Ma premiere entree de blog en francais (My first blog entry in French)

C'est ma première entrée de blog en français. Avec un peu d'aide de Google bien sûr...

La sensation est le même que le succès écrit le "Hello World" programme avec une langue nouvellement apprise programmation.

Si vous m'aviez dit il ya huit mois que je vais écrire en français aujourd'hui, j'ai très certainement ne sera pas parier là-dessus. Personnellement, je pense que je suis encore un débutant et j'ai encore beaucoup à apprendre. Aussi, si tant est que je peux passer mon niveau A1.3 examen en Décembre!

Ne jamais arrêter de rêver ☺





-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[In English]

This is my first blog entry in French. With a little bit of help from Google of course..

The feeling is similar to successfully writing the "Hello World" program with a newly learnt programming language.

If you had told me eight months ago that I will write in French today, I most definitely will not bet on it. Personally, I think that I am still a beginner and I have much more to learn. Also, that is if I can pass my level A1.3 exam in December!

Never stop dreaming ☺

Freedom

I was in the winter of my life- and the men I met along the road were my only summer. At night I fell asleep with visions of myself dancing and laughing and crying with them. Three years down the line of being on an endless world tour and my memories of them were the only things that sustained me, and my only real happy times. I was a singer, not a very popular one, who once had dreams of being a beautiful poet- but upon an unfortunate series of events saw those dreams dashed and divided like a million stars in the night sky that I wished on over and over again- sparkling and broken. But I didn't really mind because I knew that it takes getting everything you ever wanted and then losing it to know what true freedom is. 

When the people I used to know found out what I had been doing, how I had been living- they asked me why. But there's no use in talking to people who have a home, they have no idea what its like to seek safety in other people, for home to be wherever you lie your head.

I was always an unusual girl, my mother told me I had a chameleon soul. No moral compass pointing due north, no fixed personality. Just an inner indecisiveness that was as wide and as wavering as the ocean. And if I said that I didn't plan for it to turn out this way I'd be lying - because I was born to be the other woman. I belonged to no one- who belonged to everyone, who had nothing- who wanted everything with a fire for every experience and an obsession for freedom that terrified me to the point that I couldn't even talk about- and pushed me to a nomadic point of madness that both dazzled and dizzied me.

Every night I used to pray that I'd find my people- and finally I did- on the open road. We had nothing to lose, nothing to gain, nothing we desired anymore except to make our lives into a work of art

LIVE FAST. DIE YOUNG. BE WILD. AND HAVE FUN.

I believe in the country America used to be. I believe in the person I want to become, I believe in the freedom of the open road. And my motto is the same as ever-
*I believe in the kindness of strangers. And when I'm at war with myself- I Ride. I Just Ride.*

Who are you? Are you in touch with all of your darkest fantasies?
Have you created a life for yourself where you're free to experience them?
I Have.
I AM F***ing Crazy. But I Am Free.

- Lana Del Rey

Have.A.Little.Faith

Mid-Autumn 2012

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!

Can't Go Back

Some things you can't go back to
Some things need left alone
Don't mess with the memories of a life passed on

Oh the tumbling reservations at the heart of my mistakes
Oh some things you can't go back to cause you let them slip away

I don't wanna be a witness to a path that's overgrown
I don't wanna see this house not be a home
'Cause time has taken toll on what we couldn't see
No, I don't wanna be a witness to the end of you and me

How we're gonna make each moment better than the last?
How am I gonna make it better if I can't go back?

Oh the tumbling reservations at the heart of my mistakes
Oh some things you can't go back to cause you let them slip away

Oh some things you can't go back to

Drive

I am not a fanatic fan of Ryan Gosling but somehow he has always given me this impression of a talented actor. I thought it must be because of the many movies of his that I'd watched so I did a quick search and surprisingly The Notebook was the only one that came up in my checklist! Yet in my mind, he is the type of actor who possesses something unique and who is not famous due to looks (not that he is bad looking in any way) ..Like the Chinese always said "Sat Lek Phai" (Talented Group) instead of the "Ngau Cheong Phai" (Idol Group mostly for looking good) :þ

Maybe is his soulful expression or the way he could bring the characters he portrayed to life...

Either way, I recently watched this movie Drive which he played the lead role, and which only further ascertained his talent in my eyes. I had no inkling what the movie was about actually and the first 5minutes into the movie, I got it. He is the superb getaway driver that helps crooks to escape from crime scenes for a sum of payment while his daytime job is a mechanic as well as a part-time stuntman. He is basically pretty much a loner and has recently moved to a new apartment where he meets his neighbor Irene (Carey Mulligan) whom he don't really exchange hellos with until one fine day, he is there when Irene had some car troubles at a local supermarket. After the initial exciting start of him on one of his getaway driver job, the movie kinda slowed down and there weren't much dialogue because he, the loner, doesn't mix around much.

By the end of the movie though, I was speechless. Speechless because in the space of ~1.5hours, the entire story transformed so much with so many twists and surprises thrown in that it was impossible not to be. And I was really caught by surprise that Ryan's character (we never know his name, only he is The Driver) could be so kind one moment but determine and violent the next. And boy was he violent when he had to protect the ones he cared and revenge on the ones that caused harm. The Driver stood up and fight for what he felt was right. As shocking as it was, I was rooting for him all the way. Ryan totally nailed it.

Of course, the cast and the storyline sure helped too (I just found out Drive was adapted from a book. Now that would be an interesting read....)

Oh, and Drive was screened during the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, and I am not surprised it received a standing ovation. Indeed, I would stand up and clap myself hah..

One mistake though, and I blame it on the carelessness of the post-production who should have make away with that few frames or rather the special effects/makeup people. There was a scene [some spoiler coming up] when The Driver dragged one bad guy's hand onto a makeup counter in a strip club before repeatedly smashing the hand with a hammer. I am prettttty sure it looked obvious that all The Driver did was just hitting a spot on the counter beside the hand and not the hand itself. Meanwhile, the bad guy was screaming in pain as though his hand had been reduced to a bloody mess of flesh and bone. And if this glaring mistake wasn't enough, the guy was then pushed to the floor still groaning in pain holding his hand...wait, holding his hand??? Well, the hand still looked intact to me with little or no blood at all! LOL, that was the only goof I spotted that I burst out laughing in the middle of a supposedly intense scene. The next time we see the bad guy, he has this huge bandage around his hand ;)

All in all, it was a thrilling ride. Like a roller coaster, it was a slow ride up to the peak before we plunge down at lighting speed with sharp corners and 360° loops. And I would definitely watch future Ryan Gosling movies (hmmm..I think I have The Ides of March somewhere...*goes searching)

My Rating:

Check out the trailer here:

Summer's over

and it's time to go back to class. Well, technically my summer "vacation" was just one short week. But I guess can't take too long a timeout...I'd have surely returned everything back.

Hopefully the new term is not too crazy, afterall it's just level A1.2, or by normal education standards, probably just Elementary Level 2..

So welcome back, Sponge-Saturdays! Time for the weekly full-headed; crammed with new words, vocab, sentences, crazy masculine/feminine thingy and what not..

Lastly..
excusez mon français! :þ

Cafe 55

There is this new place in town.

Actually it's probably been around for a while but my rusty radar did not detect it until Shuey brought it up when the subject of where to eat next came up during our weekly lunch meet. Yup, we talk about what's for lunch in the coming week while we are still enjoying the current week's meal...

Cafe 55, also known as Coffee Atelier occupies the exact spot where the old Kopi Cine used to be. Confused with the dual names? Me too. So I went to do a little background research. Apparently Cafe 55 is part of Coffee Atelier; the latter being made up of 5 pre-war shophouses and the former taking up one of it. The other 4 comprises of 2 suites (all restored to their former glory and opened for short/long term stays), an art gallery, and Kopi, a coffee museum.

Sparsely decorated with paintings adorning the walls, the place was not overbearing, but neither was there much to shout about the ambiance and environment.

Cafe 55 offers a variety of food from breakfast menu to tapas, mains to desserts, as well as a selection of beverages and wines. We decided to order a sweet potato smoothie with smoked salmon, a bacon & mushroom carbonara spaghetti, and a vongole pasta.And as coffee lovers, coffee was definitely a must. So vital it was that coffee could possibly make or break recurrent visits.

Sadly the coffee did not meet our expectations and the time it took for the coffee to reach our tables (with only us and another table occupied at that moment) from the counter certainly did not help. The supposed-to-be-hot coffee had cooled and OEL complained her latte tasted as though it contained only milk. And if you are expecting fancy coffee art, nope, there were none.

The food on the contrary was presentable and pretty good. The sweet potato smoothie goes nicely with the taste of smoked salmon and baguette. The carbonara was sprinkled with lots of bacon pieces and sliced mushrooms (thumbs up from moi, the mushroom lover), and the vongole looked as if there were more clams than spaghetti.

Then came to settling the bill. We were actually  shocked at the price as we never thought the few things that we ordered could totaled up to that amount. Come to think of it, it's kinda pricey. And a glitch in their credit card payment system frustrated us further and caused us our plan to have dessert in a nearby place.

Overall, we agreed we might go back someday but coffee was definitely out of the question.

Coffee Atelier
47-55 Stewart Lane
George Town
10300 Penang, Malaysia

Holes Inside

When all that you've tried, leaves nothing but holes inside
It seems like you're wired, to stay here held in time,
Cos nothing seems to change, oh no.
No, nothing's gonna change, at all.
I can see it in your face, the hope has gone away.

But if you hold tight, shadows will be lost in the light.
Oh cos sometimes, fate and your dreams will collide.
So don't walk away from me, 
Don't walk away from me, 
Don't walk away from me.

Your feet are stuck, no they cannot move.
Don't tell me that they're glued.
should they're far from.
At home, at ease but give sometime to breathe

With nothing seems to change, oh no.
No, nothing's gonna change, at all.
I can see it in your face, the hope has gone away.

But if we hold tight, shadows will be lost in the light.
Oh cos sometimes, fate and your dreams will collide.
So don't walk away from me, 
Don't walk away from me,
Don't walk away from me.

But everything will be ok, 
I know that it's so easy to say, 
But the pain inside will fade,
Please tell me that you'll stay.

If we hold tight, shadows will be lost in the light.
Oh cos sometimes, fate and your dreams can collide.
When all that you've tried, leaves nothing but holes inside.

Into the real world of scrapping I go..

I've always been careful to stay within the boundaries of digital scrapping as I felt my art or DIY had better chances of surviving in the virtual world where clicks of the mouse button could do wonders.

I would only looked longingly at the other side, the real world and admire the great stuff created by others. And the furthest I'd gotten was purchasing some actual materials. Those oh-so-beautiful-materials; from colorful papers to cute buttons to pretty ribbons to lovely embellishments....but they've only stayed in my drawer of creative things, never out from their nice packagings, smiling each time I paid them a visit, inviting me to start using them, which I never did....

Then I dunno what got into me yesterday. My hands took a life of its own and I started measuring, cutting, planning, glue-ing and voila...

My first handmade CD sleeve. 

Spring of Love

I kept it simple as I reckoned simple was always the best way to go.

So that's it, I've finally taken a step out of the digital scrapping parameters. I do not know what or when my next project will be. Perhaps when my creative cells get replenish and we'll see ☺

Skinny Love

The song that is haunting me right now...




Come on skinny love, just last the year
Pour a little salt, we were never here
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer

I tell my love to wreck it all
Cut out all the ropes and let me fall
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Right at the moment this order's tall

And I told you to be patient
And I told you to be fine
And I told you to be balanced
And I told you to be kind

And in the morning, I'll be with you
But it will be a different kind
'Cause I'll be holding all the tickets
And you'll be owning all the fines

Come on skinny love, what happened here?
Suckle on the hope in light brassiere
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Sullen load is full, so slow on the split

And I told you to be patient
And I told you to be fine
And I told you to be balanced
And I told you to be kind

And now all your love is wasted
Then who the hell was I?
'Cause now I'm breaking at the britches
And at the end of all your lines

Who will love you?
Who will fight?
Who will fall far behind?

Come on skinny love
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my

Behind 50

Behind 50: Food & Ambience

The name of the place had floated in and out of many a conversations so I decided to give it a try (twice since then actually). A quaint little place that I heard used to be a bicycle repair shop back in the days, Behind 50 turned out to be  quite a cozy spot with old school decors and memorabilia that attracts quite a crowd. We were lucky to be one of the first few customers and as the evening made way for a cool night, the place was quickly filled up with almost every seat taken.

Part of the walls were pasted with photographs of ordinary lives in Penang taken by local photogs. These were simply framed in black wooden frames which gave the whole place a kind of nostalgic feel. Other walls and empty spaces were knick-knacks from the olden days; an old bicycle here, an old typewriter there. There's even a classic LP record player with, not surprising, a Whitney Houston LP cover fronting the stack of records. Then there's the collection of old time matchboxes with beautiful poster girls, and toy figurines that most 80s babies would probably recognize. The ceiling was also an interesting sight; wooden planks with cane baskets lying on top. Oh, and the light bulbs. I have to mention the light bulbs. Ordinary incandescent bulbs but they are surrounded by silver teaspoons, giving them a kind of antique-ish look. Fits the place real nicely ☺

The menu came in these old classic story books with pages inserted.. a pretty novel idea I must say. There are also specials of the day on the blackboard made up of western poultry dishes. There's also the usual snacks, soup, pasta, and drinks. However, they seem to be always out of coffee beans for the "Behind 50 Coffee"..yup, for both the times we were there. Time to increase their stock intake perhaps *winks

Behind 50: Menu & Knick-knacks

I had the mushroom soup [why am I not surprise?] and I like it. Behind 50 makes it to the MY list of good mushroom soup places to go! The soup is filled with tiny pieces of chopped mushrooms - not too tiny that you can't even taste it - that made every spoonful a delight. Really, I would go there again just for that.

Next came the Siam Lobak (fried bean curd skin roll stuffed with minced chicken) that the waitress recommended to us. Crispy and not bad. The main course of Hawaiian chicken (grilled chicken with pineapple-based sauce, and baked potato, mixed vege as sides) was ok as well.

Drinks were chocolate milkshake and hot honey lemon for each visit respectively. You can never go wrong with honey lemon I guess but I had had better tasting milkshakes. So no more milkshakes for me at Behind 50.

Overall, Behind 50 is worth going back to. Located at the end of Muntri Street where Muntri meets Love Lane, it's almost peaceful sitting there and watching the occasional car passes by, reminiscing the good old carefree childhood days gone by while sipping on hot honey lemon drinks and snacking on delicious mushroom soups and Siam Lobaks... (plus it's neither warm nor stuffy in here with strategically placed ceiling fans and air curtains).

P/S: The name Behind 50 comes from the place being situated behind a pre-war house with a number 50 in its address.

Address:
Behind 50
Muntri Street, 
10200 George Town
Penang

iPhone: Siege Hero

I've been pretty occupied lately that this blog had practically gone into hibernation hence I think it's time to do something about it - right on the last night of a long festive weekend...

In truth, I am kinda in the iPhone games mood and had been checking out the top free games on App Store. Most are still in their many stages of completion - halfway here, a quarter there - but I actually completed playing the game that at the beginning I thought I would most unlikely be hooked, in just 2 days.

Siege Hero: The Cover
(click image to enlarge)

At the first glance, most would say Siege Hero is just probably a rip-off of Angry Birds. Indeed the concept is similar; throwing weapons at a fortress of soldiers (or green pigs in AB's case) to bring them down, scoring more points the less tries needed. However, while I never did warm up to AB - of which I still don't - it took me no time to get all determine to finish Siege Hero.

Somehow the little cute, evil ninjas/soldiers/vikings/red indians/cannibals (depending on which level you are at) standing there on the fortresses, wickedly inviting you to take them down work so well. And to hear their sinister chuckling-s when you fail to do so just fires you up to try harder and harder and harder still, not stopping until the blocks of woods/bricks/steels are in ruins. [Yup, that was how "obsessed" I got..]

Siege Hero: The Storylines
(click image to enlarge)

The game consists of 3 major levels, cleverly called 'Ages'; the Fortress Age, the Age of Discovery, and the Age of Pirates. Each 'Age' is made up of 3 storylines with 21 stages each i.e 63 stages/Age i.e 189 scenes and hours and hours of gameplay. The storylines are similar and differs only in the settings. They start with a prologue of evil conquerors closing in on peaceful dwellers (portrayed as adorable girls) and take them as hostages. The backgrounds are nicely drawn (there's day/night, sun/rain/snow, etc) and the characters all cutesy - even the bad minions.

As you play on, new weapons are introduced. You start with the basic rock throwing and then you have a 3-rocks-in-one-go, bomb, fire jar, oil barrel, and a grappling hook to pull things apart. What you don't have however, is a choice. You don't get to choose which weapon to use, no sir, you don't. Instead, they are given to you in arranged sequences. That is where the game gets interesting. Siege Hero is not a throw-and-hope-you-hit game, it actually requires you to strategize, however little it may be, and in some cases making use of whatever physics knowledge you may possess. The lineup could be a hook, rock, fire but if you don't target them at the correct points, the fortress ain't gonna come tumbling down, and "Siege Failed" is all that awaits. If you are lucky, you get 4 rocks in some stages but others might only have 2 fires in store for you. So use your weapons wisely....

Siege Hero: The Gameplays
(click image to enlarge)

And if you think that is all, these game developers bring the game up another notch. They place the captives within the fortresses and being the hero that you are, you are suppose to ensure that your hits do not kill them or *poof you'll be seeing angel wings. But well, I have to admit, sometimes collateral damage happens *whistles

Overall, Siege Hero is an addictive, fun game that works your brains at the same time. And frankly, I was frustrated at times when I was stuck at some crazily difficult stage and just couldn't proceed. But the euphoria of seeing the walls coming down when you got it all right......

P/S: There is an Age of Cowboy in the making and let's hope to see that out soon *fingers crossed

My Rating:

2011 was the year

• polka-dotted by many goods to the not-so-goods to the not-good-at-alls..
• I co-authored a second advertorial that was again published in The Star.
• cafes and restaurants became regular features in the quest to enjoy the perfect cuppa and delicacies, especially a particular mushroom quiche, salmon tartare as well as a certain "Taurus"..
• I was ecstatic over my first Victoria Beckham sunglasses that I dedicated a post just for it ☺
• with sporadic recipes and cooking sessions.
• I found the bottled chili flakes for my spicy olio pasta so I no longer needed to rely on Domino's Pizza.
• of iPhone games craze no thanks to super adorable OmNom of "Cut The Rope" fame; with a new category added to the blog for it.
• yours truly got her Green Belt after sweating over the many measurements, charts, and tools that came prior to it.
• of the Penang heritage trail with the girls so I could now proudly say, "Been there, done that!"
• I attended the first George Town Literary Festival, and even got my "The Gift of Rain" book autographed by the author himself. 
• I managed 10 books + 5 comics, registering a rise in my book-reading graph from 2009 & 2010. 

• where there were so many new TV series incoming that I almost had a hard time allocating time for each yet somehow managed quite nicely..
• of a number of weddings, including my only brother, cousins, and even one all the way in Phuket which was a definite first.
• I looked back at the many good times we had as kids and realized how we'd all grown up in our own ways and the memories left bittersweet aftertaste..
• I was caught by surprise at the occurrence of certain events that changed my perspectives and resulting in me threading ever so cautiously after..
• I had to finally admit that some things or people were just not what they were portrayed to be, and that perhaps we had reached the junctions where we must part ways..
• iPhone became a serious photography tool with albums for each day of the week, plus a new wide/macro lens to capture the small details in the big pictures ☺
• with a couple of new found hobbies that I never would have thought about indulging in but was glad that I did.
• a little bee decided to land on my neck and yes, it was better than her rabbit ☺
• a few items were finally under my name for good.
• I made some online purchases and I think I am a little hooked!
• I had high teas at high places.
• Damon and I were still misunderstood beings LOL

2012 is a year with much changes and blank pages...but while we are at it - perhaps throw in an Acacia as well as a pair of new shoes - let's take our strides to meet the new year ahead. C'est La Vie ~

HaPpY NeW YeAr 2012!

Christmas Greetings 2011

Faith makes all things possible,
Hope makes all things work,
Love makes all things beautiful, 
May you have all the three for this Christmas.
Merry Christmas!

George Town Literary Festival 2011

So it seems my love affair with China House has yet to end as I found myself there again 2 Sundays in a row. Where prior visits were mostly for meals with friends, the latest was actually a first such event that I'd ever attended in my life - a meetup with authors in conjunction with the George Town Literary Festival 2011.

Call it fate or coincidence, the reason I decided to attend in the first place was because it featured Tan Twan Eng, the author of "The Gift of Rain", a book I was eagerly reading (and had since completed) then and I was actually excited to attend a reading cum discussion session to hear what the author had to say. Plus I kinda had a few questions lingering in my mind, one particularly being "Is the island, the island I think it is??"

Not wanting to jump straight to the end but I did ended up buying 2 books by the other 2 authors who were also present that day, hah not so sure if such events are good for my pockets..

Autographed by the author himself  :)

Anyway, the event was held upstairs at the Kopi Cine side of the building (facing Victoria Street), away from the hustle bustle of the very-familiar-by-now China House, and of which was quite a breath of fresh air to be honest. To add in to our delights, coffee/tea and cakes were complimentary i.e no worries about what to eat for breakfast. It wasn't a full house event but the crowd that day was a pretty decent number with a well mixture of the young and the old, locals and foreigners, as well as guys and gals. "Penangites, expatriates and tourists alike do read local books, how nice!" was my thought ☺

Tan Twan Eng was clearly the main draw, seeing that there was even a "An Evening with Tan Twan Eng" dinner/reading/conversation hosted at the E&O Hotel (and which cost RM50/pax) the night before but the other 2 authors, Iskandar Al-Bakri and Shih-Li Kow, had charming tales to tell as well. How could a tale of conspiracy, sorcery and black magic not be appealing, right? What more, Iskandar even had "props" to share with the audience; a "kayu hujan panas" which he claimed if used to hit a person, he/she will gradually go crazy. Bizarre? Curious to know more? Right, buy that book!

The authors each took turns to read excerpts from their books followed by a series of questions from the audience before the floor was opened for Q&A directed to individual authors or together as a whole. An interesting experience I must say and it exposed me to different genres, perceptions and views. For example, did you know that The Gift of Rain was written entirely in Cape Town, South Africa even though the story takes place right here in the Pearl of the Orient, almost a quarter of the earth away? And that it took 4 rewrites before he was satisfied with the final copy? Did you know that Shih-Li Kow is only a part-time writer and actually works at a shopping mall (to pay the bills she said) in Kuala Lumpur?

Overall, I am glad that a Literary Festival was held in Penang and I look forward to attending such events in the future. That is coming from a certified bookworm who is hoping for more bookworms to be nurtured.

Oh, and if you were wondering if I managed to ask that question....well, it was asked but not by yours truly. A lady said she was dying to know where the island was and was the island that island where her balcony at The Cove overlooked? Unfortunately, Mr Tan only gave a cryptic answer and insisted the island was whichever island you wanted it to be...

My take on that?

I'll cover it when I review the book in a coming post *winks

China House

Blogging on the scene...now that sounds kinda interesting to me. Shuey gave me the idea when she asked if I was doing just that when we first reached. Ok in truth, I might not have actually completed the entire post in China House itself but not too bad for a first try, right? *winks

So here I am on a rainy Monday evening inside China House, with English Breakfast (they ran out of camomile and earl grey, can you believe that?), a tiramisu and a Vietnamese tart  to keep me company. Oh and Shuey too of coz, though mostly we are keeping each other company only by our physical presence with minds in our own worlds.

a section for just about everyone

It's actually my 3rd visit here already; the most to any of the cafes around Penang. I think China House kinda has it all. From casual breakfasts to quick lunches to cozy teas to fine-dining dinners, you can do all that here. There are even different sections in this pre-war house that cater for the different needs. Not to mention rooms for private functions and a lounge area surrounded by all types of wine. And if you are the bookworm type like me, you'll like the back area where there are shelves filled with books and magazines for you to browse as you enjoy a cuppa and a dessert or two.

Did I mention that they are quite famous for their desserts with an unusual tiramisu cake made with kahlua topping the list? I was here for lunch once and sitting right across the cake counter and my-oh-my, the tiramisu was down to the last piece in no time (there were like 4-5 pieces when I first sat down).

breakfast, lunch, dinner and everything in between

Even though the place is called China House, don't expect the menu to be Chinese Chinese, if you know what I mean. They are more leaning towards western fusion. While there is not a long list of dishes to choose from, their breakfast/lunch menu does served up till 6pm. For dinner apparently there are 2 options; either the fine-dining way where you will be seated in the more posh-ly decorated area with nice china, drinking glasses and cutlery, or the common area where the all-day dining are served. I've not personally tried the fine-dining menu yet but I'll keep you updated if and when I have the opportunity to check that out ;)

For myself, I've tried their brunch of beans & lamb sausage with egg, toasts, and caramelized onion (very filling!), their lunch of roasted chicken with vinaigrette salad (tasty), and their dinner of vegetarian spaghetti (done in a nyonya-ish way with bunga kantan or ginger flower; an interesting recipe) and chicken mushroom pie (what you'd expect of a pie except it was on the house *yay).

for the art lovers

There is also an upstairs gallery where artworks of local artists are on display for sale so one can have a quick look-around after their meals before they leave. Interestingly, China House has two entrances, each facing a different road so the building is actually a combination of 3 heritage buildings. I've yet to explore till the other end entrance but right in between is an open-air courtyard with greenery but also an empty pool. My thoughts, if they spruce the place up with better landscaping, it could do wonders.

Lastly, China House reminds me of Kopi Cine and if my observations are correct, they are sister cafes. The tables at both cafes have clipped-on mahjong papers, each with a glass of crayons for the diners to draw on, and the teapots used are similar stainless steel pots. And if those aren't enough, the China House menu even has "Kopi C" as a header. But you decide...☺

Updated Nov 10th, 2011: Apparently China House is the new Kopi Cine relocated from the old place at Stewart Lane.

Address:

153 & 155 Beach Street,

Georgetown, Penang.

The other entrance:

183B Victoria Street,

Georgetown, Penang.

Tel: +604-2637299

Real Steel

I know it has been showing for a while now and most of you would have probably watched it anyway but I really wanted to blog about it (But stop reading this moment if you haven't and if you do not want spoilers.)

It's been a while since my last trip to the cinema (I think it was Insidious?) and it's just good that it was Real Steel that I watched.

Because I kinda love it, robot boxing violence and all.

A quick run on the synopsis; Real Steel takes place somewhere in the near future, year 2020 or so, where robots have replaced humans in the boxing ring. Yup, humans don't have to get hurt no more, instead they just control the robots with high-tech looking consoles or hand-held controllers. Some robots (a.k.a Noisy Boy) could even take in voice commands. Just speak into a bluetooth-like headset and instruct the robot; "upper-cut! dodge! swing left! swing right!" - well, you get the drill.

So we have Hugh Jackman playing the lead role as Charlie Kenton, a former boxer but who is now kinda in a deep debt which he trying to pay off by earning big money in robot boxing. Unfortunately things aren't going too well for him at all due to his hastiness and over-confidence. His first robot, Ambush, got totally mauled by a real-life bull and Charlie finds himself in hot soup which he could only try to run away from (but you know soon the bad stuff catches back up on you). He also finds himself having to take care of his preteen son, Max, whom he couldn't care-less (at first) and only agreed to the baby-sitting for the money (to buy a new robot so that he can earn back his cash asap). Then there's Bailey (played by the beautiful Evangeline Lily of Lost fame), childhood friend of Charlie, who is in love with him but had to ask him to leave as she could no longer support his debts while maintaining her deceased father's boxing gym. And the movie goes about detailing more fights while focusing on the father-son relationship.

So what made the movie stand out? You might think it's just robot boxing and that's that. Or perhaps it would only appeal to the guys with all the actions and fighting. Truth is Real Steel is more than that. In fact, it's so good that for once the girls wouldn't mind watching robots fighting.

Seriously.

The movie has such passion in it that it simply moves the viewer. It sure moved me at least. I enjoyed the movie from start to end and there wasn't really any moments/scenes that I disliked. It was exciting watching all the fights and the moves as if they were real and I was standing by the ringside. I grimaced at the violence but I also had a good laugh at all the antics. From the great Midas stroking his red Trojan hair after thrashing Noisy Boy, from the mighty Zeus flattening some unknown robot's head with just a clap of the hands, and definitely the dancing moves of Atom, the sparring robot that Max had to dug up on his own at some junkyard, no thanks to his dad who refused to help him!

And of course, the father and the son. Max is adorable and smart (or genius, so he says) and in actual, looks up to his dad and just wants Charlie to fight for him. The scenes between them are realistic, humorous and personal that it touches me as well as tickles me. It is only because they are so alike that they are always at loggerheads with each other but it sure keeps the audience entertained.

But what makes the movie stand out is really the cinematography. Kudos to director Shawn Levy for his visions. The angles, the lightings, the settings are just beautiful and very well captured. Even Charlie's pose while pumping gas was hilarious but way COOL. Levy is great at catching those moments; the frustration here, the anger there, the triumphs and the tears.

Overall, the movie is about how you gotta have hope and how when you have been beaten down, you have to stand up and fight somemore. You know what the ending is going to be like but you don't mind. You are in it for the feel good factor and coming out of the cinema at the end of the day with a happiness jab in the arm ☺

My Rating:

The Science of Deduction

Blogging had taken a step back lately due to a sudden series tsunami.And the influx was so overwhelming, my days and nights were practically swarmed. Thus, it comes as no surprise what my blog post's going to be about...afterall it's TV Tuesday!

When it comes to solving mysteries, the name Sherlock Holmes is never far off. What with Warner Bros. even bringing the character to life with a face that strikingly resembles a certain Robert Downey Jr. There's even an Iphone game bearing the same face - which I would probably cover in some other post. Sir Authur Conan Doyle created the character a few centuries back thus the stories  always take place in late 1800s London with cobblestone streets, horse-drawn carriages, Pea Soupers and what-nots. And I certainly do not have any complains about the settings, being a fan of the Renaissance and the Victorian eras.

So when I was introduced to Sherlock, the TV series, I was expecting a similar setting and eagerly looking forward to it. (Coincidentally, I am halfway through a Sherlock Holmes novel myself - check out "Aftertot is Reading" at the side.) You bet I was surprised to see a modern London setting to begin with. The thought of "Did I copy the wrong files?" flashed across momentarily but was quickly overwritten by "Wow, a modern Sherlock Holmes! Now, how are they gonna portray this?!" with the first appearance of Dr. Watson, Holmes' trusted sidekick.

And I must say, the guys who created this series are just brilliant. They managed to put a modern twist to the stories so well that one would believe the stories are written in the 21st century themselves. Obvious example; Dr. Watson no longer jots down his adventures with Holmes in a journal. Instead he is now a techie guy who owns a blog, aptly named The Personal Blog of Dr. John H. Watson - and yes, it really exists!

And Holmes in the show is a genius with a wit that makes you laugh out loud, as long as you are not at the receiving end of his remarks. He is arrogant and funny at the same time. And one would say he is really sly and manipulative. But in a good way i.e. in the name of solving mysteries and murders. Benedict Cumberbatch, the actor who plays Holmes, is superb in the role and plays it to a T. Martin Freeman is great as Watson with funny antics almost always befalling him. Dialogues, plots, places and characters are wonderful all around.At the end of the day, it makes you wanna visit London and speak like an English...

The only downside is the first season is too short with just three 90-minute episodes, each a case of its own. The cases are adapted from Doyle's works - A Study in Pink (based on A Study in Scarlet), The Banker (based on The Valley of Fear and The Dancing Men). Thankfully though, the show has been picked up for a 2nd season schedule to be broadcast in early 2012, seeing that it won the 2011 BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series..yay! (BAFTA is the UK-equivalent of the Emmy Awards.)

Looking forward to more Sherlock but am glad for the hiatus. Now my other series can fill in that gap *winks

When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth - Sherlock Holmes

My Rating: