MY HOMETOWN GASTRONOMIC ADVENTURE - "PETALS AND BAKES" REVISITED

24th APRIL 2018 ~ Everybody seems to get busier these days and it is getting more and more difficult to meet up for coffee after work. However, we managed to find a slot for not just coffee but also spaghetti, cakes, waffle and more gossips.

I was the last one to arrive as the briefing I was attending after school finished late. However, upon arrival, two huge plates of spaghetti were already served and I just had to add in the carrot cake for dessert. This was my second visit to "Bakes and Petals" and we had Malay dishes when we came the first time.

the aftermath

I wonder if this was the last meeting before the arrival of the fasting month.

The most important thing, we successfully ate all the food on the table that initially looked almost impossible to be finished. All the food was delicious, or perhaps we were all too hungry to resist the temptation.

We always cherish the group's slogan: if you want to get fat, let's get fat together. Long live gossip girls!

MY HOMETOWN GASTRONOMIC ADVENTURE - EATING HEALTHY AT NANDO'S

21st April 2018 ~ We must always try to eat healthy food. For example, instead of consuming red meat, we should choose the white one. Other than that, use as little oil as possible, in the preparation process and the best method is to grill it. So we decided to opt for Nando's Chicken after the movie session at AEON Bukit Indah. I not only feel healthy after the late lunch/early dinner, but I grow fat as well.

Thanks Mr. Nazafee for the treat after getting his one-month salary working after the SPM examination. Believe me, not many are willing to part with their money to give their teacher a treat and this really kind of you. May Allah repay your generosity.

MOVIE REVIEW - "RAMPAGE"

George was an albino gorilla which was infected by a genetically modified pathogen/serum from outer space which resulted him to grow rapidly and become more aggressive and vicious. The only person who could stop George from destroying the city should be Okoye, George's adopted parent - a primatologist, who also an ex-soldier. The problem was there were another two animals who had grown to become giants and machines that destroyed the city and its people - a wolf and a crocodile. Do not worry, the superhero who was invincible to save the world was there - Dwayne Johnson a.k.a the Rock was unbelievably immortal to an extent that the whole story has become illogical. But then, we were there to see magic on screen and the CGI was so good that we thought everything was real.

Very high entertainment value but quite violent but there were many parents bringing small kids to watch the movie. Perhaps, they thought the gorilla in the movie would be a cuddly and could not kill human beings. But then, nowadays violence equals to entertainment, I suppose. *sigh*

ATTENDING PUAN HJH. MARIAM'S DAUGHTER'S WEDDING RECEPTION

21st APRIL 2018 ~ I attended a wedding reception thrown by Pn. Hjh. Mariam Shahrom, an ex-colleague of SMK Taman Universiti, who was there earlier in the 90's before moving to another school. She taught Bahasa Melayu when in SMKTUN and she is the Senior Assistant at SMK Gelang Patah. The wedding reception was held at TNB Hall in Kempas.

I met an ex-student whom I taught in my English tuition class, Miss Amira of SM Islam Hidayah, when she was in form 3 and 4 (in 2007 & 2008 if I am not mistaken). Amira was accompanying her mom who is also a teacher (a Principal actually now) and she is now practicing Law in Kuala Lumpur.

A wedding reception is always a venue for reunion and I am sure there will be more to come.

MY HOMETOWN GASTRONOMIC ADVENTURE - MARRYBROWN'S BRIYANI

20th APRIL 2018 ~ A colleague in school told me that Marrybrown now is offering a set meal for briyani so I decided to give it a try when I went to Mydin Mutiara Rini.

THE VERDICT: The briyani rice was briyani-ish which was not bad. However it had to be eaten with crispy fried chicken rather than the usual chicken cooked in gravy. There was curry gravy (I think) given in a small container though.

All in all, it was worth the price but I would rather have the traditional briyani next time.

paparazzi is everywhere

MY FIRST TIME AT MYDIN MUTIARA RINI

I needed to get something so it was time to officiate my first visit to Mydin Mutiara Rini, the latest outlet in Johor Bahru.

kindergarten kids on stage

The Mydin Mall was surprisingly huge. There was even a big stage on the ground floor (which should be good enough for my angklung performance).

fresh water fish exhibition

There was this section in the supermarket where everything was sold at only RM2, which could be quite hard to resist as the items all looked so cheap.

I went to have a look at the food court. It could be a good place to hang out with friends (without any ex-students sitting there too which would not be highly possible).

]

And there was this bakery I would love to visit to try its coffee and pastries.

As expected, there were ex-students working part-time there.

I will definitely visit this mall again in the future, at least to visit the food court or other food outlets.

THE UPHILL JOURNEY TO THE FAMOUS PENANG HILL STARTED - PART 1

24th MARCH 2018 ~ After the heavy breakfast of nasi kandar, we were so ready to embark on the journey to get up to the top (was that the top?) of famous Penang Hill. We were lucky there was just a small crowd when we arrived so the queue to buy the entrance tickets was bearable.

the latest entry ticket rate

Then everybody had to queue to get to the platform before the tram arrived.

The tram finally arrived. The place was already upgraded and the tram used was the modern one which should be faster.

The coaches were full of people but it was speeding up quite fast so we did not have to stand up for long.

TO BE CONTINUED...