February 2007 Archives

First of all, I must apologise for the lack of updates on my blog.

Secondly, Happy Chinese New Year and gong xi fa cai to all my Chinese readers that celebrate the Chinese New Year.

It is now 2 weeks since I arrived back in Penang, and after being Internet-less for 1 week thanks to some dodgy wiring (house alarm vs Streamyx) + a coincidentally dead modem, I am back online.

I always try to get a window seat for my connecting flight to Penang, and the most familiar sight that greets me are always the kampung houses that are located at the edge of the Penang airport. Up till today, I am amazed at the residents' ability to get used to the loud noise from the planes taking off.

Here's the best sight - good ol' Penang airport greeting me.

This is probably the longest I have ever been Internet-less for years. The first few days was definitely hard to get past, but once the family timetable kicked in I looked at it as a positive thing. providing me with a bit of a break.

Anyways, it is good to be back home, and definitely good to be in the company of family and old friends. Of course, not forgetting the wonderful variety of Malaysian food.

According to preliminary studies, antioxidants in chocolate have been linked to help accomplish the following.

- Decrease blood pressure
- Improve circulation
- Lower death rate from heart disease
- Improve function of endothelial cells that line the blood vessels
- Defend against destructive molecules called free radicals, which trigger cancer, heart disease and stroke
- Improve Digestion and stimulate kidneys
- Has been used to help treat patients with anemia, kidney stones and poor appetite

Whether it is good for you or not, almost everyone loves chocolate. That's probably one of the inspirations of the opening of stores like Koko Black.

We visited the Koko Black in Carlton (167, Lygon St) a while ago, and ordered the Belgian Spoil for two and some truffles.

I haven't been home with my family in Penang for almost 12 months now, since the last Chinese New Year.

I'm leaving for Penang this Tuesday night - well early morning of Wednesday to be exact (midnight flight), taking a Singaporean Airlines flight to Singapore where I'll then transit to Penang.

My bags are not really completely packed yet, and for some reason I feel like I have tonnes of unfinished business.

And my dog (Cookie) keeps looking at me like this every time I sit down to pack my bags.

Wasabi is a Japanese restaurant located in South Melbourne.

Their details are as follow.

315 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne, phone (03) 9699 8874.

Gaylord is an Indian Restaurant located in a hidden area in a small lane of Chinatown (4 Tattersalls Lane - Tel : (03) 9663 3980).

With a flashy Bollywood style interior, it feels like an all out effort to charm you as soon as you step in to the restaurant.

Let's have a look at what we ate here on this super hot summer day.

We had a whole tandoori chicken served on a whole plate. This looked absolutely mouth watering when it arrived. It tasted great as well.

HarbX Designs is now live!

I finally got rid of my resume link on the top main navigation and have replaced it with a portfolio link - which brings you to HarbX Designs.

If you're looking for freelance web/graphic design services, have a browse through HarbX Designs and get in touch with me for an obligation free discussion.

You'll also notice a brand new shiny HarbX Designs image link on the top right of my pages from now on.

Thanks to all who have been supporting me so far!

Looks like our Dr. Mahathir has realised how effective the internet is.

With the help of his aides, he has filmed himself and uploaded the video to good ol' Youtube.

I have to say I am really with Dr M on the issue of war here - have a look.

Rowville is not a place you would associate Chinese food with, and it can be quite a drive for some to actually get there.

We visited the Eastern Palace Chinese Restaurant for yum char there a short while back after hearing many good things about the place.

Their address is 1171 Stud Rd in Rowville - and their phone number is (03) 9755 8838.

You can expect your normal yum char fare over here, with your siu mais and almost all other types of classics.

After some extensive digging around the world of Michael Bay's Transformers movie, I was able to get a leaked CGI render of Frenzy.

[ Image removed on request by Hasbro Inc. ]

It seems that the design cue here is 'metal - and lots of it'. I still have mixed feelings as to how I feel about this design, so I'll really reserve my judgement till I watch him in action in the movie.

Back in the old 80's Generation 1 cartoon, Frenzy was also a part of Soundwave's ensemble of cassettes.

Spoiler (highlight to read):
Looks like he plays a similar role here in Michael Bay's movie being Barricade's minion.

Located at 273 Swantown Street, Phong Son is a Vietnamese restaurant that is easily missed when you are not really looking.

Serving your traditional Vietnamese fare, you'll be able to find your regular Vietnamese favourites here - rice noodle soups, spring rolls, grilled pork with rice, etc.

I ordered my favourite combination with broken rice - consisting of a piece of grilled pork, fried egg, shredded pork and a traditional piece of pudding. SY ordered the sliced beef and tendon rice noodles.

A rule of thumb that we always try to follow is that we always need to try the rice noodle soups, as the soup is very important to determine how good the place is.

My bowl of soup for the rice and the plate of bean sprouts and mint leaves arrived first.