One of my aims in life...

If i remember correctly, at the age of 13 i made a list of things that i wanted to achieve in life. I can't remember all the things in that list but i am sure that one of them was publishing my own book. As years went by, that dream never became reality. Despite of that, I still haven't given up the idea of having my own book (doesn't matter if i don't get to publish it) even if that means compiling and sewing the pages one by one all by myself.

I was so excited when i saw the blog post about the Nuffnang August Blogger Challenge in Nuffnang’s blog. The challenge was to answer this simple question “If the old saying is true, and everyone has one book in them, what would YOUR book be?” I was immediately very excited and i had all these sorts of ideas coming into my mind – personal photography book, cooking book, arts & crafts book, etc...but for some reason i couldn’t really focus on a particular category.

I wanted a book that i could relate to and that would be some sort of inspiration to those who read it. Thus, I tried focusing on questions like “what are the things that i enjoy doing?” “what are the things that i like?” “what are the things that make my day?” It was then that i realised that my life is always filled with so many little things that i do, that i see, that i hear, that i come across on a daily basis which all served as inspiration to what i do and what i am. Little things that inspired me but that i never had the chance to write them down, little things like a word, a quote or even a picture that made my day. These are the little things that sometimes kept me going and inspired me to pursue what i like. Thus, i decided that my book would focus on these little things, hoping that they would bring the same joy and some inspiration to those who read it.

My book would be titled “My Misc. – sometimes life is about the little things that make your day” and would contain some of my photography (of pretty and inspirational things that i encounter), photos of food that i enjoy eating, things that i like baking/cooking and some little craft ideas that i enjoy doing. There won’t be a particular order in which i want the contents of my book to be but my aim is that every time someone opens the book, there will be something in that page that would touch or inspire them.

I hope MY BOOK is creative enough to win one of the three chances to turn my book into reality through Blurb. Thanks for the opportunity, Nuffnang and Blurb! All the best to everyone who is participating in this competition too!

Here are a few sample pages, hope you will enjoy them and feel free to let me know what you think! Thanks.

Little Istanbul

By the time this post is up, i am no longer wrapped up in my thick and black coat but probably wearing a summer-ish dress and enjoying some awesome ice-cream (haven't had that yet! Just had some Thai food for dinner).

I managed to escape the cold and freezing Canberra for a month or so and i am currently enjoying my time in a place where people commonly call it the Shopping Heaven: HONG KONG! My aim is to do some a lot of shopping (hopefully) and to visit as many places as possible and eat all the goodies that are so unique to Hong Kong...and that will include Yum chas, pineapple buns, egg tarts, milk tea and many more! Can't wait~

Before i start posting about my adventures in Hong Kong (and China), here is how i spent my last day in Canberra. We went to Little Istanbul (shop 9b, Tuggeranong Hyperdome, ACT) for lunch and decided to go for the Sovereign Banquet - as it had a bit of everything.

It was a nice day so we sat outside - great for photos! The staff was polite and the service was good. The banquet started not long after we got our Iced Coffee which by the way, was surprisingly nice. It wasn't too sweet and it wasn't overloaded with some dodgy cream!

The banquet started with a selection of dips by the chef and some warm pide bread. We got the following dips: Pancar (beetroot), Havuc (carrot), Humus (chick peas) and Baba Ghanoush (eggplant). My favorite dip was the Havuc and i have to give credits to the Humus! I am not a big fan of Humus but this particular one did not taste 'commercialised' (like the previous ones that i had) and got me eating more than i normally would. We also got two Kabaks which are grated zucchini mixed with fresh herbs - crispy on the outside and nicely soft inside!

Dips and the Kabaks

Dips and the warm pide

Next up was the Chef's choice of pide plus salad. The pide was hot and nice; the filling was simple but delicious.I think we got the Istanbul Pide as it matched the description of such in the a la carte menu - finely minced meat, onions, parsley, capsicum & cheese.

Look at the cheeese!

Our last dish was the Sis Kebab (lamb pieces marinated, seasoned & grilled on a skewer) and Sis Tavuk (chicken pieces marinated, seasoned & grilled on a skewer) served with Pilav (fluffy white rice with pan-fried risoni). The chicken pieces were tender and juicy and to my surprise, i enjoyed the lamb skewer too! It didn't have a strong 'lamby' taste and the meat was tender and soft.

By the end of the banquet, we were very full but satisfied. Great place, great weather, great food, great service...what more can you ask for?