Day 1 Hanoi (31 January 2006)

Time	Event
5.45am	Hurrah! Going to the City in a Bend of the River! I am delighted to escape this horrible weather in KL! Packed up the last of m things like toothbrush and facial wash.
6.30am	Airport limo arrives. It was a plesant ride to KLIA
7.30am	Arrive at the airport.
8.00am	Checked in and had an Egg McMuffin at McD’s
8.30am	Bah! Heard from Mien that our flight is delayed until 11.35am (originally at 10.00am) Apparently all MAS flights to ASEAN countries are delayed. How unreliable!
9.00am	Bumped into a customer and a family from church. What a small world! The customer is travelling on the same flight as us! The family’s sending their daughter off to Australia for studies.
9.35am	Entered Departure Hall via the autogate. Mom had problems going through because the scanner could not read her thumbprint which had faded from doing housework! Of course Miss Dainty Fingers had no problems going through. Waited at the departure gate. I felt like Tom Hanks in The Terminal. Finally read the Lonely Planet book on Vietnam which Ragu lent me a few days ago. Found a funny part about social graces: “Pity the Unmarried: - telling the Vietnamese that you are single or divorced and enjoy a life without children may disturb them greatly. Not having a family is regarded as bad luck and such people are pitied, not envied. Many Vietnamese will ask if you are married and have children. If you are young and single, simply say you are not yet married. If you are not so young (0ver 30) and unmarried, it may be just be better to lie” Looks like I have to do a whole lot of lying??
10.50am	Finally met Mien and her family before boarding the plane.
11.48am	Take off!
11.51am	In the clouds!
11.53am	Above the clouds!
12.50pm	Lunch is served! Fish with noodles and white wine
1.50pm Hanoi (2.50pm in KL)	Touched down in Noibai Airport! It was about 27 degrees Celsius. I had expected it to be about 18 degrees, nevertheless it was still better than the arid weather we had in KL. Noibai airport looks somewhat like the old airport in Subang.
2.30pm	Our tour guide Mr Hiep came to receive us. Before we checked into the hotel we did a tour of a few places. Hanoi city is about 45 minutes away from the airport. The landscape in Northern Vietnam is mostly ricefields, corn fields and old buildings. Spotted a Petronas station! The houses are quite oddly shaped as they are narrow but high. This is because land is expensive, it can cause something like RM30,000 per square meter. They get taxed on their land, so that’s why they make use of vertical space rather than horizontal space. Another observation: I spotted many “thit cho” signs along the way. Thit Cho is a popular dish in Vietnam but you wouldn’t want to go near it….because it is dog meat. You don’t see many dogs roaming the streets of Hanoi…they probably end up in a dish. Anyway this is the Year of the Dog, so it is considered bad luck to eat dogs. So lets hope many doggies are saved in Vietnam this year. Quite a number keep dogs as pets. Another observation of the dogs there is that most of the pet dogs are fat and quite furry..must be the weather. You hardly see those emaciated strays like you see in KL. Traffic is crazy. People ride everywhere and without helmets. Amazing. Also it is the culture here to honk – pretty much like in Bangkok. I guess coming from KL it isn’t too much of a culture shock (the honking part) but KL is considered very tame.
3.00pm	First stop – Westlake and Tran Quoc Pagoda This is one of the oldest pagodas in Vietnam. There is a number of monks’ funerary monuments in the garden. Within the temple grounds there is also a Bodhi tree, which is the type of tree which the Buddha meditated under.

3.40pm	Passed the Temple of Literature. This is the first ever university in Asia and it was dedicated to Confucius
3.50pm	Went to Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and the Presidential Palace. It was a pity the Mausolem was already closed because therein lies the embalmed body of Ho Chi Minh. The mausoleum is closed on Mondays and Fridays , otherwise it is opened from 8am – 11am daily. But I think I’d rather spend the time visiting other places than see a preserved body. The entire place is shut every October to upkeep and maintenance of the embalmed body.
	Behind the mausoleum is the presidential palace, Ho Chi Minh’s stilt house(1958-1969) and his house from 1954-1958. There’s also a picture of his room in the stilt house. Oh yes and this is where the toilet with pengsan factor for kwailos was.
4.30pm	Visited the One Pillar Pagoda which is a stone’s throw from where we were. The pagoda is designed to resemble a lotus flower. The original pagoda was destroyed by the French and the one we saw is a rebuilt replica.

5.00pm

Finally checked into Galaxy Hotel!Showered and rested for a bit.

6.00pm

Dinner at Thien Thai restaurant. Our menu was: Fish soup Prawn spring roll with fish sauce Fried squid with fish sauce Vege soup with pork Fried spring roll Stir fried clams Roast fish, vermicelli, pineapple with rice paper wraps Fried siew pak choy Watermelon I saved the written menu but I am unable to reproduce it on my blog because I can’t really understand what the guy wrote! my attempt at a spring roll We were entertained by some song and music played by a group of musicians. Here you can see some of the local instruments being played.

7.45pm	Went back to the hotel to let our folks rest while we Young Hearts wandered the streets of Hanoi.
8.00pm	Evening walk. The streets are still bustling. Decided to walk to Lenin Park. Walked pass the Northgate of the Citadel. It’s really beautiful at night.
9.00pm	Stopped by Highlands Coffee opposite Lenin Park. This is Vietnam’s version of Coffee Bean or Starbucks. Everyone was decked to the nines, wearing their winter gear (although it wasn’t cold) – furry hats, wooly jackets, mufflers and the rest of it. It was obvious we were foreigners from the way we dressed (ie only T shirt and slacks) and the items we ordered. We were the only ones who ordered coffee in cups whereas most of the locals were drinking alcoholic or iced beverages. At the same time, there were some “Vietnamese Idols” across the street in Lenin Park entertaining us with their wailing. We had no idea whether it was a competition or it was open for wannabes who just want to sing, nevertheless they sounded terrible and even Chinese New Year songs sounded heaps better. Packed a tart and a muffin for our folks because the Young Hearts felt guilty for enjoying themselves and leaving their folks in the room. In any case they were too tired to walk all the way.
	Went across to Lenin Park to capture some shots of his statue and the flagpole.
10.40pm	Headed back to the hotel and called it a day.

I love Hanoi!

I suffered from diarrhoea yesterday. I think it is due to some preserved fruit which I bought in Dong Xuan market before leaving Hanoi that caused it, because that was the only thing which I ate that was different from others. Nobody else who travelled with me had diarrhoea. It was a good thing that I only had it after the trip otherwise it would have spoilt my entire holiday. One would have thought that dining in mamak shops accustoms our stomachs to unhygienic conditions!

Overall I had a really good time in Hanoi. It’s a really nice place to be. Like Ragu describes it, it’s like KL in the 70’s (though I would have been too young then to know what it was like but I know what he means).

People

Generally people in Hanoi are friendly. Many are not able to converse in English though, but some can speak in Mandarin or French(which doesn’t make any difference to me..). Making a purchase can be pretty difficult when we don’t understand what the other is trying to say. Sign language doesn’t help either as their currency is small and you don’t know exactly the price they are quoting!

Currency

The exchange rate is about 1USD = 15,000 VND (Vietnam Dong)

Boy, I felt like a millionaire, having millions in my pocket! If only I had that kind of money here…. Most places transact in USD but we normally convert it back to VND.

Food

Food in Hanoi is different from the Vietnamese restaurants we have in KL. What we have in KL is more southern and is a little bit spicier than what we had in the north. Also I think it has been fused with Thai cooking as they use more lemongrass in KL, and catered to more Western preferences. Some of the food in Hanoi can be quite unpalatable to foreigners, for example they served us cha ca (grilled fish) with bun (rice vermicelli) with some “cincalok” tasting sauce. But overall I enjoyed the food there and I found it to be tasty.

I avoided eating by road side stalls as it can be very unhygienic. Water is known to be not very clean there either. I’ve also seen some peddlers selling meat and cutting the meat on the pavement! Some peddlers also ride on their bicycle with exposed cut meat in a basket on the back of their bicycles.

Transport

The main mode of transport there is motorcycle. As cars are expensive there, practically everybody owns a motorcycle! Traffic regulations are virtually non existent, as they ride without helmets and hog the roads! You can sometimes even spot 5 people on a bike! Even well dressed gentlemen clad in suits and trilby are seen on bikes! Motorists rideall over the place and it is quite chaotic and lawless on the roads.

Time difference

Hanoi is an hour behind Malaysia. I keep waking up at 5am daily over there as I am accustomed to waking up at 6am in Malaysia!

Tet

Tet is their Lunar New Year or our Chinese New Year here. It is very much similar to Malaysia, where the first few days are quiet and business resumes from 5^th day onwards.

“CHUC MUNG NAM MOI” means “Happy New Year!”

Shopping

Shopping can be cheap or expensive in Vietnam, depending on how much you are willing to pay for quality. The quality of their goods is diverse, it can range from something of low quality to really high quality goods. So one has to be very careful in checking the quality before purchasing, if not it’s easy to get ripped off. Our tour guide, Mr Hiep took us to a handicapped centre where they produce all sorts of goods like clothes, lacquerware, embroidery, carvings and many more.At first I found the goods to be very expensive, but when I got back to the city I then realized why. The goods produced by the handicapped are much more refined and have better workmanship whereas most of what you get in town are cheap replicas.

Therefore, like I mentioned – it depends on what type of quality you’re looking for and how much you’re willing to pay for it.

Religion

Most of them are Buddhists, with 10% being Roman Catholics and 5% Muslims. There is only 1 mosque in the whole of Hanoi.

Toilets

I did not go to many public toilets, but it is pretty much like in China. Where there is a wastepaper basket in the toilet, you’re expected to throw your tissues into the wastepaper basket and not flush it because their sewerage system cannot handle it. It’s a good thing most of the places I went to are pretty civilized!! I saw this at a public toilet in Ho Chi Minh’s place of residence though. Pengsan factor for kwai los.

All in all, I love Hanoi. I'd go there again given the opportunity, but first I'd like to visit Ho Chi Minh City.

More stories later...

I'm home

I'm home! Tired from over indulgence and shopping fatigue! What a city girl I am..the first thing I did when I got home was sending SMS'es and loading my pictures into the pc. Can't live without technology I guess! But I had a really good trip. A really really good trip. I haven't even unpacked! I hope the weather will be a bit kinder to me in the next few days because the weather in Hanoi was really lovely.

I gues I can post some "before" and "after" photographs - ie before and after the trip. I think the circumference of my thighs have expanded.

No fear! I am running tomorrow!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Happy Chinese New Year to all! Here's a tribute to the Year of the Dog!

Fun with coloured contact lenses

Received some trial coloured contact lenses yesterday. Had some fun with it! There's a product in the market called FreshKon Alluring and what it does is enhance and make your eyes look bigger. I tried it on and I looked like a Japanese cartoon! HL caught me in the act of preening in the mirror! My brother said it made my eyes look like a dog's...well you know how dogs have those large eyes...

Here's a comparison between my natural eye on one side and Freshkon Alluring on the other. Guess which one's my natural eye!


And here are the puppy dog eyes. Do you think women in general can get away with murder wearing these lenses?



I also tried FreshKon Colours Fusion and the colours are quite fake. See what you think...




It's Aqua blue on my right eye (your left, facing me) and Sky blue on my left (your right). I personally prefer Freshlook Colorblends by CibaVision, amethyst colour.

Exercise diary

Wednesday
20min on stepper
25 min on elliptical machine
Push ups
Bent over row
Alternate lunges
Shoulder press with squats
Dumbell squats
Lateral raises with sumo squat
1 minute bridge

Thursday
8.5km run: Terasek-Ara-Pantai Hills- Turi-Ara

Friday
45 min on elliptical machine
Full body stretch

Ran 6km with Jenny today. Took a leisurely run as I didn't want to injure myself after Sunday's 20km. Had dinner some gal pals yesterday..ate so much but woke up feeling hungry. It's been ages since I've done my food diary but here's what I had yesterday:

Chicken with oyster mushrooms and tomatoes
Grilled vege
Wasabi potato mash
Lettuce (raw)
Ham and cheese rolls
Papadum and yoghurt dip
Mini ice cream

I'm hungry now. Going to toss a salad!

Baby Amanda

Here are pictures of my old pal Lilian and her baby Amanda. Conratulations Lil! Hope you'll be able to bring her to Malaysia pretty soon!

Donkey or King?

Went to watch King Kong with 3 Musketeers and WWW on Sunday night. It was one of slowest moving action movies I've ever seen in my life. We were probably the last few souls in KL to watch this movie.

It was more like Donkey Kong than King Kong. It took a whole hour before the ape came onto the screen....the first one third of the show was such a drag. Here's what I thnk of the show:

1. Corny.
The entire show was more comical than anything else. We found ourselves laughing through a big portion of the show. It wasn't intended to be funny but it's jsut very ridiculous
2.Warped.
Ape falling in love with a girl???? Come on.....The corniest part when he was gliding on the ice with her. Hmmm skating ape with girl in hand. Doesn't that sound stupid?
3. Ridiculous.
The ape knows how to appreciate a sunset. Sensitive, even. Well if you get more apes like that you'd put men out of a job.
4. Soppy
The ape got soppy with the girl. Sorry, I can't stand the idea of it.

The best part was of course the fighting scenes with the 3 T-Rexes. Even then the wrestle with the last T-Rex looked somewhat like crocodile wrestling. Not bad, the ape knows kung fu also.

Then the most entertaining part was with the humongous slugs and bugs. ML absolutely hates creepy crawlies and watching his reaction during this part was even more entertaining than the show itself.

Out of 4 stars, I'd rate it 2 stars.

Today's workout

Did a light workout today:

20 min on elliptical machine
25 min walk on treadmill
Dumbell row (1 min)
Shoulder press (1 min)
Lateral raises (1 min)
Tricep kickback (1 min)
Bicep curl (1 min)
Upright row (1 min)
Push ups (narrow and wide) - 8 and 6 reps respectively
Crunches
Reverse crunches
1 min bridge

Great Eastern-Pacesetters Run - 22 Jan 2006

After the race - sun in my eyes and looking very "Cina"











I survived! It was one of the fastest races I'd ever run, what more I was untrained and the maximum distance that I had done prior to this was 13.5km. It was a 30km race but I entered the 20km category. I came in about 2 hours 16 mins. I was quite sure the distance was more than 20km, because I remember that in 2001 I'd run 20km in the PJ Half and I was much slower then but completed it in 2 hours 18 mins.

Woke up at 5am and not 4.30am (could not drag myself out of bed), stuffed my face with an expired Power bar and hydrated myself. Jin came to pick me up, then we picked Hsiung and Harlina on the way. I was going to take a leisurely run. By the time the gun went off, we were still chatting! We took the usual Lake Gardens-Sri Hartamas-Lake Gardens route. There were water stops every 4km and that was more than enough H2o. The also provided evergy drinks. Jenny was on duty at one of the water stations. Hats off to the Pacesetters who always organise runs so well. Honestly they should be more involved in bigger races because the FTAAA don't have a clue about organising runs. The first 10km I thought I ran quite fast, because I was quite tired by the time I reached Sri Hartamas. The mid point was near Petronas station. Took a power gel (Tropical flavour) with some water and regained some energy to continue. The second half I ran even faster because there were more downhills than uphills. Spotted Harlina happily strolling and eating on the other side of the road. She actually carried a whole bag of goodies to eat on the way! By the time I reached Jln Parlimen, I had no energy left to sprint, even though it was flat all the way to the end. I ran as hard as I could - I could feel all my thigh muscles tightening up.

Hsiung and Jin were ahead of me by a couple of minutes, then we waited nearly for an hour for Harlina!! Spotted Lionel, he was waiting for his friend at the finishing line. There was a mini fair at Lake Gardens, so i went to refuel myself with some banana and chicken porridge. Great Eastern also had a mini "Wheel of Fortune" where you spin the wheel and answer a question acoording to the category you get. I won a little notepad. (Everybody gets to win a prize anyway because they ask really simple questions..) Bumped into KC where he took the shot above for me.

It was a great race, I really enjoyed myself. The best part was a good recovery. This morning I woke up with some slight soreness in my thighs, but that didn't stop me from working out today.

Lamb to the Slaughter

I'm a lamb to the slaughter. Pinning my number to my running shirt now. Preparing my running gear: my clothes, watch and wrist pouch for tomorrow's run. Have to wake up at 4.30am (again) and stuff an expired Power Bar down my throat again. Carbo loaded today, had noodles for lunch and pasta for dinner. Hope I don't get the nervous cramps which I usually develop in the 2nd-3rd km. Think I had too much coffee today..feel quite wide awake and can't sleep early. Oh no! Wonder if I'll survive tomorrow?

Casualties of a runner

It was indeed very disturbing to read about a jogger who was raped and murdered on her evening jog last week in Sungai Petani. What is the world turning into? The irony of it was, she was actually worried for her sister who was going to jog alone and therefore accompanied her. And it turned out she was the victim. What was also scary was the fact that she was just jogging around her neighbourhood.

I'm one of those who would do things by myself if ever I can't find company to do the same. I'd go for movies by myself or have a meal on my own. And I would run alone (ya one of those crazy ones). It just isn't safe anymore. I thank God He's protected me all this while. I'm also thankful I have a bunch of other crazy people I can run with.

The last major casualty of a runner which I am aware of is a lady in my running club who got knocked down by a car while running early in the morning. I suppose running can be now considered a high risk sport.

But I still love it.

Rest day today. Took a leisurely walk on the treadmill for 30 mins, then did some stretches and core exercise. Cor! My body's so stiff. I'm having a nice quiet morning and afternoon before going in to work.

Dinner with Clau

Just came back from dinner with the gym gang. Claudine's been back for a few weeks now, but tonight's the only time that we were able to catch up with her since she's been travelling around. We had dinner at Seafood Village in One Bangsar. The quality of the food has improved a lot but the prices have also increased. It was a very expensive dinner but I truly enjoyed the company. The gym group seems to be shrinking constantly but presently it's a nice cosy size. Otherwise it's quite difficult to shout across the table. Had my second yee sang already this year. I think I didn't have any at all last year.

Oh did I mention that I signed up for the Great Eastern run this Sunday? Well it is supposed to be a 30km run but since I am untrained I only registered for 20km. Hopefully I will survive this Sunday. Only 3 of us (incl myself) are participating. At least the 20km run which I did last week (although slow as a snail) will prepare me a little.

Today I was very tired from spectacles shopping. A whole bunch of suppliers came to visit me today, and I did a lot of spending for the company. Got some new funky frames coming in. Oh I've also got some new frames for myself for a new look over the Chinese New Year. Hurrah!

Welcome home!

Tina's back today. Welcome home!!! Catch up with you soon!

Thigh Thigh

I am quite sure my thighs have gone chunkier in the last 2 weeks. With all the running that I have been doing lately, I seem to be maintaining my muscle mass. While most people are happy to maintain their muscle mass, I've always liked myself a bit skinnier. I think it is a great feat to maintain muscle mass while increasing cardio activities, but I do wish my limbs would look skinnier!I guess it's a trade off. Either have skinny but not-very-toned limbs or have them a bit chunkier without the wobbly bits. Well glad to say my legs are not jello though nowhere near J-Lo. (that was just for the pun. I don't even think J-Lo has a nice body - too much gluteus max).

I think it's also because of RPM classes, they strenghthen the thighs a lot. Well after my 30 day free trial is over, I hope I am motivated enough to do some RPM on my own.

Yesterday I ran the Pantai Hills route with the added Jln Turi in the end. Amazingly still had enough energy to do RPM after that.

Today here's what I did:
25 min on elliptical
20 min on stepper
push ups
squats with dumbells

It's not easy to train for both the run and the KK climb. No wonder my thighs are getting bigger..all that legwork. I need to start heading to Batu Caves pretty soon. I haven't even attempted climbing the 19 floors in my condo building and I have 2 more months left to my KK trip....I've always wanted to be a tai tai but now I've only ended up being thigh thigh. (Gosh where did that come from, that was corny...)

Hanoi Rocks

Places I want to go...


Tran Quoc Pagoda



















Hoan Kiem Lake













One Pillar Pagoda














Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum












Today I Globe Trekked with Megan in Hong Kong. But Hanoi's a place that I've been wanting to go to for ages. Can't wait to get some ao dai's...




Halong Bay looks really lovely and tranquil....

New furniture

Ah! Got meself my tv bench and coffee table! The tv bench's a bit huge for my liking, but it's got rollers so I can move it around. Oh well it's a rather cheap one so if i don't like it I guess i can toss it... Next on me shopping list is Billy bookshelves...

(Spoken with Cockney accent)

Backdated exercise diary

Was so ABSOULTELY tired last night, I slept from 9.20pm until 6.30am this morning. Even missed my run yesterday. must be because of heavy workouts last week. Here's what I did today:

Today:
30 min elliptical machine
1 minute squats
1 minute alternate lunges
1 minute squat with shoulder presses
10 wide push ups
8 narrow push ups
1 minute lateral raises with squats
1 minute upright row
Crunches
reverse crunches
1 minute bridge

Tuesday:
Zilch

Monday:
Interval fartlek trainig day
10 minute walk on treadmill
10 minute walk on treadmill
20 minutes interval training, slow run and high intensity run
8 minutes on stepper
Bench press
Cable pullover
Dumbell row

ALso was high flammable on Monday. Was pumping petrol, and didn't put the nozzle properly into the gas tank, so when i pulled the trigger the whole nozzle just backlashed and I spilled petrol all over myself. Was soaked to the maxiumum, and worst part was being caught in a traffic jam - so I was left to inhale all the intoxicating petrol. Didn't even dare to sms or use thephone just incase it sparked off a fire. On top of that, I didn't even use hot water to bathe, as the heater in my parent's place is a gas heater and I was worried that I'd set the bathroom on fire. Soaked my clothes for a couple of days but they still smell of petrol. Hsiung asked me to discard them but it's my favourite Saucony shirt and Brooks shorts. Sigh, will try a few more days.

Doggy walk

Friday
I had planned to do stretches and core exercises but there was no power supply on Telawi street early in the morning, so ended up walking. Did a brisk walk of 5km.

Saturday
Did 13.5km run today. Felt good actually. Tried out my New Balance shoes - my first ever pair. I'm pretty impressed with it. It's comparable to Saucony. No blisters on first run and it didn't need breaking in. Very light too, felt like I was running on air. Hoodwinked Hsiung into another extra 6.5km, to which we were both happily running away because we were both using new shoes.

Jenny asked if I had wanted to do 20km with Uncle Hooi again on Sunday, but I politely declined, since I had run 13.5km today and I need my rest tomorrow.

Sunday
Hurrah! Finally Mel likes doggy walks. Today was the first time I took him for a walk without him struggling or wanting to run home. It's strange...when he was staying at my parents' place he hated walks. He was quite happy walking around my bro's place today. Maybe it's because it's a cul-de-sac and there aren't many cars zooming around. Previously he used to be afraid of other dogs but he's built some confidence since, and was even provoking the big dog 2 doors away. Could see all his fur on his back standing. And there wasn't a second where his tail was down. Mel's growing up. :)

My mini triathlon

Today was a super power workout day. Started the day with a 6.6km outdoor run. Amazingly, even after yesterday's tough RPM class, I still had a lot of energy this morning! Woke up feeling a little sore and I thought,hmmm will probably walk. Today only Hsiung and Julia showed up. First round I went really slow, and by second round I was feeling super and could go a little faster. By third round I could sprint a little. I think the RPM class helped me to strengthen my thighs (as if, only 1 class...) Felt really good today. Right after the run, I had my usual Starbucks, and had a coffee marathon as well. Since they've been giving free refills I had 2 and a half cups of coffee (actually not very good, because it's dehydrating but I just love Starbucks coffee. Well as long as one rehydrates themself with lots of water then it isn't that bad. One should have 2 cups of water to every 1 cup of coffee...so you can imagine how much water my stomach now contains or how often I need to go to the toilet..)

After my run and coffee, I headed to Celebrity Fitness. Thought I'd check out the banghra class. I'm not really into dance, and I much prefer athletic types of exercises, so I ended up in RPM again. Today Ammetta was instructing and she did a much, much better job than the South American. Well I think we should really salute local instructors but most people end up worshipping ang mohs who look good and have no substance. To be fair some ang mohs are good, but I think we should also give local instructors a fair chance. Anyway I've always supported local instructors who have good techniques and are truly concerned for their clients. Ammetta's cueing was a lot clearer, and she constantly reminded us of our posture and technique. That's a trademark of a good instructor.

So that was my triathlon: run-coffee-cycle (Lynn style). Had a nice steam bath, also steamed my hair - now it's all soft and nice :) After that I treated myself to a lovely power smoothie - really re-energises. Ah what a lovely workout today!

My First RPM

Went for my first RPM class today (Rear Pain Maximum). Kidding....no pain in the rear at all. I had a pretty good workout, was dripping with sweat by the end of the class. It's quite fun too, with the motivating music. Actually it's something you can even do on your own, it's just a matter of changing the intensity. I mean , how much more can you do with a bike? It's just that in a class setting, it's more motivating when you see other people pedalling furiously and then you get kiasu and want to do the same.

I couldn't hear the instructor most of the time..no idea what he was rambling on with his South American (I think) accent. The bloke was quite a looker. But I reckon any bozo can teach this sort of class. Like I said, it's a matter of changing intensity and you don't even need to be rhythmically inclined. Unlike other forms of group exercise, like Body Combat or Pump or even Step, you need to follow the music and beat. Of course it helps if you are rhythmically inclined, as you get a kick (or shiok) when you cycle to the rhythm. But after seeing this instructor, I reckon you don't really need the skills to qualify - all you need is some looks and ang moh skin colour and you've made it.

I now remember why I prefer to exercise in the morning. I've got too much adrenaline flowing in me and can't sleep.

New toy

Today I did some interval training on upper body. Interspersed cardio with upper body exercises.

Cardio
25 min on elliptical machine
20 min on stepper

Interval training (1 minute each ex)

• Push up on fitball
• Side lunge on stepboard
• Dumbell press
• Step up
• Dumbell row
• Over the top on stepboard
• Assisted chin ups
• Step up
• Lateral raises
• Step up
• Crunches on fitball with legs against the wall

Forgot to mention yesterday that I tried on my Adidas running belt for the first time. It was a very good investment, as the bottles stayed snug to the body and that prevented a lot of swishing around. Very good for long distance training.

20km

The alarm went off at 4.30am this morning. My hands were too heavy to even shut it off. I can't belive I agreed to run with Jenny this morning! Finally , dragged myself out of bed and stuffed my face with an expired Power Bar. My gym buddies went for a leisurely stroll in Kiara Park today. But I ran with Jenny and Uncle Hooi today.... since I will be joining veteran category next year, I might as well start running with veterans...after all they are a lot more disciplined than the youth. Uncle Hooi is twice my age, but he's incredibly fit and has been running for 22 years. We decided to do the unthinkable today......20km..yep, that's nearly half a marathon. We met at Lake Gardens at an unearthly hour of 5.15am. By the time we started our run, it was about 5.30am. We ran on Jln Duta and cut in at the back of Bank Negara and ran around the Bukit Tunku area. Thank goodness the streets were well lit. We came out to the other side of Jln Duta, near the tennis stadium, crossed the road and hit Sri Hartamas. We ran pass the government offices, Plaza Damas right up to the Petronas station before we hit back. That's half the jounrney only..another 10km more.

The first 10km was very very slow, as both Jenny and I have not clocked in long distances in a while. More so for me, as the last half marathon I ran was in KL International Marathon last February. So it's been a year.... The second half I began to pick up speed, thanks to the Power bar I had ample energy. After we hit Bukit Tunku, Jenny asked Uncle Hooi if he had wanted to extend his distance to 30km by hitting the "Double Hill" route. His reply was, "it's ok..it' my rest day today"..Hmmmm...His rest day is 20km and 20km is like my big day!!

In the last 200m, Uncle Hooi started spirinting and I couldnt keep up! So embarrassing! I can't keep up with a man who's twice my age! It was indeed a very good run today...paced myself well. And most of all, I can't believe it, I completed 20km today!

Bumped into Tony at the carpark, he gave me several tips for my KK trip in March. I'm getting excited! I'll have to start training for it soon..

A Stroll and A Run

Sunday

Woke up early and went to the Commonwealth Park at Bukit Jalil with HL and May. Took about an hour stroll in the park. The park is pretty nice for recreation and a leisurely stroll, but not so appropriate for long distance running. Surprisingly, they even had airwalkers and steppers in the park! There were also quite a number of weight machines which worked on the principle of using body resistance. We did not have a chance to try it out, as the machines were being hogged. I doubt that the machines are well maintained, though. There is a nice little lake with ducks and geese (actually we only saw a duck and a goose). After circling the lake once we decided to go up to the peak. It seemed somewhat like a ziggurat, with staggered stairs right up to the peak. Right at the peak was a flag pole with a miserable looking Jalur Gemilang. Quite sad. Is is a memorial parked which was built in conjunction with the Commonwealth Games in KL in 1998, but sadly the memorials were marked with graffiti and carvings. Anyway it was our first time there. Next round we'll try the park behind HL's place.

After the stroll we treated ourselves to breakfast. Had a nice toasted sandwich of meat floss and dried meat. Headed off to church after that. Another new instrument was introduced during worship in songs...a rainstick. It was used in the 1st verse of "As the Deer", where the lyrics goes: "As the deer panteth for the water so my soul longeth after Thee..." So it was meant to sound like streams of flowing water..

Went to Sugimoto for lunch where I had some delicious unagi and sashimi. I enjoyed the wasabi very much because it didn't give me brain damage. Had Starbucks after that and browsed in Bangsar Village for a bit before heading off to Mid Valley to watch "Wallace and Gromit". Love the British humour, we had a tremendous time laughing our hearts out. Very , very cute bunnies though!

There was a huge crowd in MPH. Wondered what the fuss was all about....then we spotted Tun Mahathir being swarmed by hoi polloi for autograph.



Today
Decided to do an outdoor run today since weather was clear. Pounded the streets of Terasek, clocking in the usual 6.6km. Energy level: quite high today. That's usually the case because I normally eat a bit more during weekends. Started quite early today, about 6.40am. Usually by the time we start it's about 7am. Went by myself. The sky looked pretty threatening but I donned a cap just in case it drizzled. Even the aunty with the walking stick commented that I was early today. After the run, popped into the gym and did another 5 mins on elliptical machine to cooldown. Here is my exercise today:

Cardio:
6.6km outdoor run
5 mins elliptical machine
Push ups (wide) - 10 reps
Push ups (narrow) - 8 reps
Squat with lateral raises (3kg) - 1 minute
Dumbell row (6kg) - 1 minute
Bicep curl (3 kg) - 1 minute
Reverse crunches - 1 minute
Crunces - 1 minute
Bridge (1 minute)

Saturday outdoor run foiled again

Bah! Rain again on Saturday. These days whenever it's clear in the morning I should just go out and run..you never know when it is going to rain. Did 8km on the treadmill. Today I was entertained by Ian Wright in Mexico. Took less than an hour to complete the 8km....it was quite boring.

My arms and shoulders are actually aching from all the core exercises which I did yesterday! Feels fantastic. Went on the scale today..so far so good.

Tomorrow I will be accompanying HL (if it doesn't rain) on a Sunday morning walk.

Flexibility day

After 4 days of hard workout, I decided to take it slow today. Did more stretches and core strength exercises. Here's what I did:

Cardio:
15 mins cycling
15 mins walking on treadmill

Stretches and core exercises:
The Wheel
Bridge
Push up
Back extension
the bow
Leg raises
shoulder stand

Feel rather energised with all the stretches. Muscles feel relaxed..

Celebrity Day

Went to redeem my free 30 day pass at Celebrity Fitness today. Very marketing oriented. They put me through a series of questions and forms to fill. By the time I had finished the questions and had a tour round the gym, 50 minutes was over already. Shucks! I casually mentioned to the consultant that I used to teach group exercise classes before and he tried to be funny and asked me "Are you FISAF certified?" To which of course I proudly answered "yes"...

Bumped into Ammetta...she was just finishing an RPM class. Her husband still does orthotics, which is really great because I need my second pair. I can't imagine life without my orthotics!! I have flat feet and used to get a great deal of injuries..until I got my orthotics about 2 years ago and that helped tremendously to complete a marathon. The average lifespan of an orthotic is about 6 years, but half if you do some serious pounding. Looks like mine are nearly koyak...

Anyway..by the time I started my exercise, I only had 40 minutes left. I started off with the elliptical machine for about 20 minutes, and had wanted to proceed to do some fitball exercises. Just as I was going to sit on the ball, I bumped into Ellen and WWW. I sat and chatted with them for a bit and whaddya know, times up - I had to go shower and get ready for work.

Ladies' changing room was quite nice. One thing strange I noticed though - there weren't any hooks in the shower rooms to hang your towel. I am a bit puzzled - am I supposed to shower in my towel or am i supposed to walk around the changing room naked?

Overall the equipment and facilities look pretty complete. I haven't had the chance to try the weight machines yet but they are using Life Fitness machines mostly and Precor elliptical machines. I still personally prefer Technogym (I seem to have an affinity for most Italian things...) But I'll be back to try out some of the group exercise classes.

Back to Pantai Hills

Finally! I've not been running the Pantai Hills route for almost a year, and today I completed it without dying. It's one of the toughest routes, because Jln Tmn Pantai is pretty steep. I am not very sure of the distance of the whole route, but I think the last time Ragu measured it on his Garmin it was about 6-7km. It took me about 42 minutes to complete the route, but I went really slow and steady. Started off at Jln Terasek, went up Jln Ara, into Jln Turi and then into Jln Taman Pantai. There is supposedly a haunted house on Jln Turi (someone got murdered in the house about nearly 10 years ago and it has been vacant since) and everytime I run pass the house I get goosebumps. At the summit of Jln Taman Pantai, the view was breathtaking - I could see KL Tower and Twin Towers with the rolling hills in the background. It was also wonderful to see how clear the air was, much unlike the time we were shrouded with the haze. After jln Tmn Pantai, I then hit the main road, back to Jln Ara and then back to Telawi.

My energy level was quite high today despite the leg exercises yesterday. Towards the end i could feel fatigue in my legs, so I decided not to push it and didn't do an extra round of Terasek. Next time.

Ellen has given me a free pass to Celebrity Fitness, I am going to check it out and see what the hype is all about.

Today's exercise diary:
7km outdoor run

Oh ya, watched Perhaps Love last night. Sat in the 1st row!! I think I was going cock-eyed! Show isn't bad but a bit slow at some parts. Takeshi Kaneshiro is GORGEOUS..drool..

Lower leg day

Meant to go running with Jenny this morning but as alas, it rained. So I'll save the running for tomorrow, my usual running day. Instead did some lower leg workouts today (not a good idea since I am running tomorrow, but since Saturday is supposed to be my long distance day it's better to do lower leg today than Friday). In any case my gluteus maximus is maximus, so i need to work it out.

Here's what I did:
45 min on elliptical machine
Leg press (3 sets of 15 reps - 40lbs)
Leg curl (2 sets of 15 reps - 10 lbs)
Leg extension (2 sets of 15 reps - 10 lbs)
Calf raises (2 sets of 15 reps - 15 lbs)

I had wanted to use the seated leg curl (which I haven't used in a long while and I miss it) but because the gym had changed the machine I can't use it anymore because it is designed for Caucasians (Technogym equipment - made in Italy). Oh well Ms Short Limbs had to settle with the lying leg curl machine.

Another exercise which I havent done in a while is calf raises. This was one of my favourite exercises 10 years ago because I love diamond shaped calves (Diamonds are a girl's best friend). When I started running more regularly I didn't need to do this exercise anymore because running already shapes the calves.

My legs are a complete jello today. Hopefully I can still run tomorrow...

Interval training

I had a fantastic workout at the gym this morning. Did an interval and circuit training, something which I have not done in a long time. I was first introduced to circuit training when I was in university. Wow, to think of it I have been actively exercising for the last 14 years!

Started my workout with a slow run for about 10 minutes, then proceeded with Fartlek training for 20 minutes where I interspersed a slow run and a high intensity run for 2 minutes each. This is a great way to increase speed, and I haven't done this in 1 year I think? Right after that I went on with circuit training where I would do 2 weight training exercises for 40 seconds each and then do cardio activity for 40 seconds, all consecutively. I really blasted my muscles and because i haven't done this in a long time my muscles fatigued pretty fast! Soon my shoulders were shaking.

I have to shape up because I have a wedding to attend in June. Cheh! As though it is my wedding, hahah!Well I just realised that my definition has faded and my body looks somewhat like a sausage, so I need to tone up. I also am on a mission to help 2 friends lose weight! Hmm now the difficult task is to go through Chinese New Year without gaining weight...

Circuit training (40 secs per exercise):
Round 1
Squats
Alternate lunges
Running on spot (cardio)
Push ups
Bent over flyes
Flick kicks (cardio)
shoulder presses
tricep dip
Side flicks (cardio)

Round 2 (on machines)
Machine row
Lat pull down
Chest press
Shoulder presses

Such a short workout but my muscles were so tired! Have to start building up again.

Holiday today

What a great start to the new year.....pounded the streets of Terasek this morning..did 7km. I feel good!Had a really quiet morning today which is fantastic..I really need to recuperate after the busy busy year end. Over the weekend, ET came and Mien came to stay over at my new place (separate occassions). ON Saturday night, New Year's Eve I watched "Must Love Dogs" with Mien. Pretty ok, one of those feel good romance flicks. Actually there wasn't much focus on the dogs. But I thought John Cusack looked remarkably like his sister Joan, when previously I thought they bore no resemblance at all. We could hear the booming fireworks coming from the Curve, but couldnt see it from where we were. It was thunderous until some car alarms went off.

For this year, I am trying to set my priorities right, which is why you see that I don't blog as often as I did before. I need to spend some quiet time alone with God before doing other things. But I think I'm still gonna try and update my exercise diary daily.

Oh yesterday I went to watch "Cinderella", a pantomime produced by Paul Loosley starring Elaine Daly, Indi Nadarajah, Joanne Kam and a whole lot of others. It was very funny and slapstick, good no brainer laughs included! It was a localised version of Cinderella with Elvis Presley songs intertwined. Indi did a good job at belting some Elvis numbers like "Hound Dog". Douglas Lim was the narrator "Buttons" and he even threw some chocolates to the audience. The best part of a panto is being able to hiss and boo the villainous characters.

I've got an oven toaster as a housewarming gift so now I can make toast. Hurrah!

Rushing to go to my new place now, my thoughts are all over the place but just wanted to blog down my thoughts. Oh well, have a jolly good holiday!

Happy New Year!!

Well only a few more hours before 2005 is over. It has been a tough year for me, spiritually and emotionally. Therefore, I really look forward to the new year as it always brings a fresh new beginning. I don't have any new year resolutions, i make resolutions all year round anyway. In any case my life long resolution has always been to lose weight. Not that I really need to lose any more weight (as most people would tell me) but I am just paranoid. I weigh 1 kg heavier than what I did this time last year. Well that's also becaue I did the Singapore Marathon last year, but in terms of running races it has been quite a flop this year. Taking that into consideration I think I have managed to maintain my weight pretty well!

As I've said, I dont really have any resolutions, but I pray that I will fall in love with the Lord all over again, and I truly want to follow Him. I know it is something I can't achieve on my own, with all the distractions in this world..which is why I don't make a resolution out of it but I pray much about it.

Happy New Year...may the year ahead be fruitful and wonderful.

Post cantata happenings (which is not much really..)

Like HL, I miss the singing too! But I've been on an Indian food rampage the last couple of days. Deprived of Indian food for the last 1-2 months (for the sake of voice preservation) some of us immediately hit Flavour of India (in Desa Sri Hartamas) right after service on Sunday. What a feast!! I truly enjoyed the palak paneer as usual, and the bindhi jaipuri (fried okra). Right after lunch I went to Angel's place (no, my friend is called Angelina - we call her Angel. Not like I had some encounter with some heavenly beings..) for the usual annual Christmas do. Continued my feast there...didn't really eat much but munched here and there. Oh and Dharm's famous chocolate cake....

Therefore I have been pounding the treadmill yesterday and today. 5km yesterday and 3.2km today....

Celebrating Christ

Our cantata "Celebrate Christmas, Celebrate Christ" which was held last Friday was very successful. Up to our last few rehearsals we were still making very glaring mistakes, but last Friday, everything fell beautifully into place. It was truly amazing and indeed very much the work of God. I had never sung with so much joy in my heart, and could not stop smiling throughout the whole show until my face felt so tired! Now I'll have even more prominent smile lines like Linda Hamilton!

It was truly a time of not just celebrating Christmas but celebrating Christ. The most joyous part was that I was able to share my joy with my parents, Mien & her mom, Ellen & WW. I'm really glad they came. I dont have any pictures to post but I'll probably steal a few from ET's blog.

Moi? A parrot??

You Were a Parrot

You are a master of language, and you use your wit to mock and tease others. But you are also wise, and you often think carefully before you speak.

What Animal Were You In a Past Life?

I don't believe in reincarnation at all but just did this for fun. Am definitely NOT a master of language, not especially when I can't even speak mandarin. Anyway....me? A parrot? I'm quiet by nature actually...

Scary Spice...not!!

You Are Not Scary

Everyone loves you. Isn't that sweet?

How Scary Are You?

Well...just taking a break and doing some silly blogthings quiz again..

Caramel pics

I was probably too busy to blog about Caramel's move. He's moved to my brother's place and he's adjusted pretty well. He gets quite a bit of attention from the children (which is excellent for him socially) These are some pictures which I took before he left. He now sports a light brown leather collar and is bigger than what you see in these photos. He's looking very grown up now. He's extremely happy, has a lot more place to run around and he loves the grass.

Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Much has happened in the last 2 weeks, but just too busy to blog. Anyway my L shaped sofa arrived yesterday, and I'm gonna check it out later (Uncle Wong received the goods for me - I haven't seen it yet) Well at least my guests will have a place to sit now, other than my bean bags. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow, it is THE day of our Christmas cantata - "Celebrate Christmas, Celebrate Christ". Meanwhile, I have been gulping Hor Yan Hor tea, lemon green tea, Lor huan ko and the infamous PPK. Anything to keep the voice going!

I look forward to meeting up and catching up with old friends too. It's the most wonderful time of the year......(that's one of our numbers in our repertoire!)

Ran 6.6km today..very good feeling..must be the choc chip cookies....

PPK

Yikes! Exercise diary for last 3 days is zilch. Just been too busy....lazy to blog as well!Choir practice has been going well, I've been consuming Nin Jiom Pei Pa Ko (PPK) courtesy of Zandra to preserve my voice for this Friday.

I'm really looking forward to Christmas and the year end. Yippee!

The last 3 days

Been busy busy busy. Monday night was totally flat out and fell asleep in front of the telly. Tuesday night I went to visit a good old friend who was feeling down, we ended up chatting until 1am. She even showed me a birthday card which I made for her when I was about 10 (I think). Amazing. My writing has evolved so much since! Last night, I did some last minute Christmas shopping in Mid Valley - BIG MISTAKE. I was tired and sleepy (from the night before) but was stuck in the car park for half hour trying to get out. Anyway, had an unpleasant dream last night. Dreamt that I was in a quaint little town, and I was trying to get out of it but no matter what train or car I took, it led me back to the same path and I could never get out of the town. It was rather scary. Wonder if there's any significance behind it.

Today's exercise diary:
nil

Wednesday:
25 min on ellyptical machine
20 min on stepper
Double crunches
Leg raises
Crunches

Tuesday:
6.6km outdoor run

Monday:
4km run on treadmill
10 min on ellyptical
Leg press
Leg extension
Alternate lunges

New Home

I'm really too tired and not in the mood to blog. Anyhow today Caramel moved to my brother's place, and he got used to his new home pretty quick. Of course he whimpered quite a bit initially but my mom being there made the move easier.He was also affirmed by my nephew who played with him and even the next door kids came to play with him. He was extremely happy to see me tonight, jumping all over me and licking my face and of course cried when I left. His move there will be good for his social life, as he is rarely around kids at my place.

Ran 4km on the treadmill today.
Leg press
Leg curl
Leg extension

I ran 13km on Saturday!! Longest run in a long time.

I'm off to read a bit now..

Are you a Diva?

You're Part Diva

You know that a girl's gotta work it to get her way in the world. And while you aren't about to throw a tantrum at every turn... You do amp up the drama when you know you need it. You mix charm, honesty, and kindness to get ahead.

Are You a Diva?

Hey HL, ET try this and let me know your results!

Addiction

You Are Italian Food

Comforting yet overwhelming. People love you, but sometimes you're just too much.

What Kind of Food Are You?

Mamma mia! Me too much? *smile*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your 2005 Song Is

Since You've Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson "But since you've been gone I can breathe for the first time I'm so moving on" In 2005, you moved on.

What Hit Song of 2005 Are You?

Yup, moving on.

Cutie pies

Today's exercise diary:
25 min on ellyptical machine
20 min on stepper
Squats
Alternate lunges
Bench press
Flyes
Deadlift
Double crunch
Reverse crunch
Bridge

Banana

You Should Learn Chinese

Surprised? You shouldn't be - Chinese is perfect for an ambitious person like you. You're a natural entrepreneur, and a billion people are waiting to do business with you!

What Language Should You Learn?

This is hilarious!! Yes it is true, I SHOULD learn Chinese....I'm such a banana!

Just running

A ray of light,
A ray of hope.

I'm not a Sunshine Runner..I don't run as fast nor as often as them, but I can appreciate the beautiful skyline as I run. Did a 6km run this morning and it was one of the best runs I've had in a long time. Woke up feeling really tired, was very tempted to walk but it was great that I had Hsiung and Jules with me or I would have just walked. The sunburst was really beautiful, though it didn't create orange streaks in the sky, it was a bright burning ball of fire that was blinding. I'd imagine that would be what it would look like when He returns. It inspired me to run, and I felt a sense of freedom and joy as I ran.... I wonder..would I still be running in Heaven?

Today's exercise diary:
6km outdoor run

Whatever Happened to.....

Have you wondered whatever happened to some of the famous celebrities from yesteryear?
Check this out then.

Dirk Benedict (Battlestar Galactica)
Mark Hamill (Star Wars)
Carrie Fisher (Star Wars)
Kirk Cameron (Growing Pains)
Sha Na Na (band) ..I can't believe how educated some of them are!
Milli Vanilli
Debbie Gibson

More of Blogthings!

You Are Lemon Meringue Pie

You're the perfect combo of sassy and sweet Those who like you have well refined tastes

What Kind of Pie Are You?

ok...ET started all this blogthings quiz. But it's pretty fun :)
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Your Blogging Type is Kind and Harmonious

You're an approachable blogger who tends to have many online friends. People new to your blogging circle know they can count on you for support. You tend to mediate fighting and drama. You set a cooperative tone. You have a great eye for design - and your blog tends to be the best looking on the block!

What's Your Blogging Personality?

Me? Great eye for design?? This quiz is way off...
*************************************************************************************

Your Animal Personality

Your Power Animal: Deer Animal You Were in a Past Life: Panda You are a fun-seeker - an adventurous, risk-taker. While you are spontaneous, you are not very rational.

The Animal Personality Test

This is so weird.....I'm not a risk taker at all. Hmm not rational??? OK last quiz:
*************************************************************************************

What Your Sleeping Position Says

You are calm and rational. You are also giving and kind - a great friend. You are easy going and trusting. However, you are too sensible to fall for mind games.

What Does Your Sleeping Position Say About You?

Now it says I'm rational.....

It has been a pretty eventful weekend. First of all I'd just like to welcome 2 good old friends who have just come back for a short holiday - Clau from Oz and Suresh from USA. Welcome back, really missed you guys!

On Saturday night I attended a dinner hosted by one of our suppliers. It was a pretty impressive event, there was an exhibition on several brands of eyewear like Calvin Klein, Levi's, Jill Stuart and Mini to name a few. It was held at the Carlton Conference Room in JW Marriott. I felt like a tai tai shopping, trying on a couple of groovy sunglasses. This is the best part of my job (spending $$ for the company hehe..) as I get to try all the latest designs and I know what I look good in! Ended up making a purchase on Levi's eyewear. I really like their "premium" latest sunglasses which is this really huge bug eyed sunglasses which you can also use as a hairband. I generally don't look good in bug eyed sunglasses but this one was really nice. Quite loud too as the temples had huge Levi's brand engraving on them.

Anyway the highlight of the entire event was the contest. Grand prize = My Vi = my dream! I've never really won anything in contests, not even booby prizes. Quite "bad luck" (although I don't believe in luck). The only time I've ever won anything was cassettes (yup back in the good ol' days of cassettes) back when I was in secondary school. As they drew out the names of the participants in the contest I thought to myself "Oh well, another one of those days where I won't win anything". My brother got bored and decided to take a break in the loo. Just as he left, they announced our shop's name!! I could not believe it!! My heart was pumping fast from the excitement, and the wine and coffee which I had earlier accelerated it further! There were 14 prizes to be won, ranging from Nokia handphones to optical equipment to of course, the grand prize of My Vi. I thought, I'd be happy just winning the handphone, but of course deep down inside I REALLY wanted the car (some of you would know that I still drive a 9 year old jalopy and am overdue for an upgrade).

They first drew out the names of 14 participants, then from the 14 entries they did another draw. They allocated the prizes from the smallest prize (ie the handphone) to the grand prize. But the MC kept announcing one name after another and our shop was still not called out yet!! Could it be? Could the My Vi be mine? Hopeful.....very hopeful....and finally it was down to 4 contestants..that is the first 3 prizes plus the grand prize. I couldn't believe it! I made it that far!! For once in my entire life! Third prize was a lensmeter....and I didn't get it! Second prize was a drilling machine..... I didn't get that either...and then there was the 2 of us left!!!! I stood a chance of owning that My Vi!! Heart was pumping faster and faster....any faster I would have had a cardiac arrest!!! And finally the first prize ( refractometer - optical equipment) went to...........me. ARRRGHHHHH!!!!!! I was SOOOO close to winning a My Vi. My head was dizzy from the excitement. As I collected the redemption certificate for my prize, I was in disbelief. Disbelief because I had won something so big in my life and also disbelief because I was so close to winning a My Vi. Oh well I guess it was never meant to be. In any case, the equipment is worth about 25K so that would really help our shop. If I had won the car it would have been a personal gain but oh well, I guess everybody in the shop will indirectly benefit from it.

After all that excitement, I went back to my new place to chill out and sleepover. I really relish the silence and peace in my new place, with no one to bother me. There isn't much entertainment there currently, so it gives me a chance to really relax everytime I am there.

Sunday
~~~~~~
Woke up at 6.30am to accompany Jules for a walk in Kiara Hills. It was a lovely morning. For some reason it only rains on Saturday, my outdoor training day. Maybe I have to change my training to Sunday. Oh congratulations to Jenny who completed the Singapore Marathon within qualifying time despite minimal training.

Went to church as usual after the walk. Caught up with Clau over lunch at House & Co. Had my usual favourite beef rendang pita. Then rushed over for choir practice. I must say that although we can still barely hit the high notes, it seems less of an effort now to sing. Perhaps I am improving? I think we're getting there. Overall we have improved but a little off in timing in a couple of songs.

Ended the night by going to watch the Canticle Singers. The choir was much smaller this time. Their voices were good, although I must say the music arrangement wasn't particularly interesting. I think the music arrangement for our choir is 5 times better. But then their voices were 100 times better than ours...Met Liz for the first time after reading her blog for a few months now.

Saturday's exercise diary:
8.5km run on treadmill

Today's exercise diary:
4km run on treamill
shoulder presses
push ups
dumbell row
upright row
double crunches
bridge

Running around the World

I've been around quite a fair bit lately. Been to Austria, Italy, France, Portugal, Ireland and more within 2 weeks....hah...only on tv. I guess that's the only way I can globe trek around the world.. for now. Today it rained (AGAIN). It's been rainin 4-5 successive Saturdays already which means I don't get to clock in my outdoor mileage on Saturdays. I know most people would be happy to sleep in but I was all geared up to run today. Not wanting to lose out on my running, I went to the gym today.

Today I ran 8.5km in China. Here are some of the places I travelled today (with Megan MacCormick that is) Shanghai, Wuhan, Huangshan, Chongqing and finally Xian. The scenes were really breathtaking.

Oh how I yearn to travel around the world.... I haven't been out of the country (aside from Singapore) in the last 4 years. My ideal travel places would be in Europe as I love culture and architecture. As per the quiz which I did, Rome is the city I belong in. It's really true because Rome is the number 1 place I want to visit followed by Paris. I'd love to go back to Austria one day too. But travelling is far too expensive so I guess I'd have to settle for local places for the time being....or else globe trek via tv...

Today's exercise diary:
8.5km run on treadmill

Memorable Quote from Footloose

I came across this part of the script for Footloose, a really ancient movie which was popular in the 80s (Seems like I've been going down memory lane quite a bit in the last few days!) The movie stars Kevin Bacon (Ren), Lori Singer, Chris Penn (Willard), John Lithgow and Dianne Wiest. Anyway here's part of the conversation:

---

Ren: You like Men At Work?
Willard: what men?
Ren: Men at work.
Willard: well where do they work?
Ren: No, they're a music group.
Willard: well what do they call themselves?
Ren: Oh no! What about the Police?
Willard: What about 'em?
Ren: You ever heard them?
Willard: No, but I seen them.
Ren: Where, in concert?
Willard: No, behind you.



I loved this movie and it has a great soundtrack. In search of it..

Hyper!

Tried singing to "We Three Kings" on cd. Horrible! Horrible! Horrible! Screeched like a cat (as described by HL). I'm surprised my neighbours haven't thrown shoes into my compound!Only 22 more days before our cantata. Aiyo! I can't write much now. Had 2 cups of Yukon blend which is making me all hyper now, my hands are trembling and can't type properly!I think it didn't help that I ran this morning so my body is flooded with endorphins and caffeine..man my hands are shhhakinggggg noww.....uguguguguug.....

Today's exercise diary:
6.6km outdoor run