La Mesa Restaurant

Finally Chinatown has opened up a restaurant that blends East and West cuisines. La Mesa Filipino restaurant. This is their second restaurant as the other restaurant is located in Dee Why. Since I like to try new restaurants, I thought I give this a go. By the way, La Mesa is next to Mamak and it is where the Sichuan restaurant used to be located.

I hope that most of you are physically fit as you have to climb up the stairs to get to this restaurant. I am not sure if they have lift facilities. 

Anyway after sitting down, I decided to have a look at the menu and see what they had to offer. Mum and I decided on Lumpiang Shanghai which is spring rolls with sweet chilli sauce. The spring rolls took about 10-15 minutes to come but it was well worth the wait. It was delicious but I found it a bit greasier than what I was used to. I'm a spring roll lover don't get me wrong.

Lumpiang Shanghai

The next meals to arrive were the Pork Adobo and Sinigang but it took a long time and we were hungry. I don't think the service was necessarily unsatisfactory but it was certainly understaffed. Other patrons also waited a while to receive their meals. 

The Pork Adobo was the first to arrive. I did take a photo but unfortunately the photo did not upload successfully on my iPad, grrrr!! Nevertheless it was delicious but I wonder if that was my hungry self talking. It certainly did not lack flavour.This version of Adobo is a bit different from Latin America by the way as it uses soy sauce. However, it lived up to its name of using peppers. 

After a while, the Sinigang also arrived. It is a tamarind based soup by the way. Similar to the Pork Adobo, it did not lack flavour but was cold as the chefs must of have forgotten to notify the waiter. 

Sinigang

Wow, the food certainly filled us up. I was hesitant to order dessert as I could not eat anymore but mum decided we would order dessert anyway as we may not be back at the restaurant for a while.

The dessert was Halo-Halo which may look similar to the Malaysian/Indonesian Es Cendol. I had one sip of the dessert and it was creamy. I didn't get to taste the beans though but oh well can do that next time. Again, similar to the Adobo, the photo of the dessert did not upload. 

Overall, the restaurant experience was good but here is a detailed analysis.

Positives:The food was delicious as it did not lack flavour, the staff were polite and the restaurant was clean.

Negatives: Although the service was great, unfortunately it was slow. The restaurant need to hire more staff but as I think this is a family owned business, that may not be possible. They also may want to consider facilities for those with disabilities unless it was hiding from me and I didn't see it.

Do try it if you can!!!

Until next time,

Laura xx

Photo Editing Apps

The name Adobe Photoshop may sound very familiar to many of you but have you ever tried to edit photos using your iPhone or other mobile devices instead?

I have to admit that I struggled with using both of these photo editing apps that I'm about to tell you as I have never owned a Photoshop program before. Maybe I live under a rock but I have never purchased Photoshop due to its price.

Rakuga Cute App

Rakuga Cute App is sort of like a mobile Purikura. It gives users a chance to edit their photos by applying cute backgrounds and stamps to enhance the photos. However unlike the Purikura machines, the eyes do not seem to change. The app itself is free contrary to other reviews but if you want the additional backgrounds such as the ribbon backgrounds, then it comes at a price.

Overall this app is not too bad but it definitely does not beat the real thing.

PE Fotolr

PE Fotolr is another photo editing app I have been using lately. Unlike Rakuga Cute App, this app allows you to edit photos by adding additional colours. You can even edit the hair and eyes if you want to although the photo looks strange post edit. I think the main highlight of this app would be to adjust the size of the photo by using the QuickEdit. QuickEdit can also edit the brightness of the photo as well as the rotation. Similar to the Rakuga App it is also free.

I just decided to keep it simple and used a bit of blush to edit the photo.

For me, this app is better than Rakuga App but I think it is time for me to purchase Photoshop.

Until next time,
Laura xx

Review of the Hotel Monterey Ginza

At some point, many of us have stayed in hotels whether it was for leisure or for a business trip. The hotel experience may of have been better at some than others.

Recently on my third trip to Asia, I stayed at the Hotel Monterey Ginza. I had stayed here previously and decided to stay here again on the last trip as many of the other hotels were either sold out or a bit out of my price range.

This is the front of the hotel. As you can see the architecture is French influenced. It almost feels like I was in Paris but not quite.

Now down to business. The review of the hotel. I will tell you both the positives and negatives.

Positives: 

Location: The location itself was great as it was close to both Ginza and Ginza-itchōme stations. However, beware if you are coming from Ginza station as the hotel may be difficult to find. It is advisable to exit from A13 of Ginza station as it is the closest exit to the hotel.

Service: The service here was quite good as the staff spoke English quite well. Additionally unlike some of the other hotels on the trip,I did not have to ask them to ring for a taxi when I was leaving for the airport.

Day Passes: Day passes for the Tokyo Metro can also be purchased here for ¥600. 

Negatives:

Rooms: The rooms here are quite small. Sometimes it is difficult to find room to place the suitcase. The space in the elevators are also quite small.

Food: Unfortunately the food here is not the best. Maybe that is because I'm a difficult eater but nevertheless the breakfast choices here are not as good as the Dai-ichi for example. I don't think they even served miso soup.

Although it is only a picture of the bed, you can see how small the room is. 

Overall I would stay here again but it would not be my first choice. I would like to see what the Mercure is like down the road from the Hotel Monterey. 

What has your hotel experience been like?

Until the next post,
Laura xx

Children's section and the Petite Woman

I know, I know, I'm guilty of browsing the children's section of the department store. Sometimes I may find a bargain there that I may not find anywhere else or perhaps something that I fancy.
However as much as I like some of the styles there, they are not always appropriate for petite women. One reason is because the styles are not always age appropriate and the fit may not always be right. I have decided to try on a couple of pieces from Bardot Junior to see if this is the case.

This is a Size 14 denim jacket from Bardot Junior. It may look like it fits right which it does for the most part except for one minor thing. Can you guess what that is?

If you had guessed that it did not fit correctly in the underarm then you are correct. It was slightly tight but nevertheless, it would have been a great bargain.

This is another top from Bardot Junior also in a Size 14. Again, it looks like it fits but it is a bit high around the chest area. Additionally unlike the last item, the shirt is also a little short.

Overall, I'm not against shopping at Bardot Junior or any other children's store but one must be careful when purchasing. For example it is best to try all items on as it may look like it fits but when you put it on, it doesn't fit the way you want it to. Also the styles may not always be age appropriate. In my experience, it is much better to buy the children's pants rather than the tops. Sweaters and jackets may also be ok. Have you ever shopped at the kids section of the store?

Until next time,
Laura xx

Sleeping Beauty Disease

Last week on Sunday Night, I watched a segment and it was about a disease that can cause one to sleep for long periods of time. It is referred to as Kleine-Levin Syndrome or simply Sleeping Beauty disease.

Sufferers of Kleine-Levin syndrome can sleep up to anywhere up to 6 months. There is little warning before an episode is about to occur although sufferers may become irritable and develop flulike symptoms.

During an episode, one may not wake up unless they are going to eat or go to the bathroom. However, there is a catch. Although they may be awake, the sufferer is not fully alert and may not understand what you are saying. Additionally, they miss out on events such as school recitals, friends birthdays, schoolwork  and milestones.

However, do not fret too much. It is not likely that you or the people you know will suffer from Kleine-Levin syndrome anytime soon. There are only around 500-1000 known cases around the world.

(Courtesy of Fanpop)

Until next time,

Laura xx

Caysorn Thai Restaurant

Today, I decided that I wanted to eat Malaysian for lunch but unfortunately the place was almost full by the time I arrived there. Instead of waiting around until a table was available, I had a look around to see if there were any other places to eat at for lunch.

I had the Caysorn Thai restaurant in mind as it was not too far from the Malaysian restaurant. Unlike the Malaysian restaurant, Caysorn was not full. Perhaps the reason why Caysorn did not have as many patrons was because of its location. It is on top of where the Burlington Supermarket used to be. Not as many people seem to venture there in my experience. However, most of the patrons that do eat here are Thai.

Here is a photo of Caysorn from the outside:

Unfortunately, it was slightly cramped to take the photo from the middle so it was easier to take a photo of the entire restaurant from the side.

Although Caysorn is a Thai restaurant, it is not like your typical suburban Thai restaurant that you will find other parts of Sydney. The dishes that you will find in their menu is Southern Thai. I have not seen too many restaurants in Sydney that serve dishes from Southern Thailand. The only dish I have seen being served from the region in the majority of restaurants is Massaman Curry.

I think I seem to like going off track a lot, haha. Anyway, I sat down and had a look at the menu to see what I wanted to order. I ordered Pad Gapi Sator. The other dish I would have probably ordered was Kua Kling but it is extremely spicy. Even for someone who is used to eating food with spices and chilli. 

Some photos of what the inside looks like:

It was not long before my lunch had arrived. The service here is quite fast.

Here is what Pad Gapi Sator looks like for those who have never seen it before:

Oh and some rice to make the meal complete. Yummmm!!!

Unlike in many other restaurants, I also do not find that the portion sizes are too big. For me, the portion size here is just right but perhaps for others, it may be too small. Additionally, for those wanting to share the meal, the portion sizes may also be too small.

The dish was delicious. I did not find it too spicy today which was good for my tastebuds. However, if you ever order this dish and find it too spicy for your liking, there are an array of Thai milk drinks that you can order to counteract the spices.

Overall, I really like Caysorn as the dishes here are different from other Thai restaurants. Next time, I might order one of their curries.

Until next time,

Laura xx

Concept of Age

In the West unless you are a minor, not many people seem to question how old your friends are. Generally, you can be friends with anyone no matter how old they are whether they are 25 or 60. You may have different life experiences to eachother but you can learn from one another's experience as well. For example, a younger person may learn about life experiences by being friends with an older person whereas an older person may learn the youth culture of today from a younger person.

On the other hand in places such as Korea, you can only be friends with people the same age as you. In Korea, friends are addressed as Chingu. Most of you now may be thinking, I can be friends with people born in the same year as me but this is where it gets complicated. If you are born in either January or February as I am, you are lumped with everyone born the year before. (From March that is) What is the reason behind this you wonder? The Korean school system as the school year begins in March.

For example I'm born in February and have a friend born in November of the same year. Although we are born in the same year, we are not technically friends as she would be in a grade below me at school. Another example would be a K-pop group called Super Junior. (By the way, I'm not too familiar with their music) Two of the members Shingdong and Sungmin would be considered friends although Shindong was born in September 1985 and Sungmin was born in January 1986 whereas Sungmin and Eunhyuk would not be friends because Eunhyuk was born in April 1986.

Here is a photo of Super Junior:

(Courtesy of Glogster)

Some terms you might want to remember when addressing people in Korea that are not the same age as you:

Noona: Male addressing a female senior
Hyung: Male addressing a male senior
Unni: Female addressing a female senior
Oppa: Female addressing a male senior
Dongsaeng: Seniors addressing their juniors

In addition to having the same age friends rule in Korea, I was told in Japan this is also the case but this time, people who are born in March are also lumped into the same category as the year before. Their school year starts in April. However, I did not seem to experience this when I was hanging out with my Japanese friends so I am not too sure if they are more relaxed about this. Maybe someone can confirm this for me.

The friends aspect is not the only thing I find interesting about Korean age. It is also the fact that you are one years old when you are born and on Lunar New Year, you add another year. If you are born a few days before Lunar New Year, you are considered to be two years old on Lunar New Year despite the fact that in reality, you are only a few days old. Strange isn't it? I think other Asian countries do this as well if they follow the Lunar Calendar.

Hopefully, this explanation makes the concept of age in Korea easier to understand.

Until next time,

Laura xx