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2 weeks ago
~Durian Fever!!!~
Posted by ZuLaiShah in Family/Friends, Food/Recipes on Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Last last weekend, we went back to my hometown ----> Melaka!!!
On the way back, we had to fetch my brother from KLIA whom just
arrived from Jordan ---> cuti laa~~
Then, we went straight to my parents' clinic ---> nak btolkan gigiku!!! + scaling etc etc [F.O.C]
After that, we had our lunch and went back home
That nite, my dad bought 2 big boxes of durian!!! Nak celebrate anak-anak dia balik ---> pengsan!!!
The Durian!!!
We had a blast of durian fever!!!! ---> risau demam ni
I ate more than 10 pieces....ahhhhh so delicious!!!! While enjoying the Durian, I snaps some pictures..
Tukang kupas durian
Finally, I get my cousins posed for me as I was trying to snap nice pictures!!! and this is one of it!
The cute little girl
Lepas2 tu...kitorg ni main Travel Trivia sampai pukul 1 pagi. Nak tergolek pikir jawapan!!!
Adios~~!!!
New Gadget for My Baby!!! >>> Dry Box and Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens
Posted by ZuLaiShah in Family/Friends, Food/Recipes, Gadgets/Photography, Information/Knowledge on Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Last Saturday, we went scouting for a Dry Box and 50mm f/1.8 lens. The Dry Box is for storing DSLR camera and lenses. The main function of a Dry Box is to protect the camera and lenses from fungus and body cracks by maintaining a suitable temperature and humidity. Here is the picture of the Dry Box:
Credit to ShaShinki And here is the 50mm f/1.8 lens. Many people recommended this lens as it produces nice pictures with Depth of Field (DOF). I've been eyeing to buy this lens for quite some time now.
Thus, we went asking around at a few shops at Ampang Park, Leos Com was the only shop who sell these items. With his price in mind.. we headed to Amcorp Mall. Here at the mall, we entered J-One shop which was highly recommended by forumers. After bargaining $$$..Finally, we decied to buy at J-One. The owner was nice and friendly but the price was ok..ok only. I supposed Digital Mania Pudu would give even more competetive price.
BTW, I've bought those things and i have no regret!! At all..! The lens is really superb!!!! and I love it very the mucho!!!!
Here are some pictures that I've taken using this lens:
My Handsome Hubby as my 'Model'
Me!!!
Thai Fried Rice with Mango Salad
Pineapple Fried Rice
Hubs!!!
FYI, I didn't put any watermark on these pics...Really lazy to edit...hope nobody steals it!!!
-Daa~~
My Golf Swings..
Almost there...
There you go.. Not bad..This is what happen if you bring your wife to the driving range.. They always have extra things to do other than golfing.. hahaa.. My wife brought her DSLR camera to the range and i soon became her 'model' since there's nothing else there to shoot (other than golf balls). She ends up taking nice shots of me... hehehe...
1st Anniversary Get Away @ Langkawi Island
Posted by ZuLaiShah in Gadgets/Photography, Honeymoon on Saturday, June 13, 2009
We just came back from our '1st Anniversary Get Away' at Langkawi Island 3 weeks ago..
It has been a year since we got married... we didn't even realized the big anniversary date until two month before. A question pop-up, should we celebrate it? After taking certain things into considerations, we decided to go for it. We choosed Langkawi to be our '2nd honeymoon' destination (our first was Hong Kong) since both of us had not been to Langkawi for more than eight years.
During the planning stages.. we did some googling and found out that there are actually nice places that we can fit into our short 3d2n trip to Langkawi such as Mat Cincang Cable Car and Kilim Geo Park. Not to forget, Island Hopping. Next was the date, few days checking the two airlines websites paid off, i found the right date and price. Suprisingly, the cheapest was MAS. As for the room, we spoke to few people for recommendations. Some of them even offered assistance to get discounts for these hotels. With an affordable price, Holiday Villa at Pantai Cenang was choosen.
It has been a year since we got married... we didn't even realized the big anniversary date until two month before. A question pop-up, should we celebrate it? After taking certain things into considerations, we decided to go for it. We choosed Langkawi to be our '2nd honeymoon' destination (our first was Hong Kong) since both of us had not been to Langkawi for more than eight years.
During the planning stages.. we did some googling and found out that there are actually nice places that we can fit into our short 3d2n trip to Langkawi such as Mat Cincang Cable Car and Kilim Geo Park. Not to forget, Island Hopping. Next was the date, few days checking the two airlines websites paid off, i found the right date and price. Suprisingly, the cheapest was MAS. As for the room, we spoke to few people for recommendations. Some of them even offered assistance to get discounts for these hotels. With an affordable price, Holiday Villa at Pantai Cenang was choosen.
Our room @ Holiday Villa - Not bad..With the new DSLR camera that we've bought, many crazy things crossed our minds. We can use this opportunity to take good pictures.. Langkawi offers a huge opportunity of land and sea landscape for us to explore and practically test our photography skills.
DAY 1
Rental Car - The Nissan 1.6l Type R
Arriving at Langkawi, we were greeted by my dad's old friend which i haven't met for more than 10 years, i think. He brought us to our rental car and i was a bit suprised when i saw the car, it was a Nissan Sentra 1.6l TypeR car. It has a huge exhaust and sporty stripes. But what the heck, it's free. I don't mind at all.
A photo of a crab taken at Underwater WorldOur first destination was Underwater World since it is near to our resort. Honestly, I won't go there if it's a normal holiday trip (Aquaria is much better), but since we owned a DSLR camera, it seems like a good testing ground. We actually spent more than an hour there, which normally took people 20mins to finish. That night, we had fresh ikan bakar dinner at one of the restaurant in Pantai Cenang. The food was indeed delicious.
DAY 2
Yacht parked along Kilim Geopark Mangrove River
Kilim Geopark Fish Farm - Raining
The following day, we woke up late and had to rushed to Kilim Geopark Jetty where we were greeted by my dad's other friend. He took us in his one-engine 9-seater boat along the mangrove river to a fish farm. The Floating Fish Farm is located next to a mangrove forest reserve.
A very tame Stringray
Again, F.O.C , we entered the fish farm and were shown many types of fishes. Some of these fishes are very tame. We were even allowed to touch and feed a stingray.. It started to rain and we had to delayed our trip. We were brought to a floating restaurant where we had our lunch there. Ikan bakar lagi.. My dad's friend insist on paying for the food. No wonder la, I was told by my dad that he owned the restaurant.
At the Floating BoatHouse
Eagle Feeding
As soon as the rain stop, he brought us to watch the 'eagle feeding' spot. We were amazed to see so many eagles flying all around us, easily reaching 40-50 birds. The boat driver told us that on a sunny day, there should be more eagles but due to the earlier rain only some of them came out.
Crossing the Cable Bridge
On the observation tower
With a full tummy we head to Mat Cincang Cable Car. Our source of direction was only a map we got from the Tourist Info Centre at the airport the day before. Luckily it was a weekday and there weren't so many people there. Without having to que-up, we board the gondola and head to the top. It was quite a scary ride, even for me since the gondola was small and rocking. There are two levels of observation stations. The first one is a bit lower than the second. You can find a cable bridge at the second station connecting two hills. It has one of the best scenery of langkawi. It felt like crossing the Petronas Twin-tower on the elevated bridge but the difference here, you don't have any walls or roof to secure you and you can feel the wind breezing on your face. There are many steps around the second tower, very tiring for an unfit individual like me. haha..
A nice shot at Telaga Harbour MarinaOn our way back to the hotel, we stop at the famous Telaga Harbour Marina, Pantai Kok. You can find Tun Mahathir's 'The Loaf' breadshop here at the marina. The scenery was amazing. There were a lot of yacths parked along the quay.. Again we posed and took some amazing shots..
DAY 3
On day three, we had to check out early since our Island hopping trip was in the morning. The boarding area was at Awana Porta Malai, 5 mins from our hotel.
Waiting for our boatride
"I swear i saw a mermaid here a while ago..".. hehehe
Getting into the boat was a bit hard for both of us since we need to hop-on from the beach. Aishah was the only lady on board and the rest were Pak arabs. Hahhaa... How unlucky.. We were brought to Pulau Dayang Bunting and Pulau Beras Basah. Dayang Bunting is famous for its' fresh water lake that some people said can speed-up 'dapat cahaya mata'. Am not being superstitious, but that's what i heard.
Welcome to Dayang Bunting Island
At Dayang Bunting Lake
The boat ride was very thrilling since we had to hang on for our lives as the boat 'flew' on the water. Again we were taken to the eagle feeding area and luckily that day, there were more of them. Our 70-300mm Macro lens did a good job capturing these birds. It took us around four hours to finished the island hopping trip. After lunch, we headed to Kuah for the very last time to shop for chocolates and candies.
Got-cha....
We had a great time at Langkawi, and will not hesitate to visit again if given a chance. We left Langkawi with tanned skin as memories.
With a heavy heart we had to leave Langkawi..
Bubye Langkawi.. See you again..
Next round, Rebak Island Marina / Andaman resort. A real-laxing get away vacation...
For more vacation pictures.. please click here
-Hubby signing off-
Golfing..
I have started to pick-up golf, i mean seriously.. Didn't hire pro golfers to train me, i couldn't affored it bytheway... Lucky i have an elder brother who knows golfing. He's the one who teaches me the grips and swings. Thanks bro..
On my first day, i was like.. there's a lot of people at the driving range. And they might be watching me and worst of all, laughing. After a few hits, i was like, who cares.... Who cares if other people laughs at you, which i don't think golfers do. Everyone had to go through their learning period. So, it's o.k to not be able to hit the ball, hit the carpet or even swing your clubs like baseball.
There are nice people though, who'll talk to you and give swing tips at the range which i think is very helpful. You need someone to correct you, then only you'll realized. My honest experience learning golf, it's hard to swing and hit the ball correctly at first (seriously) but in your 4th-5th visit at the range it will get easier and easier.. Provided you hit at least 100 balls per visit. And.. don't forget to take note/remember of how many good hits you get. By doing this, you can monitor your progress and if the number started to go down, you can quickly resolve before it effects and became your swinging habits.
Youtube also played a big role in my golfing techniques. I often watch lessons and tips from the pros and applied at the range.
The most interesting part, I managed to get my wife to come along with me to the range. Not as a supporter but as a golfer herself. I gave her a 9 iron and taught her some swing technique and waaallahhhh..she hitting it like it's not her first time there. 'Bakat terpendam' kot. I guess ladies can learn very fast compared to men. No offense to men out there.So, the phrase:
G = Golongan
O = Orang
O = Orang
L = Lupakan
F = Family
... can't be applied to me.. since my wife's with me ...hahaa.. and she likes golfing too.. One kewl and weird couple huh...
chow..
Our new Canon EOS 1000D..
Posted by ZuLaiShah in Gadgets/Photography on Thursday, June 11, 2009
Erkk... looking at the last date i written a post.. It has been almost 2 months now.. How fast time flies..
Anyway.. thanks for visiting again..
After waiting for a long time, finally we have bought a new DSLR Camera manufactured by Canon. It is meant for entry level SLR photographers like us. Entirely new thrilled experience compared to compact cameras or even Semi-pro cameras.
Canon EOS 1000D Standard Lens
Canon has offered a full digital SLR with an appealing price tag. And i believe it is the price that gives this SLR the right to exist. I didn't hope for any new innovations or spectacular improvements compared to the previous models. The Canon EOS 1000D comes with a standard 18-55mm lens.
Looking at the EOS 1000D, you could come to the conclusion that it is a stripped down version of the EOS 450D, because as a camera the Canon EOS 1000D leans closely towards its 'predecessor' the EOS 400D and the actual model; the EOS 450D.
Arial View
As I mentioned earlier, the Canon EOS 1000D is the EOS 450D camera's twin brother. There are only small details of the housings that give away which one is which. The main difference on the outside is the LCD screen on the back of the camera; 2.5 inch on the EOS 1000D and 3 inch on the EOS 450D. This might be crucial to some people. Personally, we find the 2.5 inch LCD is sufficient to our needs during and also after shooting. The resolution remained the same, 230,000 pixels in spite of the smaller size monitor. The monitor gives a beautifully clear reproduction, perfect to check the captured pictures at their true quality.
The 2.5 Inch LCD Screen
Further more, with the appealing price, we have added one extra 70-300mm Sigma Macro lens and a 0.5x 58mm wide angle lens converter to make this entry level kit to a fairly full range level. These lenses are secured by UV filters. For a more and exiting photoshoot, we were recommended a CPL filter where you can get colour variations in your photo. We were given a nice winer camera backpack to safely house the camera and lenses. Not to forget an 8G memory card, cleaning kit for dust & finger prints cleaning, Screen Protector, Straps and last but not forgotten a tripod. The total price tag is around what you need to pay to get a standard Nikon D90 kit. Imagine having the 'extras' with a lower range DSLR camera compared to higher range camera which only get you a standard kit. With the standard kit you can't really play around much. Upgrades will cost more money of course...
Sigma 70mm - 300mm F4-5.6 Macro Lens
Digital King 0.5X 58mm Wide Angle Lens
CPL Filter
Winer Camera Backpack
Having this Canon EOS 1000D really puts the value to our photography. Although other higher range DSLR cameras quite often obtain better results (technically speaking..), nothing beats the photographer skills in producing an amazing photo.
Thanks for reading..
-hubby-
