This last weekend I took a little trip up to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. My big homie Ian is from KL, and offered to take me up to his home town for a little R & R. It wasn't my first time to KL, but every time I go its a good one.
We left Friday evening around 5pm to head up to KL, about a 4hr drive from Singapore. Its an easy drive cause its really just a straight shot all the way up. For my NW homies, its similar to the Seattle -> Portland drive. Once we got in we met up with a few of Ian's buddies, whom over time have become my friends as well. We all went out for some food and drinks to catch up...just some good ol' bullshitting over Tiger Beers. Can't beat that.
We capped the night off with some supper....The one thing I really like about KL is the excellent food. Its very similar to Singapore cuisine, but of course each area will add its own twist. So for supper we had the KL style Hokkien Mee...its pronounced like Fucking Mee, and its one of my favorites. Basically its fried noodles, seafood, pork, and black sauce...oh so bomb. Its like Vietnamese Pho, in the since that if you try it once, you will crave it forever. Guaranteed.
..don't let the looks of it fool you.
The next day (Saturday) we decided to take a little mini trip and spend the night at Genting Highlands. Genting Highlands is the original resort casino company of this region...the one in Singapore being the most recent. Since I have been to the Singapore casino so often these days I figured it would be good to check out the Head Quarters. The Highlands are about a 1hr drive out of KL and into the mountains.
Its actually a nice getaway spot cause the mountain scenery is good, and the weather is not so humid at the high altitudes. The other great reason is that its a good place for entertainment. Casinos, Bars, Clubs, Shopping, Theme parks...it has it all.
The short version of my night at Gentings is...Restaurant (dinner) -> Casino (Big winner) -> Bar (drinker) -> Man U (winner) -> Chelsea (loser) -> Hotel room (stunner+dunner)
The mid-lengths is... Went up to Gentings with four dudes looking for a good time...Started out with some curry Chicken dinner, waiter spilled curry on my shirt. All the homies were super stoked about it cause they said it meant I was guaranteed to win...some of the Chinese superstition hype. I didn't buy the hype till I got to the Casino, and seriously couldn't miss....I was seeing the roulette table on some freaky idiot savant shit. Pulled in some winnings and off to the bar, pub, clubs we went!!! Watched Man U score in the 93rd minute with a beautiful header by Scholes to win the Derby, and then watch Defoe and the crew fuck up Chelsea to bring back a chance for the Reds at the EPL title. Next target, Hotspurs.... What a wonderful night.
And there is no long version cause I am lazy....
After the casino and booze I still had some winnings left ready to spend. So I decided to take Ian, family, and friends out to dinner. Of course since I don't know KL quite so well yet I had Ian pick the place. He did a good job cause the food was bomb.my
The place we went to is called Restoran Green View. Apparently its the little local secret, so if you are ever in KL or want to act like you know KL you can name drop the Green View.
Best part of the meal was these crispy prawn noodles or Sang Har Meen. The fresh water prawns are nice and juicy, and the sauce for the noodles is so amazing you know its bad for you...hmmm clogged arteries....
That was my weekend in KL....and the drive back for me was all smiles, I had fulfilled my craving for all the vices....
Loving life in SE Asia, hope one day y'all can join!
I have been the big sluff dogg on the blog, but as promised....an entry on my recent "business trip" to Jakarta...
Indonesia having the 4th largest population overall, and most muslims of any country in the world makes it quite a hectic place. Jakarta is literally jam packed with people. Everywhere you go is a traffic jam, and a what should be a 10 minute drive can take up to 2hrs on a "good" day. Not to worry, there are tons of people walking thru the traffic to sell you bootleg cds, flashlights, toys, snacks....sex, whatever you like. If thats not your thing, you can find someone to wash you car or even sing you a song while you wait. However, the best are the guys who put their lives on the line to direct traffic as if they were a motorcycle cop hired by the government. All for a 10 cent tip, so you can imagine the living conditions.
Of course there is also the extremely rich segment of Indonesia...The land is rich with metals, coal, and oil and there is a group of people who have fully capitalised...the Chinese...obviously. So in my recent business outing, I realized that though Chinese-Indonesians only comprise of 6% of the population they are 100% of my customers. And trust me, they do it up big to show they got money.
Enough Wiki-blog....Below are some pics of a bomb ass seafood restaurant that I hit up...the place is called Bandar Djakarta, and the concept is pick whatever sea creatures they got in the tanks(amazing selection) and have it prepared anyway you want or by chef recommendation. Enjoy the meal, drinks, and sea-breeze!! The food was so fire....bamboo clams, crabs, lobster, squid...hmmmm
Anyway, I loved Jakarta...bars, pubs, and clubs were all just crazy tight!! Going into more details could jeopardize my current situation, so lets just say Jakarta is "spicy" and I highly recommend for a visit to catch a true glimpse of life in SE Asia.
Just got back from Jakarta, real cracking....off the wind chimes.....however, blog on the trip to come tomorrow cause I'm tired as shit.
I will share this....before the trip I picked up Superfreakonomics, cause it seemed like a good flight read, and I also enjoyed the first book. So far the book has been on point, and following in suit with the first. I love all the data these guys collect for all their research, and of course the spin they put on how to interpret the data. Some stellar stuff. I haven't finished the book so I can't quite give my full backing, but I guess worth the read.
I give you some info from the book that I thought was hi-lar-ious....
Indian women also run an outsize risk of unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease, including a high rate of HIV/AIDS. One cause is that Indian men's condoms malfunction more than 15 percent of the time. Why such a high fail rate? According to the Indian Council of Medical Research, some 60 percent of Indian men have penises too small for the condoms manufactured to fit World Health Organization specs. That was the conclusion of a two year study in which more than 1,000 Indian men had their penises measured and photographed by scientists. "The condom," declared one of the researchers, "is not optimized for India."
This of course is not funny because of the high risk of pregnancy, stds, and AIDS that Indian women face, but more so the cause...Now I ain't necessarily the big dogg, but too small that the condom falls off?!?!? bwaaahahahaha...Amazing. Lucky they have arranged marriages in India.... To be honest this one shocked me for two reasons. 1) Indian men hold hands when they walk the streets. Now in my opinion this can only be done if you are either gay OR are super comfortable with your sexuality due in part to your large penis.... 2) Its wrong to think, but going on color I thought Indians would fall more in line with blacks...you know, the one stereotype that black males are happy to assume... 2 theories failed...so I guess India is in Asia after all
If you have any Indian homies, give them some shit. And at the same time be a little less critical of your Chinese homies, cause apparently there is a new kid on the block to be picked on. Ladies, if there are any female readers, maybe you can make all the guys happy by assuring with a comment that size does not matter...
Anyway, thought I would give a little shout so people don't think I have forgot about the blog...I'm out...
Read More......
Oh what a weekend...gambling, hoops, football, and BBQ!!! What more to ask for?
1. Always bet on Red
The homies and I took a little midnight run to the newly opened Resorts World Casino here in Singapore. As of this year Singapore will open 2 new huge Casinos to try and cash in on the success that Macau has seen since opening up their casinos...and Resorts World has been the first to open. Of course I love casinos, but what actually interested me about my recent experience at Resorts World is the Chinese culture and gambling.
Luck and gambling is such a huge thing in the Chinese culture. I know that gambling has a lot to do with luck, but in Chinese culture, luck can be influenced or manipulated to benefit your earnings...or so the they think. I mean everyone here is gambling with their lucky colors, lucky numbers, and lucky charms. Feng Shui is also a key factor, the location of the table or the direction of the Air-con breeze will effect how some of these people will decide their bets. To even mention something like odds and strategy is plain absurd. And while you are engulfed in this atmosphere you can only start to believe a little....
Its pretty nuts, but at the same time I feel the Chinese here up the level of excitement at the Casino. Singapore has replaced the mustached, mullet cut, nascar shirt wearing hick so common to Vegas with the big talking, gold wearing, long pinky nail China man...which in my opinion is way tighter then the white trash of Vegas...way tighter
A couple situations I found awesome
In the game of Baccarat, "player" and "bank" are given 2 cards each. Adding the value of the cards, the person with the higher value wins, 9 being the highest(10 and faces = 0). So before the cards are dealt out all people need to bet on if "player" or "bank" will have the higher hand, or a draw. Then the cards are dealt to the designated "player" and "bank" of that round, which is shifted every round.
Hopefully that wasnt too confusing...so now to the good part. Since the cards a dealt face down, it is the designated "player" and "bank" role to flip them over...However, this isnt done in any normal way. Its starts with a mean ass stare down, then hard core pressing and rubbing of the cards as if to change them, and finally a slow bending of the the card edges to catch a glimpse before flipping them over for the table to see...its awesome to watch and can be quite suspenseful...here in Asia baccarat is the true high-roller game.
Next excitement was at the Blackjack table. Of course I assume most of you know the game so I will not explain the rules. The great thing that happens hear is when the Dealer is in a position to bust, everybody will start to yell, "picture!!!" I guess the face cards (K,Q,and J) are the pictures because of the portraits on the cards...anyway it took me some time to figure it out since the China mans engrish is not so great. Sounds more like "Pick Chah!!!" (If you need an idea on how it sounds maybe can ask Davis' mom to yell "picture" for you) Of course its a great feeling when the whole table is yelling this and the dealer ends up busting...man, the table erupts into huge cheers.
Sorry for the wack explanations, I guess its a you had to be there kind of moment. But whatever...I had a good time and thats what I am trying to say...PS I won cheese!!!
Some tips I found on the net...full article These are some superstitions that are very common among Chinese people:
1. Don't count money during a gambling session. 2. Stay away from sex and females (for men) 3. Avoid seeing monks or nuns before going to a casino. 4. Wear red underwear when gambling. 5. Do not touch someone's shoulder while he is gambling. 6. Females are more likely to win during their period. 7. Don't check into hotels with bad numbers like 4 or 14. 8. Don't enter casinos through their main entrance for it is cursed. 9. Switch on all the lights at home before going out to gamble.
Good Luck!!!
2. Look at the pretty Pony...
I told you it was a gambling weekend. So following in my success at the Casino, Sunday I made it out to the horse tracks. One of my colleagues has the hook-up at the track for free skybox entrance, which also includes buffet!! can you say "baallllerr!!"....
The track here in Singapore is called the Singapore Turf Club, and its pretty damn legit. Not my first time to the races and today confirmed my appreciation for the sport. Maybe I am just a degenerate gambler, but horse racing can be so exciting...cheering on your horse as it comes surging to the front of the pack down the home stretch is an amazing feeling. And it doesnt hurt when you can win some money too...unfortunately my luck ended at the tracks, but for the fun I had, the money lost was worth it.
3. Mid-Major?
Ahhhh yes....The UW Dawgs are in the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tourney. The Dawgs are on super gel mode right now. Everything is working out for us. The D is hot, the fast breaks clicking, and the role players playing them roles...We couldnt have picked a better time to be peaking. Our next matchup is this Thursday against WVU, but I am not scared about what team we play as longs as we continue as we have been. All the pain felt during the early-mid season has become well worth it....lets pray for continued success....
Can I just say, "I love this team"...Q-Pon, IT, MBA, Game Overton, Turner, Holiday and the rest of the pack....how can you hate?
Whose HOUSE!!!!!
4. We BBQing Chicken, thats we doing...
A perfect weekend needs a good meat grilling session with the boys...and thats exactly what went down at the homie Ben's house. Fire, Beef, and Beer. Thats all you need. Around the grill is a great place to kick back and bullshit about whatever is on your mind. It was perfect for me to shake off any stresses left over from the hard work week. Mans Therapy. Even better is that after the BBQ session we turned it into poker night. I guess Poker is like bacon, add it to anything and make it better....Upgrade!!!
5. Bloodypool
And to top it all off, my Team brought back the glory with a good win over long time rival Liverpool. Its not the sweetest victory since it seems anybody could take on Liverpool these days (bye bye Benitez), but a win over Pool feels good any day.
6. My Fantasy
While watching the glorious Man U match at my favorite sports bar, I also had my draft for Fantasy Baseball. Bars with free wi-fi definitely know whats up....anyway this year we did the draft auction style, which was a new change for me. I think it was the others first time, cause the bidding was real ridiculous in the beginning. With a 300 point budget, Pujols went for like 70points. So with all the majors getting scooped I had to deal in that mid-major.
Heres my squad C - Kurt Suzuki 1B - Ryan Howard 2B - Aaron Hill 3B - Ryan Zimmerman SS - Troy Tulowitzki OF - Nelson Cruz OF - Carlos Lee OF - Raul Ibanez SP - Tim Lincecum SP - Johan Santana SP - Roy Oswalt RP - Jonathan Broxton RP - Brian Fuentes P - Carlos Zambrano P - A.J. Burnett
Now Im not the most baller fantasist, but I think my team has got potential. Your feedback is highly appreciated.
PS...This blog was written last weekend so some things are a little dated....ie The Dawgs have been knocked out the tourney, but they made a good run. Bow Down.
Also I have been real sluff with the blog of recent...I apologize and will get back on the horse and ride it tough!
The Brackets are out, the NCAA tournament has started, and we are a couple of days away from the UW Marquette matchup. Super excited, but another one of those situations where nobody in my office or country for that matter could give a damn about US college hoops. Another "I miss home" moment... So if any of you got some brackets going, let me in playa....Dawgs all the way!!!
Also, a big fat "fuck you" to Joe Lunardi for showing the dawgs no love in his picks....
2. Prost!
In exciting news across the globe, my team Stuttgart are playing the final leg of their Champions League matchup. If you guys dont remember, Stuttgart drew against Barcelona in their last match...which is amazing at that....However, with the next game being played @ Camp Nou, the chances of Stuttgart moving on to the next round is next to nill...but I still root for my German "chickens* and hope they get lucky.
So German lesson number 2: Alles hat ein Ende, nur die Wurst hat zwei
3. Tiger's Wood
Is anybody else excited for the return of Tiger?!? No matter what he does off the course he is still my favorite golfer and pure pimp on the links....I guess off the links as well. To me the whole scandal was stoopid, Tigers only real mistake was to get married. 30yr old billionaire professional sports star...all the right reasons to stay single in my opinion. Anyway I will be rooting for him to shut up all the critics....Get yours Tiger...the fans and sponsors will jump back on your nuts once you slip on that green jacket again.
4. Pinoy Panda
My real big homie Leonceo aka The Penning Panda aka The OHP Kid aka Chief is back at his blog (link on the side)...and is writing with fury right now. Seriously doing two a days like its pre-season Texas high school football. Check him out yo, the writing is good and the topics are always interesting. But dont turn trick and switch over to just reading his blog. I would cry >.<
Great game against Stanford today.....The Dawgs D was strong and fast, which made me real happy. Only point of concern was our offense in the first 20minutes. I guess the team was just a little too amped. I hope thats gone now, cause we cant afford a first half effort like that against Cal. However, the poor offensive display in the first half was soon forgotten with all the jigtastic dunks going on the 2nd half. Great show, bravo!
So big game tomorrow to take the PAC-10 tourney, and the chance to really secure a spot in the NCAA tournament. I get to watch the game cause I found a new site, www.justin.tv ... I am so happy -- where has this site been? or where have I been? I felt like an internet noob for not being in the know. Anyway its here and Im happy watching our dawgs do their thing.
Dawgs House!!!
PS...pumped for the Pac-man - Clottey fight. Pinoy Pride!
Manchester United straight crushed AC Milan in their 2nd matchup in the Champions League...meaning Man U will continue on to the next round. For those of you out there counting that means Man-U humiliated the Italian powerhouse 7-2 aggregate in the first knock-out stage...and with Real Madrid also getting knocked out, the chances for the Red Devils to take it all is looking good. Plus it doesnt hurt that Wayne Rooney aka Golem is on a mad goal scoring frenzy. Getting so clinical with it...
PS...Look out for Manchester to crush Liverpool come Mar. 21st
2. Forgive me Dawgfather
The dawgs are grinding it tough right now to try and earn a spot in the NCAA tourney. Pac-10 action starts tomorrow against OSU...definitely gonna spank some beaver from the backside....dawgystyle! Look out for Q-Pon to come thru real jigerish with some nasty dunks. Tatted and ballin in the 206...real strong right now. B-r-a-cket-ology....but logically be learning these hoes biology, obviously, well....hmm Do or Die, ironic
3. Mac Relief
WacBook update: had my broke ass WacBook checked out by an aftermarket repair shop, and was quoted 400 for the LCD replacement. Still pretty steep of a price, but compared to the original 1700 that The *rotten* Apple store quoted, it sounded damn cheap. Gonna be good to have my baby back though....
"We born to fuckin die. In the meantime get money! Fuck a macbook!" - Kappa 00'
4. Oscar Bootleg
Picked up that Hurt Locker on dvd the other day....gotta love the Asian DVD connection out here...Anyway, I was interested to see what all the hype was about, and why my Navi speaking blue peeps didnt take down the Oscar for best pic. I admit Hurt Locker was pretty good, but cmon, sex in a majestic jungle while whispering sweet nothings like, "I see you" was some amazing shit. Hello!?! do I even need mention the glorious acronym, 3D!!!
5. Sluffles McGhee
The race to Phuket training has taken a beating these days...general laziness have kept me out the game for the last 2 weeks, but at least I have been hitting the gym working on those bahh-ceps yo. Planning to hit it hard next week (famous words of the lazy man) Run Kento Run Kento Run!!!! Please cheer me on. Still looking for people to come out to Thailand, any takers??
I know its pretty much 2000 and late, but I decided to start a blog...basically just to give my experiences of life in Singapore, traveling, and random thoughts a place to kick it instead of just my head..my writing is not the best, so I won't promise any life changing posts, but I am sure I can provide at least a laugh or two...
plus I hope this blog will motivate me to go out and do more cool things so that I have shit to blog about, and feel awesome!
