Thursday, April 30, 2009
Too many UserIDs & passwords
Weeks ago I tried to access my 2 bank accounts online. And I suffered a "memory loss" at that moment. Despite having logged in successfully just days before it, I kept keying in the wrong UserID or password until I was finally kicked out of both accounts. Last week I received the new pin for 1 account. Just logged in but was kicked out again coz I couldn't get the UserID right. There're so many UserIDs & passwords for so many sites & systems it's driving me nutz! Haiz...have to settle it at ATM....
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Happy birthday to ME!
Joined the 30s club on 11 April, now waiting for the rest of my friends to join me there! The day was celebrated in the usual way. Cakes, candles and presents. The only difference was I celebrated it 4 times - Yamasa clique, family, friends, colleagues. The most enjoyable one was with my Yamasa clique due to the total surprise element (never expected a celebration) and felt so relaxed with them. Needless to say, the most uncomfortable one was the celebration at work coz we've been colleagues for only 3 months and it was a mass celebration.
As for my "takings" this birthday, I received bigger sums of angbaos and less gifts. I would have preferred gifts for the excitement of opening up gifts and having something tangible to remember by. But I guess with my fussy shopper character, it's easier to give me $$ to buy what I want. Dardar disappointed me with an ugly bio-magnetic bracelet the night before but cheered me up on my actual birthday with 2 small gifts - My Papa Smurf & Baby Smurf schnauzer soft toys! But he still owes me flowers!
What made me happiest, touched & surprised most was that Dardar turned up in a shirt identical to my darling Ah Ke's cloth covering. He had specially searched & bought it to match my doll, to make me happy. He looked so cute, just like my Ah Ke! My 2 darlings!!
At 30, many people have moved on to a certain page in their life chapters. For me, it's the beginning of a new chapter all over again. Starting a new job & new relationship at 30, I can't help but wonder what happened to my 10 years before it. I hope when I join the 40s club I will be looking back at the 10 years of achievement before it.
My wish for this year's birthday is simple: I wish all my wishes will come true! heehee (^-^)
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Batam! Here we come!
I wanted to celebrate my birthday at Batam's Harris Resort on the actual day but as it's a Good Friday long weekend, it was fully booked by the time we checked with the agency. So we settled for the weekend of 4 - 5 April. I was very excited as it was my 1st trip to Batam and our 1st experience going to a spa.
At Batam, the immigration was a nightmare. Only 2 counters were opened and a long queue formed. Half-way through, people moved off in big groups to another counter with the signage "Harris Resort" (HR). We saw a HR staff checking the people's passports and collecting them. We guessed the resort staff was going to do a mass immigration check-in with it. But we didn't feel safe about leaving our passports with them so we continued queueing at the original counter. When it was my turn, the officer told me Harris Resort guests should go over to the other counter, to which I replied I don't want my passport to be kept by the resort staff. After a brief moment of hesitation, he stamped my passport & let me go. Same for my bf. I'm certainly not impressed with this immigration procedure.
When we reached the resort, the welcome by the HR staff was overwhelming. With loud happy music songs in the background, staff gave out cold towels, drinks, cookies, lucky dips, mini-pouch with map of resort and discount coupons. Unfortunately the very warm welcome was let down by the slow registration for check-in. Although official check-in is 2pm, we had to do so early to get the coupons for our spa. The hot weather, tight timing (spa at 11am but we were still queuing at the registration at 10.45am) and slow queue got me boiling mad. Luckily it was done on time for our spa appointment.
We love the spa! The 1-hr Indonesian massage was comfortable & the 30-min herbal bath was wonderful! The set-up was clean and relaxing. I regret not signing up for a 3 hour massage package & going for more baths. Next trip I'll go for massages for 2 days and try all the different baths they have : salt, milk, aroma.
Done with the spa but still too early to go to our rooms (still not ready), we went to eat the free pizza dar had won in the lucky dip. It's very delicious! After that we relaxed by the pool waiting for our room...
There's really nothing much to do at the resort except spa & swimming. In the afternoon we took at 25min taxi ride to town. We had missed the free shuttle bus even though we had registered our name & reported at the lobby at 2pm. I kicked up a fuss so they paid for our cab fare to town. Nothing much to shop or eat at Nagoya Hill. But I bought a nice pair of shorts for only S$9 & pretty flip-flops for $3. The A&W I was looking forward to turned out to be disappointing. What happened to those juicy cripsy chicken wings I used to eat in Singapore's A&W?
After the trip to town, we went for jacuzzi and sauna. The jacuzzi was a total disappointment. Dirty & room temperature waters. I was out of it in less than 5 mins! The sauna is standard lah. Nothing special. I only liked the complimentary ginger tea served outside the sauna/jacuzzi area.
Dinner was quite a romantic affair which didn't start nicely but ended well. Our seat by the pool with a perfect view of the live band was hijacked by a couple who apparently went to get their table instead of being led to one. The staff tried to get us another seat but I insisted, so they told the couple to move away. Next the lamp for putting candle broke due to the heat. So we had no candle-light dinner. Dinner buffet food was so-so even though variety was good. The live band was good. They even got the guests to join in a dance and some guests to sing. Dar was pulled onstage to sing 上海滩! Too bad can't upload the video here as file is too big.
The next day after a yummy buffet breakfast we relaxed by the pool as dar wanted to sun bathe. With dark rain clouds approaching we returned to our rooms to rest till time for check-out at 1pm. Was back in S'pore by 4.30pm.
On the whole the trip has been an enjoyable one despite some hiccups here & there. We'll definitely be back for more spa, food & shopping!
entertaining ourselves on board ferry
At Batam, the immigration was a nightmare. Only 2 counters were opened and a long queue formed. Half-way through, people moved off in big groups to another counter with the signage "Harris Resort" (HR). We saw a HR staff checking the people's passports and collecting them. We guessed the resort staff was going to do a mass immigration check-in with it. But we didn't feel safe about leaving our passports with them so we continued queueing at the original counter. When it was my turn, the officer told me Harris Resort guests should go over to the other counter, to which I replied I don't want my passport to be kept by the resort staff. After a brief moment of hesitation, he stamped my passport & let me go. Same for my bf. I'm certainly not impressed with this immigration procedure.
When we reached the resort, the welcome by the HR staff was overwhelming. With loud happy music songs in the background, staff gave out cold towels, drinks, cookies, lucky dips, mini-pouch with map of resort and discount coupons. Unfortunately the very warm welcome was let down by the slow registration for check-in. Although official check-in is 2pm, we had to do so early to get the coupons for our spa. The hot weather, tight timing (spa at 11am but we were still queuing at the registration at 10.45am) and slow queue got me boiling mad. Luckily it was done on time for our spa appointment.
We love the spa! The 1-hr Indonesian massage was comfortable & the 30-min herbal bath was wonderful! The set-up was clean and relaxing. I regret not signing up for a 3 hour massage package & going for more baths. Next trip I'll go for massages for 2 days and try all the different baths they have : salt, milk, aroma.
massage & bath together
Done with the spa but still too early to go to our rooms (still not ready), we went to eat the free pizza dar had won in the lucky dip. It's very delicious! After that we relaxed by the pool waiting for our room...
There's really nothing much to do at the resort except spa & swimming. In the afternoon we took at 25min taxi ride to town. We had missed the free shuttle bus even though we had registered our name & reported at the lobby at 2pm. I kicked up a fuss so they paid for our cab fare to town. Nothing much to shop or eat at Nagoya Hill. But I bought a nice pair of shorts for only S$9 & pretty flip-flops for $3. The A&W I was looking forward to turned out to be disappointing. What happened to those juicy cripsy chicken wings I used to eat in Singapore's A&W?
Pathetic, isn't it?
After the trip to town, we went for jacuzzi and sauna. The jacuzzi was a total disappointment. Dirty & room temperature waters. I was out of it in less than 5 mins! The sauna is standard lah. Nothing special. I only liked the complimentary ginger tea served outside the sauna/jacuzzi area.
Dinner was quite a romantic affair which didn't start nicely but ended well. Our seat by the pool with a perfect view of the live band was hijacked by a couple who apparently went to get their table instead of being led to one. The staff tried to get us another seat but I insisted, so they told the couple to move away. Next the lamp for putting candle broke due to the heat. So we had no candle-light dinner. Dinner buffet food was so-so even though variety was good. The live band was good. They even got the guests to join in a dance and some guests to sing. Dar was pulled onstage to sing 上海滩! Too bad can't upload the video here as file is too big.
where's the candlelight dinner?
The next day after a yummy buffet breakfast we relaxed by the pool as dar wanted to sun bathe. With dark rain clouds approaching we returned to our rooms to rest till time for check-out at 1pm. Was back in S'pore by 4.30pm.
On the whole the trip has been an enjoyable one despite some hiccups here & there. We'll definitely be back for more spa, food & shopping!
All about work
I can't remember what had happened the past month since my last blog post. It's probably all filled with work. It seems like no matter how many hours I put in, work is neverending. And it gets demoralizing when the weekend we all look forward to ends up shortened by work. Plus colleagues aren't enthusiastic about helping, preferring to surf net, msn chat & go home on time instead.
I'm trying hard to get rid of these negative feelings. I've a long way to go in this company!! The only positive thought is the tasks I have. I like the job scope as there's variety & requires multi-tasking. I get bored easily with a single task. It's a big challenge to manage all the deadlines and attend to everyone. My boss has been very encouraging and supportive, which makes my life at work happier. At least I know I'm on the right track. Looking forward to my confirmation due in 3 months' time....
I'm trying hard to get rid of these negative feelings. I've a long way to go in this company!! The only positive thought is the tasks I have. I like the job scope as there's variety & requires multi-tasking. I get bored easily with a single task. It's a big challenge to manage all the deadlines and attend to everyone. My boss has been very encouraging and supportive, which makes my life at work happier. At least I know I'm on the right track. Looking forward to my confirmation due in 3 months' time....
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