Big Sam!

It was a really healthy weekend for me. For the first time during my stay in US, I went for a hike. A hike of about 7 to 8 miles! Darn proud only. :P

The season is autumn, though it did not make a difference to the view here in Houston. It looks almost the same year round. The slightly cooler weather however, made the hike more enjoyable.

The place is Huntsville State Park.

The crowd, a whole bunch of people from WHCC.

The journey. Starts from a eating place in Bellaire (chinatown). With Mike voluntarily offering his car and taking the wheel, Michelle & Victor (the entertaining couple) and yours truly as noisy passengers.

The experience. Interesting, but not again. Fed mosquitoes, worn myself walking for 4 hours. All for 1 view. One!


The dangers of hiking!


If this is considered a nice view, then there are 2 views along this 4 hour hike.


The view of the lake. I have to admit that it's a breathtaking and welcoming sight ... especially after 2.5 hours of hiking.


This pic should be named "The Fleeing James". That's the view of the better part of our chosen trail.


Tired and spent. The crowd trudging along towards the car park.

What is a trip without a pic to show that I was there!


A bit blurry due to wrong focusing. Should be a good enough proof of my participation though.

Almost forgot.

Before we reached Huntsville State Park, we stopped by the Sam Houston Statue. Supposedly some historical big shot.


Here's his mug shot...


That is said to be the worlds largest statue of an American Hero. The one in white! not the one in black!


Finally... a group photo to end this post. With special thanks to Patrick the organizer, Mike the driver extraordinaire and Michelle & Victor for great company!

Crazy Saturday

A few weeks back, we were supposed to go for lunch at Ulu Yam for the infamous Loh Mee. Ulu Yam is famous for its Loh Mee and also a destination for outdoor wedding photoshooting. There are a few waterfalls nearby which we planned to visit after the lunch..

While we were enjoying the lunch, it started to rain... After a bad experience in Kuala Woh, we dared not visit waterfalls during heavy rains anymore.. A crazy idea strike my colleague... Why not go to Genting Highlands? It is just 27 km away.. slightly more than 30 minutes drive..

It was still raining when we reached Genting Highlands

Cold weather.. See .. SH and I were wearing sleeveless t-shirts and shorts

Nothing better to do than taking pics because all the "God of Gamblers" cannot go into the casino in shorts and slippers.. :p Lucky for me... or else I'll be bored to death..

Walking through the garden, it reminds me how my schoolmates and I used to disturb love couples who were dating at the garden at night :P. That was 9 years ago.. How time flies..

There was another time I went to Genting Highlands with CY out of boredom during the uni days.. We took a midnight train from JB to KL Sentral. And then a bus directly to Genting Highlands..

While I was enjoying myself in the Theme Park, Tweety smsed me about a quiz that was scheduled on Monday.. OMG!!! I had a quiz on Monday but I was still enjoying myself in the Theme Park.. I totally forgot about the quiz! But lucky.. I still managed to pass the quiz..In fact, with flying colours.. Phew!! Thanks to CY for the tutorials :) Miss him so much..

Tired of walking, we sat down at Starbucks for a cup of hot and aromatic chocolate. What is better than a cup of hot chocolates/coffee in the cold and windy weather?

A cup of hot chocolates is better than a jacket?

On the way down the hill, we stopped by at a temple..

See the view.. Their photography skills are improving...

Night view of Genting Highlands..

This trip reminds me that Genting Highlands is not only about its Theme Park and Casino. There are more things to do other than gambling and yelling your lungs out in the roller coaster. If you have the right bunch of friends, you'll enjoy yourself even though you are shivering cold... even though you do nothing than posing for pics and drinking hot chocolates..

I Have to Admit ...

There's something that I have to admit. This strikes me as a rather surprising revelation.
We were traveling to Dallas for a weekend (will cover this later on), when the theme song from the movie "Notting Hill" (When you say nothing at all by Ronan Keating) lodged somewhere within the hundreds of songs in that MP3 CD was played. It brought back memories of this film as well as of the time when I saw this film. That night after we checked in to the hotel, guess what's on TV? ...It's the movie itself. Talk about coincidence.

It's now a boring Monday evening and I was longing for a good movie to watch. This reminds me of the movies that I've really liked. That's when I come to this revelation.

I hate to admit this, but I think I like sappy Brit films!

There are not many films that leave a good and lasting impression for me. Some might like Star Wars, Lord of The Rings or some other epic movies, but I like Brit films! I don't know if it's the accent or the fact that Malaysia is a former British colony. So, in order to share my love for Brit films, here's some which I really liked.

1. Love Actually
2. Four Weddings and A Funeral
3. Shakespeare in Love
4. Wimbledon
5. The English Patient
6. Notting Hill
7. Bend it like Beckham
8. Billy Elliot

Listed in accordance to my preference. Give it a try and see how you like them. Be warned though, sometimes it's kinda hard to understand the accent.

It should be easy to get your hands on these films in Malaysia. *wink*wink*

Hawker Food!

Oh the joy! The rumbling of stomach, the dripping saliva at the mere mention of Malaysian Hawker Food! I guess any of you, Malaysians who are stranded in a foreign country (especially those not within South-East Asia) would agree with me on this. Such was my feelings when I got to know that there's a Hawker Food Fair organized by the MSAH (Malaysian Singaporean Association of Houston).

The event was held at a pavilion in Bear Creek Park. One and half week ago.

There were loads of food to choose from. Hainanese chicken rice, curry mee, nasi lemak, kuih and others. Some looked and tasted better than others. As instinct dictates, I went for the longest queue. However, good stuffs really do sell fast. One hour is all it takes for the "Penang chee cheong fun" to be sold out. Lucky me, my cousin let me taste some and it was very nice indeed.


Penang CCF, chicken rice, fried stuffs and some kuih

I had myself a huge pack of nasi lemak, a bottle of water and 3 pieces of kuih. Being back in Malaysia not too long ago, the food to me was just average. However, it does satisfy my longing for hawker food!


My huge nasi lemak pack with beef rendang. Not hot enough and the rice is not really fragrant.


Stuffing myself up. I wish I ordered the hainanese chicken rice instead.