Boxing Day 2013

New Town Plaza, Shatin

After having some crazy fun in the past few days, I decided to stay home on the Boxing Day for some good rest before going back to work tomorrow. 

It's a lazy day - I slept till noon time and got up for lunch, followed by grabbing a takeaway coffee and getting a new book. 

AND NOW I am sorting out my study notes. I have been typing my own notes for exams and very often I handwrote remarks after printing the stuff. 

And, I insisted not to throw them away before I add those remarks into the softcopy too. So, I am doing this.

To be honest, the chance for reading those notes again is very low, however, I just think I have to do it. A waste of time that it could be, this is one of the things which just makes me feel right. 

Melo Spa at Hyatt Regency Shatin

Probably one of the best spa experience that I have ever had!

I visited Melo Spa at Hyatt Regency Shatin in mid-August, thinking that I deserved some good treat after some hard work in the office. So I had this 4-hour Vitality Spa Package which was simply, amazing.

This is the treatment room - probably the largest treatment room in all hotel spas in Hong Kong.   

The package consisted of 5 treatments (info provided by Melo Spa):

Melo Signature bath (30mins)
It is the energising whirlpool with a blend of aroma sea salt (lemon and mandarin), helps to uplift and tone the skin.

Melo Marmalade Body Polish (60mins)
It uses fresh Sha Tin Pomelo rind blends with brown sugar and citrus essential oil to slough away the dry skin while restoring hydration. The perfect accompaniment to any body massage or facial!

Melo Signature Massage (60mins)
This is Melo Spa's signature massage which uses the Vitality essential oil blend with lemon, orange and thyme and followed by heated herbal compresses that relieve tension and soreness, which relaxes tight muscles and awakens the spirit.

Melo Signature Facial (60mins)
This is the Spa's signature facial which uses the organic product from Hungary named EMINENCE. Natural organic plant extracts and essential minerals help promote cell regeneration and provide antioxidants. This facial offers a wide of cleansers, tones, exfoliates, masques, serums, eye creams and moisturizers to target the specific skin care needs, leaving the skin healthy and radiant.

Eye Bright (30mins)
This treatment uses EMINENCE products as well and it deeply hydrates the delicate skin around the eyes, erases fine lines, and reduces puffiness and dark circles while gently exfoliating the skin to leave the eye contour smooth and firm.

Believe it or not, the day after the spa, my colleague asked me if I have lost weight - the spa does help ease water retention!

Taipei - W Hotel

I have been a big fan of W Hong Kong (and many other Starwood hotels such as St. Regis) and I was told many times how great W Taipei is. It didn't take me too long to decide that this is the hotel I should stay.

Hotel entrance

The check-in was quick: do remember to sign up as a Starwood Preferred Guest before your visit to enjoy complimentary in-room wifi at W Taipei. The registration is FREE and there are different privileges that you may be entitled to, simply by being a member (vs many other similar programs require certain amount of accumulated spending). For example, my room was upgraded when I was staying at Le Meridien in Paris last Christmas.

This is where I am sitting and writing this blogpost. If there's one thing that I should be unhappy with this room is this orange blanet - the fabric is too rough.

I LOVE big beds! I am still deciding which one I should go for tonight!

Shampoo, conditioner, body butter, face wash and body wash are Bliss products which I used a lot when I was a frequent Bliss spa visitor in Hong Kong.

I visited Woobar in the afternoon for a lychee martini - NTD380 plus 10%

Bar on the 31/f floor - the view is so so but the mocktail that I had was good - NTD320 plus 10%. I met a staff called Patsy there and she's very nice. I hope she'd be visiting Hong Kong soon. 

And somehow they knew that it's my birthday and they sent me this lovely cake. 

My experience in the hotel so far is great - everyone I met, including the receptionists, waiters, guest service officers, is helpful and attentive. I am hoping that the weather will be fine today so I can enjoy a drink by the poolside. Fingers crossed!

Taipei - the basics (part one)

Ok I have spent 30 minutes with the introduction but I cannot write a good thing - so let's make it practical and straight forward!

Visa
The application cannot be easier - I have it done online within 10 minutes but remember to bring the printout and carry that with you all the time. I was asked to show the paper together with my passport when I was checking in the hotel.

Taxi from the airport to the city
You pay for the convenience - the fare was NTD1,260 for my trip to my hotel at Xinyi District. Not cheap considering how much people in Taiwan make on average.

Watch out for part two on public transport.

朋友

我本來想睡了，但朋友跟我說了一件事，我覺得應該把此事的learning記下來，共勉之。

其實我們大家都活了這些年，都應明白世上有好人，亦有壞人，也要明白天是要一點時間才可以「收晒啲壞人」（地球的好人很多，但壞人也不少！），所以更要學懂不要將壞人說的話放在心上，要「左耳入、右耳出」。

生活的難處已經夠多，真的不需要太在意一些人的說話，一些傷人利己的說話。

祝大家有個快樂的星期一。

beautybay.com and aromatherapy associates

I bought this Aromatherapy Associates Essential Skincare Introductory Set today at the Mira Spa. Before I made the purchase, I found that it's available at beautybay.com and I was annoyed to find it costs $170 less online - $490 at the Mira Spa and $320 online. However I do want this for my Phuket trip next week so I had to pay this price. 

LESSON LEARNT - must check beautybay.com before making any skincare/cosmetic purchase!

I bought some Urban Decay products from this website before and I have to say that it was a fabulous shopping experience - wide range of brand and products (many of which are not available in HK) and the delivery is SPEEDY - it takes 7 to 10 days only.  

I got to know Aromatherapy Associates through my facial treatment at Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, and since then I bought some of its products from time to time. It's my first time getting a full set of skincare products and watch out for my review after my Phuket trip! Stay tuned!

又一年了。

又一年了。

這陣子無故記起，為甚麼那天晚上我爸會接我回家，因為我爸只會在日間接我，晚上都是我自己回家的。那一次，大概是因為SARS肆虐。

這樣，就十年。

The first two months in 2013...

It's been quite a while since my last entry and life in the last two months was filled with lots of fun.

The highlight was definitely two friends visiting Hong Kong from Bangkok. Alice was my flatmate when I was studying in the UK and we hadn't seen each other until my visit to Bangkok in September 2011. She was visiting with her boyfriend and it was so much laughters and we chatted a lot about "the good old days". One of the most memorable bit of the days was our fight against a middle-age male flatmate who said we should follow his instruction because he was a cambridge graduate!

Time for dessert....TBC...

My Christmas/New Year trip 2012/13

I had 4 resolutions for 2012 and unfortunately I only achieved one of them, and that's the Christmas/New Year in Paris and London.

I hadn't been to the UK and Europe again since I graduated from uni and this is my first long haul trip in the past 6 years. I am truly glad that I had this holiday to leave work and study behind to have some time for myself. To reflect and refresh.

In the next few weeks I will share my trip experience and hope people who are planning to visit London and Paris may find some of the tips useful.

Cheers,
miss p

#003 - let the books flow

I love reading and I love buying books. But what you gonna do with the books that you won't read anymore? Also as many Hong Kong people do not live in big flats, we don't always have enough space to keep all of them.

I have started an initiative this year - "let the books flow", meaning that rather than simply throwing them into paper recycling bin or the waste bin, you can give them to someone else:

1. I post photos of books that I want to give away in facebook and see if any of my friends is interested in them. Set a deadline for response.

2. If no one shows his/her hand after the deadline, start considering an organisation which may want to take them.

3. Many youth centres have their own libraries so that's an option.

4. Another option would be university libraries. Email them and confirm whether they want the books. They don't usually take books that they already have, but there are many exceptions so please do ask. Below is the list of some of the libraries.

HKU: hkuacq@hku.hk
CUHK: libgift@lib.cuhk.edu.hk
CityU: lbacq@cityu.edu.hk
PolyU: ser.lib@polyu.edu.hk

5. Unfortunately public libraries is NOT an option. They said they only take books which are rare or written by donars themselves. Weird but that's that case.

Any other homes for books? Feel free to share!

Bottega Veneta

I was so worried 24 hours ago - for some stupid reasons, my newly bought Bottega Veneta purse was stained with ink of ink jet printer. I dared not to clean it myself.

I couldn't wait and go all the way to the shop in Tsim Sha Tsui yesterday afternoon to seek help. A saleslady called Cherry was so patient in helping me remove the stain with specialised leather cleaner. She not only removed the stain but also cleaned the WHOLE wallet!

I am deeply impressed by the service - I was not there to make a purchase and Cherry was very helpful! Who said luxury shops in TST only take good care of the shoppers from mainland China?

The Lady Godiva Legend

Many of us know about the chocolate brand Godiva, but how many of you know about who Godiva is? Do you know why the logo of Godiva is a woman riding a horse?

I learnt about the story when I was studying in University of Warwick which is situated in Coventry, a city where the legend originated.

Excerpt from the website of Godiva on the legend,

The Lady Godiva Legend

Many hundreds of years ago, a woman of great generosity and beauty left an indelible impression upon the people she reigned over in Coventry. Known for her lustrous hair and bountiful nature, she dedicated her life to the impoverished and stricken.

Her husband, Lord Leofric, was a powerful ruler, unsympathetic to the citizens of his kingdom. When he imposed a heavy burden of taxation upon his subjects, Lady Godiva protested. Lord Leofric boomed forth a challenge: If Lady Godiva rode naked through the streets, and if the people of the city remained inside, the taxation would be lifted.

Lady Godiva agreed to this bargain. Although she was demure in spirit, she was always most generous in action. Then finally, it was the morning of the event. Dawn rose, and the clock struck seven, ringing through the cobbled streets. The people closed their shutters, as promised. Lady Godiva's velvet gown dropped to the ground, her luminous skin shimmering.

The ride began.

Throughout the streets echoed the foreign sound of hooves galloping, yet not a single glance flew her way.

Upon her finish, the thunderous cheers were heard throughout the town. Lady Godiva had braved modesty and convention to win the hearts of all who knew her. As promised, Leofric eased his taxation of the poor, and her place in history was immortalized.

The legend of Lady Godiva has not diminished, but instead has grown and deepened. Centuries later, Joseph Draps, a renowned Belgian chocolatier, created a line of chocolates with extraordinary richness and design, a collection of passion and purity. He sought a name that embodied the timeless qualities of passion, style, sensuality and modern boldness. His choice?

Godiva.

It's a touching story, wasn't it? Bear in mind that women at that time didn't have high social status and they were supposed to stay home, raise kids and keep quiet. It was a brave and unusual move for Lady Godiva to protest against her husband for the benefits of the others.

2012年的暑假

孩子們，今天就是新學年的開課日。暑假本來是讓老師和同學們休息和輕鬆一下的，但是今個暑假來得有點特別，不是嗎？您們錯過了多少奧運比賽節目？有碰過遊戲機嗎？這個暑假，您們把自己的娛樂放在一旁，不為自己，而是為了香港的未來。

路，不易走，但我們會一起走到終點。

今天三時，政府總部再見。

延伸閱讀：
譚蕙芸專訪馬詩慧：烈女媽媽 從天橋走入人間
9.1不是反國民教育的結束，而是另一場曠日持久抗戰的開始
學民的思潮
德育組合 

Godiva Icecream Parlor Truffles

巧克力是我的comfort food，每逢趕功課或者考試期間就「緊有古古力在手袋」，另外我在辦公室亦長備godiva chocolate pearls。今次陪我的是icecream parlor truffles冰淇淋味松露巧克力。

我買的是四件裝的gift box，由綠色那顆開始，順時針方向的分別是Pistachio Truffle、Neapolitan Truffle、Lemon Sorbet和Pecan Caramel。Pecan Caramel那顆送了給同學，味道如何就不知道了。另外三顆之中，我最喜歡的是Lemon Sorbet，味道清新，十分適合在夏天食用。

Cut-out cops

When I watched the TV news last night and saw this, I LAUGHED!

Source: NOW.com

Here's the lively report from RTHK:

Cut-out cops to combat speeding

The police are not often in the business of fooling people. But this time they will be doing just that - by placing two life-sized cut-out police officers on major highways in a bid to persuade motorists to lower their speed. The force are hoping that the new approach can reduce the number of traffic accidents.

You know what, each of this costs a few thousand hongkies and the Police Force will review this new approach in a few months time.

I was wondering if we will have cut-out teachers in classrooms soon so students would be more well-behaved? Well I do doubt if this is going to work at all.

Patisserie, Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Shatin

source: hotel website

I visited Patisserie of Hyatt Regency and it was quite good!

 

It's located at the lobby level of the hotel and there are only a few seats, a few inside and a few outside the patisserie. Not recommeneded for visit with more than two people.

 

 

I am not a big fan of apple pie but how I can not try this signature Shatin Apple Pie? It's claimed to be made of natural honey from a local apiary. I quite like it but as I said, I am not a big fan of it thus I can't make fair comment of this. I like it that the apple pieces were not too sour or too sweet.  

 

It was a nice afternoon with apple pie, hot lemon tea and some drizzles. Life is beautiful. :)

You can enjoy a slice of cake/apple pie of your choice and coffee/tea at HK$68 in the afternoon. The hotel is right next to the University Station so if you happen to be in Shatin and do not want to be in a crowded cafe, do consider visiting this patisserie. Enjoy!

----------
Patisserie
Lobby, Hyatt Regency Hong Kong Shatin
18 Chak Cheung Street, Shatin

Cosmopolitan及Elle九月號

香港的雜誌近年跟隨日本的做法，經常會隨書附送小禮物給讀者，不過質素參差，而今個月的Cosmopolitan及Elle給我小小的驚喜。

 

首先，Cosmopolitan隨書附送的是Kate Spade的Pouch Set，一紅一黑，一大一小：小的可以在使用小手袋的時候用，用來放八達通、信用咭及身份證等等；大的可以當作化妝袋、Clutch或者筆袋。這個是2012年雜誌送的禮物中最實用最漂亮的一款。今期的封面是徐子淇，styling及photography都美，BUY！

順帶一提，今季Kate Spade的手袋和衣服都令人引項以待，其中之一就是下面的Carissa dress。

Elle送的是agnes b的膠文件夾一套四個。每年我會視乎封面人物而買幾次Elle，但始終不太喜歡這本雜誌。

遍地白花和紫花。這個是我的首選。

Dermes

話寫話寫，等了又等還是未寫，今晚一定要寫完先訓！(好啦，我為左達到目的，連書面語都唔寫啦！)

話說我幾個月前開始喺dermes 做激光脫毛，去dermes嘅原因係朋友仔都係幫襯dermes，所以對dermes比較有信心。到而家已經去左三次 (每六星期一次)，我遇到嘅最大問題唔係做療程期間嘅小小痛，而係我對腳嘅皮膚實在太敏感，加上天氣熱，所以做完treatment之後一至兩個星期都起紅點，而且係非常痕，要不斷搽藥膏同用冰袋敷，先舒服返啲。

(source: http://fashion.com.hk/content.asp?id=1119)


不過，我都係會堅持落去，亦recommend 大家去做，因為真係方便好多，朝早出門口之前唔使花時間去處理嘅毛毛，想幾時著無袖衫同短裙都得。唔好話underarm，就算成手都係毛毛都有礙觀瞻啦。

最後係廣告時間，我嘅therapist送左張voucher俾我，可以俾一位朋友同時試做upper lip同underarm一次，而平日網上登記嘅試做只可以二選一。張voucher係八月三十一日到期，有興趣就留言俾我啦。

好野，可以去訓啦！

期限

早幾天完成了另一次的護膚品及化妝品點算及清理行動。

很多人都不知道這些產品都是有期限的，而我們要留意的日子有兩個：一個是產品的到期日，另一個是產品開封後可以使用的期限。有些產品，特別是化妝品沒有標明後者，Bobbi
Brown在《Makeup Manual》中提供了以下指引：

粉底液、遮瑕膏、乾粉、胭脂、潤膚露、面霜：兩年
唇膏、眼綫筆：一年至一年半
睫毛液：六個月

Confession時間：以上是我上一次行動所丟棄的化妝品，而我明白了我購買的速度遠比使用的速度高，特別是眼影，所以我已大大減少購物！如果產品生產商可以產品的分量減少，那麼我們可以把產品用完再買，那就好了！

Chanel Fleur De Lotus Collection

It's Chanel again! My favourite makeup brand at this moment is definitely Chanel!

I received this EDM recently - it's a new limited Fleur de Lotus. Among all these items, my pick is the Aqualumiere Gloss 81 Roselin.  Look at this pink colour!

I haven't been to the shop recently so I don't know if they are available in Hong Kong. Argh...that's very tempting...