Operation© Big Surprise Clue #28/34 Las Vegas Sands

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #27/34 Unagi

Unagi! Delicious.

It's kinda weird how two people can be so connected. How two people half a world away can have the same feelings.

38 more days!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #26/34 KLIA

I think this was the first time Babe has stepped into KLIA (The departing end of the airport). I was a curious time for her and so we decided to go explore the air port.

It was about 6 am when we caught a taxi from Sunway to KLIA. About RM60 one way! So gay! Reaching the airport, babe was all excited that we were going on a plane! I think this was her fifth time flying in her life!

We got a good view of on the aerotrain and headed for our terminal.

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #25/34 York Hotel, Orchard Road

Clue #25 was taken mostly in York Hotel, Orchard Road, Singapore. It is the first Hotel Babe stayed in Singapore!

The rooms are great and the breakfast buffet fabulous!

Highly recommended!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #24/34 Manhattan Fish Market

Ah... it kinda sux to execute Operation Big Surprise ahead of time, like 1 month earlier than planned but oh well. Not everyone has the same amount of patience as I do. Anyway, clue 24 was taken at Manhattan Fish Market!

One of my experience with Manhattan Fish Market is that I found a severed glove in my Fish and Chips. Fine, I told the manager, but and he said he would send me a 10% discount voucher but it never came. Lousy Manager.

Having thought that we would not get the same treatment at the other branches, we went down to the one in QB. They made us wait so long! So damn annoying.

My advice, stay away from Manhattan Fish Market to save you life!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #23/34 Queensbay Mall

Yes, operating go fly kite was on the way as you can see. We were at Queen's flying our RM5 kite into the night sky. Babe was exhilarated that we could actually get the kite flying after 30 mins of no show.

After that, the kite did not seem that it want to come down without a fight, so we pulled it down!

The bright side was babe's reaction when I got her the best Christmas present so far!

44 days left!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #22/34 More from Ampang Lookout Point

Word of caution. Clue 22 was taken at the hill top restaurant at Ampang Lookout point. There are four restaurants atop the look out and some of the food better than others. Be aware though, the dessert served is pathetic and a scam. Do not waste your money on their over priced no quality desserts. They are indeed lousy and unappealing to the eye.

Yet, the scenery there is nice over looking KL! Get your cameras out and start snapping!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #21/34 Fish and Co. Singapore @ Wheelock

Fish and Co! is a Singaporean owned chain of restaurants selling seafood. There used to be one shop in Gurney but has since closed after renovations on Gurney walk commenced.

Their signature dish is no doubt their fish and chips! Ahh. miss that.

Babe and I were just strolling down Wheelock place in Singapore when suddenly we spotted the shop after going down the four storey elevator!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #19+20/34 Sunway Hotel

Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to stay at Sunway Hotel before. Even from the facade, one can guess that the hotel costs biblical proportions. Two elephants adorn the entrance with gazelles and tigers in the pond. Opposite the road, a reflection pool stood.
Sunway has a tradition of huge decorations where the walk would be filled with lights matching the theme of the season. The ministry of sound at Sunway sits in one of the most crowded places in the Klang Valley.

Time lapse from Lincoln Apartments

Bidding farewell to the Victorian summer, I managed to immortalise the beauty of dawn before I miss the chance.

This time lapse was taken over 1 hour and twenty minutes.
Canon 450D, mini tripod, remote control, 3 stops ND filter.

Thanks to Ditto for the filter which he was about to disposed of at Grampians.

Music by Richard Claderman - Casablanca (literally White House)

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #18/34 Sushi King

Even more Japanese food! Well, Sushi King opened its doors in Penang almost 10 years ago, the first one being in Prangin if memory serves me right.

Eating sushi is a past time that we have seem to developed throughout the years. Not only are the little creations so delicious, they are aesthetically pleasing. The combination of sight and sound and the atmosphere makes every visit an experience.

Clue 18 was taken in Queenbay mall. There were like Chinese New Year promotions going on so we had the opportunity to savour creations made specially for the year of the tiger! Rar!

Meet the Chem Engers

Introducing Class of 2010 UniMelb Chem Eng!

So after about 80 days at Chem Eng this sememster. This means that I have only about 50 more days before the term ends and fourth year back in London begins. I seem to only know less than half the class by name so I thought it would be a good idea to get everyone in one picture. For those of you know still don't know whos who, this is the chance to say hi to the people around you before you graduate and start drilling for oil and stuff!

This class picture was taken after we analysed the radiative heat transfer properties of Prof Ray's Phat light saber. May the force be with you!

I am going to miss UniMelb in some ways. Good luck to all the people doing PED and PE3!

Download the large pictures here:

Picture 1
Picture 2

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #17/34 Baking Love

Clue 17 was taken in my kitchen! Yesh, I bake. Kinda weird for a guy I guess but too bad. I've always wanted to bake a cake and who better to help me than BB! Yet we cheated! We got a premix which was easier to do!

The only thing was this was not the texture I was after. I am after the elusive chocolate moist cake. The thought of it makes my spider sense tingle. Yumm!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #16/34 An early birthday present

One of the marvels of the world is definitely the belt without holes! Unlike belts with holes, these new belts have grooves at the back and some locking mechanism. The advantage is that they last way longer than ordinary belts. Babe gave me exactly that for my birthday present this year! How sweet!! My old belt was about 4 years old and even though the old one was the locking type, it had its fair share of days.

Wearing it right now!

Life of a Chemical Engineering student

Dear Escape, four weeks of my life just went by and disappeared into thin air. I must admit that I was not slacking off but some things just get on my nerve.

Life as a chemical engineering student can sometimes get tedious especially when you are building a chemical plant. Sometimes its just not your day.

Spent so many waking hours just staring at the screen. Haven't worn glasses in my life but it seems every passing day my eyesight get that much more blurry.

Gonna miss my 20 20 vision. Luckily, outside my window is exercise for my eyes. watching the clouds and trees most definitely stretches your lenses.

3 more weeks to exam start. Arrr!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #14+15/34 Gurney and Food

Double take. Gurney is just a place that has endless supplies of food. Clue 14 and 15 are a testament to food.

Babe and me are always on the trail of food. We would order something small at one shop and then finish a second half of the meal somewhere else!

At gurney recently, we were actually having pizza at one one store. Just decided to try out to see how good was the pizza. It was satifactory, but that did not stop us from our next stop:
Teppanyaki! I personally had not ever seen teppanyaki chefs up close and it was amazing that it was a performance rather than cooking. The chef was playing with knives and hurling spatulas into the air. I could swear that he is some kinda ninja. Delicous!

Great Ocean Road Adventure #5/6 Break of Dawn!

0600 hrs. Otway camp dormitory. The raindrops fell non stop and we could hear the drips from the warmth of our beds. The half awoken committee was determined to make Fotoholics camp a sleep camp. After all, it was ten degrees above freezing outside and we were all snugly under the sheets. I had other plans:
Fully armed with my camera and tripod, I managed to gather a few more people to experience the sunrise with me.
Fortunately or unfortunately, the clouds were out in the droves that morning and the darkness lingered on as a hint of sunlight peeked through the clouds. The Antarctic winds blasted into our face sending the ten brave Fotoholics into a shiver.

The wind was blowing so strongly that this time lapse was only fifteen minutes long. Yet the clouds were going places. This was the only interesting shot of the sunrise that did not come. Suddenly, I felt something hard hit my skin. Hail!!! Mixed with rocks! That was when I turned around and told the rest of the photoholics "Run!".

The next five minutes seemed to be the longest one in Australia. It was clear that we were being hit hard. Hail or sand we did not know. Desperate to protect our eyes and face, we shield our faces from the coastal wind.

The gale showed no sign of letting down and we rendezvous under the roadway, sheltered from the passing rain. Soaked and cold, we dashed to the cars before we succumb to the might of nature.
Safe in the car, we watched the storm pass over us until the first true rays of the sun penetrated the seemingly never ending cloud cover.

Haha.. Ngiah is gonna be so sad he missed this one!
After our little excursion of extreme weather, we headed back to base camp. Only 10 minutes had passed and the skies turned blue and pretty!
A few of us took the opportunity to snap away while the birds look in amazement.That's me!The cold beach was no place to be until this guy surfaced from the ice cold waters. Balls of steel!

Making it back, we broke fast and here is a scene in the kitchen!

Before we left the camp, we prepared ourselves for a group picture. Da Wei with his fish eye went to set up his tripod. Yet the weather was relentless and unleashed another torrent of rain!
This time we were smart. We stayed indoors!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #13/34 My other home

Clue 13 was shot partially in my second home. I stayed in Sunway for a some time when I was younger. Back then, Sunway itself was a hole in the ground. The rows of houses actually sank from erosion some years ago. In the past, when there was no LDP behind the house, I would use to go catch tadpoles in the park behind my house.

I could still vividly remember watching TV when I was four. That time, there was no pyramids, no lagoon and no hotels definitely. There was also a time when my paternal grandparents used to take care of me there.

Somehow, memories many years ago are still fresh in my head.

More to the present, Sunway is now in the middle of everything! Can't wait to get back home!

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #12/34 Christmas Tree

It is that one time of the year where people get jolly around a tree. To the most of the modern world, Christmas is mere a time where we exchange presents and pleasantries. In actual fact, it is a birthday, the day Christ.

Away with history and on to the celebrations! So we were in Sunway Hotel Suites where they had this really big tree. Like proper shutter bugs, we could not resist and started camwhoring like no one's business.

The Christmas of 2009 was one to remember.

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #11/34 Posers

Couple shots are always nice to take. Babe and I went about to take some in my room! Playing dress up, all you need is a tripod and a timer to get some really memorable pics.

Clue 11 was taken close to our anniversary day. Note the matching blazer and the passionate posing. Makes me feel like a model somewhat.

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #10/34 The Kitchen

Wooo, number 10 already!

Reminiscing on the past holiday, I had been doing a lot of baking. Made chocolate cakes, lava cakes, crepes, meringues and many more.

Hmmm, probably that is what chemical engineers do best. Mix stuff up and heat them up.

If you can see Kiki at the bottom pictures. Miss the lil furball.

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #9/34 The Car

The car has been a very special place for Babe and me. She likes the front mirror!

Babe got her license one year before I did, and one year after we got together. Taking the bus was the alternative before you could get liberated.

I'm sure my friends know that I drive a 1997 Honda Accord. These pictures represent the last time you'll see it cause my parents just sold the car off.

This old car was the highlight of the 21st century. I bet your 1997 car did not have autocruise built in!

12 year old car, many accidents but still kicking. Will miss my Honda.

Great Ocean Road Adventure #4/6 Shooting the Milky Way Galaxy

Ever since I was a kid, I have always seen pictures of the galaxies and the stars. Notice how the stars are in front of the clouds. Thats because this is no ordinary cloud. This cloud is 450 light years across.

Tonight, I managed to see with my own eyes, with the help of my 450D, a glimpse of the Spiral Arms of our Milky Way Galaxy. The Great Ocean Road offers clear skies without all that city light pollution, allowing the avid photographer to get a snapshot of the beginning of space.

These shots would not have been possible without Kwok Liang's F2.8 and his remote timer! Thanks a lot dude! Welcome to the sights of Camp Otway.

Anyway, after dinner, the Photoholics organised a light painting session. As you can tell, my light painting skills could use some refining after I painted a retarded looking sun! Yet, my main purpose of night photography was not light painting. One could do that any night and anywhere. The real lure for me lies in the heavens. The clouds were rolling and we were not certain if a star shoot would be a good idea. However, the clouds parted to reveal the unobstructed view of the shining stars. During the light painting, I pointed my camera upwards to get the above picture.

Not satisfied, a motley crew of 10 people jammed into two cars and headed off to a more secluded location. The winds were blazing and the temperature dipped as the surface heat left the atmosphere. Without artificial light, I managed the above. If you look clearly, there is one really bright spot there. That happens to be one of the planets, either Mars or Venus.

Like mice in the dark, it was a band of tripods all pointed up in the air and two cars surrounding us. It was a carpark that was next to the beach. We became witness to every crashing wave and the billowing wind. We shot there for at least an hour, some of our team members, succumbing to the chilling winds. It all paid off when I managed this shot:Click to enlarge. Just brilliant. The vast expanse of space and the sheer number of stars. The specks close to the clouds are all stars, while the specks outside are all distant galaxies. If you can see properly, you will notice the diverse colours of the starts themselves.

Beautiful.

Operation© Big Surprise Clue #8/34 Hitting the big G

Keeping to our Penang roots, Babe and me used to frequent Gurney drive every other week. Gurney Drive used to be where people would go for dating in the early days. Today, Gurney plaza occcupies the strategic location while Paragon mall is opening right beside it!

G Hotel is the newest hotel on Gurney Drive and is quite modern in terms of design. They had this bar and this large lobby. Good for vanity.

Lips are such a seductive weapon don't you think?