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Showing posts from September, 2011

Movie Preview: The Change-Up

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Ever wished for someone else's life?  The movie title and this tag line, basically sums up the movie. Two best friends with extremely different kind of lifestyles, found themselves in each other's body. Mitch (Ryan Reynolds) is a single, quasi-employed man-child who has never met a responsibility he liked. Dave (Jason Bateman) is an overworked lawyer, husband and a father of three. They envy each other's lives, and due to a freak of nature, they get what they wished for when they wake up in each other's body. The premise of body-swapping is nothing new, and I did not really expect much from the movie. I enjoyed watching Ryan Reynolds in his other movies - The Proposal, Definitely, Maybe, and Wolverine - and I have just seen Jason Bateman in The Horrible Bosses. There is the beautiful Olivia Wilde from the TV series House, as well. I thought that even if the movie is not out to change the art of movie-making, it would be an enjoyable comedy. Well, there are some fu

The book that transported me to India

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What I love about traveling is experiencing the lives and culture of people in the places that I've been. And once awhile, there are books that are able to do just that. I've just finished reading one that transported me right in the middle of the working class in India who lived in poverty. I finished reading The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga in just a few days!  It reminded me of a couple of other books that I enjoyed which was also based in India - The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh (also based in Burma and Malaya) and also Q & A by Vikas Swarup (adapted into Slumdog Millionaire).  { Here is a list of books I've read }

Ancient Rome, museum and one small island in Rome

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{ Rome, Italy - May 2011 } Although the first day in Rome was really just half a day, it felt like I had already seen so much in such a short time. So, it was quite overwhelming just to imagine all the other magnificent treasures that the city has to offer on our second day there. Again, it was filled with so many treasures and history with thousands of years in the making, that one may need a lifetime to experience it all. So, a word of advice for those going to Rome - do not expect to see everything in one trip! Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine As I mentioned in my previous post ( Rome in black and white ), words would not be able to express the magnificence of the buildings from ancient Rome. At the colosseum, it was easy to imagine the gladiators and all the spectators sitting around the colosseum. Of course, movies like the Gladiator helped put the image in my head. And in the Roman Forum and Palatine, imagining that all the tourists were wearing togas and sandals transp

Wanderlust: Eastern Europe

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After contemplating where we want to go next year , we have finally decided on Eastern Europe! It was a toss between Paris-Belgium-Holland and Germany-Austria-Czech, but there is just something fairy tale like about Eastern Europe that I am pretty sure I would love. Of course, I have always wanted to visit the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany ! Now, what other countries should I add to the trip? { Photos of Charles Bridge in Prague and Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany }

Upcoming movie: Real Steel with Hugh Jackman

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Real Steel is an upcoming movie starring Hugh Jackman as a washed-up boxer in the near future. He lost his chance to become a boxing champion when human beings were replaced by steel robots for boxing tournament. He started building robots from scrap metals to survive, and when he hits rock bottom, he reluctantly teams up his estranged 10-year old son to build and train a robot for one last shot at a comeback. Now, if I were to build a robot, I would probably not build one for boxing. It would be one to help me in my daily tasks so that I have more hours in a day to do everything that I want! To work in the office less, to cook more, to plan more travels and of course, to do lots of travelling! Oh, here's an idea - my robot would work and earn money on my behalf while I take a year off to travel around the world! Ah, maybe that's just wishful thinking... Oh well, I am sure that the robots in the movie would be action-packed, and the movie sounded like one that would be sui

Postcard from... St. Paul's Chapel

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  One of the oldest church in Manhattan that stood strong even when the twin towers collapsed right next to it. It became a place of rest and refuge for the recovery workers following the attack. There were still many memorial items left in the church when I was there in 2008, and it provided a personal experience to the event that I had read so much about. It may have been 10 years, but I am sure that to the families who lost their loved ones, the day would always be remembered. remembering 9/11, - nateniale -  { Click here for more postcard from...  posts }

Rome in black and white

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{ Rome, Italy - May 2011 } What is the first picture you have in mind when someone mentioned Rome? I bet that it would be a photo of the Colosseum. I won't be surprised if it is one of the most recognised sites in the world! Right next to the Colosseum is the Roman Forum which had been the centre of the Roman lives. There were temples, basilica, buildings, residences and streets. As there were many standing structures, it was easy to imagine how some of the buildings looked like almost 3000 years ago. Yes, 3000 years ago. I could not even comprehend how old some of these buildings are. I won't be able to express these magnificent sites with words, and so, I will let the photos tell the story. And sometimes, you don't even need colours. Amphitheatrum Flavium    Forum Romanum    ::: Footnotes ::: { Amphitheatrum Flavium }   This is the Latin name of Colosseum. The  €9  ticket for the Colosseum includes the Palatine and the Roman Forum, and is vali

WICKED is coming to Singapore!

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The musical, Wicked , the untold stories of the witches of Oz, is coming to Singapore! When I first heard about the musical a couple of years ago, and found out that it was based on the book Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, I went and bought the book! I mean, I loved The Wizard of Oz, so I expected that I would love the story as well. Somehow, I could not finish reading the book, and it is (unfortunately) still sitting patiently on my book shelf for me to finish it. Well, now that the musical is coming to Singapore, I have bought the tickets, and hoping that having the story brought to life in the form of a musical would be much better than reading the book. Will tell you how it is once I have watched the musical!

roomorama

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My accommodation of choice these days are usually Bed and Breakfast or apartments rather than those big typical hotels that looked similar regardless of which country or city that you are in. Bed and Breakfast are usually more personal, it has a better feel of the place that you are in and the people are usually friendlier! Some of the best places that we have stayed were not four or five stars hotels! So, when roomorama contacted me about their website, I was pretty excited and spent some time going through a few of the thousands of properties in hundreds of destinations world wide. It offers lots of short term accommodation that looks so amazing, and homey! roomorama  works as an online marketplace to connect the host with the guests, and offers streamlined and secure transactions. You speak directly to the host, but if you have any issues, roomorama has an in-house customer service team available around the clock. There are also special perks for roomorama members in many

Awestruck by the Pantheon

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{ Rome, Italy - May 2011 } While admiring the endearing strong elephant (or Pulcino della Minerva which I mentioned in my post " Walking around the city of Rome "), I caught a glimpse of a round building where I expected the Pantheon to be. I had to check my map to confirm that that should be where the Pantheon should stand, and it took me a few seconds to finally go "That is Pantheon!". The Pantheon, built in 126 AD, did not look like much from the back. However, once I stepped to the front of the building, I was awestruck by the scale of it - the height, the columns, the pediment. I was actually nervous walking into the building. After hearing so much about it and having such high expectations, I was afraid that I would be disappointed. But boy, it did not. It stood proudly as it had been for the last 1,885 years, and can you even try to imagine how many people had passed through its majestic doors, walked around the rounded interior and stood under the

Whole Earth

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Healthy eating (and living) seems to be the craze these days. There seems to be so many celebrities who are vegetarians or even vegans. The longest period that I have tried not to eat meat or seafood was a month. Now, I do not think that I will be a full-on vegetarian any time soon, but with healthy living in mind, I had been trying quite a number of vegetarian restaurants lately. If there is a vegetarian restaurant that I will introduce to my carnivorous friends, it would be Whole Earth. The restaurant serves tasty "Peranakan" and Thai food, and sometimes, you would be wondering "you mean this is vegetarian?". Happy to report that the dishes that had none those "mock meat" that is so typical of local Singapore vegetarian food. They use good quality mushrooms, tofu, vegetables and natural spices. The dishes were tasty and flavourful. Who says healthy food can't be good? Had been to the restaurant twice, and I am pretty sure I will be going more

Movie Preview: Johnny English Reborn

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While I enjoyed watching Mr Bean when I was younger, I had never been able to appreciate that kind of comedy. So, there are very few movies by the likes of Rowan Atkinson, Steve Carell or Jim Carrey that I truly enjoyed. Well, except the occasional ones that surprises me, like The Truman Show (with Jim Carrey). So, when I was given a chance to receive a pair of free tickets to watch the sneak preview of Johnny English Reborn - the spy movie featuring none other than Rowan Atkinson - I had my reservations. Would I find it funny? Would I enjoy myself? Would I be able to write an unbiased review? Well, I did watch, and I laughed and enjoyed myself. However, I have passed on the task of writing the review... Review by Q Disgraced spy on a mission to set things straight, cool gadgets complete with voice-commanded Rolls-Royce, intelligence agency with a no-nonsense chief (portrayed by a British-sounding Gillian Anderson), a pretty and intellectual love interest, and a few action and c

live. laugh. love.

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Have a great weekend, full of love and laughter!

Walking around the city of Rome

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{ Rome, Italy - May 2011 } Roma. Roma. Roma. I think I have a love-hate relationship with the city. On one hand, how can I not love a city with so much history? And yet, the city is huge, which means lots of people and traffic, and everything is far away! After three days in the compact islands of  Venice and a day in the university town of  Bologna , we spent four days in the city of Rome, and it felt worlds apart. We took the train from Bologna to Rome and reached the city late morning. By the time we checked into the apartment we have booked and had lunch (the lunch was one of the best we had in Rome - more on that later!), it was already quite late. So, we spent the first day in Rome walking around some of the main (and free) attractions around Rome. Most of the places we went would not need any introductions, as the photos would speak for themselves. The first place we went to was the one building that will always be linked to Rome - the Colosseum ( Coloseo ). We saw it f

bird cages

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I've been seeing quite a lot of bird cages being used as home decorations lately, and I love the idea! It would look great just sitting at a corner of the house, or a great storage idea - say a small stack of books, empty bottles, or even small pots of plants.  Of course, why stop there when you can also have wallpapers and small miniature bird cages as pendant or keychains! 

People of Venice

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{ Venice, Italy - April 2011 } One of my favourite things to do whenever I travel is to people watch. I love watching the locals, going about their daily lives. I love watching the tourists, wondering which part of the world they came from. And in Italy, how can you not love the Italians? I love watching a group of Italian men talking with so much energy, and although I have no idea what they were discussing, it must be a very exciting topic! In Venice, there were the locals who made their living on the tourists that flocked the islands daily. And, there were lots of tourists, of course. Here are some snapshots of the people around Venice. The Artists    The Ladies    The Kids    The Gondoliers The Families       { Click here for other travel tales from Italy and  a list of my travelogues }