F E L I N E R S

this is a third wedding that i attended this year. anyway, nowadays, FAQ among friends whom i meet are "oh, u're attending a wedding dinner too?", "whose wedding are u going to?" and the likes. DENG DENG DENG. the Trend has come. eeeps. *wedding bells playing in the background*. even poosy posted up Unconventional Weddings in her blog.. which, i think, is cool. poos. like, Rock.

bom, bom, bom-bom.. *wedding march tune*

childhood friend - one who shares the same birth date as me..

bride's brother showing his stuff on the piano..

i was sent into a reverie last weekend, meeting people whom i've once crossed paths with in my early teens - doing silly things during our carolling trips.. late night mamak sessions that resulted in angry dads. having seen them as kids, and then add in a span of 10+ years of absence, and *BLINK* these kids became ADULTS! it's funny, really. we have grown apart, but we gathered together last weekend, exchanging banters, teasing one another like old times, nevertheless..

the Very Important People table

backdrop & silhouette of the 'jazzicians'

check the musicians out at www.fretlezz.com

we can go watch them once in a while. the keyboardist happens to be a childhood friend, too, since i was a mere 7 or 8 year old kid. kit, u have met him before at the mont kiara square there, if u can remember. =)

"we don't wanna grow up"

L-R : Jeanie, Clement, Garf, Sooky, Jesse, Leong, Jeff

i was wondering if i want those type of Chinesey wedding.. the tea ceremony n all.. anyway, i was one of the 'chee muis' at this wedding.. one of those who gang up with other girls to play pranks on the groom and his 'buddies' before letting them into the bride's house..

have u girls thought about how ur wedding's gonna be? i roughly have an idea how poos's gonna be, after seeing her post.. heehee

man in a spinning wheel

men in spinning wheels

(notice there's no crash pad underneath? craziness right? 1 of them did an additional stunt - skipping rope on the outter wheel while it was spinning)

FIVE bikers within the globe thingy

FIVE!!!! 5 of them riding simultaneously!! my heart almost dropped while watching this stunt

angel-acrobat

weeee..!!

elephant show

the tricks that the elephant did:-

1. with 1 leg on a stool, he rotated himself around (the stool)

2. carried a man on itself & walk around

3. hit a ball with a bat using its trunk

4. bend tunes on a harmonica (but i was thinking, this isn't a real, real trick, coz 1 man was holding the harmonica against its nostrils & all the elephant needed to do was to breathe, naturally..)

the bye-bye picture

i wasn't really enthralled much. i find it rather uninteresting, really. i guess it's because i knew what was expected, and worse still, i expected more. in conclusion, it would be best for kids loh i suppose. i just wasn't thrilled when i saw the clown prancing about or when the dancers did the 'i have no more energy' dance.. however, i'd give credits to the men on wheels, the stunt bikers, and those who did the hanging thing using just 2 pieces of cloth.. (i didnt post the picture here coz didn't manage to get good shots of it) anyhow, it can be viewed on kennysia's page at http://www.kennysia.com/archives/2006/05/royal_london_ci.php

We spent the weekend at the serene environment of Serendah. For those of you who know where it is but have not been there... the place is really nice because not only is it nestled in the jungle, but it also boasts simplicity and eco-friendly architecture. Having only a total of four units within the area, we had the whole place to ourselves as we were the only ones there for the weekend.

A recent New York story goes like this:

Boy sees girl in subway. Boy likes girl. Boy tries to 'catch' her amidst the sea of subway riders. Boy lost her. Can't stop thinking of her. The rosy cheeks. Flower in her hair.

Boy set up a website hoping to find her. Cynical New Yorkers (amazingly) comes to the rescue - www.nygirlofmydreams.com website gets passed on. Boy finds his girl.


Nah, I'm not really blogging this to romanticize the already oh-so-cute story but just to comment on how I relate such an incident to being so New York...

After having lived there for awhile, it is possibly one of the best things I like about the place; the mere randomness of it all and that there are enough crazy (as how some ppl would see it) or gutsy (as how I see it) people in New York that see something they like and would just go for it. Whether or not one succeed isn't the point. Most people where I come from will never get this. People are too afraid of falling, too afraid of failure; their wants or dreams become bitter, forgotten trails.

As for Patrick Moberg and his rosy-cheeked sheila, maybe they'll fall in love, have kids and grow old in a Park Slope apartment together. Or maybe they'll date, have hot sex on the kitchen floor and after few weeks, her cheeks won't seem as rosy as they were before. His skinny legs would be too skinny for her. Is all lost then? Of course not. At least he dared to dream and took his chances - and that is the difference between... someone I'd date and one I wouldn't? Hahahaa.

p/s: Funny thing is, I swear she works in this cafe called Bread near where I lived. The description fits - the rosy cheeks, braided hair, flower and all. But I guess I'll never know! And I even remember asking her if she was from Australia because of her accent and she said yes.

The American Museum of Natural History is a landmark on the upper east side, manhattan. it is also the place where the movie 'A Night at The Museum' was shot.. (Ben Stiller).. heehee

white daisies.. =)okay.. i have to be truthful here.. i'm not able to tell what every picture means.. there were so many things to see but we hardly have the time to really go through every writing.. anyway, enjoy the pictures.. some musical instruments in the olden times.. "the soul leaves the body and travels to the afterworld"..

the 'one-legged man'..

the Aztec Stone of the Sun - this most damous Aztec monument, commonly but mistakenly known as the Calendar Stone, is reproduced here in full size, its complex ornamentation includes some elements of the calentrical system common to various cultures of middle america, but it is in no sense a calendar. all of its symbols relate to the sun & accent the sun's role in Aztec belief & religion. in that belief, the sun as the source of all life, was venerated above all things. as such, it requires the sacrifice of blood & of lives to sustain it.

is musical talent inborn or can it be learnt? scientists say both, at least for 1 musical ability : perfect pitch ( the ability to identify the pitch of a musical tone without comparing it to other tones. perfect pitch often run in families, so scientists believe that it has a scientific component. but early musical training is also needed for this trait.

only those with perfect pitch access a brain region - it's somewhere on top, left, in front there..

and also, did u know that mostly those with perfect pitch began musical training by age 4?? after abot age 12, it's impossible to develop perfect pitch..

diorama in one of the halls..??!

The Art of the Diorama: Recreating Nature

Renowned naturalists, artists, photographers, taxidermists and other museum personnel have all blended their talents to create the great habitat dioramas which can be found in halls throughout the museum. These world famous dioramas represent an unparalleled melding of art and science. Some of the diorama halls have themselves become major attractions for museum visitors from around the world.

this is the main lobby in the theodore roosevelt memorial. it overlooks the central park as well..

'Youth' - by Theodore Roosevelt.. these wordings are carved on walls in the lobby.. it's huge we gotta lift our heads up high to read it..

the same main lobby..

how do ya like it so far??

thank u, kitty, for synchronizing pictures of Day 13-14 to me. i can now continue blogging abt the trip.

*the writings below are of ctrl+c and ctrl+v from wikipedia. hehe.

Strawberry Fields is a 2.5 acre landscaped section in New York's Central Park that is dedicated to the memory of musician John Lennon and named after his song, "Strawberry Fields Forever". It was designed by Bruce Kelly (1948-1993), the chief landscape architect for the Central Park Conservancy. Strawberry Fields was inaugurated on Lennon's birthday, 9th Oct, 1985, by his widow Yoko Ono, who had underwritten the project.

The entrance to the memorial is located on Central Park West at West 72nd Street, directly across from the Dakota Apartments, where Lennon lived for the latter part of his life and where he was murdered.

The memorial is a triangular piece of land falling away on the two Park sides, and its focal point is a circular pathway mosaic of inlaid stones, a reproduction of a mosaic from Pompeii, made by Italian craftsmen as a gift from the city of Naples. (i personally would like to add on that, it's a shape of a teardrop loh, actually.)

In the center of the mosaic is a single word, the title of Lennon's famous song: "Imagine". Along the borders of the triangular area surrounding the mosaic are benches which are endowed in memory of other individuals and maintained by the Central Park Conservancy.Yoko Ono, who keeps apartments in The Dakota, contributed over a million dollars for the landscaping and for the upkeep endowment.It is not uncommon for the memorial to be covered with flowers, candles in glasses, and other belongings left behind by Lennon fans. On Lennon's birthday and on the anniversary of his death (Dec 8th) people gather to sing songs and pay tribute, staying late into what is often a cold night.

Here's an article Peter sent me from MSN lifestyle:

We didn't want things to change. Especially the sex. After a year of dating, we were moving into our first apartment together. There would be no more shuffling between his place and mine; no more simply exchanging bodily fluids, showering, and leaving — now there were groceries, chores, bills, the whole bit. Everything was about to change. Thinking otherwise was a big crock of stupid.

Of course, I had heard the debates. Cohabiting, the peanut gallery argued, would turn us into glorified roommates. Nah, the other side would say — cohabitation meant better sex, more often. We were about to see who was right.

Pre-move, our sex life was hardly shabby; it was intense — and loud. I had a hunch my neighbors threw a big-ass party when I moved out. But the new pad was huge and oozed chic, a happy by-product of combining incomes. Making love in this incredible apartment (our apartment) was like making love for the first time again. The bathroom, for one, was an orgasm waiting to happen. In the past, we'd tried to navigate the choppy waters of tub sex — alas, neither his bath nor mine could contain all 5'2" of me — let alone both of us.

With wide eyes and expectant loins, we sank into our plunging tub. The only thing better than doing it in the bath was doing it without cramped limbs and a face full of faucet.

When there were no new orifices left in the apartment to explore, we settled into a routine of sex twice a week. Thing is, when you're under the same roof, you can't help but be amazed by life's banalities.

Soon, talk of hot-tub action became: "Hey, have you noticed how much sediment settles on the bottom? Think that's remains of the bath salts or just our dead-skin cells?" We put the whole tub-sex thing on hold.

A cohabiting case in point: There are no chores when you're living apart. A forgotten pair of panties left on his floor becomes a keepsake; perfume on a pillow, an erotic trail. "I snuggled up to your side of the bed so I could smell you," he would tell me on the phone, moments after I'd left his place. Now, today's musky sheets are tomorrow's dirty laundry.

There was also a new kind of sex that refused to be denied. And it was the kind I, heretofore, liked least: morning sex. Living apart, it was easy to skedaddle back to my place before he awoke. Sometimes I didn't even stay the night.

But when you're living together, there is simply no escaping morning wood. There it would be — risin' and shinin' — rubbing against my thigh as unapologetically as the sun beaming through our windows. Surprisingly, morning sex turned out to be not half-bad. It's all about compromise, so I indulged him once a week; in turn, my sated man promised he'd de-stress with me instead of his Xbox.

And sure, the novelty of new rooms to romp in has since burned off like morning fog. But it's been replaced by something much deeper. I don't know about you, but nothing gets me hornier than plain ol' thoughtfulness.

Here, in our new abode, I've seen him send my mail out without my having to ask, turn the TV to my favorite channel when he's done watching, and one work night, bring home my favorite frozen yogurt. (Usually just a weekend treat.) A simple gesture, but when I saw my sweet, sexy son-of-a-bitch clutching that pint, I grabbed him. We ended up having the best sex of our lives.

Lying there, legs entangled, all of life's banalities melted away, like the frozen yogurt left out on the counter. "This is ours, baby," he whispered. "All ours." It was — for better or worse, morning and night. I loved him from the bottom of my heart. And that hadn't changed.

I guess I'll have to agree with her - after living with someone for awhile, the attraction felt in the beginning of the relationship turns into something deeper - but deeper doesn't mean flaming passion; deeper means more stable, rational and nurturing kind of love which I have yet to fully grasp and come to terms with. I guess I'm dumb, young and don't know any better!

What I know is that after sulking last night, this morning I woke up to iloveyous and morning kisses which I probably didn't deserve. And a banana from the breakfast buffet, placed on top of my morning paper before he went to work to top it all off. Now, I should really know what love is about!

We spent last weekend in Maastricht, the 'crown jewel of the South' (of the Netherlands, that is) they call it. It is a mere two and a half hour train ride away from Rotterdam in those comfy Dutch trains - then again, are there any uncomfortable train rides in Europe? Nah, I seriously doubt it.

Apparently they say a trip to the Netherlands is never complete without visiting Maastricht so we decided to find out if this is true. Nestled near the border of Belgium, we find that Lonely Planet is spot on about the city being unlike any other Dutch cities; I associate a lot of things Dutch as simplistic, no fuss, and down-to-earth which I think is very cool. However, when it comes to Maastricht the medieval city did not just charm us with it's numerous atmospheric squares and winding cobbled streets - there is that cool sophisticated vibe that we really dig!

Maastricht is bisected into two by the river Meuse or Maas and the main sights are scattered equally on both sides. The pedestrian bridge that links the citycentre of Maastricht at the western side of the river Maas with the Wijck district at the other side of the river is the famous Sint Servaasbrug, the oldest in the Netherlands which dates back to 1298. Yep, it is so old we need a new word for old.

Sint Servaasburg

Maastricht's landmark include the Vrijthof where the two important churches are located - Basilica Sint Servatius and Sint Jan church. The Vrijthof is the city's main square and is dotted not only with important monuments like the churches I've mentioned but also with restaurants, cafes and pubs offering al-fresco dining to tourists and locals alike.

Entrance of Basilica Sint Servatius

Fountain statue near the basilica's entrance

The striking red-coloured tower of Sint Jan.'s church

Vrijthof is not the only square in Maastricht, in fact the city has a few others to offer. Onze Lieve Vrouweplein is an intimate cafe-filled square named after its church. We dropped in for hot chocolate in this cute chocolate shop; they offer an array of flavoured hot chocolates from coconut to caramel to hazelnut. You actually pick your flavour off the shelves (they're pre-packaged on sticks like lollipops and they bring you the steaming hot milk. you then stir in your chocolate-on-a-stick and voila, yummy hot chocolate!).

Onze Lieve Vrouweplein

Everyday is a winding road...

The Markt is another bustling square - here we found the gorgeous townhall and the statue of Johannes Petrus Minckeles holding a flaming rod. He invented gas light.

Stadhuis (town hall) at the Markt


The other highlight of our weekend trip was where we stayed. Kruisherenhotel is a stunning Crutched Friar monastery complex that dates from 1483. During the French Revolution, it served as a barracks and arsenal. Early last century, the monumental gothic church and monastery complex fell into a state of disrepair. Then late in 2000, initiative was taken to save the unique building from ruin. Large-scale renovations were set in motion and the building was transformed into a luxurious, contemporary designer hotel, retaining respect for the past.

Entrance

Courtyard

The fortification in Maastricht is a feast to the eye - the Helpoort is the oldest surviving town gate in the Netherlands.

Helpoort

Autumn in Maastricht