Friday, February 24, 2006

Getting Home

Osaka’s kansei international airport was a little disappointing. It’s huge, clean (very unlike Narita) and… empty – at least the sub-terminal where American Airlines sat. I was hoping to get some duty free shopping done during my three hour layover but… nothing. I do however thank my sweet sweet husband for all the exposure in Japan. I felt so at home I actually ordered ramen (ramen o-ne-gai-shi-masu!) at the little cafĂ© (not the nice fancy type mind you lol), sat there and amen slurped myself silly lol. Can’t wait to get back there in a couple of weeks. I miss Tokyo! Ok, it’s the food… but more than anything, it one of the cities where I feel most free – certainly the opposite feeling from being ‘home’ in Singapore lol where I feel stifled and watched. Maybe ‘coz we’re there in Japan so much… I totally understand why the husband feels so comfortable there. Why we return again and again. I guess it’s one of those places where you feel you can be anyone… be yourself. After all, nobody knows who we are there. So I don’t speak their language (tho’ I wish I did) but so what?! …and while I know like all other Asians are judgemental, Japanese are so damn polite they don’t make you too self conscious about being weird. Maybe someday, when we strike that big lottery, we’d buy my dream apt and move there… ok, I guess I’d have to work on the language soon.

Well, here I sit on 23c with nobody next to me for the next three seats. Awesome! I’ve slept for gawd knows how many hours . Only four more hours to go. We’re already in north America somewhere… I’m almost certain I’m NOT gonna’ make my connection but oh well… they’d just have to put me on a later flight… I’d have to see my sweetie pie a couple of hours later. Will I live :D

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Well, they came and now they've left. The Tay-family's mini gathering here in Bangkok albeit short, was most fun and enjoyable. Being in a kid-friendly hotel like The Oriental made so much of a difference having Emma with us. Then again, at the Oriental, money talks and shit walks. So you know my little Princess of a niece had the best of everything the last few days... of course, she has the best of everything everyday; and the hotel certainly lived up to her standards (and ours, as expected). Her special meals everyday were absolutely delicious lol. The waitresses were awed by her and of course, dad had the time of his life showing his new pride and joy off to everyone :) Strangers were taking pictures of her. It was quite funny.

Despite the crazy happenings in the middle of our vacation ie mom landing up at the hospital, dad and the sil falling in and out of the bad flu that mom had caught from Emma, crazy conversations with the Cambodian traffic mover at the Conrad Hotel (you can't miss him when you drive up to the Conrad), praying dad didn't embarass us by screaming at anyone at the Oriental, dad screaming at the limo girl at the Oriental (lol), practically being 'arrested' at the hotel trying to sneak some fresh durian into the room (that was not only funny, but we saw it coming way too late and by then it was too late to even give it to the cab driver lol) and just insanity that sits by the Tay family when we're together.

All in all, I had a great time and I can't wait to get together with everyone again.
Maybe dad and Kevin will join us in Tokyo in a couple of weeks for an eat-fest lol. If not, I guess we'd go see Emma again in Australia in June/July. That girl is SOOOO adorable. I'm going to put up some short videos of her in the pictures site here so you can check it out.

Now, I have to get ready for my 24 hour relay back home. I'm so not ready for this. If it wasn't for love... lol :D

Saturday, February 18, 2006

If It's Good Enough for Jacques Chirac...

it's good enough for me :D

After a long long flight via Dallas (four hours layover), Narita (2 hr layover but almost missed my connection 'coz I'm an idiot - another story for another day), I finally made it into always-hot-and-humid Bangkok. The flights were fine albeit neverending... I got lucky and only got to share the row of 5 seats with a typically heavy-drinking Japanese businessman. On the flight from Tokyo here, got to share a three seat row with King Kong Bundi (sp?). No, not the real KKB but a very big but very friendly Canadian coming to Thailand for the first time for business. We chatted a lot. I think he was just happy to talk to anyone after an even longer flight then me. He went from Ottawa-Chicago-Tokyo-Bangkok. Better him than me.

Yes, the President of France is here at the Oriental Hotel. I arrived at the hotel at past 1am with security and an airport metal detector starring at me at the entrance of the hotel. He leaves today, I believe and in a couple of days, the King and Queen of Spain arrive. Do I feel special or what. Actually, no. What I feel is bloody safe lol.

Yes, it certainly is good to be back at the Oriental. The only regret, ROMT isn't with me... I wish he was but as I always say, someone's got to be responsible and pay the bills... and buy the big ass lottery ticket we're gonna win in a few hours lol. I miss him... missed him even more trying to fill out customs forms, going through immigration and checking-in here. Having to be responsible for myself just sucks, feels odd and a real pain in the you-know-where :D

Well, I skipped the last meal served on American Airlines and skipped everything on JAL (except the much needed cold cold yummy Japanese ice cream sandwich). I got in, took the coldest shower possible, got the internet connected (missed Bruce all over again) and eventually got some room serice at 3am. AH! Pad Thai from the Oriental. Taste of heaven... or the husband's cooking lol. For some reason though, it just didn't taste perfect without sharing it with Bruce :(

Not much to report yet... the Tay family is enroute here and I'm just hanging out online. I'm still stuffed from my dinner/breakfast so no buffet breakfast this morning lol. I'm looking forward to seeing Emma and dressing her in the little tiny outfits I got her hee hee. (I can hear the husband rolling his eyes lol!!)

More to say in a later post.

I miss my husband...

Monday, February 06, 2006

Chinese New Year Party 2006

Well, our annual CNY party came and went. It was overall very successful and I'd like to believe everyone had a nice enough time. Food was plentiful and so was booze - with the help from the bottle of Chinese alcohol that Hopie brought which had the boys doing shots in no time. It was fun and funny to see. I resisted as much as I could have done a couple of shots... but someone had to do the clean-up after the party despite having Tracey's (cleaning lady aka bartender for the evening) help. Seeing how these boys obviously know how to party, we've got to have a MUS Class of '80 party here soon :)

A couple of issues however, after this party:

1. When you say you're gonna be at a party, you turn up. When you can't, you call. I think ROMT was a little disappointed when we waited and waited and his principal - the same one who just had a big ass speech at chapel about 'kindness' failed to turn up at the party. Maybe ROMT needs to give a speech about 'courtesy'. :) I guess I'd find out why he didn't turn up. Bruce's guess is: kids' problem. My guess: They forgot. Either way, the party went on...

2. When you go to party and you enter seeing a shitload of shoes at the door, it's understood that you need to remove your shoes. If not, pay attention and THINK. Worst, if the host tells you 'you need to remove your shoes', then bloody hell DO IT! My sil had a problem with this... on the party day itself and the day after when she boldly walked into our house with her damn platform boots with her older daughter in her 2 months old Ugg boots that we got that used to be purple, now gray from dirt and her friend Kara's also dirty boots, into the house. WTF?! On the day of the party, she called to ask if I was gonna' MAKE her take her shoes off. I was adament. 'DUH'!? It's my house and my party! She claimed that her shoes MADE her outfit. I should have told her it would have to be a well fitted bra!! She said she wanted to look taller and slimmer. SHIT! If a pair of damn platforms can make me look taller and slimmer, I'd be the first to be wearing a pair even if it meant vacuuming every damned day. Ok, maybe not, but c'mon!! You've been INVITED to come to a party. You don't phucking ask if you can wear your dirty old shoes into people's house for your own vanity. This is a Chinese household. If you want to wear your shoes, stay home and parade your phucking shoes in your living room all you want! Guess who's written out of the guest list for next year's party?! Hell, women should be thanking me for not having to wear their shoes at the party for a few hours. I for one love my shoes. But if anyone gave me the opportunity to take them off, trust me, they will be off! Tall and/or slim aside, I want to be comfortable. IDIOT!

Okay, there was only supposed to be two issues but I got a call from the sil earlier. This is another issue I have with the general Americans who come and eat at my house. Why is it that everytime you taste something you'd say 'OMG you HAVE to give me this recipe!'. First of all, I don't have a recipe to anything I cook. Second of all, what makes you so sure I even want to share it with you?! I have with certain people but there are just some who just ask and ask and become a pain in the you-know-where. What is it with these white girls?! The sil says I NEED to give her ALL the recipes to ALL the dishes I cooked at the party. SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIT! Just 'coz I don't have a job doesn't mean I love to waste my time either.

So yes, those are my issues. Other than that, I had a ball. I just had to let it out somewhere and what better place then here ;p