Road to Healthy - 1st Update

I recently made a decision for a change of lifestyle as I wanted to be healthy but in a more fully packaged way, so to speak. If you've not read my first Road to Healthy post then please click here. The idea is incorporating changes every month in the hopes that I will be healthier, generally. 

With that said, this last quarter has been such an epic fail that I am contemplating as to whether I should give you an update but alas, I've made a vow (so to speak) to give quarterly updates so here it is... 

January

Happy to say that I (along with Bex) made a habit to walk for 30 minutes during lunchbreaks. Not only does it feels good physically but also very refreshing to the mind. Let’s face it, being stuck in an office is not in the least bit exciting so it’s nice to get away even for a few minutes.

Grade: Success

February

The goal was for me to make my own lunch and I have done it most of February which is good but failed to keep up starting March.

Grade: Fail (only because I know I could’ve made more effort.)

March

I am supposed to read 2 “mentally enhancing” books. However this month has just been such a whirlwind that I opted for audiobooks, I am half way through “How to stop worrying and stop living by Dale Carnegie” – I don’t know if that will count? Hehe But I did finished reading was “Mummy told me not to tell by Cathy Glass” this is actually in the genre Psychology. It tells a story of a Foster Parent and her struggles with a child she had taken care of. It’s a good book but I wouldn't count this in my "mentally enhancing" books.

Grade: Fail :(

April
I was supposed to start reading Purpose Driven Life but other books got in the way so I still have yet to start so I will just count this as FAIL! However for this month I have been incorporating fruits in my diet which is really good as I don't normally eat fruits so I suppose I've done something good at least. :)
Grade: Justified :p

At the moment I know its looking like a bad start but I’m not losing hope if anything this recap has just motivated me to do better. Cross fingers I have better feedbacks in my next update!

Goals for the next 4 months: 

May

I have been cracking my brain of how I am going to be "emotionally healthy" and finally came to a decision that I should cry more. LOL They say that crying is good for you as it is somewhat of an emotional release, I'm dubious but nothing wrong with trying right? However this is going to be quite a challenge because I'm not one to cry easily, people tells me I'm dead inside. But I figured maybe I just need to 'open the gate' for the river to rush in. So please recommend any books or movies you think will bring me to tears but make sure they are hardcore tearjerker, for reference I watched Titanic and just laughed at dying Leonardo so just keep that in mind. :D

June

Less junk in my trunk, LOL that is unlikely! However I do want to un-junk my diet as I admit I am a sucker for junk food but who isn't?! We all know this isn't good  so I will have to find a healthier alternative. Wish me luck!

July

I am hoping that I would get used to eating less junk food by this month so I will step it up a notch and switch to brown rice. They say brown rice not only will make you lose weight but it prevents you from cancer and as my motto goes: Nothing wrong with trying. :)

August

This might be the hardest I have to put among all my Goals, incorporating Exercise. I honestly hate exercise with passion! But we ought to change that so any suggestions how I should start exercising please let me know. 

I really really hope I'd be able to keep up this Road to Healthy and push myself harder to commit. Words of encouragement are very much appreciated. :)

Till my next update...

Ciao,

jCel ♥

[TRAVEL] Splendid Taipei series (DAY 1)

“A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

… and that single step led us to Taipei. Well figuratively speaking that is!

February 10, 2013 (DAY 1- official)

Unbelievably, I experienced “separation anxiety” the very first night. No matter what I do, I just couldn't get myself to sleep! Jcel on the other hand was sleeping like a baby.  When I realized that it was already 4:15 AM, I forced myself to sleep. The next thing I know Jcel was already preparing for the day ahead.

We left the hotel at 10 o’clock – it was later than we have initially planned but the good thing about our hotel’s location is that, the train station was just around the corner.

Our first stop was the National Palace Museum located in Shilin. The museum is known to be the most famous and most visited museums in Taipei. It is also one of the top 4 museums in Asia. It showcases thousands of antiques that go way back in history of China.

The first thing we did when we arrived was to find a place to eat because we were starving. Fortunately, the restaurant was not hard to find.

And here’s what we did after lunch. Yes, we did try to have our “so-called” jump shot, but as you can see – we have failed! 

At last, we have come up with an idea to video us jumping and later extract the clip of us up in the air.

PERFECTION! 

We definitely have to work on our jumps! (hehehe)

 

Next in our list was the famous Hot Spring Valley. We took a taxi back to Shilin Station where we headed for Beitou Station. 

From Beitou, we transferred to another train which specifically made to go to Xinbeitou. Special because this train only goes to one station and nowhere else. They've decorated it with Bamboo wallpapers and they even have TV screens giving you the gist of its history and famous places to visit in the area.

Thinking it'll be a long walk to the Hot Spring Valley, we decided to have a snack at Taiwan's version of KFC - the T.K.K Friend Chicken 

we met a Geisha along the way

Sated, we headed to Beitou Park, but unfortunately the Hot Spring Museum and the other buildings were closed for CNY. So we just walked around the park. At some point, we actually thought that was it, but we decided to follow the crowd and eventually found out that you have to go up hill for Thermal Valley.

As you walk you will see sign boards showing where you are and which direction to take. In fact, the Thermal Valley isn't hard to find. You just follow the river alongside the road and it’ll lead you there.

There's an area by the river where you can dip your feet which quite a lot of people did. There are also private and public hot spring baths as you walk along.

At last, we've arrived at the Thermal Valley. The most awaited part of our long walk up hill.

The atmosphere was very hard to describe, if you would see in the pictures it still does not do justice. That particular place is one of a kind! But one thing though, the smell of the sulfur was suffocating.

After Thermal Valley, we had to walk down hill again (!), because there weren't any buses or taxis in that area. The only transportation we've seen there are private cars. So I would suggest you wear comfortable shoes for walking.

Next Stop:

After Beitou, we headed straight to Tamsui which was very convenient because it was only a few stations away from Beitou. Originally, the plan was to take a ferry from Tamsui Bay to get to the Fisherman’s Wharf, alas the queue for the ferry was very long and it started drizzling. So Jcel and I decided not to go ahead with it. Instead, we walked around Tamsui Bay tasted their street foods and ended up shopping in Tamsui Old Street.

So that sums up our Day 1 in Taipei, but do not fret because we have more stories to tell. 

Other photos will be uploaded in our Facebook account, but we have yet to organize that so... we'll share the link in the next post. 

Also we have created a Youtube account (yikes!). Yes us Mixxed girls are about to get famous LOL. All our travel videos will be uploaded there so please check out our first video and give us some lovin' :D 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ygn9OhMQ65k

Cheers!

-= bex =- 

[TRAVEL]: Splendid Taipei!

For months and months we planned and thought of all the possible places we could celebrate our birthdays together in advance. If you have been following our travel blogs, each year since 2011 we made it a point to fly out of town for our birthdays. For this year on the other hand, we decided to step it up a notch – we decided to fly to Taipei.

We had an amazing time during this trip and lots of stories to tell, so I've decided to breakdown my blog into a series of entries. Our adventure starts here ….

Day 0.5

February 9, 2013

At 8:35 PM - EVA airline called for boarding. Both Jcel and I couldn’t stop grinning at each other as if we were drugged of happiness. When we finally got on the plane, there were more grinning and giggles seeing that the whole interior of Eva plane that we were on was Hello Kitty themed. All the seats have Hello Kitty Headrest, even the headsets, and the paper bags. It was as if we were on a kiddie ride to Taipei.

At 8:47 PM It was ready for take off. The thought of the plane taking off always makes me feel nervous especially that I've just watch the new movie - FLIGHT. The thought of it ... Gosh! How nerve-racking!

After take off, they served our dinner. Fish fillet and rice together with sautéed vegetables and some meat salad plus a tetra pack of all natural 100% orange juice. The main event on our meal was the utensils; they were Hello Kitty and come in pink colour. They were very cute and kind of gay for the “macho” passengers. Dinner wasn't bad at all; I actually enjoyed it and it tasted good, better than the food I've tasted from other airlines. Coffee and tea were served right after.

The flight only took about an hour and a half, it was as if we only went to Shenzhen. But before we descended, I decided to go to the loo; just as I entered I just can’t stop smiling. The toilet was so adorable! Hello Kitty’s everywhere! The mini cups, the tissue papers, I’m telling you; it was Hello Kitty madness on that plane - but in a good way! :)

You must be thinking where are the pictures of the toilet I'm talking about?But no, I did not take pictures of the toilet, I think it's a little too much if I did that. :).... hehehe

An hour and a half later, we landed safely in Taiwan and the first thing I saw was a firework on one of the buildings that was near the runway. It was as if, welcoming us to the country. There weren't that many people as we were lining up at the immigration so it didn't take long before we headed to the luggage carousel. A similar event happened in regards with our luggage. Jcel's bag came in a little later than mine. Thought her bag was lost again. hahahaha

According to our research our hotel should be near the airport. But we were mistaken. Initial thinking was to take a cab, but I was a little worried about the safety. Nevertheless, we lined up for a cab. A cab officer then approached us and asked where we wanted to go. We showed him the paper we printed out from the website and he then listed the place and address in his record book and told the cab driver. On our way, random fireworks were visible as they were celebrating the CNY as well. But aside from that, the road was very quiet and not what we expected it would be. It took about half an hour before we arrived in the hotel. 

When we arrived, we were welcomed by a very cheerful woman at the front desk. She was  friendly and made sure we've got everything we needed plus she speaks English quite well so communication wasn't a problem.  On the other hand, we were told that we won't have our free breakfast for two mornings because their cooks were on holiday for the CNY. :(

Our hotel was standard. Actually we were expecting it to be worse  but thankfully it was decent enough. They offer you all your basic needs sans the glamour but all is well nonetheless.

So I'll end this blog here, but watch out for more Taipei adventures! 

Cheers!
-= bex =-

Preppin' for a trippin'

I know what you are thinking, what is there to say in preparing for a trip. Truly there isn’t much we can discuss here in fact I can just give you the bulletpoints and be done with it even so we shall try to stretch this topic and see what we come up with.

(Step 1) First of, before you make any plans whatsoever you need to set yourself or with your friends/family/lover a budget. Now this is a “make or break it” kind of thing because you can’t plan to go to Hawaii but only willing to have a budget of 5000(HKD). You need be realistic on how much you can shell out for the trip and make sure to plan around it.

www.pinterest.com

Step 2:

Where? When? How?

These are the questions you need to keep asking yourself when planning a trip. “Where” is like the seed. If you got this right you can then add water which is the “When” then after you need to shed light and ask yourself HOW. “How” is a tricky business because it consists of tickets and hotels as well as your trip allowance.

Step 3:

Get subscriptions to airlines and websites that offer trip packages.

We have a few that we consistently check and make sure not to let “special offers” pass.

www.zuji.com.hk

They offer good prices for plane tickets and packages, which includes hotels. 

www.hotels.com

Good range of hotels you can choose from with good price offers as well. Plus they do a complete refund on your money if you decide to cancel your booking.

http://www.cheapoair.com

Offers tickets only as well as packages even for cruise! Prices are very comparable to Zuji.com but always worth to cross check them. 

Also how can we forget Groupon and Beecrazy. They have good travel promos and packages from time to time so do check them as well.

http://www.beecrazy.hk/

http://www.groupon.hk

Also other airlines that offer awesome ticket promotions, (aside from Cebu Pacific) are:

http://www.tigerairways.com/hk/en/
http://www.cxholidays.com/

Step 4:

Once you are all booked and ready to go it’s time to start researching.

I cannot stress this enough, make a thorough research on the place you are going to.

Things to note are:

• Travel visa --- some countries require this so be sure to check beforehand.
• Dos and Don’ts --- this is due to tradition/religion. There are certain countries that are very strict in dress codes so be aware.
• Weather --- very crucial when packing but it won’t hurt to add in an umbrella or raincoat in your suitcase for just in case.

Step 5: 

Packing!  

Now I have only one suggestion for this and it is to make a checklist. I love checklists. I make them in absolutely everything. Not only are they very helpful they are so much fun to do. 

If you have a checklist, packing should be easy-peasy. But I always make sure to prepare one extra for "just in case". Like if I'm going to travel for 5 days, I prepare an extra outfit. Plus I also like to have one outfit that is semi-formal because you never know when you might go for a nice restaurant or get ask out for a date. *wink*

Another suggestion for packing is make use of zipped-lock bags. I put most of my toiletries and other liquidy items in them. 

For carry-on bagagges, I'm sure we are all aware of the TSA Guidelines, if not please see the picture for reference. 

That's all the steps I can think of thus far.  

Other tips: 

• Have a map of the country, either print them beforehand or lookout for them in the airport or hotel. 
• Get an idea of their means of transportation. Like study the train maps/routes, etc.
• If you are going to a foreign country where English is unlikely to be the main language then make sure to have a translation of your hotel in their language unless you have someone picking you up from the airport. 
• Prepare a list of places you plan to visit with, address, phone numbers and if possible name of the place in their respective language. 
• Change your money beforehand otherwise prepare US dollars as this is the default currency and will be accepted in most countries. 

the map of our hotel in Taipei in Chinese 

to show the Taxi driver :)

I hope you found this post helpful and if I forgot something please feel free to share.

  

Till my next post,

jCel♥

[CHOWTIME] Hip Sushi

Yay! Last night was Sushi night for Jcel and I at Hip Sushi Restaurant in New World Plaza in Shatin.

It sure was hip because everyone seemed to want a table. Fortunately for us, we didn't have to wait.

Our first set of sushi was the Salmon Sushi which is my all time favourite. Considering they are priced equally as the other sushi places this one is a lot thicker.

Next came the Egg Sushi, the yellow pickle sushi roll and rice rolls with cucumber.

Then came the Miso Soup, Tempura and a bowl of salad. The soup was the bomb, the salad was great as well as the tempura. 

The service was average but I have a higher regard on the tea server because she kept serving bottomless HOT tea - non-stop! The place on the other hand was clean and standard.

And the total cost ...

Ratings:

Food: ****

Staff: ****
Place: *****
Price: ****

New Town Plaza Shatin - G/F (1 floor down from City Super)

Sushi price range: $9.00 - $35.00 (HKD)

+ 10% Charge.

Would I recommend this place? 

Yes, because like I said compare to other sushi places this one was worth what we paid for.

Cheers!

-=bex=-