Happy anniversary!

You know what I'm really longing for? Summer. I see other food blogs and whoever who lives in the Northern hemisphere having their summer, and I am so envious, because I can't wait for those days where you wake up and not have a single worry. I'm dying to try out a whole bunch of new recipes, to have movie marathons, sleepovers, go the gym and read all day! I haven't had the chance to read novels because of assignments and tests! I have been holding onto my school library books for too long, you know you have when you attempt to borrow a new book but the librarian doesn't allow you too, and says you have to return the books and put on hold on the new books. It's really poop.

Well, still have another semester to survive. Another 2 months of the bitter winter and then spring.

So Wednesday, the 20th marked my parents' anniversary! Their 30th anniversary. 

Riding an elephant in Thailand.

Last year, around my summer (keep in mind that I do live in the Southern hemisphere and that is why I have my summer holidays during December- January) in January, I visited Chiang Mai, Thailand with my family! Yii-May also came along, which was good to have a sister accompanying.

Visited some silk place.

Silk worms. Disgusting.

Baking

The Salzburg post is the last post of Europe '10. The next day, we went back to Munich, then flew to Dubai. Our flight from Dubai back to Malaysia was at 2 AM, I actually fell asleep. My dad had to start hitting me lol! I'd really like to actually visit Dubai one day. The things I've heard sound amazing, especially the pictures. Looks like an extremely modern city with uber awesome places.

But Europe in 2010, was seriously an amazing trip. I never thought I'd be able to visit Europe until a few years time, and to just see those places, which you pretty much don't normally see on your first visit to Europe (Paris, London are those kind of stereotype places you go to on your first visit to Europe) and experience those countries which used to be part of Yugoslavia. I loved the balance of the scenery change in that trip, from the alps to the Dalmatian coast. Um well except for the cathedrals, I kind of got sick of them.

My favourite country that I visited in Europe? Croatia! Dubrovnik and Split are such lovely coastal places. I would definitely recommend anyone who visits Croatia to at least go to Dubrovnik. The  buildings and the colour are pretty vibrant, not to be missed!

I also hope that sometime soon, I will be able to go to the U.S. I really want to visit, because 

1. The food.

2. The shopping. 

3. Scenery.

4. It's the U.S.

5. I want to take lots of pictures. There's this photo competition I want to enter hehe.

6. OOHH I want to see my little nephews in San Fran :) 

But really, I love travelling to anywhere in the world. It's just something I can see through my eyes and learn about the roots, the history and the beauty. The thing about travelling is that you usually experience the unexpected, see how a culture differentiates with yours and taste different flavours. Sometimes, you see things that really make you appreciate for what you have. 

So anyway, I may be just doing a bit of random posts like Japan, Thailand, Gold Coast. Not really a follow up, unlike Turkey, U.S.A and Europe. Expect a post about Thailand soon!

I also baked some cupcakes for my friend's birthday, Tina. She's my cute, tall and somehow eats like a pig, yet stays so skinny (high metabolism) Korean friend,and I decided to bake her rainbow cupcakes. Don't worry. It's not sickening sweet. It's just a vanilla cupcake with added colouring. And with cream cheese icing. The next time I make cupcakes, I want to use this piping flower tip my mum has which I think would look incredibly cool.

Oh if only you could see the layers and explosions of colours when you ate the cupcakes... But I couldn't, since I brought them to school!

I don't know what is with me, but I love baking for people. I love that feeling when you create something spectacular, or something so simple yet tasty, and it brings smiles. Put it this way, baking is like a science experiment. You have your different variables, your method, and even just one alteration can change the whole thing. 

Oh and did I ever mention that I love science?

Mozart

I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to make another pancake post. I'm starting to make it a tradition to make pancakes for breakfast on Sundays. After a good jog, it feels good to whip up some kind of pancake batter, top it with my favourite fruits like blueberries and banana, honey and cinnamon. I like to use whole-wheat flour. My mum bought a whole tub and I was interested in using it, because I like to experiment and also to cook or bake in healthier ways. This time I made banana pancakes, topped with real maple syrup and a bit of kiwi fruit. The best kind of pancakes I've mad so far! Doesn't get better than this for a breakfast!

Recipe: Whip up any kind of pancake batter, I used Taste's, but I did not have any whole wheat self-raising flour, so I added some baking soda and I also put normal milk instead of buttermilk. I did not use honey as well. I also decided to chop up small pieces of banana in to the batter, so the banana gets cooked! You can even put small bits of chocolate chip or blueberries. There are endless possibilities of pancakes, whether it's a peanut butter, chocolate pancake, or even I've heard, RED VELVET pancake. I'm a pancake girl! 

Salzburg Austria:
On the way....We made a stop near by, and we had to pay for les toilettes. But apparently, the tour guide said that we actually didn't need to pay, they just saw us and decided to charge us.

I wish I ate that.

Salzburg is very pretty indeed. In fact, all the countries I visited in Europe are actually very pretty, I need to stop using the word 'pretty'. Salzburg is the musical capital; the location for The Sound of music and the birthplace of only one of the best composers who ever lived, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.