AMSTERDAM 2013

After London, we took a flight to Amsterdam for 2 nights.  It was fairly easy navigating through the airport.. given that we were taking British Airways (I think) it was part of the One World group so I was given access to their lounge.. we spent a total of 5 minutes in the lounge before leaving because the lounge TOTALLY SUCKED!!!  No free alcohol or food.. just drinks.. we were better off shopping around in the airport.. til we realized how far the walk to the airplane was.. we were rushing!

Amsterdam is a nice place.. we've been there before with besties and had the best kebab there.  Or maybe we had the munchies cos we were high :P

 

  
That's me and my sister walking away from the sign.. but it seems to be the tagline in Amsterdam these days.. I AMsterdam.. we caught a cab to the hotel (I was staying at Marriott for the first night and moving in with my sister at another hotel for the second night).. 

Once we've settled into the hotel, we walked to meet up with the rest of the gang and ended up in a sports bar where they're serving 'all you can eat ribs!!'  OMG.. hell yeah! hahaha.. we ate til we could eat no more.. I'm not sure what you can do in Amsterdam.. but shopping was definitely not one of it.  Although we did find a Karl Lagerfield shop in the midst of all the ancient shopping.. 

Red light district was a sure disappointment.. firstly.. they don't open til late, secondly.. the ladies were all fat and old!  (We did see one guy going in and getting lucky :P ).. th enext day, we decided to take a tour of Amsterdam on a coach bus.. the one thing I remembered going to on our first trip, and now again.. was this..

Looks familiar? Yes!  It's a windmill and it looked exactly the same as it had in 2009.  I was stoked to remember looking at it.. hahaha.. I even suddenly remembered that that was where the bus broke down in 2009!

That night, we rented out the hotel's boat and went for a canal cruise.  It was awesome weather and it came with alcohol!

What trip wouldn't be completed without a shot with the captain's hat.. hahaha and at the stern of the boat?  Anyway, we took a 2 hour trip down the canal where we saw beautiful buildings (even the Prime Minister's residence!)

Isn't that just such a beautiful sight.. the canal with the olden day buildings.. enjoying the sights with a nice cup of white wine.. absolutely breath-taking.

We had dinner at a 2 STAR Michelin restaurant that was just a stone's throw from our hotel.. and boy was it a gastronomic affair... it was a course of 7 dishes, all prepared by the chef (ie there's no menu to choose from) and each one was more delicious than the previous one.

That was a seafood platter with cream of asparagus soup in the shot glass.. Princessbling LOVES the raw salmon paired with meringue.. she didn't know such a combination would go so well together.  I didn't eat raw food so I got a replacement dish instead.. 

Ham and Salami cold cuts started our meal.. it was beautiful.. not to salty and great textures!

Main course was a delicious tenderloin that was cooked beautifully.. each mouth melted in your mouth, just the way good quality beef should.. I'm just drooling thinking about it again!

Dessert was finished by a strawberry mousse with lemongrass ice cream.. it was a perfect way to end the meal.. we left feeling full and very satisfied.. there was a cheese platter as well, but since I don't eat cheese, it was wasted on me.

Thus was our two nights trip to Amsterdam.. we then boarded the Euro train for a 3 hour ride to Paris.. since we bought first class tickets, we were treated to food on board as well as alcohol!  Let's just say.. this trip was all about indulgence.. good food, good drinks and good company.

If you're wondering, no we didn't smoke weed or eat magic shrooms .. I was eager but no one wanted to have the responsibility of taking care of me when I'm high.. oh well.. maybe next time eh? :)

London 2013

We spent a total of 4 days in London, indulging in great food and shopping, taking in the sights of Big Ben, Buckingham Palace and the London Eye (although we didn't sit in it because the queue for it was sooooooo long).. and we were treated to the usual London weather, where it started raining and we were all soggy in no time.. only to have the sun come out 15 minutes later to dry us all again.

Now in London, shopping was awesome.. we were at Selfridges and Harrods shopping, and what's even better.. is that it's sales in London!  It was definitely a treat shopping there because of the sales.  I ended up 2 dresses from Karen Millen and 1 dress from French Connection at Selfridges.  From there, we had a lunch of oysters and champagne (I indulged in asparagus in hollandaise sauce) and when we regained our strength, we went for a walk along Oxford street, coming across big brands like Chanel and Prada.  I couldn't find anything I wanted in that Chanel shop, but sis found a gorgeous plum caviar skin bag and it took a long time for them to ring it up so we stayed for at least an hour in the store.

Prada was having a sale on shoes, and I was looking for a pair of cork wedges and what did I find?  A pair of cork wedges!  I had to choose between green or yellow.. finally settling for the yellow because it was easier to match and it just looked happier.

See, doesn't it just look so chirpy?  It was on sale too, with an additional 50% off!  BARGAIN!!!  So hence, that was the first pair of branded shoes I bought while on this trip.

Harrods just went on sale and the crowd there was crazy!  BUT, I managed to buy a pair of Jimmy Choo patent leather wedge pumps IN MY SIZE!!  It was 30% off and it too was a bargain!  It did look like my Nine West patent leather wedge pumps but hey.. it's Jimmy Choo okay?  Yes.. I've been called a brand whore before :P  I also managed to find a pair of gladiator sandals which I've still no idea what I'm going to wear it with, but it's something fun to have.  They only had two pairs left, one in size 37 and one in size 40.  Size 37 was my size, and I took it as a sign that I was meant to get it :)  Zara also went on sale and I got some great deals on daily wear, which was awesome!

Sis's friend took us to a Japanese restaurant called Zuma for lunch just before our Phantom of the Opera show.  We ended up overstaying for lunch and missing half the show.. but lunch was awesome.  The food just kept coming out and each and every one was as delicious as the one before.  We had sashimi (no I didn't touch it), tempura prawns that was so crispy and non-oily, baked cod fish but the best thing that came out was dessert!  It was a tower of sorbets, ice creams, cakes and tropical fruits.  Didn't think I would actually find langsat in London!  It was simply delectable!  Phantom of the Opera was great.. we came in at the right time and the singers were awesome.. it was in a small auditorium.. which was interesting because I thought it would be in a bigger hall.. but it was great.. I enjoyed it.

I got to say though, I made a booking at a steak restaurant that came highly recommended online, only to be sorely disappointed.. firstly.. it was FAR and secondly.. my steak came out looking rather pathetic and burnt.. and the onion rings were tasteless.. never trust the internet again!

We went out for lunch again at a place called Oblisk, which was located in the tallest building in London.. I had scallops as entree and it was beautiful!  Cooked perfectly, it was surrounded with sweet corn and rockets (my favourite!) and a lovely sauce.  Main course was LOBSTER!!!  Since having it and falling in love with lobster in Goodman's London.. I ordered the crustacean every chance I get!  And I wasn't disappointed.  It was so light and crunchy.. heaven on a plate.  Dessert was chocolate brownie sundae which was the perfect end to an awesome meal.

We did have Chinese food for one day (Saturday).. we went to the Royal China Club for dim sum (and more lobsters!) which was super yummy.. totally miss dim sum... and at night, we went to Kai, the only Chinese restaurant with a Michelin star awarded to it.  Dinner was just absolutely stunning.. we started out with slow poach egg with black truffle and caviar (light and airy) followed by scallops and the usual fare like sweet and sour pork, chinese vegetables.. all tied together with chili infused rice.  I can't really remember what dessert was.. but it was a great meal.. nice and satisfying.

Needless to say, we had some pretty gastronomic meals in London.. sis's friend made sure that we never went without food and champagne :)

Thus was our trip in London.. next stop.. Amsterdam!

Europe Trip 2013

I thought it's time to write about my AWESOME Europe trip, having been back for 5 days already.  I'll talk about the trip from start til finish (if I can remember!) and post some pictures on the way.. mind you, it was a total GASTRONOMIC trip that all the pictures I've taken is of food.. 

So let's start with checking in at the airport... it all went by uneventfully.. checked in a the Business Class counter because I was flying Biz class to KL, then changing to cattle class to London... whereas my traveling buddies were all on Biz class all the way.. Jealous?  No.. I was flying Biz class myself back from Paris :)

It feels like just yesterday when we're waiting in the Golden Lounge waiting to board the plane.. I was giddy with excitement when we finally boarded.. here comes EUROPE BABY!!!  We arrived in Kuala Lumpur about 9.45pm (our flight to London was at midnight) and John took us to the Platinum Lounge straight away (that's right.. Not gold.. but Platinum!) where we were served champagne and sampled the food in the lounge.. not bad at all.. 

We parted ways at the departure gates.. they had no queue going into Biz class whereas us cattle class minions had a huge queue to go through (mind you, we were sitting the A380!).  I got a window seat (thank goodness) and surprisingly, there was no one seated in between me and the guy on the aisle!  (And it was a full flight!)  I always find it surprising how it can be a full flight and there's always an empty seat next to me!!!  The guy was pretty nice, he helped me with my luggage.  Flight was pretty uneventful.. not at all turbulent-y and I managed to get a good few hours of sleep!  Naturally, I woke up for every meal :D The guy next to me was even nice enough to take a snack box for me when I was sleeping!  And he was nice enough not to bother me with chit chat too.. just the obligatory "where are you from" etc.. 

Now here's where it got interesting.. I was on the way to the toilet when I got stopped by a Steward, and he asked me where I'm from, and I said Kuching.. and he said I looked familiar (pick up line?) but I said I never met him before.. so I walked to the toilet.. and on my way back, he stopped me again, asking if I was "pure Chinese".. weird right?  He thought I had mixed blood in me.. and then he asked for my number and my Facebook Account.  He said he'll probably make a visit to Kuching too.. EKK Freaky!  But you know me.. I never know how to say no, so I gave him my name card and Facebook Email address.. but he's a nice guy.. friendly fellow.. 

In what felt like no time at all.. we landed in LONDON!!!!!!!!  Woo hooo.. and here comes the start of  a great holiday!  I was a little worried about immigration (I always am) but we got through with no issues (my sister even took a fast pass ticket for me!) and next thing I know.. we're on a taxi on the way to Julie's house.  Now Julie is my sister's friend whom she met while Julie was staying in Kuching.  Since then.. Julie has moved to London and Paris (yes, she stays in both cities now) and she's hosting us in her house for the entire trip in London AND in Paris!  Well, in Paris, we stayed at another apartment, but nearby to her place!

It was a LONG ride to her house, but we got there at about 7.30am.. and walked out to find food.. only to find that most places were either still closed.. or closed for that day.. so we ended up in a corner deli.. where I had ham and cheese croissant.. which was heavenly.

When time came... we met up with PrincessBling and hubby (who were staying at Cumberland Hotel) at Selfridges and here comes the on slot of SHOPPING!!!!!!! I got a couple of dresses from Karen Millen and FCUK.. then we walked to Chanel where sis proceeded to buy a gorgeous red caviar patterned bag.. I couldn't find anything I wanted.. so decided not to buy anything.. after all, there was more shopping in Chanel in Paris!  Lunch was held in an Oyster and Champagne bar in Selfridges, where we indulged in champagne, oysters, asparagus (me) and other tid-bits.  Then it was on to more walking!

We ended the night having dinner at Goodman Steak House.. where we had a 5kg lobster.. thus starting my love for the crustacean (never really liked it before) and we had gorgeous steaks there too.. we finished a magnum bottle and a smaller bottle of red wine and never felt better!  After dinner, we met Julie at Princess Victoria (a bistro next to her apartment) for drinks.. and I tried to be polite, but I was crashing.. I literally hit a brick wall.. so I excused myself and went to bed.  PrincessBling and hubby who arrived the night before and therefore had a good night's rest.. stayed on and came back to Julie's place and continued drinking until 2am!  Kudos for lasting so long.. but me and sis were in snoozeland by 9pm.

Ahhh.. day 1.. and I'm loving London already!