Gold Coast Part 1

Earlier this year, it was the first time visiting my best friend in Gold Coast. We parted in the beginning of year 2009 and she only came back to visit twice. It was my turn to visit her! So, Gold Coast it was before heading back to Melbourne.

Gold Coast is really different compared to Melbourne. As a Malaysian, you will think that Melbourne's life is quite slow. Wait till you see Gold Coast. It is even slower there, probably 3 times.

People walk slower, relax more, less congested, lesser buildings. It is pretty hard to get around GC without a car since everything is pretty scattered.  

I spent 8 days in GC, staying at the bestie's place. On the first day, after arriving early in the morning, they rented a mini boat to celebrate Andy's birthday. Off we were on our day out at the waters of GC.  Clear sky, clear waters. It is so beautiful that you thought you're watching National Geographic live.

Our mini boat with barbecue pit on board!

We stopped by an island (with no one on it) cause I was getting seasick. Almost kissed the land.  However, when on land, there was not shade at all. No trees, just flat land. Super HOT! The sun in Australia is really scourging. Unlike Malaysia, even though it is hot, there is still humidity. Australian weather is dry. Thus, you can feel the hot sun rays hitting your skin. I was covering myself up with scarves and towels after a while.

Love how the colours blend in together! Ah, how I love nature!

As we were cruising along the Nerang River, we were enjoying the views of all the beautiful mansions. Blardy HUGE mansions with helicopters and boats. I wish I can own one of them in the future. Waking up to a beautiful view everyday is something amazing.

GC city behind of us - Surfers Paradise

Chef of the day - Sook Yi!

Hot pot (steamboat) for dinner!

Besides having fun at the beach, you can go shopping!! Absolutely love shopping in GC. Everything is so cheap! Boutiques selling nice, pretty, and quality dresses for AUD$20-$30. I found the exact same dress in a boutique in Melbourne and it was selling for double the price! Went to shop at Harbour Town DFO, Surfers Paradise, and Brisbane!

Surfers paradise, the place with tall buildings - condominiums, hotels, offices, shops.

It was my first time seeing this. Always seen this on tv in the US. It's so cute but super expensive. Every little thing costs money! You can put small little hearts for you bear, dresses and costumes, and you can have different type of fillings for your bear.

Walking by the beach at night after the bestie 

Gummi bears, strawberries for my froyo!

On the second last day, they brought me to Brisbane. Took a short drive and stopped by this yummy Vietnamese Restaurant! Heard that it is one of the best in the coast! People have to line up outside for the delicious meal.

Rice papers to wrap our own Vietnamese dumpling - popiah like. Trust me, it takes a lot of skill to wrap it on your own.

And the oh-so-delicious beef pho! My absolute favourite!!!

Mabel Poppins in Brisbane!!! 

Apparently, Brisbane's shopping is just about this street. Just like Bourke Street Mall. Me definitely love it even though it is pretty small/short.  But they have everything I want there! From, Supre to Cotton On, Nine West, Valley Girl and many moreee!

Bought so much that I had to increase another 10kg of my luggage allowance to fly back to Melbourne. 

More on Gold Coast the next post! Stay tuned!

Yours truly,
Mabs Chan

Big Breakfast Craze

At last a post about food! 

Have always been hearing about the Antipodean Cafe when I was in Melbourne. Sandy and I went for the career fair in Midvalley Exhibition Center and quickly decided to try the famous cafe since we were already nearby.

Finding a parking spot was definitely difficult especially in Bangsar but we managed to get a spot really nearby the cafe. Antipodean Cafe is famous for its Big Brekky and coffee. 

Wanna save some money from printing menus? Stick your menu on the wall!

The famous Big Brekky - sauteed mushrooms, hash brown, crispy bread, and you can choose how you want your eggs done and the meat of your sausage at RM19. I had scrambled eggs and pork sausage. 

Mushroom was......IMBA! In other words, absolutely yummy! 

It is really filling. So, you might want to share with a friend and other something else. I tried their Iced Chocolate and it was pretty good.  If only they put chocolate by the side of the cup. Then, it would be perrrfect!

Went to check out the new mall, Paradigm Mall at Petaling Jaya. It is the new mall by the side of LDP highway on the way to 1Utama from Subang Jaya.

Me wearing a basic tee from Dorothy Perkins and white shorts from McApee, Raybans, and Birkinstock.

Paradigm Mall isn't that bad. But since it's new, there aren't many people. It is pretty huge and complex due to its design. Quite good shops around like Zara, Charles & Keith, Marks & Spencer, Cotton On, Sephora, The Body Shop, and many many more! Oh, not forgetting Golden Screen Cinemas! Check out more information at http://www.paradigmmall.com.my/ 

After walking around the mall and discovered lots of restaurants, we went for late lunch at Plan b. Contemporary settings with western and asian food to offer. Decided to try their big brekkie! Sauteed tomatoes and mushrooms with hasbrowns, grilled ham, baked beans, choice of scrambled eggs, sausage, and french loaf type of bread. The meal comes with tea or coffee and orange juice for RM26.

Compared to the Antipodean Cafe, it wasn't that good. The scrambled eggs and bread was fine but the rest
was just okay. Really, JUST okay. We didn't even touch the baked beans. However, we also had pasta with sun-dried tomatoes. Pasta is pretty nice. Lots of sauce and flavour.

More food posts next time!

Yours truly,

Mabs Chan

Fast, Easy, and Pretty!

I've always loved doing my nails. Ever since nail art was introduced in the industry, I picked up this passion as a hobby! Back then it was expensive to get nail art as I was just a student. So, I bought Japanese nail art books to learn how to do it.

However, at times I do get lazy and love to get pampered. So, I just head down to the nail parlour to get mani and pedi!

I didn't do much with my nails when I was in Melbourne. Because I had to work, I couldn't put any nail polish on since I was handling with food and I'd always have to keep my nails short. On the first day itself, reaching back to Malaysia, I went to get myself pampered! It felt good having clean and neat fingernails and toenails! It is always good to have a basic mani and pedi once in a while to clean all those dead cells!

Today, I would like to introduce to you a new toy! Something that will help you get fast, easy, and pretty nails! A product by Konad. I bought the whole set at RM76 only. 

In this set, it comes with the stencil, scrapper, and the stamper.

 First, paint your nails like how you want it to be.

 Then, pick a pattern that you like and paint it over with the colour that you want it to stand out in. 

 It will look something like this. I chose white in this case with the butterfly pattern.

Once you have painted it, quickly use the scrapper to scrap off the excess paint.

Don't leave it to long or else it will dry up.

Quickly use the stamper to press against the stencil to pick up the painted pattern. You can clean the stencil by using the nail polish remover.

It will look something like this. But I'm sure you can do better than mine. 

Then, quickly stamp it onto your nail however you want it. You may want to think of how you want your finished nail art to be before doing starting to stamp it. 

Tadaaaaa! Looks like a sticker or those professional artist drawing it for you. 

Just be careful when buying the set. Different sets, have different stencils at different prices. I bought this set with two mini nail polishes, one top coat, the stamper, stencil, and scrapper at RM68 and the base to put the stencil for RM8. So far, I've tried using other nail polish brands to use it as a stamper. But when I try to pick it up with the stamper, it doesn't stick. It was just stucked to the stencil for some reason. Maybe there is some special solution in the Konad's nail polish that enables it to stick to the stamper.

Anyhow, it's really simple to get fast, easy, and pretty nails like those in the nail parlours! You can save money and have fun too! Get this lovely toy at Pedal Works, Subang Parade and tell me how it works out for you!  (Not sure if Shins or SaSa is selling it yet.)

Do remember that the stencil base is sold separately!












Yours truly,
Mabs Chan