Roadtrip Part 1
September 28, 2008
The day started at 9 am when we piled all our stuff in the car and headed towards Minnesota. We tried to sleep as early as possible the night before but I think we both were too excited about the trip the next day. I know I was.
Rob getting gas AKA petrol
Driving for some thirty minutes, we swung by a rest stop for gas and Burger King for breakfast. Rob introduced me to French Toast Sticks. Apparently he ate a bunch of these when he was a teenager and he told me stories about how he would skip the first class of school JUST to go eat French Toast Sticks. (The rebel!). In his own words “They were the best thing on earth back then!”
And you know what? I agree with him! They are GOOD! If you love French toast like I do, this certainly will tease your tastebuds. I cook my French toast on a pan, Burger King’s French Toast sticks are FRIED!!! OMG they are SO TASTY!
French Toast Sticks dipped in Mapple syrup. YUM!
Pink lemonade for breakfast 😛
Then we off to continue our journey to MOA.
We took the scenic route which was the longer way but it was well worth it. We drove past many farms and little towns. The view was great, I really love the countryside!
Our route cut through Wisconsin and when we reached the Wisconsin Dells area, I saw tons of water parks and resorts around. It looked like a lot of fun but we had a schedule to stick to so we drove on.
The sign says “Wisconsin Welcomes You”
Earlier on in the week, we heard news about Lake Delton in Wisconsin Dells that dried out, like completely dried out. All that was left was mud and stones. So we figured we would take a detour and sneaked in stopped by one of the resorts in Witomy to check it out. I was dumbfounded….
According to Rob (2008) [Practising my citation skills for my thesis, please don’t mind me :P], it’s a man-made lake with an edge very close to a river and the water broke through and emptied in a nearby river. To quote Rob again, “This is what happens when human messes with nature!”
We stopped only for a little while and went on our way. Along the way, we drove past more farms and prairies. It was a sight! I loved it. There were horses and cows and sheep. Very different from the tall buildings and highways, away from civilization. Again I have to say, I love the countryside!
Cool looking rock formation
Last but not least, this is me in the car with a mouth stuffed full of gummi bear candy. 😛 I tried to coax Rob into competing who can have the most gummi bears in their mouth (like we did during my first visit there, roadtripping to Wilmot) but he said it was too early for candy! *GASP* So, in the end I syiok sendiri (entertained myself) lah!
In the mean time, I’m preparing pictures for Part 2!
I miss
September 24, 2008
*Emo post ahead. You have been warned.*
It’s been a month since I’ve been home and I still miss you like crazy. In fact, it seems like I miss you more and more everyday.
I miss…
seeing that sparkle in your eyes when you laugh,
waking up in the morning and seeing you next to me,
hearing your snores now and then,
your “somersault” flips while you sleep that end up waking me,
your smugs when you say something sarcastic,
looking at you when we talk,
going grocery shopping with you,
watching you when you don’t realize it
walking next to you,
holding your hand
sharing food with you
feeding you french fries while you drive
hugging and kissing you
snuggling and cuddling you
playing with your hair
tickling you
your smile
Most of all I miss being able to love you next to me.
I miss you Robbie.
P/S: Campak Leong, I’m working on the roadtrip post. Be patient 😛
My first mini adventure
September 16, 2008
This is my first time travelling alone and being somewhere without family. I was excited to say the least. So that’s why I consider this my first mini adventure. I have travelled myself to Australia before but I was picked up by family and stayed with them. This time was different. I stayed by myself for a night in a hotel room, even after hearing all those horror stories. I’m pretty proud of myself. =D
My journey started with the earliest flight out of Kuching to KL at 6am. An hour and 45 minutes later, I arrived in KLIA and had less than an hour to get to my gate for Newark International Airport (EWR) which is in New Jersey, about an hour from New York. I called my parents and Rob, who was really excited for my arrival.
Fast forward 24 hours later (with a stop in Stokholm, Sweden), I arrived to this…
If you look hard enough, you can see the Statue of Liberty in the middle of the River. It is indeed quite a site. I waited for my cousin to pick me up to go to dinner. After dinner, I checked in my free room (which I am still very proud of) at Howard Johnson. I wasn’t expecting much for it was a free room but imagine my surprised when I saw my room.
It was HUGE (for the price they were asking), with a king size bed and a full bathroom. I was really impressed. My flight the next morning was 8 so I woke up around 5.30am to get ready and take the free shuttle to the airport.
Me all glammed up *giggle*
I arrived at the airport a lot earlier then I expected. Then my flight to Chicago was delayed around an hour or so after everybody boarded the plane due to traffic congestion. When the plane took off the excitement I felt was more intense because I was just that much closer to seeing Rob.
I thought the little clouds looked cute
But all was well when I arrive at O’hare International Airport just before 11am. It was my first time arriving at O’hare so I’m sure I looked like a lost puppy to people there. I kept walking and walking, and in my mind I had wanted to go check myself out (as vain as that may sound) in the bathroom to make sure my face was okay etc etc before I see Rob for the first time in over a year. The first bathroom I past by had a line forming so I figured I would go to the next one I see. Unfortunately the next bathroom was closed for maintenance and that was the last bathroom along my way.
Before I knew it, I could see red and white balloons in the air…
………………..
………………..
………………..
………………..
IT WAS ROB!!!
Excuse the bad picture. I was laughing while taking the picture.
He set up his little own station to welcome me to Chicago. I was so excited to see him and at the same time laughing because of what he did. After I snapped a picture, I ran towards him and we embraced for a minute. In his hand was a little teddybear holding a heart which said “I love you”. He gave it to me and “Here, have a bear with a PINK hat” while smirking.
He had made the signs a few days before I arrived but the night before something happened to the signs and he had to make new ones all over again. Here is a closer shot…
It’s pretty obvious what the first sign says. Now the second one says “Hi Honey Bwoo!” and other little pet names. Let me explain what “Bwoo!” means to us. One night while Rob was telling me some good news, I wanted to said “Woohoo!” but what came out of my mouth was “Bwoo!”. So from then on, “Bwoo!” has been the official substitute of “Woohoo!”.
The other four words in there are Shinnie, Ice cream girl, Pandagirl and the last one (blocked by my watermark) says “Summer Chai”. Now the origin of “Summer Chai” can be found here. Its just a little insided joke with my friends. I told Rob about it before and the smartass in him decided to include that in the sign.
We got my luggage and headed a lonnnnnnnng track to the parking lot. When we got to the car, he surprised me again with a single pink rose. I was touched.
Off we went to IHOP for brunch. I have been planning this first day for months. I ordered my all time favourite; the Breakfast Sampler which consists of everything I love from IHOP, french toast, pancakes, sausages, scrambled eggs and bacon and a side of HASH BROWNS!!!! Rob ordered Strawberry pancakes which were heavenly as well.
After eating, we checked in the motel we would be staying in for the next 4 days before going on the roadtrip. Rob went in to check-in because they charge extra for 2 occupants in a room. The cheapskate me wanted to save like USD10 per day. That’s USD30 ok! Which means we saved over RM100.
As I stayed in the car and looked around the surroundings, I was relieved. It felt good to be there. It’s hard to describe the feelings. I felt complete being with my soulmate once again. It felt right. It felt as if everything in my life was coming into place. Suddenly reality hit me and I realized that I would be leaving in 5 weeks. I was extremely happy to be there but at the same time sad because it meant that eventually I had to leave. A minute later, I saw Rob walking towards the car and I smiled. The feeling of sadness disappeared.
We unloaded the car that had my luggage and other essentials which Rob had prepared e.g. toiletries, extra pillows, snacks etc. After some snuggling and cuddling, we took a dip in the pool for an hour and then headed to Woodfield Mall for Baskin Robbins ice cream! We walked around the mall a bit and surprisingly I didn’t buy anything at all. I was probably saving up for the Mall of America. HEHEHEHE
Oh-so-happy with my Strawberry Cheesecake ice cream
Before going to dinner, we stopped by Rob’s house to say hi to his parents and for me to reunite with Naomi the Samoyed. She instantly remembered me and was following me all over the place. I now call Naomi “Princess” and I think she loves it. I miss her.
Isn’t she just SO adorable?
Dinner was at one of my favourite places, Chili’s. I have been craving for Molten Cake for over a year. We ate light for our meal, sharing an appetizer of buffalo wings, chicken nuggets of sorts and egg rolls.
Rob had told me about the new Molten Cake at Chili’s called White Chocolate Molten Cake months ago. Instantly I knew I MUST try it no matter what! So we order one of those and the classic Molten Cake.
Chocolate cake with drizzles of chocolate syrup and caramel, topped with vanila ice cream and more chocolate!
Moist vanilla cake with melted white chocolate and strawberry sauce, topped with vanilla ice cream and chunks of white chocolate chips!
MMMmmmmmMMMMMmmmmmmmmMMMmmmMMMM
Both were DELICIOUS!!!! I can’t pick a favourite. The classic Molten cake was fantastic as always and the White Chocolate one was equally as good. I gobbled the White Chocolate Molten Cake
This is what was left of the Molten cakes. =D
That’s it for my first day in Chicago. Stay tune for the roadtrip post!
Arghh
September 6, 2008
I woke up yesterday with a big (literally) shocker. It hurt to blink and I felt this intense pressure on my eyelid. My left eye was swollen, as if I had been punched. A closer look in the mirror, I realized that it was the eyelid that was puffy. It was so swollen that it even spooked me out. I rushed to the doctor’s. Apparently I have an infection under my eyelid. Oh what fun! *roll eyes*
Not only do I feel crappy now, I still miss Rob like crazy. 🙁
It feels different waking up to this room. I miss the place we stayed at. I miss the carpeted floor. I miss how close the bathroom was. I miss looking at the paintings in the room. I miss looking out the window. I even miss that ugly maroon red comforter on the bed.
The meds are kicking in, off to bed I go.
Back
August 31, 2008
Yes, I am back.
Yes, I am still alive.
My flight back was horrible. Don’t really feel like going into details right now. I am battling jetlag and still trying to adjust back to the timezone. I have been waking up at 4am since I got back. Don’t feel too great.
I miss Rob so much it literally hurts. Can’t count the number of times I cried. It sucks. And as you can tell I am “thrilled” to be home.
Don’t expect any updates until I get over this physical and emotional rollercoaster.
Just checking in
July 26, 2008
This is day 4 in Chicago and I’m loving every minute of it. Everything is great, the food is delicious and the people are nice. Been eating tons of evil oily food. We went to get a strawberry milkshake last night at about midnight. God bless 24 hours McDonald’s.
Sorry I haven’t been online to chat with you guys cause I can’t go online as much because the motel I’m staying at charges USD3 for a day of internet access. Cheapo in me refuses to pay that kinda money. I’m sitting on Rob’s bed right now, tapping away while 3 white fluffy dogs are staring at me from outside the door. Not to forget the “pleasantly plump” cat next to me.
Haven’t been shopping as much as I thought I would. I think I’m just saving it all up for Mall of America. But I have bought some tops and my latest GREATEST deal is a USD9 black halter dress which Rob loves a LOT cause he was almost drooling when he saw me in it coming out of the fitting room.
Rob and I are super duper excited about our roadtrip tomorrow. He’s on the computer looking up maps and information right now.
I will update when I get back from the roadtrip cause the place we’re staying at has wireless internet in the room for free!
Mall of America HERE I COME! WOOHOO!!!
Pre-departure jitters
July 19, 2008
In less than 30 hours I will be jetting off to see Rob. I am excited about this trip but at the same time I have been stressed since the last week or so. I have not been sleeping well for the last few days and pimples are popping out everywhere on my face. I keep double-checking on the things I am bringing.
It’s also hard to pack with just one suitcase. Do I really need to bring those extra 2 tops? Or should I just bring the bare minimal and buy what I need when I get there? Should I bring a scarf with me for those cooler nights? Or is that totally unnecessary? It’s summer time for God’s sake! But Rob said some nights can be cooler so what do I do?
Grrrr I blame the American airline industry for imposing the USD25 on the second luggage that you check-in. I keep having to weigh my suitcase on my scale and it’s not the most accurate one. I worry what if my suitcase is over 50 lbs and they wanna charge me USD100 for excess baggage? So what do I do? I take out some clothes from my suitcase and shove them in my bagpack. I am also bringing my old laptop with me so nobody will feel the need to steal it. It’s so beat up! That bag is getting heavy too.
I won’t be sitting in the last row of a section in the plane. I always liked that more because I can have the backrest all the way down and not worry about making the person behind me uncomfortable. So I worry about that too, what if I can’t sleep upright for the 24 hour flight? If I’m too tired, what if by the time I get to Newark I’m so tired that I miss my flight to Chicago the next day cause I overslept?
I’m SO driving myself crazy. I’m feeling sleepy now, let’s see how long it takes for me to fall asleep tonight!
MFM – the verdict
July 15, 2008
As mentioned in my previous post, I was contacted by MFM’s Marketing Executive for a complimentary meal at MFM. I wasn’t expecting it either. I was impressed and surprised. I give two thumbs up to Ryan Poh, the marketing executive.
So, last Friday I went to MFM at The Spring for my complimentary meal. Needless to say the service there was hell of a lot better than the one at Boulevard. Then again, since they knew I was coming for my free meal, I’m sure they all stepped up and made sure I was impressed.
Upon reaching MFM, I saw the waiters and waitresses signalling each other. Apparently they had an idea who I was. LOL The one THING that I didn’t enjoy seeing there was the dumb supervisor from Boulevard. I have no idea why she was there. Perhaps just a coinsidence in rotation? Regardless, I ignored her.
The food was good and the service was pleasant. To be completely honest, I wasn’t that into the food because I’m getting sick of the food there. We had 3 soups, 3 mains, 1 appetizer and 3 drinks, which was exactly what Ryan offered me. I had wanted to order dessert but figured I would wait until I finish my meal.
Anyway, we had three Seafood Chowder. My dad and I had the Flaming Platter, and mom ordered some Baked Cod Fish of sorts. I ordered the highest priced appetizer which was the Sizzling Louisiana Pranws. As for drinks dad had Coke, mom ordered Hot Chocolate and yours truly ordered the most expensive drink in the menu, a smoothie of vanilla and chocolate ice cream with peanut butter. It was very rich and it ruined my diet, but I didn’t care. It was FREE! EVERYTHING was free!
The restaurant manager (whom I later found out) Ismail Izni, is also the manager for BOTH MFMs in Kuching. Apparently he was away in KL during my disastrous dinner at Boulevard. He introduced himself and gave us his card, apologising a couple times about what had happened. He was polite and nice and came by a few times to ask if everything was ok and whatnot. He offered dessert but we declined because one, we were stuffed(!) and two, it wasn’t part of the deal offered by Ryan so I didn’t want to be seen as taking advantage of the situation, although by now it is pretty obvious I did. HAHAHA
I told the manager about what had happened in case he wasn’t fully aware of the situation at Boulevard (I doubt he read my blog). I was right. I told him about the ridiculously stupid waiter who said there was no ice water. His eyes got so huge and his jaw almost hit the floor.
One thing did urk me but I decided not to make a big fuss over it. My dad asked for tomato ketchup and the waitress never brought any. *sigh* I guess that’s the standard of service MFM provides. What to do, what to do.
The total value of our meal that night was almost RM200. LOL We didn’t pay a single cent. Before we left for MFM I told my parents to order because let’s face it, it’s my perogative. 😀
So, my overall verdict is:
Food: 7/10
Service: 6/10
Will I be going back to MFM? Well, not anytime soon.
P/S: I think it’s very sad and pathetic that they were all polite and “efficient” and whatnot AFTER I bitch and complained. Goes to show how much they value their customers.
I got heard!
July 6, 2008
After my last post about MFM I decided to email them and make a complaint. Within a couple hours I received an email from one of their representatives, offering me RM50 in gift certificates. I was initially impressed but after giving it some thought and talking to Rob, we realized that the RM50 could not even cover my meal there with the parents.
But I was already impressed that they even bothered to contact me back. I mean, when it comes to the service industry in Malaysia, the standard is certainly not there yet, so I wasn’t expecting anybody to respond to me, and so quickly at that. Nonetheless, I emailed this representative back saying I should accept the apology even though it hardly covers half the cost, plus I’m pretty sure my dad wouldn’t wanna go back there ever again.
Again I was surprised by a better offer. This guy offered me a complimentary meal with my parents at any MFM of my choice in Kuching. I certainly am NOT going back to the one at Boulevard. Now I have to convinced my dad to go and set a time and let this guy know. He said he will arrange the rest for me (how nice!). He also assured me that my next experience dining at MFM will be a lot better. I have to give him two thumbs up.
Once I arranged everything and dine in at MFM, I will blog about it and give you the whole scoop. Til then, TWO MORE WEEKS!
MFM Boulevard can go to hell
July 1, 2008
Disclaimer: Very long post ahead. Don’t read if you’re not in the mood for my bitchy complaints
I swear, the idiots are out on a roll this past week. I seem to keep bumping into them!
I had the most horrendous experience in any restaurant ever in my entire life. Not only was the food not up to par to standards but the service was just ridiculously abysmal.
My dad had received an SMS from Maxis, offering a free starter/appetizer with two orders of mains, a few days prior. Not a bad deal, we thought. So we went to MFM Boulevard for dinner over the weekend. The SMS also reminded that we show it to staff before ordering.
The waiter that took our order was indeed, for the lack of other words, STUPID beyond explanation. That was the day I discovered that talking to a waiter that is as dumb as a brick can be quite stressful, if that gives you an idea how DUMB and ASSININE and HOPELESS he was! I will let you be the judge and tell me if I am wrong. This is the conversation that took place, as far as I can remember it.
Shin: *shows SMS* I would like to use this
Waiter: Ok. You must order 2 main course to get free starter
S: Yeah sure, there are 3 of us so we’ll be ordering 3 main courses
W: No, you have to order 2 main course
S: Yes I know, we are ordering 3 so it’s ok
W: ……
(At this point I realized English wasn’t his strongest suit, so fine I’ll speak in Malay.)
S: I nak pakai SMS ni boleh tak??? *shows SMS*
W: Ya kenak order dua main course
S: Yalah saya tahu, sini 3 orang
W: Ahhh ya order 2 main course lah.
S: *inside my head going OMFG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!* 
W: ….
Guess what I ended up doing? I ordered 2 main courses, chose my starter THEN ordered another main course. What did this idiot say to that? Nothing. Then came to ordering drinks…
Mom: Warm water
W: Ok
S: Ice lemon tea please
W: Ok
Dad: Ice water
W: No ice water
S: What?!?! You don’t have ice water?!?!?!?
W: No
S: You tak ada ice water?!?!?!?! (You don’t have ice water???)
W: Tak ada (No we do not)
S: You ada air tak? (Do you have water?)
W: Ya (Yes)
S: You ada ais tak? (Do you have ice?)
W: Ada (We do)
S: YOU LETAK ITU AIS DALAM AIR BUKAN ICE WATER KAH?? (If you put the ice in the water, isn’t that ice water?!?!?!?)
W: Oh you mahu macam itu kah? (Oh you want it like that?)
S: Yalah ice water bah! (Yes! That’s ice water!) 
OMFG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Right??? Holy shit how can anybody be that stupid???? 
While waiting for our food, I was telling my mom that the starter is going to be really small, considering it’s free. That’s always the way with free stuff. Our drinks came, and like magic my mom’s warm water became the ice-water-that-they-do-not-have. %#!%!%!# IDIOT!!
Then came my main course, proudly called in the menu “Creamy Seafood Pastaâ€. I was not impressed. It was hardly creamy, looked dried as hell but I figured I’d give it a try. I took a bite and the pasta was hard, like it wasn’t cooked enough. I thought, “It’s ok, I’m sure not the whole plate will be like thatâ€. I forked around the pasta, trying to get to the bottom of the plate in SEARCH of some “creamy†sauce. Imagine my horror when I felt something harder on the bottom. I lifted my fork up and saw a few pieces of pasta stuck together, BROWN. It was BURNT! How do you burn pasta??? You cook it in boiling water, take it out and mix it with the sauce right?? Then how the FCUK can ANYONE burn pasta????
I waved the supervisor/manager down, I’m not sure but I am more likely to consider her a supervisor because she was almost as stupid as the waiter that took our order. This is what I said:
S: Is this your CREAMY Seafood Pasta? *while showing the burnt pasta*
Supervisor: Yes
S: *holds up fork more* This is burnt
Supervisor: Oh…..ok….
S: So you serve BURNT pasta to your customers????
Supervisor: Oh oh, I will change a new one for you
S: THANK YOU 
She takes my plate back to the kitchen, whether she spit on my meal after that I do not know. I try not to think about it. She came back with a bowl of “complimentary†soup as an apology. Fine, I thought. I won’t make a fuss. A couple minutes later, the appetizer came to the table. I then told my parents that I was impressed because it was a full size portion appetizer, even though it was free. Oh how stupid of me to be impressed.
Our food came. My pasta was 10,000 times better! It actually had SAUCE and it was CREAMY! WOW!!! BRAVO! 
When we were done eating I asked for the bill and also showed another waitress that I have the MFM sticker which entitles me to a 10% discount on the bill. She gets the bill and brings it over. I looked at the total. It was about RM100. I skimmed up the total, I was not given my 10% discount. I asked her.
S: You did not give me the discount did you?
Waitress: No not yet
S: What do you mean not yet?
Ws: Ya later I will give you discount
S: I don’t understand
Ws: Ya ya
(Another one that doesn’t speak English! I spoke Malay agian)
S: You tak bagi discount kan? (You did not give me discount?)
Ws: Oh tak, nantilah. (Oh no, later)
S: Apa nanti???? (What later???)
Ws: Tadi tak sempat key in, nanti saya datang balik dengan change sekali (We haven’t had the chance to key in the register. I’ll come back with your change later)
S: Apa??? Then sekarang I kenak bayar berapa??? (What? Then how much am I suppose to pay you now?)
Ws: Oh you nak discount tu sekarang lah?
S: YALAH! YOU TAK DISCOUNT MACAM MANA I TAHU BERAPA NAK BAYAR?????? (If you don’t give me the discounted price, how do I know how much to pay???)
Ws: Oh ok
ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
She scurries off like a drunken rat and comes back with the bill again. It was about RM90. I noticed that I was given the discount but my dad mentioned that it was still a bit pricey. He then gave me the lecture about checking the bill carefully before paying. My mentally was, if they screwed up the bill, they will have to fix it. Sure enough when she came back with my change and I checked the bill, we were CHARGED for the appetizer! I asked for the manager and a different girl came. This so-called manager is another idiot. Your staff screws up our order and bill. She could’ve given us a free voucher or free dessert or anything at all. At least make us feel like she was really sorry and appreciate our business. But nothing. She just fixed the bill and gave more money back.
I don’t even remember whether or not she apologized for the mistake. All I remember her telling me was that the person who took the order DID NOT TELL THEM I SHOWED HIM THE SMS FOR A FREE APPETIZER. No wonder it was a full serving portion!
I really like to know how these people were trained. Seriously, if they can’t speak English at the very basic how can they be hired in this line of work? At this point I can’t even see the waiter and waitress being able to handle working at a roadside stall, let alone a restaurant that serves WESTERN FOOD! I’m so pissed thinking about it now that I want to slap the BAGEEZUS outta them! Since when dining out had to be this stressful?
I am still in disbelief. I was dumbfounded that this was the standard of service MFM gives to customers. We left without making a fuss because, to be completely brutally honest and offensive, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. This is how they were trained or so it seems, and this is how they will continue to be like. I won’t be surprised if this branch shuts down some time this year. I’m certainly not going there again.
P/S I did not have my camera and so did not take pictures of my food. If I had my camera I would’ve taken a picture and sent it to MFM corporate. I also did not get the names of the idiots working there because, to be politically incorrect and offensive, they are ALL the same.