Highlights of trip to Madrid

Went to Madrid last month. It was a wonderful trip. Here are the highlights of the trip:-

1. Flamenco

We went for a flamenco performance and it was probably the main highlight of our visit there. It was truly wonderful When guidebooks say that you have to watch a flamenco performance when in Madrid, they were really stating a fact!

The dancers were wonderful, the costumes were colourful and the music fantastic. But when you put them all together, it was truly awesome. Flamenco at the end of the day comes from the soul - the emotions and passions were evident and it really gave us a taste of Spain!

2. Taking walks at the El Retiro park

We spent a lot of time there. It was a wonderful place to just take long walks. The weather was not too cold and the leaves just changed colours.

3. Having a meal at Plaza Mayor

We had a simple snack of tapas and churros with sangria and chocolate - but what filled us was the atmosphere there. It was so alive and so full of history - we imagined the kind of things that took place at this very square centuries ago.

4. Paella

I LOVE paella!!!!!! Yummy!!!!!!

5. Shopping at the El Rastro

It is said to be the largest market in Europe! It was certainly huge!!!! We found some good deals there. What was impressive was the range of things that were being sold there - and the number of people who were there on that Sunday.

6. Eating delicious roast suckling pig at the oldest restaurant in the world!

Yup, according to the Guiness Book of Records, Botin *is* the oldest restaurant in the world that is still operating - established in 1725!!! Eating there was a wonderful experience - the place really had a nice ambience. The waiter who served us really good and professional!

The pig? The best that i've ever had! Really!!!!! The skin was so crispy and it broke easily and the meat so tender and juicy.

7. Las Ventas

This is the bullfight stadium in Madrid. Unfortunately, we did not get an opportunity to witness an actual bullfight as the season closes during winter.

Still, it was worth our Euro to enter into the stadium and tread where bullfighters only dare to do. It was also a very informative tour - the guide was pretty impressive!

8. The ICERI conference

This was the main reason why we ended up at Madrid (would rather have gone to Barcelona instead). It was quite a good conference - very well run. Food was wonderful! Hehe. But it was most memorable as it was the first time i've presented papers at an international conference - and it went quite well IMHO.

9. Puerto de Sol

This square is always happening!!! So nice to just hang out there.

10. Dia

Nope, i'm not kidding. I stumbled across this local supermarket and found that it was pretty decent. We ended up going there time and time again to buy groceries and food! Cheap and pretty good stuffs!

11. The Royal Palace



To be honest, it wasn't as grand as some other palaces we've been in - but we enjoyed it nonetheless. Some of the rooms were really beautiful - the paintings, the carvings, the wallpapers etc. Too bad we were not allowed to take any pics. But the exterior was beautiful too, especially of the gardens at the back of the palace.

12. Good flight!

Went by KLM. First time we took KLM and we were thoroughly impressed! Good food and comfortable seats with plenty of room! Good quality video screen too! =)

We also stopped by Amsterdam for a short while - it was so nice to see all the X'mas deco up - and we did some really good duty free shopping too!

Good day

Last Saturday was a pretty good day! Praise God. Nothing out of the world (altho item no. 9 below comes close) - it was a nice and simple but yet wonderful day. Sometimes, simple things are so underrated!

1. Went marketing with my mom! It was pretty enjoyable, actually!

2. Clear traffic down to KL

3. Nice shaded parking spot

4. Had a really nice breakfast at Yut Kee - pork chops and roti babi. It was packed but we managed to get a place immediately!

5. Went to SOGO and bought some really nice shirts - it was also cheaper than when i first saw them and wanted to buy them. I din and now i got them for a cheaper price!

6. tGiF also managed to buy a jacket for our honeymoon for a good price too.

7. Went to try on my tailcoat - looks good! On top of that, they had the cravat in the colours i wanted!!!! No need to go thru the trouble of buying my own waistcoat and hunting for a cravat of the right colour!

8. The lady at the suit rental place was really nice, helpful and frenly. It was a pleasant time at the shop.

9. Went back to Yut Kee for lunch - had the BEST EVER roast pork!!!!! (Again, it was packed but we got a place easily too).

10. Decided to stop by Tropicana City Mall - got a parking spot easily!

11. Din manage to get the tickets we wanted but we bought tickets for the same show for the next day - pretty good seats! did some shopping too.

12. Bought tGiF her super early birthday present - a pair of running shoes. Good pair which was going at half price. We stumbled upon it, actually!

13. Went to settle our wedding invitation cards.

14. Got home - tGiF rested but i watched Jamie Oliver on tele.

15. tGiF and i had a good simple dinner.

16. Went over to her place after that and managed to hook up our TV to the laptop - so we can now watch TV shows and movies on the big(ger) screen at her place instead of the laptop screen.

17. Went back to my place and we decided to watch Amelie for a while.

18. Did some reading before falling asleep!

A nice full productive day where everything seemed to be going our way! Praise God. =)

A really good holiday!

It wasn't planned but when the time drew closer, we decided to go down to S'pore during the short term break that i had recently. It was arguably my best trip down to S'pore!

1. It was a real holiday - we slept until we could sleep no more and then only got up to go out! =)

2. There was not need to rush back home at night to prepare for the next day at work or to get sufficient rest. We just took our time each nite and only went back when we were too tired to do anything else.

3. FOOD!!!!! Lots and lots of good food!!!!! =P

4. Shopping! tGiF bought some clothes for a bargain. I almost got a nice 3 piece branded suit for SGD250 but decided against it since i do not need so many suits. But i did get a really cool action figure!!!! My fav character in the HP series who also happens to be one of my fav actors!

Also, i manage to find the CD i have been looking for for some time - and could not find it anywhere in M'sia.

5. Spending almost every moment of the day with tGiF!

6. The only morning we had to get up early was to go to church - and we had an interesting and edifying time in the church we visited. Better not mention the name tho cuz i may want to blog about it another time. It was indeed an interesting time there too!

7. We did a LOT of walking. And i love walking! We even spent some time at the outdoor "gym" at the place where tGiF's aunty lived.

8. We had to travel far each day and it gave me an opportunity to think and pray, especially regarding my sermon which i was to deliver when i got back.

9. Perhaps the most important thing was that we had the time to catch up with frens. Again, as we did not have specific plans, we could spend the whole afternoon just chatting with frens. We even went to visit and see one of my fren's new baby!

10. I got a stamp on my passport! =)

Coloured hair!

Here is a list of actors with memorable hair colours:-

Natalie Portman in Closer


Milla Jovovich in The 5th Element


Kate Winslet - multicolours in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind


Anna Paquin in the X-Men series


Franka Potente in Lola Rennt


Natalia Tena in the Harry Potter series


Rebecca Romijn in the X-Men series


Anne Hathaway in Alice in Wonderland


Chloe Moretz in Kick-Ass


Johnny Depp in Alice in Wonderland

Why it was a good weekend

Spent the weekend at Ipoh - which wasn't planned! But here is the list of the little surprises we had that made it into a great one!

1. A nice McD lunch! It has been a long time since i've had McD!!! And the peach mango sundae was surprisingly good and refreshing.

2. A wonderful seafood dinner. We went to Unique Seafood restaurant - the good food was expected but we also managed to try out some new interesting dishes which all turned out to be pretty unique (pun not intended) and good!

3. tGiF's dad bought us some noodles for supper - simple fare from a roadside vendor which turned out to be really tasty!!!!

4. Having 2 breakfasts on Saturday morning! =)

5. Watching "I am number 4" - this was surprisingly much better than anticipated!!!

Teresa Palmer - part of the reason why the movie was so good!

6. Finding out that we got an early bird discount cuz the movie was before noon!

7. The popcorn at TGV was really good!

8. The refurbished cinema was impressive - much better than a lot of cinemas here in the Klang Valley

9. Having lunch at a nice local pub - feels a little like in the UK where people bring their kids to the pubs for a meal. the food there was good too!

10. Went around some furniture shops. There was one sales girl who was really helpful and nice.

11. A long and nice afternoon nap!!!!!

12. A delicious home-cooked meal by tGiF's mom

13. Discovering that Ipoh had good fried kway teow which could rival Penang's!!!!

14. Discovered good sate too - nice lean meat! In a big portion too!

15. Had a wine session at home.

16. Watched American Idol - it was surprisingly entertaining and the contestants were pretty impressive!

This was my fav performance of the nite:-

17. Went to a local bakery after church and discovered some really interesting swiss rolls - from durian to carrot to spinach to banana to jackfruit to coffee.... We were so spoilt for choice that we couldn't decide wat to buy!!!!

18. Went for lunch at a place which i previously din like cuz it was too dirty. Was pleasantly surprised that it was much much cleaner. And the food was good! =)

19. Another long afternoon nap!

20. Nice weather for most of the drive there and back home. Had a really good time chatting with tGiF.

21. Made it back on time to have dinner with me mom, me sis, me nephew and me niece. Sakea Sushi!

Yup, most of the things listed are related to food!!!! =)

Musicals I watched in London

Here is the list of musicals I have watched in London (in no particular order). It was surprisingly and disappointingly shorter than expected!

1. Phantom of the Opera - the best!
2. Wicked - very close to the best!
   
3. Les Miserables - my first ever musical in London
   
4. The Lion King - arguably the best visual spectacle!
   
5. Sunset Boulevard - clearly one of my favourites. Love the songs, the witty lines, the tragic storyline.
   
6. Miss Saigon - watched this with my family.
   
7. Starlight Express - exhilarating!
   
8. Spamalot - hilarious! Too bad i watched Monty Python and The Holy Grail before cuz a lot of the jokes were taken from that movie.
   
9. Grease - watched this when Debbie Gibson was playing Sandy.
   
10. We Will Rock You - great fun, felt like i was in a Queen's concert!!! Definitely a must for Queen's fans.
    
11. Hairspray - must say that i enjoyed the movie more.
    
12. Oliver - such a classic! Love all the songs - and i had the extra bonus of watching Rowan Atkinson play Fagin.
    
13. The Lord of the Rings - clearly unlike the movie. Visually good. I enjoyed the 2 breaks they had when characters came to us to in audience including some really scary Wraiths!
    
14. Billy Elliot - wonderful dancing!!!
    
15. Mamma Mia - this will get you up and dancing!!!
    
16. Avenue Q - wonderful songs, such intelligent and funny lyrics!
    
17. Cats - no storyline but entertaining nonetheless!
18. Blood Brothers
19. Love Changes Everything
20. Carousel
21. The Woman in White