Leadership Meeting in Miri - Work & Eat

Last week i was away for a 3-day meeting in Miri at Eastwood Valley Golf & Country Club

the entrance of the club

my room at the longhouse.. its really built like a long house but facilities are very basic, i guess its more of a golf place than a hotel that caters for tourists

around the golf course and buildings

taking a picture on the bridge

lots of buffets buffets buffets.. that's Ok unless you have to sit on the VIP table (n_n")
(u know the difference when u have to share from a large central round dish in the middle of the table, compared to other ppl who gets the unlimited amount at the buffet table)

obviously we had outdoor games as well to develop teamwork.. and my legs are still sore till now due to lack of exercise..

during the meeting and getting the certificate

on a lighter note, i did manage to go to Bintang Megamall for one meal at least (once i come out of small district towns i have this crazy desire to go shopping malls and eat food out for-the-sake-of, which is something common and often taken very lightly when i am in Kuching)

off for Kenny Rogers cause they have a huge banner showing a big juicy roast chicken.. yes, this hungry kampung girl was a sucker for advertisement that day

roast chicken and muffins!

Before & After
i cleaned my plate within Minutes, even ate the orange slices decoration of my drink (not ur typical girl who leaves more than half the chicken and all the potatoes etc) ..was i hungry or just deprived? maybe both..

dessert at Dessert Master with cheese tart and egg tart.. the cheese tart was recommended! and the durian and normal pancakes as well... very interesting pink and yellow skin

these pancakes are definitely good, i was told to eat it whole to feel the oozing cream, texture and flavours.. the durian pancake definitely make me feel like i was eating durian

and the different type of tong sui we had, taiwanese jelly, white fungus and chestnut, ABC and tau fu fah

and lots of satisfied faces.. (we came from marudi, lawas, belaga etc.. so yes, we need a taste of Civilization)

we are definitely better equipped with the knowledge of leadership and management to some extent, but theory is theory.. time to go out and face the real world as fresh new leaders! here goes nothing...

Random Gadong Trip Again

yes, it was a tiring 5-days outstation trip.. and yet i woke up early on the following Saturday at 7+am (body alarm clock) on a weekend i wasn't oncall..

'What a waste of a not-oncall weekend' i thought so i messaged a couple of colleagues to check if they were doing anything like going to Brunei that i could just tag along.. and only one other colleague was free that day so she asked "Noone's going, but u wanna go?"

A last minute plan to get out of here and travel to Brunei for Food and Movie! its like tempting a child with a brand new toy.

morning dim sum at Dynasty restaurant at Centerpoint, Gadong

the menu, not as many choices

had scallop dumpling, beancurd skin roll with cheese and prawn, sesame ball custard (the balls here are tiny and they cut them into halves making them look like triangles), chicken chee cheung fan

behind the Mall (still within the Mall) is the ice cream place i was looking for, Dreamcones! they serve bubble milk tea as well

the different flavours

tried the banana chocolate, nutty caramel and brownie cheesecake.. yummies but be careful, the ice cream melts fast

went to watch 'The Hunger Games'.. it was better than i expected (reading the title, sounds like a weird movie) reminds me of those reality survival shows, with lots of effects though, and the audience added more sound effects especially with the couple scenes, doing the "OOOOoo" or "Awwwww"

bought some Fun Donuts and Fun Bread buns before heading back.. although last minute (first time i plan an 'overseas trip' half an hour before) it was fun, like a reward after being stuck in a rural place for a week.

like i always say 'Work hard, Play hard'

SMK Medamit One Week Mobile Clinic Trip 4

Seems that March is the beginning of the busy year as i have not 1 but 2 Outstation travelling trips (and another outstation meeting at the end of the month).

This time its a Whole 5-Days trip!

i don't mind day trips, or an overnight stay..
but a whole 5D4N.. *grunts*

on the way early Monday morning

the school we had to cover.. meaning examine and treat all 700++ students (definitely few more week-long trips to come to accomplish that!)

the rest house we stayed.. seems like an abandoned house, took a while to clean it properly for it to be habitable (like smelly spoiled murky-green toilet and cobwebs Everywhere.. urgh!)

after work we took a drive further out to a small village with a kopitiam on the right

the first time i had nasi bungkus.. plain soft rice in leaf, Lumbawang food perhaps

at the end of the road they sell chicken satay.. need i say which part of the chicken?

rm1 for a few seconds boat ride across the river.. what a rip, but what to do?

on the boat

the other side.. the wooden shophouses really looked like they were a hundred years old or from some old movie backdrop! and they are Still in use!

the SK where our fellow dental nurses are doing treatment

anyway, since i mentioned that i was away for 5 days, of course i took picture of 5-days of Food which my staff cooked, thanks a lot :)

Monday.. still have takeaways and lots of supplies from town

Tuesday.. feeling that time is super slow

Wednesday.. went to have kampua mee at the same kopitiam with nasi bungkus, resulting in 5 meals that day

Thursday, our final night together.. had nasi bungkus with cucumber leaves and tapioca leaves, the food of the locals here. they were impressed that i devoured all that food although its my first time having those

Friday, HOORAY! time to go home!
and there's a picture of a McD Big Mac cause my housemate arrived from Miri that night with that burger for me for supper.. like a taste of civilization!

did i mentioned i gained 3 kgs from that 5 days???
when there's no internet/laptop/TV/entertainment etc..
there's always FOOD, snacks, kuih, whatever to keep me happy and going.... "
(happens Every Single trip)

the team that stayed together for 4 nights! Good job, guys!

meanwhile, time to lose all that weight (detox program on), scrub myself clean (the water we use there is yellow and dirty), try to get rid of mosquito and insect bite-marks, scratches, little cuts, blisters and pimples (poor skin, dirty water somemore), get back my beauty sleep (on a proper clean bed, not on dusty floor or old mattresses without bedsheets or pillows), wash that sackful of dirty laundry, clean my dusty room, check my car battery is still ok, reload my empty fridge and use the Internet like never before although dead-tired..

yes.. the routines after long outstation travellings.. that's why i don't look forward to the next trip...

did they know?

tell people I'm posted away from home,
they say "At least you are back in Malaysia"
but did they know whether in Malaysia or UK, i am still alone, just the climate is different?

tell people I'm posted in a rural place,
they say "At least you are still in Sarawak"
but did they know i am 16-hours-drive from home with no direct flights, even being in KL is easier to fly home?

tell people there's nothing to do here,
they say "At least you save $$$ then"
but did they know i ended up spending even more on my travels and flight tickets with transits to get out of here every time i get the chance?

tell people I'm not married,
they say "At least you still have someone"
but did they know that with the distance, sad to say sometimes there's not much difference?

tell people i have no idea how long i will be stuck here,
they say "At least you can just get married and transfer out"
but did they know marriage is easier said than done and doesn't happen overnight? and getting married for the sake of transfer? remind me again the purpose of marriage.

tell people I've been overseas,
they say "At least you have been aboard"
but did they know its sometimes painful to recall what you have left behind once you've decided to return?

tell people I graduated overseas,
they say "At least you are much better than local grads then"
but did they know that's just a misconception, local grads are better exposed to the local system, trends and policies, yet they expect overseas grads to perform better?

tell people I've lots of on-calls,
they say "At least you get $$$"
but did they know that i have to sacrifice my weekends and free time for it?

tell people I've outstation travellings,
they say "At least you get $$$ And experience"
but did they know about the tiring and nauseous journeys, ending up sweating like a pig all the time, sometimes going without clean water, electricity and phone line?

tell people I've been to community service with hiking and crossing scary bridges,
they say "At least you gain experience and meet new friends"
but did they know that if i get lost in the woods, or slipped on a bamboo bridge, that's It?

tell people working is tough,
they say "At least you were a top student, you know what to do"
but did they know running a clinic and managing People has nothing to do with how many distinctions you get in class?

tell people I've to be the boss of my clinic and then the division,
they say "At least you get to call the shots"
but did they know that being a superior means you have to make lots of tough decisions that will cause nearly everyone (if not everyone) to hate you?

tell people I've to attend meetings and do lots of paperwork and managerial stuff,
they say "At least you learn a lot"
but did they know that's not why i took up Dentistry to begin with?

actually all these people I've talked to aren't wrong, maybe they try to be consoling or comforting, and yes, in many ways I have been blessed as not many are as fortunate as I am.

yes, i know I've been blessed with a fully-able body with decent physical attributes; a loving family, loved ones, good friends and a decent social life; did decently well in school and had the golden opportunity to study aboard, travelled to many places, eat everything, shop everywhere, gone through all kinds of experiences and survived them all; have a stable job now with a decent pay, a roof over my head, food on my plate, a car to drive.. and yes, i Thank God for all these blessings.

so in a way, this is how i repay back to the people, the society.

(ps: no, don't get me wrong. I'm not sharing these to gain acknowledgement, attention, gratitude, or lots of Thanks Thanks and Good Job, cause that will seem insincere..)

Just that with all that's said, does it mean that i don't have the right to complain sometimes? yes, i am a typical girl, you don't have to find a solution to what i say, or pour lots of advices that I've heard again and again, just listen.. can you hear what my heart is really saying?

did they know.. i am only human?

So True..

and i am guilty as charged! i really do try to minimize the use of my smartphone with friends around though! sorry to non-smartphone users!

but once everyone takes out their smartphones and disappear into their own technology world.. or talk on a topic i can't relate to, i just find comfort in my own handphone too..

i confess its an addiction.

Smile vs Cry

cause humour is temporary but pain lasts for a long long time?

everyone can share the same exact joke, but no two person can share exact same pain... call me emo, cause i know how it feels like to keep crying over the same thing again and again, sometimes its just part of the process of moving on..

We 80s Kids Rock!

i confess that i am one of those agreeing that 'Our Childhood in the 80s-90s is Better than Yours Now!'

...with our real toys of random stuff we can get hold off like stones or erasers and rubber bands
...playing with our real Human Friends and not via Applications or Fb friends,
...buying phone cards for public phones (do kids Now know that public phones do function?!)
...passing love letters or notes to ur crush or stalking by walking pass their classroom, not Fb stalking or sending wall posts
...trying to connect to the internet with that Loud Choo-choo train dial up tone, or using ICQ with an equally weird sign-in tone
these yesteryears memories are endless..

those were the days! and we had it Good!

First Wedding in Limbang

seems that its a Triple-Firsts weekend for me, on Friday night its the first time i went to a formal function alone, on Saturday its the first time i drove out of Limbang and today i attended the first wedding in Limbang, not a close friend but a staff of mine.

typical Malay kampung wedding

attending out of formality although i looked like a sore thumb out of place.. and looks like there are many more functions/ events that i have to attend cause i have to attend.. formality or beri muka or etc..

anyway, its always nice to share the joy of a pretty bride and happy bridegroom on their special day, no matter how close you are with them.

Driving to Gadong, Brunei

the difference with today's day trip to brunei is i am driving for the First time! FYI i have never driven long distances more than half an hour out so today would be a new challenge for me (across borders too!), plus i need to navigate as well so i pumped a full tank of petrol (gosh my car full tank about rm140 even with 95!) Just in Case!

was suppose to be going with my housemate who likes to drive and is more adventurous than i am but she could not make it suddenly due to work and i was adamant to go since i just Need to Get Out and eat all the food in Gadong so i went ahead with the plan.. my hsemate assured me that my navigation isn't too bad anyway .. LOL

this time i even calculated the time we took on the road! takes about 40mins (to drive a slow & steady 50-70km/hr, i am a safe driver plus there's many big lorries etc) from Limbang town to the Kuala Lurah border and with ZERO queue at the immigration, another 30 minutes from immigration to Gadong (if you don't get lost). yay, Victory!

plus side is, i realized that since i am the driver, i get to decide where to go and do what!

for a change from sushi, we went to Dim Sum restaurant instead at Yong Siong Hai/ Unitech Building behind The Mall (i was craving dim sum also) i looked up TripAdvisor for some places to go and also recommendations from people. there are several restaurants along the same row like Thiam Hock, Sawaddee and T.T Blues Cafe

the Dim Sum aka Touch Heart aka Sentuh Hati menu.. i did recalled that Dim Sum is touch heart in Cantonese, but the translation makes it sound odd!

the fried carrot cake was so so and we tried the fried shrimp wrapped salted egg, which looked like an egg, kinda so so too

top left is mango prawn beancurd skin roll, first time having mango in a savoury dim sum dish; triple siew mai, all different toppings; yam puffs and beancurd skin roast duck roll

i realized that dim sum here is different coz its halal.. maybe that's why they are more creative with stuff like mango or duck in the dim sum. perhaps next time should try the roast duck which is famous here

sweet lopo pao with the salted egg+milk+butter inside, just like HK Causeway Bay's version in Kuching but this is smaller and flatter

then we headed back to The Mall and visit some booths (this has cute fruit cupcakes) before our 11.30am movie

John Carter.. didn't watch it in 3D cause of the timing.. the story line is strikingly similar to Avatar's..

maybe i am complicated, or maybe its human nature.. eg. i don't really go for Italian Restaurants in Kuching unless people bring me, and i am not a huge fan of Pizzas.. but Just because Limbang doesn't have Italian food aka Pizza, i wanted to have pizza that day!

lunch at Fratini's Restaurant

banana oreo milkshake and mango juice

tomato bruschetta starter

ordered the Suprema pizza which is half chicken half tuna.. about $20

the trio.. pity the other two who got dragged along eating what i wanna eat

then further out at Bangunan Bersurat is the famous Mr Baker Bakeshop which has lots of pretty cakes and pastries.. the location is unpredictable cause its a bit hidden

just not long ago i was craving Red Velvet Cupcake from Hummingbird's London so i was glad i come across some ($3! wow)

the only thing i missed out is an ice cream place my hsemate recommended which i couldn't find, but i Will next time. at this rate i'll probably just explore and try all the eating places in Gadong in no time, as if its London.. reminds me of one of those cafe crawls i used to have, only problem is i can't do it alone in Brunei unlike London cause i don't want to drive long distances alone..

now that i know how to get to Gadong and back, should i go again next weekend? Hmmm