My shining moments are…
When you played hide-and-seek with me in the supermarket, and cried when you couldn’t find me.
When you dressed up as “Mei Ling”, or do those ridiculously stupid bo liao things normal people wouldn’t do.
When you told me you want to be there when I make things right.
When I put the regulator in my mouth and breathed underwater for the first time.
When we reached the pinnacle of Mt Kinabalu after battling rain, cold, altitude sickness and a badly sprained ankle.
When you told me you were proud of me, and meant it.
Love. Friendship. Passion. Hope. Dreams. Family. These are the shining moments of my life.
What are your shining moments?
LG Shine Fashion Phone
We take a break from our daily adventures on kennysia.com to bring to you this special message from our sponsors at LG Mobile.
Say hello to the new LG Shine! π
Following the footsteps of the popular Black Label Series line of fashion phones, this baby is set to get heads turning from the style conscious crowd.
Unlike most phones out there made out of cheap plastic, this silver number is sturdily constructed with stainless steel, which actually feels amazing to hold on my hands. On top of that, its sleek and slim profile is sure to grab the attention it is designed for.
Indeed, the LG Shine is too beautiful to look at. I made the mistake of bringing the phone with me to Penang, and the girls I was travelling with can’t resist just picking it up and playing with it (eventhough they all unanimously hate my ringtone, “Beatbox Acappella”)
You know how sad your life is when your phone received more attention from the females than you do.
The signature attraction of the LG Shine is its eye-catching mirror-like front facing. Beneath this reflective (but easily smudged) surface hides the phone’s LCD screen, much similar to the LG Chocolate.
When the screen is unused you can hold it up and see a faintly distorted reflection of yourself from its casing.
Once you slide it open, this stunner of a phone illuminates itself in all its shining glory. It’s a really cool effect.
I particularly liked the keypad’s striking blue backlights upon the phone’s silver metallic body. The colour combination made the LG Shine look like one helluva futuristic gadget.
The sliding mechanism has certainly improved since the LG Chocolate. This one whips out steadily without the slightest wobble, culminating with a satisfying snap.
Most navigation are done with the multifunctional scroll button located on the top part of the phone. All other keys on the phone are completely flat except for the grooves surrounding it, which are curved to make them look all the more deliciously sexy.
I flipped the phone over to the other side and was greeted with a 2-megapixel camera with auto-focus, featuring lens by Schneider-Kreuznach. Having used a digital camera sporting those German lens before, I can certainly vouch for its quality.
This photo is taken with the LG Shine’s built-in phone camera.
Look at the amount of detail it captured!
Check out my unedited full-resolution test shot here.
Coupled with the huge LCD screen on the phone, the camera function is a real joy to use.
I’m pleasantly surprised to find how well done the phone’s built-in MP3 player is.
Most phones tend to force you to use their own propietary earphones. But LG Shine thoughtfully included an inline MP3 player remote, which you could then attach a pair of high-end earphones to get even better sound quality.
Storage space is not a problem either since it comes with a MicroSD card slot.
The unit I received came along with a 1GB MicroSD card.
Bloody hell, that thing is smaller than a 5 cent coin. Imagine how much pirated MP3 stuff you could load onto it!
Another software I really like is the Document Viewer. It lets you open up Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint and even PDF files right from your phone.
That kinda functionality is almost making this fashion phone into a smartphone.
Unfortunately, this unit I received is a review test set and honestly speaking I’m kinda sad to have to return it to LG so soon.
The LG Shine fashion phone is now available immediately from your local mobile phone stores. Last I checked, the going price for one of these babies is RM1,200 – possibly even lower if you bargain hard.
I say at that price, chances are you’ll be hard-pressed to find another phone that look even half as good as the Shine.
If you wanna know more, go check out LG Shine’s cool website and get yourself a chance to win a holiday for two to Seoul, Korea.
Nuffnang Penang Bloggers Meet @ Food Loft
What do you get when you put 100 bloggers in a room full of free food?
Lots and lots of cameras in action, of course!
The day before the Penang Bridge Marathon, I was invited by Nuffnang to attend their Orient’s Voice North Malaysian Bloggers’ Gathering at the Food Loft, Gurney Plaza.
It was by all measures a resounding success.
I hadn’t been to a large-scale bloggers’ gathering since the Blogger.SG Singapore Bloggers Convention two years ago. As most people following my blog back then would’ve remembered, that event was infamously immortalised by that one boobie-baring incident seen around the world .
You would have thought Malaysians are more tame and more conservative than our Singaporean counterparts. But noooo… In fact, Malaysians are WILDER.
At this bloggers’ gathering, something even better happened.
Much to the delight of all the horny guys in attendance not only were we treated to a set of beautiful naked boobs, we actually had a NAKED WOMAN baring it all inside the restaurant! Just for us. Naked woman you know?!
Warning:If you are easily offended, do not scroll further.
Nah. Naked woman.
Can play violin one somemore. Dun pray pray.
I like big butts and I cannot lie.
*muah* I lub u.
Food Loft is a Marche-like restaurant located on the 4th floor of Gurney Plaza. You’re given a barcode card when you walk in, then you get the chance to walk around the market-like area to see what dishes are available.
When you’re ready to order, just let them scan your card and they’ll bring your food right over to you.
Yes, it’s almost like your local kopitiam food court.
But this one stylo a bit. Because they got sweeping views of the ocean and then got a naked woman in the restaurant.
Does your local kopitiam food court have naked woman?
Due to my limited dietary options pre-marathon, I had the spaghetti marinara. Not the best I’ve tasted, but it was pretty alright.
Too bad not many of us really had time to sit down and enjoy our food anyway. Everyone basically spent the good one hour and a half running around taking photos.
Myself and sexyshortskirt
And photos.
And photos.
And MORE photos.
With nicolekiss.
So much camera flashes until I began losing my sanity.
Next thing I know, I was putting on Nicole’s baby pink jacket.
Pwetty or not? ^_^
Some time during the middle of our shenanigans, I was sat down and interviewed by the charismatic Cedric Ang. Some crazy guy called Daniel Ooi jumped on the opportunity and asked me to contribute my body hair to auction off for charity.
I didn’t wanna do it, but this is for a good cause. So what the heck right?
I don’t know whether to feel sorry for myself or feel more sorry for Nicole.
Especially when it comes to the part where she had to cut off my nose hair.
Nah, can see or not?
Luckily we stopped at just nose hair.
If we cut off anything more than that, you might have to pay money to read kennysia.com
Together with the winner of our charity auction, hotsluttybaby
See that look on my face?
That’s the look of OMG-YOU-JUST-PAID-RM20-FOR-A-FEW-STRANDS-OF-MY-CHEST-HAIR-YOU-SICKO!
The funniest thing happened on the Monday after the Nuffnang Bloggers’ Gathering.
Apparently, my name appeared on national newspaper The Star Metro. No, not for becoming the first overweight person to finish the Penang Bridge Marathon in world record-breaking time.
But for this.
HAHAHAAA!
Kenny Sia mobbed by Penang fans!
Pardon me, but when you describe someone as being “mobbed by fans”, it conjures up the image of some wild media frenzy that look something like this.
Now, compare that to the “mobbing” I received at the hands of my Penang “fans”.
WALAU! Eh you “mobs” can appear more excited and less bored-looking or not!?
Penang Bridge Marathon 2007
Last year, at the end of my 42km race, I said to myself, “never ever am I gonna do this again.”
15 months after I spoke those exact words, here I was, preparing myself for my second marathon race in Penang. π
I woke up at 2am on Sunday 24th June, having just napped for four hours.
My head was still bleary from not enough sleep. But it was time. Time to kick ass!
Calmly, I geared up and took the lift down to the lobby, breathing a few deep breaths to keep myself as relaxed as possible. To everyone else, it was obvious that I was nervous as hell.
Timothy and Co were by my hotel ready to give me a lift to USM. The gang had only just finished clubbing at Momo, and they were clearly still high from it.
I was trying to keep myself calm but along the way, these people gave me such uplifting encouragement as “Go Kenny! We’ll cheer for you… in our sleep!”
Such great friends I have.
The roads to USM were closed. By the time we reached our destination it was already 20 minutes till race starts. I thought I could just dump my bag there and just get ready.
But not so fast, cowboy.
From where the road was blocked off to where I was supposed to be, they made us walk another 1km! KNNCCB. I knew I was late so I ran as fast as I could to the registration area. Clearly I wasn’t the only one. Many other participants were already working up a sweat trying to get there before it’s too late. Why they blocked the road so far away, I have no idea.
I was at the starting line literally seconds before the race was supposed to begin. By then I was already panting and sweating profusely. All my calming techniques had obviously failed big time.
“BANG!”
3am, the gun went off. And the game began.
From the look of things, it seems as if this Penang Bridge Marathon is going to be easier than the KL one that I did last year. The route is straighter, the temperature is cooler, and apart from the incline going up the long bridge, the path seems a lot flatter, which is a good thing.
With the amount of training I had put in over the past few months, I was feeling confident that I was gonna perform a lot better than I did last year.
It’s only after I started the race that I realised how different this marathon is compared to my previous experience.
Sure, the island weather was cool. But the problem is, it was too cool. So cool in fact, that I was practically running there shivering in my pants.
The combination of sweat on my body and wind blowing against me was too much for the jiggly fats around my waist to handle.
The second thing is that the route was too boringly monotonous.
Imagine getting onto the bridge and you see this.
Twenty minutes later, you look up and you see this.
Forty minutes later, you look up again and IT’S STILL THE SAME DAMN THING!
It’s enough to force any runner to go crazy and jump off the bridge, ending the misery once and for all.
But despite all these unexpected challenges figuring into the race, I though I was doing alright. For most of the initial 15km I was sticking to my goal pace of 6’50” per km.
Soon after I made the U-turn at the Prai toll stations, one of my worst fears came true.
An excruciatingly sharp pain attacked my right calf muscle. It’s the dreaded leg cramp. Maybe it was the cold wind, but I certainly did not expect a cramp to emerge so early into the race.
I tried to mask the pain by rubbing a good amount of analgesic cream onto my calf, but medication can only work so much. It wasn’t long before my left calf muscle began to hurt as well. Immediately I was forced to reduce my pace to a fast walk.
As if getting cramp attacks so early into the race wasn’t bad enough, I had to miss several water stations, simply because they ran out of water. It’s hardly surprising, considering there were some 21,000 participants in the race. The half and quarter marathoners had already snatched up all the drinks before I could even reach them.
So what do you do when you are thirsty like mad and knowing that you still had a long way to go?
You pick up those unfinished drinks other people threw away on the floor, wipe away the dirt and drink from it.
Trust me, when you are dehydrated like that, you just don’t care anymore.
Everything just kept getting worse and worse as I exited the bridge and returned to Penang Island.
I remembered at one point during the race, some pebbles got into my shoes and I tried to remove them. But as soon as I bend my knees, my entire leg tightened and an unbearable cramp took control of my calves.
It was so excruciatingly painful I had to abandon the idea of removing the pebbles and just walk the remaining 18km distance with those damn pebbles in my shoes.
With persistent cramps on my calves, aches on my lower back, nasty pebbles under my feet, that remaining 18km was the toughest I had to endure.
From the Penang Bridge exit, I walked all the way past Queensbay Mall right up to the Seagate Factory, before U-turning back all the way past the Penang Bridge again to the Marine Police building, and then making another U-turn all the way back before I arrive at the crowded USM gates.
The end was near.
To bring a very anti-climatic race to an end, I crossed the finishing line at 6 hours 28 minutes.
A mere 5 minute improvement from my previous marathon time, and a far fetch from the 5 hour goal time I was aiming for. Needless to say, I was utterly disappointed. π
I don’t know what exactly went wrong. Everything in my training seems ok, so why did I bomb out?
Was it because I sprinted and over-exerted myself to the starting line? Did I have not enough carbohydrates before and during the race? Was I not prepared for the cooler weather here and the effect that had on my knees?
Whatever it was, this race goes to prove that no matter how confident I was, no matter how easy the track appeared to be, I should never ever underestimate a marathon race.
The sour grape in me could go on and blame the multitude of external factors for my less-than-satisfactory performance this race: that the road block was placed too far away from the starting line; that there were no isotonic drinks provided until 20km into the race; that my pedometer actually measured 44km for what was supposed to be a 42km race.
But hey, I’m better than that. π I accept my defeat.
They don’t have to rub salt into my wound though.
From the finishing line at USM, I had to walk another 500m to the left baggage counter at another location to pick up my bag. Before the race, I had left my phone and wallet in there for safekeeping. But when I opened up my wallet, the RM30 I left in there was stolen.
BASTARD! That was supposed to be my taxi fare back to the hotel!
What to do? This is Malaysia for ya. Welcome to Visit Malaysia Year 2007, people.
Despite all the bad luck and dodgy organising, I must say I really enjoyed this race. It’s an amazing experience to conquer Malaysia’s Tallest Mountain, then 6 weeks later to go on an conquer Malaysia’s Longest Bridge. Am I a patriotic or what?
They often say, a marathon is not a race against others, but a race against yourself.
As much as I was gutted knowing that I had only improved by 5 minutes this year, I do know that there is always a next time, in a different city, for me to exceed myself once again. Meanwhile, I shall take a well-deserved hiatus from my workout and eat all my favourite unhealthy hawker food before returning to the gym to resume my workout once again.
You’ll never look at the Penang Bridge the same way again after you’ve crossed the beautiful structure twice on foot.
After running 42km, I am so freaking sore than my legs still hurt everytime I bend my knees.
Ever tried walking without bending your knees?
Trust me, it ain’t easy. Especially with Nicole Tan filming and laughing her head off at you.
Don’t laugh. I said don’t laugh!
Kuching Airport’s Wireless Internet Service
Finally, I flew back home to Kuching last night.
What a fun-filled and exciting trip over the weekend!
I had the best bunch of people to travel with and that makes a whole lotta difference. But more about the Nuffnang gathering, the Penang Bridge marathon and my unexpectedly interesting side trip to Ipoh a bit later. Right now I just feel like resting my legs and taking it easy.
While I was at the Kuching International Airport, I propped up my laptop hoping to go online by leeching off someone’s wireless internet service. Normally at the airport, I’m able to connect to an unsecured access point called “dlink” or “linksys” or one of those boring default names.
So I brought up the list of wireless connections available.
Curiously only one access point was available, and it was from a guy named “Poi Kee Teo”.
At first I was wondering, how come I can manage to detect the wireless connection of this Mr Teo’s house? The airport is so big and secluded, it’s impossible to get anything from even the closest residential house nearby.
And then I realised.
POIKEETEO MEANS “AIRPORT” IN HOKKIEN!
Kuching Airport sure has a funny sense of humour.
I Have PMS (Pre-Marathon Stress)
I’m in Penang now.
Somehow, Icy who’s also travelling to Penang for the Nuffnang Gathering managed to con me into becoming her bodyguard for the trip.
Our conversation went something like this.
Kenny: “I’m gonna be sleeping in a lot you know? I need all the energy I can get for the race.”
IcyQueenGoddess: “Okay, I’m tagging along with you!”
Kenny: “!?!?!”
It’s less than 6 hours before the gun goes off at the starting line of the Penang International Bridge Marathon, and I am nervous like hell.
I shouldn’t be feeling this way. This is my second marathon race after the one I did last year in KL. I have put in a lot more time and effort training for this one. My weight has gone done, my mileage has gone up. Mentally, I am better prepared for what lies ahead.
I’ve been training longer than this actually. Just didn’t log them down.
But my goal this time round is different. Last year, my aim was to simply cross the finishing line. This year, my target was to finish the 42km in 5 hours time. Realistically speaking, I should be happy with anything below the 5 hr 30 min mark lah.
That is not a lot for seasoned marathoners who can easily finish 42km in 2hr45mins. But bear in mind that I’m still a pretty heavy guy. Endurance sports like long-distance running isn’t my forte and is gonna push me so out of my comfort zone that I’m sure I’m gonna be feeling it for days, if not weeks, to come.
Things I’m bringing with me to the race:
– adidas ClimaLite tank top and running shorts: To wick away sweat from my body when running.
– iPod nano with armband: Loaded with my favourite chill house music.
– PowerBar Gels: Easy to digest carbohydrates when I need them.
– Agel OHM: Reader Kenneth Lim sent these to me complimentary, and they work like magic. The energy boost is incredible.
– Digital camera: Even when I’m running a marathon, blogging is on the back of my mind.
– Analgesic cream, plaster, gastric pills: For on the spot treatment of annoyances.
– Waist pouch: To put all these things in.
– Petroleum jelly: To lube myself up to reduce chaffing. And yes, I shaved. There.
– Running cap: To combat sunlight.
– adidas Supernova Control 2007: aka the best running shoes I have ever worn.
Thanks for the T-shirt, Eddie!
Things I look forward to:
– The exhiliration and energy of the crowd at the starting line.
– Keeping my target pace consistently at 6:50 per km.
– The hypnotic trance I get into midway through the race.
– Watching girls in short shorts.
– The indescribable feeling when I cross the finishing line.
Things I fear:
– 1km of uphill climb in the middle of the bridge.
– Cramps. I had a severe case last year at the 30km mark that basically forced me to walk for the remaining 12km.
– Bad weather. The forecast for Sunday according to Yahoo! Weather is “Scattered Thunderstorms”. So not looking forward to that. Just a few days ago, Penang was the target of a freak storm that blew off boats. Surely you won’t wanna see headlines that scream “Kuching Marathoner Blown Off The Penang Bridge” tomorrow on the newspapers.
This past few months I have put up with much sacrifices, much time away from friends and family, much time I could have spent doing something else.
I could only train so much, but finally this is all coming to an end.
And I’m here to claim my reward!
Save Our Endangered Restaurants
It’s always sad to see your favourite eateries close down.
Some of my favourite restaurants in the past had closed down simply because business wasn’t good enough.
Even when I had the chance to dine at those restaurants, I didn’t see many customers around. It’s almost as if I was the only person in the whole of Kuching who appreciates their good food. Everyone else just prefers to eat at the same old few places.
Among the unfortunate casualties were Mambo King at Travillion and A-ha at Ban Hock (now renamed De Crimson, also known as the place where they serve potato wages)
I reckon that’s a bloody shame really. Because good food should be celebrated, not avoided!
There are plenty of restaurants out there in the same scenario. One thing I noticed is that their chef never fails to churn out good food, but somehow they can’t seem to put enough asses on their chairs.
One ass from me ain’t gonna be enough to keep them afloat.
I love these restaurants and I wanna be eating their good food from them for a long time. But judging by the emptiness of their tables everytime I go there, it’s a matter of time before they’re in danger of closing down.
Unless we act now. FAST!
Which is why for my own selfish reasons, I’m gonna shamelessly plug these restaurants here.
Apologies in advance if I incorrectly assumed that these restaurants aren’t doing well, since the only thing I could based that claim on is my personal observation. π
But nonetheless, kennysia.com presents to you, Kuching’s Top 4 Most Under-Rated and Unappreciated Eateries.
1. Bella Italia at RH Plaza BDC
With the exception of maybe Restaurant Beccari at Merdeka Palace, there seems to be a notable absence of goodItalian food in Kuching.
That is, until I stumbled across Bella Italia secretly stashed away at the backlot of RH Plaza BDC.
Apparently they’ve been around for a while but god knows why I had only just discovered them recently.
I came here twice and on both occasions, we were the only customers there. Maybe it’s their quiet location, but this cosy little restaurant is so devoid of customers it’s Italian tragedy. I am dumbstruck as to why because everything they did here is almost perfect.
Their risotto is delicious, their marinara soup is super-tasty and their pasta rivals the best in KL. At RM15 to RM20 for mains, price-wise they are also quite reasonable.
And I am absolutely head over heels in love with their bruschetta bread.
2. Pizza Junction at Jalan Song
I walked into this restaurant one afternoon and their bored staff jolted up from their seats like they’ve just seen their first customer since The Stone Age.
It’s a pity to see such a nice restaurant so empty and bare.
Pizza Junction is a local homegrown fast-food chain restaurant similar to Pizza Hut. But unlike the international franchise, Pizza Junction serves darn good pizzas at prices much lower than the Hut‘s offerings.
As a comparison, RM21 gets you only one regular pizza at the Hut, but you can get that plus two soups and drinks at the Junction. They even have some dessert pizzas with a local twist, like the Banana Kaya Delight.
I tried their fusili pasta which was decent, but it was their Chicken Delight Pizza absolutely rocks my socks.
Personally I think Pizza Junction tastes a lot better than Pizza Hut. But do try it out and support our local brand.
3. Korean Da Om BBQ House at Jalan Song
Quite possibly, the best authentic Korean restaurant in town.
Here’s the deal. You order one main course and they’ll give you 3 side dish for free. The great thing about Da Om’s side dish is, when you finish them you can ask for a refill an unlimited amount of times.
So technically speaking, you can go to Da Om with ten friends, then you just order one main course and let your ten friends eat the side dish until full.
Just don’t tell them you learn this trick from kennysia.com one hor! π
My only complaint with Da Om is that all their spicy dishes are really, really, REALLY spicy! Those stuff should come with titanium metal to reinforce your tongue, because they are so damn spicy it’s not funny.
Seriously, their kimchee is so freaking hot, I think they made it out of a mixture of chilli padi and gunpowder.
My recommendation is to stay safe and stick to the non-spicy dishes.
My favourites here are the Korean marinated beef served with fresh lettuce, Bi Bim Bap (Korean Fried Rice) and the Sam Gye Theng (Korean Ginseng Chicken Soup).
Some say there are better Korean restaurants out there in Kuching, but I disagree.
I say, Da Om is Da Bomb!
4. Sin Chiew Chicken Rice at Point One, Travilion Mall
Actually this chicken rice stall is quite popular already. The only reason I put it on my ‘endangered’ list is because… it is too cheap!
It’s so cheap I wonder how they could even make a profit.
Sin Chiew is good, although I won’t say it is the best-tasting chicken rice in Kuching.
I insist that title still goes to Good Thumb (ex-Big Mouth). But the problem with Good Thumb is that their portion is so pathetic, you have to buy two meals to fill up your stomach. Another good chicken rice place in Kuching is Ah Suan, but they can be expensive and parking around that area is a bitch.
That’s why I think Sin Chiew has the best value chicken rice in Kuching. I asked for one plate of chicken rice with a portion of boob meat, one vegie dish, minus the soup and the grand total comes up to just RM4!
How can I not love this place!?
On top of that, Ah Ming the boss is a nice polite guy who will smile and greet at you when you come, and say bye-bye when you leave.
Yes, I know they smile and greet you too at Coffee Bean. But that one you have to pay 10% service charge for it.
License To Touch
Thanks for all the feedback on my previous entry, guys.
I say keep your hands to yourself, period. No questions asked. It’s indisputable – it’s wrong on so many levels to even touch anyone, be it a girl or a boy, anywhere other than the hand the first time you meet.
Posted by: Anonymous
I think it should be strictly hands off during a first meeting… but it kinda depends. When I was in Australia, it was kinda acceptable that the Aussies were touchy. You’d think to yourself: Ahhh. They’re just being friendly… they’re like that with everyone! Back in Malaysia however, it’s more like… EEE! What is this guy up to arr?
Not sure if this is an example of blatant double standards or just a cultural difference! πPosted by: spirit3d
It just doesn’t feel right to be touched by someone at the first meeting. Not anyplace, let alone the small of your back, even the friendly-shoulder-hugging is a no-no. But I am an Asian, and being brought up in a conservative family too. So maybe u can hug Western girls at your first meeting (heck, you can even bed some of them), or Asian girl brought up Western style.
However, if you do that to me, I’ll be extra careful to avoid you the next time we’re in the same place.Posted by: fei
Looks like there’s a lot of conservative people in Malaysia!
Perhaps it is because I tend to mix with the younger and more “liberal” crowd in Kuching, but light-touching or hugging among friends and friends of friends in a social atmosphere is definitely very common around here.
I do hope people here can lighten up a bit though. Asian or not, I reckon the world could do with a bit more friendly physical touches. Imagine how boring life is gonna be if you go out to a PARTY with the intention to meet new people, but then you have to keep your hands strictly to yourself the entire time!
It is gonna be so boring, you might as well go attend a business meeting.
Then there are also some who brought up the “looks” argument.
I don’t mind. IF he is cute enough.
Posted by: Party-Ann
As long as you’re handsome, everything will be fine! =D
Posted by: Alex
If the guy is handsome, then a physical touch is okay; if the guy is some ugly shit, pls stay away! Hahaha…
Posted by: Mil
The answer to Kenny’s anxiety is – obviously, girls will only let GOOD-LOOKING guys (though not all the time) touch them when they first meet. I’m not trying to offend, but with looks like KENNY SIA a bit fat a bit chi kor pek face, i will feel so GROSS OUT and think that he’s a hamsup man and likes to take advantage of girls.
Posted by: easy peasy
Call it superficial, but it’s true.
Studio photo courtesy of Alvin Leong Photography
If you have looks as unfortunate as mine, girls are not exactly gonna be very receptive to you touching them at all. Even a friendly gesture of touching at the back momentarily is gonna be taken as something sleazy, no matter how genuine you want it to be.
But if you look like DAVID BECKHAM, then suddenly it becomes a wholeeeee different story.
Then you don’t have to touch them at all, THEY WILL TOUCH YOU.
ALL OVER THE PLACE!
THEN YOU’LL BE WRITING A BLOG COMPLAINING WHY SO MANY GIRLS DON’T RESPECT YOUR PERSONAL SPACE AND TOUCH YOU!
*sigh*
Sad lah. It seems like the only way people can ever accept my friendly gesture without misunderstanding is if:
(a) I’m good-looking; or
(b) I’m macho; or
(c) I’m Caucasian; or
(d) All of the above.
Or maybe I should just turn into David Beckham.
So, can I touch now?
Touched For The Very First Time
During the last Rainforest World Music Festival, I got to know this girl Jo.
Jo and I eventually ended up becoming pretty close friends. It’s been many months since then, but we still meet up whenever we can.
During one of our “mindless soul-baring sessions” not long ago, Jo told me something I didn’t realise that happened on the night we first met.
At the beach. (No, this is not her.)
To paint the picture here, we were at the beach where a small group of revellers who attended the music festival were congregating.
There was an open fire, drums beating, people dancing. It was a relaxed atmosphere and everyone was just out there chilling out, having fun.
A common friend of ours spotted Jo and introduced us to each other. It was the first time I’ve met her, so I did the normal thing by making a small talk and socialising.
But while I was doing that, my hand was unwittingly placed behind Jo’s back.
No, I’m not grabbing her arse or anything. Just comfortably placed on the small of her back while she yelled into my ears, because hey, there were drums there and it was loud!
It wasn’t until months after that incident that Jo told me she was actually feeling uncomfortable that I was physically touching her that night.
Seeing as how I was a total stranger and it was only the first time we met, she thought it was kinda inappropriate. And when she revealed that to me, I felt like crap! There was nothing malicious at all about that hand behind her back, but I felt bad because I was making her feel uncomfortable.
Suddenly, I felt like a sexual molester!
I mean, I thought it should be ok that I was touching her, because everyone that night was in a relaxed social mood after all. We’re at a music festival! And after she was introduced to me by our friend, I wanna get to know her better. As a friend.
But then again, she could be right. It was only the first time I met her and I shouldn’t assume that she’s ok with physical contact. Like me placing my hand on the small of her back for the whole conversation. Everybody has different boundaries when it comes to physical contact and just because I think it’s ok doesn’t mean she’ll be fine with it. I can understand that.
But then again! I don’t know lah. No one has ever told me what is right or what is wrong also. How am I supposed to know when to touch or when not to touch, right?
What exactly is the protocol when it comes to guys touching girls?
I think I’m terribly confused because I was brought up in a strict family and a conservative Chinese school; then suddenly I was thrown into a more open Western society in Australia where I was introduced to the world of hugging, cheek-kissing and stroking.
Then suddenly I was thrown back into Kuching where one half of society are brought up with conservative Eastern values, and the other half are brought with the more affectionate Western style of socialising. Now I’m getting all confused when to initiate physical contact and when to keep my hands to myself.
Of course, people would be tempted to say “Just keep your hands to yourself lah! Stay on the safe side.” But… I don’t think that’s a normal thing for people to do!
Sure, there are cases where I choose to be on the conservative sides. In a professional environment at work or when I’m meeting some respected figures, a handshake is usually the most I would go. But in a social environment like in a club, a party or a music fest where we’re out to get to know new people, I think we should be able to do more than that, right?
I think we human beings are like pet animals. Guys or girls, we like to be stroked and touched and played with sometimes. Sounds kinda wrong, but it’s true.
It’s a form of bonding. I am always closer to friends I have hugged or touched, compared to female friends with whom the only form of physical contact I had with was a handshake.
But then some human beings are like tigers. We can touch, but if we’re not careful we will kena bitten by them.
Lots of inappropriate touching here.
Are girls nowadays that uncomfortable of being touched by a guy they met for the first time?
Or am I just too scary?
Jakarta’s Nightlife
As soon as the sun goes down on Friday night, I hopped on a Lam Jiao taxi to check out Jakarta’s famed nightlife.
Always a fan of the clubs when I’m out travelling, I’ve heard about how Jakarta has the best nightspots in the region. Friends who have partied their nights away in the best of Singapore, KL, Bangkok all returned to say that none of those places beats the nightlife in Jakarta.
I was skeptical, especially since I was under the impression that Indonesia is after all a very religious and conservative country. Oh boy, how wrong was I.
I arrived at my first stop: Blok M.
My eyes nearly popped out when I walked in and saw this.
OMG. This isn’t Indonesia. This is Thailand, man!
I mean, I’ve seen “shows” when I was in Phuket, but even those girls at the supposed “sex-capital of South-East Asia” looks like innocent kindegarten kids compared to what these vixens had to offer.
At least in Thailand, you expected these things to happen. But in INDONESIA?
What kinda pole dance is this?!
What’s even more incredible is that these girls are NOT employed by the bar. Just your average sarong party girls who took a cab to Blok M, putting on these shows to lure rich white men to bring them back to their hotel rooms.
It’s a sad state of affair, really. Everywhere I’ve travelled to in Asia, it’s the same old story. As long as there are old white married men willing to pay, there will be cash-strapped young girls willing to bare.
I guess when you’re all out of money and when push comes to shove, dignity goes out the window.
Another dodgy nightspot I visited was Stadium nightclub.
Stadium was HUGE but very, very dodgy. This place was so dodgy that I spooted lots of dodgy people wearing dodgy sunglasses dodgily as they danced the night away. But it was already so dark inside the club, why were they still wearing sunglasses?!
When I made my way through the dodgy crowd, some dodgy old man tapped me on my shoulder wanting to sell me something dodgy . He spoke to me but I couldn’t understand him because he was speaking Indon, and all I could hear was that prolonged “Rrrrr” sound of his Indonesian accent. “Allo misterrrrr. MISTERRRRRRRRRR!”
Then I turned around and this teenage girl in sunglasses was shaking her head left and right non-stop. I figured she probably meant to tell me not to buy from this guy, so I politely declined the dodgy old man and walked away.
Then when I returned to thank the girl, she was still shaking her head left and right uncontrollably! Why lah, I just want to say thank you, you still shake your head at me!
After that disappointing and dodgy outing on Friday night, the next evening I had better luck when I followed some readers advice and checked out this club called Blowfish.
Blowfish is an upmarket sushi bar by day, but converted into dance club for the rich and idle by night.
I gotta say, I am impressed! This must be the “in” place to go in Jakarta. Blowfish’s Zen-inspired venue was beautifully decorated from top to bottom while the DJ flawlessly spinned out hit after hit.
Not only that, those Indon-Chinese girls in the club were all glammed up damn pretty like that. I swear, I scanned across the room and spotted at least ten Dawn Yang lookalikes in there.
Note: not an actual photo. π
I reckon Indon-Chinese girls are really really pretty.
They look different from our average Chinese girls in Malaysia or Singapore that’s for sure. Christien New (who’s half-Indon himself) told me that it’s because most Indonesian-Chinese have a hint of Dutch blood in them. And I have this thing for girls with like 10% of white blood in them.
Sipping my vodka in Blowfish, suddenly I was transformed back to my high-school days in Perth when I was this ugly fat kid having a huge crush on this hot Indon-Chinese girl in school. Despite my many attempts to hook up a conversation with her, I ultimately failed because I could only speak English with her, and her English was half-baked at best.
On our school’s prom night I saw her slow-dancing with another Indon guy, and I was heartbroken.
Suddenly I was jolted back into present day when this cute girl with an angelic face smiled at me from across my table. I don’t know her, but she was probably wondering why I was sitting there alone. So I smiled back.
But then as soon as she opened her mouth and started speaking in that heavy Indonesian accent, I was turned off immediately.
“Misterrrrr seorrrrang peerrrrrrgi clabbing kerrrr, misterrrrrrrrrrrr?”
What a pity.
Face of an angel, mouth of a machine-gun.