[Tea Appreciation] Geisha Blossom Tea

It is a day after Christmas and last week of the year. I decide to finally open the last pack of Geisha Blossom Tea that I love very much. Time to reward myself. :D

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Name: Geisha Blossom Tea

Brand: TWG

Feeling: From the naming of the tea, the word 'Geisha' is already very catchy to me and due to that I always feel that this tea is very sexy. Whenever I see the tea pack, there is an illustration of geisha with a rose on her head on top of the tea pack. When I take the tea bag and smell it, it is very aromatic like I am standing very near to a geisha and my nose picks up the perfume of her body. Emotional catching fragrant. With the last pack staying in my drawer, the tea gets even precious for this whole year. It is like keeping a mistress at home. :D Today I finally decide to consume her for good before she gets rotten though I know she won't. :) She is green and fragrant with a bit of bitterness, sufficiently to keep me awake for the rest of my day. :) Always will be one of my loves. :)

TWG describes this blended tea as following:

Elegant and highly refined, this TWG blend of green tea and refreshing, ripe southern fruits infuses into a fragrant cup that will calm and appease after a day's disruptions.

[Art] Riuh @ APW Bangsar

Rich is an art market. You can find many local art works being sold here, T-shirts, handbags, artistic utensils, etc. You can find some art workshops here too where you get to learn some hands on art works. You also can lie down on the prepared seating place to listen to live musics, bean bag, chairs, etc. Whenever there is an event, there is always food and drinks. Yes, there are food stalls and drink stalls in Riuh too. :)

This market was started on August 2017 and will be conducted monthly on one of the weekend of the month. To know which weekend of the month, you may visit their website to find out. Temporarily you can find them in APW Bangsar until at least May 2018.

You also can book a store to sell your stuff here. The booking can be done through their website also.  So if you are an artist or a part-time entrepreneur, here is your chance to try something out. :)


Event details:
Venue: APW Bangsar, subject to change after May 2018
Website: http://www.riuh.com.my/
Ticket: Free admission
Opening Hours: 10am - 9pm

Period:
- 2017: Sessions ended
- 2018: Jan 20 - 21, Feb 10 - 11, Mar 24 - 25, Apr 21 - 22, May 10 - 20.

Tea Tasting

Tea Tasting

Tea Tasting

Craft Workshop

Craft Workshop

  

Craft Workshop

Craft Workshop

[Art] Arts & Lights @ Icon City

The event took place at Icon City. If you are photoholic, this is the very nice event for you. They made the whole place light up with beautiful lighting design with many colors and lighting fitting like roses, sticks, dots, etc.

It is also a heaven for the kids as there are activities that sure catch kids' liking. The interactive coloring which can be done with parents, then scanned into system to where their coloring is shown in a big screen and upon clicking it the colored vehicles will be flying or responding. Cool! On the center of the event also a dancing water fountain that is a heaven to the kids, where they get to play with the water and rush into the rising water for an exciting breakthrough. I am 100% sure they like it, because when the water is out and that is when the sad faces come out. :D

Couple with the event also, audience is introduced with the new properties in sale from Mah Sing. There are D'sara Sentral in Sungai Buloh, Lakeville Residence in Jalan Kuching, Meridian @ Medini in Iskandar Puteri Johor and definitely Icon City in Petaling Jaya which is where the event is hosted. If you are looking for a property, you might want to consider coming to this event too. Enjoy the event while getting a deal on. ;)

Event Details:
Venue: Icon City
Period: 19Nov - 24Dec
Website: https://www.artsandlights.com.my/
Ticket: Free admission but need to get the ticket, it is available in website

【思考。Think】苦也不过如此。Bitterness is as normal

尝试过苦的味道，就会知道苦也只不过如此，没什么好可怕的。
After you have tasted the bitterness, you will know that bitterness is as normal and nothing to be afraid of.

【思考。Think】还没开始就别放弃。Don't give up before you even start

如果还没有开始，就因为有的没的而放弃，会不会很傻呢？如果能够在一堆负面批评里闯出来，终极感觉一定会好过躲躲避避的无奈。
If you choose to give up before you even get started, isn't it silly? If you are able to walk out out an environment full of negative critism, the ultimate feeling will definitely be better than the helplessness feeling from hiding.

[Tea Appreciation] Steaped tea boutique

I am a tea lover. I am especially love western tea, which typically has its tea mixed with dried fruits, dried flowers or dried herbs that provide additional aroma to the tea.

Encounter with Steaped, is like meeting the right one. Finally, I found the tea mixed with fresh plants (fruits, herbs, flowers). How excited!

Steaped has wide range of teas especially blended teas. There are also pure herbs drinks and pure tea drinks. Their tea leaves are mainly imported from foreign countries. They have a list of signature drinks which are mainly blended teas with fruits, herbs or flowers, just like this lemongrass grind.

I like that they are being sincere. They blend the tea with fresh ingredients in their signature drinks. Lemongrass tea, for example, does not taste as great when blended with dried lemongrass. Steaped blends it with fresh lemongrass, the freshness of the lemongrass in the lemongrass grind is so strong and aromatic that it feels healthy to drink it. It is tallied with their website information, where they are creating healthy drinks. Cool! :)

I would say Steaped's blended teas are very unique, at least I haven't discover any tea drinks blended with fresh ingredients in anywhere in Malaysia nor other countries that I went (Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Europe and South East Asia). If you do, please let me know. :)

If you like blended tea like me, go try their signature drinks today. :) They sell loose tea as well, do bring back some if you like their teas. :) You can locate them here, they are now in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, Sunway Velocity Mall and One Utama Shopping Mall.

Steaped signature drinks

Various tea leaves

Various tea leaves

Steaped @ One Utama Shopping Mall

[Tea Appreciation] Tangerine Green Tea

It was a lonely Sunday morning. I decided to enjoy this lonely moment elegantly with my favourite tea at my favourite spot of the house the kitchen island on my favourite white bar stool. I heated up the cinnamon donuts, took out the long hidden tea set partially and put some loose tea leaves into the tea pot. After pouring in some hot water to the pot and waited for few minutes, I was set for my breakfast. :) 

Name: Samdayeon Jeju Tangerine

Brand: Osulloc Jeju Island

Feeling: Elegant mix of tangerine and green tea. Personally, I think it is best drank cold after brewing it for > 24hrs in fridge at water-tea ratio of 2 liters : 2 teaspoons. The aroma of the tea will be optimized and soothing drink from cooled down liquid. To drink it hot, better follow the instruction provided on the packaging itself, i.e. 300ml 90C water with 3 teaspoons of tea leaves for 2 minutes to serving. If too long, the drink will become too acidic. Either way, you won't get disappointed with this blended tea. The tea drinking experience is enhanced with the adequate tangerine in it. :)

Oslond Jeju Island describes this blended tea as following:

A post-fermented tea that blends both the deep aromatics of a cedar tree and the refreshing element of a citrus sudachi. A Jeju Tangerine is added to this exceptional post-fermented tea, which is matured in a cedar barrel. This tea delivers a refreshingly clear taste of Jeju Island with the combination of verdant hints and the tangerine's juicy essence. 

【爱阅读】欣想事成系列

我读了两本她的书，欣想事成ii&iii，很轻松的读物。无厘头的来也很有指导性。读着这本书的时候，就好像在听欣怡讲话一样，简直没两样。里边很有她说话的风格，很幽默，很有趣，也很舒服。

其实没什么注意两本欣想事成的内容是什么，应该都是关于工作，关于人际关系的，关于生活的吧。比较记得心想事成iii有一撮是关于两性关系的，因为很特别也很大胆。有趣！

如果想要找个休闲读物，可以读读她的欣想事成系列。包你觉得有趣也会很消遣。😊

[Tea Appreciation] Sparkling Lemongrass Grind by Steaped

Unintentionally dropped by Steaped in One Utama just because my friend want to peep at the new shop. They served drinks with fresh ingredients.

Name : Sparkling Lemongrass Grind
Brand : Steaped

Feeling : Distinct taste of lemongrass and black tea, with sweetening taste from sparkle.

Fine out more about this drink from Steaped on this drink.

【领导。Leadership】失败是个机会。Failure is an Opportunity

有一次在一个电影里，有这一目。公司的CEO坐在一间大房的中间，站在她的身边是她的助手，站在她前面有个刚被入取的管理层员工。他们在策划着一个项目，而员工是项目负责人。

负责人提出一个提案。这提案直接就被CEO助手反对了。双方就开始了理论对战，婆说婆有理的，公说公有理的，分不出胜负。照理说，CEO助理的呈词应该比较有说服力，毕竟他是公司的老蒋。

突然CEO开口说话了。她问负责人：“你有把握吗？”负责人很自信地说：“有！”CEO二话不说就批准他的提案与需要的资金，让他去实行他的计划。

几星期后，同一个房间，同样的人物与位子。负责人带着承重的声音看着CEO问说：“你一开始就知道提案不会成功对吗？”

CEO很淡定地回道：“是的，一开始我就知道你的提案必然失败。但是你既然是我选出的负责人，我就应该让你有这个决定权去执行这个任务。我愿意亏损这少少的钱来让你从失败中吸取经验，让你处理往后的任务时更加全面性地策划。”

故事说到这，有没有一个灯泡出现了一下？如果小小的失败或牺牲可以换来一个人的成长，为何不做这个投资呢？如果小孩跌倒会让以后的他小心一点，为何不让他跌倒呢？如果员工的失败对公司不会造成明显的伤害，而员工的尝试可以让他们更自信引而让公司的能力相对提高，为何不大胆让他放手一搏呢？相对的，如果你失败了，是要放弃吗？还是重新开始？如果放弃，会不会辜负当初给这个机会的你自己或别人？

共勉之。

In a movie, there was this scene. A CEO was sitting in the middle of a room with her assistant standing to the right and her newly employed management member standing in front. They were strategizing a project.

The new member was assigned to take charge of the project. He raised a proposal but was immediately rejected by the assistant. There was a debate among the parties and each brought up valid points. Logically, assistant's words would be more convincing as he had been in the company for awhile.

However when CEO spoke, she didn't sided any side but to ask this to the new member, 'are you sure?'. 'Yes! ', he confidently responded. CEO then approved his proposal as well as the budget needed for the project.

Few weeks after, same room and same settings. The new member looked at the CEO with a bearable voice and says, 'You knew from the beginning that the proposal will fail, weren't you? '

CEO calmly replied: "yes, I knew from the beginning your proposal will fail, but since you are the person I elected, I should let you have the discretion to perform this task. I am willing to have bear this bit of sacrification to enable you to learn from your failures and plan more comprehensively in the future to come."

Until here, is there a light bulb blinking above your head now? A small failure or sacrifice in exchange for a person's growth, why not? If a child falls will enable him to learn to be more careful with his movement, why not let him fall? If it is predicted that a failure by an employee will not cause any significant harm to the company, why not let the employee to take the lead? On the contrary, if you fail, should you give up or start over? If you give up, Will you not disappoint the person who give you this opportunity in the first place, either yourself or others?

Sharing is caring. :)

【爱阅读】货币发行的控制

这一段让我想到美国。

【爱大自然。Love Nature】树下的Mamak。Mamak Under The Tree

如果你来到芙蓉要吃早餐，可以考虑来这间躲在树底下坐落在小溪边的mamak 。吃roti canai喝teh tarik的同时，也可以听听浠水声，听听鸟叫声，还有享受阵阵风吹。

它的名字叫Restoren Mydin。没错，和那连锁商场的名字一样。这家mamak已有至少20年历史。可能两个的创办人都那么巧有同样的名字吧？不晓得。

它的roti canai有一定的水准，teh tarik也是。没有太多的花样，保留了mamak食物的原始。现今社会，很多食物都搞创新，把原始的食物变来变去。有时会怀念一下食物最原始的味道。:)

也因为有至少20年的历史，所以它也成为当地的爱好吹水地方，时不时会看到一班年已迈老的auntie uncle在这儿聊天，好歇意。很有人间风情。

有空来这儿吃个早餐吧。

If you come Seremban and are looking for food, you can consider to have your breakfast at this hidden mamak under a big tree and beside the water stream. While you're eating roti canai and drinking teh tarik, you can listen to the sound of flowing water, listen to the  sound of bird and enjoy the morning breeze. 

The name of the restaurant is Restoran Mydin. Yes, it has the same name as the Malaysia chain of hypermart. This restaurant has a history of at least 20years. It might be both founder name are so coincidentally the same? Maybe. 

Both it's roti canai and teh tarik have standard. The food is very genuine without much innovative modification. It is good that at least there is still this kind of restaurant keeping the origin of the food, when there are many food out there born out of innovative idea on the original food making. 

Because it has at least 20 years history, it has become a gathering place for the local. One can sometimes spotted aging uncles aunties sitting in the restaurant chitchatting. The scene is very cultural, feel nice.

【遇到的人。People I Met】Flex Lewis

在首尔的奥林匹亚公园，很荣幸地遇到了四次奥林匹亚212冠军。当时，有个摄影师在为他拍写真。那天以前，他刚刚赢得了Men's 212 AGP Pro 2017的冠军。

我走向前，要与他拍照，他很大方地圆了我的要求。他还让我试试拿着他手上的金牌。哇，那金牌真的有重量哦，应该至少有1kg。

要知道他的背景，可以游览：https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flex_Lewis

With 4times winners of Mr Olympia since 2012, Flex Lewis! :-0

He was taking pictures with a photographer in the Seoul Olympic Park. He just won gold metal Men's 212 AGP Pro 2017 the day before we told this photo!

We were lucky enough to meet him. He was so generous in taking photo with me and he was very humble. 

He let me hold the gold metal for awhile. Oh man, the metal should be weighted at least 1kg! That was heavy!

To know more about him, visit https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flex_Lewis

【旅行趣想。Travel Things Thinks】汗拿山。Hallasan

汗拿山有五个爬山路径，觀音寺探訪路(Gwaneumsa Trail)是其中一个。这路径估计来回需要八到九个小时。网搜成绩都显示这路径是最具挑战的但却最漂亮的。网上的汗拿山照片都好漂亮，所以好期待。

爬了以后，发现原来网上分享的漂亮景色都在山顶才能看得到。基于时间的关系，我们只是去到了离海平面1500米的山间，一路走的都是森林。我们没有看到一望无际的山顶风景，但是从离海平面1500米的山间看着离海平面1950米的山顶也是不赖。

依据南韩旅行指南网站，Eurimok Trail和Yeongshil Trail是最短的路径。它们只需要两小时至两小时班的时间就完成了。Google搜索显示这两条路径都有好漂亮的山景。如果赶时间的话，可以选择这两条路径。:)

There are 5 trails in Hallasan, Gwaneumsa Trail is one of them. It is estimated that it will need 8-9 hours to go back and forth for this trail. Internet surfing results show that this trail is the most challenging one but is with the most beautiful scenic views. The pictures in internet are really beautiful and therefore very excited to see it.

After the hike, it was realized that those beautiful scenic views are only view-able on top of the mountain. Due to lack of time, we were only able to reach the rest house located at 1500m above sea level. We went through trail in the jungle to reach there. We were not able to see the mountain view but the view of the mountain top from this 1500m above sea level spot was remarkable as well.

According to South Korea Travel Guide, there are two short trails. They are Eurimok Trail and Yeongshil Trail. Both only need about 2-2.5hours  to finish the trail. From the google result, both trails have beautiful mountain view from bottom of the mountain. If you are rush of time, you may consider to choose either one of these routes. :)

汗拿山 觀音寺 探訪路
Hallasan Gwaneumsa Trail

汗拿山 觀音寺 探訪路

Hallasan Gwaneumsa Trail

沿着觀音寺探訪路的河

The river where Hallasan Gwaneumsa Trail follows

觀音寺探訪路

Gwaneumsa Trail

夏天的开始
The starting of autumn

高高瘦瘦的树
Tall skinny trees

漂亮的阳光
Beautiful sunlight

在离海平面1500米的高度看到的汗拿山山顶
The peak viewing from 1500m above sea level

http://www.thesouthkoreatravelguide.com/hiking/hallasan_national_park.html