Special Thanks

I know I haven't even finish my blogging, but I'm back in Malaysia and things are getting busy so it's a bit hard for me. But I just wanna post this up for those people that I have to thank for all the wonderful things that I have experienced throughout my trip.

First off, thank you so much Uncle James. Here's a guy that looked stroke in the face, gave it a  nice piledriver and said goodbye to it. I'll hope to see you soon uncle! Stay tough!

Thank you as well Aunty June. Now I will remember you as the woman who took care of THREE under FIVE children at the same time, yet manged to gain so much knowledge. Simply admirable.

Jamie!!! Thanks a lot for everything as well man. I'll see you at my cinema screen soon. Make sure you make it to the big screens!

My sister, Fiona! You're such a mom now! Thanks so much and please take care for little  King Noah for me!! :)

For all the delicious food and superb treatment, thanks a lot Ching!!  Make sure you bring your cook shows all the way to Malaysia!

Master of the beef patties, Tim man!! Thanks a lot for the get together before I leave man. Now here's a guy who deals with guys bigger and more muscular than him, yet he sees them whine like a little kid. 

Noah!! Thanks for making me decide not to have a baby so soon! I'll see you in a year and in fifteen years, I'm gonna show you this picture.

Brother Man and Sister Teng! Thanks a lot for bringing me around town and treating us to the  delicious meals! You made me miss Malaysia so early during my trip!! 

Andy, Janko, Ben, Ashman. Thanks a lot for the great crazy night!!!

Last but not least, Uncle Hoong which was with me all along the travel. This trip wouldn't have happened without his support. Thank you man!

I OWE YOU GUYS!! FIND ME WHEN YOU ARE IN MALAYSIAAAAAAAAAAA!!

Day 10: Tower of London

Finally, I'm heading to the Tower of London. Been hearing about this place ever since I came and had no chance to get in yet. I heard about all the gruesome murders and the mysteries surrounding this place.Now for those of you who are not really familiar with the tower, this tower has held many famous prisoners in its thousand-year history and on going in, there are Yeoman Warder(Beefeaters) which will bring you around the castle on a guided tour. Well, I decided to walk on my own anyway along with Uncle Hoong, Fiona, Aunt June and baby Noah.

Thats what a Beefeater looks like. The left one, not the right one. The the right one is an Everythingeater.

There are as usual a lot of sections to this castle, but the most famous is of course the armory and the Crown  Jewels section. I have to tell you, they have the most AMAZING crown exhibition. Unfortunately, they do not allow pictures to be taken at that section but seriously, your eyes will turn gold seeing all the exhibits. There are giant plates made of gold, gold cups, gold mace, gold crown, gold crown with a 530 carat diamond on top, gold swords for ceremonies, gold this, gold that and gold. And this place boasts that they have only been one attempt at stealing the exhibits, most probably due to the tight security around the place.

Now as for the armory section, armors from the 17th century and onwards are put on exhibition. These armors are usually gifts that are given to the King by visiting Kings. They have quite a diverse range of weapons, from swords to a more modern gun to cannons. 

Canon and its bullets!

This used to be the armor for King Henry VIII when he was young and fit.

Various armor that I saw around the place.

Oh ya and if you wanna see the journal who records all the armor and weapon around the place, here you go:

This is the BOOK! It's at least two thousand page I think. This book itself can be a weapon, throw it on someone's head.

Another story that surrounds this place involves the flock or raven around this place. Legend has it that Charles II was told that if the ravens left the Tower, the kingdom and the fortress would fall. That is why the Ravenmaster kept some in the cage, just in case I think. Well they still have some wild one flying around, like this one:

The raven can also do the same hand pose I am doing. *wink wink*

Other attractions would be the torture chamber and the Blood towers, where multiple gruesome stories circulate around the place. There are replica's of torture device on exhibit here and seriously, the torture chamber gave me the creeps. I don't know why, but I feel really really uncomfortable just being in the chamber. Yup, I took off  as soon as I can.

Torture rack. Hands and legs will be tied and will be pulled opposite ways. Too much MIGHT split the human.

After the walk, we stopped by at Wagamama, a wonderful Japanese cuisine restaurant. It's such a waste that they don't have this in Malaysia(or maybe I don't realize they do), but the Japanese food here is really really good. Thanks to Aunty and Fiona for the recommendation! :)

Emmmm... nothing but a ramen to end a perfect outing day. Superb!

Day 9: A Family Farewell

It's never easy to say good bye and this time is not any different. Jamie and Ching will be leaving to Los Angeles for a period of time this Friday and we were invited over for a farewell meal. People do move on in life, for work, for studies, for family but seriously, the feeling is just hard to bear. Really, they've treated us(me and Uncle Hoong) so well that it's hard to say good bye.

We had some 'light' breakfast with Fiona around Epsom town before heading town and I had something called feta cheese. Any of you ever heard of feta cheese? It's actually goats cheese and trust me, eating these stuff makes you full for the next three meals. They are so so so rich in taste and filling and sour and everything! It's weird and nice at the same time!

The white stuff is the Feta Cheese. And the yellow one is cream cheese. Yeah I know, cheese-ful. 

Ching is gonna cook us lunch again, this time vegetarian in respect to Wesak Day that is happening in Malaysia. Vegan or not, her cooking is DELI to the CIOUS. Trust me, a world class chef is indeed a world class chef. Give her a wok and she can produce wonders from it. Lucky my cousin Jamie. I wish I can find a partner who can cook as well as his.

All these are vegetarian food. Fantastic!!

That's the master chef after the action! 

We did a little bit chatting, chill out and stuff and proceeded to Westfield, the biggest shopping mall in Europe. This place is MASSIVE!! I think you can fit like a million people in there and there will still be space. And funny enough, there are the richer section and the standard section, depending on which do you prefer. We had dinner at Wahaca, awesome Mexican food. Now honestly I've never tried Mexican food and yes, it tastes really good. Now Mexican food is a good mix of spices and meat combine with fine dough and bread. You could imagine stuff like tortillas, street mexican food etc etc. 

I forgot the name of this one, but it's really nice!

WAHACAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

The interior design of this place gives a really good vibe to chat and around.

Chips as appetizer.

The dip sauce is really really good. There are different taste  from spicy to cooling.

Anyway, at the end of this post, I would like to thank both of you guys, Jamie and Ching for all the wonderful time that you have given us. Thanks thanks and thanks! I'm gonna be missing you guys for sure! Make sure you find me when you drop by Malaysia!!!!!!!! 

Day 8: Childhood Dream Come True

One of my childhood dream which stands till now was to visit ALL of the 7 Wonders of The World. And today, one part of it gonna come true. I'm gonna visit Stonehenge. STONEHENGE!! It was one of my highlight of the trip to Europe! Travelling to Stonehenge could be quite far, so for all those who are interested, I would suggest following a day trip.


I signed up for a day trip with Evans Evans Travel Tours something something, which costs me GBP29.00 including the entrance, which is a serious bargain because taking the train there itself would cost around GBP20. Stonehenge is located somewhere near Salisbury, so along the way, you will be treated to miles and miles of greens, from horse grass to maple trees. The two hour bus ride won't even feel long with all the amazing view outside.


On arrival, we had to walk under a tunnel which will bring us to Stonehenge. Visitors are not allowed to touch the stones, which are fenced out around 10m away from us. But that would be good enough for me. Here, it's VERY VERY VERY WINDY. And because it's windy, it gets so cold, numbing cold that almost made my hand hard to move. So for you readers out there, bring your gloves. :)


Stonehenge dates back around 3000B.C and they believe that the stones are transported from miles away, around 130 miles, around the Wales area. Now the mystery remains, how did they transport such huge stones, how did they stack up the stones, what actually was Stonehenge for, and the questions goes on. Some  believe that there are astronomical purpose, some believe it's for rituals and some even say it used to be a place to pray for the past. All in all, knowing about this place makes you say "WOW".


I had an AWESOME day just looking around the place, and here is a picture to follow. :)

Thats me and Uncle Hoong right in front of the magnificient stones.

So if any of you are really interested in uncovering the secrets behind the stones, go goggle it or in fact, head here. It's always better up front! Check for more soon!

Day 7: Which One is the London Bridge Again?

Last night was dead tiring after the party. It's a good thing that we slept till almost noon. At least the hangover was over when we woke up. All part of the travelling experience I guess. We woke up just in time for lunch with Tim man and my cousin sis, Fiona at a local cafe. Oh have I introduced you to Noah, their first son? He's such a dear!! 4 months old baby. And here I am, being all Uncle Hong. Maybe when he grows up, I'll tell him "Just call me Mike".

Thats Noah!!! Isn't he cutttteeeeeeeeee?

HOLBORN would be our destination for the day. This place houses one of the biggest museum in Europe, The British Museum. You wanna know what this place makes you? It makes you feel so small and know so little about the world. That's because this museum houses SOOOOO much information on so much sections of life that makes you feel you don't know so much!! There's many sections like the African life, art life, history, Asia etc etc etc( cause I didn't remember all) If you take the time to read everything in there, I think one day would not be enough. 


I think it's better to show the pictures of what I see in the museum. But since I can't put in too much here, I'll put it up on Facebook. :)

People coming out after the guard starts halau-ing everyone 

That's Paulo, Uncle Hoong's friend.

This is the museum from outside.

Sculptures!

More sculptures!

This one is my favorite! I actually stared at this one for a good ten minutes. Cause I just can't believe my eyes that I'm looking at my another childhood dream.

Egyptian section.

They actually have a REPLICA of Parthenon in the museum.

Pyramid Section. These my friends, are real!

Another real mummy. This place creeps me out actually.

SO does anyone wanna answer me a really simple quiz? Which one is the London Bridge?

(A)

(B)

(C)

If you answered (A), which I don think anyone will, you're wrong.

If you answered (C), congratulations, you're just as smart as me, which is really dumb cause THE ANSWER IS (B)! All my life I thought (C) was London Bridge and how shocked I am!!! (C) is actually Tower Bridge. I blame it all on the postcards who always write (C) as London Bridge! ISH. Anyway, proof. :)

It's written there. READ!!

I'll update more soon guys! Gonna head out to Stonehenge tomorrow. AWESOMENESS!!!!!

Day 6: Wetting The Baby's Head

It's Saturday over here and I decided to take things slow and just hang around. Been going out for five days now, so a break is more than well deserved. Anyway, my cousin brother Jamie invited us over to his crib for lunch and I have got one main reason never to reject: Ching He-Huang will be cooking lunch for us. REALLY?!


Well apparently, Ching is actually a family member over here, a dear partner of my cousin bro.(surprise!!) Talk about family reunion. And yes, her cooking is wonderful! It's such a great experience to be able to eat from the wok of a world class chef. Thanks Ching!!!! And thanks for the cook book as well. Now I'll be able to cook a few new stuff for whoever guy/girl who's lucky enough. :)

From left, thats me, Uncle Hoong, Ching and Uncle James

Thats Jamie, my cousin brother.

All the food prepared within like.... half an hour? Which explains her new book title, Ching's Fast Food. :)

Now, anyone ever heard of WETTING THE BABY'S HEAD? Wetting the baby's head is a  tradition here in the western country where the father of a newborn and his friends would head out to town to celebrate the birth of his baby. In other words, a male night out. So as you all know, my cousin sis Fiona has just got her newborn, 4 months now, and my brother in law invited, Tim the Gal Man us to tag along for the night out. HELL YEAHHH!


So we met up at Clapham Junction, a really rough place to be in at night. You know the part of town in movies where the gangster will fight at night and get killed, well it's something like that. But this place has one of the most happening club, The Grand. We had a pre-party at some pub beside the club, some really creepy Halloween themed pub. I must say, some Ale, some Ginger Bear and some beer really gets you ready for the night. I got introduced to Tim's bunch of friend and they are a bunch of CRAZY FUN to be with!


Well The Grand was really an awesome place to be in! The club was full at around 11 with people partying and stuff. I guess everyone needs a good release after a good week of work. Well as for in the club.... Whatever happens in the club stays in the club. I was JUST DANCING! THATS ALL! NOTHING MORE!! I GOT PICTURE PROOF!


Check out again soon! I'll keep you guys posted! :) Bye!!

Day 5: Meeting with The Stars

I know I'm a little back on the posts, but still, I'll post on! So it's day 5 and England is getting chillier here, around 9 degrees on average. If you don't know how cold is that, try hanging around at the Tesco frozen food section. That's how cold it is.

Well today is gonna be a great great day cause I'm gonna be meeting a celebrity chef here in UK. Uncle James is invited for her cook show and of course, I'm tagging along! I'm gonna be attending a cook show by Ching He-Huang at Asia House. Now if you don't know who Ching is, here's a link for her website:

 http://www.chinghehuang.com/ 

Just a short intro, Ching is an Asian Cuisine Chef.which by now has written 4 cook books and has her own cook show in Britian channel. Soon, she will expand her expertise to America and soon the world. Well, in conclusion, I'M MEETING A STAR! :)

Asia House on the other hand is a place in London Town which promotes various asian culture, from cooking to books to speeches. The turnout for Ching's cook show was tremendously good in fact that I had to sit the furthest away from the stage. Do you know what that means? When the demo food is circulated, I will be the last one to get it, which means that if there is one little strand of vege left, you're the luckiest guy in the room. I didn't really get to try much, but I'm don't really care. You'll see why in the next few post. (big grin)


After the show, we traveled to Covent Garden, where all the street performers gather to do their thing. After each show, audiences will be asked to 'donate' for the show that they have watched. I managed to catch the magic show which was mad funny and also the tumbling show. And YES, I donated....... in Malaysian Ringgit. I don't think the person will mind. :)


As usual, my day would end with really awesome dinner and some family time together. Nothing beats that. Well keep checking for updates! See you guys soon!! :)


PS: Blogspot is having problem with pictures uploading again.... but I'll put it up in Facebook!