The Birthday Post

Hd selfie ftw! Lol. 

I haven't actually worn eyeshadow in months! The last time I had eyeshadow was probably in June when we were out for a fancy dinner for our anniversary. Mmm not bad I haven't forgotten my skills wtf.

So on the day before my birthday I booked for a night's stay at the Langham Hotel, the hotel where the spa I work at is located. I got a complimentary night+breakfast as a reward for working hard :) 

Upon checking in we were greeted with this:

A welcoming message on the tv, how appropriate!

More pictures of the room later. We dropped our stuff and headed straight to Nobu for dinner. 

For drinks I had a mocktail which is so insignificant it's not in their website menu haha. 

I don't like alcohol but for the sake of something fancy to celebrate the night I ordered this. Can't remember the name, it's the first one on the mocktail list and it's got lime, lychee and... that's all I remember. Tastes pretty good.

We started off with 3 cold dishes.

Yellowtail Sashimi with Jalapeno

 Scallop Tiradito

The name of this scampi dish isn't the one that's in their website and I don't remember what it's called but this was really delicious. It's our favourite out of all 3 cold dishes but generally, all cold dishes were really good. The seafood were really fresh, presentation and flavour were spot on.

Then came the 2 hot dishes.

 Black Cod Miso

This is one of Nobu's signature dish and it is SO. GODDAMN. GOOD period. Oh that spear thingie is pickled ginger shoot I believe. 

The moment we took our first bite we literally looked up at each other in complete awe I'm not joking. Hahah ok I may have exaggerated but this was easily our favourite dish. We kind of regretted not ordering 1 each, instead of sharing. I would definitely go back to Nobu for this. 

Again, this isn't in their website's menu. It's a dish with duck breast. It was alright, nothing to shout about.

Towards the end we thought since they're pretty well-known for their sushi we might as well try it too. This was their maki with spicy toro filling. Quite delicious. The maki is rolled with a thin sheet of daikon, talk about crazy knife skills. 

Then it was time for dessert.

 Nobu tasting plate

These were basically miniature versions of the desserts they had on that day. We were told to start eating from the bun (far right) and move our way towards the palate cleanser (far left). I found it odd at first to be actually directed the way to eat a dessert platter (usually people just dig in!) but it totally made sense! You start with the heavy chocolatey goodness, followed by a light cake, slowly move your way to a more refreshing fruity mix and finish with a palate cleanser (in a spoon) to end the meal. So clever! 

Oops sorry I forgot to rotate this photo. I saw there was a white sesame panna cotta in the menu and I was hoping that it would be included in the tasting plate (I love sesame if you didn't already know) but it wasn't. So of course I had to order it.

Let's just say if I could turn back time I wouldn't have done it lol. The tasting plate itself was a really good end to the meal and this panna cotta isn't the best thing in the world so it sort of ruined the experience a little. 

Haih who ask me so tamjiak lol.

Ok now back to the hotel.

Hee :)

OPI Langham Pink  

I was forbidden to post his handsome face lol. He was checking his teeth in the mirror and was sort of cleaning it and umm... it's not the most attractive expression hahahaha. 

The bathroom/toilet is probably my favourite part of the room, so lavish! The entire area has marble finish, feels so atas man lol. 

If I knew there was going to be a bathtub I would have bought some bath bombs T_T such a waste! 

MASSIVE mirror by the sink.

 MASSIVE mirror by the bath tub. 

Full length mirror by the door.

Mirrors everywhere! Every girl's best toilet seriously. 

There's also a mirror by the mini bar area (left). And the mini bar is so damn well stocked. There's more alcohol than anything. They even have condoms and tampons wtf.

 We got upgraded to a river-view room because it wasn't really busy.

 "Melbourne is renowned for experiencing four seasons in one day. Delight in our city of surprises."

Word.

 Can you tell I was trying really hard not to laugh while I posed for this photo?? Hahahaha

To be honest I was really pleasantly surprised. I didn't expect to get such a nice room since it's complimentary. And maybe I haven't stayed in a 5 star hotel for a long time that's why so suaku lol.

There's a pretty good selection of food for the breakfast spread. Not shown here are the cereal, muesli, dried fruits and nuts, juice, milk, toast and spreads. There's also bacon, baked eggs, baked tomatoes, croissant, yogurt etc.

You can ask for your eggs to be cooked however you like. I saw some hollandaise sauce and decided to make eggs Benedict!

Natural honey, anyone? The honey from this supposedly natural honeycomb is sweet (duh), super thick and sticky. The honeycomb tastes like wax wtf.

While this may seem really fancy, who on earth has chocolate fondue and ice cream for breakfast?? NO, no kids should be allowed all these for breakfast because they go freaking crazy from all the sugar.

Last picture before we headed to the spa!

So we went to the spa (where I work at) for a massage for myself (from my lovely colleague) and a facial for Wk. Hahahaha I know, facial for Wk, sounds silly but he'd rather have that than massage. 

Recent favourites

How's the Christmas prep coming?

This picture was taken 5 minutes before the tree toppled over the stools wtf. It has since been placed on the floor where it's most stable, but it makes the tree look really stunted hahaa.

Not that Wk and I celebrate Christmas, but one day I casually mentioned "Hey, let's have a Christmas tree this year!" without even actually having an intention to buy one. And we were at Big W when we saw this little tree for only $27. And Wk went, "Omg it has fiber optics. Let's get it."

I didn't even know what fiber optics were lol but since he made it sound like it's a cool thing I thought, yeah why not.

As of now the tree is still naked, we haven't gotten any accessories. Couldn't decide on the theme to go with yet. 

Mandatory selfie.

This is my work makeup when I am bothered to put on eyeliner and mascara. Haha. I've recently found this liquid eyeliner from Maybelline which is really good. Look at how precise the line is! Of course, it's the skills too *shameless.

Made Vietnamese Chicken Salad the other day and concluded that if there's a salad I can eat everyday, this is it. I don't know how everyone eats salad with the conventional vinaigrette/olive oil dressing everyday. It sucks. This is different. But I gotta say fish sauce is an acquired taste. If you love belacan (shrimp paste), you'll love fish sauce. If you find either one or both smelly, then I'm sorry you're missing out.

I had one of the most awesome Saturday ever.

I usually work on Saturdays but last week a colleague swapped with me so I had the Saturday off and worked on Sunday. It's been a while since I had Saturday off so the day was extra special haha.

We started off with having dim sum (or Aussies like to call it Yumcha) at Gold Leaf. I tell you the amount I ate was ridiculous, insane and unacceptable all at once. It was enough to last me the ENTIRE day. I didn't eat lunch or dinner. The only thing I had few hours after was a small cup of coffee.

Would I do that again? Hell yes LOL. There's nothing quite like stuffing food in your face, let alone dim sum. Every Asian loves their dim sum ok.

And then, we went to check out cameras. Wk and I have been meaning to get ourselves a DSLR for some time now. We first dropped by JB Hifi and found some pretty good deals (15% off plus $150 cashback!) and after comparing it to Myer, we decided JB Hifi would be the place to get it. Before that we went for coffee.

On our way to JB Hifi we passed by this little camera shop called Digi Direct and saw that they offer a very similar deal to JB Hifi but $50 more, on top of that it comes with a backpack and a monopod, while JB Hifi's offer doesn't come with anything. And I should also add that the salesperson we spoke to at JB Hifi was quite cocky, which was quite a turn off but this wasn't the first time we've had negative sales service at JB Hifi anyway so it was not surprising.

We didn't find the backpack or the monopod useful so we went in to bargain and see if they could take out the extra gifts and drop the price for us. They said they could only take out $25 and they offer to swap the gifts to anything else we might want such as an SD card. Talk about flexibility! And the guy who attended to us was really pleasant too.

Which we thought was a much better option because if we do get the camera we need an SD card anyway. As for the monopod, I decided to swap it with a mini tripod so I can selfie easier HAHAHA.

Since JB Hifi wouldn't package it with gifts for us, at Digi Direct for an extra $25 we get a 32GB SD (which is usually $50) and a tripod, what do we do next?

SWIPE THAT SHINYPLASTIC OF COURSE! Lol.

And you know what made the Saturday freaking awesome?

WK BOUGHT IT FOR ME FOR MY BIRTHDAY THIS YEAR AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

So we got the Canon EOS 700D (also known as Rebel T5i), which come in a pack of 2 lenses. You can get it with one lens but it's only $50 more for a twin lens package so only an idiot would pass on it. You can't get a lens for $50 anywhere.

And THIS is like frosting on the cupcake.

I made an order with Asos some time back and because my order was so big, it was split into two packages. 1 package arrived and the other didn't. And in the live-tracking website that other parcel seems to be "In Transit" still, 4 days after my 1st package arrived which didn't make sense at all since both packages were dispatched at the same time. I contacted Asos and they told me my package has been lost. They said they would replace all the items I haven't received or they would refund me.

The thing is, I DON'T WANT A REFUND, I WANT MY CLOTHES!

I got these clothes only because there was a 30% discount and I got them because I needed new clothes!

I looked at the clothes individually after that and most of them were out of my size! I replied them saying I want them replaced, crossing my fingers that everything is still available. It's really frustrating when you're expecting something and then you get told it's no longer available.

After replying them on Wednesday, I haven't heard from them. On Friday, I received a card from a local post office to collect a package. Yes, it's my Asos package -___-

I'm guessing Asos knew my package has found its way to me and that's why they're not responding to me anymore, which to be honest annoys me a little because yes I know problem solved but the least they could do is tell me rather than ignore me? I don't know. Maybe I'm just being a bitchy, whiny customer who can't wait to get her new clothes hahaha.

So anyway. On Saturday Wk picked up the massive package for me from the post office and it was like a war zone on my bed. Best part is everything fits perfectly :D

Ok last picture before I run some errands.

I've been really liking Bircher Muesli for my breakfast lately. It's basically soaked muesli (plain or with fruits and nuts) or rolled oats in water/milk/juice to soften them (30 minutes or overnight), then you eat them with grated apple and yogurt. Cinnamon and honey for extra flavour. The honey is really optional as apple itself is sweet already. Seeds and nuts can be added for more crunch.

It takes more time to prepare but it's something different than the usual toast or cereal. It's packed with macronutrients, and it fills me up too.

Ok time to start my day.

Cafe Latte

Last Saturday after a long day at work Wk and I went for dinner with Maggie and Kai Mun at Rockwell & Sons. Food's great, had a good time. On the way back late that night, Wk was telling me about the next day (my birthday)'s plans. He said he's booked a table at Squires Loft for dinner, it's a place we went to on my birthday last year. He also bought movie tickets in this Rooftop Cinema place in the city. He hasn't planned for anytime before dinner so he said we could maybe have brunch then head out to the mall and I could 'pick' my present.

I knew he's busy with work and I should be happy that at least there's a plan but I'd be telling a lie if I say I wasn't a little disappointed. I was disappointed with the restaurant choice as I was hoping we could try some new place? Also I really didn't quite like the idea of 'picking' my present. That means no element of surprise. Well the entire plan has no surprise to it, I knew what we're doing, when and where we're going, and what I'm getting. 

Anyway, I didn't say much about it. He's made the effort to plan so I told myself that I should appreciate it. 

So back in our apartment, I was in the bathroom taking off my makeup and doing my skincare routine when the power suddenly went off. It was pitch black. I called out for Wk and he said he's coming. I didn't know what he was doing outside the room, but after about 2 minutes the power came back. So I continued with my moisturiser and stuff and 1 minute later, the power went off again! And again I called out for him and suddenly I heard him singing the birthday song, and I saw glimmering light approaching... it was Wk holding something with a lit candle stuck on it. As he approached me I could see it was a little macaron.

:')

So he turned off the power just so that he could surprise me with this! The first time he turned off the power, he was holding the candle but it went off before he could get to me. He tried to lit it back by using the fire on the stove but because there was no power, the stove wouldn't turn on LOL! So that's why he had to turn the power back on, lit the candle, and turn it off again.

And I thought that was it! But he told me it wasn't. He said initially there's a cake, but the cake 'collapsed'. I couldn't make sense of what he meant by 'collapsed', it sounded as though he baked a cake (*gasp* how bizarre!) and the cake collapsed. But anyway, because the cake failed him, he decided to get macarons.

He was trying to show me the 'collapsed' cake so I followed him out to the kitchen, when he said, "This is what the cake collapsed into", pointing at THIS

This was exactly how I looked like when I saw it, possibly bigger mouth and eyes.

I did mention a lot of times (a lot is probably an understatement...) that I'd love to have a Kitchenaid someday but I've never ever meant it as a hint because it's such an expensive appliance! I've even planned to get it next year once I've saved up for it. Looks like the money can be used on other things now ;)

This wasn't the only thing which shocked me. He actually HAND CARRIED the Kitchenaid home all the way from city! And we don't even have a car so it's train rides and walking!

This is not just A standmixer, it is a heavy duty stand mixer weighing almost 12kg. Sure you can easily lift it off the floor, but to carry it all the way home is just crazy! He told me his arms were aching and fingers all numb already. Poor guy :')

Anyway, there really was a cake which 'collapsed'.

So he went and bought this birthday cupcake for me from The Cupcake Family and on the way back, the cake toppled. He was so angry of what happened because it's not as though he knocked or dropped the box of cake anywhere, it wasn't placed in a car or bicycle. It was held in his hands all the way and he tried to be as careful as possible but the cake still inevitably toppled. Obviously the design of the packaging was just ridiculously bad. There wasn't anything strong enough to hold the base of the cake, and to sell something like that is just horrible. What's the use of it being all pretty but not being able to withstand a little bit of travelling?

Because this cake failed, he decided to get the macarons as a backup plan. He even bought them from one of my favourite places :)

Here's how the undamaged side of the cake looks like:



Anyway, when I knew he went all the way to get all these, I was speechless and too happy already. I couldn't be bothered with the smashed side of the cake. The cake looks beautiful, everything looks beautiful, life is beautiful :D

First, the macaron. Then Kitchenaid. Then this cake! Triple surprises!

Ok so this is what MY KITCHENAID (muahaha finally get to say this) looks like on the kitchen benchtop.



If you think the colour is white, oh no you're wrong. Hehe.

I initially did wanted either the White or Almond colour, until I saw THIS!

IT SHIMMERSSSSS!!!

The colour is called Cafe Latte which sounds pretty silly because it's NOTHING like a latte, unless they're trying to compare it to the colour of milk. I'd say it's more of a pearly, metallic-y white. And also, this doesn't come with the standard stainless steel bowl, this is part of a new collection which all come with this clear glass bowl. The only downside to the bowl is its weight in comparison to the stainless steel bowl but other than that, the best part is you can see right through it. You don't have to peek at your mixture from the top of the bowl. You can stand 5 feet away and still be able to see your mixture. Can you do that with stainless steel? ...Yes, if you're a mutant with xray eyes.

Ok enough bragging about my birthday hehe :P I'm still sooooo excited about it! Part of me can't wait to use it, but part of me just wants to keep it brand new and is just paranoid that I'll damage it if I start using it hahaha how stupid.