Maxim's Palace, Hong Kong

I am way behind my posts, especially my Hong Kong trip in November 2009. There is some technical issue with uploading pictures onto my blog and it is still not resolved yet, so I'm using a very tedious alternative way of doing it now. Hopefully Apple can fix this problem on my Macbook soon!

Maxim's Palace @ City Hall is my favourite place for dim sum! Never fail to visit it whenever we are in Hong Kong.

As usual, we over ordered because everything just looks so good! And they usually taste good too!

This vegetable dumpling came steaming hot onto our table, and the skin is so translucent, you can see the green veggies inside! It was delicious even though it is just veggies and skin :)

I wanted to order the steamed pork ribs, but read the chinese words wrongly and pointed the beef ribs instead! But doesn't matter, because no matter beef or pork, they just taste good! Tender pieces of beef doused in black pepper sauce, what's not to like?

This is another one of my favourites - prawn "cutlets" - ok, don't know what they are called exactly. But heck, these taste so fresh and prawny! It will be perfect if I have Kewpie mayonnaise to go with these!

These are bo lo char siew buns - buns with a crispy crumbly top filled with delicious char siew. I've always wondered how they get the crispy thing on the bun? They are not stingy with the fillings, so every bite you take is flavoured with char siew!

This is the "har kok" - another fried prawn dish but just couldn't get enough of fresh prawns! Somehow the prawns they use seems to taste crunchier and sweeter? Or just that they are more generous with quality ingredients?

We also ordered the usual "feng chau" (chicken feet), har gow, carrot cake, etc. And they are all equally delicious. No pictures taken as was too busy eating!

After devouring all the delish dim sum, I still have to squeeze in some dessert, because Maxim's has the best almond paste and sesame paste! You can order them individually or mix them up into "black and white" like I did :) The paste has just the right consistency and you can really taste the fragrant almond and sesame! I've never eaten anything like this!

Oh, don't forget the mango pudding and the soya bean curd! They are all equally delicious.

I am getting hungry as I write this post! Can't wait to go back to Hong Kong and savour the dim sum again!

A different perspective on life

As my office goes through a 2nd round of retrenchment this year, I have been blessed and spared the axe the 2nd time.

But there is no guarantee that it will not happen in the near future.

Through all the ups and downs in the office, I have learnt to take things as it comes, and prepare myself for the worst. I do my best to perform in my job, and hopefully can come out of this economic crisis unscathed. But who knows what will happen next?

I must say that I have been blessed with the chance to travel to new places for work and for pleasure. I still splurge on Miu Miu bags, Vivienne Westwood shoes, and leisurely lunches at gourmet restaurants.

And I came across this article by Dr Lee Wei Ling.

The article tells you that life is how you perceive it to be - whether it's good or bad, it's up to you to decide. After reading it, I hope that I can learn to be more contented in life, and be happy with what I already have.

After all, it's up to God to decide what bag I carry, and so far he has been more than generous :)

Happy Brekkie....

is a bowl of Coco Pops!

Crunchy, milky, chocolatey....what's not to like?

Happy Thursday!

Missing someplace....

.....it's calling my name...it's beckoning me to visit it again.....

and indulge in decadent agnes b. chocolates....

or just walk along the streets, dotted with chic designer boutiques...

and drink their lusciously fragrant milk tea anytime of the day, hot or cold...

My dear Hong Kong, see you next week!

The Venetian, Macao

The road back to civilization is a hard one. It is supposed to be an easy peasy walk across the border from Zhuhai to Macao, but it was made complicated when you are travelling in a group of 19 pax!

First, we had to settle the problem of the 16 pieces of luggage! We were swarmed by "porters" bearing big trolleys and wanting to "help" us to bring our luggage over as soon as we alighted from the bus.

Bickering ensued...I am lost in their heavily accented Chinese...and just let the guys in the group handle it. It was decided that this is how we are going to bring all the luggage over...

I am truly impressed with the ingenuity of this simple idea of stacking the luggage up on a single plank of wood with wheels! Now, you may ask why we need to do this, and the reasons are:

1. There were kids and old folks in the group, so each adult may need to lug 2 luggage.
2. The immigration booths are separated by narrow fences and it will be difficult to drag a big luggage through it, let alone 2 luggage.
3. We were swarmed by really die hard people who really wanted to make a quick buck out of us! And we will probably not be allowed to leave until we pay them something!

It was with a joyous heart when I finally cross into Macau - land of the casinos and pork chop bun and portuguese egg tarts :)

I was even more joyous when I see the rooms in The Venetian!

Just to give you an idea how many people can fit comfortably into the sitting area....eh, and my dear family is not exactly on the small side! Ha!

The gorgeous bed is queen sized with that really princessy European curtains over it...I like!

The bathroom is bigger than my bedroom at home. I think at least 6 people can sleep on the floor of the bathroom!

Now do you believe me when I say the bathroom can sleep another 6 people??

Another close look at the living area, I really like how European it looks - all the mismatched stuff somehow comes together into a cosy area. Oh yes, I am so going to enjoy The Venetian!