you think of a beach and sun location, its pure relaxation but we were genuinely impressed by the quality of modern Indonesian food here, the music and fun activities going on throughout the week. There were so many highlights on the trip, its hard to pick the very best photos but here's a snippet. 

 After dropping off our bags the first thing we did was explore and walk along the beach. Arrived just in time to see the last breath of sun :)

Loving this shot with my RX100. Some other shots taken with the Canon D30 and Sony A7. Yeah, we also took a lot of videos this time round with our Canon HFR306. heh we come prepared with our gadgets, us city dwellers who can't quite getaway from technology.

WooOo alien looking shisha at Woobar. So cool and we were loving the music even on a Sunday night.

Look it's Mr. Monopoly man! hehe The Whatever whenever section of the hotel that helps you book/re-confirm those must-visit restaurants and day trips that you've got planned.

Sharing a slab of BBQ ribs at Naughty Nuri's to leave more belly space to try more good food hehe Yum-Mee!

 

My favorite meal in Bali was at Bambu, Seminyak. The slow roasted duck on the left was so delish (bebek betutu) and the super spicy sambal sauce was a real kicker. :D Should have gone back for round two.

AHMAZING terang bulan, street style pancakes, dark java chocolate, peanuts toraja coffee and ginger ice cream. The best deconstructed Sulawesi dessert ever. I really wish I had room to try all of their desserts. :D

Morning walk down the beach from W hotel to Ku De Ta, made it just in time for a refreshing lime squash before lunch.

Such a pretty restaurant overlooking the rice paddy field.

A seafood lunch followed by a not so local dessert: apple tarte tatin with uber tangy apples, ho jeng!

Walking around the narrow roads (trying hard not to get hit by the crazy drivers) and stumbled into this second hand store that sells a lot old treasures from ship wreckages around the Java area.

Snack time at the Junction and enjoying some dadar guling: pandan crepes with palm sugar and simmered coconut flakes. 

Enjoying some drinks and food at Potato Head Club. Really lively atmosphere all day long.

Dreamy sunsets to end the day..and wishing time would standstill for a just moment. Enjoying these calm moments where the only thing you need to do is watch people socialize and enjoy the company beside you.

thunder-light-and-rain

It's been a rainy and humid month in Hong Kong which means summer is just around the corner. What are you looking forward to this summer? Can't wait for June to come around after a busy month of May with one event or activity following another.  And then in six days time I'll finish my ballet exam (finally) and hopefully pass with flying colors ;) I hope I have good news to share by late June. 

 

After our dimsum lunch in TST, we walked through Kowloon Park and learned that there's flamingos living here! heehee pretty serene in the urban jungle. 

J and I having an early dinner at Upper Modern Bistro in Sheung Wan. Seafood Bruschetta with smoked salmon, crab and swordfish. Their french bread was so good, I could just live on this if you serve it up with soft butter.

The only time we make breakfast is on the weekends. Tomato omelette with avocado and lemon juice. So simple and nutritious. 

Dinner with the cousins at On Lot 10 on Gough street. I can't remember the last time I had so much to drink but still held up so well to make it to my dance class the next day at 10:30am. *Pats myself on the back.

Naha!  J trying the 737 flight simulator experience in Megabox. He took off in Chek Lap Kok, flew around HK and landed in Kai Tak. Even though I was just an observer, I was getting all sweaty and anxious just watching him. :P 

In celebration of our 150th anniversary, Societe Generale organized the Citizen Commitment Games at the Indian Recreation Club. I participated in the relay race and the other team sports included tag rugby, soccer, petanque and table tennis. Even though I know I can't stand a chance with these athletic peeps it was fun to take part. All the winners from each sports category gets to go to Paris for the finals..woo just like the olympics. :P

Our relay race team! Although we couldn't qualify to the finals it was fun to practice together and cheer on the other teams :) I forget how tough it is to sprint..definitely a slow and steady paced kinda girl. 

All proceeds that we raised from the team sports went to HAC - Han Andersen Club that helps underprivileged children in Hong Kong.  We invited over 20+ children from HAC to come along for face painting, magic show, bouncy castle and other drawing & painting activities.

A very popular sport amongst the French: petanque. Wasn't very familiar with the rules until I saw everyone playing.  Even with the unstable rainy season, everyone was having a pretty good time with the music blasting and just being together outside of the office. Good times :)

Bronze Silver and Gold

Beautiful things don't ask for attention.

A few weeks ago we watched "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" and when Sean Penn, who plays a freelance photographer in the movie said that phrase, it really stood out for me.  Being humble and not asking or wanting attention is sometimes more admirable than those who do.

Attending an ex-colleague's wedding earlier this month.  Each photo can say more than 1000 words but I think this one means much more to me. If I had not been hired by this lady back in August 2007, I would have definitely flown back to Vancouver in September with my return air ticket and just lived a completely different life in Canada. If I did not work at Walton and hung out with so many amazing friends then I would not enjoy living in Hong Kong nor have the courage to go to Beijing. So many decisions that you make be it big or small all add up and bring you to where you are today. 

Stumbled upon the PMQ (Police Married Quarters) Night Market after a vegetarian dinner with my girls.  I have to admit I'm not very good at keeping in touch sometimes but with true friends it doesn't matter because the conversations just pick up from where they started. Even though we're busy leading our own separate lives, I hope we'll always find time to hang out and have a good time :)

Concluding my last BCM task on April 25 with the HK Crisis Management Team Exercise. There was abit of stress leading up to this as you always want everything to play out smoothly and I'm very thankful that I finished on a high note.  Sitting in the main conference room is our core management team (pictured), while the trusted agents sit in another control room feeding them with injects of various problems and scenarios through phone & email to make the HoDs manage the situation, execute decisions and communicate effectively as a team. 

Settling into my new desk and keeping things organized.

When was the last time you used film to take photos?  Being silly at home :)

Hehe Team Durian nibbling away.  Remember to keep on doing the things that make you happy. Try not to be overly sensitive because life's too short to get hot and bothered about every little thing.  Let it go! :-)

It's funny how some distance
Makes everything seem small
And the fears that once controlled me
Can't get to me at all
It's time to see what I can do
To test the limits and break through
No right, no wrong, no rules for me

Idina Menzel - Let It Go Lyrics | MetroLyrics

New Beginnings

"Time for a break, give me a piece of that Kit Kat bar.."  Yay, a time for celebrations for our friends wedding in Phuket, a perfect getaway trip for 4Days and 3Nights. :)  In the midst of transitioning at work, this was a good opportunity to have some fun before work gets busier in April. 

En route to Phuket flying with Thai Airways and surprised to see a special spread on different types of goldfish. Actually each time we're away from home we think about our little goldfish and wonder how Speck is doing.  After the trip J bought this spiffy Izon camera to monitor him so next time no need to worry! haha What we do for the little guy..

Exploring our resort approximately 25 minutes north of Phuket International Airport and meeting up with other HKIS friends who are also staying at the same place.  It's pretty far from the main Phuket area but overall not crowded at all and very close by to the wedding villa.  The two main complains which I had was the overly puffy pillows and no water on our last night. I mean no one could take a shower after after we came back from the party celebrations at 2am lol. 

Afternoon snack time! Time for coconuts, Singha beer, and other Thai foodies.

One of many coconuts enjoyed on our trip. This one was rather small but still very refreshing nonetheless.

Dinner at านอาหารท่านุ่นซีฟู๊ด (Tha Nun Seafood) where we ordered one too many dishes.  :P They had super-size-me portions compared to our hotel so we had to doggy bag a lot of the food back.  Nevertheless this random place made a mean green curry and tom yum goong. <3 Back in HK I enjoy my occasional Thai food but the taste here is like 10x better, like an explosion of flavors.

 Day 2 - Massage @Hotsprings and then we all went over to the villa enjoying sweet mangos while the groomsmen practiced their walk-in.  They danced to Pharrell William's "Happy" which was very cute.

Dinner with all the friends and relatives at Sala Resort. Oh my gosh the curries (not pictured) were realllyyy good and the dessert booth served up a nice variety of traditional sweets.  My favorites were the Kanom klok made up of coconut, rice flour & light sprinkling of sugar.  Still warm from the iron pan.

Day 3 - Chilling and tanning (or getting my shoulders burnt) by the pool side w/ some friends before the wedding reception at 4:30pm.  Enjoying some beautiful weather and we all enjoyed a lazy lunch by the poolside.

Polaroids & scrap book time!! yay :)

Breathtaking views of Villa Jia, of Jivana Villas.

The umbrellas was a nice touch. We were sweating and scorching even in the late afternoon.  Amazing to see the bride so pretty with her make up (most of it is probably all natural) because I would have melted the moment I stepped out from the room. :P

The bride and the groom looking absolutely stunning. <3

Shots at the 'Fun Table' ;-)

Surprise fireworks at 10pm. There was a light drizzle towards the end of dinner but fortunately it was very brief so all the party festivities were unaffected. *whew Wouldn't want to miss dancing would we?

Romantic & magical sky lanterns. Make a wish and then release them free as they are filled with enough hot air.  My very first time doing this and each n' every paper lantern soared high until they became little dots of light.

Keep your head up and know that tomorrow is a brand new day to do better.