Bangkok Village Restaurant at Taman Desa Tebrau, Johor Bahru.

Bangkok Village Thai Restaurant (N1 33.296 E103 48.087) is located in the One Garden Center of Taman Desa Tebrau, Johor Bahru.(Easily spotted along the Kota Tinggi Road)

I was curious about this restaurant because of the Garden setting, so we decided to visit it on one of the Saturday evening for dinner.

We were really impressed by the restaurant environment! It's located in the middle of the well maintained garden! Every corners are well decorated. Beautiful!

The Bangkok Village Thai Restaurant dining area

The other side of the dining area, the Ikan Bakar stall at the back

Beside the public dining area, there were also some private tables at another side of the garden which I think it's suitable for couple! Kind of romantic... :)
Me and my daughter walked the area before the foods serve...the surrounding was really nice and clean. On the right of the restaurant, there was a shop selling some decorative items and water features for gardening.

And I like this row of small huts, but it seems like too dark to have our dinner between it...

Nice decoration with water feature

Our order :-

1)  Assam Steam Fish

2)  Mango Salad

3)  Butter Prawn

4)  Bean Sprout with salted fish

5)  Omelette

Assam Steam Fish

Mango Salad

Butter Prawn

Bean Sprout with salted fish

The foods were average. The Assam Steam Fish had a weird taste! We have been tasted many Assam Fish and this was really weird! The Mango Salad, Bean Sprout, Omelette and the Butter Prawn were average, I felt the prawn serve was a bit dark (as you can see from the photo). Overall, the food presentations were poor. Maybe we were unlucky! :)
The advantage of this restaurant was the beautiful garden environment!

The Damage : MYR119.70 included a jug of watermelon juice for 4 adults and 1 child. A bit pricey for the mediocre foods. But the ambience is worth trying if you haven't visit the Bangkok Village Thai Restaurant.

Location map of Bangkok Village Restaurant at Taman Desa Tebrau, Johor Bahru.

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Nicky Loh: Tattoo Girls of Taiwan

Photo © Nicky Loh-All Rights Reserved


Nicky Loh is a photographer with Reuters working in Taiwan, whose specialty is news, sports and feature photography, who's interested in documenting traditional art forms such as Chinese opera.

On his employer's blog, he writes of having had an assignment to cover the 2010 Taiwan International Tattoo Convention in Taipei which, while not newsworthy per se, offered him a good opportunity to produce colorful photographs.

He describes how he decided to set up an impromptu studio in one of the empty booths of the convention, and do portraits of women with fully tattooed backs.

Not only beautiful artwork, but also very attractive women...so a "twofer" as they say.

Nicky Loh: Tattoo Girls of Taiwan

Photo © Nicky Loh-All Rights Reserved


Nicky Loh is a photographer with Reuters working in Taiwan, whose specialty is news, sports and feature photography, who's interested in documenting traditional art forms such as Chinese opera.

On his employer's blog, he writes of having had an assignment to cover the 2010 Taiwan International Tattoo Convention in Taipei which, while not newsworthy per se, offered him a good opportunity to produce colorful photographs.

He describes how he decided to set up an impromptu studio in one of the empty booths of the convention, and do portraits of women with fully tattooed backs.

Not only beautiful artwork, but also very attractive women...so a "twofer" as they say.

Global Post: Turkish Brothels

Photo © Nicholas Dynan-All Rights Reserved
One of my favorite online news provider is Global Post, not only for its cutting edge news reporting and analysis, but also for its frequent "off-the-beaten-path" features such as the one of Turkish transsexual brothels by Nicholas Dynan.

It also periodically publishes Full Frame which features photo essays and conversations with photographers in the field (including myself).

The Turkish transsexual brothels which, we are told, can be located in the busiest streets of Istanbul, and are the work place of some of Istanbul's transgender and transsexual sex workers.

To the best of my recollection, only one attendee of the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in Istanbul last June presented work relating to transgender issues. Pedro Gomes, who attended my multimedia class, produced Esmeray, an audio slideshow about a transgender feminist-sex worker-actor.

Global Post: Turkish Brothels

Photo © Nicholas Dynan-All Rights Reserved
One of my favorite online news provider is Global Post, not only for its cutting edge news reporting and analysis, but also for its frequent "off-the-beaten-path" features such as the one of Turkish transsexual brothels by Nicholas Dynan.

It also periodically publishes Full Frame which features photo essays and conversations with photographers in the field (including myself).

The Turkish transsexual brothels which, we are told, can be located in the busiest streets of Istanbul, and are the work place of some of Istanbul's transgender and transsexual sex workers.

To the best of my recollection, only one attendee of the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in Istanbul last June presented work relating to transgender issues. Pedro Gomes, who attended my multimedia class, produced Esmeray, an audio slideshow about a transgender feminist-sex worker-actor.

My Work: The Salt Maker of Kusamba

Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
A few days before the start of the Bali: Island of Odalan Photo~Expedition ™ , I drove to the eastern shores of the island to photograph the traditional salt making in Kusamba.

I spent a couple of hours with Dewa Yoman Sanat; a traditional salt-maker (or more accurately, salt gatherer) in Kusamba. He guesses his age to be close to 70, and he works at gathering salt everyday under the scorching sun. On cloudy and rainy days, he remains home as a hot sun is needed to evaporate the seawater which leaves a thin film of salt, which is then gathered by Dewa.

He and his wife, Jero Sekar, who also helps him in this back-breaking work, have 7 grand children...none are understandably interested in continuing the salt making tradition. Dewa said that he gets about Rp 5000 (about 50 cents) for every 10 kilograms of salt.

My Work: The Salt Maker of Kusamba

Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
A few days before the start of the Bali: Island of Odalan Photo~Expedition ™ , I drove to the eastern shores of the island to photograph the traditional salt making in Kusamba.

I spent a couple of hours with Dewa Yoman Sanat; a traditional salt-maker (or more accurately, salt gatherer) in Kusamba. He guesses his age to be close to 70, and he works at gathering salt everyday under the scorching sun. On cloudy and rainy days, he remains home as a hot sun is needed to evaporate the seawater which leaves a thin film of salt, which is then gathered by Dewa.

He and his wife, Jero Sekar, who also helps him in this back-breaking work, have 7 grand children...none are understandably interested in continuing the salt making tradition. Dewa said that he gets about Rp 5000 (about 50 cents) for every 10 kilograms of salt.

Seattle

It was our first time to visit Seattle and we're in love with the "Emerald City" at first sight. Emerald City is its nickname, referencing the lush evergreen forests of the area. It's about 170 miles (270km) north of Portland, Oregon and 140 miles south of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. We would like to visit Victoria, British Columbia's capital, which is about 100 miles by passenger ferry -hopefully next summer :) Seattle has nice, cool summer weather, and a great place to escape from the heat of Dallas. Winter is wet with the temperature around 45-55 F degree (8-13 Celsius). It's a great, exciting city and people here are so charming.

This is the first Starbucks store, which has been at Pike Place Market since the coffee company was founded there in 1971. There are many tourists in this store just to buy souvenirs. Along with Starbucks, there are many companies based in Seattle, such as department store Nordtroms, internet retailer Amazon.com, Microsoft... The famous Pike Place Market- Public Market. It's really fun to visit this place. The market is big and there are a variety of goods.
The famous fish throwers at the Pike Place fish market. It's a fun thing to see for tourists. In the picture below, there was a fish in the air.
Riding on the Duck Tour was so much fun. My kids loved and enjoyed it so much. This Duck Tour bus tours you around the city on land and becomes a boat to tour you on Union Lake.

The bus becomes the boat.

1st ave in downtown. Art Museum and Pike Place Market are nearby.

Another fun thing to do, and a great way to see the city view, is to visit the Space Needle. It features an observation deck and the rotating CitySky restaurant. Space Needle has become one of the symbols of Seattle. It was built for the 1962 World's Fair, and has become the most recognizable landmark in the city. It's been featured in the television show Frasier, Dark Angel, Grey's Anatomy, iCarly, and films such as It Happened at the World's Fair, Sleepless in Seattle, and The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.Union Lake seen from the CitySky restaurant at Space Needle.
It was a clear day, so we could see Mount Rainier from the Space Needle.
Downtown Seattle as seen from the rotating CitySky restaurant.

Space Needle and downtown at night.Sunset at Elliott Bay.
Seattle's best waterfall: Snoqualmie Falls, located just 25 miles outside Seattle. The Falls were featured in the popular cult television show "Twin Peaks".
Thank you everyone for visiting and your comments! Wishing you a wonderful day ahead! Kisses...Hanh ;)

NYT: Pakistan Floods By Tyler Hicks

Photo © Tyler Hicks/NY Times-All Rights Reserved
The catastrophic flooding of the Indus is considered as Pakistan's worst natural calamity, which has ruined almost every infrastructural aspect that connects the country together — roads, bridges, schools, health clinics, electricity and communications. The destruction is also estimated to set Pakistan back decades, will weaken its feeble civilian administration and add to the burdens on its military.

The New York Times has recently featured Tyler Hicks' compelling photographs of the disaster in Pakistan's Floods, as the one above of two young girls quenching their thirst at a water pump in Sukkur. It's said that 20 million people have been affected by the floods; a number of people equal to the population of New York State.

According to the New York Times, a joint study from Ball State University and the University of Tennessee, puts the total cost of the flood damage at $7.1 billion. That is nearly a fifth of Pakistan’s budget.

I sense an apathy amongst the Western and Islamic nations to assist Pakistan in its difficulties. Is it because of the widespread perception (or knowledge) that the Zardari's government is riddled with corruption and cronyism, and thus may divert some of the aid? Or is it Islamophobia? Or is simple donor fatigue after Haiti? I tend to think it's all of the above and perhaps more.

And while I'm on the subject, is it only me who now increasingly relies on foreign cable news like China Network Television (CNTV) and RT (the Russian 24/7 English-language TV) for in-depth international news??? The added bonus of course is that these stations have no interest in Glenn Beck and the repellent clowns of his ilk as does CNN, MSNBC, et al.

NYT: Pakistan Floods By Tyler Hicks

Photo © Tyler Hicks/NY Times-All Rights Reserved
The catastrophic flooding of the Indus is considered as Pakistan's worst natural calamity, which has ruined almost every infrastructural aspect that connects the country together — roads, bridges, schools, health clinics, electricity and communications. The destruction is also estimated to set Pakistan back decades, will weaken its feeble civilian administration and add to the burdens on its military.

The New York Times has recently featured Tyler Hicks' compelling photographs of the disaster in Pakistan's Floods, as the one above of two young girls quenching their thirst at a water pump in Sukkur. It's said that 20 million people have been affected by the floods; a number of people equal to the population of New York State.

According to the New York Times, a joint study from Ball State University and the University of Tennessee, puts the total cost of the flood damage at $7.1 billion. That is nearly a fifth of Pakistan’s budget.

I sense an apathy amongst the Western and Islamic nations to assist Pakistan in its difficulties. Is it because of the widespread perception (or knowledge) that the Zardari's government is riddled with corruption and cronyism, and thus may divert some of the aid? Or is it Islamophobia? Or is simple donor fatigue after Haiti? I tend to think it's all of the above and perhaps more.

And while I'm on the subject, is it only me who now increasingly relies on foreign cable news like China Network Television (CNTV) and RT (the Russian 24/7 English-language TV) for in-depth international news??? The added bonus of course is that these stations have no interest in Glenn Beck and the repellent clowns of his ilk as does CNN, MSNBC, et al.

Jon Vidar: The Tiziano Project

The Tiziano Project presents the journalistic efforts and personal accounts of Iraqi citizens living in the Kurdish north, along with stories produced by their professional multimedia journalism mentors.

An extremely well-made multimedia project, it includes stories such as those on the Yazidis, nomadic mountain-dwelling Kurds, a pigeon keeper, a muezzin, a klash maker, and many more.

The mentoring team consist of Jon Vidar (one of the talented instructors at the Istanbul Foundry Photojournalism Workshop, and a freelance photographer who developed self-assigned projects spanning six continents, including work in Iraqi Kurdistan, Southeast Turkey, Rwanda, and Brazil), Victoria Fine, Grant Slater and Chris Mendez.

Jon Vidar: The Tiziano Project

The Tiziano Project presents the journalistic efforts and personal accounts of Iraqi citizens living in the Kurdish north, along with stories produced by their professional multimedia journalism mentors.

An extremely well-made multimedia project, it includes stories such as those on the Yazidis, nomadic mountain-dwelling Kurds, a pigeon keeper, a muezzin, a klash maker, and many more.

The mentoring team consist of Jon Vidar (one of the talented instructors at the Istanbul Foundry Photojournalism Workshop, and a freelance photographer who developed self-assigned projects spanning six continents, including work in Iraqi Kurdistan, Southeast Turkey, Rwanda, and Brazil), Victoria Fine, Grant Slater and Chris Mendez.

Shoes and Clutch update

Nowadays, I love to collect Alexander Mcqueen pieces which they were designed before his tragedy. Yes, I'm still sad for what happened to him whenever I think about it. He was truly a genius.
This clutch is from the pre-fall 2010 collection and I'm lucky to have it. I purchased it at the store 4510. The clutch was sent to our apartment in Portland while we were there last week. I adore the clutch. When I flew home from Portland, I decided to carry it in my carry-on. Guess what? When I went through the security gate, they didn't allow me to carry it on! It's considered a brass knuckle; a weapon. We waited about 15' for their meeting to see if they would allow me to carry it on. It was so serious. I was so nervous and I was so thankful that they all agreed to let me carry it on. It's hilarious how a clutch could be a weapon. Actually, I understand their point. A happy ending.

These are brass knuckles.

My new addition to my shoe collection: Givenchy boots. I love the stitches and how they look old and dusty.

Another addition to my shoe collection: Alaia boots. They're so comfy.

These two pairs of Proenza Schouler shoes in the pictures below are in my wish-list. I'll be so happy if I have one of them :)

Thank you everyone for visiting and your comments. Wishing you all a fabulous day!! Big hugs...Hanh :)

Rose Schierl: Bali Island of Odalan

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
Here's the work of Rose Schierl; the second participant of the Bali: Island of Odalan Photo~Expedition ™ to send images to post on this blog.

Rose has been photographing since 2005, and only gone digital two years ago. She hasn't gone through any formal photographic education per se, but attended various short workshops, and those set by Arizona Highways. Rose won an award at a juried show for one of her photographs in 2009. She's also an accomplished diver, and before the photo expedition was on a diving vacation for a couple of days in the north-west of the island.

So far, it appears the fire-walkers at the end of the Kecak dance performance we attended in Ubud was a favorite subject for the group members. Rose managed to capture one of them kicking a blast of glowing embers (above).

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
One of the shoots I organized during the photo-expedition was at the house of a wayang kulit (shadow puppet) master, where we were treated to a private performance The wayang kulit is an extremely important vehicle of culture, serving as carrier of myth, morality play, and form of religious experience rolled into one. Here, the master is moving one of his shadow puppets during the performance.

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
Here's a Balinese villager who was attending a night odalan in Bitra village. The temple anniversary was one of the most interesting we've been to during the 2 weeks photo-expedition. Not only did it involve the requisite day-time religious prayers and offering in an exquisite forest setting, but it included performances of Barong and Arja dances.

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
Rose captured a dancer during an evening Legong performance at Ubud's palace. The performance included various dances, such as the Gabor, Baris, Kraton and the Taruna Jaya.

Rose Schierl: Bali Island of Odalan

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
Here's the work of Rose Schierl; the second participant of the Bali: Island of Odalan Photo~Expedition ™ to send images to post on this blog.

Rose has been photographing since 2005, and only gone digital two years ago. She hasn't gone through any formal photographic education per se, but attended various short workshops, and those set by Arizona Highways. Rose won an award at a juried show for one of her photographs in 2009. She's also an accomplished diver, and before the photo expedition was on a diving vacation for a couple of days in the north-west of the island.

So far, it appears the fire-walkers at the end of the Kecak dance performance we attended in Ubud was a favorite subject for the group members. Rose managed to capture one of them kicking a blast of glowing embers (above).

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
One of the shoots I organized during the photo-expedition was at the house of a wayang kulit (shadow puppet) master, where we were treated to a private performance The wayang kulit is an extremely important vehicle of culture, serving as carrier of myth, morality play, and form of religious experience rolled into one. Here, the master is moving one of his shadow puppets during the performance.

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
Here's a Balinese villager who was attending a night odalan in Bitra village. The temple anniversary was one of the most interesting we've been to during the 2 weeks photo-expedition. Not only did it involve the requisite day-time religious prayers and offering in an exquisite forest setting, but it included performances of Barong and Arja dances.

Photo © Rose Schierl-All Rights Reserved
Rose captured a dancer during an evening Legong performance at Ubud's palace. The performance included various dances, such as the Gabor, Baris, Kraton and the Taruna Jaya.