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Monday, December 13, 2010

The Last Chapter For 2010

2010 seems to have gone by rather quickly compared to 2009. Probably that’s how both of us feel about here. Maybe because we’ve been more accustomed to things here as compared to 2009. Whereas before, we were still adjusting to many things.

I know of late, there haven’t been many entries. And I believe there was a long pause between summer and now. Often there aren’t many new things to share simply because we get too caught up in the moment and forget about taking pictures. Somehow, at least for me taking pictures puts me away from enjoying the moment. So its rather best to put my camera aside and relax.

Weather wise? Fall came – it wasn’t too bad although the rain was more frequent. This year, there isn’t much snow in fall compared to last year. Infact official winter is just 1 week away. But often we still get temperatures above seasonal.

We’ve just got the car fixed and with winter tires all ready. I also got the rear window wipers tighten on my own without having to rely on the mechanic. It turns out, the nut for the screw had already wore off and all it needed a replacement.

On another note, we found out of the existence of online group coupon sites like www.groupon.com , teambuy.com and etc. It gives us the chance to try out new places to eat or visit without having to break the bank.

Work has been tight – we got to press on harder to ensure that all deadlines are met and with perseverance make it through 2011 as well.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Much Awaited Update

Haven't had time to really sit down and sum up what has happen over the past few months. You'll notice the long gap between this posting and the previous one. I believe it is fair to say that what happen in the past would better left to be remember for another day.

Given time, I'll probably come back one fine day and talk about it... For now, it is best to just say, we're now experience autumn like weather. This is our second Fall and the leaves are beginning to turn. 

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

July the 7th

It is a date that will go down in infamy – well at least for us.

First of all Germany lost to Spain which means this year’s world cup would see a new title holder (either the Dutch or Spaniards).

Secondly we are now on wheels… Yes we got our set of wheels finally. This officially means we will be seeking more places to travel to during our spare time. p.s. motor pics to follow.

Last but not least… well, a good news to kept to ourselves for now :)
More will be revealed as we see fit.

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Morning Harvest

It is so good to eat straight from the farm…

This morning’s harvest – Swiss Chard and Sage.

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Canada Day

Come 1st July is Canada Day. Celebrated much like our Merdeka Day with pomp and pride. But we only knew last minute that the Citadel Hill opens for free during the day on this important date.

Anyhow we did not miss the fireworks display at 10.00 pm. Unlike last year, we decided to perch ontop of the hill. And to our surprise is less crowded than the waterfront. Next year, we’d probably try viewing it from the bridge.

Here’s a pic of the Citadel Clock tower at night just before the fireworks.

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Thursday, June 17, 2010

Curtains

We changed our curtains. Yeay! Thanks mum…

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Walking Egyptian

It’s an onion. One that you’ll find quite common amongst home gardeners here. Apparently its a tree onion which means that the bulb grows at the tip of the stem (although they do have bulb at the bottom). We got some from a fellow gardener and cooked stir-fried with it. The bulb that is at the tip is called a bubblet and can be eaten. 

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Back After 3 Weeks

How does our garden grow?

Well here’s the outlook after we’re back.

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Saturday, May 15, 2010

Goodbye Halifax, Goodbye Garden

Last year, we applied for a plot at Peninsular Urban Garden. This year, we got a nice little plot. Sadly we have to leave our plot a little early and won’t be able to take care of the many plants we grew. I took the liberty of taking some shots of the seedlings and hope they grow and turn out right when we come back. For now, we have 2 types of lettuce, bok choy, dill & parsley, oregano, zucchini, swiss chard, spinach, carrot, ginger, marigold, and green peas.

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The plot itself

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replanted oregano from others to our plot

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here’s a budding hero – our marigold sprouting…

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this shy zucchini just starting to breath some air. Was afraid they didn’t show up.  

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funny how all seedlings either look like a lettuce or a spinach. This one is lettuce though.

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ooo… yummy spinach would sure be a great meal for dinner plate.

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and a little bit of dill and parsley to season fish or spice our dishes.

1 Year Coming…

Our bags are pack,

We’re ready to go,

Off to our home for a week or two.

Just thinking of it makes us smile inside,

Its been such a long time,

Away from home and being apart from loved-ones.

So very long it has been that we’ve forgotten

the taste of our local flairs -

of the likes of Char Kueh Teow, Chee Chong Fun, and Roti Canai.

…So long, we don’t remember the hot scorching sun of 32 degrees Celsius.

as we’re constantly worry about how cold it’ll get over here.

Less clothes but more gifts we squeeze anywhere in btw our bags,

chocolates, fridge magnets, etc – tokens for friends and family

So – here we come. Home sweet home…

A journey that’s just moments away.

Back From Boston

We just got back from Boston about 1 week ago. And I know I’ve not exactly been updating this blog for ages -  I thought I’d probably post some nice pics we took when were in Boston. Boston is just south of Nova Scotia and was about 1 and 1/2 hours flight from where we are. Its the capital of Massachusetts which is state within the New England cultural region of America.

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This is a shot of Cambridge. Somewhere near Harvard.

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Downtown Boston skyline… Amazing

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Beacon Hill…

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Some impressive architecture in MIT

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Here’s another one from MIT as well…

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Incidentally there was a marine show going on in Boston Public Gardens.

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A must do shadow shot…

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Haymarket… Fresh and cheap veges from all around New England.

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Quincy Market

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Other interesting architecture one would find in downtown area.

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Lobster salt and pepper Chinese style.

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Just love this shot of the shadow of the ol’ building against the modern all glass building.

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China town vs. Skyscraper.

Friday, April 30, 2010

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

1 Full Year

Yes its been 1 full year since we arrived…

Sunday, March 14, 2010

March Update

I know I’ve not been updating this much. I guess its a cycle. You have your ups and your downs with blogging I suppose. But in order to avoid having a long gap, just a brief update and recap of the events that took place since the last posting.

Of course, winter has officially passed us. DST (Daylight Savings Time) adjustment just took place. We’re now 11 hours behind Malaysia compared to 12 hours previously. Winter this year as everyone who’s been here longer before us is milder and warmer compared to the other years. So I guess we’re lucky. Furthermore, there haven’t been much snow.

We’ve enjoyed 2 weeks of Winter Olympics. Although it wasn’t here we were able to watch it online live. Our favourite game was Ice Hockey of course (gee, we’re becoming more Canadian).

Our research has progressed well. We’re in the midst of forming solid ideas to move on. We’re hoping to be able to go back home mid of the year and are planning it out as we speak.

We’ve been to a few places – mainly in Halifax. Of course we went for a short ski trip outside of Halifax but found out skiing ain’t our thing.

So I guess, I’ll be coming around again to update the blog with hopefully more pics when the mood is there. Of course we’ve been baking and cooking but nothing too special to be announced out loud.

Till then…

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Yee Sang Special

Not long ago, we had a CNY lunch with together with our friends from the same apartment complex. We prepared our very own Malaysian style, Yee Sang.

To make it stand out, wifey did lots of research and used the following vegetables for the combination. Color and arrangement was also a prime importance. The list of vegetables and fruits were: Pamelo (translucent), Capsicum (Red), Cilantro (Green), Mango (Yellow), Ginger (Pinkish red), Spring Onion (light Green), Daikon (White) and Carrot at the center (Orange). For the sauce topping, a special combination that included Lee Kum Kee’s Plum sauce. And roasted sesame seed was added to it when ready to serve.

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Of course a Yee Sang isn’t complete without the crispy crackers. But instead of buying ready made ones, we decided to take the risk of making our own the night before. After a near failure, we successfully were able to recreate the crackers with almost similar likeliness with the ones you find back home in our Chinese Malaysian restaurants serving this infamous CNY dish. And of course last but not the least!! The most important ingredient of them all – the fish itself. Being in Atlantic Canada has its advantage – fresh salmon is reasonably cheaper. But instead of buying off the shelf smoked salmon for the dish, we decided to cure the salmon on our own. To do that, the fish was about about 3-4 days earlier for the sole purpose of curing it to give that smoked flavour. The end product? An amazing Yee Sang dish that simple irresistible and definitely brings back memories of home.

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Bon Appétit!

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

CNY & Valentine’s Food Prep

Being away for the first time for CNY has taught us alot of lessons – one that is how to prepare your own food.

Interestingly, V day falls on the same date. So we had CNY for lunch and Valentine for dinner.

For CNY lunch, we had talapia fish and mushroom. For Valentine dinner, we had fusila pasta with smoke salmon and cupcakes.

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For the smoke salmon, we cured it on our own. That’s way cheaper than buying from the store.P1070310

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Here’s the pic of our salmon curing process…P1070260

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Saturday, February 13, 2010

Happy Chinese New Year

Finally the year of the cow is coming to an end. Although a turbulent year whilst here in Canada, it has indeed been one full of experiences and lessons learned. We’re looking forward to a more exciting tiger year ahead.

p.s. Will post some photos later. Have been neglecting this blog of late….

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Winter Has Been Kind

Last Friday’s Metro Halifax news says it all – that this year’s 2010 Winter has been very kind.

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Some Shots of Winter

Here are some shots taken when we went out during winter and just after a snowfall.

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Funniest one is this – A Chinese acupuncture physician shop named - “I Stop Pain”… 

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