The Mau Shan Wang!!

We had a Durian Fiesta over the weekend. My in-laws were raving about how good the Mau Shan Wang (literally translated as Cat Mountain King) and I thought I got to give a try. Though my husband doesn't really fancy durians because of its pungent smell and its lingering aftertaste, it was very sweet of him to buy D24 durians and the Mau Shan Wang for me. Thanks Mr Koh, they were excellent!

The durian seller said that Sultan durian is the brother of D24 durian and guess what is Mau Shan Wang then? It is the Father of all Durians of course! = P

Calling all durian lovers out there, have you tried all of them yet?

Mau Shan Wang (Cat Mountain King)
* Grown in Pahang and East Malacca
* Golden Yellow flesh
* Very smooth texture and no annoying fibres
* Sweet initially but get bitter when you swallow

Jin Feng (Golden Phoenix)
* Grown in East Malacca
* Light Creamy and Milky flesh
* Soft and creamy texture and seeds are shrivelled and flat
* More towards sweet but a bit bitter

Hei Zhen Zhu (Black Pearl)
* Grown in Johor
* Slightly greyish flesh
* Each piece is small and have a smooth and creamy texture
* More towards Bitter taste

Qing Zhu (Green Bamboo)
* Grown mainly in Pahang
* Have a thin layer of skin to its flesh and extremely creamy when the skin break
* Very mild taste, not too sweet or bitter

D24
* Grown in Pahang
* Each piece is big and creamy
* Normally used in durian puffs due to its taste, price and amount of flesh in each seed
* Taste bitter

XO
* Grown in Johor
* Pale Yellow colour
* Texture are quite soft and runny. The seeds are characterised to be very small.
* Taste Bitter

D13
* Grown in Johor
* The exterior of the fruit is small and round compared to other Durians
* Dark Yellow flesh
* The texture is moist and have no fibre
* Taste sweet but seeds a bit big

Hong Xia (Red Prawn)
* Slight reddish flesh
* The texture is firm, yet creamy
* Has a bittersweet taste
Here's an amazing video of a full-grown lion's reunion with its owners who bought the lion cub from Harrods and raised him as a pet. However, as Christian grew bigger, they had no choice but to send him to Africa where he could roam freely in the wild.

I have always thought that such ferocious animals will only pounce on its prey or intruder given any opportunity, let alone remembering their owners and giving them a "lion hug" after a year of separation.

Unbelievable!
I received a pleasant surprise last weekend when I was out shopping. At that time, one of the shops was having some discounts for their members but since I wasn't a member, I was prepared to pay the full price. However, what came next was something I wasn't prepared to hear.

Cashier: Are you are member?
Me: No, I'm not.
Cashier: It's ok. I'll give you a 15% discount because you were my teacher.

What really touched me wasn't the discount I received. More importantly, it was heart-warming to know that some students actually remember their teachers and bother to acknowledge or greet them even when they have already left school.

How time flies! She is the first batch of students I taught and now she is already out working. I think in no time, some of my ex students may even be getting married soon. Oh dear, I've really aged!

My dear ex-students,

If our paths do cross one day, please pardon me when I don't remember your names. Just do me a favour by jotting my memory. I will be more than happy with just a simple "hi" and to know that all is well with you. = )
The Preliminary Exams for the 'N' level students are just round the corner (approximately 1.5 weeks from now). I sure hope that my 4B is into their final lapse of their revision. The next 2-3 months are the most crucial period, so don't lose focus now. Press on!

More importantly, don't ever make such blunders during your exams!

Recently, I got hooked onto the Korean drama, "The Legend" somehow. Probably it's because of the cast. They have my favourite actor, Bae Yong Joon (Winter Sonata) and of course, not forgetting his bubbly love interest in "The Legend", Lee Ji Ah.

I think the Koreans have a knack of creating melodramatic love stories. Combined with the melancholic love songs, these stories can be rather moving. My husband will often tease me by pushing the tissue box to my face during those heart-wrenching moments. Arghh...

Though these love stories are usually too dramatic and exaggerated, I still like to watch them. It's a form of escapism I guess. = P


To me, it's fine if the ERP gantries are erected out at sea. But I bet someone is going to jump if he has to pay ERP when he goes out fishing. = P

Prices of food and energy seem to be rocketing sky high lately. It can be pretty tough on the pockets if they are not deep enough to tide over this rough patch.

One evening, we were discussing about some of the belt-tightening measures we could explore if we were ever tangled in dire financial snares. Much to my horror, my husband suggested buying a motorbike to cut down on petrol consumption. More importantly, he said he would look fiercely cool to the students. What?! I was floored!

I seriously hope he meant that as a joke.


Sorry folks for not updating my blog. I have not forgotten my blog, but just that school has been keeping me real busy with the upcoming NOMAD.

It's kind of depressing these days. Not because of work, but because a few of our close friends had either left the country or are planning to leave the country. Joel and Aunty Margaret had already left for China and Japan respectively last Sunday.

Joel took up a teaching job in a Singapore International School in Nanjing. The pay and working hours are really tempting. Maybe some day, I shall apply to teach overseas too for a different experience.

Aunty Margaret is on Professional Development Leave for 3 months. I was kind of sad to see her off at the airport actually. I wonder how she's doing over in Japan now. Aunty Margaret, do up your blog quickly so that we can see your photos!!! = D

Grace is also in the midst of planning for a teaching job in Korea. If everything goes well, she should be leaving soon too.

Why is everyone leaving us all of a sudden?! *Fret, fret*