A healthy drink to think about !
Many years ago , I would prepare this healthy drink to lower my cholesterol level when I had taken too much prawns for the week . This drink is well known to most Chinese. After a while, I too have forgotten about this healthy drink until a friend reminded me last Tuesday at the dinner table in Nilai. It's good to take it regularly to see whether our cholesterol level really plunges down!
The ingredients are black fungus( called 'Mok Yee' in Chinese ), red dates together with the seeds, a small slice of ginger(optional) and dried longans to give it a more pleasant taste.No added sugar is suggested . All these are boiled together with a pot of water until one portion of water remains from the initial three portions.It probably takes about 3 hours of boiling.To make the drink , we use the same amount of each of these three ingredients . The drink is more pleasant if more longans are added.
I set off to buy the ingredients this morning and I started to boil it on a Saturday afternoon . The black fungus costs Rm1.80 for 100g , the red dates RM1.50/100g and dried longans at RM4.80/100g I ended buying 300g of each and I would see how many times I could make the drink. So lets see the effect after two months!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Monday, September 8, 2008
The Really Lucky Children Of Today !
This morning, I witnessed the opening of a very conducive international school in Selangor which is situated in Setia Eco Park, Setia Alam. It is the Tenby International School ! The school is purposely built in the area to offer quality world class education in a very conducive education to all children . For a moment, I was so envious of every child who attended school on this first day. The children walked into the school compound confidently in their light blue shirt and grey scotch for the girls and similarly coloured pants and shirts for the boys.The boys wear ties of four different colours which show the houses which they belong. They were welcomed by the school principal at the lobby area of the Adminstration Block.
The layout of all the school blocks is so well planned and strategically located to cater for their needs.The most attractive open space is the Tenby Square where special designs made out of Taiwan grass grown within the design area are spaced sporadically over the entire area. They have the state-of-art facilities such as exclusive and purposeful airconditioned classrooms which are equiped with smart boards, special block for expressive art, design and science block, a sports' complex which includes a swimming pool, a computer laboratory for each block, a 3 stars cafetaria which serves very tasty and nutritious food, an auditorium, a multi-purpose hall , air conditioned staff room with all kinds of beverages available free for all the teachers and etcs.
The professional teachers use all kinds of interesting and innovative ways of imparting knowledge to these lucky children sitting in groups.There is an assistant teacher in every class . I saw an assistant teacher helping a child sorting the things to be kept into the individual colourful locker placed just outside the classroom. The form teacher teaches and the assistant teacher assists him with children who need help. The children are probed to think and not spoon-fed!
The library is managed by a librarian employed from UK. It must be a good place to explore when I have the time next . The socalled sick bay is managed by a well-trained nurse.
When I was there, I did not hear the usual school bell but instead I heard the unusual ringtone to mark the begining and ending of recesstime, lunch time and dismissal time. Other than these times, the teachers will have to keep time.
The pupils in this school are really trained to be independent even on this black Monday.There were no crying child or child clinging on to their parents ! It is indeed a very good school to be in. Now, I truely know what is an international school or a private school as compared to the government day school! These pupils are really lucky !
This morning, I witnessed the opening of a very conducive international school in Selangor which is situated in Setia Eco Park, Setia Alam. It is the Tenby International School ! The school is purposely built in the area to offer quality world class education in a very conducive education to all children . For a moment, I was so envious of every child who attended school on this first day. The children walked into the school compound confidently in their light blue shirt and grey scotch for the girls and similarly coloured pants and shirts for the boys.The boys wear ties of four different colours which show the houses which they belong. They were welcomed by the school principal at the lobby area of the Adminstration Block.
The layout of all the school blocks is so well planned and strategically located to cater for their needs.The most attractive open space is the Tenby Square where special designs made out of Taiwan grass grown within the design area are spaced sporadically over the entire area. They have the state-of-art facilities such as exclusive and purposeful airconditioned classrooms which are equiped with smart boards, special block for expressive art, design and science block, a sports' complex which includes a swimming pool, a computer laboratory for each block, a 3 stars cafetaria which serves very tasty and nutritious food, an auditorium, a multi-purpose hall , air conditioned staff room with all kinds of beverages available free for all the teachers and etcs.
The professional teachers use all kinds of interesting and innovative ways of imparting knowledge to these lucky children sitting in groups.There is an assistant teacher in every class . I saw an assistant teacher helping a child sorting the things to be kept into the individual colourful locker placed just outside the classroom. The form teacher teaches and the assistant teacher assists him with children who need help. The children are probed to think and not spoon-fed!
The library is managed by a librarian employed from UK. It must be a good place to explore when I have the time next . The socalled sick bay is managed by a well-trained nurse.
When I was there, I did not hear the usual school bell but instead I heard the unusual ringtone to mark the begining and ending of recesstime, lunch time and dismissal time. Other than these times, the teachers will have to keep time.
The pupils in this school are really trained to be independent even on this black Monday.There were no crying child or child clinging on to their parents ! It is indeed a very good school to be in. Now, I truely know what is an international school or a private school as compared to the government day school! These pupils are really lucky !
Saturday, August 30, 2008
The many brightly lit sites in KL
Where there is good food at the right time , we would go to eat even if it is raining , late at night or even in Kuala Lumpur . These are the happy times of retirement when we just go to where the heart desires ! The choice of good and tasty beef balls/slice noodles of Soong Kee , near Jalan Silang was so apt for a light dinner especially when I have had tea/snack with my good Pengetua friends in SS2. I really enjoy my fun chat with my friends and then the togetherness with my husband.
We were going round and round to park our car near the coffeeshop restaurant because the earlier crowd had not finished their dinner there.When they left, there was ample space in front of the shop. I would claim that it is quite safe to park there because we have never been booked for illegal parking so far! In KL, one has to know certain designated places which are safe to park and yet get scotch -free from the traffic police! This is the point up for the 'locals' or the
' regulars' of KL.
After the sumptous dinner, I started to admire the beauty of KL at night on our way back. More lights and lighting decors are noticeable now as the country celebrates her 51years of independence. I spotted the beautifully lighted- up KL tower with blue and yellow lights which glitter at certain random intervals. The white coloured lightings look like diamonds glittering in the dark skies!
As we moved on to pass by the Dataran Merdeka, which is usually beautifully decorated with its galore lightings , I saw the big screen of all designs, hues and colours spread over the height of the Dewan Bandaraya building . The entire Raja Laut Road is always brightly lighted up but being Merdeka , additional lights have been added . I would say that KL is already well-lighted up with colourful decorative lightings before the Merdeka Day but now we can see even more lights and more sites beautifully decorated with colourful lightings at night.
Some other beautiful sites are the Lake Gardens and the iconic Parliament Building with its road leading to the building donned with poles fixed with big lighted up artificial Bunga Raya flowers .
Horizontal lines of red, yellow and blue lights flash across the facade of the Parliament Building and this effect gives the festive mood to the entire surroundings.
So much lightings everywhere and so there goes our expenditure on electricity! We must start looking for cheaper and suitable renewable energies to sustain this continuous consumption of energy. Besides the additional lighting added on to celebrate Merdeka, the colourful lightings in KL are permanently beautifying KL every night ! I hope there are timers to switch off all these lights when daylight sets in.
Where there is good food at the right time , we would go to eat even if it is raining , late at night or even in Kuala Lumpur . These are the happy times of retirement when we just go to where the heart desires ! The choice of good and tasty beef balls/slice noodles of Soong Kee , near Jalan Silang was so apt for a light dinner especially when I have had tea/snack with my good Pengetua friends in SS2. I really enjoy my fun chat with my friends and then the togetherness with my husband.
We were going round and round to park our car near the coffeeshop restaurant because the earlier crowd had not finished their dinner there.When they left, there was ample space in front of the shop. I would claim that it is quite safe to park there because we have never been booked for illegal parking so far! In KL, one has to know certain designated places which are safe to park and yet get scotch -free from the traffic police! This is the point up for the 'locals' or the
' regulars' of KL.
After the sumptous dinner, I started to admire the beauty of KL at night on our way back. More lights and lighting decors are noticeable now as the country celebrates her 51years of independence. I spotted the beautifully lighted- up KL tower with blue and yellow lights which glitter at certain random intervals. The white coloured lightings look like diamonds glittering in the dark skies!
As we moved on to pass by the Dataran Merdeka, which is usually beautifully decorated with its galore lightings , I saw the big screen of all designs, hues and colours spread over the height of the Dewan Bandaraya building . The entire Raja Laut Road is always brightly lighted up but being Merdeka , additional lights have been added . I would say that KL is already well-lighted up with colourful decorative lightings before the Merdeka Day but now we can see even more lights and more sites beautifully decorated with colourful lightings at night.
Some other beautiful sites are the Lake Gardens and the iconic Parliament Building with its road leading to the building donned with poles fixed with big lighted up artificial Bunga Raya flowers .
Horizontal lines of red, yellow and blue lights flash across the facade of the Parliament Building and this effect gives the festive mood to the entire surroundings.
So much lightings everywhere and so there goes our expenditure on electricity! We must start looking for cheaper and suitable renewable energies to sustain this continuous consumption of energy. Besides the additional lighting added on to celebrate Merdeka, the colourful lightings in KL are permanently beautifying KL every night ! I hope there are timers to switch off all these lights when daylight sets in.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
A PJ-KL on route bus waiting for passengers !
I have not been going on our bus for quite sometime. Today, I decided to try this means of transport to go to the vicinity of University of Malaya .To my surprise, our Malaysian means of transport using the bus is still never changed ! We still cannot depend on the bus when we need it!
Previously, the bus broke down and we were stranded in Section 14 for almost an hour before we could get into another bus to continue our ride to KL. This delay caused further delay to Putrajaya because the E2 bus to Putrajaya had just left when I arrived at the Klang bus station . To continue my journey to Putrajaya, I had to wait for another half hour before the next bus came in. When I arrived at the Sentral Station Putrajaya, I too had to wait for another half hour before the local bus came along. So, in total, I had wasted two hours for my trip to Putrajaya by bus !
Today, the bus just stopped at the Section 17 flats' bus stop for about 7 minutes to wait for more passengers.The bus engine just stopped and there I saw the driver trying to catnap. Has this practice been observed since the recent oil price hike? So, if one has an important appointment , never rely on our buses! It is still safer and reliable to drive your own car. Are our transport services continuously affected by petrol price hikes? When is Malaysia going to have more reliable transport services ?
I have not been going on our bus for quite sometime. Today, I decided to try this means of transport to go to the vicinity of University of Malaya .To my surprise, our Malaysian means of transport using the bus is still never changed ! We still cannot depend on the bus when we need it!
Previously, the bus broke down and we were stranded in Section 14 for almost an hour before we could get into another bus to continue our ride to KL. This delay caused further delay to Putrajaya because the E2 bus to Putrajaya had just left when I arrived at the Klang bus station . To continue my journey to Putrajaya, I had to wait for another half hour before the next bus came in. When I arrived at the Sentral Station Putrajaya, I too had to wait for another half hour before the local bus came along. So, in total, I had wasted two hours for my trip to Putrajaya by bus !
Today, the bus just stopped at the Section 17 flats' bus stop for about 7 minutes to wait for more passengers.The bus engine just stopped and there I saw the driver trying to catnap. Has this practice been observed since the recent oil price hike? So, if one has an important appointment , never rely on our buses! It is still safer and reliable to drive your own car. Are our transport services continuously affected by petrol price hikes? When is Malaysia going to have more reliable transport services ?
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Is it our Ringgit or the scarcity ?
Price hike of a number of food items goes on everyday. I used to buy seven Kiwifruits for RM10 and just last week, the vendor told me that I have to buy them at RM2 each. Looking at a glance, almost everything is pricey nowadays !
Today, I had another encounter and this incident really made me wonder why. I always yearn for minced meat mixed with some fried salt fish meat or chicken steamed with salt fish meat for a home cooked meal. I saw a stall selling cut salt fish slices in the market and this attracted me to go nearer to have a look. This look led me to buy a piece after the vendor had confirmed that it is the Kuantan salt fish. To my surprise, this tiny slice is costing me RM14 !
I ponder whether our Ringgit buying power has shrunk? Or has the catch become so scarce due to water pollution ? The once poor man's food is only available to the rich of today ! Of course, the not- so- rich can make do with smaller portions to enhance the taste of food and yet feeling health conscious ! Anyway, it has always been said that we must always eat moderate portion of any food and even the safest food will have its harmful effect if consumed too excessive !
Price hike of a number of food items goes on everyday. I used to buy seven Kiwifruits for RM10 and just last week, the vendor told me that I have to buy them at RM2 each. Looking at a glance, almost everything is pricey nowadays !
Today, I had another encounter and this incident really made me wonder why. I always yearn for minced meat mixed with some fried salt fish meat or chicken steamed with salt fish meat for a home cooked meal. I saw a stall selling cut salt fish slices in the market and this attracted me to go nearer to have a look. This look led me to buy a piece after the vendor had confirmed that it is the Kuantan salt fish. To my surprise, this tiny slice is costing me RM14 !
I ponder whether our Ringgit buying power has shrunk? Or has the catch become so scarce due to water pollution ? The once poor man's food is only available to the rich of today ! Of course, the not- so- rich can make do with smaller portions to enhance the taste of food and yet feeling health conscious ! Anyway, it has always been said that we must always eat moderate portion of any food and even the safest food will have its harmful effect if consumed too excessive !
Monday, August 25, 2008
24 August saw another spectacular ceremony
After 17 Olympian days in Beijing, China finally put up another spectacular ceremony on the night of 24 August. " China is really great ! " said by many foreigners. They love the people, culture, food , cities and would surely visit China again to tour the beautiful and fascinating cities! With this hosting of the 29th Olympic games, China has indeed expedited her new infrastructure implementation and other developments besides creating billions of jobs for her people. She has already spent as much as 70 billion USdollars to build the necessary infrastructure and to spruce up the city to be ready to host the games .Less than a quarter of the bill has been used to build the venue such as the Bird 's Nest stadium.Bloomberg reported today that London is planning to spend only 9 billion pounds to make preparations to host the games in the year 2012!
Again, we too gathered at our friend's house to view the ceremony together . We had our dinner in front of the big screen and it was really fun ! We had two types of roasted ducks, satays , Hokkien noodles of several types and a variety of fruits and chocolates. Somehow, I have not acquired the taste to drink red or white wine. There is no inkling to taste it !
It was indeed an extravagant farewell to the Olympics yesterday. A huge party had wrapped up the greatest sporting show on earth.Fireworks of all shapes and colours exploded over the stadium.I looked with awe two huge drums hoisted into the sky with two pairs of suspended drummers thumping out a hypnotic beat in mid-air. This was followed by thousands of dancers who took the centre stage to form all kinds of motives which fell in beautifully from above.Then there were the high tech entertainers who rode on special circular cycles to glide past the entire stadium.
Britain's eight-minute chance to tell the world what the London Games would offer to the world in 2012 started with the moving in of a red double- decker bus into the Bird's Nest.There was an Indian girl with a football who alighted the bus to be led by a lolipop lady to cross the road using the zebra crossing.She then went up the bus to pass the ball to David Beckham on top of the bus. A grinning Beckham then kicked the ball off the top of the bus into the hands of a delighted Games volunteer.This started the countdown to London 2012 ! The red bus then unfolded into a hedgeclipped silhouette of London and the 91,000 fans were entertained by the chart-topping singer Leona Lewis and guitarist Jimmy Page.
All of a sudden ,the tower of memory appeared and thousands of people performed all kinds of quick movement and a number of high flyers with lighted up costumes like that of " Ultraman "
dotted the skies above. The athletes then poured in from all four corners of the stadium blowing kisses and waving flags. Some countries only had the flagbearers around.
In between before the Tower of Memory came up, the Olympic flag was lowered and then passed over from the Mayor of Beijing to the OIC Chairman and then to the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.Each of them waved the flag before passing it on to the next. The circular screen around the stadium was lighted up with happenings which went on during the past 17days and when the screen lighting reached the Olympic cauldron, the Olympic flame was extinguished. Everyone will be meeting again for the 30th Olympic Games in London in 2012 !
After the ceremony, we had a long session of chit chatting together before we left our friend's house well past midnight. It was a pleasant night together with good friends!
After 17 Olympian days in Beijing, China finally put up another spectacular ceremony on the night of 24 August. " China is really great ! " said by many foreigners. They love the people, culture, food , cities and would surely visit China again to tour the beautiful and fascinating cities! With this hosting of the 29th Olympic games, China has indeed expedited her new infrastructure implementation and other developments besides creating billions of jobs for her people. She has already spent as much as 70 billion USdollars to build the necessary infrastructure and to spruce up the city to be ready to host the games .Less than a quarter of the bill has been used to build the venue such as the Bird 's Nest stadium.Bloomberg reported today that London is planning to spend only 9 billion pounds to make preparations to host the games in the year 2012!
Again, we too gathered at our friend's house to view the ceremony together . We had our dinner in front of the big screen and it was really fun ! We had two types of roasted ducks, satays , Hokkien noodles of several types and a variety of fruits and chocolates. Somehow, I have not acquired the taste to drink red or white wine. There is no inkling to taste it !
It was indeed an extravagant farewell to the Olympics yesterday. A huge party had wrapped up the greatest sporting show on earth.Fireworks of all shapes and colours exploded over the stadium.I looked with awe two huge drums hoisted into the sky with two pairs of suspended drummers thumping out a hypnotic beat in mid-air. This was followed by thousands of dancers who took the centre stage to form all kinds of motives which fell in beautifully from above.Then there were the high tech entertainers who rode on special circular cycles to glide past the entire stadium.
Britain's eight-minute chance to tell the world what the London Games would offer to the world in 2012 started with the moving in of a red double- decker bus into the Bird's Nest.There was an Indian girl with a football who alighted the bus to be led by a lolipop lady to cross the road using the zebra crossing.She then went up the bus to pass the ball to David Beckham on top of the bus. A grinning Beckham then kicked the ball off the top of the bus into the hands of a delighted Games volunteer.This started the countdown to London 2012 ! The red bus then unfolded into a hedgeclipped silhouette of London and the 91,000 fans were entertained by the chart-topping singer Leona Lewis and guitarist Jimmy Page.
All of a sudden ,the tower of memory appeared and thousands of people performed all kinds of quick movement and a number of high flyers with lighted up costumes like that of " Ultraman "
dotted the skies above. The athletes then poured in from all four corners of the stadium blowing kisses and waving flags. Some countries only had the flagbearers around.
In between before the Tower of Memory came up, the Olympic flag was lowered and then passed over from the Mayor of Beijing to the OIC Chairman and then to the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.Each of them waved the flag before passing it on to the next. The circular screen around the stadium was lighted up with happenings which went on during the past 17days and when the screen lighting reached the Olympic cauldron, the Olympic flame was extinguished. Everyone will be meeting again for the 30th Olympic Games in London in 2012 !
After the ceremony, we had a long session of chit chatting together before we left our friend's house well past midnight. It was a pleasant night together with good friends!
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