Life Updated - Singapore, Malaysia and Now Back To Reality!

Yes...Yes, I know it's been a mth since I last blogged.  Not exactly a great start to the year so far on the blogging front I will admit but you know I just can't seem to make myself blog while backpacking through Asia...probably b/c I would have to do it from my phone and well that's just a pain in the butt lol!

So I'm back from another world adventure...a little wiser, a little older...hopefully a little more interesting.  This time I was off to Singapore and Malaysia to reconnect w/ my travel buddy Ole from my India tour.  You may remember he's backing packing for a year around the world.  So interesting b/c I met him at the VERY beginning of his adventure and now meeting him 100 days in I can see the change...so relaxed, no schedule, no stress...travel suits him well.  Although I'm not going to lie..being that I had only 2 wk (and not a yr) I would have liked if he'd maybe planned one or two things instead of leaving it totally up to chance lol!

So after a long (but actually pretty stress free) journey over to the other side of the world I arrived in Singapore at 1:30 am...there I met Ole at the airport who also arrived on a late night flight.  We headed to our hostel which was definitely "no frills" but it's Singapore and it's expensive so you know I wanted to keep things on the "cheaper" side there...this was actually the only place we had booked beforehand...probably b/c I took care of it...and I'm a planner lol.

Singapore is very different from the rest of South East Asia.  It's clean and modern and expensive...all the signs are in English...almost feels like you're not in Asia anymore.  Therefore we only planned to spend 2.5 days there!

Our first day found us just exploring the waterfront and China town.  But that night we got to meet up w/ my photographer friend Todd Anthony Tyler (resident judge on Asia's Next Top Model) and his wife.  So crazy that our trips in Singapore overlapped by 1 day and we were able to meet up for a drink before he headed back to Shanghai!  Can't believe I've been back here in Canada almost 4 yrs now...man time flies!  For Ole and I it was a real back packer treat to meet up w/ Todd b/c we got to go hang out in the Executive Lounge of the Swissotel where he was staying and get unlimited free drinks and food...yeah nice start to my trip to say the least lol!

Getting our Free drink on at the Swissotel

Next day we hit up Sentosa island...visited a huge ass aquarium and had a great time at Universal Studios...I esp. enjoyed the Transformers 3-D indoor ride...we did that one twice!

My camera doesn't do these creatures justice

Before Transformers 3-D ride...I hated the movie...loved the ride - go figure lol!

Day after we hit up the Singapore Zoo...and unfortunately our zoo trip was a little condensed after we unfortunately were delayed by an hr b/c of a broken down bus!  After the zoo a quick trip back to the hostel to grab our bags and then off to the airport and Malaysia!

I have a perverse love for taking pictures of animals trying to have sex lol!

This animal was just lying there...look how close I got to be w/ him!  Not going to lie though was a bit frightened he had some big claws lol!

One thing all the travel books will tell you...and I will tell you now from experience is that Malaysia is known for food...lots and lots of street food!  It's yummy, it's cheap and it's greasy...so great for back packing...not great for waistline lol!

Ever chance I got I drank a coconut!

First stop in Malaysia was of course the biggest city Kuala Lumpur aka KL...we only stayed there for two nights which was cool w/ me b/c I have to be honest I was over the city life at that point...I wanted some adventure!

Twin Towers in KL that we never actually got to go up b/c the viewings were sold out for the day :(

The plan after KL was to hit up the Perhentian Islands for some much need Sun, Sand and Relaxation...the reality unfortunately was much different then that :(  Upon arriving in Kota Bhure (the port town near the islands) we were in for an awakening..in the form of piss pouring rain...that pretty much never stopped...the whole time we were there...

It was so bad at first we were told we couldn't even get a ferry b/c the waters were too rough!  I'm not going to lie..I got a little stressed out...and may have consumed an abnormal amount of Peanut M&M's to calm my stress lol.  You see Ole may have a year to do what he pleases but I only had 2 wks so of course I want EVERY minute of it packed w/ fun, adventure and good times!  After about an hr of sitting in a the travel agency office we were told we were in luck there would be 1 ferry that day - Yeah!

I don't think if we knew what that ferry ride would have been like if we'd been as excited lol!  I'm not going to lie...I thought we were for sure going to tip or sink or something at some point during this 1+ hr ferry ride. I don't know what was better - me sitting inside dry but w/out a life jacket (as there weren't enough to go around) or Ole sitting outside getting soaked but w/ a life jacket.  The whole time in my crazy mind I was planning my escape route and how I would swim to shore when this boat was overtaken by a wave (which I felt was imminent)...After getting the chance to go in the water and play in the waves off the shore the following day I now realize this was very naive of me as I most surely would have drowned had this boat actually tipped...so thankfully it didn't lol.

So life on the island was not the paradise I would have hoped for...It pretty much rained NON STOP for 2 days straight.  There was a few hrs of dryness the first day and we enjoyed going for a walk around the island and playing in the water.  Most of our time though was spent in Ewan's cafe on the resort.  Very friendly staff, yummy food, cheap prices and wifi so I guess it wasn't a AWFUL.  But I'm not going to lie it wasn't great lol...this was an alcohol free island...there are only two things you want to do on an island when it's pouring rain - drink and have sex...I was partaking in neither activity...

The day came to leave the island and I was just hoping we'd be able to!  Thankfully the waves weren't bad so we actually took a speed boat back to the mainland...again a wet and windy journey to say the least...but we did both get life jackets this time lol...and it was MUCH quicker than the ferry!

During the boat ride off the island...YEAH we're leaving!

Yeah I have a life jacket this time!

Yeah for waterproof mascara ;)

After the island we wanted to do Cameron Highlands but unfortunately monsoon season was holding out longer than normal this year and the weather was not looking great there either...I don't think I could take another Perhentian debacle so we decided just to spend the rest of our trip on the West coast of Malaysia in Penang.

Penang was broken up into two sections:

Georgetown...where we enjoyed some much needed nightlife and alcohol after our "dry" time on the island...only thing that was dry on the island I  might add.  Met some interesting locals during late night walks back to the hotel, had great times at Monkey Bar and even met a crazy, old Australian who showed us a really good night at Slippery Senoritas - booth, bottle service...the works!  Plus we even made time during the day to visit the Butterfly Farm and Penang Hill...and of course visit the street hawkers for more food!

Looking like high rollers w/ our piles of money...only maybe $100 Canadian lol!

After the island I needed a drink so bad I got TWO!  Happy Hour Special ;)

Night Club Adventures

Blue Steel

Not going to lie I was not expecting, nor dressed for a night club event...I felt really gross and sweaty lol!

Penang Hill...Gorgeous Views

 Butterfly Farm

That "leaf" is a butterfly!

The butterflies LOVED Ole...I couldn't get them to land on me no matter how much I tried :(  He HATES this pic...exactly why I'm posting it ;)

Batu Ferringhi...where I ended my journey and spent the last few days getting that much needed sun and relaxation that I wanted so bad. Unfortunately, I think I tried to get a little too much sun a little too quick...my Canadian skin is definitely a lot more sensitive then it was in my youth and instead of achieving a nice golden brown I quickly became a painful lobster red :(

Giant Coconut!

By the pool..before the burn :(

This does not even begin to capture the level of red my skin was...I tried taking this of my back myself in the bathroom lol.  Love how the bikini top strings are even burned into my skin :( lol

Final Night Drink!  Thankfully my face didn't burn as I wear so many cosmetics that have SPF in them...see makeup is good for you ;)

And that is where the trip ends...a very different goodbye than last time...Ole continues on his journey currently in Cameron Highlands (jealous) and then off to Cambodia and Vietnam...even more jealous.

I'm not going to lie...it was definitely not the trip I was expecting or hoping for.  It wasn't India...but nothing ever will be...and it's somewhat sad to try and recapture a moment in time b/c you can't.  It's better just to leave it there and remember it fondly for what it was.  So if nothing else I walk away w/ another life lesson learned.

It was it's own journey...and there are some good memories and times w/ it as well so like many things in life it's better to just appreciate it on it's own terms then try to make it into something it's not.

And now back to reality...MANY updates to come!

2012 - Reflections on Goals & Resolutions

Every year around this time I like to do a little reflection on the past year.  Look at the goals I set for myself...see how far I've come...how far I still want to go.  Overall, this has been a very good year!  My wedding business has grown exponentially in the past 3 years.  First year I did 20 weddings, last year I did 48 weddings and this year I finished out the year w/ 72 weddings!

And again like last year I pretty much doubled my income!  This is amazing for me and it's allowed me to do a lot of things this year that I'd only dreamed of.  Now again, not to say I'm rolling in the money..but I did okay, and I lived okay this year.  I still of course want to continue to grow next year but I'm also realistic and know there is no way I'll see that sort of growth again.

So let's take a look back at my goals from last year and how I did:

1. Travel More - I did travel this year...took me almost the entire year to do it but I did at least get one really good trip in lol!  I'm not going to lie, it's hard to justify taking time of work and worrying about the jobs I might be missing out on but I also have to take a break sometime and just enjoy life!  So in Nov. I went to India for a two week tour...which in turn turned into a 3 week tour!  I figure almost 2 years w/out a vacation I can take an extra week lol.  And the business didn't complete fall to bits or anything like that lol.  I of course wasn't able to keep up w/ things the way I would have liked but I didn't really miss that much work so it was okay.  Plus the trip was a life changing adventure so no matter what it was worth it!

2. Learn Moderation in Living - I think this one is definitely more of a life goal than a yearly goal...b/c I still need to work on this one lol.  I think I did better this year for sure but one this is for sure the word "moderation" was definitely not in my vocabulary in India or over Christmas lol.

3. Grow My Business EVEN MORE - As I mentioned above I definitely did this one.  Going from 48 weddings to just over 70 was a huge growth.  I did more commercial work as well and even had a few cool gigs - def. I highlight was seeing my work on Billboards across Toronto for the Orville Redenbacher campaign.

4. MORE Self Promotion - Yeah I definitely did some good work on this front.  I was definitely very proactive about getting reviews and pics from past brides for promotional materials.  I built an EVEN better wedding website! Got connected w/ some cool companies for product reviews, did some guest posts on other blogs and even had my work featured a couple of times on Style Me Pretty...but again can always improve ;)

6.  Debt & Savings - This is one goal I DEFINITELY am proud to say I achieved!  I paid of my Line of Credit - $20 000 in just over 10 mths!  This is probably one of my biggest accomplishments EVER!  There was a point where I'm not going to lie I NEVER saw that thing going away but I kept working and working and putting ALL the money I could onto that thing until it was gone!  Savings...I've definitely worked on that one too...I actually have money in the account.  Plus I was able to save enough to send myself on that 3 wk vacation to India.  My credit card is always paid in full.  Still have a bit of student loan but that's not bad.  Still do need to start saving for the future...like investments and stuff.

7. Read More! - Yep definitely been doing that!  Even read two books over my vacation.  Feels good to be reading again.  I probably still could work on keeping up-to-date w/ current events around the world...as I will admit gossip sites are an addiction of mine but not necessarily that informative about the REAL world around us lol.

There are some other goals I achieved for myself this year that I didn't necessarily have set at the beginning of last year.

I started looking after myself a bit better.  Went to the dentist for the first time in over 4 yrs...EEK...happy to say though still no cavities :)  I must be blessed w/ good genetics for teeth!  Got new glasses.  Started to see a massage therapist...with my job comes a lot of back problems and I need to stay on top of that stuff!  Even finally made an appt. for a dermatologist...although I had to re-schedule it for Jan. b/c my original appt. happened to fall during my extra week in India.

Plus one thing I've really jumped into full force in just the past mth is working on my HOME...and making it a HOME!  I'm not going to lie I have trouble w/ decorating and home stuff...I've moved around A LOT in my life and therefore never really done much decorating.  The thought of it actually stresses me out...but this year I decided to invest in me and my home!  Before I was always making excuses that I could spend the money on more important things but w/ the debt paid off I thought now was time.

I love my apt. and in Apr. I'll have been here 2 yrs...time to actually make it feel like a home lol!  With the help of a friend I built a Home Studio to host my trials at...this is very exciting and it looks so professional!  I also redid the layout of my living room.  Bought a new desk and made a new office space to go along w/ my new studio!  Bought a rug as the old one was looking a little rough lol!  Plus I've added a lot of storage elements to my apt!  I want to de-clutter EVERYTHING!  I hate clutter and I want things to look as clean and professional as possible!  I feel like de-cluttering my living space will help to de-clutter my life!

So overall it's been a good year and I've done a lot of good stuff!  Next post I'll write about my Goals for 2013...and boy do I have some lol!

Long Over Due Blog Post - Back from India!

Hey All!  I know it's been FOREVER (well a mth) and my apologies for that...won't happen again.  I'm back from India and ready to start blogging up a storm just in time for Christmas...have so many blog posts lined up it's exciting!  I got back from India a week ago but needed a little time to get things back in order w/ home and the business before I started attacking the blog again.  I would have blogged while in India but wifi was unreliable at best and unavailable at worst...and I only took my iPhone...hard to blog from an iPhone.

So I'll give you all a brief update about my time in India...can't talk about it all b/c that would literally take me another week to write lol!  Let's just say it was an amazing and life changing sort of trip where I met an amazing group of ppl that I will NEVER forget!  So amazing in fact I couldn't leave after 2 weeks!  I didn't have any huge obligations back home so I decided why not stay an extra week and take in more of the wonderful experiences that India has to offer (I mean after 2 yrs w/out a vacation I think I deserved an extra week lol).  One of the perks of being self employed...if I want to stay an extra week guess what I stay an extra week!

As I mentioned before I was traveling w/ a tour company called G Adventures which is Canadian based but oddly enough I was not only the only Canadian on my tour but also the only person from North America.  It was definitely an eclectic group of ppl from all over world and spanning decades in age.  Really great ppl though and we all had great chemistry and a fabulous time...no doubt in part due to our amazing tour guide Zahid (Zee)...seriously couldn't have asked for a better guide to show us the wonders, beauty and adventure that is India.

Before I went I actually was on the G Adventures Forum called The Watering Hole look for others on my tour...couldn't find any until about a week before when I actually found a fellow companion Ole from Norway.  I joked w/ him that he had decided to do a little male version Eat, Love, Pray trip...he quit his job, sold his condo and now he's traveling for a year! We chatted for a bit online and then added each other to Facebook so we could "stalk" each other a bit more lol.  It was nice to know before I left that I was going to have at least one person there that I "knew" beforehand.

Just arriving in Delhi I knew I was in for a HUGE change!  I thought I was use to crazy driving having lived in Shanghai for 8 mths but I can honestly say w/out hesitation the Chinese have NOTHING on the Indians when it comes to CRAZY driving...let's just say lanes, blinkers, street signs have no use in India...all you need is a horn and death wish and you're probably good to drive in India lol!

So the adventure started in Delhi but I left there almost as quickly as I arrived...which was fine for me as I can honestly say it was probably my least fav city we visited..but that might in part of had something to do w/ the bit of culture shock and the 24 hrs of traveling prior to Delhi lol.

Agra and the Taj Mahal what can you say...of course it was breath taking and just seeing it was an experience of a life time!  After that we went to Jaipur (The Pink City) again full of gorgeous sites, palaces, forts and a Monkey Temple!  This is also where I got to experience my first real taste of a Bollywood movie in the movie theatre.

After Jaipur we went on to Pushkar, which is an amazing and interesting place on its own - it's completely vegetarian and alcohol free!  But it was esp. exciting b/c we happened to be traveling through it during the Annual Camel Festival which just happens to be Pushkar's biggest event bringing hundreds of thousands of ppl to the normally sleepy city of Pushkar every year.

A really sort of "interesting" experience I had in Pushkar was I actually competed in a Bridal Beauty Pageant...it was aimed at tourists and we got a chance to dress up as Indian Brides w/ all the clothes, jewelry and makeup of an authentic Indian bride!  I figured I'd gotten enough brides ready over the past couple of years might be fun to try it out myself...plus being an Indian bride for a day...how much more over the top can that get!  It was an experience I'll give you that...and just as chaotic and crazy as pretty much EVERY Indian wedding I've ever worked lol!  I actually experienced the chaos w/ a couple of my fellow tour companions - Ally and Sophie.  Being the control free I am I did my own makeup...and b/c of my exceptional winged eyeliner skills I was actually put in charge of doing about 8 other girls eyeliner as well lol! Unfortunately, I didn't win but it was an "interesting" experience nonetheless lol!

Pushkar was an amazing place b/c it's where I got to go on a Camel Safari...not the most comfortable of rides but definitely an experience.  There is an idea in Indian art that the Camel symbolizes Love b/c if you can love a camel you can love anything...I kind of understand that now ;).

After Pushkar we went on to Udaipur which will always hold a special place in my heart not necessarily for the activities that we did but more for the experiences I had and the relationships that were bonded over a beautiful sunrise on a rooftop on magical night/morning.  I'll admit though it was also the place where I experienced my worst hangover...lol

Traveling by jeep we left Udaipur behind and moved onto Ranakpur...this jeep ride was probably one of my fav. modes of transportation.  It was just a really fun afternoon...me playing DJ w/ my iPhone, which for some reason we learned is exponentially louder then anyone else's...good thing I have good music taste where ANYONE can pretty much find something like lol.

My least fav. mode of transportation had to have been the overnight train to Mumbai.  I'm no stranger to overnight trains as I took them when I was traveling in Thailand but this was nothing like the Thailand train.  They were bunkers of three and I had the unfortunate luck of being in the middle bunk...which IMO was the worst...and it was just not a good sleep...maybe I'm getting old or something but man my back just can't take that shit anymore lol!  Whatever like everything else good and bad in India it was an authentic experience and that's what I was after.

One of the big reasons I picked this tour was b/c it was a basic tour...I felt like I'd get a "real" India experience that way...no frills or fanciness here!  Let's just say I'm now a PRO at the squatting toilets in ANY circumstance or condition, I really learned to love and appreciate hot water and I probably smelled really bad for a lot of the trip b/c no matter how much I tried...hand washing in a sink is not the same as washing clothes in a washing  machine lol!  Plus as I mentioned before we traveled in ALL modes of transportation - plane, train, tuk tuk, camel, jeep, cab, rickshaw, bus!

night...so NOT my music normally but in that city, w/ these ppl and those conditions it all felt right!  A few of us stayed right till the end and Zee showed us some real late night Mumbai action w/ some street food bought from an illegal late night restaurant and we also visited a beach which we found out afterwards was against the law at the time of night/morning...Zee may have had some words w/ a cop...
So back to Mumbai...if I'm to compare Mumbai to Delhi I'd definitely say I preferred the vibe of Mumbai A LOT more...I'll be honest this might in part of had something to do w/ the fact that I wasn't culture shocked or jet lagged (although I don't really get jet lag..I'm pretty amazing that way) but the overall feel just felt better.  I liked the culture more and it just seemed less dirty (this is a relative term of course) and the cars didn't seem to beep quite as much...which is always nice.  We only had one night in Mumbai but boy did we make the most of it - there was dinner, drinks, dancing, lipstick moments, street food and some illegal beach entries!  Started the night w/ dinner at the famous Leopolds...which ANYONE who has read Shantaram (I'm currently reading it btw...bought a black market copy in Mumbai in fact...seems appropriate lol) knows is a must see place..just for the experience or to say you've been there!  After dinner it was off to a true Mumbai nightclub experience at Blue Frog where we drank and danced to trance music LATE into the

After that it was onto Goa, which was actually the last time in the two week tour of the trip I had planned!  It was crazy how many places we had visited and sites we had seen but also how quickly time had passed!  A few of the group were actually staying on for a third week w/ another tour which was heading further south into the Kerala region and I knew I couldn't cut my journey yet.  So w/ some MAJOR airline drama, a lot of hours of trying and the wonderful help of a G Adventures flight representative back in Canada I was able to change my flight w/ literally less than 24 hrs left in the trip.  Seriously, I can't give enough props to the ppl at G Adventures not only for their tour but also for their amazing customer service!

After some sad goodbyes it was off to Kochi w/ the remaining 5 ppl on the tour...one of them being my "first" G Adventures friend Ole...kind of a neat full circle thing you know.  What was different in this next week was they were all part of a tour and technically I was just tagging along and following them lol.  So basically I just booked a room in all the same hotels and homestays they did but I had to find my own modes of transportation b/c they had a private bus taking them around.  If I was doing this my first wk in India I think I might have been a bit overwhelmed but after two weeks I felt I was up for the challenge and it was exciting and new so I liked that!  I figured out train schedules and buses all my own (well maybe I had a little help ;) ) and even managed to arrive at all the places w/out and real hiccups...pretty impressive indeed!

The South was a much more relaxed adventure w/ a lot less scheduled activities and cities to visit which was kind of nice given the hectic pace of the first tour.  Some of my fav. meals on the whole trip were actually had during this last week.  Special shout out to Green Palm Homestay in Alleppey which was run by a wonderful and warm family and literally had the best food of the entire trip...home cooked meals at it's finest!  That's one thing I haven't really touched on much yet...the food!  Fortunately, I NEVER got sick the entire trip...I was expecting it but it never happened!  Unforutnately, I literally put on at least 10 pds...no I'm not exaggerating...my pull on cargos capris were tight by the end of the trip.  But you know that's all part of the experience and after awhile you go fuck it and eat some more b/c it's vacation and that's what vacation is for!  Did a couple of amazing cooking classes on the trip as well - one in Udaipur and one in Periyar (one of the stops in my third week).  While it's nice to have a salad again I'll admit I did LOVE all that garlic naan at EVERY meal lol!

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end and that end was in Varkala, a beach resort area where we mostly just sunbathed, swam and indulged in fresh seafood!  After Varkala I took a train w/ Ole back to Kochi and although it was uncomfortable, hot and sweaty it was the perfect way to end the trip and experience the warmth and hospitality I had grown to know throughout my entire time in India.  At least it was nice to end the trip w/ the first person I met on the trip, Ole but some goodbyes are definitely harder than others...

And some flights are definitely harder than others...major delays on the way home and w/ the inclusion of the train ride from Varkala to Kochi I traveled for 48 hrs...ughh I needed a vacation after that!  But I wouldn't give up ANY of it...even the overnight train and gross disgusting washrooms b/c it made all the experiences that much more real and exciting!

Good Bye India...You definitely will have a place in my heart forever...

Here's a few more pics of my Adventure...wish I could share more w/ you but there are literally hundreds!

It's cliche but had to do it lol!

Myself, My Roomate Beci and Ole on one of our MANY tuk tuk adventures!

Monkey Temple

Chai before Henna w/ the Girls!

You can't tell but I'm on a camel

Cooking Class

They are probably much better at hand washing clothes than me that's for sure lol!

Much needed coffee after a long, late night!

Coconut Water - Nature's Gatorade...and a good hangover cure ;)

Puppies in Ranakpur!

Leopolds - The boys rocking out a bit at the beg. of the night!

Illegal Beaching at the end of the night in Mumbai

Canoe ride to Green Palm Homestay in Alleppey

Group Shot - Such a Great Picture!

Train Ride

Now back to your regularly scheduled Makeup & Beauty Blogging Business!