Tuesday 25 November 2014

Chow Tai Fook x Lee Min Ho

As some of you might know, Chow Tai Fook has been collaborating with Lee Min Ho as its advertising star. Chow Tai Fook Jewellery is a jewellery retailer and is extremely popular in the Mandarin and Chinese-speaking world. Chow Tai Fook has over 2,000 retail outlets in mainland China.

Lee Min Ho is my FAVORITE korean idol and I know him from the Korean drama 'The Heirs'.

On the official CTF website, it says that if you type in a 100 word (English) little message to Lee Min Ho in the box provided, they will then send you a link of the behind the scenes shooting with Lee Min Ho AND a gift coupon for buying CTF's necklace that was specially designed for Lee Min Ho himself. To the whole process easier for you all how do not understand Chinese, here is the link to directly view the 40 second video.

周大福 x 李敏鎬系列 絕密花絮 :) Enjoy

If you want to complete the entire process yourself: 
There have been advertisements online from Chow Tai Fook. If you click on it, it will take you to a page with only one tab at the bottom that is available for you to click into. Scroll the bottom and fill in your message in the first box. Second box: your name that is displayed on your ID card. For the third box, fill in what you want to be shown as on the web (display name/username).

Next box; type in your phone number. Be sure to type your country code in the smaller box! To confirm that you are not computer, type in the number/code that is below the last unfilled box. Lastly, to finish off the procedure, tick both boxes at the bottom and click the red button. This will take you to a page that includes the coupon and youtube link. (Can't seem to find the link? Click on the picture that looks like a Youtube page!)

Friday 7 November 2014

Airline Meals

We were learning about airline meals earlier today at school during Food Technology. I would like to share some interesting information that I have read online with you!

An airline meal is a meal served to passengers on board a flight. The first airline meal was served by Handley Page Transport, an airline company founded in 1919, to serve the London-Paris route. Passengers could choose from a selection of sandwiches and fruits.

Up until now, LSG Sky Chef is the industries most structured and large-scaled provider of airline catering services.

The type of food depends on the airline company itself and the class of travel. Airline dinner meals generally serve meat (chicken, fish, or beef), a salad or vegetable, a small bread roll with butter, and a dessert. Children's meals could also be purchased online when booking the flight tickets.
 
                           Airline meal                                                           Child meal                                                                                    
Religious meals (kosher, Hindu), vegetarian/vegan diets, and medical diets are also served. For Islamic airlines such as Iran Air and Malaysia Airlines, pork and alcohol would not be served as Islamic traditions do not allow any of such foods. However, alcohol can be served upon the request from the passenger.

During morning flights, continental breakfast would be served; traditional pancakes, fried eggs, and fruit and pastry by the side. Coffee, tea, and juice are offered and sometimes, (varying with airline company) hot chocolate as well.

Some airline companies use metal cutlery but with the outbreak of SARS during 2003, most airlines have stopped using them as the disease can be easily transmitted. A large quantity of the airlines today use plastic cutlery that can be disposed immediately after use but others have once again reversed back to metal ones after the SARS outbreak.

Airline meals are to be cooked ten hours before take-off. Chicken would be cooked to 60% and beef to 30%. They will be loaded onto the plane and then put into a convection ovens for twenty minutes where hot, dry air would be blasted over the food to reheat it. Open-flamed grill ovens are not allowed on air-flights. Newer planes might own steam ovens which are better at keeping the food moist.

Meals on the plane would be more heavily salted and spiced as our taste buds are MIA* on the plane due to high altitudes. The lack of humidity on the plane and air conditioning would dry out our noses which loses 1/3 of our sense. Moreover, the air in the cabin is recycled every two to three minutes and plays a part in making us feel more thirsty.

Fun Fact: Have you every ordered tomato juice on a flight? Try it next time! An observation shows that many people seem to order tomato juice on the plane. The extra acidity of the juice seems to taste nice at high altitudes to our numbed taste buds.

Figures show that most people think that only ice-cream taste the same as it does on normal sea levels. However, the packaging, freezing, drying and storage are hard to manipulate any flavour at any altitude, let alone 30,000 feet.

Wednesday 5 November 2014

Stars Who Look the Same: Eun-Ji (A Pink) and Jinny Wu (吴若希)

As you would have known from my last post, I have become really interested in Korean Pop music recently. I have noticed that Eun-Ji from A Pink looks extremely alike with Canto singer Jinny Wu.

   
Jinny Wu                                          Jeon Eun-Ji

Some people said that Jinny got plastic surgery and that she aborted before when she was in her teens. Some even accuse her of faking her age (Born 1992, aged 22)!

What do you think?

Thursday 30 October 2014

Nice Korean Pop Songs That I enjoy

I really enjoy listening to music of any kind, but recently, I have become absolutely IN LOVE with Kpop.


Kpop is short for Korean Pop. It is a music genre originating from South Korea. Dance is a very important part of Kpop. Kpop groups would dance and sing when they perform their songs.

Unlike other singers from different parts of world, who simply need to sign a contract with a record company and debut, kpop artists would need to train for a long period of time before debuting. The most common timespan for training is two to three years, but some only need to train from a few months to up to ten years at most. It all depends on the trainee's music ability.

Singers/Groups That I Like

Bae Suzy- Commonly known by her stage name as Suzy, she is a South Korean singer and actress. Born in 1994 (Aged 19), she is quite young to be debuting at the age of 15. With her sweet smile and angelic voice, she has gained much love from fans around the globe and took on the name 'Nation's First Love'. With her rising popularity, Suzy burst her way up as #1 CF Queen, with over 15 different commercial endorsements in 2012 and surpassing Girls' Generation's (SNSD) Yoona. You go, girl!

She is also part of a Kpop girl group Miss A. 'A' stands for Asia, as there are 2 members who come from China (Fei and Jia) and one from the US (Min). There are a total of 4 members in Miss A (debuting under JYP Entertainment)
From left to right: Fei, Jia, Min, Suzy

I really like how clear Suzy's voice is and the fact that she has a really wide vocal range. Low notes? Easy pie! High notes? Ace it! Suzy's high notes are my particular favourites.
Hear her hit those high notes!

'A Goose's Dream', performed in the TV series 'Dream High'


I love her smile! She could also immediately put off a sexy image as well as return to her cute looks. It is proven from her predebut photos that no cosmetic surgery or any kind of procedure to change the way she looks was undertaken.
   

F(x)
A South Korean 5-member multi-national girl group who debuted under SM Entertainment. They released their first debut single 'LA chA TA' in 2009.
  
            Debut MV :)

Victoria is the only Chinese member in the group and also takes up the role of their leader. Amber is a Taiwanese-American rapper in the group and an excellent dancer (to my oppinion) who stands out with her dance moves. Luna and Sulli are the Korean member along with Krystal, a Korean-American member. Luna is the main vocalist and Krystal as the lead vocalist.
From left to right: Sulli, Amber, Krystal, Victoria, Luna

They slowly started to gain popularity with their first extended play 'NU ABO'.

'F' stands for flower, a feminine item. '(x)' stands for the femal chromosome. I am so glad I knew this! At first, I thought 'f(x)' was just another meaningless name.

My favorite song from them is 'Danger' and 'Red Light'. Red Light is their lastest album released on July 7, 2014. Krystal is my favorite member! She is too cute and pretty to be real. Having been inherited her athletic genes from both parents makes up for her perfect physique. Her sister, Jessica, is a member of Girls' Generation. No plastic surgery has been done on Krystal.

However, my favorite vocalist would have to be Luna because she can reach notes that are quite high and is known for her wide range and various OSTs from TV series and films.
   
BTW, I love Luna's 'short hair' look for red light

So basically to sum up EVERYTHING I just wrote, THE COMEBACK WAS GREAT. I LOVED IT. THE DANCE MATCHES THE MUSIC SO PERFECTLY.

 2pm
A South Korean idol group who also debuted under JYP Entertainment, they are the 'older brothers' of Miss A. They debuted in 2008 with '10 Points out of 10'. The group consists of 6 members: Nichkhun (Thai-American), Jun. K (Korean), Taeyeon (Korean-American), Wooyoung (Korean), Junho (Korean), and Chansung (Korean).

My favourite member is NICHKHUN (Nichkhun Buck Horvejkul)!!!!!!! He is so cute and has a great personality. His legs are super long and slim and catch my eye everytime (This is a bit weird, but I have a leg obsession with guys). Even though he is not Korean and has debuted under a Korean group and in Korea, he tries very hard to improve his Korean.
   
       That smile :)                                                                                   No cute smiles? Then Fierce!

He is also fluent in English because he was born California and then moved back to Thailand at age 5. At age 12, he moved to New Zealand for a year and a half.

Favourite Songs


Crybaby - Shin Ji Hoon                          Kiss Kiss - Ladies' Code (RIP)
Hush - Miss A                                         What's Your Name - 4minute
Blacklist - Hyuna                                    Mr. Chu - A Pink
Red Light - f(x)                                        Sugar Free - T-Ara
1 minute 1 sec- Jiyeon                             Painful Love - Lee Min Ho

Tuesday 7 October 2014

New Phone: HTC One M8!!!

It's been a while since the last post I wrote, but I'm back! I just got a new phone and I will be reviewing it for you all! How amazing is that?

I was using Samsung Galaxy S3 before this new phone. I was not satisfied with the lagging and I felt that it was time to make a change. The 'driving mode' was always popping out all of a sudden and then the phone would not function whatsoever. I HATE THIS! I had to format my phone because of this once. I was afraid that my phone would shut down on me before I could save or backup anything from it.

I bought the new HTC One M8! Well, it's not really that new. It was released in March 2014 and is currently 5 months old since its release date. This is the best phone I have found on the market so far with a great front camera AND back camera. It looks very modern with its gunmetal grey colour.

Speakers: 10/10
I have to say, the speakers are absolutely fantastic. The double speakers on the front of the phone helps create louder volume for playing music and videos. The music sounds very 3D and seems as if it is surrounding you from all around. This is by far the BEST music playing phone I have ever encountered. Many of the other phones I have seen are either too quiet even when its its maximum volume or sounds as if its trying to burst your eardrums. I AM GETTING COMPLETELY OBSESSED WITH THE SPEAKERS!

Keyboard: 5/10
It includes the swiping keyboard where you can swipe your fingers over the letter keys and produce the letter that you want to type. However, mine does not function. Additionally, the keyboard lags a tiny bit. This will be weird,

Screen/Display: 10/10
The display of HTC One M8 is fantastic! It is extremely clear and high quality. The colours are vibrant and distinct from each other. Even if the brightness is at its lowest, it is still quite bright.

Camera: 9.5/10
The back camera is very high quality and clear. Numerous filters are pre-installed into the phone itself and there is a dual camera for editing photos afterwards. The dual camera is for the focusing effect where you can blur other objects in the photograph while keeping others clear and highlighted. You can even adjust the brightness of the photo so that in brighter places, you can make the photo darker to balance the lighting and make photo brighter in darker places. I really like this feature.

The front camera is performs excellently compared to other phones currently market. Unlike other phones on the market which claims to have wide-angled selfie cameras, HTC One M8 ACTUALLY has a wide-angled camera perfect for group selfies. It is also high quality and produces HD photographs.

Much similar to Sony, there are also beauty applications that can used to edit photos such as eye enlarger, smoother skin, skin whitening, face slimming, anti-shine, etc. Stickers and picture frames can also be added. It does not have Sony's 'make-up edit', though these face touch ups are close enough.

Calling: 8/10
I figured the phone has really powerful speakers because don't worry, you can be heard even in very noisy places. Answering calls from someone else is very clear and loud as well. However, for some phone models, answering these calls can be a bit difficult to hear.

Instagram: Bad Point
I am not stating that Instagram is responsible for this, because my previous phone was capable of this. HTC One M8 does not allow double tapping on photos to like it. I have to press the like button. Apart from this, everything is still the same.

Other features:
- Hold onto the volume key and tilt the phone to unlock and open camera
immediately
- Double tap screen to wake it up
- Swipe upwards to unlock
- Swipe to the right side to open up news feed

Points for compliments:
- Unlike the S3, The HTC One M8 does not heat up easily when it is in use
- Extraodinary speakers
- Great screen display
- Long lasting battery life

Overall,this phone is an absolutely magnificent phone. I would extremely recommend this to my friends and family.

Thursday 27 March 2014

Book Series- Gone

'Gone' by Michael Grant is a very popular book series amongst adolescents and teenagers between the ages of 11-16. Why did I start reader this series? Well, all my friends started reading it and they said that I'd enjoy it, so I started it. The good thing is that all the books are in my school library!

Plot
Everyone in Perdido Beach, California, over the age of fifteen suddenly disappear. Whoever has their fifteenth birthday 'pooNo adults in town to take over, Perdido Beach soon becomes a chaos with kids running around, scared to death. Sam, otherwise known as School Bus Sam, becomes the bravest boy. Everyone goes running to him, asking him what is happening. What will Sam do to keep the town calm?

                                              

There's the bad guys and the good guys here, so it is a good book! I am currently on the third book, Lies, and it is such a page-turner! I would definitely recommend this book! I am sooo hoping it is going to be made into a movie someday!


Wednesday 12 March 2014

My Bad Knee- Osgood Schlatter

Bad knees can be caused by both environmental factors and genetics, but in my case, the genetics of having bad knees probably runs throughout my family. To be specific, my mom has bad knees, my two brothers have bad knees, and now... me.

The pain in my knees started about a month or two ago, when I started Intermediate Foundation in ballet for a few weeks. For my normal grade 5 classes in ballet, I SHOULD only do three hours a week if I am doing the exam (You can choose to take the exam or not. If not, then you'll only have to do two hours.), which I am. This is my schedule for dance:

Wednesdays- 2 hours:  5:30-6:30 , followed by 6:45-7:45
Fridays- 1 hour:  6:30-7:30
Saturdays- 1 hour at North Point (North Point is very far from where I live):  10:00-11:00

I tried to bite the bullet and just assume that the pain was just that I was a bit too heavy with too much jumping. However, as time passes the pain spread towards around the middle of my leg, and then became a constant daily pain. It doesn't hurt when I walk normally, only when I do activities that put a lot of pressure on my knees such as running, jumping, climbing stairs, etc. 

This was when I went to the doctor, and he said that Osgood Schlatter is very common amongst children my age (aged 9-15) which are starting puberty. Children with Osgood schlatter are usually involved in sports that require a lot of running, jumping (that's me!), kneeling, squatting, etc. The doctor also said that it is fine and that my patellar tendon is probably just suffering from an overuse that has caused in injury. He reassured me that this would stop after I have finished growing and puberty.

When I asked how I could stop it from hurting so I could participate in my activities, he told me to get a patellar tendon strap. I didn't really get the theory of the strap but he said that it would prevent the pain. I have started using it for the first time at dance class today. It actually does help relief the pain! I really like the strap. However, it is quite hard to determine where to apple the strap because it isn't supposed to be too loose but shouldn't be too tight to cut of circulation. My looks something like this:
                                           
I have some friends in the class at North Point have to wear this as well, so I guess it's not something very rare and that maybe it's not because I'm too heavy, afterall (Well, ok maybe I am)! Do any of you have something like this?

Thursday 27 February 2014

Secret Title (Shhhh :)

Well, everyone my age has a crush. EVERYONE. So don't you go like, 'Ohmagod, she's so young and she's starting to LOVE somebody.' No, so SHUSH! I don't particularly LOVE that person like I'd DIE for him but I feel like he particularly stands out in my class, well, among the boys at least. It's NOT because he's good-looking or something, 'cause he isn't! I feel guilty now for saying that, it sounds like he's ugly...

I don't really know why I like him. I think I really like the way Nicholas Tse answers it when he has to do interviews and people ask him this. He says that you can't really like a person because of his/her factors, because, for example, you like person A because he/she's funny, pretty, etc. So what if you find someone prettier and funnier? Would you not like that person A anymore?
                                      

He has braces as well, just like me! I feel like many things put us together coincidentally. For example, I have sat with him in science for two terms, teachers always tells me to work in groups with him, we're always sitting near each other, etc.

I feel like I always want to talk to him when I'm near him. Make fun of him. Laugh at him. Talk about something. Just...something to keep us connected!

He's pretty smart as well! And a bit good lucking. So cute! The stuff he does without intentionally doing it would make you laugh. Seriously.

However, he has this best best friend called B. Whenever I'm near him, for example, just getting my stuff from the locker and he's right next to the locker, B would go like,'Aya she likes you. Go talk to her. You like him too right?' right in my face! I just ignore him. Though I can feel he's embarrassed.

There was this really cute thing he said one time in DT class. I put my food from Food Tech class on a chair and they had to put back the chairs, for some reason. I was at the toilet, so when I came back, he said this, and remember, the teacher was talking to the class about something. Hear how it goes, 'Your food's under the table.' I was so touched! BTW, don't think the food is on the floor. The DT desks have a small cabinet under the wood tables for putting thin materials such as paper, etc. I don't care who put it, but it was so sweet of him to tell me! He said it really loud in front of the whole class, so the teacher said something like having to talk over him and being impolite. Afterwards, I kept saying thanks and he was like, 'Your welcome. No problem.' (Psss, he speaks really poshly :)

The whole class knows I have a crush on him. For some reason, everyone knows when I have a crush on someone. Do I really make it so obvious?

My best friend, V, told me once that she had a conversation with him. Here it goes:

'Hey V. Does Vivien have a crush on me.'

'Ugh...I don't know. Ask her yourself!'

'Oh come on, just tell me.'

'Fine, then tell me if YOU like her. Then I'll tell you.'

'Yes, I have a crush on her too. Now tell me.'

'Hehe, not telling!'

Anyways, just releasing my feelings here, buddy. No need to make a big deal.

Wednesday 5 February 2014

2014 Reading Challenge!

Hello, my blog viewers! As you all know from my earlier post, I am a member of Goodreads! So, on Goodreads, there is a 2014 Reading Challenge and I have made a goal for myself of reading 50 books in 2014!

50 books may sound like a lot but with all those holidays coming up such as Easter, Ching Ming, Christmas, etc, reading is the only way for me to past time.

Right now, my progress is so far so good! I have read 11 out of 50 books which means I have completed 22% of my challenge. I am 4 books ahead of how many books I'm supposed to read once I start the challenge, and I really like the idea of this reading challenge!

What about you? Have you set a goal for yourself of reading how many books in 2014? :)

  

Monday 3 February 2014

How to Follow My Blog

If you are interested in my blog and would want to be updated with my posts, go on your google account and follow these instructions:

More>Blogger

You will see on the left hand side, 'Reading List'.

Reading List>Add>Add from URL (http://vivientamstc.blogspot.hk/)

Following Options>Follow Publicly as .....  or Follow Anonymously*>Follow

*This is up to you to follow publicly so I can see my lovely followers, or just anonymously. It's fine with me! :)

Thank you all for 1,620 views! Hello viewers from the US! Hey viewers from Hong Kong! Wow, even viewers from Australia, Philippines, India, and Russia! HI EVERYBODY!
excited (1532) Animated Gif on Giphy  

What You Should Do to Succeed

1. Take Responsibility


Taking responsibility for yourself and what you do is a great way to lead to success. When you do something wrong, stand up and admit it! Don't blame others. If you always think that it's others that's causing you to do the wrong thing, you'll blame them, get angry at them, etc. Eventually, you'll get yourself mad, and not even correct what you did wrong!

2. Build Up Your Knowledge


Study hard in schools, test, and exams! Dedicate your life on trying to become an even better person that you already are! If you are not in school, you can take extra classes whenever you can to learn more things for more job opportunities!

3. Create a Healthy Habit, Not a Bad One


Creating a healthy habit such as doing homework earlier than the due date instead of rushing the night before, working on regular sessions on the work your boss gave you instead of running late at night to finish it, and so on. This can ease your mind a bit more instead of stressing it so much on a single night just because you have to finish an essay or report...

4. Take Care of Your Body!


Taking care of your body is extremely important, even if you don't really want to succeed in your life. Eat healthy! For example, don't eat all that C.R.A.P:

C- Carbonated drinks
R- Refined sugars
A- Artificial food
P- Processed food

C.R.A.P. makes you unhealthy. Also, don't just eat healthy. Eat at a regular time. Don't eat your lunch at four o'clock on Tuesday and at twelve the next day! Find the best time your body is requesting for food! 

Sleep at the right time. To some of you out there, this means sleeping at 2am is NOT the right time!

5. Build Good Relationships


Be friends with a variety of people! Networking is a good way to move yourself up to a higher level and can get you to where you want in your life! Make friends with people who work or go to where you want for your job. Show them how hard-working you are! They'll be impressed and may even want to hire you! Plus, you can even make great friends. :)

6. Plan Your Future, Set Your Goal


What would you want to do when you grow up? What is your dream job? Be prepared for what you will be when you grow up and plan for the best. Planning helps you prepare for things in the future and improve self-control.

7. Control Your Bank Account


When you actually want to go for the job, you wouldn't want to have your bank account empty! Save up your money for future use. Avoid large debts. This might ruin your profile when you interview for a job. Think beyond your age. Going out all night for those spending all your money and having fun? Cut it out! Ah, and don't buy that $6,000 phone. Buy a cheap phone with the functions that you'll need, not a phone that can go on Facebook all day long...

I hope this can improve your life! Leave a comment if you have anything to say!

Monday 20 January 2014

Come join me!

Hello viewers! This is exclusively for you guys out there! You can come closer to me by following my daily posts!

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Monday 6 January 2014

Book Review: House of Night Series; Marked

So, for those of you who know me, I LOVE vampire novels. Absolutely ADORE them. I don't care how the author describes the vampires but I just LOVE vampires. Twilight is my favorite book, of course. It was the starting point of my whole "vampire-loving" thing. My best friends recommended me this book because (1) it's about vampires and (2) it's in the library.

Summary

Marked is the first book for the "House of Night" series by Kristin Cast and P.C. Cast. It revolves around a 16 year old Zoey Redbird who gets Marked by a vampyre tracker and begins to undergo the "Change" into an actual vampyre. So, she gets kicked out of her house because everyone is freaked out by her glowing crescent moon mark which indicates that she has been Marked and moves to a vampyre boarding school called the House of Night. There, she meets other fledglings just like her, also undergoing the "Change". Those whose bodies are not strong enough or reject the "Change" will die...

At the House of Night, she meets new friends and a whole new family, but she is not like any normal fledgling. She's different...

Opinion

To my opinion, I am LOVING this book. I would say about 4 out 5! It creates enough creepiness for the reader to flip to the next page nonstop but is also able to relate to teenagers our age about friendship and crushes. I'm going to go on the the next book, Betrayed, once I finish the book I'm reading now, which is "Carrie". I may do another review again about "Carrie", so stay tuned!

Comments

For those of you out there who have read this book, or even better, the whole SERIES, please please please comment what you think about this book! Did you like/not like it?