We* are back from Bangkok. The last time I went on an all girls’ trip was with Jupes to the US in ’03 (or was it ’04? Sorry Pillay, I guess I consider you a girl.)

Well, we shopped and shopped and shopped and shopped. Ate less than I desired to, why hello Mister Donut and A&W and dirty road side places, I missed you guys! We clubbed and clubbed.

The king size bed at the hotel housed Seow and Xiu Ru with me in the middle. The bed was huge the entire night however, on the second night, it seemed to have shrunk and I wondered why it was the case as I seem to be rather near to both of them when the previous night they seemed to be miles away.

Fun. Bangkok was exhilarating, tiring, dusty and fun.

*We = Mel, Jas, Seow, Xiu Ru and me.

Well, all the double whammy of yoga and muay thai in the same day has done me in, not to mention the running I have been doing. Darling Xiu Ru, I am not kidding when I say my legs are tired and I cannot lift them in muay thai. Not only do I not have hand eye coordination, I also have bad balance. While attempting to knee properly with my heels lifted as scary Gan watched, I lost whatever balance I possess and fell. I heard the crack. The ankle is swollen.

Tomorrow I am going to Bangkok for crying out loud. This is not the first time this has happened. I had sprained my ankle landing improperly after jumping for an overhead smash on the tennis court just a day before I was to go to KL a few years also.

Yes, I am disappointed. But I will troop still like the soldier I am to Bangkok. Poor awful ankle.

I have seen some spectacular beaches in my time. Langkawi, Krabi and now Waikiki. The hotel that we stayed in was just across the beach. The last time The Laney was at Hawaii last year, he described Waikiki as Orchard Road across the beach. This is extremely accurate. The rows of stores, hotels and restaurants were situated just opposite the beach.

For three days in a row, I would get up, slather myself with SPF and fasten on my bikini (I brought three there). The first day, I purchased a mat from the ABC store downstairs the hotel. ABC stores are like 7-11s, they are everywhere and sell everything imaginable, from food and drinks to souvenirs. Including tanned Hello Kittys wearing a flower in her ear instead of her usual red ribbon. With my trusty Oakleys (which are scratched badly after this trip), cowboy hat (squashed in my suitcase), sarong (which tore a little) and lots of water and magazines, I sat in the sun, during the harmful hours from 12 to 3 or 4, determined to be tanned.

The sand is soft and loose. Walking on the sand is a feat, you have to grip your toes in and my way of walking brings a spray of sand behind my feet with each step I take. But the sand is so hot that you do have to wear your slippers. The heated mantle of the sandy ground reminded me of the Archie comics when Archie is hopping from blanket to blanket to soothe the burnt soles of his feet. Fire walking anyone?

The water is crystal clear. Sparkling in the sunlight, like what you see in movies. The waves are Huge. The surfers and body boarders benefiting greatly from the wind. Even I managed to bake properly without getting too impatient due to the intermittent breeze and watching the Bay Watch-que lifeguards. Have you ever seen 8 packs in real life before? Well, now I can say I have. Those boy lifeguards with TV drama worthy bodies made the long flights to Hawaii worth it.

People watching, reading magazines, watching the Hills on my iPod and listening to music, it was a time for contemplation but more of veg-ing out. I did wish I had put my mind to it to ponder about the real things that were running around in my mind but how could I concentrate when I was just trying to contain my amusement at the brown wrinkled Japanese man lying on his blanket wearing only a green tiny speedo thing.

Recounting the Hawaii trip will take a little time and a few posts, to kick it off, above is a picture of me on Big Island waiting for nightfall to see the lava glowing flowing into the sea. Yes, the key word is Waiting.

The flight from Singapore to Narita was uneventful and so was the one from Narita to Honululu. Though the former was less packed (understatement) than the latter one as the Japanese accounted for 90% of the passengers on the JAL flight. I reckon I will always fly the Japanese airlines from now on. Purely because they hand out tiny packets of rice crackers that end up being my meal. I do not see a point in paying for ‘service’ when flying. I will never pay to fly Singapore airlines. Even before the ex person. Anyway, yes, I was delighted the second I caught a whiff of that oh familiar smell of rice crackers, they do rank among my choice junk food.

It was Sunday morning when I touched down (not sitting on the same flight as The Laney), I love time differences. We did fly on Sunday morning too. Off in an expensive cab ride to Park Shore Hotel. The beach was just across the hotel.

Next up, the beach.

Hello Darlings, I am back. Jet lag is a pain in the ass.

I will miss the hot sand and the cold water. I will miss sitting on my sarong alone contemplating life, thoughtful and also hoping to turn a darker shade of pale. Because Waikiki beach is not here. Here makes me sick. I want to run far away from you.

Awful will:
* Go wild at the Lesportsac outlet
* Go to Pearl Harbour
* Visit a WholeFoodsMarket
* Do yoga
* Run along the beach
* Go wild at Lululemon
* Tan and watch The Hills and The City (amongst other guilty pleasures)
* Visit the fishies at the Wakiki Aquarium
* Roam
* Go Big Island to see the Volcano

Awful will eat at:-
* Bubba Gump
* Chris Ruth’s Steak
* Cheese Cake Factory
* Jap BBQ place where Missy Teo says got cute Japanese waiters
* Is there Pink Berry or Jamba Juice there?

Truth to be told, I have not done proper planning and packing for the trip. Maybe it could be that my plane ticket has not been confirmed. Perhaps because I have been busy prepping for my bikini bod? Lulu says only 3 more Muay Thai classes to killer bikini bod. 3 more?!?!?!?

So far I have only bought sunblock (SunKiller), hand sanitizer and the latest Harper’s for my trip. Have not purchased new bikini, new hat, new sandals, heh. Go there and buy?

I am so excited that it’s Friday today!

I am so excited that I am a concert whore this month:-
1. Kumar at the Explanade on 20 March (with the work girls)
2. Duffy at Indoor Stadium on 22 March (with Jupes and Shue)
3. Coldplay at indoor Stadium on 23 March (with Missy Teo and Cherry Bomb)
I would have watched 3 concerts in the span of 4 days! Granted Kumar may not sing but he is a performance in his own right.

I am so excited that I may finally be going to Hawaii. If it happens, I will work every Saturday and Sunday and save every penny until my ass gets on that plane to Hawaii en route Narita.

Hello from Beijing!

I am staying with the Pig and my mother’s friends here and it is fabulous. Expatriate life is indeed exciting and very agreeable. The place here is located in sort of an expatriate village and developed by a Singapore company. The house has three storeys. Auntie J has a own driver and that is the coolest thing ever. Imagine stepping out of your house to be chaffeured to wherever you want and when you are done at whatever place, the car will be waiting for you outside.

We went to the Forbidden City yesterday. The area is FREAKING huge with lots of Chinese. The good thing about being Chinese is that you can travel within the country for vacations. Like we go to Malaysia. There are like one gazillion rooms and palaces and chambers and what nots, mostly not maintained though those that are maintained are gorgeous. We went to the Imperial Costumes exhibition, the porcelain musuem and the clock musuem. I think knowing Chinese history would have made the place more interesting.

This morning we got up early to go to the Great Wall. It is Great indeed. It is fascinating and incredible. I greatly enjoyed taking the cable car up at Baling Shan (Er, maybe the name of the place is Wrong) and walking ‘down’ in the cool morning air. With the other Chinese of course. Walking down is like bullshit because there is upslope and down. The steps if there are (mostly they are) are uneven in height and sometimes very very steep. The Great Wall was fun! The view was impeccable.

We visited the Giant Panda Exhibition at the Beijing Zoo. Auntie Judy advised us not to visit the other areas of the zoo. The Giant Pandas were very cute and lazy. Dirty too. Did you know they weigh 12 kgs when they are half a year old? No wonder they move like ants. But they are really damn cute.

Uncle CL got us tickets for the athletics events today at the Para Olympics. It was an once in a lifetime experience and truly an eye opener.

I am about to drop. More when I get back.

Well, I am back. Phuket was alright. Rested well, I think. Here are the pictures.

1. What I brought to Phuket. My standard beach stuff that I usually never wear when I am not near a beach. My one remaining boardshorts (the rest got too small for my hips). My Guess KIDS dress. Yes. I had this dress since I was twelve. I know. I did not really grow, especially in the bust area. I love being flat. I do not know why but it agrees with me. I cannot fill out certain tops or dresses but that does not matter.
2. BIGGGGGGGGGGGGG bed.
3. Bathroom that is almost perfect (perfect if there was separate bathtub and shower), with two sinks.
4. First food stop: roadside noodles. Mine is Pork without vegetables. Love the soup glass noodles. Thai Char Siew is the same.
5. Waiting for food to come.
6. Awful no likes wait.
7. Coconut shake, euuw.
8. 6 Dunkin Donuts: For lunch, tea, dinner, supper.
9. More food.
10. Japanese food bento = 200 Baht = Singapore 8 dollars.
11. Random Thai bottled drink that they made up to be Jappy.