Dinner with good friends

This morning I woke up late and Dad and I walked down to the cafe for a leisurely breakfast. We walked around the lakes and then back to the house where we picked up a couple of shopping bags before walking to Woolworths to buy a couple of things.

Back at home I spent most of the afternoon giving the bathroom a thorough clean - exciting stuff! I was quite amazed when I realised this is the first time I had had to clean a bathroom in about 6 years - oh what a tough life.

The council were doing some work on the water mains up the road and so they turned off the water at some point so I had to stop cleaning for a while. I left the basin tap on just to let me know when the water was back on. Later, Dad walked up the hall and heard the tap on. I had left the cleaning cloth in the basin which had blocked the plug and therefore the bathroom had flooded - whoops! Luckily I hadn't mopped the floors yet so I got busy doing that.

When Dad went up to his bedroom, he wondered why his shoes were squelching on the carpet. Apparently the water from my bathroom had run under the cabinet into his bathroom and out into his bedroom. The carpet was saturated! We grabbed all the towels we could and started mopping up as opened all the windows. What a drama.

So after all that, we got ready and drove over to David and Donna's place for dinner. I couldn't believe how big Patrick was now and Annabelle had grown 5cm over summer! It was nice to spend some time with them. We drove home about 11 and again fell into bed.

Into the Fringe

This morning I had breakfast at home before heading down to Greenacres in time for my passport interview. I had almost run out of pages in my current passport so I needed a new one. The girl at the post office was pretty crap and the first thing she did was cut up my current passport. She obviously didn't bother to read my application because I had requested a frequent traveller passport and she tried to charge me for a normal one. Once she had done the application online, she was about to send me on my way. I asked her where the passport would be sent to and she said the address I had on my application. Of course this was my Malaysian address. I tried to explain to her that I needed to pick up my passport here because otherwise how would I get into Malaysia to pick up my new passport now she had cancelled my old one. This sent her into mass confusion. Luckily she had enough initiative to ring the help line and they explained to her that I could simply pick it up from the passport office in the city when it was ready. I thanked her insincerely for all her help before walking out. What is the point of having to go to an "interview" if the person doesn't even read or check your application!

Anyway, back at home, Dad and I decided to go into town and check out some of the free visual arts exhibitions around the city. We drove into King William Road to the Hyde hotel. We had some lunch and then checked out the Uniquely SA photo exhibit that was displayed around the pub. There were some beautiful photos and all of them definitely portrayed SA.

From there we walked down to Victoria Square where we stopped to take photos of the two giant blow-up astronauts wearing tutus which were the Fringe mascots. We continued down to North Terrace and walked to the Torrens Parade Grounds where we visited the Helpman Academy Graduate exhibition. Basically a selection of the graduates from art schools around SA had their final graduation pieces on display.

Some of the work was amazing. I particularly liked a number of charcoal potrait drawings which were incredibly detailed and looked more like black and white photos than charcoal drawings. It was the finest charcoal work I had ever seen. I also like some of the sculptures including a hanging tear drop basket made out of steel. It looked like pipe segments had been squashed and then welded together into a shape similar to a 1970's bamboo swinging chair. One ceramic piece also stood out. The work consisted of three busts of carnevale women wearing elaborate headresses. Fine porcelain ceramic was the media and it was incredibly detailed work.

From the parade grounds we walked along the Torren's river past some of the other Fringe venues until we got to the Botanic Gardens. We went in search of another exhibit which we couldn't find so we wandered through the gardens and saw two weddings taking place. It was a beautiful day and would have been lovely for their big days.

Back up to East Terrace and we walked over to the Amacocco tent. There was an hour and a half wait to get in so dad and I skipped that and continued along Rundle Street looking in some of the boutiques. We stopped at CIBO for a coffee and also to look at their photo exhibit showing behind the scenes looks at last years Fringe.

We were pretty exhausted from all the walking by now so we walked through the mall and up to the tram to catch it back to where our car was parked. We drove home and I had a rest before having to get ready to go out again.

Again, I drove over to Stan and Kate's and we headed in with Luke to go and see a show called Circus, Trick Tease. We tried to find somewhere to eat and ended up at the Belgium Beer Cafe which was packed and the service was slow but eventually our food came and we wolfed it down before almost sprinting to the the Garden of UnEarthly Delights in time to catch the show. We pushed through to the front of the line much to the displeasure of the security but we did manage to find the venue and get a seat seconds before the show started.

Basically it was three performers who did mainly gymnastic type routines of balancing on each other and also using people from the audience. I was impressed when the "strong man" lifted four grown women who were sitting on swings suspended by one bar. That must have been over 250kg he lifted on his shoulders.

All three performers were amazingly strong. The other guy managed to balance on his head on an inverted wine bottle that was on top of blocks stacked about 2m high. And the girl, besides being very funny, managed to climb on top of both of the guys who were standing on each other's heads so she ended up being about 6m in the air standing on this guys head! It was quite amazing.

The show went for about an hour and although some parts were a bit raunchy (I felt a little uncomfortable for Luke) it was amazing. Afterwards we drove up the Parade and had a coffee at Manto's before I headed home. It had been a big day of Fringe activities.

Shopping and catching up with friends

This morning Dad dropped me at the doctors where I had to pick up some stuff and then I walked up to the Norwood Parade as Dad was doing his bus induction for the Kiwani's. It was a beautiful day so the walk was great although I was seriously sweating by the time I got there.

I walked around and stuck my nose in some shops but resisted the urge to buy anything. I had a coffee in the mall and continued to window shop before I met Dad at Manto's for lunch. We headed home and I chilled out before having to get ready to go out again.

I drove over to Stan and Kate's place as we were going out to Sinclair's Gully winery for the evening with some of their friends. We left about 6 and drove up to Norton Summit and beyond into the bush where we came across the tiny winery. They produced organic wine so we went through the tasting list and met up with Kate and Stan's friends. We moved to the big table down on a small landing where they brought us tasting platters to accompany our wine selection. As the sun set, black cockatoos flew through the trees and two friendly wallabies decided to come and visit the winery which was a big hit with the kids.

As we chatted, ate and drank, we listened to a lady singing. She was apparently one of the acts from Fringe and she was pretty good. After dark, a fire juggler came on and we all headed up to watch him. By this time, most of us had had enough wine to think that it looked pretty easy :-)

Back down at the table we finished our wine and wrapped up the evening before heading back to Stan and Kate's place for a tea. I drove home and fell into bed about midnight.

First day in Adelaide

We arrived on time and things were looking good until I got to the e-gates which weren't working. But I managed to get through immigration quick enough. Down at baggage claim it was another story. It was like a train wreck! The Singapore Airlines flight had landed 5 minutes after ours and so 600 people were crammed in a tiny space trying to get their bags and line up in the one line for customs. It was ridiculous.

I finally got out and met Dad over an hour after we landed. I was so exhausted from the travel over the past few days. We dropped my stuff off at home and walked down to the cafe for a coffee. I thought I had better try and stay up for a while before completely crashing. From the cafe we walked to Woolworths so that I could get some credit for my phone and a couple of other things.

Back at home I unpacked and then finally succombed to my exhaustion. I slept for a couple of hours and felt much better afterwards. Dad made us a chicken salad for dinner which we ate outside under the pergola as it was a nice night. I tried to watch Elizabeth the Golden Age with Dad but it was just all too much so I crawled into bed early.

Unpack, wash, repack!

I slept in as much as I could this morning and tried to recover from the frenzied trip to Japan and the long flight home. Eventually I dragged myslef up and got busy. I pottered around the house getting things organized to take to Adelaide as well as doing the washing and unpacking from Japan. I was supposed to have an acupuncture appointment today but I cancelled it and instead made waxing a priority!

About 2, I drove out to The Curve for my waxing appointment which was hugely overdue. How can that much hair grow in one week! Needless to say I was there for a long time and it was agony. I drove home again and managed to squeeze in a nap before Ross got home from work. He helped me finished my packing before it was time for us to drive to Sentral.

Back at the train station, I checked in my bags and said goodbye to Ross. Once at the airport I got through immigration and headed out to the other terminal to find something to eat and to pick up a few things. I ended up at Dome and enjoyed my minestrone soup before trying to hunt down something to dry up my running sinuses. In the end I ended up at the medical clinic and bought some antihistamines from the doctor for the flight.

As we boarded, the flight was jam packed. I had managed to get an aisle seat but in the middle section and right down the back of the plane. As usual, I only had about an hour's sleep and spent the rest of my time watching My Sister's Keeper (not a good movie to watch on the plane as I bawled my eyes out!) and playing games on my iPod. Again it was another uneventful 7 hour flight.

The long haul back to KL

Another early start this morning. Warren was kind enough to drop us at the train station with our bags to catch the train to the airport. We got to Kichijoji and went to buy our airport express train tickets only to find out there was only standing room available. We had no choice but to take them.

Once we got on the train we were hoping to just snag some seats but the conductor put pay to that. We had to make our way down the train to our assigned carriage and luckily we found a couple of fold down seats in the area between the carriages. It was freezing cold though!

We finally arrived at the airport at 8am after having left Warren and Julie's at 5.30. We checked in and headed to Starbucks to warm ourselves up. Through immigration and I bought a couple of things duty free before we caught the shuttle train to our boarding gate. Unfortunately they couldn't sit us together so we were each on a window seat in rows behind each other. The flight was uneventful but long and I managed to watch a movie and played a truck load of games on the iPod but I couldn't sleep. Ross was out like a light behind me!

Once we landed in KL we soon realised that it was pouring down outside so we decided to catch the train to Sentral and then catch a cab. Although it took ages in the peak hour traffic it was better than walking in the rain. We finally got home 15 hours after we left Warren and Julie's place. It had been a long haul.

I ran a bath while we cleaned up the usual welcome home presents from the cats. After soaking in the bath for a while, we heated up a frozen pizza for dinner, watched some TV and then fell into bed exhausted. It had been a great trip to Japan and so much fun to catch up with good friends again! But it was sure nice to sleep in my own bed. I had managed 5 different beds in 8 days in Japan. Only 24 hours before I head off again to Adelaide!

Last full day in Japan

Both Ross and I were pretty exhausted by the pace of the last week in Japan. While Warren and Julie headed back to work, we lazed around the house in the morning and finally got organized to go and do something about 11.30. We caught to train to Kichijoji and spent the day wandering around there.

First stop was the technology mecca of Yodabashi. Ross had been there with Mark and Warren during the week and I was really keen to check it out. We landed in the camera section and I spent a while looking at lenses and light boxes and other camera accessories. We managed to find a really helpful salesman and although he did not speak English we managed to bumble our way through to purchase a macro lens, a remote shutter release, a new camera strap, a lens protector filter and a small light box. Not too bad!

We went up the various other levels but nothing else really grabbed our fancy. Julie had mentioned there was a bead store on the top level so I headed up there to take a look. They did have plenty of beads but nothing overly unique and it was really expensive compared to KL. So I left a bit disappointed but happy with my camera haul.

We walked around a few more malls before getting hungry and so we started looking for a place to eat. We wanted Japanese food as it was our last day but the first restaurant we went into did not have an English menu, the menu had no pictures and they couldn't speak English so really Ross and I were stuffed! We walked around for a while more before getting too hungry to think straight. We finally decided on a resturant upstairs which seemed a bit like a do it yourself tepenyaki place. We soon found out that it was a tepenyaki savoury pancake type place. Again with no English menu or anyone who could speak English, we managed to stumble our way to order with the help of the pictures. The waiter was kind enough to show us how to cook one of these pancakes and then Ross followed suit with the other. We also cooked our own gyoza on the hotplate. The food was delicious though and really hit the spot.

From there we walked back to Isetan and we made our way to the supermarket section. I had offered to cook dinner for Warren and Julie and thought I would buy the ingredients to make the salmon dish that Kyoko showed us at the cooking lessons. I had the recipe and Kyoko's shopping guide to help me but we still had to ask fo help for a few things but we managed to get everything.

So with food in one hand and camera accessories in the other, we made our way to the main park of Kichijoji. It was beautiful and built around a big lake. The afternoon was sunny although cold and we really enjoyed the slow saunter around the lake watching the locals go about their business. It was a nice way to end the day. As the sun made it's way down, we headed to the train station for the journey back to the Lavender's.

Warren and Julie were home when we arrived and after taking them through our day, Julie and I got busy preparing dinner. It was delicious! After dinner we chatted, watched TV and had more strawberries (yum!) before heading to bed. It had been a great last day in Tokyo with friends.

A relatively low key day

Ross and I woke up about 10 and finally managed to get organized enough to leave the hotel about 12. We left our overnight bags with the concierge and caught the train to Harajuku. It was the first time that Ross had been there. It was great to go back on a Sunday because much more was happening.

We walked down Takeshita Street before looking for a small flea market at the nearby shrine. No luck with the market but the gardens surrounding the shrine were beautiful and we saw our first traditional wedding for the day.

From there we walked to Meji Jingu shrine. We were lucky enough to see two weddings taking place and one where the men of the family were actually inside the shrine itself offering their prayers while the massive drum was being played by a Shinto monk. It was a beautiful afternoon.

Around the corner from the shrine was the Yoyogi park. As soon as we entered the park, we were confronted by the infamous rockabilly Elvis'. Apparently they belong to two rival "mafia" gangs in Tokyo and every Sunday they have a kind of dance off with each other. Just bizarre! And the funniest thing was they were crap dancers! Ross and I were mesmerised by this for a while before we finally dragged ourselves away to look at the other sights in the park. Every where we looked there was something going on. A lot of groups were obviously rehearsing plays in full costume. A bunch of young Goths were simply stalking about the place. Many people were practising musical instruments or martial arts. It was amazing to see.

By this time the temperature had dropped significantly so Ross and I made a B-line for the train to pick up our stuff and head to Warren and Julie's. We finally arrived there about 5 and we were frozen to the bone and exhausted. Warren was kind enough to go out in the cold and get us Indian takeaway for dinner which we scoffed before heading to bed not long afterwards.

Fish markets, brunch and back into Shibuya

This morning was an early start. Ross and I were up at 5am to make the first train into the city at 5.36. From there we connected to a train that would take us to Tsukiji Fish Markets. It was easy enough and we knew we were in the right place as we got off the train and was met by the smell of fish.

We didn't know where the markets were exactly but it didn't take us long to work out they were just next to the station. We wandered around amongst the darting tray trucks and found the small outer market where they sold an amazing array of knives and other goods. From there we managed to weave our way without getting killed by the trucks into the cavernous market section.

Ross and I have never seen so much or so many varieties of seafood. It was quite amazing. One of the first sights that greeted us was a guy with a hand trolley stacked with 6 massive deep frozen tuna. We wandered among the stalls taking photos and just watching in amazement at the frenetic activity that was going on. We bought some tuna sashimi and worked our way back again to the outer market to hunt down a sushi place for breakfast.

We entered this tiny little sushi bar and picked a relatively small sample plate of sushi to share. It was freezing cold (I had 5 layers on) so the warm green tea was welcome. The old man behind the counter prepared each piece of sushi by hand and tried to show us on the menu what we were eating (he didn't speak any English but when we said we were from Australia he said "Skiing" so maybe he thought we were from Austria). It was surprisingly delicious. Nothing tasted too fishy or slimy - except for the raw prawn. Perhaps that's where the saying 'Don't come the raw prawn with me!" comes from :-)

After sushi, we found this little stall selling ceramic dishes and bowls and I went a bit nuts. The downside was we had to carry it all home. But it wasn't too bad and before we knew it we were walking from Tama station to Warren and Julie's place for brunch. Sue, Julie and the boys were home when we arrived. Mark soon followed along with Dee and Lyndell. We tucked into Julie's awesome brunch of pancakes, maple syrup, bacon, eggs, quiche and the raw tuna we bought at the fish market. I also scoffed a bunch of the amazing Japanese strawberries - the sweetest strawberries I have ever had.

Just as we were finishing up, Steve Histler, a guy we taught with in Kuwait turned up. It was great to catch up with him. I hadn't seen him for about 6 years. About 11.30, Ross, Dee, Lyndell and I made our way back to the house to pack up our stuff and make our way back into town for the night. The people who stayed in the house would be back from their ski trip tonight so we had to move out before they arrived. Ross and I left our suitcases at the place for Warren and Julie to pick up while Lyndell and Dee dragged theirs to the train station.

The trains were chock-o-block and Lyndell only just managed to get on by straddling her suitcase. In Shinjuku, we left the girls as they were staying nearby for the night and Ross and I made our way to Shibuya. We finally found our way to the Cerulean Tokyo Tower Hotel - a fancy 5-star joint - and checked into our room. It was so nice to have such a big room and our own space!

We were both pretty tired but we forced ourselves to go and walk around and ended up in a big department store called Q-Tokyu. On the top floor were a bunch of art galleries which we wandered through before making our way out onto the roof top via the cute pet store. It was a beautiful afternoon so we soaked up the sun before heading back inside and working our way down the various levels of the department store. We walked back to the hotel where I had a bath before crawling into bed for a power nap. I woke up soon enough and started getting ready for the night out. Ross finally woke up and before long we were ready to head out again to meet up with everyone for dinner.

We walked to the restuarant and passed an amazing boot store on the way. Every kind of boot imaginable was on sale - it was quite incredible. Eventually we found the restaurant and ran into Warren outside. We went upstairs and met up with Julie at the table and before long Dee, Lyndell and their friend Simon showed up too. We ordered appertisers while we waited for Sue and Mark to turn up. We enjoyed our meal and then headed downstairs to another bar for a couple of drinks. Warren and Julie wisely left us then as we slowly started to degenerate into the usual drunken night out.

From that bar we moved to an expat bar called The Hub which was super crowded and smoky but at this stage we didn't care. We had one round with Mark and Sue before they had to head back to catch the last train. Ross, Dee, Lyndell, Simon and I were the last ones standing and numerous rounds of vodka, soda and lime were consumed. Ross made mates with some locals one of which was getting married. The rest of us were kept amused by Lyndell's game of stuffing matchboxes in everyone's pockets.

Later in the night, Simon's mate Carlos arrived and the girls had quite a crush on him - pity he has a girlfriend. About 2am, someone had the sense to call time and we struggled up the stairs and put everyone in a cab before Ross and I walked back to the hotel with a slight detour at McDonald's (again!).

Cooking class and Roppongi

We had an early start this morning. Sue and Julie walked to our place and we made our way to the train. Julie was cruise director and had managed to work out how we could make our way into the inner suburbs of Tokyo to our cooking class. We caught the train to Roppongi and walked from there to meet Kyoko for our class. On the way we picked up some wine to enjoy with lunch.

Kyoko was a lovely lady who opened her home and arms to people wanting to learn Japanese cooking. We were asked to take our shoes off and don a pair of Japanese slippers before she took us on a tour of her home. First stop was a traditional room with bamboo mats on the floor. This room was used for worship and contained two shrines - a Buddhist shrine for their ancestors and above this was a Shinto Shrine. She explained the significance of each and then also explained that her family were not actually religious but this was more about tradition. Off of this room was a beautiful traditional tiny Japanese garden with two blossoming trees - one red, one white.

She explained some more about how the room could be used for large meals and also as a sleeping room and we got a tour of the linen press to show us the futons (too funny!). We were then asked to wash our hands and meet her upstairs.

We met her mother who was the loveliest, tiniest woman I had seen. She was amazing paper artist and had created some beautiful pictures that Kyoko had around her house. They were all done by tearing paper by hand - it was quite amazing.

We settled into the small kitchen where Kyoko served us tea to start. She had prepared recipes and a shopping list for us which we passed around before she started the class. She had done most of the preparation like chopping etc which would have taken a lot of time.

We started with the tempura which we had as an appetiser. Kyoko was very health conscious and used a lot of lot fat techniques in her recipes which was great. She had varied the usual tempura recipe and rather than depp frying she shallow fried small fritters of three types - ham and broccoli, mixed vegetable, and prawn. They were delicious and she served them with a dipping sauce which she made as well as wasabi salt, normal salt and curry powder - so good! We were all salavating by this stage.

Next we marinated the salmon for the main meal and got busy preparing the gyoza. This was quite and adventure. Although we had prepared gyoza wraps, the technique was not as easy as it looked. It involved pleating one side of the wrap and sealing it well. We all managed to finish although they weren't the best looking gyoza in town. Kyoko got busy boiling and frying the gyoza while we moved onto the salmon and mushroom dish. We also made a beef salad and an apple and cabbage salad so we had plenty of food.

Kyoko had set her dining table with cherry blossom placemats and tiny twigs of actual cherry blossom which accompanied her beautiful blue and white traditional Japanese china. We transferred all the food to the table and sat down to a feast. All the food was delicious - particularly the beef salad, the gyoza and the salmon. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon and we sat chatting for ages over the food and wine.

Kyoko shared with us a lot about her family. Her mother had been living in Nagasaka when the bomb was dropped and somehow she remained unaffected. Kyoko herself had symptoms of the radiation which only showed up after she had her son. She also told a story of her inlaws who lived with her and her husband for over 40 years until they passed away two years ago. Unfortunately the father-in-law used to physically abuse Kyoko for many years until one day her husband came home in time to witness it. The inlaws had to live with Kyoko and her husband as her husband was the oldest boy in the family and this was the tradition. Kyoko nursed both the mother and father until they passed away and had said it was very hard especially since the father-in-law was such a horrible man.

She also told us that she has had many people come and stay with her and invited us all to stay if we were ever back in Japan. She was a lovely woman and it was a lovely afternoon. We were sad to leave. Just before we left the table, Sue maaged to stick her elbow in the soy sauce - a perfect way to end the day! We also learnt from Kyoko that the name for a fat eggplant was kamunasu - and so Dee was renamed Kamunasu-san in honour of her trying on the eggplant costume the other day - very funny. We made our way downstairs where Kyoko's mother had neatly lined up all our shoes which we had dumped in a pile by the door - she was too cute.

We made our way back to Roppongi station and then went up a lookout tower in time for sunset. We lingered over a cocktail as we watched the lights come on over the city. We left Dee and Lyndell to explore Roppongi for the night while Sue, Julie and I headed back to Julie's place to meet up with the boys. We walked up the road for Italian and I was impressed by Warrens cheese risotto which was actually made in a huge cheese round - very cool.

Warren dropped us off at their friend's house and we made plans with Mark to meet him early in the morning for a trip to the fish market. Ross and I hit the sack and I was out like a light after a busy day.

Out to the 'burbs and Cirque de Soleil

We woke up in time to shower and pack before heading downstairs to drop the bags off at the concierge. Dee, Ross and I headed across the road for gyoza for breakfast while Lyndell headed off to do her own thing for the day. After brekky, we walked to the train station and waited in Starbucks for Warren, Mark, Julie, Sue and the boys to arrive. We had a coffee and then started the epic train journey out to Disneyland and the Cirque de Soleil performance that we were seeing today.

It seemed to take us forever on various trains to make our way out to the show. But eventually we made it. We walked fast to the theatre as we were running a bit late. Once we got there, Julie realised that they show started at 1 not 1.30 so we had missed about 20 minutes but once we were seated it was amazing. We had great seats right near the stage and the show, Zed, was awesome. They have a permanent theatre dedicated to Cirque shows. Some of the acts were amazing especially the couple who moved through a number of balancing poses in super slow motion. You could see every muscle in their body - incredible!

After the show we had lunch at the Rainforest Cafe which was set up like a jungle and where the lights and sounds made it seems like a rain storm was coming through every 20 minutes. The animatronic animals also added to the effect.

We made our way back into town and made plans to pick up our bags and make our way to Musashi-Sakai station to meet Warren and drop off our bags. Between the four of us, we managed to work it out and arrived in time to meet Warren. We dropped off the bags and then caught the train again to Kichijoji.

There we met up with Sue, Mark and the boys before walking to the karaoke bar. We left Mark, Warren and Ross to their own devices while the girls and Sue's boys headed to our private room to crank up the karaoke machine. It was a hoot! It took a while for everyone to get into it but soon enough there were power ballads being cranked up all over the place accompanied by air guitar. Eventually, Mark. Ross and Warren found their way back to us and joined in for a few final songs. They had been at the pub for a while so they were in good spirits. After 2 hours of karaoke, we were all pretty much done.

We headed back to the train station and Warren and Julie showed us to their friends place where we would be spending a couple of nights. So Dee, Lyndell, Ross and I made our selves comfortable and headed pretty much straight to bed after a great day!

A touch of culture before debauchery

This morning Dee and I had a dodgy breakfast at the hotel while making a plan of attach for the day. We knew we were meeting Julie and Sue in the afternoon so we thought we would hit Harajuku on the way to meet them in Shibuya.

We managed to find the right train that would take us to Harajuku and as we stepped off we were confronted by the dubiously named Takashita Street (love it!). We walked along the narrow alleyway just as the shops were opening and we were amazed my the amount of costume stores. One in particular was a complete treasure trove of everything you could imagine.

At the end of Takashita Street, we got out the maps and decided to hit the main shopping streets. Dee and I browsed through all the big stores - Forever 21, Zara, TopShop, H&M - and came away with some purchases. Each of the stores were massive; at least 4 levels each. We were exhausted with trying stuff on so we thought we should probably do some cultural activity while we were in Japan.

We walked to the Meji Shrine entrance which had beautiful wooden gates along the path. It was quite a walk to the shrine but well worth it. It was beautiful. Althouhh you couldn't go in the shrine itself, it was fascinating to watch the local devotees go about their prayers. Dee and I spotted a large tree surrounded by tiny wooden plaques carrying everyones prayers. We each bought one of the plaques and wrote our own prayers to send off to the universe and pegged them on the tree with the thousands of others. It was actually quite moving reading the prayers - a really touching thing to do.

With the cultrural activity squared away, we were starving and wandered up the streets of Harajuku in search of a restaurant recommended in the guide books. As always, it was impossible to find so we settled for a ramen noodle restaurant in the basement of some building. It was a tiny place and so busy so we figured the food must be good. We weren't disappointed! We ordered two steaming bowls of ramen noodles with a miso broth as well as the obligatory gyoza. The noodles were absolutely delicious and although we didn't think we would ever finish the massive stone bowls, we both managed it.

Our bellies now full, it was time to head to Shibuya to meet up with Sue and Julie. We headed back to the train and travelled one stop. Getting out of the station we entered the busiest pedestrian intersection in the world (and the one that was in Lost in Translation) - it  was simply nuts! Luckily we spotted the Starbucks where we were going to meet the girls and made a bee line for it. We sat upstairs where we had a great view of the intersection and kept an eye out for a blonde haired girl and a giant (Sue). Soon enough they appeared.

We had our reunion in Starbucks over a coffee. Dee and I also presented Sue with her birthday present of Yen toilet paper - she was most impressed. In true Kuwait reunion style, after we finished our coffees we headed for a bar - any bar really. We came across this tiny cute little wine bar not too far from where we were and settled in for the afternoon.

Sue and I got stuck into the Hob Nob red wine while Dee and Julie shared a bottle of white. We spent the afternoon reminiscing and catching up on the latest news before Dee had to leave to go and meet Lyndell at our hotel in Shinjuku. About an hour later they both arrived and the rest of us were pretty merry. About 8.30, I had to leave to meet Ross at the hotel. I had had far too much to drink at this stage and had the hiccups which Sue tried to cure by blocking off all my breathing options. It didn't work. I hiccupped my way back to the train station and managed to board the right train back to Shinjuku. Then the problems started.

I followed Dee's directions to take the West exit but nothing looked familiar so I wandered around for ages all over the place in every direction before becoming so frustrated I jumped in a cab and asked him to take me there. He said I could walk and pointed me in the right direction. Now things started looking familiar! I finally found my way back to the hotel after an hour walking around in the freezing cold. Ross had been waiting for about 30 minutes so not too long.

We dropped his bags off in the room and then headed back to the train to go and meet the girls again. Of course I got lost again and we had to ring Julie to get directions but eventually we made it. Lyndell had left by this stage as she had a cold but we had another couple of drinks with Sue, Julie and Dee before all staggering off in our own directions for night.

Dee, Ross and I managed to find our way back to the hotel much more easily this time. We picked up our bags while poor Lyndell tried to sleep and checked into our room. Both Ross and I were starving so we walked across the road to McDonalds for a late night happy meal which we ate back in the room before pretty much passing out. It was great to have everyone in Tokyo!

Exploring Shinjuku

Today we spent the day exploring Shinjuku - the local area around the hotel. We started with gyoza (Japanese dumplings) for breakfast as some little dodgy local restaurant across from the hotel. We laughed at the sound the buzzer made when you pressed it to call someone to take your order. Must make them batty sitting in there with that all day.

From there we walked up in the direction of the train station (and laughed again at the crazy noises of the pedestrian crossings!) and found a Starbucks. It was freezing outside (3 degrees) so a hot beverage was definitely in order. I asked for my regular decaf cappuccino which they didn't do but they did have decaf filter coffee. It left me very disappointed as it tasted like mud. Dee had a Chai Latte - definitely a better option for next time!

We walked around the main shopping area popping into some of the major department stores including Isetan. We found one store and both Dee and I walked out with some new silver jewellery. We kept walking until we found Takashimaya which contained an 8 level branch of a chain store called Tokyu Hands. We spent ages in the store going through the various levels. We each picked up some cards and other stationary bits and pieces. The highlight however was Dee trying on the Eggplant costume. Who knows why you would ever need to dress up as a vegetable but I guess you never know. We also picked Sue up a birthday present - some toilet paper with Yen printed on it so you could wipe your bum with money - classy!

Also at Takashimaya, we had our best toilet experience yet with clear instructions how to clean your bottom and also toilet flushing sounds to disguise the real sounds of going to the toilet - brilliant!

After our epic Tokyu Hands experience we were ready for some more food. We found this little Tendon (tempura and rice) shop and the lady helped us order mixed tempura with a small bottle of sake. The tendon was delicious but the sake was like drinking paint thinner. It did leave us a little merry for the afternoon.

On the way back to the hotel we walked up to the local garden although it was closed. We did find a small shrine in the backstreets and then wandered our way back to the hotel from there through an area with tiny 2 story bars and also the local gay nightclub area. All very interesting.

Back at the hotel we tried to contact Sue and Julie and made plans to meet up tomorrow. We rested for a while before getting ready to head out again for dinner. We walked over to the other side of the train tracks and found the Shinjuku Sumitomo building and headed up to the 50th floor for dinner. We stopped in at a wine bar for a drink first which gave us a great night view of Shinjuku. They seated us on a love seat by the window - very romantic. We enjoyed our wine and about half way through, all the lights went out and the blinds closed on the windows in front of us. Just as Dee and I were wondering what was going on, the blinds completely opened up and things continued on as normal - very bizarre but at least now we had an unobstructed view.

After finishing our wine, we went to Kuu for dinner, a local charcoal grill restaurant. We ordered a few things to share, charcoal steak and chicken as well as a miso dip-type thing which we ate with cucumber, and enjoyed another drink while chatting away. We were soon learning that English is not widely spoken. When the waited brought our water, he explained that we had a lump of charcoal in it - weird.

On the way back, it started to snow - amazing! We stopped in at a tiny British pub in the red light district for one last night cap before heading back to the hotel and bed. A great first day in Tokyo!

Off to Japan!

This morning started early with Ross dropping me at Sentral at 6.30am to catch the train to the airport. From there it was the usual process of checking in etc and waiting for my flight. I was stopping at Kota Kinabalu on the way to Tokyo and so the flight left from a domestic gate. There was some confusion over my immigration stamps as the second immigration desk stamped me as arriving not departing but once that was sorted we were on our way.

It took 2 1/2 hours to reach KK and we had an hour or so in transit before departing for Tokyo. I decided to get off the plane and buy some water for the 5 1/2 hour journey. For some reason, we were forced to go through all the security procedures again to get back on the plane despite being in transit so they wouldn't let me take my water. I stood by the security desk and sculled 1 1/2 litres but had to leave the last 500ml behind as I was swimming.

The flight to Tokyo was fine but boring. Once we landed, I went through passport control and down to pick up my bags where I met up with Dee - happy days! The timing worked out perfectly as her flight landed 5 minutes before mine. She had been sick as a dog for the entire flight with a case of food poisoning so she wasn't looking that great but we managed to drag our bags to the train ticket booth and buy tickets for the Narita Express train to Shinjuku where we were staying.

We hopped on the train which stopped at terminal 1 and a cleaner informed us we were on the wrong train. He helped us find a ticket lady who got us new tickets for the express train but now we had to wait an hour for the next one. Luckily there was a Starbucks in Terminal 1 so we just sat there until the next train arrived. This time there was no missing it! It was ironic that we had just had a conversation saying what seasoned travellers we were and the first thing we did was jump on the wrong train!

We finally made it to Shinjuku station - the second busiest train station in the world. Once we got off the train we made our way to the nearest exit and managed to find a taxi rank. Explaining which hotel we wanted to go to was a bit of a challenge as the taxi driver spoke no English but after a lot of gesturing and with the taxi driver talking to us in Japanese for the whole journey we finally made it to the Shinjuku Prince Hotel. We understood some of the confusion because we had asked to go to Kabukicho where the hotel was located but it also happens to be the red light district! I think our driver was trying to tell us to stay clear from there.

We headed up to our room which was tiny! But it was comfortable. The best part was the heated toilet seat! Well needed after the freezing cold night air. We toyed with the idea of getting food but we were both too knackered so we headed straight for bed.

This is city number 11 for Dee and I traveling together. Not too many other people I could say that about!

Valentine's Day and Chinese New Year

I did some more packing this morning before Ross and I drove to KLCC for our champagne breakfast at Harrods. Like last time, we were the only ones there for quite a while. We started with a glass of champagne with some toast and jams. Next we had a poached egg on a muffin with mushrooms and smoked salmon. It was delicious! The best poached egg I have had in Malaysia. We finished with a cappuccino and roses for me.

Overall it was excellent although it was expensive for what it was. But hey, you only live once.

After breakfast we walked up to the Petronus Gallery to look at the Sony World Photo exhibit. There were some amazing photos. Really inspiring. My favourites were the architectural and photo journalism categories. The cutest photo was of a baby koala in a basket peeking out from behind a large toy koala - adorable!

We did a bit more wandering around and were suprised by how many shops were open considering it is Chinese New Year. We drove home and I continued organizing and packing. About 2, we drove over to Pavilion in time to go and see Avatar in 3D. It was an incredible movie despite it being very predictable mainly because of the beautiful "scenery".

We picked up a few things including Thai for dinner and drove home where we watched Robin Williams Live on Broadway - hysterical, haven't laughed that hard for a long time. I finally finished packing and then we headed to bed.

Packing and more packing

This morning we slept in until 9 - wonderful! We had some breakfast and did a few things around the house before driving out to Great Eastern mall. Ross got measured for his business shirts and a new pair of trousers. Hopefully the material I bought will make nice shirts! We went downstairs and had a coffee at Starbucks before doing some shopping, picking up my contact lenses and getting some sushi for lunch.

On the way home we stopped at Hock Choon supermarket where I was supposed to put a sign up for Daisy to advertise for more work but they wouldn't let me unfortunately. So we browsed around instead as it was the first time that we had been there. Apparently Hock Choon had been the only place where you could buy Western (and particularly American) products a few years ago. They did have some things that you couldn't buy elsewhere but in general it was all pretty much the same. But it did seem that the expats were still shopping there in droves.

Back at home and Ross got busy packing for Japan while I went through my stuff again. I also started packing for Australia including a bunch of my jewellery making things. We stopped for a late lunch and then I got back to it again. By the time I had finished, I couldn't believe it was 6.30pm!

We decided to walk to Changkat Bukit Bintang for dinner. On the way we stopped in to Isetan to see if they had some shoes for Ross. We ate at the new Tapas bar that had always been closed every time we wanted to go in the past but tonight it was open. The food was good and we had a glass of peach sangria with our meal as we sat outside and watched the world go by to the sounds of Latin music. It was a really nice night.

We walked home and it was the most humid I think I had ever felt it. I was drenched in sweat by the time we got to the apartment and 20 minutes later it started pouring rain so obviously the humidity had gotten so high that it just had to rain. We watched some of the NRL game between the All Stars and the Indigenous team and then watched the first half of the AFL game between Port and Adelaide before heading to bed.

Friday facial

Netball was a chore this morning. I really didn't want to get out of bed. My body still ached and I really needed more sleep but I dragged myself up and headed out. As always, it was great to see the girls again. After the huge turnouts over the past few weeks, today we were down to 13 - mostly old timers. We played with a double center (which I certainly passed on!) and despite being relatively early, it was incredibly hot. I lacked energy today so I found it hard to run around especially with the heat. I was knackered at the end but it was a good run around.

I met up with Claire, Colleen and Fiona for a coffee afterwards and I picked up a yoga DVD from Claire's place before heading home. I had a shower and ate the rest of the quinoa salad for brunch before resuming my spot on the couch for most of the afternoon. I did manage to get up enough energy to sort out the beads that I had bought for Kate before I had to leave to go to my facial.

I drove to Pavilion and walked to Starhill. After a foot soak, I went into the therapy room and tucked myself up under the doona to relax while I had my facial. I was so tired that I kept falling asleep and waking myself up when my leg bucked out or I snored - not cool. Once the therapist had put the mask on my face, she left the room and I promptly fell asleep. By the time she finished, I was so relaxed and my skin felt good.

I walked back to Pavilion and picked up some groceries before driving home. Ross got home a couple of minutes after me and we made pasta for dinner with lamb, spinach, chickpeas and orechiette pasta. We ate it while watching the Bourne Identity - a great movie. We flicked back to the TV and then watched Dan in Real Life with Steve Carell. By the time this finished it was 10.30 and we were both shattered so we headed off to bed.

A sluggish day

After my 2am night I didn't wake up until 9am this morning. I forced myself to get out of bed and had a long shower to hopefully wash out the cobwebs - it helped a bit. From then on, I spent the rest of the day on the couch.

I watched TV and did some things online including booking more tickets for the Fringe festival. About 2pm I finally got up enough energy to cook some food for dinner. I roasted a whole bunch of vegetables with some rosemary and  oregano and cooked down some onions. I had bought a packet of quinoa quite a while ago so I thought I should probably try and do something with it. I simply combined all the veggies with the cooked quinoa and ended up with something like a cous cous salad. The quinoa was delicious.

I managed to get this done just before having to meet Rimma downstairs to go to Bodycombat. The female instructor was still there replacing the nice guy that we usually had. Today was a terrible class. I'm not sure if the music was too fast, the combinations too complicated or I was still suffering the effects of last night but I had never felt more uncoordinated before. I had to concentrate so hard on the moves that I couldn't believe that the class had come to an end already.

Rimma dropped me off and I had a shower and watched Glee before Ross got home from his trip to Brunei. We ate dinner while watching American Idol and then headed to bed as we were both exhausted.

Today's photo is of the construction of Platinum Park. 

Friends

I attempted to do a work out this morning. I picked some of the exercises from my strength training book which targeted my thighs and butt and I also tried some shoulder and back exercises with my resistance band. I wasn't feeling great though after only having a little sleep so it was hard work.

I had all these great intentions to get things done today but instead I pretty much spent most of the day on the couch. I guess staying up to 2am had really knocked me around.

Finally at 2pm I decided to get moving. I got dressed and walked over to KLCC. I had a look in a few stores for some things for Ross before heading up to Harrods to meet Kiki and Rimma for afternoon tea. We were the only ones in the dining room for a long time and it was great to just sit and chat with the girls while we enjoyed our afternoon tea. The scones were excellent!

I left Rimma and Kiki about 5 andd went upstairs to buy a gift for Julia from Royal Selangor. I also picked up a few groceries before walking home. I watched American Idol and some of Glee before Julia rang to say that she and her friend Pat were on their way in a taxi to pick me up. We were heading to Mee King Fat for dinner - a Chinese restaurant that is popular with a lot of expats.

We had bought some wine with us and ordered plenty of food including a special Chinese New Year salad which included raw jellyfish. Everyone had to take turns mixing the salad as it is said to bring good luck. It was actually really tasty. The other food we ordered - butter prawns, beef satay and pork ribs - was good too.

We sat for hours just chatting and despite Julia saying that she had to leave by 10.30, we stayed until 1.30am and got through 4 bottles of wine! We caught a taxi home and the girls dropped me off before heading home themselves. I sat up and watched some TV before I fell asleep on the couch. I woke up at 2.30 and stumbled to bed where I promptly fell into unconsciousness.

Epic hair day

I drove out to Bangsar early this morning for my acupuncture appointment with Oran. It seems that things are going really well and I feel great. I drove home and then started working on a photo book from our trip to Cambodia. It took forever to select the best photos, crop and edit them and then upload them. By the time I had got this on the go, it was time for me to head out again.

I parked at Pavilion and walked up Bukit Bintang to Tony & Guy for my appointment. I had a coffee and waited for a while before Gary had finished with his previous client. They shampooed my hair and gave me the "7 fingers from Heaven" massage while I waited some more for Gary. The massage was pretty good. Finally Gary came and started cutting my hair. Roy came over next and put in some colour and then I waited again for the colour to take - thank god I bought a book! One last shampoo, a blow dry and a quick trim later and I was finally walking out of the salon. It took 4 1/2 hours in total! But it was worth it.

From there I walked to Lot 10 and had a quick look around the "Hutong" food court before picking up some groceries from Isetan and walking back to Pavilion. I got home about 7 and had some sashimi then worked on the photo book again. I got hungry again about 8 so I made myself a salad and then continued with the book while watching crap TV. It took my until 2am to finally finish it!

I crawled to bed, read a few pages of my book and fell asleep.

Checking off the list

This morning started with Bodypump at the gym. Today there were only two of us in the class so it was almost like having a personal training session. The instructor is really good and she pushes us enough but doesn't yell or scream. For me the killer is always squats but I know that they are so good for my butt and my legs!

From the gym I drove home, had a shower and some breakfast and then walked over to KLCC. I booked afternoon tea at Harrod's for the girls and I on Wednesday then walked to the train. I got off at Pasar Seni and made my way to the Central Market to get two caricatures done for girls who are leaving netball. Nik, the caricature guy tried to charge me 300 each but in the end I got both for 150 - much more reasonable.

I walked over to the bookstore and picked up a couple of frames for the caricatures and then had a look around Peter Hoe's - not much there though. I made my way up to the bead stores to get Kate some beads. She wanted some Swarovski crystals and some pearls. I bought enough so that they gave me wholesale price (50% off).

I went around to the next bead store and bought some more crystals for her - this time the cheap Chinese type. With my jobs done in Chinatown, I got back on the train and headed to Masjid Jamek (1 stop) and had lunch at O'Briens before walking to Little India. There I bought some more small containers for my beads, a traditional Malay hat and buttons for Dad's outfit and some fabric to have some tailored shirts made for Ross' birthday. I bought some beautiful fabric and I am sure they will make really nice shirts - I can't wait to see them!

I was exhausted by now and was carrying multiple bags so I went back to the train and caught it to KLCC. I popped into the bookstore and grabbed a couple of books as well as a few things from Watson's before walking home. By this time it was 5.30 and I had been on the go for 6 hours.

Ross came home about 6.45 and we drove to Pavilion for dinner at Tony Roma's. We had a great meal and then headed home and pretty much straight to bed. It had been a successful day and I ticked many things off my list - still plenty more to go though.

Finally getting organized

Ross and I drove out to the lake by FRIM this morning for a  walk. Both of us were still sore from our workouts during the week so walking was about all we could do. There were a lot of other people with the same idea as us. We did one  lap around which is about 4.5km before heading to the Blue Cow for breakfast.

We had a leisurely breakfast of bacon and eggs and read the Sunday paper before finally moving again. It was nice jusst to sit and relax. We picked up some meat for a BBQ dinner tonight before we tried to drive to the Duta tennis center to watch some of the Fed cup tennis.

We missed the turn off and it was just too difficult to find a way to get back so instead we drove around the back streets of Bukit Tunku. There were some amazing mansions in this area all with massive fences and security guards. I imagine this is where Malaysia's elite live. Today's photo is of the view from the top of the hill -  not bad.

We finally got home and I got busy re-syncing our iPods with some updated music as well as catching up on some emails online. Later in the afternoon I finally got around to packing for Japan - something I was dreading as I hate winter clothes. I finally managed to get it pretty much done which was good.

Ross headed off to the hairdresser and I continued messing about on the computer and doing the washing. At about 6.30, Ross cranked up the BBQ and we sat outside and enjoyed our kebabs and lamb burger. For once there was very little construction noise so it was pleasant to sit outside.

Ross had to do some work so I spent the rest of the evening getting organized making lists of things I needed to do before I left for Japan. We watched Wipeout and some Premier League Football before heading to bed. I finally finished my book The Vampire LeStat and now need to get a new one.

7 year olds birthday party

This morning I whipped up a quick pair of earrings as a present for Hayley whose 7th birthday party we were heading to today. About 10.30 we drove to Dua and met up with Simon and Rimma and some others who were there for their daughter's party. It was nice to meet some new people and we spent the morning chatting and eating Rimma's excellent food!

Soon the party games started. Ross was in charge of music for pass the parcel - a big job! Next was the chocolate game which Simon ran. It was pretty funny to watch as the kids got into such a mess as the chocolate melted so quickly. The rest of the time they played in the pool.

Simon cooked up some meat on the BBQ for lunch and we continued sitting, eating and drinking. It was a nice way to spend the day. We were amazed when we spied one of the other residents of Dua, an old German guy, sunbathing in the shade in his turquoise G-string. Definitely not a good look. Emma was brave enough to go and take a photo of the kids in the pool with this guy in the foreground - hysterical!

About 1.30 we left the party and headed home. I got busy with my beads again as I wanted to get them finished and organized. Ross helped me out and by 6.30 we were completely done. I cannot believe that I only have 8 out of 80 drawers free! Who knew I had so much stuff!

We rang California Pizza Kitchen and picked up a pizza and a salad for dinner and watched Slumdog Millionaire which Ross hadn't seen. I forgot how good it was. Afterwards, Liverpool were playing so we watched the end of the game before heading to bed about 11.30.

Netball and Chinatown

Netball as normal this morning. Wow the level has certainly picked up - I'm really enjoying it! I played center for a quarter, WA, GS and GD as well as a quarter of reffing. By the time I had finished I was completely knackered! It was a good run around though.

I went to Coffee Bean at Mont Kiara with Colleen, Nicky and Sharon. I was disappointed that they didn't have decaf coffee and that they only accepted cash as they were renovating the store and the counter was set up outside. I settled for a lemon and chamomile tea which was actually really nice.

We chatted for a while and then Colleen's friend Paul turned up so we chatted with him for a while before I headed home about 11. I showered and then pretty much headed straight back out. I walked over to the Pavilion for some lunch at Yo Sushi before trying to find some bikinis. I went to ROXY and found a pair that I liked but I wasn't sure if I was too old to wear them. They were black with silver foil ROXY written all over them. Instead, I put them on reserve and will get Ross' opinion tomorrow.

I bought some things from the Body Shop and stopped at Coffee Bean to finally get my coffee and watch the world go by. It had just started to spit rain so I walked over to the Convention Center and instead of going home I decided to walk to KLCC to try and get my nails done. They were busy but luckily they could fit me in. I spent a couple of hours there getting a super pedi and normal mani before walking home about 4.30.

Ross came home not long afterwards and we headed straight out again. We walked back over to KLCC to catch the train into Little India so I could buy some small containers for my tiny beads. Hopefully they will fit in the drawers. We wandered back towards Chinatown through the back streets and came across Cap Square - a restaurant and bar district I had read about but never been to. We wandered around having a look at the various options and decided we would have dinner at Modesto's. We sat outside amongst the after work crowd and enjoyed our pasta dishes. It was nice to find something new again in KL.

We wandered our way and eventually found ourselves in Chinatown. First stop was the DVD store where we picked up the Tudors again for my Dad. I then weaved my way through the various stalls and masses of people to get to the bead shop but of course it was shut :-(. I found my way back to Ross and then we walked to Pasar Seni station and caught the train back to KLCC.

We stopped for a sundae at Burger King and sat outside by the fountain for a while letting our feet recover from the walking. It was a nice night and plenty of people were doing the same thing. Eventually we worked up the energy to walk home, had a shower and then fell in to bed.

Today's photo is of an impromptu game of hacky sack that was going on in one of the open spaces in Little India.

Having my butt kicked at bodycombat!

Last night I didn't sleep well for some reason so this morning I lay in bed and read my book until 9.30 - it was a nice way to start the day. When I finally did get out of bed, I did a few things around the house and then decided to continue sorting my beads into their drawers.

Just before 12, I left the apartment to pick Ross up and take him to his chiropractor appointment. While Ross went to see Nick, I waited downstairs in Gloria Jeans. Luckily I had my book with me as it took Ross over 30 minuted just to get seen. He finished about 1.30 and we headed to Plaza Mont Kiara for lunch at Marmalade.

I dropped Ross back at the office and at home I continued sorting out my beads. I never really realised how many I have! About 5.30 I drove over to Pavilion for my Bodycombat class. Today we had a different instructor, a lady, and she was tough! I think she was over compensating for her lack of stature by working us really hard and screaming at us for most of the time. She also played a lot of heavy metal music.Overall it was a good workout but definitely not my style of instructor. I think she will be replacing Zack for a couple of weeks so I can probably manage one more class with her before I head of traveling.

Back at home I was knackered. I showered while Ross cooked pasta for dinner. He made a sauce using cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach and tuna - it was so good! I had bought some porcinni mushroom tagliatelle from the Delicious Ingredients store and it was lovely with the sauce. With no Tudors to watch we had to be content with watching American Idol and then we headed to bed for an early night to let my body recover a bit before netball tomorrow.

Today's photo is the worst photo of Blue ever. He looks like he has been beaten up and is drunk at the same time!

Second wire work class

This morning I drove out to PJ for my second wire work class. I had really enjoyed my last one and this one was no different. I learned some new techniques for wire wrapping and also creating coiled beads from wire and also from small crystals. I can definitely see using some of these techniques in my own designs.

From beading I drove to IKEA and had some lunch at Dome. I picked up a few things from the supermarket before heading over to Strip for my waxing appointment - the first in a series of personal maintenance chores that need to be done before I travel in a a week or so!

I arrived home just as a big storm started so I lay on my bed with the cats watching the rain. I booked some tickets for some of the Fringe Festival events and before I knew it Ross was home at 5. He headed to the gym and then we ate leftovers from last night's dinner before finishing watching the Tudors. I can't believe we are at the end of Season 3. Now what will we do at night?

Holistic Tuesday

This morning I headed out for yoga at 9.30. I drove out as I normally do and as soon as I turned on to Jalan Duta, the traffic came to a screaming holt. I soon realised that the traffic was so bad because the trial of Anwar Ibrahim on sodomy charges was due to start today. It took me 20 minutes to drive 1km but eventually I made it to yoga just as the class was starting.

Heather put us through some tough poses today and my hamstrings suffered for it! I did feel as though I was getting more stable and stronger though and was pretty happy with a couple of the standing poses in particular. As always, the hour and a half seems to fly by and before I realise it, we are relaxing at the end of the class. My new mat, strap and blocks had served me well.

I arranged to meet Sarah for a coffee at Plaza Damas before heading back home. I spent an hour or so at home before driving out to Bangsar for some lunch and my acupuncture appointment. I had lunch at Delicious and then did a bit of grocery shopping before walking up to see Oran.

As usual, I walked out after my appointment much more relaxed and feeling better. I drove home and spent the afternoon watching TV and continuing to sort out my beads. Ross came home about 6 and we made mini pizzas for dinner - yum. We ploughed through another couple of episodes of The Tudors before heading to bed.

Last day of the weekend

After breakfast this morning, Ross dropped me at the Pavilion for my Bodypump class. As I walked into the gym, I checked the schedule and realised that the class didn't start until 11.45 because of the holiday. So instead I decided to work out on the cross trainer. I did 35 minutes before spending a lot of time stretching. I was glad I had done something.

I had a look around the shops and bought a top from Forever 21 before meeting Ross for a coffee at Coffee Bean. We then walked up to the fitness store and I went a bit nuts buying stuff for yoga and working out at home (see photo). From there we headed to the bookstore and I finally found a book to help me learn how to take photos of my jewellery.

Back downstairs and we picked up some shopping before heading home. By this time it was about 1. We spent the afternoon watching the Grammys which we had taped this morning. I read through my photography book and also continued reorganizing my beads.

About 6 we drove out to Sentral Train Station and went to Malaysian Airlines to finally get our refund for our return flights form Tokyo. It was relatively painless. From there we drove to Changkat Bukit Bintang and had dinner at The Social before walking to the Thai massage place.

We opted for 90 minute Thai massages. It was excellent! I was pushed, pulled, bent and stretched before being pounded with a herbal mallet (sounds terrible but felt great). Ross and I walked out of there feeling relaxed. We drove home and headed to bed as it was 10 by this time. It was a nice way to end a long weekend.