Today at 2pm, i had a lunch date with my friends. I just finished the Food Lecture. I felt bad, because after seeing those malnourished and underfed children, i am actually going out for a lunch date with my buddies! It's unfair, that we are secured having known that food will always be available to me when i'm in school or anywhere else for that matter. Food is always within my reach, as long as i can afford to purchase.

I hope that global poverty and hunger can be overcomed in future. It's horrible to see children dying because basic needs are not met, yet so much of aid and subsidiary rations are still unaccessible to most indigent families in Africa.

And that, is also reason why i always finish whatever is on my plate. I would think about the poor kids and how i should not waste my food. Even a tiny morsel of leftover, would be precious to them...

It's Deepavali today! Everyone is home, except for my dad. So, the rest of us took the time to cook something extra special than usual. Mother cooked Asam Pedas with fish heads in it, and my brother cooked Chili Crab. Really, no joke!

My brother asked a friend for the recipe for chilli crab. I told him that our mother's recipe is better, and had always been our family favourite. However, it seemed that he wanted to try something new. My brother is starting to venture into the kitchen and trying out the cooking domain recently and maybe, trying something new is his objective. He was quite independent. Together with his wife, they bought crabs from a local market. However, my mother was asked to help clean the crabs.

Moving on, during the afternoon, my brother went into the kitchen with my mum, while his wife took care of their son. I decided to observe the scene.

My brother was very attentive, following the recipe closely and asking my mother for help to do certain tasks he was unsure of. I heard my mother guiding him all the way in the kitchen, and by half an hour, the chilli crab was done! At the same time, my mother had also cooked Asam Pedas Fish head, omelette and stir fried long beans to go with the chilli crab. Because my newphew was also sick, she cooked a pot of chicken porridge. I'm quite amazed at how much cooking can be accomplished within 1.5h. After all, that amount of time was what was needed to cook ONE meal during my cooking project!

I was in charge of tasting, giving the verdict of the chilli crab cooked by my brother, with my mother's guidance. It was not so bad, but the taste of tomato sauce was overwhelming. I think i preferred my mother's own recipe.

The chili crab was not bad. I could distinctly taste tomato sauce in it, because apparently my brother used half the tomato sauce bottle. It's spicy as there were grounded black pepper in it. The crabs were medium sized, the palm of my hand.

In all, i love it, because it was a special day that my household had actually something very delicious to eat =)

Today i got home late at night, and found something in the kitchen. Seafood Tom Yum!

I thought that my mother had cooked it, but it was my brother and his wife who did. I was impressed! The soup was quite spicy and the seafood was nice. There were sotong, chicken, crab sticks and prawns. I ended up having a second helping of rice with tomyum.

When my dad got home after me, there were no more rice left. So, he cunningly added in maggi mee into the tom yum soup. Voila! He had Tom Yum seafood noodles for dinner!

For the past few days since Monday, i had been having the same food for lunch in school. Due to tight schedules, i am not able to eat in peace. More often than not, i had to pack full lunches and eat them in lectures. And because i did not have the luxury of time, i had to resort to buying food from the Arts canteen from the same stall. It's only because (honestly) i think that the Malay stall does not serve good food. And so, Western it is. If someone were to check my cholesterol levels, it must be high. That's because i had eaten two eggs almost everyday for the past few days since Monday. And today is Thursday.

At first, i feel uncomfortable eating in the LT for fear that other people can smell the aroma of food coming from me. But, i had no option. I can't go on without food for long periods these days. It seems as though my ability to 'fast' had worn off. But precisely because the fasting period is over, in my head or body, it demands that i feed my empty stomach.

If i don't fill my tummy, then nausea starts to kick in. And i hate that.

Tried something new today with my boyfriend. We headed to TCC for a snack after brunch. It was the first time that i went there, and indeed, it's a first to remember.

The drinks were VERY refreshing. I had a Chocolate Mint Frappé while he had Mocha Villa. As for snack, we wanted this mushroom dish, but the kind waitress told us that wine would be present in the cooking. Thus, we changed menu and settled for this prawn finger food. What is special is that there were caviar on it, which was the first for me to try. I never had caviar before, and normal fish eggs from the wet market don't count!

The ambience was absolutely magnificent. It was not just a cafe; it was a boutique gallery/cafe. I never knew that TCC has expanded so luxuriously. In fact, i personally think that TCC might be better than Starbucks or any other coffee chains. However, the downside is that the drinks and everything else from the menu, costs much more. Perhaps, i would go again only during special occasions. For a start, i would recommend you to try going there in future. =)

These days, i've been staying late in school to study. It is also largely because i did not want to fight the human and road traffic during the peak hours. Thus i stayed back late to finish my work. My routine is similar everyday. 

Right after the last class which ends at 6pm, i would firstly head over to the Engineering canteen for my dinner. Engine canteen is my favourite, it boasts a wider range of food compared to Arts. Then, i would sit alone and have my dinner. Eating alone is not an issue to me. I have known that it is to some. I do not think that, as discussed in tutorial, that people who sit alone for meals are loners. 

In fact, i think it's something to do with breaking social connections. Because i had mentioned many posts ago that eating is socialization, in breaking contact with other humans and choosing to eat alone, one is seen to be deviant by disintegrating that social connections as expected from society. 

I have a very good reason to eat alone: I can freely enjoy food in peace , without having to talk to others. 

That said, it does not mean that i like eating alone too. That's a different matter altogether.  

Hari Raya outing with friends are great!

Starting at 11am in the morning, almost everyone gathered far and near at one house, and the host of the first house served us Mee Rebus!

There were so many other houses that served food. From house to house, i had so much to eat. My stomach was filled to its capacity. But, no matter, i tried to eat at least something because i think that's just a way of being courteous to the host. After all, cooking as we learnt, is a tedious process that requires patience and skills. It is only fair that we appreciate the hosts by eating their food. If we don't eat it, then who will? The food will be wasted, or kept as leftovers for the next day.

So, from Mee Rebus, to Satay, Fried Chicken, Fried Rice/Noodles, finger foods, Lontong, Tulang ( bone steak) and many more i could not remember! All these food to pamper one's gastronomic adventure for the day.

In the end, everyone weighed much heavier than they had started in the morning. Haha!