Around KL - Entertainment - GSC

          This is our 4th time to watch a movie here in KL for the past years.  This time we tried the Golden Screen Cinemas at the 3rd Floor of Mid Valley Megamall.  As early as 10AM the queue for tickets was already long.  Good thing we bought a ticket the night before via online. 

Two convenient ways in buying a ticket:

• GSC E-payment (online ticketing)
• GSC Mobile App (ticketless)

 We used the 1st option ....

Movie title    :        Despicable Me 2 in 3D

Total RM      :        20 (Adult) / 13 (Children)

Ticket Price  :        RM 12.00

Ent Tax        :        RM  3.00

Surcharge    :        RM  5.00

And since we bought online there was an additional RM 1.50, was it for the credit card or what?!  Hmmmm it's expensive to watch a movie here <wink & smile>.    

    

In this picture, left side are the ticketing booths, further ahead is the main entrance, and before that are the food stalls.  Right side of this wing are McDonalds, Carl's Jr., and other shops.  Outside food and drinks are not allowed so you have no choice but buy from their designated snack booths.  I should have tried sneaking in outside food because bags where not checked upon entry which they said they would.  Since we are law abiding citizens we dropped the bad idea and didn't even buy food.  

So, this is the main entrance.  While your cinema number is not lit, you can't still get in.  And when it lights up, just chill out no need to take part in the rough game of football as it's an assigned seat.  And besides, first screening time doesn't starts promptly because of the advertisements. 

Then go up 

and walk until you can locate your cinema number

Tada!  This is Cinema 8.  3D glasses were handed out prior to this opening door.  The cinema's air con is not that cold but comfortable enough and my nose said, "it smells damp".  :(

As to the movie, it's a good source for laughter and the minions rock!  I love Agnes for her attitude, her energy, and her poem.  This movie is not just about saving the world but also falling in love, taking risks, decision making and family.  There was a part in the movie that was a tearjerker and I can now laugh at myself for being carried away.  You can't blame me, I'm a Mom after all :).   We are looking forward to the showing of Turbo and Planes, we can' wait actually.

This cinema has a different seating layout from GSC Pavilion.  But among the cinemas we have tried we love GSC Signature Gardens Gold Class the most.  A pillow and a comforter per chair, just push the button for ordering food and drinks then a butler arrives, a complimentary can of soda, and a comfy leg rest.  It's so nice reliving the experience again.  Of course, it came with a price.  I don't know when is next time but we can't forget the exclusivity and the comfortable experience while watching Rio. 

Have a great week :) and thanks for your time.

 Note: 

I was so impressed that time with their toilet because it has a hygienic toilet seat.  Then the impression became a normal feeling when I saw the same thing at Incheon International Airport. :).

July

"The glowing ruby shall adorn,

Those who in July are born;

Then they'll be exempt and free

From love's doubts and anxiety."

      

                                 -  Wikipedia; an excerpt from Gregorian calendar poem published by Tiffany & Co. in a pamphlet in 1870

I am so fascinated with the words birthday, Christmas, and summer.  When any of these 3 comes around I become overjoyed even if it is not my birthday and just imagine if it is mine.  They are like a chocolate that releases endorphins, splashing positive auras everywhere. 

Celebrating this month:

July 4 - Jojo Colinares and Cesar Sana

July 11 - My Little Prince Z

July 13 - Charlime Arriola

July 18 - July Simara

July 19 - Chuchi Gelera

July 23 - Francis Yu

July 31 - July Sandil

Advance Happy Birthday guys!  May good health be with you all day everyday and May each of your wish this year will come true.  Don't forget to say your thanks to the one above :).

It's Christmas in July!  Sale is everywhere and it has even started as early as June.  As for me, July is when I start checking my list -- dear ones and my godchildren.  My list is 97% complete meaning, godchild's name with matching birth date.  Seven of them are now scattered in the different parts of the world and much richer than their Ninang :).  I really call them my blessings and I am so honored that their parents trusted me enough to be their Ninang in baptism.  To this date, I have 30 of them.  Incredible isn't it?  It's never too late to make your own tracking list too.

Happy 4th day of July to our friends in the US of A!

Cheers to a fascinating July!

Remembering ..

Remembering ....

He loves to read anything, tries new things, plays a lot of  games/sports, thinks for solutions, has a vast knowledge and expertise in Telco, a hands-on father, a thoughtful husband, and most of all he just loves to learn everything -- a Chef Engineer.  He is patient and everybody's friend.  He knows how to encourage and gives a subordinate enough space to tackle a task. 

I'll forever remember ....

Today I want to be  thankful for that one opportunity years ago.  He gave me the chance to find my way and discover the world of writing.  He entrusted me with a job which I was doubtful at the same time I was excited and challenged to fulfil it.  It was not part of my main job but still a task at hand. It was a hill and valley experience.  If it makes me smile now, it definitely was a good opportunity then.

I remember ...

To you, Gerard "Gervi" Vidal ......

Happy, Happy Birthday man!  All the best to you.

Again, thank you and May God bless you and your family always.

Note:

I grabbed and cropped 1 of your FB pics. fyi. :)

Do you still remember me? Because what I can also remember, you have this tendency of forgetting people and where names and faces just doesn't match efficiently.

Kriziann on Two

                        To my food trip partner, baby alive, michelin nephew 

Happy 2nd Birthday!

          Stay healthy and happy! Cheers for the good looks!  We love you ki! 

there's always a workaround

  

Excitement and expectations crumbled down after I tasted the strawberry we bought from Aeon grocery.  It was way too sour!  I felt I became a facial contortionist for a minute.  Jack was really amused when he saw my face and asked "that sour?!".  No need for words, his face revealed it all.  There has to be a workaround.  I can't simply throw my RM6.50 away, no way! 

Glad I found this recipe.  The simplest one and truly delivered the expected result I so wanted.  I diced my strawberries into really small pieces and I was able to get a cup and 1/4.  I had adjusted the recipe with my resources.  I used 1 cup of brown sugar and 1/4 white sugar.  I mashed the diced strawberries with a fork and surprise!  They are not that tender so let fire do the rest.  And here is the recipe which I am so happy to share. 

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/strawberry-jam/

Ingredients

2 pounds fresh strawberries, hulled

4 cups white sugar

1/4 cup lemon juice

Directions

1.  In a wide bowl, crush strawberries in batches until you have 4 cups of mashed berry. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, mix together the strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to high, and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil, stirring often, until the mixture reaches 220 degrees F (105 degrees C). Transfer to hot sterile jars, leaving 1/4 to 1/2 inch headspace, and seal. Process in a water bath. If the jam is going to be eaten right away, don't bother with processing, and just refrigerate.

Footnotes

      To test for jelling

      Place three plates in a freezer... after about 10 minutes of boiling place a tsp

      of the liquid of the jam onto the cold plate. Return to freezer for a minute.

      Run your finger through the jam on the plate... if it doesn't try to run back

      together (if you can make a line through it with your finger) it's ready to be

      canned!

Verdict:  Love it!  

I have used it in my:

• whole wheat sandwich
• pancake as topper and filling
• salty crackers as topping and topped with crushed walnuts or almonds
• as an additional sauce to my secret recipe sauce when cooking the chicken and cold cuts for the wraps
• and simply eating the jam as it is

Don't let any sour pipz or sour event bring you down today.  There's always a workaround.

Have a Fun and Fab Friday!

moving on, moving up, moving forward!

April 27, 2013.  Two months ago, we flew here in KL.  Z and I are no longer strangers to this country because we are it's frequent visitors for the past years. I felt so agitated that day maybe because it will not be the usual trip like before.  As this time, it will be for a for a long, long while.

When we were on our way to the airport my phone rang and was surprised why my sister was calling so soon.  We had to head back home because one of our bags is still inside the room.  What?! Good thing we were just a kilometer away.  My patience was tested, I took a grip of myself and considered the situation a joke.  We were laughing as we reached home and the laughter shared helped me clear some thoughts and helped me steady a bit. 

Was it for the use of the trolley??! Or for whatever reason it was, I was asked to pay Php 45.00 for all our bags.  I asked the porter if it was already my payment for his service but he said it wasn't nor he benefits from what I paid.  Ggggrrrr!  It seems like travel tax and terminal fees are not enough!  A rip-off!  I am really keeping the district32 acqua water bottle until now because this is worth Php 50.00 for a 250ml size.  No choice and if you have a son you can't deprive him from drinking water. 

The plane was not full but the ride was so bumpy on that afternoon.  We took Cebu Pacific as it is the only airline that has a direct flight from Cebu to KL.  Minutes later and it was snack time.  It has become our tradition to eat noodles while on board.  I think the noodles become more tasteful if we are at sky high and you get to appreciate it more because it's pricey hehehe.  Anything can happen! And forever it will be remembered.  The noodles were served.  I turned around to put my cup on the other stow table then it happened so fast.  The plane jerked, I heard a groan, hot water splashed on Zs' chest and abdomen?!  I didn't panic.  I was brink of tears but I had to show strength to help him pacify the pain.    My son's chest was so red.  He was in tears, who wouldn't.  Cebu Pacific has no First Aid Kit and I don't know if they even have a First Aid training.  Since it's impossible to have a running water I asked for ice.  At least, the stewardess gave me enough ice, placed it in a plastic bag, provided a box of tissue and comforting words to Z.  It was the best that she could do but I was thankful.  I'm also thankful that there is this thing called melting process because it really helped a lot.  Every drop of cold water was a gift.  Since it was painful to put something of weight on his chest, I used a wet tissue.  The colder the tissue the better it was.  After sometime the redness was cleared at his abdomen part with the ice pack.  We changed his shirt but continued to put cold tissue on his chest.  With his guardian angel's help, he was calmed to sleep for awhile then as I re-checked the redness was gone but there was a noticeable birth mark-like that was left around 2 inches in length.  It was a very unfortunate experience. Buying noodles again? Yes but this time I'll bring a dependable non-spill container to avoid this scenario in the future.

As the plane gained speed and while Z was asleep, I had my chance to be on thoughts and enjoyed the moment watching nature at its best from our window.  I turned on the review button in my mind and looked back. It took me years to come up with a decision because I was so fickle-minded, it was like a step forward and 3 steps backward moments then.  I have been asking God for signs if I should or should not pursue the move.  I can't really pinpoint if they were the signs I asked from Him because the manifestations were not that direct or concrete enough.  I took time to really reflect and weighed things over.  Knowing what truly matters and what my heart truly desires helped me simplify things. With my impatience, I was so blinded with a lot of things.  In the long run and with the many years I have waited, only did I realize that those years were indeed not wasted as I thought they were.  God helped me prepare and to be more prepared.  I trusted Him and so things are in its proper places.  When He thinks that I have already established a foundation in me, that I was able to condition myself well and I have known deep in my heart that things will no longer be the same he allowed the moment to happen.  We are one step closer.  We are moving in.

Z woke up and felt energized but the mark is still there.    We met Jack outside. The greatest thing of all and the one thing that matters was materialized.  We are a family again and no longer separated by distance. A Father, A Mother, and A Child.  It's no longer a dream.  No more BUTs and WHAT IFs.  I am now a 100% Stay At Home Mom.  I miss my parents, my sister, my nephews, ate snoopy, my friends, and Cebu.  They've been my comfort and support all these years and I know they will be forever.

KL has been home for the last two months and I hope for the coming years.  Only God knows what our future will be like here in KL but again, I am thankful to KL and I am thankful for everything. 

Moving on, moving up, and moving forward!

To God be thy glory!

My breaky on this Hazy Tuesday!

        My weekday mornings have started to make a pattern.  I wake up as early as 5:30AM with the help of my very dependable alarm app.   Of course, it is a big drag out from bed but I think the girl inside me is just too obedient and committed to really wake up and start heating up the pans.  As if I can really cook hahaha! 

Jack's veggie wraps and fruits       -       done

Zs' three cheese wrap                  -       done

       

        Then I remember that I need to cook the remaining pancake flour because I can't wait to use and give the self-raising flour a try.  I can't find my favorite Maya pancake mix brand here in KL, so sad!  I plan to make small pancakes but it didn't make right at first pour so I decided to just pour everything on the pan.  It's still too thick to call it a crepe but not too thick that I can't fold it.  Half of the pancake is reserved for Z and so the half is mine.

        Spread some love of my homemade strawberry jam (will make a separate page for this) to the pancake, folded it half and another half, topped with Hershey's milk chocolate chips, a little maple syrup, grapes, and a teaspoon more of my hmsj. 

        Yum!  It's not as sweet as you might think because the grapes are quite sour and the reason why I am able to make a hmsj because the strawberries are not as sweet as it looked like when we saw it at the grocery. 

Here's My breaky on this Hazy Tuesday!