Thursday, February 23, 2006

Work Work, Eat Eat

Woke up in the morning, on the TV and found that here they had National Day Celebration in the morning. According to the locals, it started at 730am. By the time I switched to the channel, they were already finishing. So didn't get to watch much of the performance.

It was holiday today, so stayed at hotel room to continue work, trying to complete everything by Saturday. Was watching Erin Brockovich, which was on show at around 11am. But could not finish watching as it was lunch time liao. DT, XY and me waited for PK and SS to drive back to the hotel from DC. As the car was low on fuel (really low), so had to go top up before lunch. But the petrol kiosk at Gadong was closed for the day! Didn't know that they were not operating 24/7.

Petrol Kiosk Closed

After circling the area for a while, DT called one of our clients to find out where we can find an operating petrol kiosk. We were told that there is one near the airport. So we drove there, and if we did not find the petrol kiosk, I think we would need the hotel people to come fetch us liao... Fortunately we did.

Tian Mi Mi

After the little episode, we drove down to Kiulap area to have lunch at a restaurant called 甜蜜蜜. It was my first time there. And don't be fooled by the signboard outside, the shop sells a host of chinese food (similar to the other restaurants that we frequent). So we ordered 4 ala carte dishes. After the main course, I ordered a 纯红豆刨冰. It was quite nice but I couldn't finish it. Was feeling really full after lunch.

Continue work after lunch in the room, while taking a short break here and there... ... ... Soon it was time for dinner. Went Kiulap again, but this time we had japanese food. I think the rest had wanted to eat jap food for quite some time liao, except for PK who thought it was expensive and doesn't suit his taste. And so we went to Excapade Sushi at Kiulap. I had been to the Gadong outlet on my last trip here.

Excapade Sushi @ Kiulap

The restaurant was full, so we reserved a table and went to a nearby bakery to shop for our breakfast for tomorrow. Finally got a table after that. The sushi conveyor belt here was a train model. And it was good to have a change, as we had chinese food almost every meal. Again had a really heavy meal. And the one footing the bill was the one who was running low on cash...

Choo Choo Train

Sushi and Sashimi
Guess whose finger was that on the left pic... hehe

At the end of the day, there's no fireworks for NDP like what we have in Singapore, what a letdown.

National Day

Today is National Day here in Brunei. Observed that a lot of national flags hanging everywhere, from office buildings to residential homes. And outside every other shop, there is a huge national day banner. And best of all, even the cars on the road have a little flag hanging on top

Cars with a Little Flag

Hopefully can catch the celebration later in the day... and the fireworks as well... :D

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Wish Everyone Well

Seems like quite a few of my frens, here or back home, are either sick (or getting sick) or injured. So if you are looking at this entry, hope you have a speedy recovery and take care of your body.

PS: Think I myself is getting heaty, bcos of the weather here. Should go take my fruit juice now... :D

Monday, February 20, 2006

Updates

Whoa... no blog entries for quite a few days liao as I was quite busy... Thought I should update a bit while I have some time now.

This was a 大包 for breakfast. The size of the 包 here is bigger than that in Singapore, so you would imagine how big it is. The normal 包 here is the size of the 大包 in Singapore... hehe...


Had lunch at a resturant near the DVD Warehouse on Thursday. There were 5 of us, plus O, who was another vendor for the project here. So we ordered quite ala carte dishes.

Lunch near DVD Warehouse

From the photos the dishes looks appertizing enough bah... :P


DT went back to Singapore to attend a meeting on Thursday night, so Friday like "没政府" (as if...)... Intrgration testing with another vendor did not go well. So need to wait for their side to make the changes before testing again. Went DC in the afternoon as PK was there, so I can ask him if I encounter any problem.

After going back hotel, PK don't want to go dinner so early, so I went dinner with XY. We drove to the Malaysian Curry Restaurant at Gadong. After dinner went DVD warehouse, where I finally managed to buy some DVDs. Continue working back at the hotel until the wee hours in the morning... :(


Saturday gonna go chop passport, cos we are only allow to stay in Brunei for 2 weeks. Only managed to wake up when XY call my room. Went for breakfast at the prata shop before heading to the immigration checkpoint.

The journey there took about half an hour. It was the furthest that I've travelled since I'm here. We still had to walk about 600m ++ to the immigration post, under the hot sun no less. It was not what I had expected, as it was really just a post at the border, no buildings at all.

Kuala Lurah Immigration Post

It was just a formality that we all went out of the country (to Sarawak) and come back in again just to obtain another chop to stay here for another 2 weeks (hopefully I won't need to stay until then). The rest of the day was simply work, and again work til very late for the second night in a row...


Was busy preparing the training material on Sunday. Had to send them to DT for printing in the afternoon. But still need to complete the rest of the program in time for training the next day. And then gotta change my program at the last minute cos an external call got problem... haiz... Finally managed to complete everything, although it was already 330am liao...

Thursday, February 16, 2006

Strange Remarks II

A: Oh no... My cash here is not enough to last me the whole week liao.

B: Then how?

A: Never mind. Everyday go the Japanese Restaurant for our meals.

B: Thought you say got no cash?

A: Cos go there can use credit card ma... hehe

B: -_-"'

Strange Remarks

One day, a lady walked into the restaurant. She ordered some food and a cup of hot barley. After a while, the beverage turned lukewarm. Then she waved to a waiter and said :"Can I have some ice please...".

Then she continued :"Oh, I only have a drink that is either hot or cold."

The Picto Personality Test






You are a person who is incredibly tranquil and values peace above all else.

When alone, you like to spend your time doing something that will better yourself.

You are intelligent. You use your time to its fullest potential and will go very far in life.

In the future you will have a good family life and lots of friends.


Click here to take the test

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Just Another Day

Yesterday was Valentine's Day, but to me it was just another day as usual. Not that I have manage to celebrate Valentine's Day in my life before. So this year was no exception. But this year was different as I was overseas (for work, if you are thinking something else). And we all worked until very late at night, only managed to reach hotel past midnight.

Although I am not alone here, somehow there is still a tinge of loneliness setting in. We all only get together during work or meals. And at night, with me and myself alone in the room, and just the TV turned on. It just feel so different. Being an introvert, I don't go around socializing with people often (not that I still need to do that with the people I'm around with). And usually I'm not the one who initiate a conversation for that matter.

Perhaps I am missing about something (or someone maybe) back home... ... ...

Nonetheless, when I wake up the next day, I will be feeling afreshed again. "Everyday's a brand new day!"

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

What's You Love Variable?

Your Five Variable Love Profile

Propensity for Monogamy:

Your propensity for monogamy is medium.
In general, you prefer to have only one love interest.
But it's hard for you to stay devoted for too long!
There's too much eye candy to keep you from wandering.

Experience Level:

Your experience level is low.
You've probably either had only one relationship..
Or all of your relationships have been very similar.
You still have a lot to learn... and a lot to try!

Dominance:

Your dominance is low.
This doesn't mean you're a doormat, just balanced.
You know a relationship is not about getting your way.
And you love to give your sweetie a lot of freedom.

Cynicism:

Your cynicism is low.
You are an eternal optimist when it comes to love and romance.
No matter how many times you've been hurt - you're never bitter.
You believe in one true love, your perfect soulmate.
And if you haven't found true love yet, you know you will soon.

Independence:

Your independence is medium.
In relationships, you need both "me time" and "we time."
You usually find it easy to be part of a couple.
But occasionally you start to feel a little smothered.

Days in short

Dinner @ DT

Had dinner at DT's room on Friday. HBO was showing Harry Potter 3, so we da bao from the restaurant downstairs. The corn soup there is PK's favourite. We tried the corn soup from a few places but still think the one downstairs taste the best.



Went for yet another Lou Hei on the last day of CNY. It seems that here in Brunei, Lou Hei was not as popular as it was in Singapore, and not many places got Yu Sheng. And so we went back to the vegetarian restaurant that we frequent on the last trip.

Lou Hei in BSB

Besides work work and work, my other activity here is eat eat and eat. So most of my entries would circle around these activities. Today was the first time I went the canteen @ DC. Here everything was self-service, i.e. you literally take your own food and serve yourself. You could choose to pay after you are done. And from what I see, I think no one would stop you from leaving even if you did not pay for your food!

Tea Break @ DC

This is my tea break for today. Everything cost just B$2... Very cheap IMO...

Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing all my friends a very Happy Valentine's Day... :D

Happy Valentine's Day

Saturday, February 11, 2006

Weekend is Coming

One week down, but 3 more weeks to go. Though the weekend is coming, don't really get too excited about it. It's like nothing much to do here. I foresee this weekend gonna still be working cos of the launch.

BK is coming over the weekend and asked me whether theres anything I want her to bring over. Can't think of anything when she asked... (hmmm... maybe got but probably can't bring over bah...). At least got more people during the meals. But the downside is that we'll be going back the vegetarian restaurant for our meals. Not that I'm complaining though. I can always join DT for the meals... ...

Friday, February 10, 2006

Interesting Web Stats

So far this site had nearly 400 visitors (since last November). Not surprisingly most visitors came from SG. Interestingly there were also visitors from the following places:

  1. Brunei Darussalam
  2. Indonesia
  3. Netherlands
  4. United States
  5. Australia
  6. Taiwan

Some of which I have an idea of who they are, but others I really have no clue... Perhap people just pass by... Hmmm... Wonder if anyone can shed some light on this??!

Week in Summary

Back at Brunei again, and this time gonna stay for a longer period. Probably can't write as frequent as I'm in SG. But as it is there's really nothing much to write about here (do i need to stress that?!). Anyway just to recap on the happenings over the past few days.


Arrived at BSB airport at 1am on Monday morning (was on Sunday night flight). Had a long queue at the immigration at the airport. Took all of us about 45 minutes to clear the immigration. It was really a long time considering how late it was already. Apparently there was a tour group arriving from HK (I think) at the same time. Wondering if there's anything here for sight-seeing...

At BSB Airport

After we collected our luggage, we still had to wait for the transport to hotel. Luckily the hotel was not far away from the airport (around 10 minutes drive). By the time we checked in and unpacked it was around 230am liao... Luckily dun really had to wake up early the next day.

Monday had breakfast with DT and XY at a nearby cafe (one of the rare times to have breakfast outside). Ordered a really big Bao, bigger than the ones in SG. Had meeting in the afternoon before going back hotel for more work.

Nothing much on Tuesday. Stayed indoor all day. Work work work...

My Hotel Room
My workplace a.k.a my room, looks like in a bad shape.


A much travelled Wednesday. Went quite a few places in just one afternoon, literally travelled the whole town (though not really lah)...

Went from Hotel --> DC --> MOC --> POS --> DES --> DC --> MOC --> Kiulap --> MOC --> DC --> (dunno where) --> Hotel.


Again another day of confinement at the hotel on Thursday. At least tried a new beverage over at lunch. DT, XY and me went to a restaurant nearby the vegetarian restaurant where we frequent on our last stay. While PK and SS went to the vegetarian restaurant for lunch. The waitress recommended the special beverage which me and XY ordered.

What's this?

Taste not too bad actually, and so was lunch, which was black pepper pork rib with fried rice.

Friday, a non-working day here, but probably I have to work bah... Looking forward to breakfast with the rest of the guys...

Breakfast and Snacks
My little snack corner

Sunday, February 05, 2006

PJ Party

It was S's birthday today. I went back office to retrieve some stuff at about 1pm before heading down to Golden Landmark Hotel, the venue for the PJ party. S and StupidGenius came a while after I arrived. We proceed to check in to the hotel room and put all our stuff. Then after a short rest, went for lunch and some last minute shopping at Beach Road.

Golden Landmark Hotel Room

After lunch went to buy a camouflage cream, which we intend to use during the party. Then me and SG went to Bugis Junction to buy some more food and drinks (as mixer), and 2 packets of ice. By the time we were done, it was around 430pm already. So we quickly went back for shower and prepare the stuff for the party.

PS: As a sidetrack, saw Bryan Wong filming Love Bites 2 at Bugis Junction.

Brian Wong @ Bugis Junction

FL, T and XY were the first to arrived... They only changed into their PJ after arriving at the hotel room. Then =.= came, but his PJ was still with me so he also changed at the hotel room. But he downed one shot of Jack Daniels as part of the entrance criteria for the party. PS was the next to arrive, but he was also not in PJ but also drank a shot of the same liquor. While waiting for DT, we played "In between" with the same forfeit as what the few of us played at GC's place on thursday. Finally DT came, and to our surprise, he came in his PJ (the only one to do so...).

The night started by having a Lou Hei session (again), followed by dinner, in which we ordered pizza. Then we started playing a slight variation of 激爆骰子乐 (one of the games from the taiwanese TV Show 小气大财神). The game goes like this: one banker would draw a random number (in our case from 0 -59), and each player would call out 1 to 3 numbers in a sequence. Each player (except the banker) have can use one of 'Pass' (to pass on the call to the next player) or 'Reverse' (to pass back the call to the previous player). The person who calls the secret number would be deemed as the loser. Our forfeit is that the loser would let banker (or if the loser is the banker, the one who calls the number just before) draw one stroke on the face. Think everyone was having fun with this game, with =.= and DT losing the most. But then T lost the last 2 rounds and her face was not spared by =.=.

After the first game, we break for birthday cake cutting and singing of birthday song. Then we presented S the presents that we shared, which includes 2 shirts and a bag. After that was more game, and this time we played 杀杀反杀. Its a bit difficult to describe the game. but it involves a fair bit of hand coordination. Those who fail to get the correct action would have to drink up a concoction of Jack Daniels + Coke or Vodka Orange. As the game goes on and more and more people drank, it was more likely that the hand coordination suffers, as demonstrated by =.=.

Then everyone started leaving one by one. In the end, only PS, S, SG, XY and me stayed. After some more game of dice and drinking, all of us got change out of our PJ and went out for supper. Ordered bah kut teh and fried oyster for supper. Watched the long drawn penalty shoot-out between Ivory Coast and Cameroon while having supper at the coffeeshop.

Went back to hotel, and played dai di for a while with S and SG. While XY and PS were resting on bed, the 3 of us lay on the floor and chat all the way til day break. Can't imagine me not sleeping for the whole night! Then PS left, followed by XY. Later the 3 of us went to the hotel cafe for breakfast, and we only had 2 breakfast vouchers. The 3 of us went in anyway. But the food there was not nice and the selection was limited. Later found out that we were not charged for the extra person at breakfast. By the time we checked out, it was around 930am. Took the MRT home from there. I'd need to go home and packed my luggage in time for the flight on the same night.

Friday, February 03, 2006

Making Another Pitstop

Yet again meet up with StupidGenius after work at his request. And so me and S proceed to meet him at North Canal Road. Had wanted to go Settlers Cafe for dinner and some gaming, but they were fully booked. So went to Pitstop Cafe instead. There were no other people there when we arrived at near to 8pm (I guess we were early...). We ordered some food for dinner before playing the games. The Lasagna that S ordered was pretty tasty.

Started playing the game called Puerto Rico. This game is quite a long game which can last up to 2 hours. Timon and Wiki (the bosses) joined the 3 of us for the game, and at the same time teaching us how to play the game. The setup took quite a while. But as the game goes on, I found the game pretty interesting. And as Timon said, you would need to think of some strategy in order to win the game. But as this is only the first time we playing, we juz played with our hearts...

Puerto Rico

In the midst of playing, there was a commotion on the road outside. Apparently, there was a dragon and lion dance performance at the pub opposite Pitstop (though I only saw the dragon dance). Then there is this guy holding a gigantic pole and waving around with it. The pole was like 3-storey high, around the same level that we were on.

Dragon Dance

Resumed the game after that and as time went on, more and more people were coming in. Then SG had to leave earlier, so we were unable to finish the game.

Group Photo w/o StupidGenius
SG left earlier, so got a substitute for him... lol...

Pitstop Cafe on 20060101
Spot the difference... :p

Lou Hei @ Lao Di Fang

Event: Team Lunch (Lou Hei session)
Date: 3rd February 2006
Venue: Classic Lao Di Fang Vegeterian Restaurant
Attendees: PK, DT, JN, BK, S, Jen, L, XY and me.

Classic Lao Di Fang
The Venue

The People
The People

The Food
The Food

The Interior Of Lao Di Fang
Panorama shot of the interior of the restaurant

Vegetarian Yu Sheng @ Lao Di Fang
Vegetarian Yu Sheng @ Lao Di Fang

PS: Once again, D misses the Lou Hei as he went back to Indonesia.

More CNY visits

Went GC's house for CNY visit yesterday. L, S, XY and me went directly from office and meet up with StupidGenius for dinner first before going up GC's place. This is the second time I went her place, the first time was playing the Cash Flow game.

Only GC was alone at home when we arrived. According to her, her husband went drinking coffee at a nearby coffeeshop with his friends. Her house was full of 风水阵, in which I have noticed, but not quite understand the rational behind, in my first visit here. We had a bit of chit chat and explore more of her house. Then L went off earlier and the rest of us stayed to play games.

GC took out Twister, a game which I have suggested playing at the PJS party. So me and SG tried out the game which I lost. Then we started playing "In Between", but the bet was hitting the loser with "The Hand". At the same time we also discussed the stuff to bring for the PJS party.

Left at about 11pm and took a 30-minute bus ride home. And it was a long time since I last took a non-aircon bus already.

(You may refer to StupidGenius' entry for more details of the same event)

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Shopping for PJ --> Going to PS (PitStop Cafe)

The 1st working day after the long CNY holiday, feel so sian. Arranged to go shop for PJ after work with DT, S and StupidGenius. Went to Suntec Carrefour thinking that they could have, but then it turned out that they did not sell. DT then went off earlier, so the 3 of us went for dinner at Carl's Jr. The mushroom burger is nice and big, and the beef was rather chewy.

At first wanted to go Chinatown for further shopping but then finally decided to go Pitstop Cafe instead. Took a bus down to Circular Road there. The place during weekdays is really 冷清, think we are the only customer there when we arrived.

Guesstures The first game that we played was Guessture. It was actually charade and the 3 of us team up vs the home team, i.e. the 2 bosses and their friend. I was first assigned to act out but after a first round score of zero, YM took over the role instead. Things turned out to be much better and we even managed to beat the home team.




Next up was Coda (not Soda), some code breaking game. The tiles looks very much like domino tiles. Depending on the number of players involve, each would pick a certain number of tiles at the beginning, and arranged them in running order from left to right. Once a player guessed the number on the tile correctly, the tile would be revealed. The objective is to open up all the tiles from your opponent. This could be done by deducing from the tiles that you have and those that were opened up. The 3 of us played a game in which I won, then one of the bosses joined us for game 2, where YM won.

Coda Coda2

3rd game of the day was the Game of Life. We took quite a while to setup the game board and reading the rules. The game play was somewhat like a bit of Monopoly and Cash Flow game. The winner at the end of the game would be determined by the amount of cash that he / she possessed.

Game Of Life

Finally, just before we left, we saw a strange looking thing and started playing with it (but can't quite remember the name liao its called Brain Warp)... One would have to twist the device around such that the colour that was given by the command will face top. Anyway we left the place and took a train home at around 11+.

Brain Warp 2