DimSumDolly* - the different morsels of the life of a foodie

Hanging Up My Paddle

Yes, I've decided to stop paddling, at least competitively. It's a decision shocking even to myself. Before returning to Singapore, I had always thought I'd go back to my old club and paddle with them again. You know, go back to the old routine of waking up at 5am on Tuesday and Thursday mornings to be at the beach at 6.15am for morning trainings, and then spend Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoons out on the water again.

After returning to Singapore, I started going for practice at the beginning of September. The ladies are training for a race in Hong Kong and at first I was going to do it but something happened during practice last Saturday that made me decide to pull out of the race. I was screamed at by an alpha female because she didn't approve of the way I was steering the canoe and also that I should have been more aggressive. Well really, if she's so smart, go steer the canoe herself. But oh, she can't steer!

It was at that very moment when I realised I didn't find paddling fun anymore. I didn't sign up for this - to be screamed at by people. I can no longer muster up that competitive mindset that's required of this club. I have no more desire to compete or go for time trials so I can fight for a seat in the boat. I've been there done that. Time to move on.

Sure, competitive paddling instills a discipline in you that can help you in other aspects of your life. It pushes you to achieve more than you think you could. It fosters team spirit, teaches you to work with others, and builds determination and perseverance. But people have egos, and egos are what sometimes make the game ugly.

In the nine months when I didn't paddle in Hong Kong, I hiked a lot at the weekends, and I was hiking with people who were non-competitive and were just out to enjoy a day outdoors. No one thought of besting the next person in timing or speed. No one cared. I enjoyed that.

Perhaps it's because I've been too worried about other areas of my life, hence I could never truly focus on the race. I didn't go for as many practices as I should mainly due to the ridiculous cost of entering Sentosa, no thanks to the integrated resort. Anyway, it all doesn't matter now as I'm hanging up my paddle.

I feel liberated after the decision to quit paddling. There's no more obligation to turn up for practice and I'm now free to pursue new things. I still love the ocean and I still love paddling but just not of a competitive nature. At one point in time I thought I couldn't ever do without paddling as it was so much a part of my life. But situations change, as do people.

So now the question is, what should I try next (after I get a job of course)? Ideas, dear reader?

InterContinental HK High Tea

One of the things that people say you HAVE to do in Hong Kong in the way of food is to have high tea at The Peninsula hotel. However, I beg to differ on that as I think high tea at the InterContinental, just across the road from The Peninsula, is much better - if only for the view.

High tea at the InterContinental lobby will accord you with this panaromic view of Victoria Harbour - something you won't get if you're having high tea at the lobby of The Peninsula. Call me a sucker, but I'd rather pay for this view while enjoying a leisurely afternoon eating and chatting with my friend, than follow in the footsteps of some taitai tradition of having high tea at The Peninsula.

I went to the InterContinental with a good friend during my last week in Hong Kong. We ordered the high tea set which costs about HKD200 (before tax) per person. We liked the bottom tier best with its canapes. There was a smoked salmon canape on the extreme left, the shrimp with cavier on its right, the duck pate, and the tomato with mozzarella cheese with pesto on the extreme right.

We didn't like the dessert platter as we didn't think they tasted all that good. To be honest, they were somewhat boring too. The lemon tart to the extreme left had a nice buttery pastry and tasted citrusy enough. If I had to choose the best among the five there, I'd say this lemon tart was best. Next to it was a chocolate cup with small pieces of multi-coloured jello placed in it. The look didn't appeal to me so I gave it a miss as I didn't want to waste calories. In the middle was a cheesecake which tasted really ordinary. I took a bite and left the rest of it. If you're a fan of milk chocolate, the next dessert is probably your thing. I don't like milk chocolate, so I left it to my friend to finish it. The attractive rose-red dessert on the extreme right is a slice of raspberry mousse cake which I didn't mind eating as it wasn't too sweet. Again, it was alright, but not mind-blowing.

The carbs platter consisted of scones, madeleines, a brownie and some millefeuille pastry. I liked the scones best as they were warm, buttery and moist at the same time. Yum.

Take your pick of peach jam, double cream and strawberry jam to go with the warm scones. Did I mention that I really love a good scone? Pair it with a cup of earl grey tea and it's comfort food at one of its best.

It comes with a pot of tea for each person. Service was very good as the wait staff were very prompt at refilling our cups.

One of the waitresses then came round with a whole platter of macarons from which we chose one of each flavour. The yellow one was lemon-flavoured, the brown was chocolate, the light brown was caramel, the green was matcha (aka green tea) and the grey one was black sesame. Personally I'm not a huge fan of macarons and so I didn't enjoy them as much as a macaron fan would.

High tea at the InterContinental Hong Kong would be my pick over The Peninsula any time. There's something very leisurely and a little indulgent about sipping tea and treating yourself to morsels of food there whilst taking in the Hong Kong skyline. High tea runs from 2.30 to 6.30pm.

InterContinental Hong Kong
18 Salisbury Road
Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2721 1211
Nearest MTR stations: Tsim Sha Tsui (尖沙咀) or Tsim Sha Tsui East (尖東)

Finding a Job is like Dating

If you haven't already guessed from the title of this blog entry, yes, I am looking for a full-time job right now. Well, perhaps let me rewind and recount what's been going on in my life so far.

So I quit my editorial job in Hong Kong and the idea was to return to Singapore - which I've done - to take up a course in lymphatic drainage massage and aromatherapy for six months while trying to get freelance editorial and writing work.

I've started on the lymphatic drainage course and find it very interesting, but unfortunately I also realise that I can't make enough moolah out of massage therapy and freelance writing and editing. Writing's a tough business and it's often a chicken and egg situation. People want to publish only writers that have been published. But how do you get published when you never get that break?

I had thought I had it all figured out. So I miscalculated this time and my leap of faith was a tad too big for my feet. I've fallen flat on my face and have been slapped with a reality check. So now I have to pick myself up and soldier on. And then I've been thinking about my financial status - or lack thereof. For someone my age, my bank account balance is pretty darn pathetic. My only consolation and silver lining is that I'm not in any form of debt. But I've been thinking more about grown-up stuff like buying a government flat when I turn 35. The Singapore government allows singles aged 35 and above to buy a small government flat. In order to buy one, I'd have to be employed on a full-time basis for the next three years else no bank would loan me any money when the time comes for me to be eligible to buy one.

I've reconciled myself to the need of being an office drone with a decent salary. I have too many interests (a bit schizo in that aspect) which I want to pursue and I need money to let me continue to fuel those interests. Hence the need for a full-time job as a worker bee. Lucky are the people whose work converges with their passion(s). Few of us have that merge and I think nine out of ten people will tell you they don't exactly LOVE what they do. Work so far has been more of a means to an end for me.

The other day, my friend, J, and I were chatting over MSN. Both of us are in the same situation at the moment in our respective homes. He's looking for work in Sydney after returning home from a three-month holiday in Europe. The job-hunting process is a tiring one and it's almost like a full-time job in itself! J then likened job-hunting to casual dating.

Think about it - both are actually pretty similar. When looking for a job, you have to go through interviews. Casual dating also requires you to answer questions posed by others and you're judged upon your answers in both situations. There are usually the standard set of questions and then your whole being and life are sized up by complete strangers based on this sketchy caricature they have of you.

Then let's assume the relationship goes beyond the casual dating stage and you start dating exclusively; in the case of the job, this equates to being recruited by the company. As with many relationships, it's not always rosy. Cracks start to appear and the relationship is nothing like what you thought it'd be. So you break up and then go on a holiday to nurse that broken heart and then the whole cycle starts again. Similarly with a job, many of us get bored after being on the job for awhile or find that it's not really what we want, and then we resign.

Job hunting, like dating, requires you to put yourself out there in the market. Finding the right job is like being in a relationship with the right person. If it's the right person, you wouldn't think of moving on or looking for something better. The lucky ones find that right person and/or job and make the rest of us - or maybe just ME - feel inadequate. J added that people like him have gotten burnt by corporate giants and are forever bitter about it - like people who have been hurt deeply by partners.

It's as if I've become a cynical bitch overnight. Last week, there was an article in The Straits Times about the 'Plasticine Generation' (橡皮人) in China. This refers to a group of white-collared workers, mostly in their late 20s and early 30s, who have become 'numb to life, have no dreams, interests or ideals, and do not feel much pain - or joy'. They are called the 'Plasticine Generation' because like plasticine, they can be or are moulded into any way that others want them to be - simply because these plasticine generation don't care in what way they are moulded or pushed along.

The article added that 'these "plasticine men" can be found among doctors, bank employees, teachers, journalists, traffic policemen, civil servants, actors and taxi drivers, the magazine reported. Typically, they work alone and for more than 50 hours a week. They feel as if they have expended all their energy and all they get in return is a sense of emptiness'.

While I'm not quite that close to having entirely no interests or ideals, I feel like I'm becoming a 'plasticine woman' in feeling trapped and confused in this world where I feel I'm losing my grasp on every single day. :(

Tai Tong Lychee Valley 大棠荔枝園

Sometime in mid-July when I met up with a Singaporean friend who was visiting Hong Kong, I suggested going to Tai Tong Lychee Valley instead of doing the usual touristy thing in Hong Kong i.e. hang around popular tourist spots like Central, Causeway Bay and Mong Kok. Summer is lychee season, so I thought it'd be a good time to go to Tai Tong Lychee Valley to pick some of our own.

Unfortunately when we got there, we were told that the lychee trees had all bore fruit and been picked due to the extremely hot weather. The only other fruit we could pick was longans. However, the longans were perched so high up on the tree that we had to get this staff member to go up on a ladder to pick a bunch of longans for us.

There were also water apple trees in the lychee valley. Many other fruit trees like jackfruit, pomegranate, dragon fruit, custard apples and lime were grown as well.

There was even a forlorn looking bunch of green grapes.

A tiny waterfall can be found as you walk farther into the gardens. We had expected something a little more spectacular.

Then we sat down to have our longans. The management doesn't allow fruits to be brought out of the farm, but you're allowed to consume as much as you want while you're in the farm. But really, the amount we ate wasn't worth the HKD80 (or it could have been HKD70 - I can't quite remember now) that we paid as entrance fees. It's really expensive but ah well, I shall see it as donating to a good cause.

A friendly staff member then came over with this bunch of 'wampee' (黃皮) after I requested to try some. According to Wikipedia, this is a fruit native to South East Asia, though I've never actually seen it in Singapore! The flesh is a translucent white colour that surrounds a small, oval shaped, brown seed. The fruit tastes both sweet and sour at the same time.

Tai Tong Lychee Valley would be a good place to go to for a relaxing day out with the family as it has horse rides for the kids and a playground for the kids to play in. There are also bbq pits for rental. But seriously if there are no lychees to be picked, then don't bother going. So it'd best to call up beforehand to check - don't make the same mistake I did.

Getting there: Take red minibus K66 from Long Ping (朗屏) station that's along the West Rail line. The bus should be going in the direction of Yuen Long (元朗). Click here for more transport details.

Tel: (852) 2470 2201

Hong Kong Wetland Park 香港濕地公園

For people who want to enjoy the outdoors in Hong Kong and prefer it to be just a walk in the park (literally and figuratively), head to the Hong Kong Wetland Park that's located in Tin Shui Wai (天水圍), New Territories. This area is a lovely little oasis located next to a housing estate and is easily accessible by public transport.

According to its website, it was originally intended to be an ecological mitigation area (EMA) to compensate for the wetlands lost due to Tin Shui Wai New Town development. Further studies conducted by the Hong Kong government concluded that 'the development of the Wetland Park will also enhance the ecological function of the EMA to a world-class conservation, education and tourism facility'.

I had heard about the park and decided to make my way there one Thursday morning with two friends to have a look. To get there, take the West Rail line to Tin Shui Wai station (天水圍站) then transfer to the Light Rail (輕鐵) and take either number 705 / 706 to the Wetland Park (濕地公園) Light Rail stop. Once you alight, there are clear signs directing you to the Wetland Park.

There are broadwalks around the 61-hectare park which are very family- and wheelchair-friendly.

There are also exhibitions and guides to educate the public on conservation.

There's such a big disparity between the foreground and background. The flats that overlook the wetland park have a really good view of the place! You can buy an annual pass for HKD100 and go to the park as often as you please. If I lived next to the park, I'd buy the annual pass and go to the park for a jog every day!

A blob of water sits on a lotus leaf - there are several lotus and water lily ponds in the wetland park. Many avid photographers bring their cameras to the wetland park to take photos of the flowers.

The view from an observation tower where birds can be observed. The buildings in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone can also be seen in the distance. The water channel is called the Western Channel (西河道) and the Mai Po Nature Reserve is on the right of the channel.

The mangrove swamp broadwalk that sways as you walk along it.

If you're with children, make sure you keep them busy and interested by getting them to collect these stamps as you walk around the park. Of course if you're into cheap thrills like I am, you can always do the same!

And here I am, very pleased with my stamps. :)

When you're done walking, head to Cafe de Coral for a drink or afternoon snack. This is probably the Cafe de Coral outlet with the nicest view in the whole of Hong Kong (Cafe de Coral is a chain F&B outlet selling local Hong Kong food). It's extremely relaxing sitting there with the lovely backdrop of the wetland and mountains as company.

Before we left the park, I was asked to fill up a survey form and add my nation's flag to the board. Can you spot where mine is?

My very poor attempt at drawing the Singapore flag. Admittedly, I'm no Picasso.

A trip to the Hong Kong Wetland Park makes for a relaxing day out with family and friends to enjoy the outdoors. It's an easy option for those not inclined to climb up and down mountains. There are buses you can take there directly from Causeway Bay and Admiralty in Hong Kong Island. More transport options can be found on their website. Entrance fees are HKD30 for adults and HKD15 for children (3-18), full-time students and senior citizens aged 65 and above.

Tai Shing Stream 大城石澗

In the thick of summer in Hong Kong, one can't quite get enough of stream trekking. The cool fresh water is the perfect antidote to the summer heat and humidity. On Friday 13 August, three of us met first for yumcha at Tsuen Wan (荃灣) MTR station. Our breakfast was the dimsum we stuffed ourselves with - a fitting way to fuel our bodies before we set off on our trek.

After our party of five gathered, we took green minibus 82 from Shui Wo Street (兆和街) which is about three minutes' walk from Exit B of the MTR station. Take the bus to the last stop - Shing Mun Reservoir (城門水塘) - and that is the trail head.

You'll see this sign at the bus stop. Enter the trail from here.

Head towards the Pineapple Dam Nature Trail.

Then look out for this sign and head in the direction to which it is pointing to.

Walk along the trail and you'll soon be able to hear the sound of water flowing and then you'll see small pools of water like that to entice you as to what awaits farther on.

Then look out for this barricade and sign that has been vandalised. Walk past the barricade and follow the stone trail. As you walk along the trail, look out for ribbons hanging from branches. Follow those ribbons as they will lead you to the stream.

Look out for this group of ribbons as it's the point to turn off the main trail and down to the stream. To those who can understand Cantonese, the words '乐澗' should rightfully be written as '落澗', meaning to go down to the stream. 乐 means 'happiness' and 落 means to 'descend', but their spoken form is similar. The person who wrote the words probably forgot how to write 落!

Our playground!

Enjoying my dip in the one of the rock pools.

We scaled up the waterfall and this was a shot taken from half-way up the waterfall.

My friend Ivan even caught two prawns (this is the second one he caught) in the rock pools! Of course, we let it go after that. The fishes, though many, were a bit more difficult to catch.

Not only did we spot prawns and fishes, we even spotted a water snake hiding under a huge rock. I was beside myself once I spotted it!!!

On our way back, we traced back our route until where the vandalised sign was. Instead of turning right (which was to follow where we had come from), we turned left and followed the trail so that we could get to this spot to see these trees that are partially submerged in water.

And here's me, the hiker filled with feelings of happiness and sadness. Happiness at being at that spot with a bunch of good friends who love nature and sadness at the thought of having to leave Hong Kong and all of that beauty behind. Writing this entry now fills me with many fond memories and also makes me wistful of all the adventures in Hong Kong. I just know that I HAVE to somehow engineer something so that I can live in Hong Kong again. Wish me luck.

木綿洞 Mok Min Cave

Being the avid hiker that I was in Hong Kong, it was only fitting that my last Sunday there was spent in my favourite spot - Sai Kung (西貢). Writing this blog entry now and looking at the pictures brings back such fond memories of Hong Kong that it makes me want to go back right away!

We started our coastal trek (泳涃) at Pak Lap Chai (白腊仔). This shows us moments before we went into the water. There's me in red with my yellow float.

The winds were really strong that day, resulting in large wave action as seen from all that froth in the sea. If you look carefully, you can see some of my friends still bobbing in the water. We couldn't get onto shore at those parts as the waves were too strong and we were carried back and forth by the waves when we attempted to climb onto the rocks. It was impossible and at one point I was seriously scared.

Thankfully after a while all of us managed to swim into this little cove where the waves weren't so strong. It was there that we all managed to climb onto the rocks. Upon assessing the strength of the waves, we decided to abort the rest of the coastal trek as it was too dangerous to go into the water. Two of my friends had to be rescued by two of the guys as the two weaker ones weren't able to swim into the cove.

I LOVE SAI KUNG!!!!

Mok Min Cave (木綿洞), one of the famous landmarks in Sai Kung.

Waves crashing onto shore - we certainly didn't want to be in the water at that spot!

I can't say it enough - I love the beauty of this place.

I look like a 傻婆 (meaning crazy woman in Cantonese) with my hair flying in all directions, but this was taken when we were standing on the other side of Mok Min Cave.

An unusally quiet Pak Lap Wan (白腊灣) on a sunny Sunday. Usually the bay is dotted with yachts.

We then made our way to 沙橋 where's there's a beach and seafood restaurant. It takes about 20 minutes to walk there from Pak Lap Wan (白腊灣).

Close to shore, we could see lots of sea urchins! There were many fishes too. It was just a bit difficult catching them on camera.

Our contingent of eight who braved the choppy waters. Later that evening, we all sat down to a delicious seafood dinner at the Sai Kung town centre. My friends very generously treated me to the meal as a farewell dinner for me. It's fantastic that I got to know this group of local hikers who go on such interesting coastal treks. Being all locals, they all naturally spoke Cantonese among themselves and this gave me a chance to practise speaking Cantonese. In the year that I was in Hong Kong, my Cantonese improved a lot and I'm a little sad that I don't get to use the language as much back in Singapore.

I need to find a way to get back to Hong Kong to live!!! Ideas anyone????

Getting to Pak Lap Chai: From Sai Kung town centre, take a taxi and tell the taxi driver you want to go to Pak Lap. You'll be dropped along the road and there'll be a sign pointing down to Pak Lap Wan. You'll have to take a 10 to 15-minute walk down. Pak Lap Chai is a small beach next to Pak Lap Wan and you can get there by walking through a path at the back and then leading left of Pak Lap Wan. The taxi fare will cost about HKD90 from Sai Kung town centre.