Challenge Marathon!

These days I've been looking around other people's blog, as a silent reader and picture browser. One of the websites that I went on (credits: Ruffles Not Diet) mentioned that there's a 30 Day Book Challenge going on in tumblr. Sounds like something right up my alley.

So, I've decided to make this Challenge Marathon a staple to my blog and facebook page. There are ounces of it! Check this out if you're interested!.

Here are some of the Challenges I'm planning to do:

1) 30 Day Book & Literature
2) 30 Days of Television
3) 30 Days of Supernatural
4) 30 Day Hunger Games
5) 15 Day Story Writing
6) 30 Day Film
7) 31 Days Harry Potter

Oh there's too many! We'll see!

Life @ Work: Part of Something Special

Everyone goes through life the way they want it to be.

Some people goes through it searching for the meaning of something, while other take the easier route, living one day at a time and taking each step in a slow and steady pace.

But in the end, everyone wants to know that they have done, or at least been part of, something special.

That something special, is sitting together in one room, all eight (previously nine) of us and grinding our teeth on that tedious assignment. Some of us would be quiet in our seats, going through our notes for the nth time and arranging our scripts so we won't mess up in front of our bosses. Other would be working on the slides, discussing the designs and structures and whatnot so said bosses won't fall asleep when they look at our presentation (which they do anyway, no matter what). Occasionally there would be those profoundly obscene words tossed here and there, and most of the time the poking fun, corny jokes and all around merry laughter that healed us from that dreadful feeling of having our necks dragged into the slaughterhouse.

That something special is, telling off one another when we took things way too far, but in the end patching things up because we all know it was for the best. It is how we turn to each other for support, or rally together to defend one of our own. It is the comfort of knowing that no matter what it is, we're in this together, and we will get out of it as a team.

That something special is, learning something new everyday, no matter what it is, and knowing that each day is a new beginning. It is about understanding each other's quirks and habits and restrictions, and accepting them even if they are not what we're used to.

That something special, is being part of here and now.

Life @ Work: Introduction

Now that I've two and a half months into my new job, I finally have the time and mood to sit down and reflect on what is happening and how and why. All my previous attempts have been half-baked, but I really, really want to sit down and sort out my thoughts and feelings about this new place, the people and the environment.

Being honest, I am grateful and happy to be here. Because compared to the junkyard that I was in back then, this place is paradise. The job is brilliant- I got to blend together finance duties and management assignments, so it's really like being back in university again. The environment is great- large office space, my own huge desk (though I'm still clueless about what to furnish in all that space), full air-conditioning and green outdoors. The people are wonderful as well. I walked with a group of what my father called 'Young Urban Professionals', which really opened a whole different world to me. They are an elite group, one which sin is subjective and not really considered, but their minds are exceptionally brilliant. And yet at the same time I'm friends with my fellow colleagues in Finance, who are more on the conservative side. In short, I walk a fine line between two worlds where good and evil are defined very differently, a grey area. 

Put all of those in together, it is an interesting mix. Everyday at work is an adventure, something new to learn, something challenging to face. I think I learned more in two months here than I ever did for a year in my last job. And here, I begin to know where I truly stood. There's so much that I haven't learned, that I have not achieved. With the friends that I have now, each day is a question of how I'm going to catch up with them. It made me think constantly about what I'm going to be in two, three years' time, because I began to have the fear of not being able to be equals with them one day.

If anyone ever question my fears, I will tell you here why: two of my closest friends at work, two guys whom I had come to know since Assessment Day, were graduates from Australia. One of them was offered a post in General Motors before he chose to come here. The other one is a GENIUS plain and simple. Super pro-active and smart, he just knew his stuff. I remember when I got my job offer, I knew in my heart that this second guy had got the job as well, because I would be shocked if he didn't and I did. 

Then there's a third guy, who made up the fourth member in our batch. He previously worked for Malaysian Airlines, and I heard that he actually got the offer to further his studies in Aviation in the UK. 

As if those aren't enough, let me tell you bout my seniors. Although technically they're all relatively younger than me, I still consider them seniors because they came into the company earlier than me and the three guys. One of them, from what I heard, was a certified MENSA member. Another has research as a hobby, and I think he's an overseas graduate as well. The third graduated from Australia while another I think used to study in the UK. And the only other Finance person in this elite group aside from me, he used to work for one of the top four audit companies in the world, and graduated from a top university in France. France!!

Intimidated yet? Cos I sure am.

Movie Rant: Lessons learned from watching the Avengers.

I never thought I'd go and watch the Avengers the second time in a row. I mean, the movie was alright. In my opinion all the hype has sort of diminished the WOW effect it could have had should it been more low-key. But unlike The Hunger Games, I never had the weekly urge to go and see it every chance I get. Watch it once, get it out of my system, and there done.

However, when a colleague of mine had an extra ticket from her friend, she invited me to come along to watch last Friday night. I decided to say yes cos, come on, it's a freebie to one of the year's biggest blockbusters! Since I didn't write anything about my first impression of the movie, I decided that this time around I'm going to list down the stuff that I learned about our favourite avenging superheroes.

1) Keep it short and simple for the green guy, please.

HULK SMASH!!!!

     I like all the members of the Avengers, but Hulk always has a soft spot inside my heart, purely because he's the most amusing character in the movie. Indeed, Mark Ruffalo is probably the best actor to have ever portrayed Marvel's version of Jekyll and Hyde, playing up Bruce Banner's mild mannered persona as the key to his struggle to keep the green monster in check. But once he transforms, even his fellow Avengers and wary of him (except maybe a certain Tony Stark). Despite being the main character who mainly grunts and roars when he's green, Hulk was amusing in his own way. He is the one they're all waiting for to save the day, and when he does, he comes in riding a putty little scooter. That's the image Hulk carries with him throughout the movie. Sure, he's gonna smash his way around and will probably destroy half of New York City while he's at it, but that doesn't mean we won't cheer for him all the way.

Note to any future villains looking to destroy/conquer Earth: make your acceptance speech as brief as possible. Otherwise you're going to get flailed like a piece of laundry by our favourite temperamental hero. Long prolonged essays makes him angry, and apparently nobody likes it when he's angry.

Oh, and Loki? Here's what Hulk thinks about your plan to take over earth: "Puny Gods."

Hah.

2) Captain America is a class monitor in previous life.

     It's really funny in an ironic way when Steve Rogers and Tony Stark have a go at each other, and Stark would call Rogers "old man", given the fact that Robert Downey Jr. is obviously far older than Chris Evans. But looking at their characteristics, it's not really that surprising. While Tony Stark is, in effect, the star of the movie, nobody can contest Captain America as the leader of the pack.

Why won't you guys listen to me????

Being designed as the perfect soldier, he is always the one to tell the others to quit messing around, to keep them in line and stick to the given mission, whatever misgivings he has with the entire S.H.I.E.L.D.S operations. He broke the fight between Ironman and Thor while the two were having at it after Loki was captured, and told Stark to stop poking Bruce Banner just to test the length of the latter's endurance. Oh sure, some might see Rogers as the wet blanket, but in truth he was just trying to keep order. In the crazy world of being part of a superhero team, there aren't many things that stays put and grounded. Things change in an abnormal speed and even the things they felt they're sure about can be a variable. In a way, Captain America sets out to keep everything together no matter how insane their mission turns out to be.

Keeping a firm head above crisis is one of the key things to being an effective leader, thus it's hardly surprising that despite their constant friction and differences, when the going gets really, really tough, the "don't play well with others" Ironman still turns to Captain America and said, "Captain, orders?"

3) If you're the good alien being, then you'll probably take the most hits (Sorry Thor)

From the moment Thor first appeared on the screen, he seemed to be the one who came out the worst. Out of three Avenger-vs.-Avenger fights in the whole movie, he is in two of them- one against Ironman and (partly) Captain America, and then the other against the Hulk (I know, ouch). His younger brother is bent on taking over the world, and when your brother is Loki (which is the Trickster God in some myth), obviously you're going to get hurt in some ways. In Thor's case, he was locked inside a highly durable capsule and plummeted down to earth, barely escaping a fatal fate, and then Loki went and stabbed him as he tried persistently to reason with him.

I have a hammer. And people still throw me around. $%^%^%#&^*&&&^878!!!

Worst part is (or was it the best?), even after working together to bring down a colossal alien monster, Hulk couldn't resist punching him off the screen.

Don't take it personally though, Thor. Maybe Hulk just doesn't like alien beings. At least you worked really well with Captain America.

4) Be careful when you make a girl cry.

More often than not, the female characters served as the sex appeal in the movies. They are there to spice up the romance elements, the center of our heroes' tender looks and gentle words. The Avengers' individual films have shown this, be it Pepper Potts, Jane Foster, Peggy Carter or Betty Ross. No matter how they all tried to emphasize that these women are strong-willed, intelligent and can hold their own, the fact remains that they are merely there to watch in dismay as our heroes charged into danger.

Hang on a sec. There's this guy who won't take a hint.

In the case of Natalia Romanov, however, the science of female leads in comic book adaptations is being challenged. Natalia Romanov is a spy, first and foremost, and a woman second. It is not to say she did not display any womanly characteristics, it is more the fact that she is acutely aware of certain things that a woman can do, and used them to get her way, and I don't mean this in a disgusting, sexed-up way. She played up a female's vulnerability to a point where the man feels like he's in control and has broken her, when in truth, she's just out there to get what she wanted.

Case in point? When she came in to speak to Loki, it seemed like she was trying to negotiate to save Hawkeye. Then Loki threatened to have Hawkeye kill her, before taking the latter's life himself. Everyone (including me) thought that the Black Widow was cracking at the intense picture Loki was painting, but in the end... she was just getting information for Loki's next plan.

Bravo, Black Widow. Who says girls can't play just as well as boys?

5) I don't care what anyone says, Hawkeye has the coolest skills/weapon.

So I don't get that much screen time huh?

Sure, we've got Ironman and his cool suit, Captain America and his cool shield, Thor and his cool hammer and Hulk and his cool, er, right hook. But regardless what people say about the character Hawkeye, I still think that Hawkeye, with his keen senses and bow and arrow, is the superhero I would like to be if I were to join the Avengers. I mean, who doesn't want to be able to shoot a bullseye arrow to the enemy's neck while looking the other way? Really?

6) Errr.... I didn't really notice Ironman. 


Will not elaborate further on this.
*Ducking laser-fires from Iron fans*

Say that again???

A shoutout to Loki, for being one of the most amusing supervillains I have ever seen. Indeed, some funny scenes wouldn't be funny without him in it.

Ahem, aren't you forgetting someone??

No, Mr Fury. Now, goodbye!

Movie Rant- Wrath Of The Titans: What, Only One Titan?

Here's the deal: I am an absolute snotty brat when it comes to Greek legends.

I'm a person who like to get things as right and as accurate as possible. Hercules did the twelve pillars. Achilles fought in the Trojan War, Jason sailed with the Argonauts and Theseus slew the Minotaur. While I understand the need to mix and match some stories to make them interesting, any form of inaccuracy feels like an itch to me. In the legend of Perseus, the son of Zeus, he saved

So when Hollywood decided to release Clash of The Titans a couple of years ago, I went in with a very critical pair of eyes. While the quality of the cinematography was good and the actors did deliver (it's got Liam Neeson it it, for crying out loud), I can't say much for the storyline. Not only that there wasn't a single Titan in any part of the movie, but they got the obvious mythology wrong. Perseus, son of Zeus, had saved Andromeda from certain sacrifice, but in the movie, he chose the immortal seer, Io, instead of marrying the princess. That is like watching Tutankhamun grown into a 70-year-old man. It's JUST SO WRONG!

This is Sparta...!!!! Oh sorry, wrong movie

Anyway, in the second installment, we see ten years after the whole Kraken fiasco (yes, I will use that word to describe this movie). Io is dead (because, apparently, she turns mortal once she marries) so there's just Perseus and their son Heleus. The gods' powers in Olympus are fading because people don't pray to them anymore, so the walls imprisoning their father, Kronos, was weakening. Hades, Lord of the Underworld, and Are, God of War, decided to use this chance to release Kronos, in exchange of both their own immortality. When Zeus approached his favourite son (really Zeus, how many favourite sons do you have?) for help,  Perseus declined at first. But when a Chimera attacked his peaceful fishing community and threatened his son, he was forced to throw himself into the war, uniting himself with the now Queen Andromeda (whose actress has been changed, they can't even keep that the same) and track down his cousin Agenor, in order to save his then captured father, defeat his raging half-brother Ares and force Kronos (his grandfather?) back into imprisonment.

Really, the more I read the last sentence, the more I feel like this is one messed-up family drama on a large scale.

Is that you, Dad?

The rest of the movie is all about Perseus in hero mode. While I give all those involved credit for special effects, watching the movie is about as fulfilling as watching a Transformers movie. All you see on the screen is explosives, running, yelling- but wooden storyline. The director, writer and producers once again failed to stay true to the Greek Mythology. Agenor is Poseidon's son? Spear of Triam, huh? What is that, the Deathly Hallows of the Greeks? And what makes me annoyed the most: they are still not utilizing all the Titans. Really, people, there are at least twelve original Titans in the Greek mythology. Why throw in virtually unknown lesser spirits like the Makhai, or have Perseus' story mixed up with that of Theseus? You're not a Disney kids' flick, why play around with facts? It's called WRATH OF THE TITANS, not "Wrath of every supernatural force in Greek mythology that can look and sound cool on screen".

"I think I just saw the Black Pearl zooming up ahead"

Just a small shoutout to my favourite actors, Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes. They did really well, though it still irks me that Hollywood seemed to be determined to make Hades a villain almost every time. If you read the myths, he's probably one of the better gods, despite his job of governing the dead. At least he doesn't sleep around and sire fifty dozen illegitimate children all over the place like his brothers and nephews.

My advice to future filmmakers who decide to adapt something from ancient mythology- READ IT UP. I know it can be a challenge to your creative urges to follow everything by the book, but there's a way around it. After all, you get most of the facts right if it was an autobiography of someone who actually existed. Just because those gods and heroes can't sue you doesn't mean you can mess their lives up even worse than it already is.

Movie Rant- The Hunger Games: Surviving Sadistic Game Shows

Here's something I've learned from the Harry Potter franchise: if you want to watch a movie adapted from a book, either go in with an open mind or don't even touch the book until you've seen the movie.

I am a fan of novel adaptations, particularly those under fantasy and science fiction genres. However, it takes a lot to be able to enjoy a movie once I have read the book, because there is the tendency to be extra critical, and to measure just how much the movie had managed to live up and be faithful to the book. I have been disappointed a few times- Eragon, The Other Boleyn Girl and Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, to name a few. So far I can only say The Lord of The Rings trilogy and The Da Vinci Code are the only ones that exceeds my expectations.

Which is why I was careful not to read the Hunger Games novel  before I got to watch its big screen adaptation today. Written by Suzanne Collins, it is the first book of the Hunger Games trilogy, which was told through the eyes of the main protagonist, Katniss Everdeen. The concept of the first book was derived from the Greek tale of Theseus and the Minotaur, where seven young men and seven young women were sent into a labyrinth to be sacrificed to a vicious Minotaur. Naturally these men and women have to fight in order to survive, except in the Hunger Games, they have to do so in national television. In other words: it's a deadly version of Survivor.

See, even the publishing world acknowledges that we have too much reality TV.

In The Hunger Games movie, the stage was set some hundred years in the future in a place called Panem. Panem is governed by a totalitarianism administration called the Capitol and its lands were divided into twelve districts. The state of these districts vary, depending on their specializations and their standing with the Capitol. There was a thirteenth district, but it was rumoured to be destroyed by the Capitol due to a past rebellion. Because of this rebellion as well, that the government organized an annual game called the 'Hunger Games', in which all the remaining districts were forced to send in one boy and one girl, or 'tributes' as they are called. Before the game, every girl and boy between the age 12 and 18 were submitted and chosen in a ceremony called the Reaping. The game itself was simple enough: survive for as long as you can in a dangerous outdoor arena secretly manipulated by a team from the Capitol- even if it means having to kill each other. The last person standing will be declared the victor.

Katniss Everdeen is a teenage girl living in District 12, the poorest and most depressing of all Panem's district. Her father was a miner, as is the majority of the people in the district, and he was killed in a mine explosion a few years ago. Katniss was left to care for her family, raising her younger sister Primrose in the place of their mother, who pretty much became non-functional due to depression after her husband's death. Katniss made a living out of hunting in the forest outside her district, which proved to be an asset to her as she became excellent in suvival, hunting and archery skills.

In the year of the 74th Hunger Games, Primrose was selected as the female tribute for District 12. Since Katniss knew that Primrose would not survive ten minutes in their own forest, never mind the bloodthirsty and competitive nature of the game, she volunteered to take Primrose's place. It was here that she was reunited with Peeta Mellark, the male tribute for District 12 and her schoolmate. Peeta and Katniss had a brief and unspoken history together- he once saved her from starvation. Together they fought for their life and survival, eventually defying the game's #1 rule- only one person may be declared the winner- by attempting suicide via poisonous berries. In the end, the Capitol was forced to declare both of them winners.

Katniss & Peeta

I love this movie for many different reasons. For one thing, anything derived from the Romans and Greeks were obviously very appealing. They are, after all, among the pioneers of storytelling. Also, it is like watching  a cinematography version of Survivor. I like the fact that they showcase different skills of survival among the tributes. One girl tribute from district 5 managed to remain alive until the final five by being stealth and quiet throughout the whole competition. I think she must have been a thief or a pickpocket where she lives. There were also the teaming up of the Districts 1 and 2 tributes- known as Careers- whose strategy was to band together as the supposedly strongest team and picking off their opponents one by one hard and fast. But in the end, none of them showed any real team spirit, and died brutal deaths. There was also the heartbreaking death of Rue, the 12-year-old girl tribute from district 11, which eventually triggered a mini-rebellion in her district's paper factories.

My favourite of all these characters had to be Peeta, whose characteristics is everything Katniss is not. Where Katniss is distant and isolated, Peeta has a likable personality and is easygoing among people. Katniss is good with weapons and tracking, Peeta is strong and can camouflage himself like no other. His survival strategy is also different from that of Katniss. In short, they make an extraordinary team. My only regret, was that Peeta failed to showcase more daring deeds during the game, at least in the movie. Katniss appeared more of the hero while Peeta only served as the faithful and lovestruck sidekick. Perhaps this will change, in future movies, as I believe that Peeta has his own heroic moments in the books.

The storyline of this movie is also favourable. While I have yet to read the books, I could say that the transition from one scene to another is fairly smooth and understandable. Perhaps the flashbacks and hallucinations experienced by Katniss at one point of the movie can be slightly confusing, but the rest of the story was all right. The explanations are compact and served their purposes, without dragging the movie too much. The actions were at the right places, so are the drama.

In all, it was an enjoyable experience and I loved every minute of it. I can't wait for the sequel: Chasing Fire.

Movie Rant- The Vow: Promises and Memories

I will be honest here: I'm not a chick-flick kind of person.

Give me action movies, fantasy, comedy, even drama, and I will watch it to the very end despite whatever my opinion might be about the film. I'll even stomach through one of those B-grade thriller movies where people seemed to die endlessly for one and a half hour and the only memorable script I can find is the ear-shattering scream of that blonde hot bimbo about to be hacked to death. (Yeah, I am that graphic)

But ask me to sit through romantic films, where boy-meets-girl, conflict, boy-and-girl-makes-up, and I will look for the nearest exit. There is something rather uncomfortable and awkward for me to watch a male and a female making out in front of me, even it is on the screen. Plus, I find most love stories to be so horribly cliche. I mean, honestly, no guy in the world would choose a klutzy anti-social overweight girl with ink on her forehead over a gorgeous model, at least not until said klutz has a makeover.

Which was why I surprised even myself by wanting to watch The Vow even before its release date. In fact, I had wanted to watch The Vow before I even caught the whole hype surrounding The Hunger Games. The latter was slated to be the next box-office, is adapted from a fantasy-fiction novel and is more of my kind of genre compared to The Vow. So why this movie?

To be fair, The Vow is also an adaptation of a book, moreover it was based on a true story of Kim and Krickitt Carpenter. Mrs. Carpenter suffered a brain trauma caused by an automobile accident which made her forget her relationship with her husband. However, the couple worked together to overcome this tragedy and remained married to this day, even having two children together. I feel that based on this story alone, The Vow is worth spending time and money at the cinema, because it is different from most romantic movies. It's not about a man and a woman who met for the first time and fell in love and fought to be together. It is about what happens after the happily ever after.

In the movie, The Vow tells the story of Leo and Paige Collins, a young married couple who were madly in love with each other. One night, on the way home from the cinema, they got into a car accident, where Paige  suffered a brain trauma causing her to forget all her recent memories, up to why she had left her upper-class family and a shot at law school to live in a run-down house and become a freelance sculptor. Leo has to come to terms that his wife does not remember him at all, never mind their life together. To make things worse, Paige's previously estranged parents, whom Leo had never met, appeared to claim her back.

While many critics has described this film as 'soulless', I find it painful to watch Leo's anguish and frustration as he struggled to win his wife's heart again, and at the same time having to juggle a diminishing musical career as well as having to fight his in-laws in order to make himself heard. Paige, understandably, was uncertain of her surroundings, and tried to wrap it around her head that she was married to a man she viewed as a complete stranger, as well as trying to reciprocate the feelings of someone who so obviously love her unconditionally.

Perhaps the most heartbreaking was during a scene from Paige and Leo's impromptu secret wedding in an art gallery, where they recited their own written vows off a piece of menu from their favourite cafe. Leo promise Paige that "...no matter what challenges might carry us apart, we will always find a way to each other." It was the very line that highlighted the theme of Leo's character- his fight to honour his vows to Paige on their wedding day, even if she doesn't remember. In a world where we see people divorcing after 72 hours of marriage (*cough*KimKardashian*cough*), it is bittersweet to watch a man fight for his wife that way. Although in Islamic wedding, there is no recital of "To love, honour and cherish.... for better or for worse... till death to us part", that is basically the grounds for any marriage, no matter what religion: Two people who will stand by each other come what may.

The only flaw that I find in the whole storyline was that despite everything he had done, Leo conceded in the end and divorced Paige in order for her to return to her family. I would have settled if Paige had gone to stay with her family without having Leo sign the divorce papers. But then again, even here, there is a silver lining. Returning to her family allows Paige to reconnect with her past, which was crucial to the events leading up to her first meeting with Leo. In the end, it took a whole walk down memory lane for Paige- and the audience- to understand who she really is, why she left her privileged upbringing for an independent life in the city and what made her make the choices that she did. In the end, it came down to Paige, not Leo, to discover her true self.

In short, there are two lessons that can be learned from watching The Vow: We must honour the promise we make to someone, the best way we can. And sometimes, we need to let someone find their own way, instead of pointing the path to them.

The Road Not Taken- Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim

Because it was grassy and wanted wear,

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I marked the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

A Little Morning Adventure in Bukit Cahaya Seri Alam.

Today is the beginning of the year of the dragon, according to the Chinese calendar.

Two days of public holiday plus the weekends mean that the cities are somewhat empty. And my parents have plenty of time to indulge their three children's whims. My brother has been pestering us about going out to the park for a game of badminton or football (Darn the energy of 10-year-old boys), and my aunt has been going after my mum for some exercise. As for me, I have been thinking a lot about cycling- something I love but rarely get to do since leaving matriculation. So yesterday, while in the car listening to my brother whining and mum & aunt arguing, I blurted out an idea to visit the recreational park, Bukit Cahaya Seri Alam, which is at the back of Section 8.

Bukit Cahaya Seri Alam has many names, including Taman Pertanian Malaysia and Bukit Cerakah. Either way, I haven't visited this park for ages. The last time I was here was when I was 12, for a school trip (we nearly got lost in there too). But I do recall an even earlier time when Dad taught me how to bike-ride here. Now that was fun. I remember getting bruised all over while learning how to brake and stop my bicycle- and jumping into a bush in the process.

The fondness of those memories sought me to rent bikes with Dad and my two siblings, while Mum and Aunt walked. It was a pleasant morning too, as the rain has barely ended. The track is only moderately challenging, with the hills going up and down on an alternate basis. This means for us who are biking, there isn't too much uphill cycling while the ones who walked aren't left too far behind. So it wasn't too tiring as well.

In between, we even managed to say hello to two little ponies grazing near their mother's stable, and visit the famous four-season house. They are currently hosting the winter season (which isn't much for me really, having experienced the real thing in Beijing *coughsnobcough*). Plans to follow the track further was marred when Brother's bike had a faulty chain. By the time we fixed it, it was already noon, so we turned back from the Mushroom Park and down to the front entrance.

What I remember most about the trip? The feel of the breezy wind against my face whenever the track took a downhill turn. I really felt as if I ruled the world then.

I so need to go back there again :D