My Summer Getaway Day 3: Bol, Island of Brac

Heyyyyyyy!

In my previous blog I shared about my Day 1 and Day 2 in Hvar. Hvar is a very small town, Bing and I basically spent our Day 2 touring the town. On Day 3, We decided to head to the Island of Brac. Bol is reknown for its most popular beach, the Golden Cape which mostly composed of pebbles that visibily shift with the tidal movement.  

Actually Bol wasn't in part of our schedule as planned. We came across Bol when we were walking along the Hvar port, where there were a couple of tour companies selling the tour package to Bol. The package includes boat ride to Bol, with lunch provided, leaving Hvar 9am and returning to Hvar around 6pm. Bing and I thought it's a good idea to go to Bol since we have almost done with sight seeing in the town of Hvar. It's advised to get your day tour ticket in advanced as the boat has limited seats available. 

Annyeong! Early in the morning we are all prepared to head to Bol! The sun was so lovely and immediately I picked my seat at the upper deck where I can enjoy the sunshine. One thing I really like about Croatia is its weather. The temperature is cooling while the sun shines brightly, well, that means higher chances of getting sunburn too. D= Because of the cooling temperature you aren't aware that how much of UV you're being exposed to. =X

Anyway, Bing has his graduation ceremony to attend in a week's time and he was so afraid of sun. During our previous trip to Santorini he got so tan and every friend commented he looked like a construction worker. =X So we decided to move to the lower deck and enjoy only the sea breeze. 

The boat stops at the bay in the middle of the journey to Bol. Almost all of the angmoh on board dived into the water. They really enjoy the sea and the sun! How I wish Bing could come with me, too bad he doesn't know how to swim. 

Finally, after two hours of boat ride, here we are -- The Island of Brac! It is a very quite island, not much of population. The Golden Cape was quite a distance away from where we got off the boat, so we took a 15 minute train shuttle to the beach.

Look! How clear the sea water is! To be really honest, this is so far the cleanest sea water I've ever swum in! The water was so clean that you can't even find any debris floating around, and you can see little fishes swimming in the water. 

And here comes the mandatory selfiesssssssss! =P Bing was kinda shy to reveal him tummy tho. Lol.

All the photos are taken using my Sony Experia Z2. I would say the quality of the photos are pretty good for a smart phone. And thanks to Sony that has this waterproof feature, all the photos were taken in the sea without any worries of spoiling my phone!

Ohh yea, since I mentioned that the beach of Golden Cape is composed mainly by pebbles, it was quite a pain walking barefooted along the beach! Bing and I, our feet got so sore after the whole day, so I would advice anyone of you who are going to non-sandy-beach to get a pair of beach shoes. 

  

The sunset view basically sums up our day trip to Bol. Actually the trip was nothing much, but I really appreciate the crystal clear sea water, beach and sun! If you're a beach type of person, this place is highly recommended!

♥xoxo♥

Make Up 101: Foundation Part #1 -- Prepping your skin

Heyyyyyy!

Spent my last two weeks in KL for some job interviews. Just got back in Penang and I'm still waiting for the replies.

Current status: Awaiting replies.

Well actually I've gotten an offer from the other company but, uhm I'm not too sure whether to accept or not because I have a better company that I opt for in mind. Fingers crossed they get back to me soon!

Since I have more of free time now, I'm trying to make it a habit to blog, at least once per two days. Being able to be a make up artist has been my dream, so I thought I might as well self-learn and brush up my make up skills while I'm waiting for the replies.

And here comes my Make Up 101 series, which I will be sharing the make up tips and tricks to all the beginners. I've attempted to make a few videos about the topics but I feel too awkward to talk in front of the camera at the moment. I'm sure I will be improving over the time, meanwhile just bear with me that I will input all information in words.

Let's start with the basics!

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Foundation

I would say foundation is the most basic, entry step to make up. Foundation changes a person's look, eg: skin colour, skin complexion, even out skin tones and give her a more refreshed, awake look. I used to have acne problems, which left me with some pigmentation after recovery. Foundation is now my daily essentials to even out my skin tone and give me a more awake look with smooth complexion.

It's very important to prep your skin well before you apply your foundation, especially people with very dry or very oily skin. Foundation adheres to your skin well only when your skin is well moisturized. Very dry skin would result to very cakey, flakey look, while your foundation "melts away" when your skin is too oily, both cases aren't flattering at all.

To prep your skin:

1. Moisturizing 
Remember to apply toner and moisturizer after your routine cleansing. Your foundation adheres better onto a well moisturized skin, results in a smooth complexion. You might want to plan to do scrubbing once per week to remove any dead cells, hence increasing the efficiency of your skin to absorb moisture when you apply your products. After scrubbing you can also apply hydrating mask to enhance hydration in your skin.

2. Sunscreen

UV rays are the most important factor that causes aging in our skin. I would recommend using a sunscreen with SPF 20 to 30 for daily usage. Avoid using sunscreen with too high of SPF unless you're required to expose to direct sunlight. Using high SPF sunscreen increases the chances of pores being clogged which eventually leads to break out. 

yAnyii's tips:

1. Oil Cleansing

I remove my make up using baby oil. You would probably think "Isn't baby oil too oily and will clog your pores?!" The answer is no. I have combination skin and baby oil works just nice on me. I have tried other make up removers like the Kanebo Cleansing Oil, Avene Make Up Remover and the Maybelline ones, but none of them give me the results like baby oil does -- cheap, clean, effective and hydrating. During oil cleansing, the oil-soluble dirt traps in the baby oil and they are removed together when the baby oil is washed off.

However, facial products are always very individual. The products that suits me do not necessarily work as well on your skin. The only way to get to know which product suits you most is to test it out. 

2. Daily routine cleansing

After the oil cleansing step I would proceed with normal cleansing using facial cleanser. I recommend washing your face maximum twice per day, as excessive of washing would strip off extra oil content from your skin, leading to drier skin which your skin then tends to secrete even more oil to compensate with the oil that being stripped away due to excessive washing. 

3. Face Scrub (once per week)

The accumulation of dead skin cells would also hinder the absorption of moisture into your skin hence result in dull and coarse looking skin.  However, excessive scrubbing would lead to very dry and therefore sensitive skin. Ideally, a person should just do scrubbing once or twice per week to prevent any unnecessary damage to your skin. I would recommend doing scrubbing at night before sleeping as the sunlight in the day would destroy the new skin cells if you were to do scrubbing in the morning.  As for people with acne problems, I would recommend to avoid scrubbing as scrubbing irritates your skin and causes your acne to be more inflamed.  

4. Face Mask

Your skin has the maximum ability to absorb moisture right after scrubbing. Pamper yourself with hydrating or collagen masks and your skin will thank you so much. Keeping your face masks in the fridge prior to application can further soothe your skin, results in smooth complexion with minimized pores.

5. Toner and Moisturizers

HadaLabo has been my all time to go toner. It is really moisturizing and my skin always feel so supple after applying it. I use also HadaLabo moisturizer, however it might be too heavy for people with oily skin. For people with oily skin I would recommend gel moisturizer instead. 

You would probably think that this blog post has nothing to do with foundation. Trust be, taking care of your skin is way more important than having good cosmetics / make up. Once you have well moisturized skin, your skin will always stay healthy, and your make up will turn out natrually smooth and flattering.

Stay tuned for Make Up 101: Foundation Part #2 -- Primer.

♥xoxo♥

Boat Noodle

Boat noodles were originated from Thailand, which I read on the internet (I forgot what's the source) they were actually served on the boat. The boat noodles were purposely served in very small portion to prevent the soup from spilling all over the place as the boat sails.

Wondering what boat noodle is, Bing and I went to this boat noodle shop in Kuchai Lama on a weekday evening. This shop is the relatively less-famous one, compared to the one in Jaya One and Empire Damansara. 

Zap Zap Boat Noodle serves boat noodle in 4 flavours: Original (Soup), Original (Dry), Tomyam (Soup), Tomyam (Dry). For each flavour you get to choose to either go with Thai Koay Teow or Mee Hoon. 

Original (Soup).  Thai Koay Teow served in brown, salty soup with a tinge of herbs.
Tastes better with additional fish sauce and sugar.

Original (Dry). Thai Koay Teow served in brown gravy with herbs.

  

Tomyam (Soup). Thai Koay Teow served in Tomyam soup. The Tomyam was rather sweet than the
conventional spicy/ sour soup base. Bing's and my favourite out of the four flavours.

Tomyam (Dry). Thai Koay Teow served in brown gravy,tomyam paste and chili flakes.
Just like the soup ones, the tomyam taste rather sweet than the conventional spicy/ sour taste.

Each bowl of boat noodle costs RM1.90. Anyone would think that it's pretty cheap, until you realize how small the portion it is.

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YES. This is how SMALL the portion is. I can practically finish one bowl within a mouthful or two. Bing and I had 8 bowls each, which we are not even considered as huge eaters. An average person would need to finish 10 bowls to just nicely satisfy his tummy, which all added up to RM19.00. RM19 for thai noodle?! To me personally I think it's a bit too much, not really worth it.

I lost my phone

Remember that I was showing off my less-than-one-week-old phone when I was in Hvar?


I lost my 2-months-old phone yesterday when I was at the KLCC career's fair. 


I was busy filling in the forms provided at the booth and so I placed by phone back into my bag, but I was unaware that my bag wasn't zipped up properly. My instinct asked me to check my bag and *pooof* I realize my phone was missing. Quickly I asked the career's fair crew to call my number and immediately it went into voicemail. I was pick-pocketed. Lucky enough my purse was still in the bag, and I have my friend with me and we immediately lodged a report.

Lesson learnt. To all ladies, please REMEMBER TO ZIP / BUCKLE UP YOUR BAGS AT ALL TIMES. Do not leave your bags unattended, and always carry your bag IN FRONT of you so that you can keep an eye on it. If your bag couldn't be zipped or buckled, always use a scarf to cover your stuffs in the bag.

Remember to change the passwords of all accounts synced in the phone to protect your information from leaking and fraud, once you realize your phone is stolen. Go to the nearest store of your telco provider to report loss and retrieve a new sim card. To prevent any lost of contact numbers, always back up before anything happens.

To the person who stole my phone, stealing is not the way you get easy money or the things you want. Everyone earns (money/reward) to get the things they deserved. KARMA will find you.

My Summer Getaway Day 1 & 2: Hvar Island

Heyyyyyyyyyy!

I'm not too sure if most of you heard of Hvar Island before, but just in case you don't, Hvar is an Croatian island situated in the Adriatic Sea. Previously I have always thought that Croatia is a famous travel spot with beaches, sun and sea, but when I told my parents (very excitedly) that I'm planning my graduation vacation with Bing, and we are planning to go to Hvar, Croatia, their first reaction was

"What is Cro......? Uhm, are you sure it's a famous travel spot? It's name really sounded alien-ish. Are you sure it's safe to go? I don't want you ended up being trapped by an alien."

And fyi, you can't get to change Croatian Kuna (Croatia currency) easily from any currency exchange counter in Malaysia. So I guess Croatia is really a not-so-popular country among Malaysians. =_________=

To get to Hvar Island, we flew from London Gatwick Airport to Split Airport, took taxi to the Split port and finally took Jadrolinija Catamaran to Hvar. To be very honest, it's quite inconvenient to get to Hvar Island, reason being the catamaran does not come very often (the catamaran only comes 5 times per day) and the journey is not very luggage-friendly. Bing and I literally spent 8 hours on travelling from London to Hvar Island, and there goes our day 1 in Croatia. However if you don't mind travelling, you WON'T regret travelling to Hvar despite the uneasy journey.

Anyways, enough of Geography and get ready for photo spamming!

To be really honest, the scenery of Hvar Island is breathtaking! We spent our day 2 just walking around the town area and went to a few beaches. What a relaxing day! Photos are all taken using Sony RX-100.

The Hvar town. It was really relaxing walking along the port enjoying the sun and sea breeze. The temperature when I went wasn't that warm yet, it was around 23 degree Celsius which is a very chilly, nice weather to a Malaysian! Btw, this is where you catch the catamaran travelling to other parts of Croatia.

Another part of Hvar town. People in Hvar are just so nice and friendly! Bing and I stayed in a homestay, ran buy a local family called Apartment Teo. Teo, the owner of the apartment was really warm and friendly. I would say his hospitality was one of the best that I have experienced. The apartment is not the luxurious type, but it's a very comfortable and clean place for you to experience the locals and mingle with the tourists throughout your stay. Highly recommended! You can book a room here.

The beaches in Hvar are all rocky beaches. Bing and I were told by Teo that Hvar has very beautiful beaches. But it was sorta a disappointment to us at first when we saw the rocky beach as we were expecting sandy beaches. Ha! After all, rocky beaches ain't that bad too! The water is sparkly, clean and clear. Except that both our feet are in pain barefooting on the rocky beach.

Our first lunch in Hvar Island. The food and service were both very good. I like their dessert pancake best! I guess I was so excited with the dessert that I forgot to take a photo of it. And so sorry I have forgotten the restaurant name!

Me showing off my less-than-one-week-old phone. Sony Experia Z2! The best smartphone ever!

We then hiked up all the way to the top of the hill through the fleet of stairs to the castle for sunset.

Sunset at Hvar Island.


With love.

I think that sums up my day 2 in Hvar Island. Stay tuned with the rest of my journey in next blog entry! I'm going to Bol in my next blog entry! 

♥♥

30 Days Challenge #1

I.... I.... I have a confession:

I have the habit of picking or biting my nails. 

It's pretty bad, I know. I have this habit of picking my nails since 5 years old. I pick my nails almost all the time: when I'm bored, when I'm nervous, when I'm anxious, when I feel insecure, when I'm in deep thoughts. I have attempted a few times to get rid of this habit, but I don't know why they didn't work out. Aih. 

And it can be as bad as this. WARNING!! HORRENDOUS NAILS  

I always feel ashamed to show people my fingers and it really took me hugeeeeee courage to attach this photo of my HORRENDOUS nails on this blog entry. I have always hoped my nail to look like this instead.

Soooooo nice right? So I've decided to start my first 30 Days Challenge to END my nail picking habit. 

How does my 30 Days Challenge work?

1. Set a goal. 

• You have to be clear with the OBJECTIVE that you want to achieve. Once you set your goal, think about HOW you want to achieve your goal and WHAT should you do to achieve your goals. 

• In my case, STOP NAIL PICKING. Let it grow naturally, trim only when necessary. STOP PICKING. 

2. A reward system. 

• Everybody likes reward and being praised. Who doesn't like it? Set a REWARD for yourself when you achieve your goals, so that you're always MOTIVATED and looking forward to achieve your goals.  

• In my case, my reward system will be a cumulative reward system. For each day I succeed in controlling myself in picking my nails, I earn a point. Likewise, I will lose a point for the day I failed to control myself from picking my nails. Each point cost RM2. And by the end of challenge I will get to buy myself a gift, with the budget based on the points I earned throughout the challenge. 

My 30 Days Challenge #1: Stop Nail Picking starts TODAY!!

What's your weakness that you have been longing to correct? Try this method and I hope you can get rid of that weakness! Good Luck! 

    

♥♥

It has been awhile

Heyyyyyy!

Just a short update.

Life after graduation has been so exciting that I have almost no time to sit down and blog. Have been travelling since June to Bangkok, London, Croatia then back to KL again for my graduation. Finally back in Penang with my family so I'm sorta half settled down in Penang.

Current Status: Job Hunting. 
Aih. Job hunting ain't fun. No don't get me wrong, I'm super looking forward to my working life, but the time while I'm waiting for the replies from companies is terribly torturing T_T I have loads of questions floating in my mind. "Am I competent enough to stand out among the applicants?" "Why are they still not replying to me yet?" "Will I be able to get a job?" "What if I don't get a job" yadaa yadaa yadaaa.. These questions really upset me =(  Nevertheless, I'm sure I will overcome this SOON. I will get a job and I will love my new job. It's just the matter of time. *positive positive positive*

Now, let me share something fun before I'm able to share my career good news to everyone. Photosssss!

Thailand

London

Croatia

Graduation

These sums up my summer break. I will blog my experiences in Bangkok, London and Croatia and also my graduation in detail soon since I have plenty of time now while waiting for interview replies. Stay tuned!

♥♥