UOA Sudoku Contest 2016

We received the UOA Jewels newsletter from UOA and upon browsing the newsletter, we stumbled upon a Sudoku contest.

I told Steve we should join and he was like, “We will never WIN”. The closing date was very close and there was a public holiday too, which meant our application might have missed the deadline by the time is arrived.

Anyway, I persuaded Steve to do the Sudoku and sent it off the next day.  To increase our chances of winning, we submitted separate responses and I always said, “Who knows, we could be the winners?”.  Realistically, we thought there was no way UOA would choose both husband and wife as WINNERS, but we thought we'd have a better chance of winning one of the prizes.

From the previous winners, we saw that they received vouchers; 1^st Prize – RM300; 2^nd Prize – RM200 and 3^rd Prize – RM100.

Steve did say that it was an advanced Sudoku and took time for him to complete it.

So on 11 April 2016, we each received a surprise email from UOA. Both Steve and I had won the Sudoku contest!!! But we don’t know which prize. We were asked to pick up our prizes from 25-29 April 2016, from 9 am-12pm.

We made appointment on 25 April 2016, 10am to pick up our prizes.

We arrived there and met up with Ms. Elwen Lai and she gave the 1^st Prize vouchers to Steve and 2^nd Prize vouchers to me. She took our photos as well to be featured in the next UOA newsletters.

Happiness overload!! Thank you UOA Group. Now we have RM500 vouchers to spend on F&B / services/ goods purchased at Nexus Bangsar South, valid until 31 July 2016.

Husband and wife swept the 1st and 2nd Prizes. Not bad!!! Total : RM500 vouchers to spend. 

Bottled Hope Run 2016

• 23 April 2016
• Padang Merbok, Kuala Lumpur
• Flagged off at 5.45pm for 7km
• Category Women Open. No time limit.
• Price - RM53.00
• Race Pack -  Blue T-shirt, a bottle of mineral water and a bib
• Goodies - Medal, Banana, Mineral Water

The haze was back and it was about to rain heavily. I was also ill. Should I go for the run? I already signed up for it, no choice, run in the rain then…….

My husband dropped me off at Padang Merbok around 4.45pm and at that time; it was raining cats and dogs. Luckily, I brought my poncho, put it on and start walking to the reception/starting point area, where I met up with Anne and Rinnie.

Inside the car with poncho. About to walk under the rain......

Eventually, the weather was kind to us and the rain stopped at 5.15pm. Everyone gathered at the event area and we were asked to do some zumba as warming-up. Then we proceed to the starting line and we were pretty close to the front.

We were flagged off at 5.45pm. After running for approximately 3km, I arrived at the 1^st and only water station. The organiser served mineral water.

The route was around Bank Negara, Aswara and Bukit Tunku (where we managed to see some nice houses) and was slightly hilly.

The best thing about this run this time, was I didn’t need to go to the TOILET!!

Upon arrival back, we were given a banana and were asked to go and take our mineral water bottle and medal.  I managed to finish the 7.3km run in 1 hour 3 minutes.

After resting about 10 minutes, Rinnie and I decided on a cone of ice-cream. There were lucky draws but we felt that we were never lucky so decided not to wait for it. There were also popcorn stores but we needed to pay for it, so didn't bother. 

Our ice-cream that costs RM 2

Check out more pictures below:-

Saemaeul BBQ – 21 April 2016

Sun Wei and myself decided to give Virginie a dinner treat since Virginie did our make-up for our recent performance-Decadance, so we decided on a Korean BBQ.

Since Virginie loves everything about Korea, we asked her to choose where to go and she decided on a place called Saemaeul BBQ at Solaris, the new Korean village in Kuala Lumpur.

This restaurant is situated at a corner and it’s kind of open-air. It was pretty busy for a Thursday night so we could rest assured that the food must be good.

Inside the restaurant

Virginie did the ordering and she was the chef for the night. Sun Wei and I just ate whatever was served on the table. The only comment I have about the food would be that there were not many choices of appetizers compared with at other restaurants. If I remember correctly, there were only 5 appetizers. On top of the appetizers, we ordered pork belly, lamb and beef (marinated very nicely), Korean ball rice and kimchi soup.   

Korean spicy rice, topped with seaweed. Now, where's the ball? (RM23)

Our chef, this is how you suppose to make the rice ball? Mixed it up

Continue to mix the rice while waiting for meat to be cooked

Voila, the Korean spicy rice ball. If you like spicy rice ball, then you will like this. It was a little too spicy for me but I still enjoyed it. 

Kimchi soup was very nice. You can really taste the spicy sour soup. You won't stop drinking the soup......(RM16)

The lamb was marinated to perfection. I recommend the lamb (RM25)

A mixture of pork belly (RM25) and beef (RM50). Sun Wei and myself liked the beef very much, followed by lamb and lastly pork. Overall, the meat was well marinated, tender and juicy. 

The service in this restaurant was fast. The ambience of the restaurant was pretty simple. If you want free parking around the shop lots be prepared to go a few rounds before finding parking, unless you park inside the building.

  

The details of the restaurant:

Saemaeul BBQ  

1-G, Jalan Solaris 4

Mont’ Kiara

50480 Kuala Lumpur  

Tel: 014-368 6050

Opens daily from 3pm to 1am

* Best to call to make a reservation as the restaurant is small and quite busy

Renewing your Malaysian Driving License – 18 April 2016

I am still SHOCKED! I managed to renew my driving license in just 5 minutes at the Pos Besar, Kuala Lumpur. You can also renew it at any JPJ branches but personally less people at the post office.

So, this is what you should bring to renew your driving license:-

·         Bring your original MyKad

·         Bring your original driving license

·     Bring cash (RM30 per year and can renew up to maximum period of 5 years; RM2 being commission to JPJ and GST will be imposed)

At the post office:-

·         Take your number and wait for your turn

·         Hand over your MyKad and driving license

·         Inform the officer how many years you want to renew

·         Make payment

·         Collect your new driving license card on the spot

Take your number

Go to the counter and renew your driving license

Voila. It’s done. The best thing is, no need to take photo or bring your own photo as they used your MyKad photo for your driving license. Also, you still get to keep your old driving license and you can use your old driving license (with your young looking photo) to pass it to the guard when you enter a condo.

old vs new

Super-efficient by the staff of POS Malaysia!

You can also renew your driving license at JPJ but not sure about the queue or at https://www.myeg.com.my/faq/driving-license-renewal.html

Aerial Xmas Performance - 20 December 2015

We were in our usual Master Class on Wednesday evening and our instructor, Miko came along and asked us, “Who is free on 20 December 2015 for a Xmas party cum performance?” We have 7 in the class; Mai, Sun Wei, Sheila, Cynthia, Squido, Jennifer and me of course. All of us were around except for Jennifer, who had already booked her flight back to London.

Miko said she will split the 6 of us to 2 groups and each group will have to choreograph and perform a hoop and silk routine. As Miko will be in Hong Kong competing in pole, she said to start off with the silk routine and send her the video and thereafter to work on the hoop routine. After our Master class, she decided to split us up:-

1^st group for Hoop                                       

1. Mai

2. Cynthia

3. Sun Wei

2^nd group for Hoop

1. Squido

2. Sheila

3. Me

1^st group for Silk                                          

1. Squido

2. Cynthia

3. Sun Wei

2^nd group for Silk

1. Mai

2. Sheila

3. Me

Mai decided to create a Whatapps group to share our choice of music, videos and views and the same goes for hoop, where Sheila also created a group on Whatsapps.

As for the hoop routine, my group chose the song “Sail” by Awolnation. I must say a good choice and good piece of music as it has been smooth sailing for my group. As instructed by Miko, we just needed to change the choreography a bit and get our costumes (from a website in China but they deliver pretty fast). At first, we wanted to dress up like “Sailormoon” but the costumes for Sailormoon were quite expensive as they are used for Cosplay. We decided on something cheaper and we wanted the colour blue. The whole attire only cost us RM50.00.

As for the silk routine, my group chose the song “Revolt” by Nathan Lanier, an upbeat fast instrumental piece. We went through lots of hurdles for this routine as we had to constantly change our choreography in order to save our energy and stamina (as suggested by Miko) and do not put too many tricks in 1 combo. I must say most of the time; the 3 of us, during practises, we were unable to finish the routine.

4 days before the actual performance, which is also the last time Miko gets to comment on our routine, the 3 of us failed miserably and this routine was falling apart. Miko just watched us with her glaring eyes (luckily didn’t scold us “kow kow”) and the 3 of us knew we had to do something with this routine and bring everything into place again! We were just speechless with our performance! So, we decided to go back to the studio on a Friday evening to do it again.

Friday evening came – YES WE DID IT- WE DID IT. Although it was not perfect, all of us managed to finish the routine. I said let’s not do it again. If we were to do it the 2^nd time (like we always did previously), it’s just going to be a disappointment. We watched the video that we recorded ourselves, tried to remember to correct ourselves and went home feeling satisfied.

On the day of the performance, I had to teach ballet in the morning and thereafter rush home to do my make-up. Once I’m done with my make-up, I went and checked to see whether I have all my costumes ready for the performance. I took my top for hoop routine and tried to tighten the buckle as I decided not to sew it the day before, thinking that it’s alright, the buckle will not be loose or removed. I asked my husband for help to tighten the buckle and SUDDENLY, the buckle snapped! I went SHIT, What did you do??????? My husband said you asked me to tighten it and I did and with a little bit of push and force, it snapped. I was like, THIS IS NOT HAPPENING!!!!!!!

I quickly took out my sewing kit and started sewing the remaining buckle to the bra top and it took me 10 minutes to get the strap secured again. Then, off I went to Viva.

As I arrived at Viva, I saw lots of food and I was asked to eat. Unfortunately, I had to decline as no food for me before performance. I have to admit that I did steal a few salmon crackers on the plate as it was too tasty not to indulge. Luckily I had Anne Chang to take some food and cake and asked me to try a bit before it all finished. Thanks Anne.

So, 1^st performance, hoop routine – PHEW!! All went well……   

Please see the video below:-

After the hoop routine, we were getting ready for the 2^nd performance, silk routine. Mai and myself walked here and there and decided to hold each other hands, just to find out that both our hands were pretty cold and Sheila was at the food counter, non-stop eating. Mai and myself were like…… “We can do it!!”

So, 2^nd performance, silk routine – IT WENT WELL. HOORAY……. 

Please see the video below:-

We have gone through a lot of trial and error and no matter what, we managed to talk it out, work it out and perform as a team. I’m glad to be able to work with these girls and it does make our bonding stronger as well as getting to know each of your team mates well. Kudos to everyone who put the show together, especially my team mates, for a brilliant show and hope to work again for our future performances.  

  

Femme Fatale : Decadance – 8-10 April 2016

Viva Vertical is 10 this year. In celebrating its 10^th Anniversary, Viva Vertical has come up with a production the Femme Fatale: Decadance. The production was a 1 hour show, which consist of aerial hoop, silk and strap; pole and flying pole, acro balance and dances, showcasing women power from 8- 10 April 2016 with special guest performers; Soo Wincci (a beauty queen, model and singer performed on the 8 and 9 April 2016, 8.30p.m. shows) and Joanne Yeoh (a violinist performed on the 9 and 10 April 2016, 3.30p.m. shows).

Here are the summaries of each of the dances performed:-

Cell Block Tango

The opening act was well put together, with a combination of dance and pole tricks to the beat and meaning of the song. If you know the lyrics of Cell Block Tango, the dancers danced and acted it out in accordance to each character in the song. The dance movement was extremely synchronized and has set a high standard for the audience wanting to see more…….      

Cell Block Tango

Acro Balance Act

Vee and Lola came back from Hong Kong and gave a stunning showcase of acrobatic movement, lifting each other, showing balance, strength and flexibility.

Emily (aka Lola) and V Lea in Acro Balance Act

Guest Performer Soo Wincci

Soo Wincci sang 2 songs; the English song “My Time” and a Mandarin song. As for the English song, my partner, Yeoh Sun Wei and I had the opportunity to perform with her. While she sang “My Time”, I was performing on the hoop and my partner was performing the silk. The silk was tied to the hoop and each of us performed a synchronized routine and later my partner joined me for duo hoop.

Soo Wincci

As for the Mandarin song, Wincci sang and performed aerial hoop. It was mesmerizing to watch her perform, juggling 2 in 1; singing and at the same time performing tricks on the hoop.  

Sun Wei and Me in Aerial Silk and Hoop

Guest Performer Joanne Yeoh

Joanne Yeoh, she really lives up to her name “Violinist Extraordinaire”. She wore a red sequined vest with jeans, played the electric violin and rendered 2 songs. She was given the safety harness and was lifted up in the air. She did one stunt and played her violin in an upside down position. 

As for another performance, Jennifer and Cynthia were the aerialists performing the aerial hoop and silk alongside with her. 

Cynthia and Jennifer in Aerial Silk and Hoop

Heaven

A contemporary dance choreographed by our guest choreographer Hoi Cheng Sim.

Cat Lore and Aerial Cube

The dancers were basically cats and it started off with Pui Yi. Later, Elena performed the aerial cube as a soloist. Finally, the rest of the cats, Xiu Yen, Angel and Suk Hong joined Elena and they gave an electrifying aerial cube group of 4 performances that managed to entertain the audience with their dangerous drops, throw, catches and swing.

Pui Yi in action

Elena on cube

The audience was truly entertained when this group performed as loud cheers and claps were given to them. I personally managed to watch them perform and my heart was beating non-stop, waiting for their next tricks and anticipating what would happen next. This group did a magnificent job in capturing the audience attention! Kudos for a job well done.   

Aerial Strap

Pippa also came back from Hong Kong to perform and she did aerial straps. She wrapped the straps around her hands and wrists and performed holds, twists, spins and maneuvers requiring extreme strength and precision. It’s very similar to the men’s rings in gymnastics, but it’s done by a woman.    

Heart Cry (Pole Duo Act)

For the first time in Viva Vertical history, the audience got to witness a mother daughter duo pole on stage. It’s very rare indeed to have such performances. Mothers usually will be too old to go on stage to perform with their daughter but not Mai.

Mai and Shannon managed to touch the heart of the audience with their routine. The audience were amazed with little Shannon, aged only 9 performing tricks on pole and acro balance act. Also, Mai incorporated silk; where the silk was wrapped around Mai and little Shannon perform tricks using the silk and pole.  

Young & Beautiful (Flying Pole)

4 dancers consisting of Yiki, PuiYi, Sun Wei and I carried the pole out and we did a lyrical dance. The audience was amazed by our lead instructor, Miko’s performance on the flying pole. She managed to do her tricks as the pole was flying in the air.  

Samantha Yee (aka Miko) on flying pole

Everybody loves this flying pole routine. I’m so proud to have her as and call her my “sifu” in my pole and aerial journey. 

Wicked Game

A beautiful routine performed by Kitt Woo. Her long legs really show the extensions and lines that all dancers are dying for.

Rust

The 2 tiny dolls are back with their duo pole routine. 

Angel and Samantha Chan 

Back to the Floor (Exotic Pole Act)

Medicine

Our very own super flexible contortionist. 

Aerial Hoop Act

Nicholas performed magnificent drop and rolls on the hoop. Even my husband was extremely impressed and awed at his super split.

 

Hula Hoop Act

A well coordinated use of swinging the hula hoop with dance.

Phenomenal Women

There was no music for this and a man was just talking about how women are phenomenal and the dancers danced to the words.

Crazy In Love  

 

This was the finale dance and the dancers gathered on the floor and performed tricks on pole with flying petals.

On the last day of the performance, each and every of the performers wrote "thank you" notes to Miko and Nana and we presented them with flowers and cakes.

The surprise faces of Miko and Nana. 

Check this out. Miko is crying.........

Cake specially bought by Yiki

 Before and after show, the photo sessions :

Sun Wei and Me. We do look like "Kuan Yim ma", i.e. the Goddess of Mercy

Taking picture for the 1st time with the celebrity Soo Wincci

The spider Nicholas Tang scaring me off