Happy Valley: The Day I Went To The Racecourse

Tuesday. The day before Wednesday.

Wednesdays are the days where horse racing enthusiast or gamble addicts head to Happy Valley for some races.

I personally do not like to gamble but I like the adrenaline I get from watching races. Kinda like watching Formula 1 live.

I went to HK Jockey Club with my colleagues where we get to be highrollers and hangout at Adrenaline. If you go to the common area, you only pay HKD10 bucks I think. 

To get into Adrenaline, it is HKD290 per person including drinks and dinner.

If you ask me, I prefer the common area where you can see the horses but I'm not complaining since it is all sponsored! 

My boss even gave us money to gamble. Sadly, we didn't win. I remember my mom telling me that if you gamble with someone else's money, you are not gambling with your own luck. Hence, you won't win. But hey, what do I know about gambling.

I only feel bad losing cos it is not my money I'm losing.

Can you imagine living in one of those apartments overseeing the racecourse?

It looked so beautiful that evening. 

Took a break to shower and it has already passed midnight. Can't post more photos now. Goodnight!

Art Basel in Hong Kong

Tgif beetches.

What a long day at work but very rewarding too. I always believe putting in extra effort into my work even though I might not be recognised for it. But I was, so all the better. Two clients so far have commented that the CVs/talents that I found was great. I usually only get compliments from my bosses. So yeah, keep it coming baby. If only compliments can be converted into money.

I want to blog something short today. So, let's talk about art.

We went to the Asia Contemporary Art Show 2014 last month. Thanks so Kunal, we managed to get free tickets to enter. 

I was eager to go because I love artsy fartsy stuff since I was young but I have never admitted it since I finished Secondary 3 but that is a story for another day.

It was very exciting as well because we get to see contemporary art from all over the world. Jesse is not a great fan but he accompanied me. He ended up enjoying it too. It was at the Conrad Hotel.

That is me checking out all the art in the bathroom. 

They were really creative with the whole exhibition venue idea. They used hotel rooms as exhibition space for different galleries. I love how they utilised the bathrooms too. 

While it was an unconventional idea to do so, I don't think the organizer have it all thought out. There were art being exhibited in 5 levels but there were only two hotel room toilets available to public. So the queue were crazy for both. Not impressed.

This is one of the art that I have to highlight. It is from a Malaysian artist. I'm not gonna pretend like I remember his name but he did a lot of quirky childhood memories art. 

If everything didn't cost HKD10,000 and above..I would have bought one or two to keep. Well, my art jamming session better be soon.

This is a piece from a Vietnamese artist who was trying to express the how the modern day Vietnamese female looked different from Vietnamese female from the olden days. 

Apparently the purple gloss on the art is not ease to achieve. 

See I can remember all the stories and meaning of the art but I'm just so bad with names.

This is one of Jesse's fave. The photo is definitely not doing it justice. It is as wide as the bed it is placed on. Huge. I'm not so sure how Linda is going to feel about this. It is not a hornbill right? Or is it?

This one is a little strange. We only took it because we are obssessed with anything that looked like Dug.

Prior to this exhibition, I'm sure I have seen this somewhere before. It is pretty cute.

Not sure what the fuss is for this one. It is just McDonald's related. Or maybe, I just don't get it.

This is @yuennyyee and a duckling.

I want to post more but I'm very sleepy and I don't want to continue this on another day. So this is all you get for this event in #HongKong. 

#artshow #artbasel #contemporaryart

Hong Kong: Lardos Steak House

After being in Hong Kong for a year. I can finally post recommendations on where to eat. You know, places where locals go. 

Jesse found this really old school restaurant that serves great steak. Getting there is quite the pain from where we live but if you are living in HK Island, it is easy peasy.

That restaurant is located in Hang Hau Village. I believe you have to get off the MTR at Hang Hau station. If you are a local, you'd probably take the bus but I recommend that you take a taxi.

If all else fail, Google the shit out of Lardos Steak House.

As you can see, this place cannot look any dodgier than this. They do not offer any frills. Only great food and great service. But you always have to make reservation. Don't expect to just turn up and get seats or great cuts.

This is us and other people peeking inside while waiting for them to open. They usually offer two seatings. Once at 6pm and another at 8pm.

The Chateaubriand is to die for. Imagine steak done in the right temperature melting in your mouth!

Dining at Lardos, one thing you can't expect is great presentation. They don't even try to match their cutleries or plates. Maybe that is why I like it even more. 

You will be greeted with salad and a basket of warm bread as soon as you sit down.

Our intention was to get there, eat the Chateaubriand and hopefully dessert because we always never leave any space for dessert everytime we dine out. So, we had it all planned out. Share an appetizer so we won't get too full. 

And then, I saw Lobster Bisque as their special of the day. Sigh. I had to have it. It is my favourite soup in the world.

It came in a super big salad kinda bowl. It is probably the biggest and most yummy lobster bisque I ever had.

There were chunks and chucks of lobster bits in it. I loved it.

Medium Rare.

Asparagus in chicken stock. Very light and crunchy.

As predicted, we missed out on the dessert because we were too full. By the time we left, we were experiencing food coma. 

In total the meal came up to around HKD1,200. Which is very reasonable for the quality of food.

We spent way more the week before at #Bisteca, #LanKwaiFong. Probably the worst steak I ever had in my life there and super overpriced. Please don't go there if you ever visit #HongKong.

#eatlikelocal #wheretoeat #foodporn

Romantic Gayana Resort, Kota Kinabalu

Yesterday was definitely a very testing day. I guess there's nothing big that caused that. I have been doing great at work and things are going great with Jesse and Dug. It is probably hormones and little things that built up to piss me off.

I miss home and after a lot of back and forth, all my leave has been approved. So hurray. 

I usually blog on my way to work. That is the only time I don't have any distraction. 

Let's talk about something happy. Like my trip to #GayanaResort.

Chalet on the sea. The pier we got down from the speedboat.

Stupid Jesse walking #likeaboss after swimming all day at #BungaRayaResort. We were so tired by the time we arrived here.

So they invited us to chill at the infinity pool area that overlooked the sea. There are no beach at this resort but have other interesting factors like the Geocenter..or at least I think that is what it is called. 

I couldn't sleep and felt restless. So I went to check it out while Jesse snoozed.

On the way to the Geocenter you have to walk through these chalet. There were nobody there then, so I was slightly creeped out.

Okay so it is called Marine Ecology Research Centre.

They were shut when I arrived but you can still see stuff like starfish and corals outside the centre.

I love starfish. They are so cute ♥♥♥

Save the Giant Clams!

Pretty giant clams. I love the colours. Shame I have no interest in scuba diving.

By the time I was done, the sun was setting and Jesse was still snoozing so I made my way back to the pool to get ready for dinner.

Couldn't resist to take another photo of the view. I wish I live there w.t.f.

Alu-Alu Restaurant for dinner. Jesse is very picky with food when we eat out (he is not if it is my cooking heh!), so I wanted to take him to somewhere nice and romantic. This only happens once a year so gotta make it count.

We ate at this beautiful restaurant.

We were forced by the waiter to take this cheesy photo. It was forceful and cheesy even by my standards...

We even played outside while waiting for food. They had lights under the restaurant, so you can see bigger fishes feeding on smaller fishes. It was quite romantic.

The day concluded with a little man in a big sofa. Our experience at Gayana Resort was quite special. I would totally recommend this place to couples or a few friends who are looking for relaxation. 

#travel #wanderlust #love

Park Island, Hong Kong: My Island and The Weather

Of all my years of living in Malaysia, I have never intentionally sit under the aircond and I would always..and I mean ALWAYS order a hot drink. Rain or shine.

Last weekend was madness. It was so hot in HK, I was literally dripping with sweat standing in my kitchen preparing food for this week. Ew gross I know. I had to run to the bathroom to refresh every 30 mins, just so I don't add extra ingredients in my food. In fact, I have never sweat like that before. No even in the gym.

My gym #ootd.

I know you must be thinking why don't I just get an airconditioner or fan fixed in my kitchen (where I spend so much time in). But have you seen the size of HK properties. It is not even possible with the space. Sigh!

So I usually tell @milkystainz to crank up the A/C in the living room and hope that I get to benefit a little from it.

The thing is, I like to put on some crime documentaries when I'm cooking. I even bought a wall stand just for my tablet and speakers.

And J will be playing his latest games really loud with his speakers too. So at the end, I will end up shutting the door of my kitchen. He will offer to put on his earphones to play but it can't be good for his ears with that level of noise. I rather not.

Woah, so I started my Tuesday whining. I can't help it. It is my first working day. I hate long weekends because of the short work week. I am happy that it is June though. So much to look forward to. For one, @pinkytham is visiting in 2 weeks.

The weather was great for outdoor activities. I'm glad I didn't get a heat stroke. It was a great great feeling dipping in cold water with the sun out.

I find HK weather to be very drastic. It is either really cold or really hot. I only had a week of in betweens during my mom's visit. Thank god for that. My mom would have hated the heat.

On the way home from gym. 

Let me story you about this whole gym business. I have been dreading to join the gym since my #Nuffnang days because of the fear of commitment. Anything that wants to tie me down for 2 years or hell, 1 year is scary to me.

But the beauty of the facilities on my island is that we can pay per use. I NEVER REALIZED THAT CARDIO ON A THREADMILL COMES WITH A PERSONAL FAN. I guess that was how long ago since I have been to the gym. Everything has evolved.

The view when I cycle in the gym. I guess I never really appreciated a threadmill before. Now, I love everything about it. The airconditioner, the FAN, bottle holder and I can place my phone on a holder to listen to music without it bouncing on my arm or pockets when I run outdoors (which I still prefer but not in this weather).

The panda that I see everyday on the way home. Reminds me of@yuennyyee. 

I love where I live now. I think it is the only reason I can tolerate HK. It is so hard to explain it to anyone without inviting them over to see it for themselves.

The garden where we usually hang out with Dug.

The majestic #TsingMa bridge. It is such a beautiful view and sometimes I have to tell myself to not take anymore photos of it. They all looked the same.

Another hang out spot for Dug to play with other dogs by the pier.

The bridge from another angle.

The fishing village at the back of the island. You can find plenty of abandoned homes there. I think the people got evicted. It can be quite creepy at night but during the day, it is quite beautiful.

The view at the back of the island if you hike all the way up.

An altar on top of the hill. People still come up here to give their offerings and pray.

Sometimes you can find the most random stuff outside the villagers' homes.