Steamed Eggs With Milk

If you are a fan of pudding, then you will like this dessert! It is so simple to prepare, and it tastes great! I found this excellent site for this recipe. Thanks, Christine!

Ingredients:
3 things only!
2 eggs
50g sugar (I personally find that 50g of sugar is a bit sweet for me. I'll reduce it to 30g to 40g for a less sweeter taste)
250ml milk

Method:

1. Beat the egg with fork. Warm the milk in microwave or stove. Just heat it slightly, don't boil it.
2. Add the warm milk with the beaten egg, add sugar and mix well. It is not necessary to sieve the mixture. Just use the spoon to scoop away the bubbles on the surface of the mixture.
3. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil. Put the bowl in the pan/pot with hot water, use medium fire to steam for 10-12 minutes. By the 5th minute, open the lid of the pan/pot to release the steam, then cover it and continue to steam.
4. Serve while warm.

The texture is smooth, just like tou fu fah. The recipe serves 2-3 persons but I finished it all by myself. It is so irresistible!

Look At Me In Action at Borneo International Marathon 2010

A photo of me in action, trying to run hard to achieve my running goal. heheh. Photo captured by photographer on duty at the roadside and published to the official website. Thanks !
http://www.borneomarathon.com/Gallery/Borneo_International_Marathon_2010/photo1658.htm

Borneo International Marathon on 2 May 2010

Beginning of this year, I decided to join my colleagues in running 10KM in the Borneo International Marathon (BIM) on 2 May 2010. This is the third year BIM being organized, but it is my first participation. I have friends who hook on running marathon after they joined the first BIM 2 years ago. To prepare myself for the 10KM run, and thanks Sifu CY for his consultation, I went for 2-3 times per week of running training at Likas Sports Complex. The training also helped me to conquered Mt Kinabalu in mid March as I managed to build my stamina. However, after the climb, I suffered from knee pain on my left knee for more than 2 weeks. Whenever I ran, i could feel the sharp pain on my left knee. I could not run at all! It was devastating. To make it worst, I bought a new pair of genuinely branded sport shoes. Never bought such an expensive shoes. At the time, I decided to give up in running BIM. The alternate plan is to bring along my digital camera, stroll along & take photos instead. Luckily the pain went away in less than 2 weeks prior to race day. I managed to run+walk for 7KM in one of my training sessions. Hooray! I was confident to complete the race within the time limit of 2 hours.

A total of 8 runners in my office who joined the event. 6 of us (Jefri, Jenny, Alan, Ricky, Walter & I) in 10KM category. All first timers. CY in half marathon (21KM) and Ulai "the iron lady" in full marathon (42KM). Fuyooh! 2 days before the race day, Sifu CY emailed to all of us for few words of advices. Here it goes:

Dear All,
Rather then keep repeating ^_^, better i just email, less then 48 hours to go
1. Sleep alot tonight, tomorrow night you will be most likely 'worried' 'scared' 'excited' to sleep
2. Pin your race number(front/back) tonite, set aside your shoe, socks, jersey, fav underware, watches
3. Tie your timing chips to your shoes tonite
3. Dont eat anything new, dont use anything new
4. Have a plan and stick to it
5. Take one last look at your starting time and race course
6. You dont need to wear extra clothing at Stadium, the hot spot lights are on from 3.30am to keep you warm
7. Warm up, walk a few laps
8. Dont go crazy at the first 2km , stick to the plan, let all the headless chickens run full speed first
9. SMILE for the cameras, you dont want people tag you on face book looking at your shoes or watch
10. Drink at water stations
11. SMILE and look forward at the finish line, you might want to buy the photo :)
12. Have Fun!!!!

And Ulai added on with this:
ENJOY THE RUN, THE PEOPLE & THE SCENERIES!!!! ALL THE BEST!!! BE DUMB & JUST RUN!!!

Huh!? Like that one? Ok la. Anyway, thanks both!

On 2 May 2010, I woke up at 4:15AM to get ready myself. I had a nice hot Milo cereal and chocolate peanut butter flavour of Power Bar as my breakfast. I took 4 tablets of Nu Skin Pharmanexaccel as my energy booster. I car pool with Jenny & Alan to Likas Sports Complex. We arrived there before 5:30AM, it was still dark. We met CY & Frankie at the Start Line who were getting ready for the half marathon run. We managed to witness the start of half marathon and cheered our friends who joined in this category.

Fresh looks before the run:

Start/Finish Line

By 5:50AM, all 10KM runners were asked to gather behind the Start Line. Group of us still chatting & joking even when started to counting down. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 - GO! It was so crowded that we couldn't really run at all. We had to walk slowly. After we passed the Start Line, then only we could start running. All 6 of us group together while running and still joked along the way. By the time we ran 1.5KM+, near the Likas roundabout, the 4 boys started to prove they are physically much more fitter than gals. They were way ahead of us. Jenny was behind me. I noticed that I could run non-stop for more than 2KM, which I have never tried that during training. hehe. So I kept running and running. And of course walked also la. In fact walked more than ran. hehe. Well, I was a rookie mah.

10KM route map

The stretch of road at Tanjung Lipas was expected the most dreadful part of my 10KM run . However, thanks for the nice sea view, it did not seem that bad at all. I quite enjoy ed running in the middle road whereby normal days we only get to drive on it. And when it came to busy junctions or roundabouts, there were policemen stationed there to control the traffic and you could cross the roads in style :P

By the time I entered the KK City roundabout, I felt happy because the U-turn was not far away. We were given a ring band when we made the U-turn. I had no idea what it is for. I thought running a 10KM can also get a free gift like this. I almost wanted to ask the volunteer who gave away the ring band to hand me the next one in PINK instead of BLACK. hehe. But I didn't ask la. So pai-seh. I accepted the black one he gave to me and put on my right hand. And continued to run. At one of the drinking stations, I wanted to take a cup of 100Plus but I took the plain water cup instead. Taste so plain. I took a sip and be the litter bug in KK City, threw the cup away at the road side legally. Hey, that seems to be part of the fun running a marathon. hehe.

By the time I reached Jesselton Point, that stretch of road was smelly because of the rubbish in the sea water. I had to run fast to pass that area. The traffic started to queue up and I had to cross the junction by running fast else I would be cursed by the drivers who were stuck in the traffic jam! On my way running back to the Likas Stadium, the long stretch of Tanjung Lipat became the most dreadful part one more time again. It was about 7AM+, the sun rise up in the sky. It was hot & sunny. The sea view and the misty Mount Kinabalu view is simply awesome. How I wish I had my digicam with me to capture that nice view! Towards the junction at The Peak, I met a familiar face who ran in opposite direction. It was Ulai! She looked fit and steady. We hi-5 & cheered each other up. She had covered more than half of her full marathon at that time. Bravo! There were certain part of the routes I was running alone. I had this feeling. It was the same bad & lonely feeling when I climbed the Mount Kinabalu in March. I felt demotivated. Somehow I told myself I need to run fast to catch up with those in front of me so that I have running partners. haha.

I crossed the Finish Line at about 7:25AM. At the Finish Line, we supposed to swap the ring band for the medal. Oh! That's what the ring band is for. Now I know. Haha. My 10KM run took about 1 hour 25 mins, which meet my target of completing the run within 2 hours limit. Not bad, right? Hehe.

KKIPC 10KM runners with their "medals"

Taste of glory:

Post run happy faces:


My achievement:

For more info about the BIM, check out its official website. I was never into sports even when I was younger. However, this year, within a time span of 1.5 months, I climbed Mount Kinabalu and completed a 10KM run. Not bad at all. And I feel grrrrrrrrrrrreat!

Journey to Conquer Mount Kinabalu : The Climb

This is the Mesilau trail to Laban Rata. Hmm... looks challenging. Can we make it?

My climb pass

16 March 2010
This is the BIG DAY!!! After the buffet breakfast at the Mesilau restaurant, we proceed to the Mesilau Operation Room, where we bought the strong & steady walking stick at RM5 each. We paid porter service, 1kg @ RM9. My backpack is 7kg, so cost R63. Worth it! I had another backpack at 3kg+, which contained water, food, medicine. I am not going to carry 10kg of backpack to the peak. No way man.

The starting point:

Our guides cum porters. The one in red shirt, Jack, is a cute guy :P

We hired 3 guides for our group. They gave us a short briefing before we departed. By 8:30AM, we started our journey. The beginning of the journey is staircase all the way up. After 10-15 minutes climb uphill, I started to feel out of breath. By then I remembered the advice given by my dear friends - Ulai, Lorna, Jefri, CY - they told me : "Walk at your own pace. Go slow. Take your time. Don't rush!" ... So i started to slow down. And I felt much better after a while. I didn't even feel the time past after I walked for over an hour. We met other group of climbers. I started to enjoy my climb, appreciate the nature around me. Amazed by the fantastic view in front of my eyes.

When we started to enter the forest, I noticed that I was on my own, as each of us has different stamina. Some walked faster and some walked slower. I was alone in the forest for 1-2KM. The trail was clear. I was not scared. I told myself to enjoy every steps because that could be the the one and only time I climbed Mt Kinabalu. So I better enjoyed myself. I didn't really feel tired or hungry at all after walking for 1-2 hours. I saw beautiful waterfall, bridge and some pretty plants in the forest.

Some nice scenes & plants along the Mesilau trail :





cute little T-shaped fern

Pither plant...

I met David along the way. We accompanied each other for the rest of the journey until we reached Laban Rata. I enjoy his company as we both like to take photographs and it was nice to have someone to chat with for such a long walk. Some of the photos I took along the way when i walked together with David:

My climb buddy, David Goh

This is the place where we had our packed lunch provided by Sutera Sanctuary - sandwiches, hard boiled egg, apple & 500ml mineral water.

boh lat...

This is where the Mesilau Trail meets the Timpohon Trail and share the same trail all the way up to Laban Rata

Porter service @ RM9 per kg

Wah!




I hate this long stretch of yellow road... they seem never ending.

I think towards the last few hundreds meters towards Laban Rata, I started to feel tired and sleepy. I couldn't wait to arrive at Laban Rata, to eat my dinner, take my bath and get some sleep. It was a long day. I literally dragged myself walked uphill and finally there it is: Laban Rata! This is the place where limited accommodations are provided for climbers to stay overnight before embarking the journey to the summit trail. That's why climbing Mt. Kinabalu requires 6 months advance booking. I reached Laban Rata at abount 5PM. Dinner was served at Laban Rata Resthouse, buffet style. The food was not bad at all. We stayed at Gunting Lagadan Hut, which was located 10 minutes further up from Laban Rata Resthouse. After the buffet dinner, I was really tired. Luckily Tan Ca volunteered to carry my backpack and led me to Gunting Lagadan Hut.

Laban Rata Resthouse

Gunting Lagadan Hut is just a wooden hut, with common bathrooms, toilets, kitchen and a number of rooms. Each room has 4 beds. I shared room with Ming Pei, Kenny and Yann. There was hot shower in the bathrooms but we need to take turn to enjoy the hot shower. If someone is taking the hot shower, then next bathroom may not have hot water or even no water at all. After the bath, we stayed in the room for chit-chat. MP told me that before she came to KK, our old friend visited her and shared his climbing experience with her. He climbed Mt. Kinabalu before he had the car accident and he now has no second chance to climb again. So he hoped MP would be able to make it to the peak. We also talked about an old friend who passed away last year. It was very sad and I still get emotional when we talked about this. After the chit-chat, we went to sleep. I was not sure whether I really manage to sleep at all.

The tired looking aunties at Gunting Lagadan Hut...

17 March 2010
We woke up at 1:30AM to get ready ourselves for the summit climb. We started the journey at 2:45AM. Most of us "wrapped" ourselves up with layers of clothing, masks, gloves etc. But less than 10 min from the start of the hike, I started to feel hot & sweaty. I wore 4 layers of tops and 2 layers of pants! It was a long walk in the middle of the night. My RM11.90 headlamp did a brilliant job in the dark. The wind breaker and 2 layers of gloves I borrowed from Ulai & Lorn proven to be so helpful. The wind was very strong. I walked 1 footstep by footstep. I looked up and saw the sky filled with stars. They looked so pretty and seemed reachable! When I looked back, I saw the lights from the Kundasang town. So tiny. And yes, we were standing at almost 4,000m high in the mountain. From far, I could see the lights in KK. Awesome. It was dark, very strong wind. I kept looking down on my own footstep and kept walking. Whenever I felt tired, I refused to sit down and rest. I just stood there, paused, caught my breath, then resume walking. I also refused to look up and see the trail of torch lights from far, as it is kind of demotivate me if I see there is still such a long way to go. So I kept looking down, just pay attention on my RM4.50 "kampung adidas" followed the white rope leading me to way. The wind was so strong that I was "pushed" by the wind twice. Whenever the wind blew, I slowed down.

Towards the last few hundreds meter to Low's Peak, it gets much harder to climb. I was actually climbed with my 2 hands & 2 feets, cannot really walked at all. It was tough. I met Uncle Ee, his headlamp has run out of batteries, so he followed me instead. For every few footsteps, I needed to stop and catch my breath as the oxygen level in high mountain is much lesser. Whenever I stopped, I turned back and shine the headlamp light for Uncle Ee to see his way. Finally, at 5:35AM, we reached the summit of Low's Peak, at 4095,2m. We found a spot to sit down and rest. The peak has limited space as it's very rocky. A lot of rocks there and a lot of climbers too. Later on, we saw the other group members all arrived at the peak. It was very cold. My kept shivering. We sat there & waited for the sun rise. I had tears in my eyes. I was tired, cold, so tough for me to climb to the peak and it was also tears of joy as finally i made it.

By 6:05AM, we witness the sun rise. The sky has a beautiful ray of blue light. I have seen nothing like this. The sea of clouds was so beautiful, it always stuck in my mind now. The view is simply awesome, so undescribable unless you see it for yourself. I was amazed by the beautiful scenery right in front of my eyes.

The RM4.50 Kampung Adidas rubber shoes which helped me to conquer the Mount Kinabalu. Love it !

By 7AM+, we descended to Gunting Lagadan Hut to pack our bags and went to Laban Rata Resthouse for lunch. We started to descend from Laban Rata at 11AM and arrived Kinabalu Park HQ at 3PM. We used the Timpohon trail when going downhill. So for this trip we covered both the trails of Mount Kinabalu. Timpohon trail is 2KM shorter than Mesilau trail and less scenic. It is mostly wooden staircases to go all the way up to Laban Rata. I didn't take any photos at all during descended as our group could not wait to go home. After we arrived at Kinabalu Park HQ, we had late lunch at the Balsam Cafe. My legs were so sore. We chartered 2 taxi and arrived KK around 6:30PM. By the time I arrived home, I soaked my feet in nice warm water, rubbed lots of Counter Pain muscle cream before i went to bed to have a good rest.

More photos taken from Low's Peak:

My tired look when arrived at Timpohon Gate:

18 March 2010
When I woke up in the morning, I noticed that I had slight sunburn on my cheeks. So I made facial appointment to rescue my face. The rest of the group members went for White Water Rafting at Padas River. Wow! They are like ironmen and ironwomen. After the climb and now water rafting? They spent 1 whole day for the rafting. I met them for a late dinner at Kampung Air at 10PM together with Hai Chuan and wife.

19 March 2010
The group supposed to go for island hopping before they flew back to KL, Singapore and Penang. But they were all too tired for it. Some decided to stay back at the lodge to rest. Some went out for shopping. I met up with them at Handicraft Market. And we had a surprise visit from Yee Peng, who came to KK for a 1-day business trip. What an coincident! It was like a mini Jit Sin reunion at KK that day.

Marina Club @ Sutera Harbour

After they checked out from the lodge, I fetched David, Tan Ca, Ming Pei and Suki to the airports. We dropped by Sutera Harbour for a quick tour at Marina Club. We spent about half an hour for photo taking there. Then proceed to KKIA to send Suki and the rest at T2. I spent the whole afternoon accompany them at T2. We had lunch together and sent them off by 5PM. This trip has been so wonderful and meaningful for me. Thank you all - Kenny, Yann, Ming Pei, David, Tan Ca, Chin How, May May, Mayjean, Siok Yen, Suki, Fiona, Uncle Ee, Paul and Mei Lan, for sharing this unforgettable experience with me.

My achievements ...

Climb again? Sure yes!