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Sunday, November 30, 2014

Kracie x The Butterfly Project


This year's Halloween was a bit more special, not the usual horror theme but a kawaii theme Kracie product launch with the Butterfly Project! How many of you have actually heard of the brand 'Kracie' or use it before? Kracie, which was formerly known as Kanebo, is one of the largest company in Japan with a wide range of products including toiletries & cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and even foods. And today we were introduced to their Ichikami hair care and Hadabisei skin care series.


The event was kick start with an introduction of the company and their products by Mr. Kojima, who specially came all the way from Japan and he's one funny guy!


We were first presented with their Ichikami hair care series which uses Japanese Botanical Essences to not only repair existing hair damage but prevent future damages as well. One of the main ingredients in Ichikami is rice bran where the Japanese in the past believed that the beauty of a lady is to have long and silky black hair and they realized using rice water can moisturize and protect their hair.


The Kracie team also did a little demonstration on hair styling featuring their Ichikami hair care series. They first apply hair treatment essence to protect the hair from heat damage, curl it, and lastly set the hair with styling gel and cologne to hold the curls longer. Her hair is now looking more healthy and smooth with perfect curls!


Next is about their Hadabisei face masks, which has a wide variety to choose from to suit different skin trouble needs (eg. brightening, dryness-induced wrinkle care, adult acne care).


This time Mr. Kojima decided to demonstrate on his own since we were all busy eating. We were also given two packs of sheet masks, All-in-1 Mask and Eye Zone Mask after the event and I'm totally loving it! The sheet mask is very soft and moisturizing, hence it can absorb into my skin quickly. (Y)


The complete range of Ichikami hair care and Hadabisei skin care series and they are now available at all AEON Wellness stores.




I'm so glad to meet up with the butterflies after so long and this cute mamasan with her green colour wig and kitty specs. :P Thanks to the Butterfly Project and Kracie for the invite, now I'm introduced to another awesome beauty brand and I'm definitely enjoy using their products especially the Hadabisei sheet masks. (Y) Get yours now at any AEON Wellness stores! :)


For more information, please visit
Website: www.kracie.co.jp

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Dream Trip to Macau


Flipping through the photobook which I made for my trip to Macau in June this year, it reminds me of how much I miss Macau and wish to revisit the place again even though it's only 5 months past. Million thanks to Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) and Nuffnang Malaysia, now I have a chance to win a 3D2N all-expense paid trip to Macau (including return air ticket and 2 nights accommodation at a 4-star hotel)! *pinch my face* It's true!


Macau (澳门) is one of the two Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China, the other being Hong Kong. Located across the Pearl River estuary from Hong Kong, with an estimated population of around 624,000 living in an area of 31.3 km2, it's the most densely populated region in the world. Macau was one of the earliest European colonies in Asia and the last to be relinquished (1999) and thus has a more visible colonial history than Hong Kong. Walking through the old city you could convince yourself you were in Europe - if the streets were devoid of poeple and signs in Chinese, that is. The Portuguese and Macanese populations continue to maintain a presence but as expected, most of the population is native Chinese.

Among the thousands reasons, here's the three most amazing things that makes me want to (re)visit Macau badly:
1. Food (especially Portuguese egg tart!)
I've never know Macau is a food heaven until I did research on it and there was a long food list appeared right after. I'm so regret that I didn't get to try most of them but now I'm determined to return to Macau with a food mission! :P Based on my visit to Macau previously, one thing that you must not miss out is their Portuguese egg tart! Slightly charred sweet custard with flaky pastry, definitely the best thing I've ever had in my life! I swear you will never purchase other Portuguese egg tarts after you've tried those in Macau.


2. UNESCO Heritage Sites
Again, I didn't know there are so many heritage sites in Macau, apart from Ruins of St. Paul's, it has now even been inscribed on the World Heritage List, making it the 31st designated World Heritage site in China. With 25 world heritage sites crammed into the compact Macanese peninsula, it's definitely an enthralling place to ramble around and explore. Every corner of the streets in Macau seems to have different meaning and history behind it. I only get to visit a few of them when I traveled to Macau previously as my boyfriend doesn't fancy these heritage sites, museums or even temples.


3. Skywalk Experience at Macau Tower
I guess I underestimate Macau that I've never notice there are so many things that I can do there and do you know Macau Tower actually hold the Highest Commercial Bungy Jump in the world in Guinness World Record with 233m/764ft high? I have fear of height hence bungy jump is totally crossed out from my to-do list but I would like to challenge Skywalk instead, among all the activities they offer. Standing on top of Macau Tower 233/764ft high, take a stroll around the outer perimeter that encircles the tower, it's considered as the most yolo adventure for me already. :P My boyfriend and I have planned to go for Skywalk during our visit to Macau in June but at last I'm too scared to go up there and we went to 360° revolving restaurant for buffet lunch instead. Therefore, I've swore to myself that I will definitely challenge Skywalk the next time I visit Macau!

Many of you must have think that why I'm willing to pay 788 HKD just for that 20 minutes walk around the tower but there's actually many things that you can do rather than just walking (eg. sliding). Take a look at the video below and you will realize how fun is it (kindly ignore the unrelated preview picture)!


4. Hotel Hopping
One bonus point why I want to visit Macau again - hotel hopping! I am serious. Has anyone mentioned that you must visit every hotels when you're here in Macau? Every hotels has different things to offer and the architecture itself is a visual delight as well. For eg. Venice-inspired interior designs and gondola ride at The Venetian Macau, Wynn Hotel's performance lake, Grand Lisboa Hotel in the shape of a lotus leaf, Dreamworks activities including Dreamworks All Star Parade and Meet & Greet at Sands Cotai Central, Golden Pathway which composed by 78 gold bars under the floor at Grand Emperor Hotel and etc. Most of the hotels do provide free shuttle bus from one to another hence it's not a problem to get around Macau especially for hotel hopping.


It's only 5 months past since I traveled to Macau and I can still remember every single thing includes the map of Macau (yes, I actually memorized it lol). As I've mentioned, previously was more of a relaxing trip while now I'm determined to return to Macau with a food mission to make the trip even more interesting and I wish to explore the city as much as I can. Below are the food list which I've compiled from various bloggers, travel books and also the locals that I wish to conquer all if I'm so lucky to be chosen as one of the winner:


Rather than stating why you should send me for this superb opportunity, I can't find any reasons why you shouldn't as I'm being such a hardworking one doing all kind of research of Macau and I have a rough itinerary in my mind already. I still have some MOP (currency of Macau) left from previous trip. :P Once again, thank you Nuffnang Malaysia and Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) for this awesome getaway! 

Friday, November 21, 2014

《圣斗士星矢Online》奇幻世界經典重现


还记得我之前在Instagram发了一张照片说我在Publika偶遇圣斗士星矢(Saint Seiya)吗?日本著名漫画家车田正美所著经典漫画圣斗士星矢终于在多年后由世界领先的中国线上游戏开发和出版商完美世界宣布,在马来西亚及新加坡推出免费大型多人在线角色扮演游戏(MMORPG)-《圣斗士星矢Online》。想必圣斗士星矢的粉丝都迫不及待地想要进入这充满激情的圣斗士星矢的奇幻世界吧!


凭借引擎研发、3D建模与渲染等核心技术上的独特优势,并以自主研发的Angelica游戏引擎、Cube引擎、Raider引擎和EPARCH引擎为平台,完美世界陆续推出了《完美世界》、《武林外传》、《诛仙》、《口袋西游》、《神鬼传奇》、《梦幻诛仙》、《神魔大陆》、《神鬼世界》、《神雕侠侣》、《笑傲江湖OL》、《圣王》和《射雕英雄传》等网络游戏产品,所以我还蛮期待这一次的《圣斗士星矢Online》。


采用了更加逼真3D的模式让玩家玩得更过瘾!





引人入胜的游戏剧情描述五个称为“圣斗士”的神秘武士,即天马座、天鹅座,仙女座,天龙座和凤凰座,为了保护女神雅典娜和地球而与其他奥林匹斯神展开战斗。这个根据经典漫画制作的网上游戏,也呈现了原来故事情节的多种元素,不只让新玩家更加了解故事的发展,也为原著的漫画迷带来怀旧情怀。


《圣斗士星矢Online》封测将从2014年11月20日中午12时开始直至2014年11月24日中午12时结束。玩家可在期间成为首批开始游戏者,享受精致动漫画风,定制无与伦比的个性造型,感受电影式的动作场面和细腻的游戏设计,尽情体验流畅的游戏,投入于充满激情的圣斗士星矢的奇幻世界。玩家可在《圣斗士星矢》网上游戏里单独或与朋友一起玩,以完成任务或继续存活下来。玩家也可选择和多达5人玩多人游戏模式。现在,消费者可在http://seiya.4games.com注册和下载此免费任玩的网上游戏。


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这篇博文除了想和读者们分享这《圣斗士星矢Online》的好消息,我也有好康要送给大家哦!


就是这圣斗士星矢限量版潘多拉宝盒,里头还有许多周边产品哦!

只需一下简单步骤(只限于马来西亚的读者):
1. 到我的面子书,Yuhjiun09.com4Games圣斗士星矢按赞。
2. 留言告诉我你在《圣斗士星矢Online》里最喜欢的角色并留下你的电邮地址。
3. 2014年11月25日优胜者将会收到我的电邮通知。

圣斗士星矢的粉丝千万别错过赢取这限量版潘多拉宝盒,快来参加吧!

博文更新:
恭喜Koey Leow获得这个圣斗士星矢限量版潘多拉宝盒,优胜者请检查您的E-mail还有尽快回复哦!

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Guinness Xmas Bold Confessions Media Launch


Here we are at Guinness Xmas Bold Confessions media launch! Remember that I've posted a picture of me holding a paper with my guilty as charged confessions and saying I was invited to a secret party? This is what I'm going to reveal in my blog today - the grand launching of Guinness Bold Confessions Booth which will be going around Klang Valley in the upcoming weeks!


"As the year draws to a close, thoughts turn to all that has happened over the last 12 months, and ahead to resolutions for the new one. Most of us have done something in the past year to which we'd like to confess and get it off our chest, whether it's not using that expensive gym membership or admitting a guilty pleasure. At Guinness we are all about making bold choices, inspiring our consumers to take a step forward and prove that they are Made of More. With our exciting new Christmas campaign, we're challenging our consumers to stand up, 'fess up in our Bold Confessions Booth, and be rewarded for their boldness." said Bruce Dallas, Marketing Director of GAB.


*Drumrollsssss* This is the Guinness Bold Confessions Booth which will be visiting outlets throughout Klang Valley in November and December. Those using the Bold Confessions Booth will be able to watch some of the local personalities joining in the year-end fun with their Bold Confessions, including Kyoto Protocol, Paper Plane Pursuit frontman John O, and comedian Prakash Daniel.



Ashley is bold enough and be the first to make her confessions during the party. And yes, she's definitely happy with her confessions and ready to start the new year afresh! For those who are too shy or wish to confess at home instead, you can record your video confessions and post to Instagram with hashtag #BoldConfessions and tagging @GuinnessMY.


As I've mentioned, there will be rewards for consumers who are bold enough to step inside and record their confession - a voucher for a free pint of Guinness on their next purchase. Besides, the 100 best confessions will win two tickets to the exclusive Guinness 'Guilty as Charged' party just before Christmas!

So what are you waiting for? Log on to the Guinness facebook page at www.facebook.com/guinnessmalaysia to find out where you can catch the Guinness Bold Confessions Booth this Christmas. Cheers!

✈ Day 3 in Taiwan: Cyuanji Temple (勸濟堂), Baoshi Mountain (报时山) and Jinguashi Gold Ecological Park (金瓜石黄金博物园区)


Getting to know more about the history of Jinguashi (金瓜石) - Cyuanji Temple (勸濟堂), Baoshi Mountain (报时山) and Gold Ecological Park (黄金博物园区). This marks the last day staying in Jinguashi and we will be traveling back to Taipei later in the afternoon. Since we wanted to go to Yehliu Geopark (野柳地質公園) while on the way back to Taipei and we both were carrying big luggage, we decided to hire a driver and took this opportunity to visit places which we didn't get to go in the past two days. So we started off our journey by visiting Cyuanji Temple, the perfect location overlooking the whole Jinguashi area and one historical site here.


Commonly known as Qitang Temple (祈堂廟) to the locals, Cyuanji Temple (勸濟堂) was built in 1896 and is considered as one of the three main temples in Jinguashi, alongside Jinfu Temple and Baomin Temple. Cyuanji Temple has a very distinctive design with an amalgamation of Eastern and Western elements. The wooden carvings throughout the temple's exterior and interior, such as the shrine, table, beams and even pillars are the masterpieces of national treasure folk artisan, Huang Gui-Li during his prime.




This gold and bronze Guan Gong statue holding the Spring and Autumn Annals in hand on the roof of the temple is the largest statue in the world, weighing more than 25 tons and 35 feet in height.


From the highest floor of Cyuanji Temple, one can overlook the exquisite panoramic view of Jinguashi here including the well-known Yin Yang Sea (阴阳海), the Little Jingua Gold Outcrop (小金瓜露头) where Jinguashi got its name from, Benshan Fifth Tunnel (本山五坑) and etc.


Located 250m away from Cyuanji Temple, there's one wooden platform on Baoshi Mountain (报时山) offering breathtaking view of the bay below. When I first saw it in a travel book, I swear to myself that I must visit this place and I'm more than happy to be here! This place is way too gorgeous! Baoshi Mountain is a tiny mountain peak - its name originated during the Japanese Era when large air raid sirens were installed on the mountain; the alarms went off in regular intervals, hence the name Baoshi Mountain.


As I've mentioned previously, there are so many abandoned factories and remains of the mining industry here in Jinguashi and this is one of them; remain of a cable car which used to transport mines from the tunnel above to Shuinandong Smelter (水湳洞精鍊廠).




Coming down from Baoshi Mountain, we decided to visit Gold Ecological Park (黄金博物园区) as one last stop before leaving Jinguashi. The Gold Ecological Park is Taiwan's first museum planned as an eco-museum, the aim being to combine community power and completely preserve the precious natural resources, mining relics, landscape, historical memories and cultural property of Jinguashi.


The first thing I spotted is this Four Joined of Japanese-Style Residence (四连栋) which was formally called Living Art Experience Workshop (生活美学体验坊). Four joined house Japanese buildings are very rare in Taiwan hence it's a precious cultural asset in Jinguashi. If you do notice, this building has actually appeared in Show Luo's drama "Corner with Love" (转角遇到爱) as his residence.



In the Gold Ecological Museum, the first floor exhibitions include a history tour of the mining regions of Jiufen and Jinguashi and its artifacts. The contents include a model of the mining tunnels, displays of the ore seam, old mining equipments and other utilities, along with a history lesson on the Japanese WWII camp. The most popular exhibition is the newly added gold sphere - it truly embodies the prowess of the private gold refineries in Jiufen.








While the second floor's theme is gold. You can spot this map of gold mines around the World once you enter the exhibition, addressing the history of gold, chronicling stories about gold from both Eastern and Western cultures.



They also display how the role of gold has played through mankind - how it is used in different occasions in one's life, such as weddings, funerals, ceremonies and etc. There are also films on gold artisans sharing notes on their creations and display of gold artworks created by local artists.


The main attraction on the second floor is this 220kg gold ingot - the treasure of this museum, featuring an electronic sign displaying today's gold prices. Tourists are allowed to touch it and get a feel the value of this 220kg ingot. Besides, it's mentioned that anyone who can lift up this 220kg gold ingot can bring it home but obviously no one has yet to success.



Among the 9 tunnels in Benshan Minefield, this Benshan Fifth Tunnel (本山五坑) is the most well preserved tunnel in Jinguashi and open to public where tourists can see and feel the mining work done in the past.


NT 50 each person per entry and we were given a safety helmet before entering the tunnel as there might be some water dripping from the top.


To realize the eco-museum ideas and give tourists an experience of being in an actual tunnel and a better understanding of the working conditions underground, Benshan Fifth Tunnel was renovated and partly re-opened to the public as the tunnel experience area.


There are lifelike wax figures and information boards inside the tunnel to show you the process of the ore mining and how the miners worked in the past. Audio guided tour services are also provided through the conversation of an older miner with a younger miner, tourists can get a better understanding of how the blasting, cleaning wasted rock, collecting and excavation were done.



While you walk along the pathway, there's a small booth setting up specially for gold mining experience (costs NT 120) where tourists can get a lesson on how to pan for gold and they're allowed to bring it home of which they accumulated through panning.


Before we going for lunch, we make a quick visit to Crown Prince Chalet (太子宾馆) which was built in 1922 during the Japanese colonial period in anticipation by a visit by the crown prince of Japan but he didn't actually visit in the end. Being the finest Japanese style wood building surviving in Taiwan today, the building and the gardens are arranged in a goose flight formation with red cypress building material forming a pure Japanese style house.


It's getting late when we're done visiting the Museum of Gold, Benshan Fifth Tunnel and etc, we decided to have our lunch here at Golden Impression Cafe and Restaurant (矿工餐堂之黄金印象意式餐厅) and go to Yehliu Geopark right after.


Being the most popular restaurant here in Gold Ecological Park, how can we not order the star item on their menu, Mineworker's Lunch Box (矿工便当) for NT 290 which consists of Taiwanese pork chop with tofu, pickled vegetables, rice and black tea and you can actually bring back the container, handkerchief and even the chopsticks as souvenirs. Honestly, I don't really fancy the food here and I guess people only come for this Mineworker's Lunch Box as momento.


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Recommendations/Tips:
It is not necessary to hire a driver to get around Jinguashi and those places I've visited like Cyuanji Temple, Baoshi Mountain and Gold Ecological park are all easily accessed by public transport (eg. bus). I'm not saying tour guide is a waste of money but I personally prefer to explore like the locals and not rushing from one to other attractions meaninglessly. Tour guide is good as well because they can explain everything to you in details so you can know more about the history of the place and they know which specific point offers the best view. For my case, we wanted to visit Yehliu Geopark on our way back to Taipei and we both were carrying big luggage, it will be very troublesome for us to take public transport and change station from one to another.

For those who need touring, I would recommend my driver, Mark Lin 林冠宇, he is very friendly and he does very detailed explanations in every single aspects. I love the effort he puts in that he even print out some materials like photos for us to understand better the history of Jinguashi. Mark is staying in Jinguashi hence he's very familiar with this area and he speaks fluent English (he used to be an English teacher). You may contact him at 0920416332 or drop him an email at mark0918@gmail.com. WeChat or LINE are also available at @marktouring. I'm not paid to write this but I truly think his excellent service is worth to be credited.

Back to my itinerary, I would suggest one to plan a half day trip here in Gold Ecological Park because there are too many things to see and experience it on your own especially if you're a person like me who is curious of everything and my mum who will actually read every single thing on the information board provided. We only managed to stay here for about 3 hours and made a quick visit to the Museum of Gold, Benshan Fifth Tunnel, Crown Prince Chalet and gold mining experience. The area is so big that there are many stuffs we didn't get to see yet so we will definitely revisit this place in the future!


Sneak peak of my upcoming post of Yehliu Geopark (野柳地質公園) and I will be holding my very first giveaway soon! Stay tuned for more :)


Other posts of Taiwan:
[Accommodation] Levite Villa (利未庄园民宿): www.yuhjiun09.com/2014/10/accommodation-levite-villa-new-taipei.html
[Accommodation] Cloud Village (雲山水小築民宿): www.yuhjiun09.com/2014/10/accommodation-cloud-village-new-taipei.html
Day 1 & 2: Keelung Miaokou Night Market (基隆庙口夜市) & 891 Goldwater Romantic Shuttle Bus (891金水浪漫号): www.yuhjiun09.com/2014/11/day-1-2-in-taiwan-keelung-miaokou-night.html
Day 2: Shifen, Jingtong and Jiufen (十分, 菁桐, 九份): www.yuhjiun09.com/2014/11/day-2-in-taiwan-shifen-jingtong-and.html

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